#reformed Baxter

[elijones94]

🥀 Along with Glen Keane, the Beast’s chief animators included Aaron Blaise, Broose Johnson, Anthony DeRosa, Tom Sito, and Brad Kuha. 🐾

[hymnrevival]

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[icyg4l]

Pick-A-Meme: How Can I Choose The Right Career Path for Me?

Choose the image that resonates the most with you. In this reading, I will give you details that you can use to get closer to accomplishing to your career goals. I will also give those clarity to those who are confused on where to go from here with the help of the True Heart tarot deck.

Left-to-Right (1-3): Raven Baxter, Brenda Meeks, Kim Parker.

Cards Used: 10 of Cups. The World (RX). Judgment. Knight of Cups. Wheel of Fortune. The Hierophant. 4 of Pents.

Pile 1A: I feel like this is for those who are thinking of going into the traditional career paths like being a nurse, a teacher, a lawyer or doctor. You are very determined when it comes to breaking into this career path. I feel like this is a dream that you’ve had for a long time, since you were a child. But you’ve grown up and you see just how practical this career path is or how much time it would take from all other aspects. Don’t let the money or the amount of time it takes to pursue this career stop you! There will be opportunities that come up for you as you pursue this path that will financially support you. I also see that you’ll receive some recognition early on in your career, for your contributions to this field.

Cards Used: The Moon. 3 of Pents (RX). Strength. Queen of Cups. Ace of Cups. The Hanged Man. Ace of Wands (RX). Queen of Pents. Ace of Swords.

Pile 1B: For those of you that are confused about what career path you should pursue, I say that you should consider some “niche” career paths; something that sticks out to YOU. This will ensure that you’re using your energy towards things that you love. I get the feeling that you’re tired of what you’re being presented with. These are the people that are tired of receiving rejection emails from employers or being ghosted by interviewers. I feel like you’re kind of nosy… perhaps you should consider a career as a private investigator. You have a sharp mind and you call bullshit when you see it. I also think that you should consider something to do with childcare, maybe take up the jobs that nobody wants to take up? If you’re into pets, you should take up the pet care. I feel like this is also the pile that should consider going to trade school to become an electrician or plumber. You would actually benefit from it & would meet some excellent people along the way. Everyone isn’t be a tech geek, a rapper or an aspiring designer and that’s absolutely fine! You got this!

extras: annalise keating. bedtime stories. human design. timestamp. first wives club. worker bees. social justice reform. politics. class action lawsuit. science geek.

Cards Used: The Emperor. 6 of Cups (RX). 2 of Pents. Ace of Wands. The Hierophant. 7 of Pents (RX).

Pile 2A: The people who chose this pile are currently fed up with their career path. I think that you have dedicated so much time to this career path that it has you burnt out. You may be considering switching career paths or adding a new element to your career path. You should! I thought of the storyline from ‘This is Us’ where Beth takes the risk to open up a dance studio after being fired from her job. Her original passion was ballet but her mother forced her into a practical career. She became an urban planner. She had the job for twelve years and loved it but she unfortunately got laid off. I feel like this collective has some resentment towards their career because it’s not what you want to do. What do you really want to do? Examine what really makes you light up. If you decide that you want to have a side gig doing what it is you really want to do, then have at it! But if you decide to start fresh in a “new” (but not really new to you) career path, then also have at it! The ball is in your corner.

Cards Used: 10 of Cups. 3 of Cups. 9 of Cups. Justice. 6 of Swords. The Hermit. The Fool. Prince of Cups.

Pile 2B: If you’ve been considering going into a business with a friend, you should absolutely do it! I saw the banner of a restaurant opening. I feel like this pile is really into the traditionally ‘girly’ things like doing your nails or hair. If this resonates then you should definitely take up cosmetology school. If that’s not what you’re into, consider going to school to become a masseuse or get into holistic medicine! You have a calming aura and people probably open up to you easily. But I get the feeling that you guys don’t always like to talk to people. You enjoy your solitude/quiet time & that’s okay. For those of you that are into poetry, you should consider posting your poems for monetary gain for extra money! In due time, you’ll figure it out. Be patient with yourself, you’ll know what sticks!

extras: aching feet. balloons. graveyard. black jeans. venus in the 11th house. aquarius venus. gemini venus. losing hair ties. the color purple. spoken word. friendship breakup.

Cards Used: King of Swords. 2 of Pents. The Hierophant (RX). Queen of Pents. The High Priestess. The Emperor. 5 of Cups.

Pile 3A: You guys are the people who long to be the boss. You guys strive for greatness & hold yourself to a certain standard. But I think that you’re doing a lot. You’re trying to do everything by yourself and you need some help. This could be a pile full of freelancers, psychics, therapists or entrepreneurs. Perhaps you’ve opened up a new business and everything just feels like it’s falling on top of you. You need an assistant to keep this business running! Hire someone that will keep you on top of your stuff. I think that you should try a new method of organization as well. Maybe you’re a model? If so, take some new headshots. Get some help with your portfolio. Update your resume. Create some new material because you’ve come so far. You really just need to be more proactive when it comes to your career; get on top of things quicker.

Cards Used: The Lovers. 3 of Swords. 5 of Swords. Queen of Swords. 3 of Cups. 9 of Cups (RX). 7 of Cups.

