#rick sider

[redheadkittys]

...WHY SO HOT WHEN ONLY NPCs🤯...

...i need an explanation why we can't date them🤨mihoyo...they're stunning🤩...sorry i couldn't remember the names of two...

...*sigh*to be honest...i'm drinking...

...for Darius, Marius and Vyns dad, Ogier the Butler of Vyn and not to forget Wesley+Rick+Jack+Aran and this Guy in the red suit🙈so year😂i'm simping for almost everyone 😆...

[nekobami]

PRIME RICK'S SOOO CLUMSY, WOW! SOMEONE PLEASE STOP HIM! WE'RE ALL GOING TO D-

Also Wicked, from Aviva, remembered me of Prime Rick for a while... nobody asked... sorry. Let me make the joke:

BEWARE!!! IT'S THE LOW QUALITY MONSTER!! haha omg I'm so funny haha

Yeah, this is Prime Rick in a maid dress. I could say it's not, say it's an OC, a clone, an avatar of a game... But in the end, it'll still be Prime Rick in a maid dress just because I wanted to see him in a maid dress. Even if it doesn't make any sense, if it's impossible, and a lot of "ifs". Anyway, this exists now. It's not perfect. The colours probably ain't balanced in a good way... but... It's here.

Pre-hendering version:

Well, I just wanted to see if I could put a lot of elements in one drawing and don't give it up before finishing it. Prime Rick, Maid dress, Guard Rick's rifle, Barbie magazine aesthetic, lollipop, skeleton metal-like hand... it's just a bunch of random ideas together to form... this. I don't think this blog will have more of this oftenly, because it's supposed to be dedicated more to lore... yguys know? but at least... I learned a lot... it was very fun. There was supposed to have some blood... but I didn't wanted to put any TW on an art too early

[edsonjnovaes]

Rick and Morty: 7ª temporada e 4º episódio 1.2

O HBO Max, através de seu perfil oficial no X (antigo Twitter), revelou quando a 7ª temporada da animação de ficção científica chegou ao streaming no Brasil no dia 15 de outubro deste ano (um domingo) e numa segunda-feira (25), os novos episódios também ganharam um trailer completo. Jean Carlos Foss – tecmundo. 22/09/2023 in: Edson Jesus – 8/11/2023 A cena de abertura para promover o 4º episódio…

[veronicawildest]

NAKSHATRA SERIES: OBSERVATION FROM DIFFERENT NAKSHATRAS

SHRAVANA

The symbolism for this nakshatra is the ear, No wonder they LOVE to gossip. Also if you want a music recommendation just ask a Shravana/Dhanista natives. They have great music taste.

Major placement in Shravana nakshatra (especially the big 3) have distant relationship from one/both of their parents.

This nakshatra(including Dhanistha) have major RBF

The most shallow thing about this nakshatra is about their reputation. Sometimes they don't care but i often found this nakshatra to be obsessed about how others perceive them (not in a people pleasing way but how it benefits them)

Besides Ketu vimshottari nakshatras, Shravana is often found too in lead singers (One of the members in Air Supply, Lead singer of band Styx). Saturn in general creates timeless songs that often play even if singers already die.

The Coca-Cola have connection with this nakshatra. Someone from Twitter mentioned about the C*caine and correlation to this nakshatra.

Most likely to be addicted to substance besides Ketu ruled (extends to other Moon vimshottari ruled nakshatras)

DHANISTA

Dhanista women seek roles that have leadership position

It's pretty ironic how Dhanista's yoni is lion evem though their rashi (Capricorn to early degrees of Aquarius) isn't comfortable on Sun

Dhanista is one of the rarest type to be born. (Most people that i know are born in August, I've only met 3 Dhanista in my life, so this observations mainly come from celebrities)

Dhanista women are really into fashion (Heart Evangelista, Paris Hilton). They usually have squad like friends.

Someone said on Twitter that Fame is a karmic thing and i agree. Sidereal saturn rashi (especially Dhanista) deals with the good, bad and ugly sides of fame. They often deals with people only want the idea of them, not them.

KRS said that they have displays/ have instruments in their home. Please confirm if you have Dhanista placements.

SHATABHISHA

It's common for this nakshatra to be related to science. Arda and Swati do this too but not in a way Shatabhisha often does (Rick and Morty, Breaking Bad)

The common thing about this nakshatra is pointing out racism to others. Someone did a meme of comparing Shrek to Get Out and the main characters of this is Shatabhisha. Niko from NDL/Beta Squad do this too in his most popular video

They have cult fans too besides Jyestha (Justin Bieber, Chapell Ronan, Rihanna, Olivia Rodrigo)

Unevolved trait of this nakshatra is hypocrisy in a way that they love to impose rules just to get benefits from it but if someone impose rules on them, they don't follow it.

Shatabhisha is often have a weird connection to rumors. They love rumors (biggest gossiper)and they often have rumors that are more likely conspiracy theories related to them.

