#poppy kessler

[newriverartist]

The Geek Squad came through again!

Antler Swirl 16″ x 20″ acrylic painting $705 https://www.etsy.com/listing/164974703/antler-swirl-art-16×20-acrylic-wildlife?click_key=59cc84a0ba46b3d95fe6b8c38f8bfe69f0e32724%3A164974703u0026amp;click_sum=73f97d32u0026amp;ref=shop_home_active_9u0026amp;frs=1 The Geek Squad figured out what was wrong and my son got his Facebook account back. He was hacked. The day before we got help we went…

[mousiesims]

     “Getting too old for parties?” Poppy looked up just in time to see Azure sit next to her with a teasing smile. 

     “Speak for yourself. I see those gray roots,” Poppy responded. The two shared a small silence that was immediately broken with laughter. Time had snuck up on both of them, but neither seemed to mind. It was almost a little unreal just how fast it felt like their lives had gone by. But here they were, celebrating Wren’s birthday-slash-graduation.

     “Y’know, I see a lovely cake, and lots of people but I’m not seeing a birthday girl anywhere around here,” Azure spoke, looking around the room. Poppy gave a casual shrug, waiting for Azure to be fully turned away from her, before taking a small glance out the window. A soft smile slowly grew over her face as she looked out onto the porch.

[spaceaceathena]

nancy drew name meanings

so this is the work i’ve been doing over the past couple days, I want to give you guys a heads up that list will contain spoilers for some of the characters/games so please be aware of all of that. if this garners interest, i’ll do maybe the penvellyn family tree (that thing could not fit in here) or last name origins!

Main Cast

Nancy Drew: Grace (Hebrew)

Bess Marvin: god of plenty (English)

Georgia “George” Fayne: farmer (English)

Edward “Ned” Nickerson: wealth, fortune, prosperous OR guardian, protector (English)

Joe Hardy: god will increase (English)

Frank “Franklin” Hardy: free landowner (English)

SCK/SCKR

Jacob “Jake” Rogers: supplanter (Hebrew)

Daryl Gray: open, from Airelle (English, French)

Connie Watson: strong willed, wise (Irish)

Hal Tanaka: army ruler (English)

Hector “Hulk” Sanchez: holding fast (Greek)

Mitch Dillon: Who is like God, gift from god (Hebrew)

Detective “Steve” Beech: crown, garland (Greek)

STFD

Mattie Jensen: lady, mistress of the house, might in battle (Aramaic or German)

Richard “Rick” Arlen: brave ruler (English)

Dwayne Powers: swarthy (Irish, Gaelic)

Lillian Weiss: lily, a flower (English)

Millie Strathorn: industrious (German)

William Pappas: resolute protector, strong willed warrior (German)

Ralph Guardino: counsel wolf, famous wolf (Norse, English)

MHM

Rose Green: rose, a flower (English)

Abby Sideris: father’s joy (Hebrew)

Charlie Murphy: free man (Charlie)

Louis Chandler: fame, warrior, famous in battle (French)

Hannah Gruen: favor, grace (Hebrew)

Emily Foxworth: rival, wily, persuasive (Latin, Greek)

TRT

Professor Beatrice Hotchkiss: she who makes happy, bringer of joy, blessings (Italian, French, Latin)

Dexter Egan: right handed, fortunate, one who dyes (Latin)

Lisa Ostrum: God’s promise (English, Hebrew)

Jacques Brunais: supplanter (French)

FIN

Brady Armstrong: spirited, broad (Irish)

Joseph Hughes: he will add (Hebrew)

Nicholas Falcone: victory of the people (Greek)

Simone Mueller: god has heard (Hebrew)

Maya Nguyen: good mother (Greek)

Eustacia Andropov: fruitful, productive (Greek)

Sherman Trout: shearer of woolen garments (English)

SSH

Joanna Riggs: god is gracious (Greek/Hebrew)

Alejandro Del Rio: defender of mankind (Spanish)

Taylor Sinclair: tailor (French)

Henrik Van Der Hune: ruler of the home, lord of the house (Swedish, Danish)

Franklin Rose: free landowner (English)

Poppy “Penelope” Dada: weaver (Greek)

Prudence Rutherford: prudence, good judgement (Latin)

DOG

Red Knott: person with red hair (English)

Jeff Akers: pledge of peace (English)

Emily Griffin: rival, persuasive, wily (Latin, Greek)

Sally McDonald: princess (Hebrew)

Vivian Whitmore: lively (Latin)

