#posting way too much piers morgan i feel | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

thezeinterviews · 1 year ago

Text

Sky News: 'Matter of life and death': Ukraine's First Lady begs Congress to approve more funding to war-torn nation, says air defence is her top priority

Ukrainian First Lady Olena Zelenska has called on Western politicians to stop the "political point-scoring" and think about the lives at stake during an interview for “Piers Morgan Uncensored” in London.

Piers Morgan New York Post Columnist

March 4, 2024 - 12:59PM

Olena Zelenska, the First Lady of Ukraine, fixed me with an ice-cold gaze when I asked her what message she has for America’s politicians currently holding up $60 billion of aid to help her country beat Vladimir Putin’s Russian invaders.

“This is a matter of life and death,” she said, “and I’d really like for those decision makers to understand that very profoundly. It’s not about money. It’s not about political point-scoring. It’s about life.”

Congress is engaged in a stand-off with hard-line Republicans insisting any more funding for Ukraine must be linked to stricter policies on the US southern border.

And the softly-spoken tension in Ms. Zelenska’s voice belies the desperation that many Ukrainians feel for its biggest, most powerful ally to step up again for them, before it’s too late.

Congress is engaged in a stand-off with hard-line Republicans insisting any more funding for Ukraine must be linked to stricter policies on the US southern border.

And the softly-spoken tension in Ms. Zelenska’s voice belies the desperation that many Ukrainians feel for its biggest, most powerful ally to step up again for them, before it’s too late.

“While decisions are being taken,” she told me in an exclusive interview for “Piers Morgan Uncensored” in London, “people are dying and that’s the worst thing that can happen. I want them to feel that every hour that they hesitate, that they go to their offices, that they meet with their colleagues — in Ukraine, people are dying, and they do not have to be dying, and that’s the worst thing that is happening. I am sure that the majority of people there want to help Ukraine. And we understand the internal political processes in the United States, and we know they’re complex, they’re not simple. And we’re awaiting this decision, but we really, really need it.”

Top of her priority list is more funding for Ukraine’s air defense systems.

“Just for the civilian population,” she explained, “air defense saves lives everywhere in Ukraine. Russia, with their missiles and their drones, can reach any part of Ukraine and they’re constantly doing this. They want us to live in fear. And, yes, when we hear the siren of an air raid, we go down to our shelters, but not every place in Ukraine has shelters. And still, children in schools are dying. Children in their homes are dying while sleeping. And if we had enough air defense, we’d feel more resilient.”

It had been 20 months since I’d last seen Ms. Zelenska in Kyiv with her husband President Volodymyr Zelensky just four months after Russia brutally invaded her country.

But she was confused when I told her that timescale.

“I thought we met more recently?’ she replied with a quizzical expression.

“Not so long ago? My feeling was that not so much time has passed, so from this feeling, I can understand that for us, time has stopped in some way. In one way, things are happening very quickly, things are changing. But at the same time, we feel that time is static, I don’t think that in my life, something has changed significantly. We’re still living in the same mood as four months after the start of the large-scale war.”

Ms. Zelenska arrived for our interview with her team including the obligatory bodyguards who protect her everywhere she goes.

When the war began, she was identified by intelligence sources as Vladimir Putin’s No. 2 highest-priority target in Ukraine – after the President.

If the Russians could capture her, they could use that as maximum leverage to exert pressure on her husband.

Yet far from being cowed by this chilling ongoing reality, she exudes an air of impressively resilient defiance.

Ms. Zelenska arrived looking immaculately elegant in a black two-piece suit and cream blouse, clutching an iPhone, and greeting me in English with a warm smile: “Hi Piers, nice to see you again!”

“You must be exhausted?” I suggested.

“I’m a little tired,” she admitted. “But it’s OK. I don’t want to complain.”

Her sad eyes indicated a weariness at the sheer relentless hell of war and when we sat down, I asked a simple question: “How are you?”

“It’s difficult,” she conceded. “It’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon. You have to maintain your energy at some level. I compare the state to a smartphone when the battery is running out and you have an opportunity to charge it somewhere to make sure that you’re still online. You do it but you don’t have an opportunity to fully charge your battery. You can’t get distracted from the war. You can’t forget about the war, go on holiday for a week, away from the war. You’re constantly in this state and you cannot fully recharge. Ever. But the objective is to have enough energy. Enough to continue living, to carry on with life.”

Her spirits had been rallied in the UK by the support of the British Royal Family.

Last week, on the second anniversary of the invasion, King Charles, who is suffering from cancer, issued a message saying: “The determination and strength of the Ukrainian people continues to inspire, as the unprovoked attack on their land, their lives and livelihoods enters a third, tragic, year. Despite the tremendous hardship and pain inflicted upon them, Ukrainians continue to show the heroism with which the world associates them so closely. Theirs is true valor, in the face of indescribable aggression.”

“We were moved by his address,” said Ms. Zelenska, who met with Queen Camilla during her UK visit last week. “It’s very good to know that we have very sincere and powerful friends in the Royal Family.”

She wasn’t as moved by Putin’s State of the Nation address in Moscow last Thursday.

When I ask her if she has a message for the Russian dictator, her face tenses in visible disgust.

“To be honest, I wouldn’t even want to say this name. When we were children in the Soviet Union, sometimes children would write letters and put them in a time capsule and send them to space. And maybe somebody, sometime an alien will find this capsule and will read this message from these Soviet children from the 1970s. It’s the same thing. Why would I write this message to nowhere? Nobody will hear it. Nobody will pay any attention. It’s just addressed to nowhere.”

But when I pressed her again about what she would say to Putin if he was watching the interview, she said: “I just don’t know what this is for? I could never understand this. I do not understand any of the answers that he gives. I do not understand it, and I don’t know how a normal person can live with this?”

Then I asked her: “There have been hundreds of cases of Ukrainian women raped and abused by Russian soldiers. Over 20,000 Ukrainian children have been effectively kidnapped and taken out of the country. There have been barbaric attacks on maternity units and whole cities razed to the ground. I went to Bucha myself when I was over in Ukraine to hear the devastating stories of (the atrocity) what happened there. These are all war crimes. Should Putin be in an international court facing war crime charges?”

Ms. Zelenska replied: “Behind every crime, there is a person who carried out the crime and a person who commissioned the crime and we don’t know every person that carried out the crime, but we definitely know who commissioned the crime, who ordered the crime. And there needs to be punishment for every crime.”

The war, coming on the back of the COVID-19 pandemic, has taken a terrible toll of millions of Ukrainian families, not least on her own two children, a 19-year-old daughter Oleksandra and 11-year-old son Kyrylo.

“It would not be right to complain because the situation for our family is not that different from other families in Ukraine,’ she said. “But it’s painful for me that they’re losing these years of childhood… it’s difficult when you can’t plan anything for your children. You can’t dream together with them, to fill their lives with positive emotions. So, everything is on pause. No holidays, no rest. Everyone thinks about the war. My son talks constantly, and it’s very difficult to explain this to children. When your child asks you, ‘When will the war be over? Can you tell me?’ There is no answer. Nobody has this answer. We all want for this horrible time in our lives to be over.”

How often do the kids see Volodymyr?

“About once a week for a few hours. Sometimes less frequently when he has foreign visits, or he cannot meet us for other reasons. Never more frequent. Of course, it’s a very difficult time for him. He gets very tired. But he has his own ways to recharge. The children always help. And he can have a silly time with them, to sing silly songs, laugh with them, and that also helps him to recharge.”

And her?

“I can see him at the residential office sometimes, because I have my own office. And sometimes I can call him and if he’s not too busy, I can go into his office and see him. We can sometimes have lunch together but not too often. We have parallel lives but that’s normal.”

Does she ever get overwhelmed by the horror?

“It is a tragedy to live in the situation that we find ourselves and to see casualties every day. You cannot switch off your emotions. Recently, I was shaken by the tragedy of a whole family killed by missile strike, a mother together with her two sons. One of them was younger than one year old,” she says.

“They burned alive. These things don’t allow you to be happy or calm, ever, and there are some things that just finish you off, when you just start crying, and sobbing. Recently, there is a documentary made by one of our directors (Alan Badoev’s ‘A Long Day’) and I wasn’t able to watch it till the end.

“It consists fully of things that were filmed by people on their telephones at the start of the invasion. I could not stand it for a very long time. I was in tears. I felt overwhelmed. Emotions. It was really powerful. I will finish watching this film today, but I just didn’t have enough emotional reserves to finish it the first time. There’s another documentary, ’20 Days in Mariupol.’

“My daughter went to see it at the premiere with her boyfriend who is from Mariupol. And he and his parents hid in the basement of their building for several weeks before they were able to flee. And he saw with his own eyes the bodies of his neighbors that had been killed. And I asked her, ‘How did you take it?’ And she said, ‘I cried.’ He cried also. But also, the rest of the people in the cinema cried.

“On the one hand, it’s very difficult but on the other hand, sometimes you need to let it out. You need to cry. All of the emotions that we accumulate every day. I’m very grateful to the people who made these documentaries because they tell the world about us and for us it’s a way of therapy. A way to let it go to…and we cannot do it all the time.

My job is to keep smiling, to keep talking to people, to inspire people. Regardless of whether or not I have the energy for that, so I try to keep my emotions inside. And these things are a way for me to let go for at least a few minutes.”

To lighten the mood, I read a tribute Volodymyr had paid to her in Vogue Magazine, when he said: “She is my love. She is my greatest friend. Olena really is my best friend. She’s also a patriot, and she deeply loves Ukraine, and she’s an excellent mother.”

Olena’s face instantly lit up into a beaming grin.

“I can only say thank you for the words. It’s not the first time I hear this, fortunately he tells me this very often. But we are really friends and I think that’s the secret of our relationship. We don’t have a difficult time with each other. We understand each other and we support each other. It’s not just the words, well done, keep working, I believe in you. No, we can make each other laugh when it’s needed or we can tell each other, ‘Get a grip, go get your job done.’ So, we feel each other. It’s very nice for me that he’s so open with his feelings with the media, however, I don’t need to hear them. I know this and I can feel it.”

The worst moment for them came in those first chaotic hours of the war.

“The most difficult time for us was when we were separated. He stayed in Kyiv, and I had to go outside of Kyiv and spend several weeks outside of Kyiv. And this is when I had the most horrible thoughts come to my head and I was thinking that perhaps we’ll never see each other again. And what allowed me to hold on is that we still have a lot to do together, that I want to do together.”

On his birthday on Jan. 25, 2022, just before the war started, she posted a photo of Volodymyr smiling at her at a party, and wrote: “I wish every woman had these views… I always feel your love… as long as you look like that, I’m not afraid of anything. We have to realize everything we dream of together. Happy birthday to my love.”

This year, on the same day, a Russian military transport plane crashed killing 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war.

“I didn’t post on his birthday because that day, many tragic things had happened,” she said, “and we agreed that I’m not going to wish him happy birthday publicly. It wasn’t the right time to talk about happy things. I suggested that we stay silent on that day, and he understood that.”

President Zelensky has come under increasing criticism in Ukraine where political opponents have accused him of corruption and becoming an autocrat, and this has led to falling approval ratings.

The Mayor of Kyiv, former World Heavyweight Boxing Champion Vitali Klitschko, sniped recently: “Zelensky is paying for mistakes he’s made. At some point, we will no longer be any different from Russia, where everything depends on the whim of one man.”

Ms. Zelenska is phlegmatic about the attacks: “I would very much like for the person who is responsible for everything to be somebody else, not my husband whom I love and respect. But he is responsible for everything, and he carries the responsibility. Political struggle never stops. Not even during the war. That’s how the world is. Nobody’s ever happy with everything, especially in a difficult time like this. Of course, it is difficult for the people to carry this load of war. Sometimes people see bad things happening and they’re looking for someone to blame and I guess, the easiest person to blame is the person who’s responsible for everything. I’m fine about this criticism.

“What I don’t accept is total hatred which is not based in facts. And I know that the aggressor (Russia) will always stoke any kind of tension inside the country that would undermine our unity. And a lot of resources are spent on this. They use every opportunity in Ukrainian society to stoke the negative things. And I understand the rules and I’m fine with this. He will take any criticism. For me, perhaps, it’s more difficult emotionally because I take offense sometimes, I get upset. All of these things are hurtful when it’s being said about the person you love and respect, it’s never nice.”

There are growing calls for the transfer of Russian assets in countries like the United States to pay for the recovery of Ukraine.

“I think this is fair,” said Ms. Zelenska. “Russia has to pay financially for the damage done to Ukraine, for the destruction of our infrastructure. We understand that we may never see any financial compensation directly, so it would be fair for these financial assets that Russia has in our partner countries to be frozen and to be spent on the renewal of our infrastructure. Why should our partners help us to rebuild? Why shouldn’t it be the people who destroyed it?”

One of Ukraine’s biggest problems is global “war fatigue” with the media’s attention drifting away to other conflicts like the Israel and Hamas war in Gaza.

“We need to understand that more wars can start in other places, but it doesn’t mean that the war in Ukraine will stop,” she says.

“And this fatigue from the war, well, of course, it’s hurtful to hear for us. The Ukrainians have much more fatigue! Ukrainians are tired, but we have to hold on, because this is a matter of our survival. Don’t get tired. If you’re tired, you’re not our allies. We cannot allow you to get tired. We cannot say, ‘Don’t look at us. Don’t look at us suffering.’ If you’re tired, you’re not our friends. It’s sad but that’s life and we’re going to continue fighting for our lives, for the lives of our children, and we will not get tired doing this.”

Her response to Donald Trump’s claim he could end the war in 24 hours?

“I don’t think that anyone can end this war in 24 hours except Putin.”

As to those who want Ukraine to throw in the towel and make a peace deal where Putin gets to keep the land he’s murderously stolen, Ms. Zelenska is emphatic in refuting the notion of surrender:

“President Zelensky gave a very clear answer. And it’s not just his opinion as the leader and president of our country, it’s an opinion that he expresses on behalf of our nation. We’re not prepared to make allowances. We understand that the aggressor (Putin) does not stop when he receives what he wants. He will continue moving further and further. We don’t want our children to still be fighting in this war and then our grandchildren. We want to stop this now, but we will not stop this on their terms.”