[feyres-divorce-lawyer]

brb changing the layout of my phone because rick is a both-sider

[luzxii]

HERE HAVE A FULL OMORICK DW REF SH EET!!! I'm working on a RW one so stay tune d for that teehee ANYWAYS have sum loreee

- The mains are Rick, Kevin, Radford, Hanna (an OC), Patty and Streber.

- The characters don't really fall into "roles" in this au as its not a roleswap au, there is no Aubrey or Kel roles and different characters fill a variety of plotpoints, only keeping the main points like an incident, certain deaths etc. However, i'd say Streber is closest to a " Basil" role as he was the one to have witness ed the incident and passes at the end of the worst ending. ( His cause of death i'm still d ebating, not the same way as Basil's tho.)

- Rick doesn't have a weapon in dreamworld, but he likely has access to something con sidering the more serious endings of omori as i am planning to stay overall loyal to the e ndings of the game.

also can yall help me i still dont have any good ideas for ho w exactly patty died all i know is that rick was unintentiona lly involved, would they have a fight like sunny and mari? w hat about? if not how else would it go down? yall gimme in put in reblogs or asks ily all /nf

[fruityyamenrunner]

this one looks good

The event was the 28th International Vedic Astrology Conference, which took place in Kolkata, India, from January 30 – February 4, 2018. The conference was held under the auspices of the Krishnamurti Institute of Vedic Culture for Public Welfare.

This year was unique because there was an open call for speakers, and more than 40 western astrologers gave talks at the conference.

On February 1, Glenn Perry gave a 30-minute presentation at the conference, arguing that the tropical zodiac is the one true zodiac and the sidereal zodiac is wrong. This presentation was given to an audience of Indian astrologers, where the sidereal zodiac has been the primary reference system for centuries.

The talk was widely viewed as disrespectful, both by Indian and western astrologers who attended the conference, not so much for the points argued in the talk but instead due to the tone, which came off as mean-spirited and divisive in what was otherwise set up as a more conciliatory east meets west conference.

There was a lot of discussion about the talk online after it occurred, and a number of people filed complaints with the International Society for Astrological Research (ISAR), since Perry was representing them at the conference as their ethics chair, research director, and longtime board member.

As a result of the controversy and subsequent complaints from the membership, he was eventually given an ultimatum by the ISAR board to either step down as ethics chair, or leave the board entirely, and he chose to leave the board.

some of u are dangerous "one reality" people...

[flash-the-readies]

Pink Floyd as Plant Parents

Rick:

just a handful that he finds beautiful

a couple expensive ones and no you can’t have a cutting

they’re alive and watered

dusts the leaves inconsistently

Nick:

the refined and expensive collector

isn’t going to chase down trends but if he likes it he’s getting it

his plants are THRIVING and he takes great pride in it

beautifully displayed around the house

variegated monstera? hoya carnosa? you know it! No they’re not for sale but you may have a cutting

Roger:

always asking Nick for cuttings

gave up asking Rick after he was shot down point blank

has a log where he meticulously marks down growth and watering schedules, infestations, etc.

tried out orchids and became obsessed with terrariums too

Syd:

you won’t catch him paying for houseplants

he’s getting cuttings from the side of the road or from your plants

he does however have a lovely herb and vegetable garden

happy to give out excess for free

will just dump a box of potatoes at your doorstep

David:

don’t look at him with those expensive or finicky plants

cheap and reliable is where it’s at

snake plants, pothos, sider plants

that fiddle leaf fig int he corner of the room which is now a dead branch in a pot he hasn’t bothered to toss out

you bet those leaves are dusty

[jonfarreporter]

Halloween with a Sushi & Hard Cider Sider

With Halloween falling on a Tuesday this year, that usually translates to an extended celebration, or as the owners of Pomme Cider Shop in Sonoma would say “a party weekend.“

“We are super excited because, the ultimate sushi party has gone spooky said Pomme Cider Shop Owners, Rick Tranchina and Jessica Olsen-Ealy.

Olsen-Ealy & Tranchina have teamed up with Sushimotos of Sonoma to provide an evening of unique culinary experiences for the Halloween festivities When asked about what beverage is best paired with Sushi or teriyaki, chef Ed Metcalfe noted. “It’s not really a pairing as much. Guests will have the option to pick what they want to drink.”

Actually, much of the beverage pairing or selection comes from Olsen-Ealy who along with Tranchina knows that cider and sake are a welcome enhancement to any food just as much as wine or beer is. Cider as Olsen-Ealy explains is “closer to wine making than brewing beer.” So cider in wine country is a great addition/complement to the tasting tour

“We will offer guests the chance to grab dibs on limited cider and sake pairings,” said Ealy. And, it’s a sweet perk,” she added. “Especially for people who have attended our previous special events.”

“You know the drill, she said, you get your ticket via the website and then there’s extras included.”

