#quin silver

[wildflower-otome]

Spade no Kuni no Alice - Otomate Style Covers

[quinloki]

Inspired by this post

But the idea of it being hot as balls outside and you’re in a light dress, and just walking by your f/o / fave / etc. and flipping the back of your skirt up so they see your bare ass.

[womenofwrestlingfashion]

Black and Silver Pant Set from A.B. Archie (n/a)

[quinloki]

Not putting this in the tags cause I wanted to really sink my teeth into it.

The trope for Marco is effectively like a Fairy Tail - nothing went wrong. It was nearly love at first sight and there weren't any real bumps. At least not between us, all the issues are external ^^; Probably Soul Mates if I'm picking something more traditional.

Eustass Kid was more Rivals to Lovers, and it wasn't much of a rivalry so much as sexually tense friendly competition. Plenty of back and forth though, and just a few misunderstandings.

Sabo was more slowburn than anything else. Frustratingly slow too, because it was nearly love at first sight, but both believed there was no way the other was being anything more than just polite. (When the tension finally broke it took three days to recover).

Donquixote Doflamingo was a fight and a disaster - 100% enemies to lovers, and more reluctant lover than anything else. Yandere through and through and I probably won't last all that long. ^^;

Sir Crocodile was Only One Bed. It was a business trip for both of us, for different businesses, and options were limited. I made him sign a contract that he would be a gentleman and then slept on the couch (one of us was small enough for it, one of us was *not*.) >.> After that it kind of turned into yandere, but the bastard's so smooth it's hard to not just accept it. 😩

Rayleigh was a competition - it was supposed to be a one-night stand. idk if hubris or arrogance did me in on that one, but now I have the two of them looking out for me. Strangers to Lovers.

what’s everybody selfship trope?

[petermorwood]

Potato Crisps / Chips on Tasting History

So we've just watched Max's latest...

...and I was grinning a bit because I posted about Dr Kitchiner's 1817 (non-US, definitely non-Saratoga) crisps / chips recipe a month ago.

That image was from an American edition of his book; I've found a pic from the original - NB that these slices are floured before frying.

For reference, here's a two-penny piece from about 1797; the coin would still be current 20 years later:

...and here's how thick the potatoes should be sliced. That's 4mm, which is 2mm less than "a quarter of an inch" (6.25mm).

The slices will get even thinner as their moisture evaporates during frying, and, given the nature of recipes, potatoes cooked this way are probably even older than 1817 and Kitchiner's is just the first appearance found so far in print.

*****

The first recipe for "Game Chips" (an accompaniment to grouse, pheasant etc.) appeared, per the Wikipedia link, in a 1903 book published by famous chef Auguste Escoffier (1846-1935):

"Chip potatoes - these are potatoes cut into thin slices; this is usually done with a special plane. (A mandoline.) They are put in cold water for 10 minutes; then drained, dried in a cloth and fried until very crunchy. They are served hot or cold and generally accompany game roasted in the English style."

However, per Escoffier's Wikipedia page, much of his work was based on that of Anton Carême (1783-1833), whose dates are squarely coincident with Dr Kitchiner's Potato Slices.

Given the amount of cookery to-and-fro between England and France after the Napoleonic wars were over, it's impossible to say who first came up with the idea of potato crisps.

The French loved dainties - "un petit quelquechose", a little something - which the English pronounced and dismissed as "kickshaws", something over-fussy yet insubstantial. Yet those same English also loved roasting things with their appropriate accompaniments.

(I'm writing this just over a week after Christmas, and have been well reminded that the phrase "Roast (turkey / goose / beef) With All The Trimmings" is still in common 21st-century use.)

If those roasted things were game birds, only those above a certain level in society would be eating them, so it's not unreasonable to assume a rich-person game bird would attract fussy, time-consuming rich-person trimmings like, okay, Game Chips.

One thing's for sure, Potato Crisps - and Game Chips too, so hard luck, Escoffier - are almost certainly older than even Tasting History could prove.

*****

BTW, they also existed at a time when "English Food Was Bland" is more fake history.

Sauces put out on the table in fancy bottles had fancy labels ("bottle tickets") showing what was in them, and the contents were often far from bland.

Quin sauce was anchovy-based, hot and pungent.

Harvey's was a spicy sauce similar to Worcestershire, ketchup was probably mushroom and also spicy; the other two need no elaboration.

AFAIK the two crescent-shaped ones in the next pics are deliberate imitations of an officer's rank-gorget.

Finally a generic Not-Bland label that would go on any number of modern bottles (antique silver, yours for £250)...

*****

And after all of the above, I could do Very Bad Things to a packet of Tayto Cheese 'n' Onion. A packet?

Why stop at a packet when A Pack takes less time to say?

After all, It Is Written that:

"Reading One Book Is Like Eating One Potato Crisp Chip."