Pile 3B: This is the pile for those that are “inexperienced” but know that they’re going to be in their career field. I don’t think that you are clueless as to what you want to do. You know exactly what you want to do, you just don’t think you fit the criteria. When in reality, you’re rejecting yourself before someone else rejects you. Stop counting yourself out man. I think you want to pursue a career as a model, a baker, an influencer perhaps? I think you have some childhood wounds surrounding your social circle. You were viewed as an outcast and this is why you feel stuck. You know you’re going to be somebody but you need to start acting like it. I think that the route you want to take requires you to be in the spotlight. There is an audience for you but you refuse to put yourself out there. I think the best way for you to get over this is to challenge yourself. Create small tasks that will help you get out of your comfort zone. Therapists would call this rejection therapy. Try it!

extra: ANTM theme song. ADHD meds. kendrick lamar. “simultaneously”. influence. impostor syndrome. what was i made for? gymnast. athlete. being the only non-white person in the room. fitness model. green grass walls.

[bpgpfesyi]

rhythm heaven fever characters (most of them anyway) translated 100 times!

Girl - investigate 

Marshal - Apply the law

Cam - you sleep

Ms. Ribbon - connective tissue

Male Golfer - golf

Monkey (Hole in One)- You are right

Mandrill - Remove the sand.

Screwbots (Robots) - A dream is a dream

See and Saw - truth

A Boy - This is what you asked for

His Crush - This is your failure 

Weasel Couple - A Welsh couple

Monkey and Frogs - The Monkey and the Frog

Fork - Home

The Executives - Head 

Assistant - Therefore;

Monkey (Assistant)- for a specific purpose

Small Monkeys - i have a monkey 

Dough Dudes - The boy is missing.

Mr. Game and Watch - Save the disc

Widget - I’ll bring some wine

Baxter and Forthington - Viruses and money

Muscle Doll - canned meat 

Reporter and Wrestler - Journalist and director 

Employee 333-4-591032 - Personal 333-4-591032

Microbe - The monk said:

Demons - House

Pinwheel Girl and another child- More news for women and children

Ann Glerr - Anna Galerová

Quicknibble - Good day

Pausegill - neck

Threefish - three

Flippers - Are you there?

Captain Tuck - Captain Tucker

Slugger - neck

Pitcher - I bless you

Monkey Umpire - ape culture

The Huebirds of Happiness - happy animal

Rhythm Rockets - Get the videos

Uhh… these guys? - You do bad things

Love Posse feat. MC Adore - I love working with Hello Mike

Bossa and Nova - I broke my leg and it hurt a lot.

The Tall Tappers - small battery

The Shrimp Scamperers - They eat wild animals

School Library Pep Squad - Commission for Education Reform

Bunny Man (Samurai Slice 2) - It’s a rabbit

Female Golfer - artist

Dough Person (?) (Working Dough 2) - E-mail address 

Cat (Remix 9) - One day after the cycle

Hato-kun, Mezamashi-kun and Omame-chan (Wake-Up Caller) - Hardwell, Lord Miles and Mr.

Kasuke and Kosuke - know yourself

Lady Cupid - The rest are women

Girl’s Basketball Team - Women’s soccer team

Frog and Frog Princess - Frog and heat

Chameleon and Flies - they have color

Clap Trap Doll - 2 books

Driver (Toy Car) - a pilot

Pirate Captain Jackie and her crew - Captain Jack Sparrow and his crew.

Police Call Guy - Call the police!

Mr. Hi-Hat (yes, that is really his name) - Community acceptance 

Rhythm Fighters - We are not like that.

[phobia-sweets]

BTAS Dork Squad

He gets threatened but Y/N (who is kinda his rival/enemy) surprisingly steps up to protect him.

Y/N:"You will leave him alone."

Guy : "Says who?"

Y/N : "Says me."

After that she just gives some lame excuse like "There's a level to how much of a dick person can be" or "I'm the only one allowed to threaten you."

this was fun to write :D

I'm slowly getting back in my...groove? i suppose? For riddler, reader is a vigilante. For the other two, a criminal.

BTAS! Riddler, scarecrow and Mad hatter x reader

Warnings & Notes: None! :D not proofread again

RIDDLER

 Honesty, if you were told that hey. Riddler’s gonna try to reform, work for wacko toys and you were going to attend their party, you’d laugh in their face.

 Sure, you wanted him to stop his criminal ways but… This just did not seem… right? Almost like he was planning something. The Batman seemed to agree – he was almost certain this wasn’t the end of his crimes.

 Watching people laugh and chat away at the party, you sat on your seat sipping at your drink. You could hear Edward talking somewhere behind you, probably with Charles Baxter. The party so far had been quite uneventful. It was nice to be in the middle of civilians, it was much more calming than your nights as a vigilante on the corrupt streets of Gotham. You did feel out of place, though. 

 Turning around, you saw Edward, but not Baxter. Instead, chatting with Edward was someone else. You didn’t recognise them, and it looked like Edward didn’t, either. You couldn’t hear what they were talking about, but judging from Edward’s nervous smile and apprehensive body language, he did not like the situation.

 “Leave him alone.” You commanded, eyeing both of them. Tapping your fingers against the table, you were growing impatient with the man. 

 “Says who?” The man mocks, turning to look at you, walking closer.

 “Says me.” You stated nonchalantly, looking up at the person who had walked up to your table. Their smile faded when they met your eyes, recognising your face. From where, you didn’t exactly care. They muttered a quick ‘whatever’, walking to the exit quickly. You watched them leave, not noticing Edward sitting next to you, adjusting his jacket. 