“When people purchase tickets to our spooky sushi and costume party, said Olsen-Ealy it includes one hour of unlimited sushi.”

Metcalfe who owned/operated Shiso Sushi at Maxwell’s for 12 years, is looking forward to an exciting evening of two dinner seatings, as he explained. “Cooking is about the food, the presentation to the guest and the interaction of flavors.” “The anticipation to find and create a symphony to one’s senses, this is cooking,” he exclaimed. “That said, added Metcalfe, I do a lot of pairing with sushi, Korean, and other Asian cuisines.”

The 7:30 seating is all sold out, And since Pomme and Sushimotos has collaborated together on these unique culinary-dining experiences over the past year, word travels fast.

“If you haven’t grabbed your ticket yet don’t worry, said Olsen-Ealy, there’s still a few seats left for the 5:30 seating.” Taking the first dinner seating as Olsen-Ealy noted, “gives you the chance to come a little early chill out and enjoy a pre-dinner drink.”

When she says “spooky roll,” Olsen-Ealy means that there will be a new lineup of cider sparkling wine and a new selection of sake available for purchase during the dinner. “Come kick off your Halloween party weekend with us,” she said.

“And, be prepared to walk away as an absolute legend, said Olsen-Ealy, dress in your best costume for the chance to win a Pomme gift card and other awesome prizes.”

Spooky Sushi & Costume Party will be on Oct. 26 at Pomme Cider Shop & Taproom, 531 Broadway, Sonoma within walking distance of the historic Plaza at the heart of town. First seating begins at 5:30 PM. For tickets visit Sushimoto website. Or call Pomme Cider Shop & Taproom at 707-343-7155.

[destino-terra-dos-sonhos]

Corporação Infinito: Sideral (Courtney Whitmore), Dra. Meia-Noite (Beth Chapel), Homem-Hora (Rick Tyler) & Pantera (Yolanda Montez). 😎😍❤️✨👊🏻🙏🏻

[azure-cherie]

To know me

Haha i noticed I don't even have an introduction about myself .

I've been learning astro since i was 14 and I've started doing intuitive readings like since a month 💀.

You can call me : Azure ,Cherie ,Mysti , anything you like .

Age : 18

Pronouns: she/her

Nationality : Indian

Sidereal air dom , Tropical water dom

Favourite element : Ether

Best friend : @owaowabishh , she is my greatest supporter, sister, i love her so much , she is inactive on Tumblr ,but she's always there for me irl in everything i do.

My hobbies & likes : Astrology , Tarot, Writing , Poetry, Mythology, Producing music, singing, designing, painting, astronomy, philosophy, psychology,Quantum mechanics, meta physics, biology.

Fav musicians : Lana del rey , Lata Mangeshkar, Taylor Swift , Tamino Amir , Hozier , Ali Sethi , Videoclub , fka twigs , Audrey Nuna , Kali Uchis , Ritviz , Cigarettes after sex , Naalayak , Jasleen Royal , Lagnajita Chakraborty , Frank Ocean .

Books : Mirror of my heart ( Persian poetry) , anything by Nikita Gill , Black suits you - Novoneel Chakraborty , Bridge to the soul - Rumi , Delirium - Lauren Oliver , Percy Jackson- Rick Riordan , anything by Haruki Murakami, A short history of nearly everything - Bill Bryson , Call me Ishmail tonight - Agha Shahid Ali .

Fav series : Dark Netflix ( y'all i watched it as a drama series not sci- fi ) 💀 , Sex Education , euphoria , friends etc.

Fav movies : Hunger games series , To all the boys I've loved before series , Jab we met , anything Sanjay Leela Bhansali , Uptown girls, how to lose a guy in 10 days , 13 going on 30 & many more i can't remember 💀.

Anime : Everything Studio Ghibli , Demon slayer , Arte , & many more .

IF I SEE YOU ON MY NOTIFS OFTEN AND YOU DON'T LOOK LIKE A BOT I'LL FOLLOW YOU UP !

Thank you for reading.

Have an amazing day/night ahead👑💫✨

[facewithoutheart]

2021 Fics in Review

Stole this from @captain-aralias and it nearly killed me...

Also feel free to take the questions and answer them yourself. Tag me if you do <3

my fics from 2021

A Christmas Pitch, SnowBaz, Mature, 66k

5 Times Baz Avoids Conflict (& The 1 Time Simon Catches On), SnowBaz, Mature, 5k

A Crack In The Wall, Drarry/Jily/Wolfstar, Teen, 39k

Left Hands and Lotion, SnowBaz, Mature, 5k

What Am I Now?, Drarry, Teen, 600

Have Your Cake and Eat It Too, SnowBaz, Teen, 3.3k

Here Comes The Boy, SnowBaz, Mature, 3k

Two Weddings, No Vows, Drarry, Mature, 3k

Not The Droids You're Looking For, SnowBaz, Teen, 9k

The Wrong Sider, Drarry, Mature, 65k

5 Times Simon Tried To Use Baz's Fangs Like A Swiss Army Knife + 1 Time He Didn't, SnowBaz, Teen, 4.5k

When I Feel Alive, SnowBaz, Explicit, 3k

Fucking Ruthless, SnowBaz, Explicit, 2.6k

vroom vroom, SnowBaz, Explicit, 900

The Mirror Pair, SnowBaz/Drarry, Mature, 38k

Based On A Fake Story, SnowBaz, Teen, 2.5k

How Baz Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Rick Roll, SnowBaz, Teen, 2.6k