And also that Nothing Exceeds Like Excess...

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

🌈 Queer Books Coming Out in December 2024 🌈

Find these books and more here.

🌈 Good afternoon, my bookish bats! Here are a FEW of the stunning, diverse queer books you can add to your TBR before the year is over. Happy reading!

❓What was the last queer book you read?

[ Release dates may have changed. ]

❤️ Sugar-Coated Kisses - Echo Lark 🧡 Christmas at Watson Memorial - Clara Ann Simons 💛 Warm-Blooded - J Greene 💚 It Takes Three To Tango - Jem Wendel 💙 The Black Curse - N.A. Moore 💜 Heavenly Tyrant - Xiran Jay Zhao ❤️ Encrypted Hearts - E.V. Bancroft 🧡 Dangerous Devotion - Robin Jo Margaret 💛 Sew in Love - Rhea Fox 💙 Saint - Chani Lynn Feener 💜 Her Ladyship's Christmas Companion - Theresa Meiningen 🌈 A Sky of Emerald Stars - A.K. Mulford

❤️ Inked in Blood and Memory - Allison Ivy 🧡 The Key - Jo Morgan Sloan 💛 Home Between Homes - Flynn Woods 💚 A Kiss for the Holidays - C.S. Autumn 💙 Loving the Linebacker - Amaya Knight 💜 Close to Home - Allisa Bahney ❤️ Christmas Shelter - Eva Gonzay & Julia C. Brown 🧡 This Isn't Everything You Are - J. Marie Rundquist 💛 Keep It in the Dark - Justin Arnold 💙 Santa & His Elf - Bink Cummings 💜 On the Subject of Kittens and Mittens - Katie Silverwings 🌈 Winter's Whisper - M Bonneau

❤️ Boyfriends - refrainbow 🧡 Innis Harbor - Patricia Evans 💛 A Complementary Connection - Eskay Kabba 💚 Point of Sighs - Melissa Scott 💙 Bind You by Blood - Shepard DiStasio 💜 The Resurrectionist - A. Rae Dunlap ❤️ Fractured Dreamer - A.K. Adler 🧡 The Husky and His White Cat Shizun - Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou 💛 Becoming Disabled - Jan Doolittle Wilson 💙 A Caress of Water - Nico Silver 💜 How to Survive As a Villain 1 - Yi Yi Yi Yi 🌈 The Silent Concubine - Qiang Tang

❤️ Hadrian - Harlowe Savage 🧡 A Series of Rooms - A.J. Barlowe 💛 Inklings of Invisibility - S.L. Dove Cooper 💚 The Cobbler and His Elves - C.B. Wren 💙 A Nightclub for the Holidays - Arden Coutts 💜 Armor of Dusk - Jess Galaxie ❤️ Twisted Shadows - Allie Therin 🧡 A Deception of Courts - Ben Alderson 💛 Trial Run - Carsen Taite 💙 How to Flirt with a Witch - Tiana Warner 💜 Roughed Up - Kate Hawthorne 🌈 House of Crimson Curses - Ruby Roe

❤️ Sister Snake - Amanda Lee Koe 🧡 Roland Rogers Isn't Dead Yet - Samantha Allen 💛 The Rivals - Jane Pek 💚 Private Rites - Julia Armfield 💙 The Christmas Switch - Briar Prescott 💜 Ribbonwood - Ruby Landers ❤️ Shifting Lanes - Joanne Kwan 🧡 Twice-Spent Comet - Ziggy Schutz 💛 A Crush for the Holidays - E.L. Ough 💙 Resist - Lasairiona Lewis 💜 Free from Falling - E.L. Massey 🌈 The Legendary Master's Wife - Yin Ya

❤️ Tide Breaker's Curse - Ivy H. Marikova 🧡 Twist Her - Terri Ronald 💛 How to Fuck Like a Girl - Vera Blossom 💚 Dog Days of Christmas - Krystal Wolfgang & Kimberly Wolfgang 💙 Warmer, Colder - Alexia Onyx 💜 Salt in the Wind - Jenna Pine ❤️ What We Carry With Us - Joseff McKenneth Goodwin 🧡 Reinvention - Karol Yan 💛 Christmas Carols - Maxime Jaz 💙 I'm Not Your Pet - Fae Quin 💜 Something Extraordinary - Alexis Hall 🌈 I Might Be in Trouble - Daniel Aleman

❤️ Deck the Palms - Annabeth Albert 🧡 Don't Get It Twisted - Wren Taylor 💛 Ice & Sweet - Charlie Novak 💚 Speak EZ - Elle E. Ire 💙 The Disabled Tyrant's Beloved Pet Fish - Xue Shan Fei Hu 💜 Horns For Hell - Rafael Nicolás ❤️ Flamboyant Fictions - Ian Fleishman 🧡 Where the Heart Is - Jenni Simonis 💛 Sorry I Kissed Your Dad - Achilles King 💙 Merry Weihnachten - E.J. Noyes 💜 An Alpha for the Holidays - Emily Axon 🌈 The Blessed - Anne Shade