Mickey Malone: who is like god (Hebrew)

Lucy: as of light (English, French)

Iggy: fiery (Latin)

Vitus: lively (Latin)

Xander: defender of man (Greek)

Yogi: one who performs yoga (Indian, Hindu)

CAR

Harlan Bishop: army land (English)

Ingrid Corey: beloved, beautiful (Norse, German)

Elliot Chen: with strength and right, bravely and truly, boldly and rightly (English, Breton)

Joy Trent: joy, happiness (Latin)

Paula Santos: small (Latin)

K.J Perris: Petros-> the rock (Greek)

Tink Obermeier: love (English)

DDI

Jenna Deblin: white shadow, white wave (English, Welsh)

Katie Firestone: pure (English, Greek)

Andy Jason: manlike, brave (Greek)

Holt Scotto: woods, forest (English)

Casey Porterfield: vigilant, watchful (Irish, Gaelic)

Dr. Irina Predoviciu: peace (Greek)

Hilda Swenson: battle (Norse)

SHA

Dave Gregory: beloved (English)

Tex Britten: from Texas (American)

Mary Yazzie: bitter, beloved, rebelliousness, wished for child, marine, drop of the sea (Aramaic, Hebrew via Latin and Greek)

Shorty Thurmond: a short person (American)

Bet Rawley: god is my oath (Hebrew)

Ed Rawley: wealthy spear, protector, guard, frend (English)

Sheriff Hernandez: son of Hernando (Spanish)

Dirk Valentine: famous ruler (German)

France Humber: free one (French, English)

Meryl Humber: shining sea (English)

CUR

Linda Penvellyn: beautiful, pretty, cute OR clean (Spanish/Portugeuse, Italian)

Mrs. Leticia Drake: joy, gladness (Latin)

Jane Penvellyn: god is gracious/merciful (English)

Nigel Mookerjee: champion (Irish, Gaelic)

Ethel Bossiny: noble (English)

Hugh Penvellyn: mind, spirit (English)

Mrs. Petrov: petros-> rock (Greek to Russian)

CLK

Emily Crandall: rival, wily, persuasive (Latin, Greek)

Jane Willoughby: god is gracious/merciful (English)

Richard Topham: strong in rule (English, French, German, Czech)

Jim Archer: supplanter (English)

Carson Drew: son of marsh dwellers (Scandinavian)

Gloria Crandall: glory, fame, renown, praise, honor (Latin)

Marion Aborn: star of the sea (French)

Mrs Farthingham: a house supplying food (Scottish)

Josiah Crowley: god has healed (Hebrew)

TRN

Lori Girard: bay laurel (English)

Tino Balducci: little, junior (Italian)

Charleena Purcell: free man (German)

John Gray: graced by god (Hebrew)

Jake Hurley: supplanter (Hebrew)

Camille Hurley: helper to the priest (French)

Fatima: captivating, shining one (Arabic)

DAN

Minette: star of the sea, love, will helmet, protection (French)

Heather McKay: evergreen flowering plant (Middle English)

Jing Jing Ling: perfect essence (Chinese)

Dieter von Schwesterkrank: army of the people (German)

Jean-Michel Traquenard: god remits (Hebrew)

Lynn Manrique: pond, lake, pool, waterfall (Welsh)

Hugo Butterly: mind (German)

Zu: knowledgeable and voracious reader (French)

Tammy Barnes (Minette): palm tree (Hebrew)

Noisette Tornade: hazelnut (French)

the n*zi will not be appearing on this list

CRE

Pua Mapu: flower (Hawaiian)

Big Island Mike Mapu: who is like god, gift from god (Hebrew)

Dr. Quigley Kim: descendant of Coigleach or maybe messy hair (Irish)

Dr. Malachi Craven: messenger of god (Hebrew)

ICE

Ollie Randall: olive tree (Latin)

Yanni Volkstaia: god is gracious (Greek)

Bill Kessler: resolute protection (English)

Lou Talbot: renowned warrior (French)

Guadalupe Comillo: river of the wolf (Spanish)

Chantal Moique: stone (French)

Elsa Sibblehoth: pledged to god (German)

Freddie Randall: elf, magical counsel, peaceful ruler (English, German)

Isis: throne (Egyptian)

CRY

Henry Bolet Jr.: house ruler (French)

Dr. Gilbert Buford: bright pledge/promise (French)

Lamont Warrick: the mountain (French)

Renee Amande: reborn, born again (French)

Summer: season, half-year (German)

Bruno Bolet: brown (German)