And with that final passionate declaration, First Lady Olena Zelenska bid me farewell and hurried away to start the long 20-hour plane-train-car journey back home to Kyiv, and the war that never ends.

Originally published as 'Matter of life and death': Ukraine's First Lady begs Congress to approve more funding to war-torn nation, says air defence is her top priority

Article

#olena zelenska #russia #ukraine #war #ze interview #olena interview #olena selenska #interview 2024 #2024 #zelenska #new york post #new york post interview

13 notes · View notes

truly-morgan · 1 year ago

Text

[WWX stuck in the past]

Shuagnjie | Mo Dao Zu Shi 23-02-2022

[Wei Wuxian focused, (kinda shuangjie related) post-canon. Angsty I guess]

Post canon Wei Wuxian after he says "Let's the past be in the past".

Jiang Cheng does so slowly.

But Wwx... can't

It doesn't hit him immediately, after all, he couldn't be happier than he is with lwj now right?

Yet, as time slowly goes by wwx feels something missing.

But he doesn't understand why?! He has a great husband who loves him, has found a new home and even (kind of) has a son too. What could he be missing? It's only when he is visiting lotus pier (or rather, finally allowed to come along with lqr as he slightly took over his nephew's Role as he is in seclusion) that he realises what he is missing.

Yunmeng. Lotus Pier.

Jiang Cheng.

Jc has been by his side nearly all his (short) life, and now it's creating a void. Lotus Pier was his home and deep in him, he is still yearning for it.

But then he also sees.

He sees jc surrounded by people who clearly value him fully, who trust in him, are ready to do anything for him.

Jc is moving on like 𝘩𝘦 suggested doing that night.

in the past nearly two decades jc has become stronger, more mature and more confident in himself.

happier.

And these are all things wwx is happy to see jc being, he knew jc could get there one day.

yet...

this is not the jiang cheng he knows.

this is not the jiang cheng he helped.

This is not a jiang cheng he has a place to stand next to.

he wasn't the one here to help jc rebuild to an even greater state the yunmeng jiang sect. He wasn't the one there when everyone in the cultivation world was looking at him ready for him to fail.

He wasn't there like he had promised he would be.

And all of this suddenly make wwx... feel frozen in time. feeling like he doesn't really have a home anymore.

to jc, nearly two decades have passed already.

yet to wwx, it was like only a couple of months ago he was still the fearsome yiling laozu.

like yesterday when he was controlling an army of fierce corpses.

that he was despised and wished death upon by everyone.

it was like yesterday he was still the boy who had to become an adult too quickly because of the war.

he still had all these memories that to him felt like fresh memories, yet were already the past for everyone else.

wwx wanted to let the past in the past, but he did not realise that he felt barely correctly he the present himself.

he misses yunmeng.

he misses lotus pier.

𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘫𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘯𝘨.

but what can he do? Can he really request now to have a place by his side? can he request for lotus pier to be his home again?

it's already too late.

and he has nothing to bring to jc other than problems.

he knows that once all the noise about jgy will die down, everyone will be back to being wary of him. he may not have the body he had before, but he still knew how to do it. he could even do it all over again.

even at Cloud Recess, he knows most of them are being polite only because he is lwj's husband. As hard as he tries, he cannot feel like cloud recess is his home, as much as lwj tries to. he knows he cannot fit into this cold and stern place. he knows he will always cause problems and mischief. otherwise would only make him feel not like himself.

but there's nothing he can do.

jc is happy now and he is afraid to ruin it all.

not like he still really had a place next to him anyway.

he was the one to say they should leave the past in the past.

yet he was the one unable to do it. felt like he couldn't do it either.

and it was too late now.

====

(brought to you by Morgan feeling stressed out and exhausted in many ways. what better way to try and help it than by writing some one-sided angst about Shuangjie right? also, I feel like I need to mention it smh: this isn't some kind of anti-wwx (or wgxn), so I don't want anyone coming with that kind of vibe I literally have 0 patience right now)

Original

#my writing #tweet archive #short story #mo dao zu shi #shuangjie #wei wuxian #jiang cheng #can't move on #angst #0k - 1k words

9 notes · View notes

wayward-mikaelson · 4 years ago

Text

I Still Want You, I Still Need You-X. Dusk Till Dawn (FINAL)

Word Count: 3039

About: In the events after Tony’s funeral, you and Bucky make a huge decision

Characters: Bucky, Steve, Pepper, Olivia (OC), Morgan, Bruce, Sam, Natasha (Mentioned), Tony (Mentioned), Red Skull

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Reader

Warnings/Trigger Warnings: Language, Character Death, Saddness

A/N: Tissues. There will be happy and sad tears. This was so much fun to write!

A/N 2: Let me know if you want to be moved to certain tags for future fics! I’d love to have you all hang around still!

*This contains content for the 18 and up crowd. Read at your own discretion.

**Please do not copy and paste my work anywhere. Reblogs and sharing the link is fine.

***This work is posted on other sites.

****Go follow my other accounts. Links can be found in the pinned post on my profile.

*****Currently NOT taking requests

******Feedback is welcomed!

Forever Tags: @hobby27 @donnaintx @myinconnelly1 @elansaidaris @magssteenkamp @440mxs-wife

Marvel Tags: OPEN

Story Tags: @cspr-2 @mysticalfestivalkoala @tanyaherondale @lilithknight1111 @lpzallana @snlsamantha @tomisagod @gloriouspersonbanditrascal @buckysgirl101 @black-sky-always @zareen165 @cristinagronk16

Bucky/Sebastian Tags: OPEN

Masterlist

Marvel Masterlist

I Still Want You, I Still Need You Masterlist

IX. Sacrifice

Favorite Fics Masterlist

Bucky stood there, hands in his coat pocket, while he watched you kick your bare feet in the water. It had only been about a week since losing Tony and Bucky watched you grow distant. Not too distant, Bucky watched you throw on a face to cover the pain when Olivia was around. This was a side of you he’d never seen before and Bucky didn’t know what to do. So he just stood by, at a distant, and watched you.

After the funeral, Bucky watched you linger and walk to the end of the pier. You took your heels off and tossed them being you. While you kicked your bare feet around, he saw your body shaking with silent tears. He held you night after night these last few days while you cried yourself to sleep. Tony wasn’t the only you cried for.

When you learned about Natasha, Bucky watched as you held it together until you were alone. From what Bucky remembers, You and Natasha had been close before the snap and grew apart.

You wished you hadn’t.

Olivia was the most confused. Bucky watched you tell your guys daughter that Uncle Tony had gone to heaven. Bucky saw the look in her blue eyes break apart with sadness but the look on her face was very well composed. It wasn’t until Bucky had tucked her into her little bed that she shed tears.

“We’ll see him again, one day,” she sniffled before falling asleep.

Bucky took his hands out of his pocket and ran them through his hair. The funeral ended two hours ago and most of everyone had gone home or someplace for the night. The three of you had been staying in the guest room at Pepper’s and Tony’s place. Bucky knew that being there helped Pepper out. But, Bucky worried when it would be time for you guys to head back to Wakanda.

If you guys headed back there at all.

“Do I have to worry about her?” Bucky had heard Steve’s footsteps. Bucky was reminded of what you told him when you lost him and thought you lost Tony. It had nearly, literally, almost killed you.

“No,” Steve stood next to Bucky and looked at you too. Bucky couldn’t help but get hit with a little twinge of jealously with the way Steve looked at you. Bucky knew he didn’t have any reason to be jealous, but he was. “She’s got you and Olivia. She’s stronger than she was when she lost you. If I hadn’t been there to pulled her back from the ledge,” Steve met Bucky’s eyes. “She would have died and Olivia wouldn’t have been born.”

Bucky saw the way Steve’s eyes flashed back to that memory that only he and you shared. Which had Bucky asking before his brain could process that he was asking it. “Do I have to worry about you?”

Steve knew what Bucky meant. Steve turned back to you and Bucky saw his eyes soften and look away. Bucky knew that Steve still loved you. “No,” Steve looked up to meet his friends eyes. “And if we had known it was possible to bring you back. We wouldn’t have done it. I wouldn’t have told her I was in love with her. Part of me hoped that she’d give it a chance, but she couldn’t move on from you.”

Bucky looked back at you. You had pulled your legs up and hugged them close to your chest. Your head was slightly tilted towards to the two men talking. Bucky knew you could hear them too. “I know,” Bucky took a deep breath and turned to Steve and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Thank you for being there for them. Keeping her alive most of all.”

A hour later, Bucky and you were in the little quest house. Pepper took Olivia for the night so that Morgan had someone with her but Bucky knew that Pepper wanted the distraction with the girls. Bucky was sitting on the couch when you walked out of the room.

You wore a t-shirt and sweatpants and your hair was hanging around your face. Bucky honestly liked you better that way. Dresses were nice and Bucky loved how the few dresses he’s seen you wear hugged your body. Bucky was just more into your comfortable look. You walked your way towards and the couch and sat next to Bucky and rested your head on his shoulder. Bucky wrapped an arm around you and held you tight.

“He forgave you,” you finally spoke. Bucky breathed a sigh of relief. You had been quiet most of the day. “He wanted me to tell you that.”

Bucky rubbed your shoulders and kissed your head. “I kind of got that when he said for me to watch after you.”

You turned your head so you were looking at him. “He also made this house for Olivia and I. He convinced me each time we visited that we could live close by. The deed is now in our names.”

Bucky looked down at you. He saw the battle of wanting to be here and wanting to go back to Wakanda. “After today, I think we should stay here. Be there for Pepper and Morgan. Visit Wakanda every weekend. Then decide what to do after a while.”

You pulled away, “You think so?” Bucky nodded. “Okay, but we have to visit every weekend, Okoye will hunt us down for a visit with Olivia. She was the one who delivered her when the midwives wouldn’t.”

You went in the story of how you delivered Olivia and Bucky knew that you would be fine. As long as you had him and Olivia. Bucky didn’t even care that Steve had been there, he made peace with him. Because you were right from the start, if it weren’t for Steve Rogers, Bucky wouldn’t have the two most perfect people in his life right now.

***

A few days passed and with Tony’s notes and Bruces help, you were able to get the quantum tunnel up and running again. Olivia stayed with Pepper, she had told you that it was a good distraction for her. When you and Bucky told Pepper that you would be staying she got teary eyed and hugged the both of you. Olivia and Morgan were ecstatic.

But now, you and Bucky stood by Sam while Steve suited up to return the stones. Sam and Bucky offered to go with him but Steve had told them no. He had to do this alone and something told you that could be very well the last time you saw Steve Rogers.

You pulled away from Bucky walked towards Steve who was having trouble with the back of his suit. “Why do I have a feeling you’re going to do something pathetically stupid?” you whispered loud enough for him to hear you.

Steve turned around to face you once you were done. “What makes you say that?”

“The way you told them no,” you put your hands on your hips. “Don’t forget that out of everyone here, aside from Bucky, I’ve known you the longest.” Steve opened his mouth to speak put you held up a hand. “Whatever stupid thing you’re thinking about doing better be better than Olivia. Cause she needs her Uncle Steve still. I still need you.”

Steve was at a loss for words and all he said was, “Okay.”

“Okay Steve, You’ll have all the time you need.” Bruce said.

You walked back to Bucky. “So what’s he doing?” Bucky must have heard. Sometimes you forget that your husband used to be a trained assassin. Someone who could hear a mouse squeak.

“I don’t know, but I told him that it better be better than us.” You didn’t meet your husbands eyes. You had to play the only card to make sure your friend made it back.

“On my count,” Bruce clicked away at some buttons. “Three, two, and one.”

Then Steve was gone.

You felt it in your heart.

“Bringing him back in One, two, three, four, and five.” Bruce pressed a button and Steve wasn’t there.

“Where is he?” Sam asked.

“I don’t know,” Bruce sounded panicked. “He blew by his time.”

“Well bring him the hell back!” Sam almost yelled.

“I’m trying to.”

You looked at Bucky and he knew too.

Steve was gone.

You heard Bruce press a button and you didn’t want to look. You couldn’t bare to see the empty space where your friend wouldn’t be. Bucky pulled you into a hug and rubbed your back and whispered that it would be okay.

“Hey fellas.”

The familiar voice had you spinning around faster than you had anticipated. Bucky steadied you after you lost your footing. You felt a pressure in chest as you stared at the one person you didn’t expect to see. You weren’t sure if you wanted to cry or cheer or laugh or what.

Natasha Romanoff was standing right there in Steve’s place. Her expression looked dark and distant but she didn’t fail to make her voice sound normal.

But yet, there was no Steve Rogers.

“Where’s Steve?” Sam asked.

Natasha looked at you and then at the ground. You swore there was a tear falling from her her face. “Long story. Steve traded the stone for me back but the guardian wouldn’t allow the two of us to just go. Steve then chose to take my place, making the guardian happy. But before he went he told me that we won and to not mourn him.”

Natasha walked off the quantum tunnel surface and towards you. She pulled you into a hug and pressed her lips to your ear and in a whisper only you could hear said, “His last words were about you. His last thoughts were about you. He truly loved you.”

***

Steve only had one stone left to return.

The Soul Stone.

But all he could think about this whole trip was you.

As he approached Vormir and his heart quickened. It was like a stampede of horses beating around in there. Steve knew that you didn’t really need him, he knew that you said that so that he could come home. He saw the look in your eyes, you didn’t want to lose anybody else.

You were right about two things though.

When Steve returned the two stones in New York, he did do something stupid. He messed with time. He shouldn’t have, but he did. He stopped that blast of electricity from hitting you and stopping your heart for three minutes and leaving you in a coma for a week. It would save 2012 Steve and 2012 Tony from pacing a hospital waiting room while the doctors tried to wake up. He did confess his feelings to a groggy 2012 version of you.

Then back in the lab, when you told him that he looked like he wanted to have his way with you. Steve wanted nothing more than to grab your waist and push you onto a table and feel you once again. To feel the smoothness of your skin on his. To hear his name on your lips. He didn’t though. He couldn’t because he wasn’t like that.

“Steve, son of…” The cloaked figure slowly descended and Steve instantly recognized who it was. “Oh looky what we have here. Captain Rogers, what do I owe this visit?”