❤️ Our Sinful Love - Amy H. 🧡 Gambler's Conceit - Adara Wolf & R. Phoenix 💛 Fate and Flambe - Leena Metcalfe 💚 Figure You Out - Hannah Danielle & K.F. Starfell 💙 Amaranthine - Aricka Alexander 💜 Twisted Loyalties - Barbara J. Webb ❤️ Echoes of Us - Alex Cross 🧡 The Shadowbearer's Curse - Jasmyn Morning 💛 Too Many Beds - Various 💙 We Are the Beasts - Gigi Griffis 💜 Unspoken - N.N. Britt 🌈 Rainbows After Storms - Luka Kobachi

❤️ The Shutouts - Gabrielle Korn 🧡 Robin's Worlds - Rainie Oet & Mathias Ball 💛 What the Woods Took - Courtney Gould 💚 Rescue Me - N. Slater 💙 Seb & Ailin - Michele Notaro 💜 The International Love Story - Jonas Noelting ❤️ Waterlogged - Nance Sparks 🧡 The Guardians - Sheri Lewis Wohl 💛 The Changeling's Faerie Prince - K.D. Ellis 💙 Until at Dawn We Wake - Charlotte Dalwood 💜 How to Get a Life in Ten Dates - Jenny L. Howe 🌈 Hammajang Luck - Makana Yamamoto

❤️ The Rules of Royalty - Cale Dietrich 🧡 Tired of Waiting for Tomorrow - Allison K. Garcia 💛 One Last Run - Bryce Oakley 💚 Reckless Hearts - Jax Calder 💙 Christmissed - Blythe H. Warren 💜 How Could You - Ren Strapp ❤️ Blackened - Tyler Briggs 🧡 Gratification in Gluttony - Nik Knight 💛 The Mogul Meets Her Match - Julia Underwood 💙 How to Be Heard - Roxane Gay 💜 The Case of the Missing Maid - Rob Osler 🌈 Shades of Us - D.L. Sims

[wickerwax]

lightning rod - addendum? snippet (quinobi)

Silt ran silver down the drain. Obi-Wan’s fingers worked gently into Quin’s locs as he rinsed over and over. “It’s a shame we don’t have your actual products.”

Quinlan snorted, trying to angle his head more helpfully, knelt over the tub as he was. “That shit’s expensive, and I know you and your masters’ luck, Obes. There’s not a campfire’s chance on Hoth I’d bring them.” Gold gleamed in a tumble in the other room.

“Water’s running clear – I can’t feel anymore grit. That might be all we can manage here.” he said, turning off the tap. He pressed his thumbs against either side of Quin’s neck and received a very interesting sound. “Towel-wrap or pat down and air-dry?”

Obi-Wan grinned when Quinlan growled under his breath, the continuing giddiness of the day’s adrenaline drawing him forwards. He nuzzled against the back of Quin’s neck, felt the shiver as his breath tickled warm, as locs dripped cool. “You trying to restart something, Obi?”

[shady-tavern]

Masterpost

For anyone who wants an easy overview of my stories.

***

Fantasy stories:

Missing Piece

A Deal of Games

Deals and Revelry, Quin's Backstory

Healing Hearts

Vampire's Lullaby: Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Drabble

The Tailors on Baker Street, Drabble

Winter Star

The Fall of a God

Learning to give Life

Lich Mage and Melina: Part One and Part Two

Symphony of Song and Music, Drabble

Everything

Amnesiac God-Spouse

Seeking Shelter from the Dragon

The Miracle Dealer

What makes a God

The Royal Oracle

*

Hero and Villain Stories:

Heart Song

A Dash of Villainy within A Hero: Part One and Part Two

Perfect Nemesis: Part One and Part Two

Villain providing an Out for Heroes

Nightshade

Villain Roommate

Silver and Hero: Part One and Part Two

Paint the Town: Part One

*

Space and Aliens:

Going Home

Psychological Warfare Chess on Crack

*

Sneak Peeks for Patreon Stories:

Dancing with Stars

Holding Curses with Gentle Hands

Salt and Iron

Sanctuary

Dark Waters

Woven Magic

Doll House

The Price of a Life

The Magic of Consequences

Heartless

Breaking Chains

Wishmaker

Firsts

For the Living and the Dancing

Haunted House

A Heart of Death and Hope

Mirror World

Lost and Found

Making Miracles

*

WIPs:

The Shape of a Soul: Part One, Part Two, Part Three

*

Want to read more and support me at the same time? Want more awesome, fun or wholesome stories? Want to lord your support of an artist over your enemy's head as you laugh at them from the top of your metaphorical castle tower?