 “Well, Good evening [Hero Name].” He smiled smugly. “May I ask what brings you here tonight? Didn’t take you for a toy collector.”

 “Am not. Just… enjoying the atmosphere, I suppose.” You sighed, leaning back in your chair.

 “I should thank you for earlier. I wasn’t exactly sure how to get them to leave. They were rather persistent about staying-” He explained, “But still, I wasn’t expecting you here. Especially not defending me. I apologise if I’m mistaken, but you do not like me, correct?”

 “As much as I doubt you’re actually trying to ‘reform’, there’s still a limit as to how much of a dick someone should be. Take it as a… I don’t know, an apology for all the times I’ve punched you.”

SCARECROW

 Having rivals or enemies in Gotham wasn’t that unusual. The city’s high rate of crime and, well, criminals made it easy to gain them. You’d considered yourself rather lucky for not having one despite having a fair share of your own crimes, mostly robberies, with an occasional extortion – Sure, people didn’t exactly like you, but those were mainly the people on the other end of your schemes. It was like that for a quite long time, until you’d managed to piss off Jonathan Crane – also known as the scarecrow, by destroying a batch of his toxin ACCIDENTALLY when you were being chased by the police. You had crashed your vehicle into the wall of an abandoned building, which then exploded in a cloud of red smoke, giving you a great chance of losing the police on your tail, but not without a more than healthy dose of toxin.

 Losing a massive batch of toxin had made him angry. It was honestly pretty obvious, considering when you met him after that and he promptly attempted to gas you. From that point onward, whenever the two of you crossed paths, it ended up in a fight of some kind. 

 So, the last time you two met, he had successfully gassed you. A revenge was in order, so here you were, behind an abandoned warehouse, where Jonathan was working on a new batch. How did you know this? Well, people talked when they had a knife to their gut.

 Sneaking through the broken window into the dark warehouse, you eyed your surroundings. Dust covered a majority of the surfaces, aside from some tables and bottles of various chemicals. The sound of yelling and clanging caught your attention, making you peek from behind the boxes in front of you. Jonathan was there with someone else. Jonathan was lacking his scarecrow get-up – wearing a labcoat instead, probably had been working on toxin before the man had interrupted him. 

 Jonathan wasn’t weak. But the man in front of him was… threatening, to say the least. Watching them interact made it clear that Jonathan wasn’t exactly prepared to fight him. Once the man walked closer to him, you took a deep breath, taking your knife from its holster.

 “You leave him alone – Now!” you stood up from behind the boxes, keeping your other hand hidden with the blade, just in case the man tried something. 

 “Says who?” He mockingly asked, walking towards you, surprised by your appearance. You kept your eyes on him, but saw Jonathan grab something at the corner of your eye. 

 “Says me!” You declared, pulling the knife from behind your back to stop him from coming closer. He didn’t stop though. Not until a cloud of red gas came from behind him, surprising him and causing him to inhale it immediately. You covered your mouth with your sleeve, stepping back. The man started screaming, as they usually do when under the influence of Jonathan’s toxin. He ran, and you turned to look at Jonathan as he watched the man scream in terror with a smile on his face. 

 “A thank you would be nice, y’know. If I hadn’t shown up, he’d have bashed your head straight through that desk. Probably. I don’t know.”

 He turned to look at you, his other eyebrow slightly raised, as if evaluating you. “Well, then, tell me, why help me?”

 “I mean, as much as I want to punch you, I don’t want to see you all bloody on the brink of death.”

MAD HATTER

 Ah, yes. The mad hatter. You weren’t exactly sure how to feel about him. As a fellow criminal, yeah, sure, you had a sort of respect for him, but god, did he sometimes get in your way. 

 Like that one time you were planning on robbing a jewellry store. You hadn’t told anyone about it! Yet somehow when you got there, Jervis was there with his mind-controlled… henchmen? When he noticed you, he proceeded to call you Cheshire, and rambled on something about a teaparty. You just left without saying anything. You made it your mission to avoid him from that point on. Sure, tea sounded nice, but you had a job to do! Steal, run, sell. 

 It wasn’t much of a surprise you spotted Jervis from far away. The hat was usually a giveaway. Not many people wore tophats in Gotham. It was the man next to him that surprised you. Usually Jervis’s henchmen wore a mask, an outfit or a hat related to, well, alice in wonderland. Had to keep the theme. Walking closer, it became obvious the man was not one of Jervis’s henchmen. Jervis looked quite distressed, the man towering over him. 

You sprinted towards the two of them, yelling, “Oi! You stop right now!” You stopped a few meters behind them both, just in case.

 “Says who?” The man turned to look at you, not reacting in any other way.

 “Says me.” You challenged, taking out your pocket knife. The man immediately backpedaled, hands raised to show he didn’t have a weapon.

 “Wow, wow, relax, relax. I’ll go, ok?” He reasoned, walking away from the two of you. You put your knife back when he turned the corner and you couldn’t see him anymore. 

 “Thank you, thank you, let me thank you with a brew!” He exclaimed, holding onto your arm. You thought about it for a minute. It wouldn’t hurt, right? But then again… You had a job and a tight deadline. You turned to look at him again when you heard him question you with a quick ‘cheshire’, and you took his hands off from your arm. 

 “I’m sorry, Jervis. I can’t. But remember; I’m the only one allowed to threaten you, ok?” 