Steve lifted the case up and opened it. “To return the Soul Stone.”

“Why on Earth for?” Red Skull laughed.

“To keep bad things from happening,” Steve had his hands on his hips.

“Okay, just drop it below and be on your way,” Red Skull gestured to the cliff. The same cliff that Natasha died on.

“Under one condition though,” Steve took a deep breath. “I return this, Natasha comes back.”

Red Skull seemed to have thought it over. “Okay, very well then.” He waved his hand.

“Steve?”

Steve turned to see Natasha by the cliff. “That was easy,” Steve said as he took the stone and walked towards the cliff.

“But,” Red Skull’s tone changed, making Steve turn around. “The two of you can’t leave here together. A soul for a soul. Or don’t return the stone and let bad things happen.”

“What’s he talking about Steve?” Natasha asked.

“I’m returning the stones,” Steve looked too is friend who was skeptical. “We won but we lost Tony. If I don’t return them, an entire timeline is messed up. But the condition to return this stone was to bring you home.”

“But it doesn’t sound like you would,” Natasha was slowly catching on. “Steve you can’t be that stupid. Just return the stone and leave me. Y/N will need you with Tony’s loss.”

Steve shook his head. He knew what he needed to do. He took his watch off and the PYM particles and shoved them into Natasha’s hands. “Y/N has Bucky. Tell them what happened here. Tell them they will make the right choice with the Sheild. But tell Y/N,” Steve felt tears sting his eyes. “Tell her I love her. God, I love her so much.”

“Rogers! Don’t! You can tell Y/N that yourself.” Natasha yelled as Steve pushed her away from the cliff and took a step towards it. “Steve! Steve, no!”

Steve looked at the stone in his hand and gripped it tight. His final thoughts were of your smile and Y/E/C always meeting his. The way your hair fell around your face when it wasn’t up in a hair band. The feel of your lips when he kissed you that night. He thought of the morning he woke up with you next to him. You looked so at peace, without the stress weighing on your shoulders.

That’s how he wanted to remember you in his last moments.

Steve shut his eyes tightly, the tears fell as he took that step.

***

Eight years have passed and things have gotten back to normal. You and Bucky still lived in that little cabin that Tony built for you guys. As time had passed, the two of you didn’t see the need to move back to Wakanda. You did visit every once in awhile. This cabin was a fresh new chapter with everything that happened.

Two years after The Blip, that what everyone was calling it, you gave birth to a boy. A little boy who was named after two of the greatest men that had ever lived. Anthony Steven Barnes. He was just as smart as Olivia but he was total opposite of her. He was definitely living up to his uncles name. You just wished that Tony was here to see it so he could see it. Not to mention he looked more like Tony. Those Stark genes ran strong.

Olivia grew into a beautiful girl. She was smarter than the average twelve year old, even than her cousin, Morgan. Olivia got one of Tony’s old suits up and working one summer just to make and AI voice in Tony’s voice.

“That way Aunt Pepper and Morgan can still talk to Uncle Tony,” she said. Pepper had pulled Olivia into a hug. Pepper never remarried and never intended to. A love like hers and Tony’s was something hard to replace. A once in a life time type of love.

Olivia may have been smart and stubborn and showed her Stark side when working in the workshop, but she always needed her dad. Olivia and Bucky were always joined at the hip. She was his shadow and Bucky loved it. As she grew, they had more silent conversations like when they first met.

“She looks more like my mom each day,” Bucky said one night after tucking the kids into bed. “That is until someone pisses her off and then out comes her momma and possibly every other Stark.”

You sat on the end of the pier and stared into the distance. You do this every once in awhile when you wanted to feel close to your brother. So you would just sit and talk about whatever was on your mind. It made you miss Tony less.

“Liv told me I’d find you here,” Bucky’s voice had you looking up at your husband. He was in full gear, the shield hanging on his back. It reminded you so much of Steve wore it.

Steve’s loss still got to you after all these years. It didn’t take you long after Steve’s loss to realize you had some sort of feeling for him. Bucky saw it in the days that followed and held you when you fell apart once the two of you were alone. Bucky eventually fell apart too, his oldest friend was gone. Eventually, over time, the wound scarred over. It was only the little things that poked at it.

“You’re back a day early,” you welcomed Bucky’s gentle kiss. He had been gone for two weeks on a mission. “All in one piece too.”

Bucky signed against you lips. “It wasn’t too hard honestly. Parker was a huge help and if it weren't for him, Sam would have been toast. Metal bird wings and all.”

You rolled onto you back and laid your head into Bucky’s lap. “I love our life here, Buck.”

Bucky played with your hair. “Good, now get up, I have a surprise for you.”

Bucky walked back to the house with you. From the corner of your eyes, you could his hand twitching and opening and closing. Whatever it was he got you, he was nervous. You reached for his hand and squeezed it.

“Whatever it is, I know I’m going to love it,” you kissed the back of his hand.

“I know, Doll,” he pulled his hand away and opened the door.

You walked in and froze dead in the doorway. What you saw before you, it made your heart stop. You sucked in a sharp breath and looked back at Bucky for an explanation that you knew you would get later. You knew it was as long one too.

You turned back and let a smile tug on the corner of your lips.

“Steve!”

THE END

68 notes · View notes

travel-hopefully · 4 years ago

Text

A collective post of everything I watched on Netflix in 2020

I finally found the watch history function on Netflix which I wanted in order to reminisce over the TV/film I watched over the last year, including the good and the bad. I’ve included a little round-up of my thoughts for each, as lockdown has got me with plenty of time on my hands. If anyone has watched any of the below feel free to give me a message- happy to discuss anything!

Travelers (season 3) - this was an unforgettable show with some great characters and definitely put me through hell (in a good way), I am a David x Marcy shipper for sure!

IT Crowd (season 4 & 5) - my favourite comedy show ever, and I mean the UK version

Explained (random episodes) - interesting bite-sized episodes on a variety of topics

Sherlock (season 3 & 4) - it kinda went downhill from season 4...and doesn’t help that there is no season 5 in sight

Unforgettable - must be pretty forgettable cause I couldn’t remember watching, a typical revenge plot romp I think

The Mind, Explained - same as for Explained above, except more pyshcological

You (season 2) - binge-worthy! I love to hate Joe Goldberg.

Don’t F**k with Cats - wow, this was disturbing but so gripping.

Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle - geniunely a good remake and rather amusing

Sex, Explained - as for Explained but a little more intriguing ;)

The Stranger (season 1) - full of suspense and a good binge watch but ultimately full of plot holes with an unsatisfying conclusion

Gavin & Stacey (season 3) - a classic which I only started watching in 2019

Sex Education (all of it) - comedy gold!

Unbelievable (limited series) - very harrowing, an emotional rollercoaster based on a real-life rape case

Atypical (all of it) - light-hearted and fun to binge

The Sinner (season 1) - it was okay... wasn’t spectacular compared to other similar dramas I’ve seen

Love Is Blind (season 1) - cringey but satisfying

In the Shadow of the Moon - I hardly remember this one :)

Dunkirk - a stand-out historical movie

The Stepfather - typical killer stepfather plot but rather enjoyable

The Super - an interesting premise, but not that super

Saw VI - all gore not much plot

Doctor Who (random episodes) - no words needed :D

Louis Theroux and Louis Theroux’s Weird Weekends (random episodes) - I love his style of interviewing - what a man!

The Revenant - a lot of... well, not much

Nightcrawler - it was decent, but something was missing which I couldn’t put my finger on

How To Get Away With Murder (seasons 1-5) - probably my biggest new watch of the year, a rollercoaster of suspense, drama and murder, another season to go...

Ocean’s Eleven - fun but cheesey

Blumhouse’s Truth or Dare - creepy faces and an interesting ending

Eli - it started one way then went another, I wasn’t convinced

Star Trek (2009) - I couldn’t really get into this one...

In the Tall Grass - a lot of running around in grass

Bloodride (season 1) - i loved this, a quirky idea, i binged it

Apostle - intense, a satisfying religious cult horror

The Platform - great idea, not sure on the ending

What Keeps You Alive - what happened in this one again?

History 101 - didn’t watch many episodes :P

The Prodigy - a decent child possession horror

Into the Night (season 1) - really enjoyed this, a highlight of the year for me, hoping for a season 2

It - pretty chilling and creepy, but a tad cheesey

Jurassic World and Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom - the first one has a brilliant dinosaur fight scene, the second one has too many plot holes and inconsistencies to take seriously

Knowing - a Nicholas Cage sci-fi/apocalpytic classic, pretty decent

Stranger Things (random episodes) - i tried to get my bf into the show but sadly he still isn’t much of a TV fan

Miranda (random episodes) - such fun!

Black Mirror (seasons 1 & 2) - another one i introduced the bf to, i got a bit further with him on this one, the very first episode being the highlight

The Last House on the Left - a decent remake, but nothing outstanding

Dark (season 3) - this, my friends, is one of the greatest shows of all time. want a timey-wimey story where everything is connected and has an amazingly satisfying conclusion? this is the show for you!

The Silence - a bad ‘A Quiet Place’

Geostorm - i’m a fan of disaster movies but this one wasn’t in the same league as some of the greats

Panic Room - a mum and kid hides in the panic room when a group of thugs break into the house, it was enjoyable but not all that memorable

Prisoners - a very long film with some enjoyable parts but overall unsatisfying

Girl on the Third Floor - it was okay, i can’t remember much of it

The Woods (season 1) - another Harlan Coben adaptation- not as good as ‘Safe’ or ‘The Stranger’ but still a gripping thriller

Time Trap - a fun time-travel film with some interesting turns of events

72 Dangerous/Cutest Animals (random episodes) - just ‘cause i love animals

Slasher (all of it) - some very gory deaths, especially in season 3. quite disturbing but keeps the suspense up throughout.

2012 - a guilty pleasure of mine, realistic or not

Kingsman: The Secret Service - a fun spy film, will be looking to watch the second one soon

Blackfish - this was harrowing, it really made me think, but overall i’m on the side of tilikum

Unsolved Mysteries (season 1 & 2) - watching some of these my jaw dropped, love theorising on this kind of stuff

Down to Earth with Zac Efron (season 1) - Zac is great in this, he seems so chill and literally ‘down to earth’

The Call - I love this film, seen it 3 times now

Contagion - very relatable right now, interesting to see the parallels with todays situation

Next in Fashion (season 1) - i didn’t get too far with this, i found it a little superficial

Searching - another of those internet web-cam based films. decent but not memorable.

Non-stop - another Nicholas Cage classic, this time a suspense thriller

Freaks - as the title suggests this one was rather weird, i didn’t quite gel with it

The Perfection - wow, that was an experience. definitely memorable, even if some characters make questionable decisions...

Extraction - not usually a fan of action-type thrillers, but i actually enjoyed this one, plus it has Chris Hemsworth in it!

Line of Duty (season 2) - full of suspense, a great build-up in the first 5 episodes, but the way they tied it up really grated on me

Insidious - watched this one with my sister. a genuinely good horror film on rewatch with an amazing cliff-hanger

A Quiet Place - another one watched with my sister. labelled a horror but its more sci-fi, either way its a classic. bring on the second film!

The Dark Tower - disappointing mostly.

Gladiator - i’d never seen this before and now i understand the hype- what an epic movie!

Criminal UK (season 2) - didn’t disappoint following the exceptional first season

Venom - a fun comedic marvel film, definitely need to watch more from Marvel in the next year- i need an order to watch them in as don’t know where to start

Our Planet (season 1) - chill David Attenborough to put on in the background

The Equalizer - a great action revenge thriller plot with a badass Denzel

Merlin (random episodes) - who doesn’t love a trip down memory lane with some nostalgic bbc merlin?

A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010) - pretty scary remake

The Witcher (season 1) - rewatched in order to familiarise myself again before season 2 - i didn’t realise how funny the show was until this time round, gotta love Jaskier!

American Murder: The Family Next Door - this was haunting

The Haunting of Bly Manor - phenomenal, emotional, creepy, heartbreaking - i much preferred it to Hill House

Abducted in Plain Sight - seriously, how naive are the parents in this? i could have a rant for hours about this!

The End of the F***ing World (seasons 1 & 2) - very bingeable, Alyssa makes me laugh too much, i love how relatable the show is

Fractured - didn’t expect much from this consipiracy-type film but it kept me guessing right till the end

The Ripper (limited series) - very intriguing, but the mysogyny in this was shocking

Inconceivable - a typical mother looking for her baby revenge plot but still entertaining

The Midnight Sky - i’d heard rave reviews for this but was disappointed by a lacklustre plot which was sacrificed for award-winning cinematography

Killer Women with Piers Morgan (season 2) - a pyschological interview series which looks into the mind of murderers, rather interesting

May the Devil Take You - scarier and jumpier than i thought it would be!

So 2020 obviously gave me a lot of time to watch a s**t load of stuff and looking back at it i feel like i got a decent amount of my watch-list ticked off! And obviously this is not including shows watched on other media so there’s that too (a special shout-out to the William Hartnell era of Doctor Who which I watched this year on BritBox). In all, 2020 has definitely introduced me to a few new fandoms and progressed my love for others.

33 notes · View notes

mrsluttystark · 5 years ago

Text

Got this idea from @reniisbooks! Definitely check theirs out, music taste is *chefs kiss*. I put my music on shuffle and wrote little prompts/summaries for each one.

Hallucinations by dvsn: post-Endgame

Peter’s gone absolutely mad. There’s no other way to explain it. He swears he sees Tony at his graduation, standing in the crowd. He’s gone when he blinks. Peter keeps catching glimpses of neatly trimmed facial hair and tinted glasses, never lasting more than a second. He dreams of him, touching him, so lifelike; he awakes to the feeling of strong arms wrapped around his waist and warmth on his back. Bolting upright, he’s alone, aside from the lingering smell of coffee and motor oil.