Or perhaps cackle in the woods while a disgruntled woodcutter shakes their fist at you? Head over to my Patreon or my Ko-Fi!

There will be a new, exclusive short story every month (and occasionally a surprise second one!) while I work on upcoming books and more stories that I will post here!

Also, you get bragging rights. For what, you decide, but I am handing you a blank writ for bragging rights.

[wildflower-otome]

[quinloki]

Quin do you have someone particular in mind? Because what you described I either picture Mihawk, Rayleigh, Lucci, Kid, Izou or Crocodile maybe Sabo too. Yes definitely Sabo too.

You can't just drop this and not write more. 🥵

original post

XD

I mean, me being me I had Marco in mind primarily. Sat between your legs, using one transformed foot to wrap his talons around your calf and keep your legs wide open.

Long fingers just finding the points that send sparks through your vision. The way he flickers flames over you every time you orgasm to help you recover a little faster so there's less time between them.

Rayleigh's a good choice too. He doesn't even press his fingers inside your ass, just teases against the ring until you're losing your mind wondering how he can bring you to the edge like that. A gentle swipe of your slit with his thumb and you're crying, begging, gods and demons just let you cum, just once, please.

He wants to know what the rush is, you both have all day, just relax. Once you relax he finally pushes inside, and you're cumming in that soundless sort of way that rolls your eyes back, mouth gaping like a fish out of water, squirting down his arm.

Sabo's a good one, but he's traded his usual leather gloves for those bright blue neoprene gloves. You've been role-playing, and he's the shady government official there to get your confession. You've done nothing wrong, of course, but you're still going to admit to your crimes by the time he's done with you.

Don't fight it, don't think too much, just drown in the pleasure and admit all your sins to him. He promises he'll make sure you atone for each, and every. single. one. ♥

Kid's thick fingers are covered in lube, and the stretch is intense, but he's only going to hurt you if you beg for it, so it might feel weird, but it still feels good. The cold heavy curve of the tip of his metal finger against your tongue and the perfect tension against your neck. It's equal parts alluring and scary how fine his control is over that massive hand.

How caring he is that the finger tips are rounded right now, so there's no hard edges against your tongue or lips. Every time you cum he's leaving hickies and bite marks on your skin, seasoning that deep pleasure with spice just the way you need for it to prolong everything.

Crocodile's hook cradles your neck as his single finger fills you well. He teases pushing his thumb into your cunt, but shifts up and teases your clit just as you think you're going to get double penetrated by his fingers.

Of course he does this while you're in his lap, legs draped over his, gaze hazy and unfocused as half the upper staff gives the report for the day. You're certain Crocodile won't have missed a word, but you're not even sure how many people are there. No would dare to risk anything more than a shaky voice or clearing their throat in regards to you, and the only time people stop talking is when you're cumming.

Everyone listens, no one daring to disturb the one Crocodile actually wants to hear.

Izou has you suspended from the ceiling, face lined up with the window as he works. Between the height of the window and some curtains, no one can see much except your face, but if you cum too hard to scream the entire ship's going to hear you.

The point is who gives in first - will Izou show mercy, or will you remind the crew that the one person who can really make you bloom is him?

Lucci is unforgiving in fingering you, nearly forcing an orgasm from the beginning, but you can't. Much as he works you toward the brink you have to fight it, you have to struggle - by Lucci's words specifically you're not allowed to cum until he gives you permission.

The longer you obey him the more pleasurable his conquest of you will be. Make it a minute and you probably won't need medical attention. Make it two minutes and the bruises and claw marks will be much sweeter, almost kind.

Make it three minutes and any crying you do will be from overwhelming pleasure.

Hold out until he tells you you're allowed and you won't be able to walk for a couple of days for all the best reasons.

[pityroadart]

since the tags on my Lewis hands painting have mostly been along the lines of #WATERCOLOR?! HOW? (thank you!!) I figured I may as well do a wee step by step of how I painted the skin)

(disclaimer: I did not take many photos of the different stages, so you'll just have to trust the power of my narration)

(above) first up: the reference was from the Met Gala, as posted on Lewis Hamilton's Instagram. I can't take credit for the framing/pose — that was all the photographer

here's my cleaned up sketch and the first couple layers — I did a wash of colour on the hands first (quin burnt sienna PO48 quin maroon PR209 pigments my beloved, the best for warmer/deeper skin tones), added in a layer of shadows in the same colour to build structure, then got the inky black background in (mostly burnt umber PBr7 & French ultramarine PB29 I believe, with a bit of Roman Szmal's shadow grey too)