Bernie: strong and brave bear (German, French)

Iggy: fiery (Latin)

VEN

Colin Baxter: whelp, cub, young creature (Irish, Scottish, Gaelic)

Margherita Faubourg: daisy (Italian)

Helena Berg: light/bright (Greek)

Enrico Tazza: homeowner, king (Italian)

Antonio Fango: priceless one (Spanish, Italian)

Sophia Leporace: wisdom (Greek)

HAU

Kyler Mallory: bowman, archer (Dutch)

Matt Simmons: gift of god (Hebrew)

Kit Foley: bearing Christ (Greek)

Donal Delany: world leader (Scottish)

Alan Payne: precious (German)

Fiona Malloy: white, fair (Gaelic)

RAN - Her Interactive refuses to acknowledge this game and so will I.

WAC

Corine Myers: maiden (American)

Danielle Hayes: god is my judge (Latin)

Mel Corbalis: council protector (English)

Megan Vargas: pearl (Greek)

Izzy Romero: god’s promise (Hebrew)

Leela Yadav: play OR night beauty (Sanskrit or Arabic)

Rachel Hubbard: ewe, one with purity (Hebrew)

Kim Hubbard: of the clearing of the royal fortress (Old English)

Rebecca Sawyer (Nancy): join, tie, snare (Hebrew)

Rita Hallowell: pearl (Spanish)

TOT

Scott Varnell: from Scotland, a Scotsman (old English)

Debbie Kircum: bee (Hebrew)

Tobias “Frosty” Harlow: god is good (Hebrew)

Chase Releford: to hunt (French)

SAW

Shimizu Yumi: reason/cause, beauty; abundant, beauty; evening, fruit; tenderness, beauty (Japanese)

Shimizu Miwako: child of beautiful harmony (Japanese)

Shimizu Kasumi: mist, clear, pure (Japanese)

Nagai Takae: filial piety, obedience and large river (Japanese)

Aihara Rentaro: dependant on kanji used (Japanese)

Savannah Woodham: treeless plain (Spanish)

CAP

Karl Weschler: free man, strong man, man, manly (German)

Anja Mittelmeier: grace (German, Russian)

Lukas Mittelmeier: man from Lucanus (German, Greek, Swedish)

Renate Stoller: Reborn (Latin)

Markus Boehm: dedicated to Mars (Latin)

ASH

Chief McGinnis: son of Angus (Irish)

Deirdre Shannon: broken hearted, sorrowful (Irish, Gaelic)

Brenda Carlton: sword (Norse)

Alexei Markovic: defender (Russian)

Antonia “Toni” Scallari: priceless, praiseworthy, beautiful (Roman)

TMB

Abdullah Bakhoum: servant of Allah (Arabic)

Lily Crewe: lily, a flower

Jamila El-Dine: beauty (Arabic)

Dylan Carter: son of the sea, son of the wave, born from the ocean (Welsh)

Jon Boyle: God is gracious, gift of Jehovah (Hebrew)

DED

Victor Lossett: winner, conqueror (Latin)

Ryan Kilpatrick: descendant of the king, little king (Irish, Gaelic)

Mason Quinto: one who works with stone (English)

Ellie York: shining light (Greek)

Gray Cortright: color, black mixed with white (English)

Niko Jovic: people of victory (Greek, English, Slavic)

GTH

Jessalyn Thornton: he sees (Hebrew)

Clara Thornton: clear, bright, famous (Latin)

Wade Thornton: to go, ford (Anglo-Saxon English)

Harper Thornton: harp, son of the harper (Scottish, Irish, English)

Colton Birchfield: swarthy person, coal town, settlement (Old English)

Charlotte Thornton: free man, petite (French)

Addison Hammond: son of Adam, son of Addi (Old English, Scottish)

SPY

Alec Fell: defender of the people (English)

Bridget Shaw: power, strength, virtue, vigor, noble or exalted one (Gaelic, Irish)

Ewan Macleod: born of the mountain (Scottish, Gaelic)

Moira Chisholm: destiny, share, fate (English)

Kate Drew: pure (English)

Samantha Quick: listens well, as told by god (Aramaic, Hebrew)

MED

Sonny Joon: son (English)

Patrick Dowsett: nobleman, patrician (Latin)

Leena Patel: young palm tree, tender, delicate (Qunaric Arabic)

Kiri Nind: skin, bark, rind (Māori)

Jin Seung: rise, ascent, victory, excel, inherit (Sino-Korean)

LIE

Xenia Doukas: foreigner, outlander, welcomed guest, hospitality (Greek)