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

"You are not like to see any general reformation, till you procure family reformation." – Richard Baxter

[soniccrash378]

Turtles Forever 2 ideas after seeing Mutant Mayhem

.2012 Donnie chatting with MM Leo about their love lives with their Aprils.

.MM Rocksteady meeting Draxum.

.Superfly teams up with Baxter Stockmen from other universes to avenge his father and rebuild his superweapon.

.The reformed MM villains facing the evil versions of themselves (1987, and maybe 2014 Rocksteady and Bebop)

.In addition, maybe have MM Leatherhead meet 2003 and 2012, MM Mondo Gecko meeting 1987 and 2012, and MM Rocksteady and Bebop meeting 2012.

[scotianostra]

Mary Slessor, the Scottish missionary, was born on this day in 1848 in Aberdeen.

It's only the past few years that interest has grown in Slessor, thanks mainly to The Clydesdale Bank honouring her memory on their £10 note

Mary was the second of seven children of Robert and Mary Slessor. Her father, originally from Buchan, was a shoemaker by trade. In 1859, the family moved to Dundee in search of work. Robert Slessor was an alcoholic and, unable to keep up shoemaking, took a job as a labourer in a mill. Her mother was a skilled weaver and went to work in the mills. At the age of eleven, Mary began work as a "half-timer" in the Baxter Brothers' Mill, meaning she spent half of her day at a school provided by the mill owners and the other half working for the company.The Slessors lived in the slums of Dundee. Mary's father and both brothers died of pneumonia, leaving behind only Mary, her mother, and two sisters By age fourteen, Mary had become a skilled jute worker and worked 12 hour shifts to help support her family.

Her mother was a devout Presbyterian who read each issue of the Missionary Record, a monthly magazine published by The United Presbyterian Church (later the United Free Church of Scotland) to inform members of missionary activities and needs. Slessor developed an interest in religion and when a mission was instituted in Quarry Pend (close by the Wishart Church), she wanted to teach. Slessor was 27 when she heard that David Livingstone, the famous missionary and explorer, had died and decided she wanted to follow in his footsteps.

Eventually, Slessor applied to the United Presbyterian Church's Foreign Mission Board. After training in Edinburgh, she set sail in the SS Ethiopia on 5 August 1876, and arrived at her destination in West Africa just over a month later.

She was a tough working class,woman, who was able to penetrate the interior of Nigeria and reach tribes who were so hostile to the white invaders that the men who had attempted the task before her had been murdered.

Although considered unconventional by Europeans, and certainly determined in character, she became a genuine peace-maker in numerous ways. She established schools and became well known in her struggle to reverse the practice of condemning twin babies to death. She fought for the acceptance of the small-pox vaccinations amongst the local people. She certainly served as an able fore-runner to the many church planters that followed her to Nigeria.

She gained such respect that at times she was called upon to act as a judge to help settle disputes between tribes. Mary Slessor wasn’t just there to spread Christianity and didn’t gain great numbers of converts but as a Christians peacemaker and human rights reformer she was an unparalleled success.

Like her fellow Scot, David Livingstone, she was considered unconventional by European standards. Slessor lived amongst the people in a mud hut, certainly unusual for western missionaries at the time.

The British colonial authorities respected her, and called upon her for help, actually funding some of her projects – but they were also exasperated by her: she had somehow freed herself from the European obsession with time keeping and therefore kept very irregular and unpredictable hours.

But she much loved by the local Efik peoples, was fluent in their language and genuinely adapted her life to serve them. She was named ‘The Mother of all Peoples’ by the locals, there are statues, memorials and reminders of Mary all over Nigeria.

If you ant to know more check out this web page from the Mary Slessor Foundation http://maryslessor.org/mary-slessor/

[brooklynmuseum]

Get to know Mary Enoch Elizabeth Baxter. 

Philadelphia-based artist and prison abolitionist, Baxter draws on autobiography and history to challenge systemic structures of oppression, particularly the ways in which the carceral system harms Black women and girls. Baxter is a cofounder of the Dignity Act Now Collective, an advocacy and legal reform group of Black activists and artists directly impacted by incarceration. 

In her exhibition, Ain’t I a Woman, Baxter boldly shares experiences from a turbulent youth in Philadelphia to her pregnancy, arrest, incarceration, and the birth of her son, culminating in her growth as an advocate and prison abolitionist. Spanning documentary, rap music, and photography Baxter underscores the need for empathy and liberation on the way to bodily autonomy for all.

📷 Installation view, Mary Enoch Elizabeth Baxter: Ain't I a Woman, on view January 20, 2023 - August 13, 2023. Brooklyn Museum. (Photo: Danny Perez) → Brooklyn Museum. (Photo: Kolin Mendez Photography)

[laura-the-yellow-cat]

The Dark Spirit of The Black Charro My NEW MSA X Danny Phantom: Reign Storm Enemy, later Reformed OC

Full Name: The Dark Spirit of The Black Charro

First Name:

Last Name:

Nicknames:

Gender: Male

Profile Pic

Age: 12 (in the past), 35 (deceased)

Blood Type:

Occupation:

Actual or Past Occupation:

Favourite Shows/Games: ___/___/___

(___,___,___)

Favourite Food:

Instrument:

Favourite Animal:

Family Members Relatives:

Other Family Members Relatives:

Species: Human, later Ghost/Human/Demon

Friends: His demon-ghost minions and Parian King (Former), Sophie Kingsmen, Monty, Elise, Juleka, Danny Phantom, Vlad Plasmius, Dan Turner, Diesel, Girls' Clue Club Team, Mystery Teams, All the ghosts and others (All Current)

Enemies: Sophie Kingsmen, Monty, Elise, Juleka, Danny Phantom, Vlad Plasmius, Dan Turner, Diesel, Girls' Clue Club Team, Mystery Teams, All the ghosts and others (All Former), Parian King (Current)

Alignment: Bad/Neutral, later Good

Likes: Ruby Gem (in the past) Ruby gem and Pariah King giving him some dark powers, Possessing and Mind Controling Muffet/Maisy Pepper with his Ruby gem (briefly), Muffet/Maisy Pepper was freeding from getting Possessing and Mind Controling about his Ruby gem (current), getting revenge on Dash Baxter, Eveline and Jerry, getting his ruby gem back, Being a halloween jumpscarer prank

Dislikes: Trapped in the cave, Being stuck and trapped in the cave (in the past), vlad plasmius or juleka or diesel takes his ruby gem away from him, Muffet/Maisy Pepper was freeding from getting Possessing and Mind Controling about his Ruby gem (former), muffet pepper gets possessed, Not being a halloween jumpscarer prank

Hobby:

Goals:

Weapons: Two Sword Twins and Rope

Powers and Abilities:

Skills and Abilities:

Skin Colour:

Eyes Colour: Brown (in the past) Red (his demon/human/ghost)

Hair Colour: Black

Clothes:

Shoes:

Accessories:

Nationality:

Sexuality:

Mustache Styles:

Hair Styles:

@sfcabanasstarcgs and @mysteryideasgroup

This one sounds likes Spirit of El Bandito (from Be Cool, Scooby Doo) and El Charro Negro (from Las Leyendas/Legend Quest)

[emma-is-swaggy-and-epic]

Some time ago i made a mane 6 for a MLP next gen AU called "the oddverse" (the first 3 characters were made last year or so and the other 3 were made just last month) idk if i'm going to be fleshing out this AU anytime soon though

Basically the whole gist of the AU was that discord got reformed long before twilight came to ponyville and cadence got with him instead of shining armor, eventually they had a kid named rarepair who ended up fucking up the universe and a bunch of characters who AREN'T from MLP's universe are now IN the universe, having weird kids with the ponies in the process. Canon ball is the protag of the AU and she's basically trying to figure out why the universe is like this

Characters and ships

Rarepair (intersex nonbinary, any pronouns) - empress cadence x discord

Canon ball (cis female, she/her) - lyra heartstrings x sweetie drops

Peanut jar (trans male, he/him) - rainbow dash x barry b benson

Pity party (AFAB nonbinary, they/them, they have wings but they're hidden under their jacket) - queen celestia x cupcakes!pinkie pie

Dexter (cis male, he/him) - derpy hooves x cabinet man (not a personification of the song or anything, LITERALLY *JUST* THE SONG)

Beatrice (trans female, she/her, name pronounced "beet rice") - capper x james baxter from adventure time

Also i hate to get your hopes up, but mordetwi isn't canon in this AU. Twilight is actually with the hunter from little nightmares

[the-busy-ghost]

Look Dundee may be run down a bit in places (and the pandemic definitely did a number on the physical shops) but even when I was a kid I was convinced that parts of the city were peak late Victorian/Edwardian #aesthetic.

Loads of people seem to only visit to go to the V&A and the Discovery but the McManus gallery is also magnificent. The Verdant Works is interesting as are all the old jute and linen mills that are now turned over to housing, and I've always thought the brownstone tenements looked warm and homely even if many of them are rather battered now. The Caird Hall and Reform Street are impressive from an architectural perspective, even if the paint's peeling and many of the shops are empty (I've been to shows at the Caird Hall and the Dundee Rep for considerably less money than it would have cost in Edinburgh so that's also cool). The city's whaling and textile heritage is fascinating (though not always nice, but that's just British history everywhere) and it's also got a lot of women's history (jute mills meant a lot of the Victorian and early twentieth century workforce was female).

You're never far from the water or the countryside (ice cream in Broughty Ferry or Arbroath smokies anyone?) and of course the surrounding Angus and Perthshire countryside used to provide loads of berries for the jam and marmalade that once made Dundee famous (and it's still a perfect area to grow fruit today). Alternatively you could take a walk in Baxter Park when it's autumn and the leaves are falling.

And personally as a graveyard geek I think the Howff is a lovely place to sit, all the more so because you can look up and admire the D.C. Thomson headquarters, housed in an elegant early skyscraper from 1902. Maybe while eating a bridie or an empire biscuit or a pineapple tart from a stereotypical Scottish bakery (Fisher & Donaldson, Goodfellow & Steven, and many many more).

And I'm reminded of this again today (hence the rant) because I was in J.A. Braithwaite Ltd to buy tea and, though it's only a small shop, currently tucked away under some scaffolding on Castle Street, it's just such a wonderful blast from the past (been running for over 150 years and the interior doesn't seem to have changed much). It's like an Aladdin's cave of coffee and tea, and if you are ever in Dundee you should go, even though it's a bit hidden, because why not fully commit to the late Victorian aesthetic (though perhaps not the mores) for ten minutes. Anyway google images doesn't have very many great photos but:

And it smells FANTASTIC

[andrewmoocow]

Ninja Turtles in the Owl House lore and facts

Kirby O’Neil first met Camila Noceda at the Robin’s Roost Cafe while he was in Gravesfield for an antiques show. Upon discovering how they both lost a spouse to natural causes, the two became friends, then lovers, and finally husband and wife. Camila’s daughter Luz was seven at the time her mother remarried, and Kirby’s daughter April was older by two years at age nine.