I kinda wish I'd left the background like that, but hey this whole piece was an experiment so I'll learn from it next time

next I added in further shading to the hands — again with the same skin tones as before, in different concentrations depending on the area, with the addition of some redder and darker tones too where needed. I also painted in the tattoos here — making sure they're under a layer or two of watercolour settles them into the skin like a real tattoo, rather than them looking sharpied on

And then! this is where the magic happens, and the part I'm most pleased with: by the stage of the first image above, the shadows were great in terms of position/shade, but felt a bit too blocky and stylised for the piece. So, if you get to the same issue (whether painting skin or clothing or anything with softer and more rounded contours), what you wanna do is:

make a pool of incredibly diluted skin tone mix on your palette. Literally, just water with a subtle hint of colour, roughly the same value as your highlights

get your softest brush. Nope, softer than that. In watercolour brushes, 'springy' is the opposite to 'soft', so you want bristles that don't really bounce back to their original shape if you push the wet brush against a firm surface. I'm using the Silver Black Velvet brush I've been using for the whole painting, but ideally a squirrel/sable or synthetic sable brush is gonna work

gently paint that diluted skin tone wash over the whole of the area (the hands, in this piece). This is why you want your softest brush, so as not to disturb the paint underneath too much. It also helps if the pigments you've been using are more staining (resistant to lifting). In general, phthalos and quinacridones are most staining, and granulating pigments least so. I've been using earth quinacridones here, which are moderately staining. Using good quality 100% cotton paper also helps

before that diluted wash is dry, get some paper towel and dab out the highlights. This keeps the edges softer and more natural than if you just painted around them

the wash you applied should have been just enough to soften those hard edges of shading you had previously, leaving lovely soft and more realistic transitions. Ta-dah!

then, off-camera, I added the darkest shading, painted in the gold, and felt it was missing something so added some scribbly highlights in 'ivory' coloured pencil. And that's that! It did involve a lot more swearing and complaining than I've just made it seem, but the skin part at least was something I'm used to.

[sunatsubu]

White Lotus theories!

Having a blast watching White Lotus season 3, especially as this is the first time I'm able to watch without knowing the ending. The first 2 seasons I was spoiled on pretty much everything before watching, so it's been fun having the chance to get to form my own theories this time. Here's just a few I'll ramble about, as I excitedly wait for today's new ep. Would love to hear others' thoughts/theories! Obviously spoiler warning for season 3.

This might just be wishful thinking, but I don't think the body is Belinda. Strongest evidence is that Zion's immediate reaction is to run away from it. With how determined he was to get to his mother, even going towards the gunshots instead of away from them, if it was her he'd instinctively want to check if she might still be alive. Also this is more speculative because of how out of focus the body is, but it kind of looks like a short-haired man in a white dress shirt.

Going off this first assumption that Belinda lives, I think Greg will get his comeuppance. If he survived, there's no way he'd let Belinda live since its clear he knows she knows who he is. I think he'll either die, or be exposed for his role in Tanya's death and arrested. I know White Lotus tends to not give justice to those who deserve it, but I do think it could make sense this time. Saxon however, being the douchiest douche and the one character I hate the most, I expect to survive, both physically and ego still fully intact. He'll be season 3's Shane.

Addressing the popular theory that the shooter might be Mook: Definitely not a fan of this theory, I don't think it's her. So far I haven't seen any actual evidence of her having any motive, and the main foundation for this theory seems to be, 'character seems super innocent, surely it must be a misdirect' which isn't much to go on. Especially since I feel like Mike White's been good about laying foundations for his plot twists, and never has them just for the sake of shock value.

It's going to be an interesting, possibly ironic fate for Piper if her dad ends up needing to stay in Thailand to avoid getting arrested, and his family stays with him, maybe because they might be implicated by association if they return to the US. This might seem like a silver lining for Piper since she wanted to stay anyway for her religious studies, but it would totally be in line with the irony of White Lotus themes that she ends up missing her privileged life, now that she doesn't have the option to go back to it. Almost the opposite of Quin from season 1 where we got to see the rich white kid have a happy ending staying with the locals, but the implication off screen is that he has the luxury to return to his privileged life once he'd done with his little paradise adventure.

More on the Ratliff kids - um. VERY incest-y vibes going on there lmao.

I think something huge is going to happen with Lochlan. He's going to have to make a choice that will have major consequences - if only because so far, we are shown constantly about his waffling between who to please. Switching between his brother and sister, being pressured to choose which parent's alma mater for college. We're even told straight up that he's a people pleaser during his posture correction session. I've seen the theory that the kids represent the 'see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil' monkeys, and this definitely seems to line up. Lochlan will witness or even be an active participant in some really crazy, evil act and have to make the choice whether to speak up about it or not. And he'll choose not to. I think because we've been shown so far how relatively harmless and innocent he is, that's going to change dramatically, and he's going to make that choice that will make the audience judge him. Based on his current trend of following Saxon's influence more, maybe he'll witness or be pressured into taking part in some pretty sketchy stuff with his brother. Knowing Saxon, it'll probably involve a woman getting hurt or killed, and Saxon will ask Lochlan to help cover it up.