Niobe Papadaki: fern (Greek)

Thanos Ganas: immortal (Greek)

Grigor Karakinos: vigilant (Greek)

Melina Rosi: honey, god’s gift (Greek)

SEA

Soren Bergursson: severe (Scandinavian) 

Dagny Silva: new day (Old Norse)

Elisabet Grimursdottir: pledged to god (Hebrew)

Magnus Kiljansson: great (Latin)

Gunnar Tonnisson: fighter, soldier, attacker, brave and bold warrior (Nordic)

Burt Eddleton: bright, glorious (Old English)

Alex Trang: man’s defender, warrior (Greek)

MID

Mei Parry: beautiful (Chinese)

Teegan Parry: special thing, little poet (Cornish, Gaelic)

Olivia Ravencraft: olive, olive tree (Latin)

Judge Danforth: hidden ford (Old English) [Last name]

Lauren Corey: laurel tree, sweet of honor, wisdom (English, french)

Alicia Cole: noble natured (Germanic)

Jason Danforth: healer (Greek)

[thereadingchallengechallenge]

hi! do you have any short book recs? i’m looking for something like 100-250 pages long

Indeed I do :) I love short books lol I’ve pretty much just gone through my Goodreads lists and picked some books about that length but they’re all pretty good ^.^ 

YA fiction: 

Love is the Higher Law by David Levithan

Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan 

When My Heart Was Wicked by Tricia Stirling

If I Stay duology by Gayle Forman

I Have Lost My Way by Gayle Forman

Been Here All Along by Sandy Hall

We Were Liars by E Lockhart

Hold Still by Nina LaCour (tw for depression & suicide)

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson (tw for sexual assault & self-harm)

Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta (tw for depression)

Wink Poppy Midnight by April Genevieve Tucholke 

From Where I Stand by Tabitha Suzuma (tw for bullying & self-harm)

All This Could End by Steph Bowe (hard to find but so worth it)

Fantasy/Science Fiction: 

Wayward Children series by Seanan McGuire (a bit gory in places)

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

Riders of the Apocalypse series by Jackie Morse Kessler (tw for eating disorders and self-harm in the first 2 books)

Magisterium series by Holly Black & Cassandra Clare

Ida by Alison Evans (i love this one so so much)

I’ve got more recs for classics and kid’s/middle grade but I didn’t want to drown you in recs lol I hope there’s something there that strikes your fancy :) 

[newriverartist]

Blue Ridge Parkway Artist has New Youtube and Grammar Police...

Blue Ridge Parkway Artist has New Youtube and Grammar Police…

Blue Ridge Parkway Artist Please click on my latest Youtube! Please Check out My Story on Youtube! I am having such a hard time getting to my Wix site due to all the other internet stuff I do that I may take a break from WordPress for a while and see if I can get a…

[mousiesims]

[caseymalone]

Top 10 Games 2017

Here are my top 10 games for 2017! Minor spoilers for a few of them, but nothing major. You’ve been warned!

10. Resident Evil 7: BioHazard

There have been 27 Resident Evil games, including remakes, remasters, 3DS releases but excluding pachinko machines and Tiger Electronics handhelds. Of those near thirty games, Resident Evil 7 brings the total I’ve enjoyed to… two. I guess this is my way of saying that between being a huge scaredy cat and irked by the stuffy, smothering control scheme of the originals, there’s no nostalgia weighing me down whenever Capcom reinvents Resident Evil, first with Resident Evil 4, now again with 7.

But where Resident Evil 4 took the fantasy of being a special agent in a world full of monsters further than ever before, Resident Evil 7 drops it completely. In it, I’m a wimp, a nerd with a camera at the whims of this family of maniacs, trapped on their grounds by a drive to find my wife, who is changing into… something. Capcom smothers me with a pervasive sense of helplessness playing RE7, forcing me into a desperate scramble to escape the unstoppable Daddy (side note: “The Unstoppable Daddy” was my nickname in college). Filling me with absolute dread when the disgusting creature Marguerite becomes clambers through holes and onto walls. And forcing me to freeze up and take a deep breath at the sinking realization that my next goal is all the way across the grounds.with god knows what between me and it. Even the change to a first-person view means your helpless doesn’t stop at your ability to fight - you don’t even know what’s around you. Resident Evil 7 left me terrified and anxious throughout, which is saying something since  played it on Easy.