vroom vroom 2: Watford Drift, SnowBaz, Explicit, 1.3k

2 fast 2 vroom: the vroomening, SnowBaz, Explicit, 4k

Forever Isn't Long Enough, SnowBaz, Teen, 1.2k

We Used To Be Friends (AKA Mean-O-Ween), SnowBaz, Teen, 7k

The Chain (Tell Me What You Want), MalMage, Mature, 2.3k

Power In Hope // Drain Me, SnowBaz, Mature, 700

The Last Time, MalMage, Mature, 2.6k

Green Is The Color, SnowBaz, Explicit, 2.7k

The Real Tragedy (Is How Many Years I've Lived Without You In Them), SnowBaz, Explicit, 53k

Eight Months (forever), SnowBaz, Explicit, 11.6k

The Last Leaf, SnowBaz, General, 650

What I Leave Behind (Icarus Remix), SnowBaz, Teen, 155

A Body., SnowBaz, Mature, 1.2k

Care For Me, SnowBaz, Teen, 2.2k

Thirst Trapped, SnowBaz, Explicit, 14k

Make It Real, SnowBaz, Teen, 1.2k

Sleeping // Not Sleeping, MalMage, Teen, 871

Hate is a Poison, SnowBaz, Explicit, 611

Any Way The Wind Blows, SnowBaz, General, 333

A Little More Hope, SnowBaz, Teen, 898

Any Way The Tissue Blows, SnowBaz, Teen, 1148

All You Need Are Scones, SnowBaz, Teen, 1079

In Whose Body I Inhabit, SnowBaz, Teen, 1435

Trick of the Lens, SnowBaz, Teen, 1694

Who Holds The Power, SnowBaz, Explicit, 2.7k

Some Tears We Keep, SnowBaz, Teen, 680

The Brownie Paradox, SnowBaz, General, 260

Turn Around (Don't), Lamb/Gerald, Teen, 450

An Unscheduled Stop, SnowBaz, Teen, 1.7k

Think Happy Thoughts, SnowBaz, Teen, 3.4k

White Christmas, SnowBaz, Explicit, 1.2k

Trouble Comes, SnowBaz, Teen, 900

A New Song, SnowBaz, General, Teen, 400

Promises, Promises, SnowBaz, Explicit, 3.5k

Santa Baby, SnowBaz, Teen, 5.7k (unfinished)

Trouble Goes, SnowBaz, Teen, 1.8k

Disturbed, Depraved (Delightful), SnowBaz, Explicit, 2.2k

the side bar, Brobelove, Teen, 750

A Pedicure For Loneliness, SnowBaz, Teen, 2.2k

Always is a Promise, SnowBaz, General, 960

A Whole Goddamn Buffet, Shittle, Explicit, 34k

Who Holds My Grief?, SnowBaz, Teen, 280

Rats Away!, SnowBaz, Teen, 930

Love is a Balm, SnowBaz, Explicit, 380

The Chosen One Bakery, SnowBaz, Teen, 2.4k

Out Of The Cold, SnowBaz, Teen, 1.8k

Trouble Always Finds Me, SnowBaz, Explicit, 2.5k

On a Scale of One to Ten, How Much Do You Want to Date Me Right Now?, SnowBaz, Teen, 10.5k

65 fics, 418k in total (though I'm sort of cheating, since I started at least three of my longfics in 2020)

Jesus Christ it hurt to make that list. Did I really write all of that??

more questions and answers below the cut 👇

Best/worst title?

For best, I really love Thirst Trapped; it just so perfectly embodies the fic, and helped set the plot when I got lost halfway through writing. (Although, for humor, does it get better than 5 Times Simon Tried To Use Baz's Fangs Like A Swiss Army Knife + 1 Time He Didn't?) I'm also pretty partial to The Real Tragedy (Is How Many Years I've Lived Without You In Them) even though I think it's a bit pretentious.

For worst, probably When I Feel Alive (I just have a love/hate relationship with this fic lol) because I always forget what it's about. The title just really doesn't do it for me.

Best/worst summary?

I'm pretty blah about summaries; I don't have the patience for them, generally like to leave bits of my story to be discovered rather than forewarned. So mine tend to be fairly short, except for longfics.