Similarly, the bond between the Clawthorne family and the Hamato clan dates back centuries to when Hamato Koji became a shoulder for Evelyn Clawthorne to cry on following the sudden death of her human husband Caleb Wittebane. This relationship would continue for generations to come, extending all the way to Evelyn’s great-great granddaughter Gwendolyn and Koji’s great-great grandson Hamato Yuuta, who would later introduce his children Yoshi and Hana to Gwendolyn’s daughters Eda and Lilith.

In contrast to Luz’s endless creativity, April is more intellectual and athletic. She has an interest in science and journalism, plays soccer, is on the school gymnastics team, and regularly does yoga. She also tried signing her and Luz up for cheerleading to expand Luz’s social circle, but that was also where Luz did her eyelid trick that freaked everybody out. Thankfully, April would get a second chance at cheerleading when she joined Hexside’s fearleaders.

Luz’s ninja weapon of choice is a scythe while April wields war fans that once belonged to Tang Shen.

Out of all the Turtles, Michelangelo is Eda’s special little guy, a fact that Mikey uses to rile up his brothers like a little gremlin. Mikey reminds Eda a lot of herself, a energetic and mischievous witch with tons of potential much like Eda when she was younger. Though you may think Mike is a lazy and childish slacker, he’s actually quite the creative and unpredictable fighter, so much so that Splinter believes he has the potential to be the deadliest fighter of the four brothers.

Oroku Saki wasn’t necessarily born evil, but he grew up believing that wild witches were cowards who used their powerful magic to hide how pathetic they were, a trait that Emperor Belos noticed when he planned to arrest the Oroku clan for their use of wild magic. Unlike Saki, his brother Oroku Nagi refused to submit to Belos. Seeing himself and Caleb in the Oroku siblings, Belos decided to have the two battle in a witch’s duel.

At the eve of the witch’s duel, Saki and his family’s retainers Hattori Tatsu and Aru Khan went on a journey in search of a suit of armor known as the Kuroi Yoroi, which is said to be a legendary weapon used by the Ninja Tribunal, the first witches to use martial arts. Saki used the armor to kill Nagi in their witch’s duel and would go onto become known as the Shredder. Afterwards, the Oroku clan would be reformed into the black-ops division of the Emperor’s Coven called the Foot Coven.

Bebop and Rocksteady were a pair of thugs who were thrown in the Conformatorium for their numerous crimes. But instead of being forced into a coven or petrified, the two were recruited into the Foot Coven as a way of escaping imprisonment.

Baxter Stockman is the twin brother of Perry Porter, thus making him Gus’s uncle by extension. The two became estranged after Gus’s mother Bernice joined her brother-in-law on an experiment to create a portal to other worlds that quickly went awry. Bernice died in the chaos, and Perry disowned Baxter for failing to save her.

Amity was first introduced to Casey Jones after she was forced to end her friendship with Willow. As part of the business partnership between Odalia and Darius Dunn, the two were arranged to be married when they came of age. However, Casey realized that Amity’s controlling queen bee personality hid a much more tortured and benevolent soul beneath, while Amity realized how caring Casey really was behind the risk-loving goofball he presented himself as. After Amity fell in love with Luz and Casey fell in love with April, the marriage was called off.

While April warmed up to the Turtles, Splinter and King without much trouble, she and Eda definitely got off on the wrong foot. April believed that Eda wasn’t a very good mentor and looked more like some creep who drives a free candy van (as it turns out, Eda once beat up a guy like that after discovering that he really didn’t have candy in his van), while Eda loved poking fun at how April reminded her of Lilith.

Eventually, the two would come to an understanding during the events of “Revenge of Tibbles” (this AU’s version of Really Small Problems) where Eda realized just how much stress April was putting on herself to be a good sister. Despite their differences, the two girls cared for their families above all else. After saving Luz and the others from the clutches of the Purple Dragons, April and Eda agreed to have a little girls’ day out together.

In addition to being two of the strongest witches on the Isles, Eda and Lilith are also skilled fighters from training under many masters. Eda prefers to get up close and personal with her opponents while keeping them guessing, while Lilith is a more graceful and tactical combatant.

Eda trained under the Ancient One and the Utroms while Lilith was an apprentice of the Shredder. Both are skilled in bojutsu, as is every witch with a Palisman, but Eda prefers the arts of shurikenjutsu, kayakujutsu, shinobi-iri, hensojutsu, and intonjutsu, while Lilith is more talented in kenjutsu, choho, boryaku, and taijutsu. They work out by jogging and doing yoga, but Eda also does boxing, weightlifting, and poledancing in comparison to Lilith working out with gymnastics, judo and kendo.

When Lilith was first welcomed into the Owl House after sharing the curse with Eda, everyone was divided over the change. Hooty and Michelangelo welcomed her with open arms, Luz, Eda, King, Leonardo, and Donatello followed some advice from Splinter to remain optimistic, and April declared Lilith to be on thin ice with her.