Hold Me by Fleetwood Mac: flirty!peter, guilty!tony

Since Peter turned 18 and started living in the compound, he’s been a lot less subtle about his feelings. Every morning, he comes into the kitchen wearing either low slung pajama pants and no shirt or a shirt so big you can’t tell what kind of underwear he’s wearing. Tony’s willing to admit he sneaks a peak over his mug. Peter flirts and throws innuendos into their conversation, and Tony pretends he doesn’t hear it. It’s a little game of cat and mouse. Peter doesn’t mind, he’s got all the time in the world and Tony’s resolve is already so thin.

Mount Everest by Labrinth: SIM!Tony

Tony Stark has it all. Power, riches, men, and women. He built his empire with his own two hands. He owns New York City. With the extremis coursing through his veins no one has had the gall to get in his way. That is until a little spider crawls into his sights by leading the feds to a boat full of his drugs docked in the pier. That simply won’t do, Tony calls his suit to him and takes off to see this Spiderboy for himself. Squash him while he’s at it.

Howling by RY X: ABO, underage, teacher/student

Tony couldn’t help himself if he tried. He’s got the prettiest Omega bent over his desk begging for his cock. The feeling of being inside Peter is almost primal, he’d spent weeks ignoring the teen’s scent. Only to give in the moment Peter nosed his way up his pulse point. He looks to the side, down-turning the sign on his desk reading “Principal Stark”. He’ll feel bad later, right now Peter is whimpering below him and he can’t bring himself to care.

shedontknowbutsheknows by Tove Lo: cheating!tony (not on Peter)

Peter wasn’t surprised to see Tony at the very bar the older man picked him up from the week before. This is where all powerful men came to relax. Tony however, looked very surprised to see him (and not in a good way). He didn’t know why until a tall red headed woman came to loop her arm through Tony’s. Pepper, his wife, he introduced. This is Peter, a student I met when I spoke at MIT. While that were true, what Pepper didn’t know was that Tony had cornered him in the library and sucked him off in the Political Science section. The way Pepper looked him up and down told Peter that she definitely knew.

bleed you still by Greyson Chance: coming of age!starker, drug use

Tony Stark was a genius, who could easily test out of high school and be on his merry way to college. He just loves pissing off his father even more. So he skips, he smokes, he gets high, he drives a motorcycle. He almost runs over an adorably clumsy Peter Parker in the parking lot, and Tony thinks he might want to ruin him. Tony’s temper causes fights and drug binges and drunk 3 am apologies. Peter stays, and Tony wonders how much longer he’ll be able to deal with it.

She by Harry Styles: closeted!tony

It’s Tony’s turn to pick up Morgan from school today, he’s skipped it too many times. Pepper is out of town so there’s no avoiding it. He’s the last parent to arrive and he practically breaks down the door rushing in. Morgan is there alone with a young man, and Tony can take his eyes off of him. This is Mr. Peter, his daughter says. Mr. Stark, pleased to finally meet you. Tony doesn’t miss the way their hands linger after they shake. He dreams of the younger man that night, and every night until Tony decides maybe he’ll pick up Morgan more often. He doesn’t tell his wife why.

Let me know if you’d like me to expand on any of these I’d be happy to oblige. Or if anyone wants to use any of these I’d be honored!

#starker #ironspider #peter parker x tony stark #peter parker/tony stark #starker au #starker prompt #sluttystark stuff #nff

60 notes · View notes

darlingsdevil · 5 years ago

Text

The Ballads of Rebirth (Arthur Morgan x Reader)

Chapter 7: Letters of Misfortune

Masterlist

•••

Charles hadn’t seen much of Arthur since Mahala’s death. Arthur didn’t deal with grief like other people did. He never had the chance to grieve before, he was too busy with helping the gang to ever grieve. The process was new to him.

He spent as much time as he could away from Charles’s home. He only returned in the late hours of the night, long after Charles fell asleep. Charles was never sure where Arthur went, the only telltale sign of Arthur ever returning home was the occasional note, telling Charles he would be out for a few days.

Arthur visited post offices around the states the gang had last visited. Everyday was a new post office. The mailmen were familiar with Tacitus Kilgore, the second Arthur stepped into the post office they would shake their heads. Arthur wasn’t sure what letter he was looking for, perhaps one from John, Sadie or you. It was risky business traveling around the states, especially with the threat of Dutch and Micah possibly lurking around. But no one ever recognized him. He held himself in a manner that was entirely from the old Arthur, people would have to truly take a good look to recognize him.

It was two months of searching, until he finally just told the post office masters to send any letter he received to the Valentine post office. He couldn’t truly embark on that journey to find you without any clues. He was going to honor Mahala’s last wishes if it was the last damn thing he ever did. Arthur was no religious man, but he prayed that he would find you one day and that a clue to your whereabouts would soon appear. He knew you were smart enough to get the hell out of anywhere the gang had last been, in case Dutch was lurking around. He thought it was strange that John had sent no letter to Charles though, considering that John knew where Charles last resided.

Arthur swallowed his pride and returned home to Charles after not finding any letters addressed to Tacitus Kilgore at the Valentine post office. He felt strange as he stood on the doorstep of the quaint home. Taima stood hitched by the tree, so Charles was definitely home.

He clutched the seed packet of daffodils in his hand, contemplating whether he should knock or just enter. Arthur lived here too, but he hadn’t been home in so long he didn’t want to spook Charles.

“Arthur!” A voice shouted from behind him. Charles.

Charles came quickly to Arthur, hugging him tightly.

“I’ve missed you. It’s been so long since I’ve seen you.” Charles laughed to his friend, releasing him.

“I know.” Arthur laughed along with him, still feeling strange.

They were silent for a moment, both men studying each other.

“Well, welcome back.” Charles said with a smile, opening the door for Arthur.

“Glad to be back.” Arthur said as he set down his satchel on the table.

“I have a letter. John sent it to me a day ago.” Charles said from behind him, hanging his coat up.

Arthur turned around, eyeing the ripped open letter in Charles’s hand. Charles handed it to Arthur, leaving Arthur to read the letter by himself.

He slowly pulled the letter out from the envelope, his hands shaking in anticipation. It was definitely John’s crude handwriting. It was like John wrote with his less dominant hand, while on a horse, and being chased by a pack of wolves while doing it. Arthur was never so glad to see his brother’s terrible handwriting.

2/18/00

Charles,

Abigail, Jack and I are in Detroit. I’m sorry for the late letter, but we’ve been so busy with the move. We’re hoping to head out to Canada. No one has recognized me yet, but I’m known for having a bad streak for people recognizing me and causing trouble, so I won’t be surprised if we’ll have to move again.

Sadie is in Illinois. We met her a few weeks back during our travels in Chicago. She’s starting a bounty hunting business apparently. I’m sure that work will treat her well.

Arthur’s wife is in Richfield. A city on the other side of the Grizzlies. If you visit her, you can’t miss the city, it’s big and upcoming. I haven’t had the time to send her a letter either, but I’m sure she’s doing well. Mrs. Morgan is a persuasive spirit. I’m sure she’s doing just fine with her new found life.

I’m not too sure how long we will be staying here, so please send a response soon. I hope you’re doing alright, Charles.

Regards,

John

Arthur had never felt so many emotions hit him at once. He felt ecstatic, nervousness, love, a thousand things. You were alive. You were settling down, something Arthur had always wanted for you. He prayed you were still in Richfield. Arthur was sure you were still running scams and causing mischief in this sparkling new city, like you always did.

“It seems like you’ll be leaving me again.” Charles entered the room again. Arthur gingerly set the letter down, as if it were the most valuable thing in the entire universe.

“I have to look for her.”

“I know. I hope you find peace with her, Arthur. I’m sure she’s still waiting for you too.”

Arthur gripped onto his friend’s words like they were something precious, leaning against the table.

“But first, you have to plan this out. If you don’t find her within a month you’re coming back and we’ll wait for another letter.” Charles said, giving him a knowing look. He was right though, if Arthur didn’t find you he’d end up in Richfield looking for you forever.

“I’ll take the next train out. If I don’t find her within a week, I’ll come right back. If I find her, I’ll take her home.”

•••

“Mr. Rinascita?” You called out from the front of the store. Lee’s father went to go retrieve a restock of apples from the back room, but he was gone for ten minutes, no sounds came from the back room either, making you worry. It was deathly quiet. You waited until the customer you were helping had left to search for him.

It was only you and Mr. Rinascita at the store today, Lee was meeting with some suppliers down by the pier to discuss business, but he promised he would be back by three, and it was two-thirty.

You stepped into the dimly lit room, and Mr. Rinascita lay against the floor, breathing heavily. You rushed to his side, helping him up.

“Doctor.” He mumbled, his head laying limply on your shoulder.

You leaned him against the counter as you flipped over the open sign on the door, pulling him out of the door as quickly as you could.

The doctor was on the same street as you, luckily being one of the few original buildings in the city meant that they were all on the same street.

You nearly burst into the doctor's office, you struggled to hold onto Mr. Rinascita. The receptionist hurried to your side, helping you carry him into the doctor's office. She told you to fill out some information at the front desk and assured you the doctor would be in momentarily. You decided it would be better if you waited for him, not wanting to intrude on his privacy.

The receptionist allowed you to use the phone at the front desk, you never used one before. It was a strange concept, there was one in the general store, but only Mr. Rinascita and Lee used it.

You hated the doctor's office since that fateful day in Saint Denis when Arthur passed out in the street. That was his death sentence, you saw him die that day.

•••

You spotted Arthur leaning against the lamp post. The air was thick and heavy, too humid for your liking. The swamps of Lemoyne created a thick air that fell over the city, and you absolutely hated it. It was late June, which meant it was even hotter than usual.

He had been coughing more than usual. You assumed it was stress or some strange illness he had picked up while in Guarma. Disease ran rampant on ships, he could have caught it there too.

Arthur noticed you walking up to him, and you gave him a quick peck on the cheek as he continued to cough.

Your mind filled with worry when you noticed the panicked look on his face. He couldn’t stop. Your husband's chest heaved and his eyes became clouded with pain. Blood splattered from his mouth as he fell to the dirty street.

A scream erupted from your throat. The patrons of Saint Denis averted their eyes to look at you. Only one man came to help you.

He carried Arthur to the doctor’s office while you trailed behind, your hands trembling and your eyes filling with tears. The receptionist called to you once you tried to follow Arthur into the office.

“Miss, I think it’s best if you stay out here for a little while.” Her voice was sweet and soothing, but you needed to be with him.

“I- I need to be with my husband.” You stuttered through tears, attempting to wipe them away and the woman nodded with a sad smile. You entered the small office, Arthur’s blue eyes slowly opened, and they widened at the sight of you. He looked terrible, and it broke your heart.

“No, no, honey, you have to leave,” He mumbled, his chest shuddering. Tears fell freely from your eyes, and you shushed him.

“There’s no way in hell I’m leaving you.” You turned away from him, not being able to bear looking at him. You wiped the tears from your face, trying to put on a strong face for him.

•••

Lee rushed to the office as quickly as he could the second he received the call. You nervously bit your fingernails, a habit you had picked up while escaping Dutch and Micah. It had been awhile since you’d bitten them down, but life hadn’t been too stressful since then.

You stood up and walked to him, handing him the rest of the paperwork you couldn’t fill out.

He sat plopped down against the rickety chairs, moving his hands through his dark hair, sighing heavily before beginning to scribble some words onto the paper. You eyed him cautiously, taking his strong hands in your own. They were cold still, he had probably just gotten back from the pier.

You were in his position many months ago, you knew exactly how he felt, hopeless and filled with uncertainty.

Mr. Rinascita had complained of chest pains, and had little appetite, but being the stubborn man he was, he refused to get it checked out, claiming it was just his old age.

After a few moments, the doctor called you back.

The doctor entered after a few painstaking moments.

The doctor held the door open for you and Lee.

The doctor examined Arthur’s lungs through a stethoscope, as he sat breathless against the chair.

The man asked you to sit down next to the examination chair, Lee’s father sat unreadable on the leather seat.

The doctor pulled out a pipe, with a frown on his face, you begged him to tell you what was wrong. Arthur coughed, more blood fell onto his sleeves.

The doctor waited for a moment before speaking.

“He has tuberculosis.”

“I believe Mr. Rinascita may have cancer.”

You gasped, covering your hand with your mouth. Lee held your hand in an iron grip as he stared at the floor.

Those few words were like a stab to the chest. Quick and painful.

“I’m sorry.” Both doctor’s had said to you. What could they possibly be sorry for?

#tbor

37 notes · View notes

buddha-in-disguise · 5 years ago

Text

A full of fucking swearing long post about the shitstain that is Dominic Cummings. Plus where I can find them, at the end I will link fucking sources, just in case anyone wants to try and say otherwise.

Also, if you do start @ me over him, I'm blocking your fucking cunt of an arse. Clear enough?

Good. Then let's begin.

As a nation, we can be a fairly mild mannered lot. At least collectively. But as of now, the majority of Britons are a mass of anger. So much so, I've even agreed with pundits like Piers Fucking Morgan! That alone is distressing enough, but Dominic Cummings has pissed off just about everyone.

But first a little background on this heaping pile of shit.

Dominic Cummings was one of the main instigators of Leave Campaign in regards Brexit. Now for those who don't know or haven't cared until now, not only were they found to be in breach of the electoral law, Dominic himself was also found in contempt of Parliament when they tried to find out if Vote Leave used fake news to help achieve their goal.

To add to this, he took around 200k of subsidies from the EU for his properties. So a known lying fucking hypocrite.

Even before that, he was advisor to Gove, that spineless fucking weasel who has been out today spouting even more fucking bollocks over this. Funny that.

Don't think for a minute being Gove's Special Advisor meant Cummings was liked by others in the Tory Party. Cummings was pretty much despised by a lot in Government at the time. David 'Pig fucker' Cameron called him a career psychopath.

Fast forward to 2019. Cummings is now Special Advisor to another spineless fucking cunt known as the Prime Minister Boris Johnson. BJ was never in control. Anyone watching what was going on knew that the moment Cummings had Javid's one aide uncermoniously marched out of her job, using armed police no less.

Only problem was, he had no authority to do that.

But never fear, BJ decided to change the rules, so lo and behold, he didn't break any rules (seeing a pattern here yet?)

So fast forward to the last few days. Now newspapers were reporting that Dominic Cummings drove his COVID-19 symptomatic wife, with a 4 year old in the same enclosed vehicle, some 260 miles to his parents location in Durham.