9. Gorogoa

It’s now an annual event that, despite a perception that Adventure Games are dead, someone releases a labor of love whose beauty and finesse showcase the best the genre has to offer. Gorogoa asks you to interact in the simplest terms - zoom in and out, or drag and drop. What makes Gorogoa special is that when I do those things, it feels like I’ve changed fundamental ways that I think. My perspective on the world has shifted about ten degrees to the left and all the rules are new. That combined with hand-drawn visuals, stark sound design and desolate narrative made Gorogoa a brief yet crucial experience for anyone looking to see games as more than loot-box dispensers.

8. Star Wars: Force Arena

Oops, speaking of Loot Boxes. Well, card packs? Is there a difference? Where have we come down on this? The conversation around gaming in 2017 has been dominated by a debate about the ethics of selling random pulls at cards, skins, characters, horses, buggies, whatever, and I’m going to level with all of you - my perspective is skewed. I make mobile free-to-play games, which use this mechanic, and I’ve been playing collectible card games since the Revised core set for Magic: The Gathering came out in 1994. So one way to look at my opinion is that I don’t have a problem with this way of selling people games, and a much less charitable one is that I’m fully indoctrinated. Either way, being able to get emotionally side-step this entire debate has lent me the clarity of mind to tell you all that Star Wars: Force Arena is good as hell.

Force Arena is the real-time, head-to-head gameplay of Clash Royale, but with direct control of a Hero, MOBA-style, then Star Wars’ed all the way up. Every system is implemented in a smartly and cleanly, facilitating my ability to get into the game and getting out of my so I can let people know my Han Solo deck is not to be flexed with. The whole thing is catnip for Ol’ Maloney over here, and I am straight rolling.

7. Star Wars: Imperial Assault - Legends of the Alliance

Is spaghetti a sandwich? Is Chewbacca a dog? Is Matt Kessler a mongoose? Is Legends of the Alliance, an app for Star Wars: Imperial Assault, a video game with physical components or a board game with a digital accessory? The line between board games and video games is get blurrier, as outstanding digital components have begun to take the place of cumbersome bookkeeping, or allow designers to add elements that would be impossible to achieve otherwise. Or, in the case of Legends of the Alliance, replacing the Imperial Player entirely.

Traditionally played as a team of rebels against a monolithic Imperial player, Legends of the Alliance turns Imperial Assault into a fully cooperative experience, running the campaign as a virtual dungeon master, setting up your next level and directing Imperial enemies to attack your heroes. But more than simply emulating a now missing player, Legends of the Alliance takes this chance to add something to the experience.

Without the app you bounce from one XCOM-esque tactical mission to the next, but now… now you go on non-combat missions. You make friends in the world. You feel a real sense of betrayal when you learn not all the Rebels are working for the greater good, and you deal with the emotional aftermath with other characters when the Empire manages to grind you under their heel. These things weren’t in the box of plastic and cards I bought years back - they were exclusively part of Legends of the Alliance, and creating new memories and experience while justifying asking you to bring your laptop to your tabletop.

6. Horizon Zero Dawn

There’s a vital sincerity to Horizon Zero Dawn. After borrowing mechanics liberally from Far Cry/Assassin’s Creed, adding giant robot dinosaurs, and then putting the voice actress behind Borderlands 2’s (in my opinion, brutally irritating) Tiny Tina front and center, it would have been so easy for Guerrilla Games to smarmy one-liner their way through this post-post-apocalypse adventure. Instead they cast that all aside to carefully bring you into a world without even a hint of irony.

At the center of the game is Ashly Burch’s Aloy, full of wounded confidence and strength tinged with kindness, a performance so natural yet thoughtful that Aloy stands above any other character in games this year. That sincerity doesn’t make Horizon a serious or grim affair - there’s jokes, and boy howdy is there a lot of flirting - but it serves to draw the player into the world, rather than establish a safe ironic distance from which both the player and the game can remain “cool.” Every choice shows that Guerrilla Games truly wants me to care about Aloy and the world of Horizon. It turns out I do.

5. HQ

For me, 2017 was a year of shared gaming experiences. I’ll get to the other two big ones below, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t include this nightmare of a Black Mirror episode, this scheduled dose of Quiz Daddy Scott Rogowski, this twice daily car crash with a cash payout, HQ.

For months at 3 PM, I’d jump into Discord with my friends and join in the collective hypnosis of a new game of HQ. We were beyond captivated. We had a million questions - who is Scott? Why does he vamp with the intensity of someone hosting at gunpoint? Where is he broadcasting this from? And when he’s not there, where the hell is Scott? Who is this rando who claims to be ‘Scott’s Boy’? How does the player count keep growing, and how does this thing make money? It was a mystery wrapped in tech startup poppiness and a screaming man in a suit, and we wanted to know everything about it.