And then there’s Raphael, who will never let go of how Lilith & Shredder nearly killed them all and took Eda & Splinter away. He’s so paranoid, he had recurring nightmares about Lilith betraying the gang and mocking Raph for being the only one to see through her facade even though no one believed him. As a way of forcing the two to become closer, Splinter handcuffs Lilith and Raph together and will only release them if they proved they’re on better terms. This test would be interrupted by Tiger Claw, Hunter and Baxter plotting to hunt Lilith down to bring her to Shredder so she can be punished for her betrayal, forcing her and Raph to work together if they were to survive.

The Utroms migrated to the Boiling Isles after Dimension X was conquered in the name of Aldrich Leviathan and made their home in what would become known as the Empyrean Oasis, which would be the source of the earliest mutant demons. The Triceratons have also migrated to the Boiling Isles for similar reasons, and even destroyed their homeworld to deny Amphibia another planet to conquer.

Centuries later, the Utroms led a secret war against Belos to free the isles from his tyranny via training witches to become Guardians. A young Eda, Yoshi, Raine, and Tang Shen were among these witches, as were Gwendolyn, Hamato Yuuta, and Tsou T’an-Jin before them, and many members of the Clawthorne and Hamato families dating back centuries to Koji and Evelyn.

In 1815 during the War of 1812, a US soldier named John Bishop discovered a mysterious portal that would lead him to the Boiling Isles, where he was experimented on by the Utroms to create a perfect superweapon to destroy Belos. Bishop was horrified by the aliens who captured him and made an escape, forcing the Utroms to scrap the project altogether. Bishop would eventually find a way home through Titan’s blood, but he stuck around the Demon Realm long enough to learn about the evils of Belos and carve his own Palisman, a wolf he named Knight. Afterwards, Bishop became leader of the Earth Protection Force, a position he would retain for decades due to the Utroms’ experiments making him basically immortal.

Due to Lilith’s ties with the Oroku family, she was made by Shredder and his wife Oroku Miwa to be the nanny of their two daughters Karai and Pimiko. Between the two, Karai was preferred over Pimiko, who hid her desperation for approval by acting like an arrogant brat.

Throughout his life as the Golden Guard, Hunter considered Karai to be like a sister to him for how much she looked out for him. Karai knew how cruel Belos was to his subordinates and feared how he would punish Hunter if he failed a mission.

Shredder is roughly a decade older than Eda, Lilith and Splinter, being somewhere in his fifties while the three of them are all in their mid to late forties.

[byneddiedingo]

Gloria Swanson and Lionel Barrymore in Sadie Thompson (Raoul Walsh, 1928)

Cast: Gloria Swanson, Lionel Barrymore, Blanche Friderici, Charles Lane, Florence Midgley, James A. Marcus, Sofia Ortega, Will Stanton, Raoul Walsh. Screenplay: Raoul Walsh; titles: C. Gardner Sullivan; based on a story by W. Somerset Maugham and a play by John Colton and Clemence Randolph. Cinematography: George Barnes, Robert Kurrie, Oliver T. Marsh. Art direction: William Cameron Menzies. Film editing: C. Gardner Sullivan.

It's sad that most people know Gloria Swanson only as the gorgon Norma Desmond in Sunset Blvd. (Billy Wilder, 1957). Or that Swanson's deft parody of silent movie acting in that film constitutes many people's impression of what it was like. The survival of Sadie Thompson, even though it's missing its last reel, which the restorers piece out with old stills and title cards, shows what a formidable force Swanson could be on screen, generating enough heat that it's surprising she didn't ignite the nitrate film stock. The story is the familiar one of the San Francisco prostitute who comes to Pago Pago, where she clashes with a bluenose reformer who threatens to return her to San Francisco and the hands of the police. The reformer is Alfred Davidson (Lionel Barrymore in full ham), who was a clergyman in Somerset Maugham's short story, "Miss Thompson," and the play, Rain, that was based on it, but becomes a layman here to please the Hays Office. Fortunately, Sadie has the support of a sturdy young Marine sergeant, Timothy O'Hara, played by director Raoul Walsh, who before turning director full-time had been an actor in the early days of silents; he played John Wilkes Booth in The Birth of a Nation (D.W. Griffith, 1915). This brief return to acting was a one-shot: Walsh was planning to direct himself again in In Old Arizona (Irving Cummings, 1928), but lost his right eye in a freak auto accident while on location preparing to shoot the film; Warner Baxter took over the role and won an Oscar for it. Swanson was nominated for an Oscar for Sadie Thompson, as was cinematographer George Barnes, whose nomination included his work on two other films: The Devil Dancer (Fred Niblo, 1927) and The Magic Flame (Henry King, 1927). In fact, Barnes did only a week's worth of filming on Sadie Thompson before Samuel Goldwyn insisted he fulfill a contractual obligation to him; he was replaced by Robert Kurrle and Oliver T. Marsh.

[robmillistw2]

55 years young: the true masterpiece of psychedelia

When I was 14 or 15 and had decided that the late 60s (at the time about twenty years previously) was the thing, but had exhausted all my Dad’s Stones & Cream albums and bought a few of my own from the same acts (and a couple of Hendrix LPs), I set out to discover more from the era. I can honestly say I wouldn’t be here writing this now if it wasn’t for a very, very cheap double LP compilation called ‘Back On The Road’ which I bought. It was a glorious sampler masterclass in almost everything: it had softer, folksy moments from Fairport, Roy Harper and Nick Drake. It had the heft of Sabbath, Deep Purple and Free. It had the familiarity of Cream and Hendrix. It was my first taste of Traffic & Spooky Tooth. But it was also ocean-spanning: it had the Velvet Underground, the Quicksilver Messenger Service - and Jefferson Airplane.