For best, I just really love the description for 5 Times Simon Tried To Use Baz's Fangs Like A Swiss Army Knife + 1 Time He Didn't which is simply: "Does what it says on the tin." Classic Christina-sarcasm. If I'm not going with a joke answer, I do also love my summary for The Real Tragedy even though I changed it about a million times while posting:

What if the Watford Tragedy never happened? The arrival of Davy Cadwalladar’s body on Pitch Manor’s doorstep sets in motion a chain of events that leave Basilton Grimm-Pitch wondering just how far he’ll go to prove, once and for all, that Simon Snow is real. All Simon Snow wants to do is tend bar and forget he was ever part of a vigilante group of Mages called ‘Davy’s Men.’ That his childhood love is gone forever, and everything he knew about himself is a lie. Until a mysterious vampire walks into his bar, his life. And his heart.

(Although part of me wishes I could have stopped with just that first line.)

For worst, probably my Love is a Balm fic because it's just "The companion piece to 'Hate is a Poison'" but how else do you describe a 380 word piece?

Best/worst first line?

I pride myself on good first lines...

But if I had to pick worst, it's actually probably from my piece A Christmas Pitch, because I copied The Christmas Prince:

“Chris. Chris!” I shout, chasing Watford Magazine’s head writer down the hallway.

It doesn't really set the tone of how this piece turned out, and does nothing to introduce the central drama.

As for BEST first line, I do have two that immediately come to mind, both from COC because I did work really hard on those opening lines (with a short piece, every sentence needs to punch):

From Out Of The Cold: "Winter adorns his curly hair with perfect snowflakes and I’m so in love it hurts."

From Love is a Balm: "I shatter myself into pieces on the stained mattress of my unfurnished flat."

Although, for humor, I really love “I can’t believe you bought us a race car bed, Snow.” from vroom vroom 2: Watford Drift.

Best/worst last line?

Oh man. A couple of candidates for best:

From vroom vroom 2: Watford Drift: "But we don’t invite Shepard in (not yet.) Instead, I pull Simon tight against me, snug in our bed (2017, ruby red. Perfect.)"

From The Real Tragedy: "Because now I know Tyrannus Basilton Grimm-Pitch is the love of my life.

And I’m going to find him.

Or my name isn’t Simon Snow." (I still get chills every time.)

But most of my best last lines are only good when paired with my first lines (I try to make them match whenever possible).

For my worst end line, ok and it's maybe not "the worst" worst but I really wish Turn Around (Don't) had a better ending: "I smile at the promise. And wait." It's no where near as punchy as I wanted it to be, but eh.

Looking back, did you write more fics than you thought you would this year, less than you thought, or about what you predicted?

Um obviously more hahaha. I wrote 4 fics in 2020 and... 65 fics in 2021.

What pairing/genre/fandom did you write that you would never have predicted last year?

I mean, obviously my Shitty/Bittle story for the Check Please fandom, because a) I hadn't even read Check Please last year and b) it's a total rare pair. But I'm really please with how it turned out, even though it's never going to get the readership it deserves.

And smut as the genre because I thought I'd never do it, and here we are with 12 Explicit fics!

What’s your favourite story this year? Not the most popular, but the one that makes you the happiest.

The Wrong Sider is always my answer to this, because it honestly reads like an actual novel to me, and I love all of the elements I wove into it. I think I could read it over, and over, and over again.

Okay, NOW your most popular story.

Hard to say? If we're going hits it's obviously The Wrong Sider but that's because the HP fandom is larger. In the SnowBaz world, it's obviously Thirst Trapped. I was overwhelmed with the response to that fic - like, I've never seen my inbox blow up like that before (and probably won't).

Story most underappreciated by the universe?

If we're going anticipated vs real, it's The Real Tragedy, even though it's honestly doing fine and people have been really receptive of it. I think I just expected more because of the amount of world-building I did for it.

If we're going straight up views/kudos, it's obviously my works that don't include big ship followings, like my MalMage fics, the OC/Lamb story I wrote, and my Agatha/Niamh piece. None of that really bothers me though.

There were a few COC pieces that I loved and felt sad when people weren't as interested in them, like Care For Me, Think Happy Thoughts and my Trouble series, but I really can't complain because I was churning out a lot of content at that time and it's understandable if pieces got lost.

Story that could have been better?

So many of my earlier smut works, Here Comes The Boy is one I think about a lot (I do love the premise, but I still feel like the beginning doesn't match the end and that bugs me).

Sexiest story?

Probably Disturbed, Depraved (Delightful) (which I wrote in one day because I couldn't find the energy to finish Santa Baby lol). I wanted it to reflect real sex, and not the storybook romance sex my fics normally portray.

Saddest story?

I've gotta go with Always is a Promise because it broke my heart to put Simon and Baz on opposite sides of the afterlife, yearning for one another. But also the Simon chapter in The Real Tragedy because him pretending to be tough and becoming increasingly disillusioned just really hurts.