Like any mystery, as we’ve learned more about Scott and HQ, our interest has waned and my friends have fallen off the Trivia Train. But for months, once a day we’d simultaneously drop everything and delve into it. Something nothing else in games or television has gotten us to do for years. Also, uh...

…

I’m playing a game called HQ Trivia. You should play too. Use my code “caseymalone” to sign up.

4. Super Mario Odyssey

In late October 2017, was there anything I needed more than some unabashed joy? A full-on celebration of bright colors, silly characters and bizarre hats? Super Mario Odyssey would be an incredible game at any time in history, but the timing of its release felt like more than just a game; it felt like a balm. A warm weighted blanket sewn from my old t-shirts, taking nostalgia and making it into something new, something calling me to come back and crawl under it all day, every day. A game that rewarded me for just being in the world, asking me to challenge myself at your own pace, issuing pats on the head and individually wrapped chocolates as a reward for just wandering around and doing my thing. 2017 was a year where Nintendo was dedicated to challenging what people expect from them with their hardware, their mobile ports, and another of their major franchises. When it came to Mario, though, Nintendo clearly just wanted to make people happy. And I’m so, so grateful for that.

3. Destiny 2 & 2. PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds

Destiny and Battlegrounds seem like pretty starkly different experiences, but what I got out of them in 2017 was the same - time with some of my best friends. Friends who live in Los Angeles, New York, New Jersey, England, San Francisco; people I never get to see, people I don’t even get to talk to that often. But those friendships got actually stronger this year through these games.

That wouldn’t be possible if the underlying games weren’t outstanding - Destiny 2’s shooting feels incredible, and its endless list of chores made sure there was always a mission for me to suck friends into, or a goal for me to help them out with. There aren’t (currently) many Strikes for us to go on, but honestly that helped - when you know all the beats, a zen-like state takes over and you can enjoy the lock-on and kickback of hand cannons without worry. All the while catching up, making goofs, or ranting about the state of the world without the game getting in the way.

Destiny 2’s not perfect - a lot of the changes made from Destiny to Destiny 2 to make it smoother and more welcoming turned solo play into a dull shade of its predecessor. But as a part of a Strike Team, Destiny 2 hums with efficiency, getting out of my way and letting me and my friends have fun.

And it would be second to none this year if wasn’t for PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds.

Battlegrounds is insane, it’s a fun-time mess-around machine paired with an intensely hardcore military shooter, a game that’s thirty minutes of a goofy chatroom capped off with two minutes of a game-ending firefight. Except for when that fire-fight lasts for twenty minutes and it’s the most intense experience of my life. I’ve had as much fun losing PUBG as I’ve had winning (the few times I’ve managed to snag a chicken dinner), and I’ve had even more fun when I die and get to stay in voice-chat to cheer on the rest of my squad, spectating through to the end.

While I don’t get much out of watching strangers stream on Twitch, I’ve been lucky that enough of my friends stream this game, for a while on an almost daily basis, that I had just as much fun watching them as actually playing it. I laughed so hard when friends would get motorcycles trapped in a tree, cheered when they’d have from-behind victories, and feel heartbreak when the squad’s last hope would get shotgunned from behind after escaping tough spot after tough spot. Somehow all these feelings were just as strong as when I was behind the controls myself. There’s magic in this game, which boggles the mind, because with its bugs and frankly generic style, it could not possibly look less magical.

I cannot fucking believe I’m typing this but it turns out the real game of the year was the friends I made along the way.

1. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Just kidding, game of the year is The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.

I always have less to say when I get to the top item on my list because what could I possibly say about Breath of the Wild that hasn’t been covered already? Nintendo stripped so much out of the Zelda series that honestly when I started playing it, I felt uncomfortable and exposed - what do you mean my weapons break? Wait, I don’t have to buy bombs, I just HAVE them? When are the DUNGEONS going to show up, what are these shines? I don’t like this at all. But as I bristled against those, I was slowly filling with wonder. Every canyon I walked out of, every corner I turned, every hole I climbed out of revealed a field with towns and caverns, or small forests full of unknown treasures and monsters.

Lots of games do open worlds, but where Skyrim feels like I could get lost in it, the Hyrule of Breath of the Wild feels like I am conquering it. In Skyrim I feel like I’m exploring the map - in Breath of the Wild, I’m making it.