Oh now comes the fun part, and why as a nation we are all beyond extremely miffed, and fucking pissed off!

The offical guidance was anyone in a household with someone displaying symptoms (tested or not) was to stay the fuck at home. There was one exception to this rule. One. Extreme risk to life.

So Cummings took the decision to go and drive for fucking childcare reasons.

A man with his wealth, privilege and even with family in fucking London, couldn't do it at his home, but had to drive (thus risking his own child because of viral load you're going to get in an enclosed vehicle), himself and others (because he had to stop. Tell me of anyone with a 4 year old in the car they wouldn't be stopping anywhere?)

So anyway, they take a fucking jolly jaunt up to his parents.

But hold on, a Minister recently resigned for breaking lockdown rules. So why in the ever loving fuck was Cummings not resigning or being fired?

I don't know what Cummings has on BJ, but I suspect it makes wanting to fuck a dead pig seem like child play. Because not only isn't he fired, good old Jolly BJ comes out and fully defends and supports his senior advisor (who is unelected as well, just to add salt to that wound).

So by following his fatherly instincts (the fucking laughable defence given, when BJ couldn't even say how many fucking kids he has) and acting with integrity, (someone please give these fucking morons a dictionary), Cummings was given a free pass.

And then a load of fucking MP's including cabinet ministers all piled in saying how great a father he is, how it was exceptional circumstances that made him do it, you're all overreacting you terrible ingrate you, blah, blah, more horse shit, blah!

So, now all of those families who actually followed the fucking rules, and did what the government said are now being told, oh sure. You could've attended the funeral of your loved ones. Gone halfway across country to get child care for your kids, and so on and so fucking forth.

So basically saying, hah the jokes on you.

A few grumbles came out from the odd Tory, who might not have grown a spine, but were looking less like jelly (jello) being nailed to the wall, and more like thick fucking custard. A little more substance to them, but still slopping around with no spine.

We have a bank holiday coming up, and unusually good weather forecast, because as every Brit knows, Bank Holidays are normally shit weather wise. And a lot of people saying, fuck me if Cummings can do this, so can we. And all pile into cars for days out as if nothing had changed! No masks, no social distancing. Zilch. Great innit.

No it fucking isn't! The virus doesn't take a holiday you fucking morons!

So back to the other mess. Cummings now gives a press conference in the fucking rose garden of No.10. Also likely in breach of the rules, but as we know, he really doesn't give a flying fuck about rules now does he.

First of all he was 30 minutes late (you would've been sanctioned , therefore getting no money, for weeks, probably months if on benefits and did the same thing thanks to this government). But he eventually rolls up, looking slightly less like he's been dragged through a hedge backwards, but still looking like a dogs arse. Actually sorry dogs, you don't deserve that comparison. I'm really sorry!!

Anyway, here he is, about to fill us with more bullshit.

The shit now isn't just hitting the fan. In the immortal words of Terry Pratchett, The Midden has now hit the Windmill.

Cummings is trying to explain why he did what he did, oh and now we have the added delight of him being caught going out to a location some 30 miles from the family home, which is another breach of the law!

He sat there, and said, the public aren't angry at me, they're angry because of how the media have reported it. Woe is me, they're making me out to be the bad guy in all this .... blah fucking boo hoo blah.

This was supposed to calm us down.

Dear reader.

It. Did. Not.

So journalist after journalist (Beth Rigby gave a fucking masterclass) actually didn't let him get away with it.

These weren't just questions or accusations. They threw proof at him! Despite the collective rage, it was glorious to see them do it. If this was when stocks were still in use in the town square, Cummings would've been covered in excrement and anything else to hand. That shit was blown back so fast, it was hard to keep up.

Anyway, without going into too much here, his excuses ranged from he didn't feel safe because of demos outside his home (unverified and strangely enough, no neighbours reporting any disturbances either. Funny that),

Then, having gone to great lengths to say he drove up to his parents to keep his kid safe, he explains the additional trip he got caught out on was taken to test his eyesight, which had been affected because of being unwell with Covid19.

So not only is it highly fucking illegal to drive while impaired (including if eyesight is impaired) in this country, you decided to take your wife and kid, who you wanted to protect, not for a little jaunt down the road, but on a 60 mile fucking round trip.

Oh, and he hadn't stopped on the 260 mile trip up there, but his kid needed a stop on the way home, so a less than 60 mile trip required a stop. Yeah. Strange how that works.

He still kept blaming the media. Still kept up the woe is me, it was exceptional circumstances, and so on. Must get sore lips there Cummings, with the amount of smoke you try to blow up peoples arses.

So, to end it all, he has flatly refused to resign. No need to even consider it. The public will be jolly good chaps in all of this and see my side of things.

No we won't, you motherfucking cunt!

So this morning, various people including Gove are still making excuses for this fucking shitstain.

I now wish Cummings is fired, but better yet, thrown out of our universe, so he can never ever be seen again. But I've seen more spine on a fucking snake that I have Boris Johnson, who is just as much to blame in all this.

Before I end, we also had an infamous Tweet from someone in the Civil Service, who knew they were torpedoing their career. I'm including a screen shot. It was taken down, but it was genuine. Whoever they were, you deserve all the applause and a fucking medal!

Oh and a few sources for this and the cuntface Cummings. But you know, just Google the fucker. You can find this and much more.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-44856992

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-47712040

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/aug/10/dominic-cummings-owns-farm-got-eu-subsidy

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/jun/18/david-cameron-dominic-cummings-career-psychopath

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/dominic-cummings-boris-johnson-cabinet-minister-aides-civil-service-sajid-javid-a9109836.html

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-52782913

[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-52553229

https://www.bbc.com/news/amp/uk-52792200

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-52793991

https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/dominic-cummings-trip-county-durham-18306147

https://www.gov.uk/driving-eyesight-rules

3 notes · View notes

uk-news-talking-politics · 5 years ago

Text

Stop shaming: This crisis calls for generosity, not denunciation

By Jonathan Lis

The last few weeks have been the most bewildering of our lives. The things we took for granted are now lost. The things we considered normal are now taboo. It has shown millions of people at their best: volunteering in their community, shopping for neighbours, coming together to applaud the NHS. But for all the altruism and kindness, it has revealed something else too - a profound national puritanism. Every week brings new public enemies. First it was the dog-walkers who had driven a short distance. Social media shamed them and individuals found angry notes left on their cars. Then it was the sunbathers. They were denounced for spreading the virus and Piers Morgan called for the NHS to deny them treatment. Now it is the people who walk together in the street or stop to greet neighbours. Daily reports emerge of passers-by shouting, swearing or even calling the police. It is always absurd when people declare that East German-style communism could never have reached freedom-loving Britain. You suspect that if it ever had, a quarter of the population would have signed up as secret informants in the first month. Then, of course, we have the police themselves. They are performing a vital role, and many have been subjected to unacceptable abuse. But a minority of officers are behaving poorly. Individual forces have talked or tweeted about checking shopping trolleys and non-essential supermarket aisles. People have been forced off park benches, as though the legislation specifies you cannot sit down while exercising. One man was arrested when attempting to deliver goods for a vulnerable neighbour. And some police have appeared to invent entirely new laws about how many householders are allowed out at any given time and how far from their homes they are permitted to travel. This behaviour not only brings individuals into close proximity with one another. In its obvious over-reach, it risks costing public trust in the police, and therefore in the regulations themselves. In short, it is not going to curb transmission of the virus. There are two distinct things happening here. The first is a moral policing of one's neighbours. The second is a gratuitously heavy-handed interpretation of the rules. They have numerous things in common. There is the culture of shaming. Twitter has been flooded with footage of people daring to visit parks, which remain open, even as the vast majority observe social distancing. Various police forces, meanwhile, have boasted about their punishments and posted pictures of the offences. Then there is the loss of proportion. Of course there are good reasons to stop people sunbathing, as it encourages others to do the same and theoretically creates crowds. But it is not itself the enemy. It is not in the same league as hosting a barbecue or a football match, and in most cases it is safer than going to the supermarket. Equally, it may not be ideal to drive a short way to take exercise, as the car might break down, but it is far safer to take exercise in an open space than on the pavement, and accidents can also happen when people stay at home and do DIY. Third is the failure to empathise. For many people this will be the most stressful moment of their lives. They may feel lonely, claustrophobic, anxious about their health or livelihoods or those of their families. Many do not have gardens and will be suffering from their lack of personal space. Some will be in agonising or abusive relationships and need some time to themselves. And others really will need to sit down when they exercise. But what this really amounts to is a culture of prohibition. It produces an opportunity not to enforce public health but uncompromising obedience. It focuses not on stopping the virus, but pleasure. Individuals see a ban, often subjectively interpret it, then judge others for not following it as overtly and faithfully as they are. It is as though some people are competing to see who can be the most hardline and unbending, and casting anyone less rigid as directly responsible for people's deaths. Of course, the most important thing is that the regulations are there for a valid reason and people should follow them. I am not advocating sunbathing. But, aside from washing one's hands, only one thing will stop the virus: maintaining physical distancing. If people are guided by that one central rule, there is no reason why they cannot sit somewhere quietly on their own or with members of their household. If the area becomes too busy, notices should (and in some cases already do) ask people to go elsewhere. If people are endangering safety, engagement may prove more constructive than condemnation. A compulsion to judge should not trump an instinct to understand. The problem in recent weeks is that we have focused on the rules themselves, not their purpose. Much like Brexit before it, they have become something we do because the government tells us, not because they are valuable on their own terms. This is the basic tenet of an illiberal democracy, which places people in service of the law, rather than the law in service to people. Sitting down while exercising will not spread the virus. Nor will going for a second run. The government recognises we need to go to the shops and actually recommends we take exercise. The key is to stay safe while doing the things that we are advised or need to do. People are trying to get by in difficult circumstances, and we should respond with generosity and pragmatism. We can stay both mentally and physically healthy if we keep our distance, wash our hands, and treat ourselves and one another with kindness. The lesson of suffering is not that everyone should suffer in solidarity. It's that we make the most of life, safely, while we're lucky enough to enjoy it.

#coronavirus

2 notes · View notes

pbandjesse · 6 years ago

Text

I keep gagging. Why. Ugh. Today was a really good day and i dont like feeling bad at the end of it!

I woke up around 7:30. My alarm clock scared me but it's okay. I got dressed and I felt pretty good. I said sweet pea and got him in his carrier. I decided to leave a little bit early just in case since I was going somewhere I didn't know very well. I walk to the bus stop and I went to wait for the purple. To Silver's in a green went past. And that's when Google decided to update that I should have taken this over. And then nothing came for 20 minutes. I was going to be late to this appointment and I was so upset. Sweet Pea was crying and everything was the worst. Finally a bus came right on time. It was the latest one I could have taken but I only got there a couple minutes late. I called and they were okay with it. I still felt stupid. I hate being late.

But we talked to the vet and they were really nice. Got off sweetpeas information and and they said it's the same allergy he had before. He's going to be on steroids for a couple weeks before he can get any vaccines or anything. Get this lip all healed up. But he did a really good job. I have very good cat.

We got some compliments on his wheelie bag carrier on my way out. Everyone know where I bought it. And then we walk down the street. Stop at CVS to get a couple things and then waited for the bus which was much more on time this go around.

I got back to my neighborhood and stop at the grocery store. Sweet Pea still strapped on my back. And then back to the apartment. I have a snack and did some cleaning. Worked on some stuff. But soon enough it was time to go again. I loaded up the tooth sculpture and the fan for the BMI and walked to the dentist office. I almost dropped everything but it all was fine. The dentist loves the tooth and they posted all over social media. So that was really cool.

I went down to the Harbour next. James is having his lunch out on the pier so I sat with him for a little bit and then said goodbye and biked up to the museum.

I got there and got the fan setup. I had to duct tape the bottom of it so that it wouldn't fall off the base. But I think everyone is just going to be glad to have a little bit of air flow. I got a whole bunch of compliments on my outfit today. Including from a toddler who said that my outfit was very cute. Made me smile. And soon enough we were leaving for our field trip.

We went to the Lillie Carroll Jackson Civil Rights Museum. And it was fabulous. We had a 2 hour guided tour with the seven of us. First one we got there there was a sculpture outside. I had never been to Eutaw place before and I'm kind of obsessed. Thus Francis Scott Key sculpture blew me away. Just the mixed colors in metals and materials was incredible. I wish the fountain part was still working because it was so cool.

The Museum of strange. Not in the inside but on the outside because there's no sign. Just a little plaque. I wasn't even sure we were in the right place but it turns out it's the woman's home. And Morgan State University helped redo the museum in 2016. And it's gorgeous. Everything was set up so well. And I knew my mom would absolutely die she would love it so much. So I spent pretty much the whole 2 hours taking pictures of every single piece of signage they had so that I could send them to my mom and she can kind of get a virtual tour. I was able to talk to the story I didn't tell her what my mom does for the Bucks County African American Arts Council and then at the end of the tour we walked in her room and the picture of the woman on the wall look exactly like my mom. Maybe not exactly but I I was taken aback when I saw it. I sent it to my mom right away and she agreed. And then the door guide agreed as well and wants my mom to come be a re-enactor. So that was very funny. I definitely gave them the information for the group my mom works with and my mom's going to try to track them down on Facebook so that was really cool. But honestly today was just really moving in the museum was beautiful and the tour was amazing. I'm really glad I got to go. It was really important for me to be there. I learned a lot.

We left there and Mike gave me another woman to ride back to the museum. It probably should have checked where the museum was that we visited today before I was in the car because it was literally four blocks from my apartment. So I went a mile and a half away to the museum to go right back to my apartment in the back again but it all worked out because I wanted to go to the dollar store anyway.

Once we got back to the BMI I got my bike and went over to the dollar store. I got things for the party on Saturday and then I went back down to the harbor to meet up with James. But I was feeling some sick all of a sudden and he wanted me to wait an hour until he was done but I just wanted to go home and I had to stop at the art store and it was a whole thing. He teased me but I kind of got some kind of feeling about it. Not that anything he did it's just kind of my own issue. So I went home.