Most fun?

Come on. It's my vroom vroom series obviously. Tell me they aren't a romp and a half. Like Baz, you hate that you like it.

Story with single sweetest moment?

I'm not sure? But I do love Simon taking care of Baz when Baz's mom doesn't Visit in Some Tears We Keep. Oh, and probably Harry using the Resurrection Stone so Baz and Simon can meet their moms in The Mirror Pair.

Hardest story to write?

Every story has its moments for the most part... but I did take a three month hiatus with A Christmas Pitch because I got so bored with it. Plus, it was my first longfic so there were definitely some painful moments.

Easiest/most fun story to write?

Hands down A Crack In The Wall. I think I wrote that fic over the course of a week because it possessed me and wouldn't let me stop. I spent half of Easter weekend at the beach writing it because the words wouldn't stop coming.

Did any stories shift your perceptions of the characters?

I mean, every story shifts my perceptions of the characters lol because in every story I bend them a bit to my own viewpoint. I will say in Fucking Ruthless the characters shifted MY perceptions because it refused to be written as I'd planned. I had to soften Baz to finish it.

Most overdue story?

Not sure what this means... I mean, I'm overdue for Santa Baby (but I think I left it at an OK stopping point, and I don't think it's a SUPER holiday fic despite the theme, so I'm ok finishing it in the new year.

Did you take any writing risks this year? What did you learn from them?

I mean, writing 31 fics for COC, writing smut for the first time, writing my first textfic, writing for different fandoms and ships… I had a lot of writing firsts this year. I think one thing I’ve learned the most is how to start in the middle (honestly a problem because now I don’t want to write longfics anymore). I’ve also learned how to tell a story in a brief amount of time. And I’ve learned that while I’m never going to be a prolific smut writer I can pull it off when I want to (lol).

This year’s theme and the story that demonstrates it most:

You want me to analyze 65 fics and come up with a theme?!?! I mean, come on. The theme is always love, the different ways we find it, the different ways we express it, the different ways we deny it... in that case I think there are two stories that showcase my overall theme, the pairing of The Chain (Tell Me What You Want) and Who Holds The Power, which are meant to be parallel fics that show MalMage vs SnowBaz.

What are your fic writing goals for next year this year?

Is it weird that I don’t really have any? I did so much this past year I just want to… enjoy it. I know I’m getting closer to wanting to write my original fiction. I’d like to finish my Phantom piece, and maybe write another SnowBaz longfic, but other than that I'm kind of "whatever happens, happens" about the new year.

[torturedwarrior]

John Wayne Gacy:

“I should never have been convicted of anything more serious than running a cemetery without a license.” -- John Wayne Gacy, “A clown can get away with murder.” -- John Wayne Gacy. Who is John Wayne Gacy?  What makes him a serial killer? How was he caught? American serial killer whose killings of 33 boys and young men in the 1970s attracted international media coverage and stunned his affluent Chicago neighborhood, where he was renowned for his sociability and success as a clown at charitable events and children's parties.

Gacy was raised into a blue-collar family and seems to have had a pretty ordinary upbringing. Yet he displayed an increasing inclination towards sadism, which resulted in a number of experiences with the law in the 1960s. In 1968, after his accusation that he had sexually assaulted a teenage boy, he was sentenced to the Iowa State Men's Reformatory (Anamosa State Penitentiary) and forced to undergo psychological evaluation. Following his release in 1970 and while still on parole, he was again arrested for sexual assault, but the charges were dropped later. In December 1978, the police found the first of 29 bodies buried in the affluent billionaire John Wayne Gacy's estate—26 in the crawl space beneath his residence in Norwood Park Township, and three more outside the building. He admitted to four further victims ' killings discovered in the waters south of Chicago. Forty years later, here's a roadmap to Gacy's trial, prosecution and execution, and ongoing attempts to identify the other six missing survivors. Gacy then became a fairly successful independent contractor and bought a house in Chicago's suburbs.

In 1975 teens in the uptown community inform the Chicago police that a man named "John" is circling the city in his car to pick up young people. It's John Wayne Gacy, a suburban man who runs a remodeling company. Officers are watching dozens of young men in and out of Gacy's house in Norwood Park Township. They're stopping many of them for questioning, but they don't say anything against Gacy. He is popular in his family to hold get-togethers and sometimes dress up as Pogo the Clown. In January of 1976 the police stake out John Wayne Gacy’s Home. Suspecting that Gacy might be responsible for the disappearance of a 9-year-old boy, the Chicago Police Youth Division is monitoring his house just east of O'Hare International Airport, although it is outside their jurisdiction. They're not in a position to make a case against Gacy.