I don't think the dad is the shooter, only because it's too obvious. The fact that we see him steal the gun at only the halfway point in the season right after that phone call about prison is too straightforward a motive too soon, which wouldn't follow the previous seasons' patterns at all.

The friend trio are probably the most interesting dynamic to me, and the most unpredictable. Probably because they are constantly switching 'alliances,' the power dynamic always seems to be shifting. I honestly have the least idea of what their ending is going to be like, though I don't think any of them will die. I think they will have some huge explosively dramatic event/confrontation like Ethan/Cameron (maybe not a physical fight, but at least a screaming match), but they will all survive the trip to have to deal with the social consequences post-series, knowing their friendship is forever changed with true feelings having been laid out into the open.

Some more minor observations: There's been a recurring thing in previous seasons with dissatisfied hotel managers, and them losing something because of it. Armond feuding with Shane, spurred on by his growing distaste in being expected to cater to guests' every whim. He ends up losing his life. Valentina is super repressed, then has her whirlwind night with Mia. But then kinda gets her heart broken a bit, thinking there might've been something more between them, only for Mia to imply it was just a fling. So in keeping with that trend, if Fabian gets a chance to perform I expect he's going to end up losing something soon after.

Probably an obvious thing, but pretty sure Valentin and his friends are the jewelry robbers. Absolutely felt intentional that he stopped under the gate so Gaitok couldn't close it. Even before that scene I thought there definitely seemed something off about him, tho I'm not sure why? Maybe I'm reading into it too much but his friendly demeanor and almost vacant-like stare felt like even more of a mask than the other hotel workers. Was also weird that he sent the friend trio to the retiree pool. I have a feeling maybe he and his friends plan to rob them. One of his friends even says 'let's make fun', which iirc season 2's Lucia had a very similar line. So that made me think they are the equivalent to Lucia and Mia, in that they are locals intending to scam the rich white tourists.

It stood out to me on my first rewatch, the contrasting reactions during Zion and Amrita's session, when they first hear the gunshots. The therapist is almost willfully oblivious to acknowledging there might be danger, trying to include Zion in it by telling him to ignore all outside sounds. But he's much more situationally aware of his surroundings, which he doesn't turn off even during a meditation session, despite the therapist urging him to ignore the outside world. He's the one who has to pull the therapist back to reality. And when that reality hits - gunshots shattering the window - she panics and flees whereas Zion keeps his cool. I dunno what exactly I mean to say with all this, but it just reminded me of some recent issues I've had with my last therapist. I'd express certain concerns, and her advice on how I deal with them felt really out of touch with reality, amounting to stuff like, just 'meditate it away' or something, as if real life problems can just be willed away so easily.

Chloe and Rick are...unexpectedly sweet. I hope nothing bad happens to them 🥲

[thatrickmcginnis]

ROWLAND S. HOWARD, Toronto, April Fool's Day, 1988.

Rowland S. Howard was one of a handful of my guitar heroes (a list that includes Andy Gill, Ricky Wilson, Keith Levene and Robert Quine.) This is probably why I made the effort to photograph Howard and his band when they came through town, despite not having an assignment or a venue where the photos would be published. I brought along my studio in a bag and found the same helpfully empty space behind the bar at the Silver Dollar Room, the same place where I'd photographed Lydia Lunch two months earlier. These three shoots I did early in 1988 were crucial and coincidentally connected as Howard worked with Lunch throughout his life (their collaborative "concept album" Honeymoon in Red had been released the year previous), as had Henry Rollins, the next subject in my ad hoc studio at the Silver Dollar, who would also work with Howard.

I found Rowland S. Howard to be polite and friendly, with impeccable manners - very different from the haunted-looking man who would stalk the stage chain-smoking in concert videos I'd seen of The Birthday Party of Crime & the City Solution. He was in town with These Immortal Souls, the band he'd formed with his brother Harry Howard, his girlfiend Genevieve McGuckin and drummer Epic Soundtracks (born Kevin Godfrey), but for some reason McGuckin didn't make the Toronto show, part of a tour supporting their first record, Get Lost (Don't Lie). I spent most of the three rolls of film I ran through my Mamiya C330 trying to get a decent portrait of Howard, but shot the band together on the last half of the third roll, where Epic is wearing a Black Flag t-shirt; These Immortal Souls were the first non-American band on the Flag's label, SST.