I stopped at the art store for a minute to get black spray paint to fix the white trunk I found yesterday. And once I got back here I cooled off and felt a little bit better. James came and helped me take the trash out and then I was going to go with him to his apartment because the bras I bought have been delivered there.

But of course it started to absolutely poor once we left the house. Like awful sideways giant drops of rain. And of course it only rained for the 15 minutes it took to walk from my apartment to his apartment. We both got soaked. It was awful. But we got inside and we heated up some food. And I think it helped both of us feel a little bit less horrible.

I hung out until 9. Some of his D&D people came over for half group game. And Lane was there and so I could give her her new Shelby. She named them raspberry. And just the joy she was having playing with it was so sweet. I'm really glad I got to be there for it. And it turned out that the other guy in the group's girlfriend, who was there, also has Shelby's and Furbies. She's not into the community. But she has them for when she was a kid and they all still work. She was very funny. I think neither of us knew what to do with information of talking to someone who also knows about this stuff so that was a little bizarre but it was cool.

But my phone was dying and I wanted to get home before it was too dark. So I left and walk back here.

I got a shower and I put away the new bras and stuff. I started packing a bag for tomorrow because we're going to go to Beaver Dam to swim. And now I'm just chilling in bed with sleepy. It was chewing on my blankets. Like a monster. I think I'm going to go get something to snack on because I'm having like acid reflux or something. I don't know. I might just go to sleep. I'm looking forward to tomorrow. We may or may not be going with James's sister or some friends or something. But either way I'm looking forward to a nice day. Hope you all have a great night. Sleep well.

#ootd #project #museum #art #good day #feild trip #thursday #sculpture #flowers #weird dog #cat

7 notes · View notes

sunnysynthsunshine · 6 years ago

Text

7th Comedy Monologue

“Hey my Cheese bags I’m back from my adventure in 1985”

“No joke if you look it up

the timeframe of days for each month this year

are the exact same as they were in 1985”

So all this “80s revival stuff” with Duran Duran and Depeche Mode touring, Petshop Boys releasing a new album, a new generation falling in love with Queen and She-Ra while the world is being messed up by a tyrannical iron lady and a talking tangerine makes a bit of sense doesn’t it?”

Even though I was born in the 2000s I’ve always loved most of the media from that decade, the gothic and upbeat synthesizer music,the cheaply made but entertaining cartoons,the video games,the basic but stylish fashion,the musicals and John Hughes films,the mix of music genres in the charts,Goth,Synth,Punk,2 Tone,Post-Punk,New Wave,Glam Metal,Alternative,Shoegaze,Hip Hop,Electronica

I was watching Saved by the Bell before Netflix even existed

Then again a lot of the shows from then were also being revived back in my day

Dal Winton was presenting game shows, Pingu replaced the scary walrus monsters with rap music, I watched or had VHS tapes of the Muppet show, Noddy, Postman Pat and Scooby Doo.

Scooby-Doo! Now that’s a show that never gets old because it never changes, anyone regardless of what generation they’re from would be able to tell you

“Oh Yeah, I remember Scooby Doo”

When you think about it Scooby Doo is quite philosophical

we are all just a gang going on our own adventures

that and the first few live-action movies are modern masterpieces

I was just browsing Twitter or Tumblr or literally anywhere on the internet only to see that screencaps were taken from the live action Scooby Doo interviews had turned into memes

*ahem*

Well,I was auditioning for the role of Velma, I could sense from the way Matthew Lillard just fully encompassed the role of Shaggy, it felt like he was Shaggy, he was our saviour as he felt his spiritual energy increase, that’s when I knew we were working with a legend

Something like that although Matthew isn’t too fond of the memes himself specifically the ones where his spiritual connections are described more like demon possession rituals

*ahem*

“Being Shaggy has led me down a path of death and destruction. I’ve killed many mortals in hope of replicating 1% of Shaggy’s being, by the end of filming I hope to become one with him”

In which Matthew responded with

*deadpan voice*

This is wrong

I mean I might also have inspirations where I feel like I can philosophically connect with them, in their performing style and personality but that’s where I draw the line

Personality? That’s a tricky subject

You could say some people have consistent personalities

People said Freddie Mercury and David Bowie were party animals who were incredible on stage with their charisma, creativity and charm but other sources have said they were relaxed, laid back people who were shy when being interviewed.

That could just be the contrast between their onstage and offstage personas but not all of us have that, even if we are all just actors in a play, hoping each day goes the right way

Some of us are punk, even if we don’t explicitly say that we are, or have the stereotypical style associated with it,a lot of us just try to be ourselves,some of us can enjoy reality shows and horror movies at the same time,some of us can enjoy One Direction and Gorillaz,some of us can love fashion but also love memes, Theatre, and 1980s aesthetics

I’d say I’m the same but sometimes my personality is all over the place

I can go from being cheerful, relaxed and happy to being dazed and clumsy or cynical or entranced and hyper-fixated to Pessimistic and Cold to Quiet and Timid to Mellow and Loud what personality traits you associate with me, however, is up to your own conclusion

call me any internet subculture stereotype and I’d be able to tell you about how I either, unfortunately, was the stereotype or I hung around people who were those stereotypes

if you said I was someone who watched Cbbc and citv you’d be right

if you said I was a classic rock enthusiast years ago and now you’d be right

if you said I used to be a cringy anime enthusiast you’d be right

if you said I was one of those theatre kids who watched Disney sitcoms you’d be right

if you said I was one of those meme posters who referenced movies like Shrek and bee movie you’d be right

Another thing punks did was and sometimes still do was creating fanzines, magazines related to their favourite band or tv show or their own opinions on what’s going in the world, nowadays you could say social media has replaced that, but publications like the Daily Mirror, The Sun and TMZ still have a presence on there,I’d say fanzines should have a revival.

The BAFTA’s also happened recently and I wasn’t impressed, then again when are awards shows anything other than beauty pageants for films anyway?

Some films deserved their awards, but some films barely got a mention, Paddington 2 wasn’t included in there or in any of the other film awards this year and Stan and Ollie got nothing…

A darn shame because that film was so well made, it felt authentic, while Stan and Ollie also have a bit of a universal following, there are still some people who probably don’t know who they are!

Before Walliams and Lucas, Before the Two Ronnies, Before Richie and Eddie

There was…Laurel and Hardy

Two moustached blokes, who in the 20s and 50s would just try to delight audiences the best way they could, through slapstick and laughter, without them, most of the world’s double acts wouldn’t exist and even Spongebob wouldn’t exist

Yep, you heard me right, all those misadventures Spongebob and Patrick would have, they were loosely based on the adventures of Laurel and Hardy, except instead of it being about a tall British man and a fat American it was about an anthropomorphic sponge and a dumb but caring starfish.

Speaking of Spongebob, there was some sad news involving Spongebob not too long ago

The creator of Spongebob, Stephen Hillenburg…had passed away from ALS

I know, it’s awful,stupid motor neuron diseases and stupid Adam Levine too,for those who don’t know there was an episode of Spongebob called Band Geeks where they ended the episode with the cast playing a song called Sweet Victory over a Superbowl type of event, for the actual super bowl Spongebob fans around the world petitioned for that song to be played in tribute for Stephen,however we got Adam Levine singing a different song instead….what a letdown

If it wasn’t for SpongeBob I and some of the rest of the new generation, wouldn’t know half the old music or old films we know now.

To let down millions of fans like that makes me sick

Honestly, I was a bit sick a few weeks ago, I’ve been sick before and hospitalized twice but this particular moment of sickness was odd

It was like any other night, I was trying to get some sleep and lucid dream, but then it happened, the shivers, the shakes the trembling aches,

Out of nowhere, I felt like an ice-cube stuck in a microwave, It was too cold but it was too warm, I eventually got to sleep but when I got up the next morning I felt sick again, sorry for disclosing those details but it was like the exorcist…

Usually, when I’m sick watching documentaries, Kitchen Nightmares or 90s films weirdly cheers me up

Speaking of films, Rocketman the Elton John movie is out and it actually looks good

It’s being directed by the guy who was the replacement director for Bo Rhap and if it ends up being brilliant I won’t be surprised, the trailer gave off Velvet Goldmine vibes, the style of composed cinematography and I’m sounding like Film Twitter, Isle of Dogs was a good film…oh wait it wasn’t acknowledged much by the award shows either.

Another amazing film I recently watched was Rocky Horror…I know I’ve mentioned it before but that was when I only knew the sequel and some of the soundtrack,

It was amazing, it was brilliant, it was fantastic, it was out of this world,

ah! Rocky Horror was splendid

I definitely now understand why it’s still going strong to this day

It’s that hybrid of rock and roll, optimistic nihilism and soft aesthetics

That just works for me, another thing I’ve remembered was that Richard O’ Brien played the dad in Phineas and Ferb, well that explains that part of me liked that cartoon for the music and some of the characters but other characters did my head in like that Isabel character

“Hey, Phineas what ya dooing?”

“How about you let me finish my invention and you mind your own business”

Oof that’s too harsh…but considering aspects of the marvel Phineas and Ferb crossover were surprisingly a bit sexist at times outdated for the show that is usually quite progressive in its representation and characters…it’s probably accurate

Another person who hasn’t changed but is also often harsh, Piers Morgan, a little tweety bird told me he had a mysterious illness, good riddance I’d say, he’s the new Noel Edmonds, the presenter who used to be ok but now is unbearable…because he never shuts up

Thankfully though he’s “taking a break” from GMB that will rest our eardrums

Russell Brand has also been in the tabloids again, even though he’s more focused on his Buddhist spiritual recovery enlightening, looking back he wasn’t as bad as people described him, yeah at times he was a bit too over the top,but he was and is quite an ok bloke, but I’d say temporarily banning tickling is a bit of a stretch,

when you think about the number of people who disrespect our literal and figurative personal space on a daily basis, it kinda makes a bit of sense,

whether your sensory sensitive or not, I’m sure you hate it, when people are too touchy at times

although years ago I would’ve been a bit of an ignorant hypocrite about that

Hating it when crowds of kids would chase me like how the paparazzi chase their next gossip target, yet often annoyingly running up to people to talk to or entertain them.

I really need to learn to enjoy loneliness more because I get some of my best ideas when alone, but emotionally I feel a lot better when around others, a bit of an Ambivert really,

I’m sorry I can be a bit all over the place, I’m trying to make my energy more manageable

as that lucid dreaming thing has been misused at times,

I shouldn’t let myself be controlled…

by anyone or anything..no overthinking, no overworking,

treat the world as your stage, start your first act, motivated and ready, take your recharging interval breaks and then move on for your second act

fancy that me an ex-drama student making that metaphor when my current course involves digitally drawing art, editing audio and sitting at a computer for most of the day

But then again just because someone shows good charisma that doesn’t always mean their a good person.

Ted Bundy, one of America's most notorious serial killers used charisma and charm in his court cases, and with the amount of fangirls giving him fanmail it was like the Beatles fandom but for people with Stockholm syndrome,and now with Netflix’s documentary and Troy from High School Musical in an upcoming film about him, that seems to be repeating itself…

*Alien voice* Ted Bundy the 1960s called they want your fangirls back!

One show I know you probably haven’t heard of is The Boondocks, a south park esque cartoon with an anime esque art style, referencing the social commentary of African American culture and media, celebrating some aspects while critiquing others, through the lenses of a socialist boy named Huey Freeman, his rapper wannabe brother Riley and their activist grandad Robert.

This show was quite revolutionary,it referenced the issue of each episode quite well, even though it only lasted 4 seasons, however, because the show is quite American, apart from the animation which is done in Korea,The Boondocks is not well known in the UK, which is a shame because it is a really good show that still holds up…however, it does fall under one mousetrap that most other adult cartoons fall into….

Because of the references to violence,innuendo and other dark subject matter sometimes referenced in a satirically humorous way,some audiences would just watch the show because it’s offensive thinking that the show was made just to be offensive..instead of what the show was actually made for..which was to give social commentary on the issues relevant to African American communities in America.

I had watched this show years ago, it only just came back on my radar, because the creator Aaron McGruder, who based the show off his webcomic of the same name, had recently made a new issue.

There’s a difference between being satirical and being offensive

Your either making fun of something bad that a system or people are doing to make people aware of how stupid and sad the world can be at times,subjectively making fun of a stereotype, or your an arse who thinks they’re a comedian when they waste their time on social media, thinking they’re amazing and funny when they’re holding up the line at Mcdonald’s and the only people laughing at their jokes are gammon and people who found Bernard Manning funny

“Oh Wait”

I know sometimes I have unpopular opinions such as how my views of someone dip depending on their views of Kanye West

and sometimes I can be a bit snarky, and I hate and love stuff in equal amounts, but we need a bit of that don’t we, if we bottle it all up we explode like volcanos, but if we overshare too much, we crash like out of control cars

It’s all about moderation, salt is a tasty condiment but eat too much of it and your arteries will get clogged,

A few days back it was the day Mark Ashton passed away, for those who don’t know,he was an LGBT activist in the 80s,he volunteered with organizations such as the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament,he and the other activists helped to support the miners during the miner strike, creating the LGSM Alliance,Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners,there was a film made about them too, called Pride,but what some people don’t know is that….Mark Ashton was Northern Irish…he was one of us..he was the Marsha P Johnson of our time..if we were a bit like Mark Ashton this country would be a slightly more accepting place, why don’t we give love!

Let’s move on, plant more flowers in our garden..I know I sound like a hippie but it’s true, our Celtic Summerland is being used as a cesspool for Nuclear Waste

Oi! use your own bins, not the place we’re living in, pick up your rubbish and clean up your own mess…

The 80s were telling us something with all those protect and survive adverts, yes some of us were prepared as the older generation made us alert, others couldn’t recognize that a lot of innocent people were getting hurt.

When we say we want a 1980s comeback we want the music, clothes, games and films,

but Nope

while we have some of that the 1980s revival we get is the one that involves Nuclear Danger and the ghost of Margaret Thatcher

All these TV and Film revivals, some are cool others are just unnecessary Do we really need a Snow White sequel? No, we don’t but we did get one even if it was unofficial

Back in 2007 a French animation company made a sequel to Snow White which was also a bit like Shrek in how it satirised the fairy tale tropes, how Prince Charming feels like he is objectified while he ends up doing the same thing to the female characters, quite a tosser but that’s the point of the parody to point out the flaws with fairy tale logic, and to put the likes of Snow White, Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella in more realistic scenarios.