“No, I don't think that's possible. I think it...after 14 years under truth serum had I committed the crime I would have known it. There's got to be something that would... would click in my mind. I've had photos of 21 of the victims and I've looked at them all over the years here and I've never recognized anyone of them.” -- John Wayne Gacy. Then in March of 1977 Gacy was suspected by police of a sexual assault. Twenty-seven-year-old North Sider Jeff Rignall says that Gacy lured him into his car by offering him marijuana before using chloroform to make him unconscious. Rignall claims Gacy then brought him to his home, arrested him, then sexually assaulted him before he let him leave. A $3,000 civil suit was dismissed in the incident. On December 31st, 1977 police had seized Gacy but then released him. He was charged by Chicago police when a 19-year-old North Side youth claims he was kidnapped by a gunpoint guy and compelled to participate in sexual acts. The police document reveals that when he was brought into custody, Gacy acknowledged that he was participating in activities with the youth—and their brutality—but declined to encourage the child to participate. The Deputy State Attorney chooses not to charge Gacy.

In December 11, 1978 a young boy by the name Robert Piest who was a 15-year-old sophomore at Maine West High School goes missing. Piest says to his mother to wait for a couple of minutes, because he has to see a man who pays 5 $/hour for a construction job, almost twice as much as he does in the drug store. But he has not been seen again. Then on December 12th, 1978 Lt. Kozenczak, whose son is attending the same high school as Piest, is insisting on a thorough investigation. He learns that Gacy, whose PDM Contractors had recently remodeled Nisson Pharmacy, was the man Piest went to talk about a job. Gacy was then asked to come to the station for investigation.

The next day on December 13th, 1978 Gacy leads police to a search warrant because he denied everything he was being charged with. Later investigators discover that Gacy's car was towed at 2 a.m. from a snowbank. On the Tri-State Tollway north of Ogden Avenue— about 38 miles north of where Gacy later claimed to have dumped the body of Piest. The tow truck company's reports help investigators assess the moment Gacy disposed of the youth's body within an hour. Around 3:20 a.m., Gacy marches with mud on his pants and shoes to the Des Plaines police station. He asks for a conversation with Kozenczak but is told to return later. He returns and gives a brief statement to the officers. Kozenczak asks Gacy to give him a search warrant for the keys to his house. Gacy is protesting but giving up his keys. Then December 21st, 1978 Gacy was arrested. Gacy is seen as passing a package containing cannabis to a gas station clerk while under police surveillance. According to Gacy, then arrested. Investigators were informed that Gacy has already confirmed that he has conducted "maybe 30" killings to his attorney. With Gacy in custody, police from Des Plaines and investigators from the office of Cook County sheriff get a warrant and enter Gacy's one-story. Police accuse Gacy against his will to hold Piest there and threaten to tear the floor to find the body of the teen. Gacy denies that Piest is there but says he was forced to kill a self-defense man and buried him under his garage's concrete floor. He directs police to the driveway and labels the place on the ground where the corpse is found with a can of spray paint., ranch-style house again.

On December 22nd, 1978 Gacy Finally confesses. "(Gacy's) giving all kinds of statements, saying there's a body here, a body there, a body in a lake or a lagoon, a body buried.” -- Cook County Sheriff Richard Elrod. In a rambling, repetitive speech that continues for several hours, Gacy tells police that after having sex with them, he murdered 32 young men. He speaks about himself in the third person, claiming "Jack" or "John" performed the murders and sex acts. He claims he hid the corpses of 27 people on his estate (29 would be found), most of them in the crawl space. Five other corpses (four would be found by police), including Piest's, have been dumped into waterways south of Chicago, claims Gacy. He sketches a diagram showing where the bodies are buried, offering six of his victims ' addresses. Gacy was convicted of the assassination of Piest, although the corpse of the teenager was not identified.  December 26, 1978 the police find eight bodies in the crawlspace in Gacy’s home; but nine bodies were recovered. " ... one of the most horrendous (cases) I have ever had anything to do with."-- Cook County State's Attorney Bernard Carey. eight so far from the crawl space in the northeast quarter of the house, in an area under the office where Gacy conducted his remodeling business.

The Police have found thirty-two bodies but only five were not identified. The victims of John Wayne Gacy are: John Butkovich (18 years old), James Mazzara (20 years old), Frank Landingin (19 years old), Gregory Godzik ( 17 years old), John Szye (19 years old), Rick Johnston (17 years old), Timothy Jack McCoy (16 years old), Michael Bonnin (17 years old), Robert Gilroy (18 years old), Jon Prestidge (20 years old), Russell Nelson (21-22 years old), Victim No. 28 (14-18 years old), Victim No. 5 (22-32 years old), Darrel Samson (19 years old), Samuel Stapleton (14 years old), Randall Reffett (15 years old), William Carroll (16 years old), Victim No. 26 (22-30 years old), Jimmy Haakenson (16 years old), Victim No. 21 (21-27 years old), William George Bundy (19 years old). Michael Marino (14 years old), Kenneth Parker (16 years old), Victim No. 10 (17-21 years old), Matthew Bowman (18 years old), John Mowery (19 years old), Robert Winch (18 years old), Tommy Boling (20 years old), David Talsma (20 years old), William Kindred (19 years old), Timothy O’Rourke (20 years old), and Robert Piest (15 years old).