Rowland S. Howard smoked all through my shoot with him, which I spent trying to get something that captured his somewhat wasted elegance. My white backdrop, a painter's tarp, had taken on some impressive wrinkles while stuffed in the gym bag it lived in between shoots, and it's taken considerable skill and digital magic to get these shots to look as slick as I had imagined them while doing this shoot nearly forty years ago. In the end I think they capture a few different facets of Howard, who would be in poor health for many years after I met him, afflicted from Hepatitis C that would lead to cirrhosis and liver cancer and ultimately kill him in 2009, at just fifty. Epic Soundtracks would die suddenly in his London home in 1997, after recording several acclaimed solo albums. Autoluminescent, a documentary about Howard, would come out in 2011.

[mitzymossy33]

y’all I made a fallout meme

It’s pretty much how your different player characters or fallout ocs in general react to the Brotherhood of Steel’s blimp, if anyone asks about the Siblingdom of scrap thing, it’s kinda a joke on how my courier doesn’t know anything about the BoS and constantly butchers the name. I included my Courier (Dolly Mae Quin, top left corner), Lone Wanderer (Rita Abel, under courier), Sole Survivor (Bernadette Santos, bottom middle), and my Silver Shroud oc (Jamie, middle right)

Here’s the blank template for anyone wishing to participate

[kcrabb88]

Kill the Lights

Chapter 27

Summary: When Obi-Wan interferes in the Fives incident, Palpatine decides he's had enough of the Jedi Master getting in the way of his attempts to corrupt The Chosen One. Obi-Wan, catching on to Palpatine's plans, goes missing. When photos and videos of Obi-Wan's torture are made public, Anakin starts to unravel. Quinlan searches the Coruscant underworld with increasing desperation. Dooku wonders if he's made the right choices. Obi-Wan, trapped and tormented, tries to reveal the truth about who the Sith lord is. Schemes come to light. Myths merge into reality. Palpatine, obsessed with Obi-Wan, becomes more dangerous. With the Republic in the clutches of a Sith, the Jedi, the clones, and their friends in the senate fight to find one of their best--and save the galaxy's guardians from extermination. Chapter Summary: Obi-Wan and Quinlan cling to one another. The younglings return to the Jedi Temple. Dooku begins anew. Bail finds himself holding a fragile republic in his hands. Anakin continues his healing journey.

Obi-Wan's on his way home from the base. From talking to Yularen. Quin would try and sort out how it went from their now-more-powerful-bond, but Obi-Wan's Force-presence, usually that starry sky or that gentle sun in Quin’s mind’s eye depending on the mood, remains a flayed-open wound and distorts the picture. What does he picture now, when he tries? Obi-Wan remains celestial, but is no longer a silver-blue supergiant. No, what Quin pictures is a red giant bleeding freely into the sky.

His own hearthfire, despite tender tending from all his loved ones, remains low-burning. He can’t get the smell of the acrid ash out of his nose.

Maybe that second thing is the cigarra.

Probably not.

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

🌈 Queer Books Coming Out in October 2024 🌈

🌈 Good afternoon, my bookish bats! Here are a FEW of the stunning, diverse queer books you can add to your TBR before the year is over. Happy reading!

❓What was the last queer book you read?

[ Release dates may have changed. List below! ]

❤️ Back in the Hunt - K. Sterling 🧡 The Connoisseur's Christmas Courtship - L.M. Bennett 💛 Shoestring Theory - Mariana Costa 💚 The Black Hunger - Nicholas Pullen 💙 Wild Fire - Radclyffe 💜 Because Fat Girl - Lauren Marie Fleming ❤️ The Ace and Aro Relationship Guide - Cody Daigle-Orians 🧡 Soul Survivors - River Kai 💛 Stolen Hearts - Michele Castleman 💙 Reverence - Milena McKay 💜 Love Immortal - Kit Vincent

❤️ Take a Sad Song - Ona Gritz 🧡 Showmance - Chad Beguelin 💛 Redundancies & Potentials - Dominique Dickey 💚 Alexander - Karla Nikole 💙 Rest in Peaches - Alex Brown 💜 Rise of the Wrecking Crew - Kalynn Bayron ❤️ Language Lessons - Sage Donnell 🧡 Legend of the White Snake - Sher Lee 💛 Sorcery and Small Magis - Maiga Doocy 💙 Cried Out - Kate Hawthorne 💜 Skysong - C.A. Wright 🌈 No Rules Tonight - Kim Hyun Sook, Ryan Estrada

❤️ My Mother's Ridiculous Rules for Dating - Philip William Stover 🧡 I Shall Never Fall in Love - Hari Conner 💛 Castle Swimmer - Wendy Martin 🧡 The Hollow and the Haunted - Camilla Raines 💙 How Does That Make You Feel, Magda Eklund? - Anna Montague 💜 The Arizona Triangle - Sydney Graves ❤️ Every Rule Undone - Nancy S.M. Waldman 🧡 Mister Nice - Jamie Jennings 💛 Under the Mistletoe with You - Lizzie Huxley-Jones 💙 How to Fall in Love in a Time of Unnameable Disaster - Muriel Leung 💜 The Snowball Effect - Haley Cass 🌈 This Will Be Fun - E.B. Asher