Despite my first taste of ‘Paranoid’ and ‘Black Night’, ‘White Rabbit’ transcended them both in terms of sheer power. I loved it: it was a bolero, reimagined by the acid rock generation. And so it was I set off to find out more about ‘the Airplane’ (as we will call them henceforth) and really began a love affair with the late sixties Bay Area arts and culture that, circa 32 years later, still rages on in my heart.

It didn’t start well. The liner notes to ‘Back On The Road’ made it clear that this band was at the very top of the family tree of what led to (then relatively recent) unavoidable atrocities ‘We Built This City’ and ‘Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now’. For a while, ‘White Rabbit’ was ruined - it was unmistakably that same, powerhouse voice: nobody sounds like Grace Slick. But I soon shrugged it off as nonsense and blamed the times, concluding that I couldn’t let ‘Valerie’ and ‘Higher Love’ put me off ‘Paper Sun’ either.

Sadly, it didn’t improve immediately: Jefferson Airplane actually reformed for one album in 1989 just as I set out to discover them for myself. It was of course this album that all the shops stocked, and I bought it. Aside from a couple of moments, it sounded way too much like Starship and not enough like 1960s San Francisco. I later learned that the couple of moments were basically Hot Tuna and the rest of it was a deluxe big-budget Starship-type operation. Jorma Kaukonen summed the reunion up almost word-for-word as I felt the album to be at age 15 in his excellent auto-bio ‘Been So Long’. Buy a copy.

I went to a better record shop the following week where - joy of joys - they actually had a Jefferson Airplane section. Kid in a toy shop moment: I held in my hands and gazed in wonder at copies of ‘Volunteers’, ‘Surrealistic Pillow’, ‘Crown of Creation’…marvelled at the flying toasters on ‘Thirty Seconds Over Winterland’….and then caught sight of ‘After Bathing At Baxters’ for the very first time.

All the others just vanished into the background. This was it: the iconic American stars and stripes bordering that great image: the old biplane made out of a typical wooden clad Victorian Haight-area house, soaring over a consumer-satire landscape. Now, this was 1989 and vinyl albums from the sixties had largely been robbed of their original gatefold sleeves - or in some cases only ever got them in their home country - and it would be another ten years before I got my hands on a USA original. In fact, it turns out that the (probably Dutch or German) pressing that I got brand new was better than the UK original sleeve which lacked the red, white and blue borders and was distinctly drab.

A brief history lesson: ‘After Bathing At Baxters’ was the third album by the Airplane, and the second with Grace Slick on vocals. The previous release ‘Surrealistic Pillow’ was the breakthrough, with the two bona-fide hits ‘White Rabbit’ and ‘Somebody To Love’ which set them apart from the rest of the freewheeling, often uncommercial (or rather, ‘unconcerned with being deliberately commercial’) San Francisco scene.

The rock and roll history books will tell you that ‘Pillow’ was a huge leap forward from the debut ‘Jefferson Airplane Takes Off’. Well, yes - the sound had a harder edge and not just in the vocals; it also had hits and was a true breakthrough for the band - but it was still an album of short, structured songs with a nominally folk-rock sound. For my money, the difference between ‘Pillow’ and ‘Baxters’ is immeasurably greater and possibly the most significant audible development of any one band from one album to the next that there has ever been. Even ‘Rubber Soul’ to ‘Sgt Pepper’ was a neatly calibrated climb (and that’s assuming you don’t believe ‘Revolver’ was the truly impressive one of the three; I do).

Hits. That’s what happened - and so Jefferson Airplane were given virtual carte blanche by paymasters RCA Victor to make their next record. It took most of 1967 and I’m not sure that RCA were ever ready for the results!

I’m not going to go through it track-by-track; I want you to do that for yourself if you have a mind and thus won’t pepper this missive with spoilers. Let’s just say it is one of the most successful attempts to capture the psychedelic experience on vinyl (which was always a challenge for the artists who were playing freewheeling, stream-of-consciousness improvised concerts by the seat of their pants, then faced the auspices of the studio).

Look out for Jorma Kaukonen ‘inventing Sonic Youth’ in the fuzzed and multitracked guitar solo of his own ‘Last Wall Of The Castle’. Feel the mood as Paul Kantner’s Rickenbacker XII sets up an eastern-influenced mini raga to usher in ‘Wild Tyme’, which then explodes into a mass of joyous harmonies celebrating the times. Be spellbound at Grace’s icy wit and ‘take no prisoners’ attitudes on ‘Two Heads’ and ‘Rejoice’. But above all, don’t drop your bacon sandwich during ‘Spare Chaynge’ - a wild, improvised jam between Kaukonen, the greatest bass player on the planet Jack Casady and drummer Spencer Dryden.

No man is an island - he is a peninsular.

Happy 55th Birthday to my absolute favourite long-playing record; the one that made me want to be a musician and not just a record collector. Thanks for everything.

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

by Sharon James | Richard honestly reflected on Margaret’s proneness to anxiety and fear and her often perfectionist, sometimes obsessive, tendencies. She drove herself to the limit. Her desire to serve overtook her strength and, in the end, both body and mind gave way under the strain. But he celebrated her compassion for the poor and needy, as well…