…it’s strange, weird but brilliant too

The English dub had quite a few familiar faces doing the character voices

Stephen Fry as the narrator, Morwenna Banks, Simon Greenall and another British actor

Rik someone...

Ah! I remember his name now, he was in many successful sitcoms in the 80s and 90s,he was a legend, he knew how to keep people laughing, whether they were children, adults, teenagers,

in television, theatre, film or music

quite an eclectic range of talent

Although

I’m a new fan, I might adore his work, but I had just learnt his name 2 years ago, whereas, with other fans, they have created their own work, such as Charlie Brooker and Simon Pegg… some were able to meet him…lucky...

Some encounters were quite interesting, I had heard someone’s nan got to meet him in the 90s but she got his name wrong so she ended up saying

“‘oh hello can I have your autograph please Mr mayo?’

Well that happened, she probably still got that autograph,...

And somewhere up there, Rik Mayall is thinking of us, he, Stephen Hillenburg and David Bowie are probably chatting away

Let’s make the lord of misrule proud

#comedy #comedy monologue #1980s #original monologue

2 notes · View notes

2021laxteentour · 4 years ago

Text

Day One (Arrival)

Today was amazing on so many levels. I flew across the country to actually explore California and not just stop by. I have seen so many beauties in one day and I loved every moment because there is just a difference seeing something in real life for yourself which brings a rush into your body. Seeing the Memorial and looking at the neighborhoods was very emotional for me by seeing how celebrated he still is after his passing, The Walk of Fame was really crowded so I didn’t get the impact I was expecting but it was still a rush nonetheless. -Paris B.

From the Hollywood Walk of Fame to Rodeo Drive, I was put in the path to explore greatness. Greatness when it came to focusing on a career and greatness when it came to how to elevate a business. While on the Hollywood Walk of Fame I was able to see some of the people stars that I idolized as a child. Doing so served as an inspiration to keep striving for greatness because that too could be my star one day. Alongside visiting the Walk of Fame, you know what they say you didn’t go to Los Angeles unless you went to Randy’s Donut. So far along my travels to Los Angeles for my 6th WECCAAN installment I’ve seen a thriving city on the outside shell. I look forward to being able to see the inside of the shell where the hardships fall at. I’m excited for the adventure that awaits tomorrow as we prepare to volunteer on Skid Row. -Roderick T.

Today we went to Nipsey Hussle's basketball court, store, and memorial area. I've also learned a lityle bit more about the story behind his death as well. Then we went to Hollywood and we saw, and walked on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. We also saw a cast member of the Fast and Furious 9 movie in Hollywood. I also saw the car/set of the movie as well. I also learned about the famous theaters in Hollywood and I hope to get an opportunity to perform there in my mother's stage plays/movies. Afterwards, we went to Rodeo Dr. in Beverly Hills to view the high class stores. This is my first time on a plane and in California. -Tiffany W.

This was only my second ever plane ride so I was slightly nervous but everything went well for me. I noticed that Los Angeles is a lot faster than Columbia and has such a diverse variety of people. Within minutes we traveled from a street with many homeless and drugged people; to a street with purses worth more than a house. My favorite part of the day was visiting Long Beach; it was what I had imagined LA to be like. I also enjoyed seeing the Nipsey Hussle memorials; they were so well done and creatively made. Although Hollywood was very chaotic, I still really enjoyed going there as well. We also visited Randy's Donuts which was really delicious and also something that I was looking forward to when arriving in California. I really enjoy trying new things and everything that I did today was new! -Ariyana L.

Today’s visit to Nipsey Hussle’s Marathon store and neighborhood was enriching which started with the community event at the school. Seeing the outpouring support from the community for what Nipsey stood for was overwhelming. In contrast, going to Rodeo Drive and seeing all the high end stores reminded me of how divided the country is - the have & the have nots. Long Beach area was fun with lots to do. But even there, we ran across a homeless person. Hollywood Blvd wasn’t what I expected. I guess since it is where the rich & famous hang out, I expected everything to look “rich & famous”. It reminded me of New York. A busy, dirty street yet full of history and landmarks. -Pamela F.

Starting the day off with morning circles was cool as everyone got to know one another. I really enjoyed starting with the crepes located in Pasadena as it introduced me to a different culture of authentic food and was really delicious. Also going downtown Hollywood was inspiring with seeing the stars on the ground for actors and actresses showing proof for their hard work and running into Han off of Fast and Furious. Stopping by Randy’s was super good and good to taste the traditional donuts that have been there since 1930’s. Visiting Beverly Hills and Rodeo Drive was nice to see how the rich and famous live and spend their money and seeing the nice cars was cool too (different from home). Visiting Nipsey Hussle community was inspiring too as he has had an outstanding impact on the community. Out of all the sites visited today I really enjoyed the school that gave away food, water and clothing. Reminded me of what I want to be able to do with my community and I just thought that was amazing at how they were able to do with no cost to the children or parents. I enjoyed the day as it helped reflect on ideas that I want to achieve on my own. -Morgan F.

Today was a super busy jampacked day with tons of stops. I really enjoyed Long Beach, the weather was perfect and the temperature was just right for walking and enjoying the scenery. Our stop to Hollywood stars was a bit more exciting this year, we were able to see some celebrities from the newest Fast and Furious movie that will be coming out in a couple of weeks (which I have seen every single one!) Closing out the day with a quick stop to Rodeo drive was calming from the busyness of Hollywood but was a nice addition to see all the shopping areas where-more likely all the celebrities shop. I am looking forward to my favorite event tomorrow where we get to volunteer in Crenshaw neighborhood. -Rania A.

The first day here in Los Angeles was full and eventful. It is always enjoyable to catch up with previous WECCAAN volunteers and meet new teenagers as we embark on a new adventure. This is my second time in California and Los Angeles and it certainly feels like an experience unlike the first. Having seen Crenshaw and visited Nipsey’s several murals, I was reminded of the sense of pride a community will have during hard times. Yet 2 years after his passing, his legacy lives through the community. It brought a refreshing energy although the aesthetics weren’t your expected California stereotype. Sight seeing in Long Beach, Rodeo Drive, and Hollywood inspires aspiring beliefs of ones own drive for success. I look forward to what day 2 of this trip brings. -Steven V.T.

I really enjoyed starting with the crepes as it introduced me to a different culture of authentic food. Also going downtown Hollywood was inspiring with seeing the stars on the ground for actors and actresses showing proof for their hard work. Out of all the sites visited today I really enjoyed the school that gave away food, water and clothing. Reminded me of what I want to be able to do with my community and I just thought that was amazing at how they were able to do with no cost to the children or parents. I enjoyed the day as it helped reflect on ideas that I want to achieve on my own. -Morgan F.

Today, I met the other tourists to go to new places. We went to Subway for breakfast and went to a Juneteenth celebration. We then went to take pictures at the "Nipsey Hussle Memorial Sight". We took a 30 minute drive to the pier where we took pictures. Today was a great experience. Going to places I've never been, meeting new people, it's been a fun experience. -Darius W.

Interesting day, as we started by taking a stroll down Crenshaw Blvd. In observance to this Juneteenth weekend, we were able to see the local vendors up and down the sidewalk. Adjacent to the mural of the late Nipsey Hussle, the vendors showcased several different items for purchase. Then on to Long Bleach where you seen paddle boats, multishared cyclists, and boats. Took a walk over the pier, seen lots of lovely views from the shoppes to the eatery's and even the friendly people walking with their animals. Sharing this experience with my sons is the greatest feeling and meeting and creating relationships along with memories with WECCAAN is so well worth the flight! -Tia J.

My first day in California was awesome! The beautiful art work that was displayed in Nipsey Hussel’s neighborhood was just fantastic. I was surprised to see so many vendors outside of where his store once was selling his merchandise. However, I felt that it took away from the memorial the community was trying to build. As I reflect over this specific site we visited today, I wish I could have served during the first LA tour when there was a chance to garden after his death. I am looking forward to day two of this awesome experience. -Stephanie L.

Today was an amazing day out in LA. Especially Crenshaw where we went to visit Nipsey’s shop, it taught me a lot on how his people truly cared for him and how much dedication he put into that part of the city, with his music and etc. His murals were very beautiful. To finish off the day with the late night walk at rodeo drive was pretty relaxing too ....today was truly a really good day! -Ashleigh F.

Today was long overdue. It's been quite sometime since I've been with a group of people and in heavily populated areas. That combined with the solidarity of our convening around service to others was a feeling that did my soul a lot of good. Although traffic was horrendous, I was inspired by the people out and about. I met many new volunteers today and was pleased to share the experience of exploring Los Angeles with them post-quarantine. I was thrilled to revisit Randy's not so much for my sweet tooth, but there's some comfort in ritual and one of SSA's while in LA is to visit Randy's everyday of every trip. Seeing the diversity of the people waiting in line reminded me how beautiful it is to contribute to the color of the world. I will surely make the most out of the sleep I get tonight; extremely exhausted currently, but in the best way. -Giovan B.

My family had been to California several times, Anaheim, San Diego, Santa Clara, Santa Ana but had only passed through LA. While reviewing the itinerary, I wondered how the group would interact and if we’d know anybody since this was our first trip. The girls were excited about the tour stops and the activities planned. We went through the TSA check line to get through faster. Even though we arrived 3hrs ahead of time, the lines were pretty long. The flight seemed long only because a passenger loudly talked the entire way and continuously pressed the stewardess call button. -Pamela F.

0 notes

figure---my---heart---out · 7 years ago

Text

Love is a Verb

THE BLOG 10/15/2012 09:50 am ET Updated Dec 15, 2012 Posted on HuffingtonpostBy Sheryl Paul

A significant portion of my work is dedicated to debunking our beloved and dysfunctional cultural myths about love, romance, and marriage. For many people, these messages live like a sleeping serpent in the unconscious layer and are only awakened when real love is standing before them. In other words, as long as they’re chasing after the unavailable partner where there’s no risk of real love and, thus, no risk of vulnerability and loss, they can trot along somewhat happily, fully subscribing to the dominant cultural myths. But once they’re faced with the possibility of a lifelong commitment to a present, loving, available partner — which often occurs at the time of getting engaged but can also appear much sooner — the serpent awakens and the messages come spewing forth in a slew of froth, wreaking havoc on their unsuspecting minds as the messages clash with their lived experience and the serpent attempts to convince them that it’s time to walk away.

What are these cultural messages about love? What does the serpent say when it awakens from its lifetime slumber? It says:

• Love is a feeling. If you’re not feeling love, then you don’t really love your partner.

• If you have to question whether or not you love your partner, you obviously don’t love him/her and it’s time to walk away.

• You should “just know that it’s right.” If you don’t have that feeling of rightness, then it’s clearly not right.

• You should feel head over heels “in love”, which means butterflies and fireworks.

• Your partner should make you feel alive, whole, and fulfilled.

I could go on and on; the love-myths are endless, and you only have to watch a Meg Ryan romantic comedy — or any Hollywood romantic comedy, for that matter — to see the enactment of these messages. Once you understand real love, these films are harmless fun. But when you grow up watching Disney stories and following glorified Hollywood romances, these films create a dangerous expectation that love should look and feel like it does on the big screen. And when the initial rush of feeling and certainty naturally wears off, as it always will, it’s frightfully easy to doubt that your relationship is still a good one.

If love isn’t only a feeling, what is it? Once the honeymoon wears off, love is primarily a verb, and to love someone is an active experience. Love is action. Love is commitment. Love is making your partner a sandwich even when you don’t “feel” like it. Love is recognizing that intimate, committed relationships are crucibles inside which both partners will be asked to grow emotionally and spiritually and learn about the barriers that prevent them from loving. As Alanis Morissette said in a brilliant interview with Piers Morgan, “Love, to me, is a verb. Love kicks in for real when things get hard... Love, for me, is when I don’t feel very loving. It’s an action.” And when asked how she knew that Souleye was the one for her she said, “Values being the same: family, commitment, partnership, seeing marriage as a hotbed for growth and healing. Not everyone — including myself at times — views marriage as the alchemy that it really can be in affording us the [opportunity for] wholeness.”

My clients and e-course members often ask me, “If love isn’t only a feeling, how do I know I love my partner?” Real love is a knowing, and knowing is place that lives beyond thoughts or feelings. You probably don’t always feel loving feelings for your mother or father or best friend, but you know you love them. Another way to approach the question is to look for evidence that you love your partner. When the heart-thumping, stomach-churning feeling is gone but you’re still motivated to spend time with your partner, when something deeper than thoughts or feelings draws you to your partner like a magnetic pull (sometimes strong, sometimes less strong), when you keep showing up in concrete, tangible ways for the relationship even when it’s difficult, when there’s an ease between you even when it’s not always easy, this is real love.

There’s nothing drug-like or euphoric about real love. On the contrary, it’s grounded, honest, stable, and authentic. The deeper place inside of you knows that to commit to your partner is a loving choice, and so you act in loving ways even when you don’t always feel loving. Through these loving actions, you expand your heart and grow your capacity to love. This is evidence of love.

It’s a tragic reality that far too many people walk away from solid, healthy relationships with partners that they truly love because their experience doesn’t match the cultural expectation. Don’t you think it’s time to change the expectation, to bring it down from the realm of stars and fantasy and present young, formative minds with an accurate and realistic depiction of love, romance, and marriage? It’s time we change “you complete me” to “you inspire me to become the best version of myself” or “with you, I will grow and evolve in my capacity to love.” It’s time to dismantle the fantasy so that people on the threshold of marriage can create the healthiest possible foundation on which to begin their lives together.

*** Sheryl Paul, M.A., has counseled thousands of people worldwide through her private practice, her bestselling books, her e-courses and her website. She has appeared several times on “The Oprah Winfrey Show”, as well as on “Good Morning America” and other top media shows and publications around the globe. To sign up for her free 78-page eBook, “Conscious Transitions: The 7 Most Common (and Traumatic) Life Changes”, visit her website at http://conscious-transitions.com. And if you’re suffering from relationship anxiety - whether dating, engaged, or married - give yourself the gift of the Conscious Weddings E-Course: From Anxiety to Serenity.