❤️ Our Evenings - Alan Hollinghurst 🧡 Don't Let the Forest In - C.G. Drews 💛 Finding Delaware - Bree Wiley 💚 The Reeds - Arjun Basu 💙 The Bloodless Princes - Charlotte Bond 💜 Women's Hotel - Daniel M. Lavery ❤️ Alex McKenna and the Academy of Souls - Vicki-Ann Bush 🧡 A Vile Season - David Ferraro 💛 Synchronicity - J.J. Hale 💙 Writ of Love - Cassidy Crane 💜 Di-Curious - Erin Branch 🌈 Swordcrossed - Freya Marske

❤️ Stand Up! - Tori Sharp 🧡 Haunt Me, Baby - Rose Santoriello 💚 Planet Drag: Uncover the Global Herstory - Various 💙 Until We Shatter - Kate Dylan 💜 Metal from Heaven - August Clarke ❤️ Vicious Fates and Vast Futures - Tilly Bramley 🧡 The Daughter of Danray - Natalia Hernandez 💛 If I Stopped Haunting You - Colby Wilkens 💙 The Darkness Behind The Door - Mira Gonzalez 💜 Hunt Monsters, Do Magic, and Fall in Love - A.M. Weald 🌈 Jasmine Is Haunted - Mark Oshiro

❤️ Model Home - Rivers Solomon 🧡 Haunting Melody - Chloe Spencer 💛 The Door in Lake Mallion - S.M. Beiko 💚 The City in Glass - Nghi Vo 💙 Fang Fiction - Kate Stayman-London 💜 The Merriest Misters - Timothy Janovsky ❤️ Make the Season Bright - Ashley Herring Blake 🧡 My Kind of Trouble - L.A. Schwartz 💛 To Become A Flower - CEON 💙 What Was Lost - Melissa Connelly 💜 The Forbidden Book - Sacha Lamb 🌈 This Dark Paradise - Erin Luken

❤️ The Sound of Storms - Anya Keeler 🧡 Country Queers - Rae Garringer 💛 A Spell for Heartsickness - Alistair Reeves 💚 The Stars Inside Us - Kristy Gardner 💙 October's Ocean - Delaine Coppock 💜 Haunt Your Heart Out - Amber Roberts ❤️ The Dark Becomes Her - Judy I. Lin 🧡 Power Pose - Emily Silver 💛 The Magic You Make - Jason June 💙 House of Elephants - Claribel A. Ortega 💜 Tegan and Sara: Crush - Tegan Quin, Sara Quin, Tillie Walden 🌈 The Brightness Between Us - Eliot Schrefer

❤️ The Spring before Obergefell - Benjamin S. Grossberg 🧡 Pray For Him - Tyler Battaglia 💛 Coup de Grâce - Sofia Ajram 💚 Coal Gets In Your Veins - Cat Rector 💙 He Who Bleeds - Dorian Valentine 💜 The Revenge of Captain Vessia - Leslie Allen ❤️ Camelot's Tower - Brooke Matthews 🧡 The Manor - Tiffany E. Taylor 💛 Arcanum - Ashlyn Drewek 💙 Strange Beasts - Susan J. Morris 💜 On Vicious Worlds - Bethany Jacobs 🌈 Death Song - B. Ripley

❤️ Best Hex Ever - Nadia El-Fassi 🧡 I'll Be Gone for Christmas - Georgia K. Boone 💛 Make My Wish Come True - Rachael Lippincott, Alyson Derrick 💚 Gentlest of Wild Things - Sarah Underwood 💙 Troth - E.H. Lupton 💜 Solis - Paola Mendoza & Abby Sher ❤️ Lucy, Uncensored - Mel Hammond, Teghan Hammond 🧡 Mama - Nikkya Hargrove 💛 Under All the Lights - Maya Ameyaw 💙 Reclaimed - Seth Haddon 💜 The Devil's Dilemma - Alex J. Adams 🌈 The Jovian Madrigals - Janneke de Beer

❤️ Blood Price - Nicole Evans 🧡 Worship Me - K.C. Blume 💛 All the Hearts You Eat - Hailey Piper 💚 The Nightmare Before Kissmas - Sara Raasch 💙 Rogue Community College - David R. Slayton 💜 Mistress of Hours - Emma Elizabeth ❤️ The Dog Trainer's Secret - Sav Uong 🧡 Most Wonderful - Georgia Clark 💛 Antenora - Dori Lumpkin 💙 House of Frank - Kay Synclaire 💜 Sir Callie and the Witch's War - Esme Symes-Smith 🌈 Prince of Fortune - Lisa Tirreno