I remember so clearly, late at night, climbing to the top of a bridge that crosses Lake Hylia. I don’t know why I was there, or what I thought might be at the top of the tower, but Nintendo put it there, so maybe. Maybe there was something. I climbed to the top and there wasn’t anything for me to take, but as I looked over towards the horizon, Hyrule stretched on forever. I felt overwhelmed with the possibility of disappointment - that I would feel the need to climb it all, that there wouldn’t be a thing for me at the top of most of those towers, under those rocks. And as I thought about that the music changed. From the water of the lake emerged Farosh, the lightning dragon, soaring, completely oblivious to me. He was beautiful, powerful, made me forget about any of my goals or collectibles and forced me to take in his majesty. Forced me to realize there were no rupees or arrows up there because this moment was my reward. And that there would be moments like this all throughout Hyrule. I just needed to go looking for them.

Near Misses: Injustice 2, Everybody’s Golf, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

[veronicasanders]

I was tagged by the beautiful and always delightful @wednesdayangeline​

I’m tagging @collidinggalaxiesofstars​ @theofficialcunt​ @artificialscorpio​ @spokywrites​ @civonumist​ @courtneyskoala​ @the-dilemma-of-being-emma​ @missdandee​ @poppy-hore​

1. name? Veronica

2. nickname? V

3. undercover name? Um. See above. lol

4. drag name? (This was pornstar but I changed it) Ooh, I can’t commit. I’m a big fan of the “my first name is for x and my last name is for y” school of drag names. So I’d probably go for something like Bellamy Brewster. Bellamy for 1800s Socialist Utopian Novelist Edward Bellamy, and Brewster for 80s sitcom idol Punky Brewster.

5. middle name? My porn writing pseudonym has no middle name.

6. first born son or daughters name? I’m going to adopt teenagers, they’ll already have names. But if any of them are pregnant, I will encourage names with lots of potential nicknames and sassy middle names they can go by if they are cool enough to pull them off.

7. age first kiss? 13

8. age first crush? I remember having innocent little crushes around preschool/kindergarten

9. age when you first knew what you wanted to do? Well, when I was a kid I wanted to be an actor, and I went to film school for college, but I’ve been working in the entertainment industry for years and I’m totally sick of it and I want to go back to school for sociology. So I guess...now? lol

10. age when you met your best friend? I have a few but the person I’m closest to now I was 27

11. favourite song? Well my favorite album is the Immaculate Collection, but right now I’m listening to “Tuck Tape” on repeat.

12. favourite colour? Rainbow Glitter

13. favourite film? Depends on my mood. Today I was discussing what my favorite movie is that I would be embarrassed to admit, and we discovered that I have no shame and am totally proud of my taste, even if they are considered terrible. We finally settled on the 90s TV movie starring Tori Spelling and Kellie Martin called “To Kill a Cheerleader.” Or sometimes it’s called “A Friend to Die For.” Fun fact: it’s awesome and based on a true story. Also “Troop Beverly Hills” but I took major issue with them saying that was a bad movie because IT’S AN AMAZING MOVIE which also happened to feature both Kellie Martin and Tori Spelling.

14. favourite actor? Everyone on Sense8

15. favourite actress? Everyone on Degrassi

16. favourite time of year? Autumn (ME TOO WEDNESDAY!!!!!!!)

17. favourite animal? My dog.

18. favourite country? Anywhere but Trump’s America

19. favourite person in the whole world? My lil brother. (SAME!!! I mean I’m sure your brother is nice too but I mean mine.)

20. favourite food? Mac and cheese and chocolate mousse

21. favourite feeling? That thing of when you just start to go down the drop in a roller coaster

22. least favourite song? Maybe that country one about shoving a boot up yer ass ‘cause “It’s the American way”

23. least favourite film? Probably ones I don’t watch?

24. least favourite actor/actress? I dunno, Mel Gibson? Jon Voigt? Kelsey Grammar? The mom from Everybody Loves Raymond? Basically all the Hollywood Republicans who CONSTANTLY WHINE about how hard it is to be conservative in Hollywood? Cry me a river.

25. least favourite event? Pole vault.

26. least favourite food? Raw onions and curry.

27. least favourite feeling? Causing someone pain.

28. best feeling in the world? Making someone happy.

29. quote to the world? May the most you want be the least you get.

30. best memory? Probably vacations with my grandparents

31. best gift ever given? To me - my American girl doll. From me - taking my cousins to a 21 course tasting menu at this awesome restaurant in LA. It was a super fun night and we got to pretend we were fancy as fuck.