Sheryl Paul

International counselor for anxiety

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sheryl-paul/love-is-a-verb_1_b_1940731.html

#sheryl paul #love #huffpost #huffingtonpost

1 note · View note

fortheheavenssake · 6 years ago

Text

GMA

Meet #SussexSquad, the army of strangers supporting Duchess Meghan

By Katie Kindelan

April 30, 2019

In response, an unlikely source of support has arisen for Meghan. They call themselves the #SussexSquad and they are women and men from around the world, including many in the U.S., who show up online to support the duchess.

“We’re not people living in our parents’ basements who are tied to a computer and tweeting 24/7,” said Bryndis Roberts, a #SussexSquad member and 61-year-old attorney in Atlanta. “We have families. We have jobs. We have other interests, but we have come together in our love and support for Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan.”

Roberts, credited with creating the name Sussex Squad, said she has been a fan of the British royals since her childhood, particularly Harry’s mother, the late Princess Diana.

Bryndis Roberts is an attorney in Atlanta, Georgia.

She followed Harry as he grew up, was impressed by the charitable work he took on and then felt like he’d met “the one” with Meghan, a native of California.

(MORE: Prince Harry and Meghan may break from tradition with royal nanny: Report)

"Many of us, we did feel that Duchess Meghan was not being fairly portrayed in the media," she said. “Using the power of social media that we all recognized, we wanted to retweet positive things about both of them, to share information about their activities.”

The #SussexSquad not only works to promote the work of Harry, 34, and Meghan, 37, but also to take down the haters, in internet speak.

If your name is Samantha Markle or Piers Morgan, two frequent critics of Meghan, or any author or reporter who writes about the negative rumors surrounding Meghan, then look out too -- the Sussex Squad has you on their radar, according to their hash-tagged tweets.

To understand their reach, consider the SussexSquad hashtag has been mentioned more than 12,500 times on Twitter and in more than 3,000 posts on Instagram.

"It’s like the 'Arianators' with Ariana Grande and the 'Beyhive' with Beyonce. It’s a powerful force," ABC News royal contributor Omid Scobie said of the Sussex Squad. "What made it such a passionate group is that they saw someone they identify with and saw her under attack, whether that was from trolls on social media or the tabloids."

Combatting racism, greed with tweets

The reason for defending Duchess Meghan stems from something deeper than just being fans, according to Sussex Squad members. They see the negativity aimed at Meghan as stemming from racism and an attempt to cash in on the newest member of Britain's royal family.

"Meghan is big money for these publications so her name is used for clicks," said Vee, a 35-year-old real estate agent in Florida who runs the @SussexSquad Instagram account.

"The clicks come from those who seek bad news about her for their confirmation bias, the types of people who don’t think she deserves the place and privilege she occupies because she’s a woman of color," she said. "It’s easy to pile on as no one questions the abuse."

(MORE: Royal baby alert: Everything you need to know about Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's baby)

Tina and Michelle, two women who launched the Sussex Squad podcast in February, describe the podcast as a home for "reporting on the Sussexes without any pre-determined agenda."

"The main reason we wanted to do this podcast is to create an outlet for the supporters," the women say on the podcast's opening episode. "We noticed how unfairly Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, is being covered in the press. We wanted to create a fact-based environment to discuss the Sussex's work without a negative agenda."

The social media hate for Meghan comes mostly from other women, according to Sussex Squad member Brenda Benjamin, a 49-year-old university professor on the Dutch Caribbean island of Curaçao.

"She is a victim because of her success, who she married, her color, her gender and her views," said Benjamin, a fan of Meghan from her days as Rachel Zane on the TV show "Suits." "[There is] a lot of envy because she married into royalty."

"My respect for Meghan comes through the kind of life she’s lived," she said. "Finding the Sussex Squad has been a blessing."

Scobie, who has covered the British royal family for a decade, said many of the qualities which the Sussex Squad admires in Meghan -- that she is outspoken and not from traditional royal pedigree -- are the same reasons she faces harsher criticisms by some parts of the British media.

Scobie noted the tough media coverage has extended even through Meghan's nine months of pregnancy and will likely continue for even longer.

"I think ultimately each newspaper and each publication represents a different demographic and they will continue to feed whatever that demographic wants," he said. "If negative stories about Meghan are what the reader engages with the most, that [coverage] is not going to change any time soon."

A baby shower for Meghan goes viral

While members of the Sussex Squad combat what they portray as hate against Meghan, they also try to protect Meghan and Harry in a virtual cocoon. They have developed a prayer chain for the royal couple, with the hashtag #SussexPrayerChain.

Prayers go up for Meghan and Harry at least once a week and have been more frequent during Meghan's pregnancy. If the couple is the focus of a new book or article, the prayer chain comes out in force.

"Each one of us has a different approach to social media, but for me it's more about the supportive things," said Roberts, who often tweets prayers for Harry and Meghan. "Not to say that there have been or will be instances where things are posted that I have to say, 'Really?' to or make a comment, but that’s not how I spend the majority of time."

The most high-profile action taken by the #SussexSquad so far was the global baby shower the members organized in March to honor Meghan and Harry’s first child. The virtual baby shower, propelled by the hashtag #GlobalSussexBabyShower, urged people to donate to three charities Harry and Megan are known to support.

Elle Harris, who is credited for starting the campaign under her Twitter handle @freepeeper, told “GMA” in March that she did it in part because “Twitter can be a pretty negative space. I hoped the hashtag would promote kindness in our little corner of the internet.”

The baby shower went viral, with nearly 78,000 tweets and the charities reporting an overflow of donations.

It became more than the Sussex Squad members could have dreamed of when Harry and Meghan acknowledged their supporters on Instagram. The couple expanded the baby shower by asking people to support four charities they support, which the Sussex Squad then added to its list of charities.

"We were pretty stoked about that," said Roberts, one of as many as 15 members of the Sussex Squad who coordinated the shower via online messages and conference calls. "It was very organic the way it started and then it took off."

The baby shower may have been the first time Sussex Squad members felt Harry and Meghan had acknowledged them, but the support online does not go unnoticed by the couple, according to Scobie.

"Harry and Meghan say that they do their best to not pay much attention to what people are saying and that includes the good and-- the bad," he said. "However, the baby shower was not really the first time that the two of them were aware of how big and positive their online following is, particularly on social media."

"I think they’ve always felt quite humbled by that, and I think that’s been quite comforting to them along this journey, for not just them as a couple but for the work that they do," Scobie added.

GMA

0 notes

sares19-blog1 · 8 years ago

Text

Mental Health Awareness Week: Everyone Needs to Know

Stephen Fry once said, "It's hard to be a friend to someone who's depressed, but it is one of the kindest, noblest and best things you will ever do." This is both a vast understatement and the truest thing I have ever heard - and not just for the reasons you will be expecting. Supporting someone who is depressed and suicidal is beyond hard. It's brutal and ugly. It's listening to nothing but their pain day and night, hearing them crying and screaming into a pillow. It's continually reassuring them that it's not going to get worse, continually convincing them that they don't want to die. It's making a self-referral to crisis on your birthday. It's incessantly calling mental health services that aren't listening and being pushed from pillar to post. It's telling their friends and family and then watching those friends and family falling apart. It's watching someone so desperate for help that they call Samaritans five times a day. It's knowing that whatever you're trying to do isn't making them better or happier. It's knowing that they're not actually feeling anything at all, but at the same time feeling everything. It's the arguments when you've inadvertently said the wrong thing. It's grasping onto them whilst they push away from you, sitting on them and holding their arms when they try to punch the dark thoughts out of their head. It's sitting in A&E. It's hearing them calmly and rationally telling you how they're not going to be here tomorrow, how happy everyone will be when they're not here anymore, hearing them make plans. It's lying awake at night because they've told you they're going to do it when you're asleep. It's calling the police as a last resort. It's their attempts and the aftermath. It's hiding sharp objects and medications, and things you never even considered might be dangerous before that moment. It's worrying about them when you're at work. It's making sure they are never ever alone. It's beyond hard. Before I supported someone with a serious mental illness, I'd only had a brief introduction to depression in my very early 30's. At the time it was so mild that I didn't realise it was depression; it only dawned on me on reflection, after a friend convinced me to get counselling when I told her my brain felt like a tangled ball of wool. I was getting panic attacks which made me feel like I might die, I wasn't sleeping at night and found myself crying in the supermarket. Tins of beans aren't particularly upsetting, unless of course you are hit in the face by one, so you'd have thought I'd have recognised the signs before her intervention. But that's the problem with depression; when you are in it, you can't see out of it. Depression absolutely loves to keep you in that place too. It feeds off you. It feeds off itself. It makes you feel overwhelmingly hopeless so you in turn believe everything to be hopeless. It tries to strip you of the person you are until you don't even know who that is anymore. It makes you believe you're incapable of defeating it. It's gnawing and grinding. Intrusive and invasive. Rational and irrational. It completely takes over. When you're helping someone through depression it can often seem totally futile. I have found myself on the receiving end of a sharp tongue for saying something unhelpful, I've experienced overwhelm from trying to think of new ways to bring him out of it until it feels like there are no other options. I've found myself getting exasperated, frustrated and angry - a natural human response, but one that ultimately leaves you feeling like a selfish bastard. For every positive, there's a negative response or reaction and you can sometimes feel as though you're not making one ounce of difference. Let me convince you here that you absolutely are. Supporting someone who is depressed IS beyond hard. But it's infinitely better than the alternative. I don't feel kind or noble in sticking by someone who is suicidal. I don't feel it's my 'duty.' It's someone I love. It's someone who, three years ago before his illness took over, I was talking about marriage and kids with. When you get married you declare the words "In sickness and in health." If I'm not willing to do that before we are married, what makes me more able or likely to do so when we are? They just become empty words and I don't live my life like that. Kindness and nobility don't come into it when your focus is doing everything in your power to keep someone you love - in the literal sense of the word - alive. Whilst he was feeling himself slipping away, I never lost sight of the person he is underneath the depression; kind, funny (juvenile even, but hey so am I!), infuriating when he doesn't put a bag in the bin and leaves huge puddles of water in the hallway after he's had a shower. Drives me mad with his banana skins casually draped over the arm of the sofa. Frustrates me when he's so engrossed in writing that he doesn't hear a fucking word I say! Calls me out when I'm being a dick. Enviably intelligent, unabashedly honest, defiant, strong, supportive, encouraging, passionate, creative, motivated to help others, a bit of a lovable geek. Paul. In a way I feel lucky. Don't ever think that someone who talks about committing suicide isn't serious, that they're saying it for attention or won't do it - it all depends on the person, their personality, how they deal with pain, how comfortable they are with sharing, so many variables. I'm lucky that the person I'm supporting is an over-sharer. If he wasn't a talker, if he was more private, more guarded and kept his true thoughts and feelings bottled up then I would never have known and I'd never have been able to help. I'm lucky that he tells me everything, that he is actually unable to keep his true thoughts to himself, a person so open and comfortable with himself that he makes videos of his own farts and sends them to our friends as a gift (told you he was juvenile). The kind of person who finds it hard not to express how he's feeling. The kind of person who would tell you if he wanted to kill himself. Not everyone has the luxury of that warning. For every celebrity who is bang on point, there's another who misses it completely. At the risk of this post feeling dated and irrelevant to future readers, there's something I feel I need to stress at this juncture. Piers Morgan is woefully out of touch and his recent tweet on mental health would attest to this. He claims that he's "...not convinced by this new trend of male public soul-bearing. Time for our gender to get a grip, methinks. Life's tough - man up." This is a man who has a TV show, the premise of which revolves around celebrities speaking candidly to him about their struggles. He then slithers out of that persona and shows himself to be the snake he truly is. You can't pretend to care about people on TV and then say absurd and damaging things to the contrary on social media. I'd like to tell Piers that this outpouring of male soul baring is in fact way, way, way overdue and may just save a few thousand lives. It certainly saved Paul's. If Piers can tell me something he's contributed apart from ill-informed tabloid bullshit, grammatical inaccuracies (I've certainly never seen a Soul Bear in the wild) and being a judge on a show that actively mocks people with learning disabilities, I'd love to hear it. Our experience is testament to the fact that Stephen Fry is right and Morgan is so very, very wrong. I will also agree with Stephen that supporting someone with depression is hands down the best thing I've ever done, aside from giving up smoking and listening to my mate when he begged me to watch Breaking Bad. Not only am I seeing that amazing person slowly but surely emerging back out of the darkness, watching someone else experience this first hand has allowed me to be so much more understanding and receptive to others who are going through the same. Before this I never knew what to say. I now have an array of things to contribute because I get it, I've seen it from both sides. It's made me a more patient person - a better person. It has turned me into a campaigner, a complainer, a confidante for our support group members. It's also made me reflect deeply on my own mental health, allowing me to unravel and make peace with some things that were dragging me back, to focus on my self care and actually make more time and effort to fit that practice into my life than I would ordinarily have done if left to my own devices. It sounds like a massive cliche, but this experience has brought us closer, it has deepened our understanding of each other in a way that I never thought existed. My respect and admiration for him has grown, the bravest and most resilient of people. It has shown me that even deep depression can be challenged and overcome. It can be denied the attention it craves and it can be stifled into submission. It's a fine balance which takes a lot of practice, time, concentration, self-belief and trust but once you work out how it ticks and how it governs you that's when you start to regain the power. You can talk it out, you can tell a counsellor, you can join forces with others who understand, fuck it - you can soul bare on social media, you can slowly reclaim yourself. It's something I've seen in action. Depression is hopeless, but it's also an opportunity to be hopeful. At the moment his crushing lows are coming in waves, but they are becoming less frequent and less intense. When he's deep in the depression, he can't see the way out and he can't see the light at the end of the tunnel. I always tell him that's because he's not in a tunnel, he's in a maze. He will come up against walls, but there's always another way around that will get him on the right path again. He can't see the end, he doesn't have to. All he needs to do is know it's there and he can navigate his way. We can all navigate our way.

4 notes · View notes