32. favourite alcohol drink? If I’m being really extravagant, a chocolate martini or Pina Colada. But normally I drink a vodka soda with a splash of cranberry.  

33. guilty pleasure? Real Housewives

34. best superhero? Mystique (is she a villain? I don’t care I love her. Also Rogue and Superman.)

35. best place in the whole world? I haven’t seen enough of the world to make this judgement. But I really liked Rio.

36. celebrity crush? Courtney Act

37. who’d play you in the movie of your life? Christina Ricci

38. who’d be your love interest? Courtney Act, Zoe Kravitz, Taye Diggs

39. who’d provide the soundtrack to your movie? Madonna. Duh.

40. favourite cartoon? South Park

41. character /person you can most relate to? Madonna, Tina Fey, Julie Kessler on Difficult People, Freddie Brooks from A Different World

42. sun or rain? rain

43. Adele or Ed Sheeran? Adele

44. Taylor Swift or Kanye West? I feel guilty for liking Taylor’s music more. If it were Sophie’s Choice I’d let Taylor die though.

45. pale or tanned? I look better tan but I don’t get enough sun so I’m mostly pale. But I’m olive complexion pale.

46. USA or UK? The UK - And I say that as a US citizen who’s never visited the UK. So. There’s that.

47. cash or card? What is cash? That paper stuff that people used before venmo and PayPal?

48. blonde or brain? I am too old to understand this question. Does this have to do with a songbird or yanking one’s telephone out of the wall?

49. secret talent? I know a really good travel agent. Not impressed? Wait until you’re stranded in an airport sometime.

50. if you had to make your own religion what would it be? Be Nicer and Gimme All Your Money.

51. Audition song? I used to use “SHY” from Once Upon a Mattress.

52. Britain or America’s got talent? Drag Race

53. favourite Disney movie? The Little Mermaid

54. do you love or hate game of thrones? Love, but mostly because I love the Funny or Die recap show “Gay of Thrones”

55. nicest person you’ve ever met: My cousin. I tried to get her to be sassy all weekend and she wouldn’t. She’s infuriatingly sweet.

[jmp1639-blog]

Politics can be defined as ‘the actions or activities concerned with achieving and using power in a country or society’ (Collins, 2018) however according to Alexander (2014) it has been defined in different and contradictory ways.  For the purpose of this essay, the concept of politicisation will be defined as ‘the action of causing an activity or event to become political in character’ (Oxford University Press,2018).  Over the course of modern history, it can be argued that sport has become uniquely political. Sport can be seen as a form of soft power; ‘the ability to affect others to obtain the outcomes one wants through attraction rather than coercion or payment’ (Joseph and Nye ,2008) and it is ‘bound up with a state’s public diplomacy and image management strategies’ (Grix, 2013).  Arguably this has made sport attractive to governments globally who seek socio-economic development across their countries and to their respective political parties. However, as Joseph and Nye (2008) identified, the soft power that a country has is mainly reliant on its resource of culture, values and policies.  This form of using sport as soft power stems back to the 1936 Olympics in Berlin as Kessler (2011) acknowledged the Nazis sought to exploit the games for ‘their own purposes’ as the eyes of the world could watch and attend a triumphant German Olympics under their own political regime.  Political issues seem to end up being heavily involved when it comes to major sporting events as could be seen at the 2018 Winter Olympic Games (with extensive media coverage of North and South Korean athletes marching under the same flag), Catalonian independence being portrayed through Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola’s wearing of a yellow ribbon and also the 2016 sanctions from FIFA against the England and Scottish National teams wearing of a remembrance poppy around the time of armistice day.  Another more current and pressing issue is the involvement of the England National team at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia given the nerve agent attack on a former Russian spy in Salisbury. These examples all show how heavy politics weighs on modern sports and how governments and the media look to capitalise on highly political issues by portraying and exploiting them through sporting events and sporting issues.  Arguably sports events are hosted by authoritarian states using them to gain political legitimacy and strengthen the power and profile of their rulers’ (BBC Sport, 2015) demonstrating the power that politicians feel they hold to influence society and use as a form of propaganda.

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     “I’m sure she’s just enjoying the party.”

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Here we go! It’s time for the Gen. 2 heir poll holy cannoli I can’t believe I made it to gen 2!! You guys can go vote right here where the poll will be up for the whole week! I have storylines planned out for each heir so no matter who wins, I will have a story for them!

Hope you all have a wonderful week!💜💜

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