"I don't know what this trial cost. Whatever the cost, it was a small price. My voice is cracking because I really feel it's a small price we pay for our freedom. What we do for the John Gacy’s of this world, we will do for everyone." -- Judge Louis Garippo. March 13th, 1980 John Wayne Gacy has been sentenced to death. Judge Garippo imposes an execution date for John Wayne Gacy for June 2, 1980, but the penalty is indefinitely postponed while the case is brought before the Supreme Court of Illinois. On May 15th,1980 Gacy’s Lawyers; Sam Amirante and Robert Motta who have been paid each of the amount of $44,424 for defending Gacy have withdrawn from the case and then they billed the county $57,603 for expenses. Then his judge-Judge Garippo resigns from the bench after twelve years as a Cook County Judge to go into private practice. "If his lawyers believed that deluging the court with paper at the last instant would lead us to delay the execution in order to have more time to read the documents, they were mistaken."-- Judge Frank Easterbrook, U.S. Court of Appeals. Gacy finally died after a lethal injection of drugs at 12:58 a.m., with all his civil challenges rejected. At the Corrections Facility in Stateville near Joliet and Fried chicken and butterfly shrimp was his last meal.

      Work Cited:

 Jenkins, John Philip. “John Wayne Gacy.” Encyclopedia Britannica. Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., 31 Oct. 2019. Web. 14 Dec. 2019.

Rumore, Kori and Kyle Bentle. "Here are John Wayne Gacy's victims - Chicago Tribune." Chicago Tribune: Chicago news, sports, weather, entertainment. 17 Dec 2018. Web. 13 Dec 2019. <http://www.chicagotribune.com/history/ct-john-wayne-gacy-victims-20181215-htmlstory.html>.

"Timeline: Suburban serial killer John Wayne Gacy and the efforts to recover, name his 33 victims - Chicago Tribune." Chicago Tribune: Chicago news, sports, weather, entertainment. Web. 13 Dec 2019. <http://www.chicagotribune.com/history/ct-john-wayne-gacy-timeline-htmlstory.html>.

"Top 20 quotes of JOHN WAYNE GACY famous quotes and sayings | inspringquotes.us." Inspiring Quotes | inspiringquotes.us. Web. 13 Dec 2019. <http://www.inspiringquotes.us/author/1001-john-wayne-gacy>.

[darkling-er]

Piety Knob || Chapter 2

Parts: Chapter 1 | Chapter 3 I Chapter 4 coming soon

Even though I fell asleep rather quickly thanks to being awfully tired after the car ride, I wake up and the odd feeling of a new place hits me in the head.

No traffic sounds, no loud neighbours from upstairs or the sound of a construction site. Just plain silence, the brief sound of wind between the leaves and birds chirping around.

"God damn it!" I hear Perry shout from downstairs and I smile to myself, not everything changed at least.

I get up and ready for the day, not making much effort on the clothing part and I go downstairs to check up on my aunt.

"Everything good?" I ask with a teasing smile and Perry turns around.

I should ask what happened, but the look on Perry's face, the cat food all over the floor and Church eating up the mess peacefully makes everything clear.

"Yeah, yeah... Just Church acting like an asshole, as usual."

I chuckle then I open up the cereal and pour it in a bowl. Before I can even get to the fridge Perry says.

"There's no milk, I slept in, thanks to the jet leg so I didn't have time to buy anything yet."

I make a pout, but sit down to eat.

"Shame..."

Perry rolls her eyes at me.

"Don't start! I'm stressed as it is already. We have to go to the store, then go to the animal hospital, then we have to visit your school..."

She starts to list everything and I say with a full mouth of cereal.

"We have a whole month before school! And we just arrived!"

She waves me off.

"Yeah, but I have to make a good impression, June." she sighs and only now I notice how tired she is, she looks a lot more than her real age.

"It's a new town, we have to try and make the best out of it. If we make the wrong impression, it can mark our life here..."

"You're being dramatic." I try to tease, and she cracks a smile after another sigh.

"You're one to talk, Miss Drama Queen."

I grin and shrug.

"I don't know what you mean..."

Now she puts her hands on her waist, readying the "mama pose".

"Oh reaaally?"

I nod and try not to laugh.

"Yeah, really."

She acts like she is thinking very hard.

"Then who might have been that made an hour rant about her favourite pirate dying and how it was not supposed to happen."

"Hey, he was a real gem and it was horrible to watch!"

She lets out a long laugh and honestly I'm glad to not see her too worried about things.

"Honey it was a tv show."

"Blackbeard deserved better." I add grumpily, then look towards Church, who is cleaning himself after his breakfast.

"Defend me, Church!" I say dramatically, and I see Perry's point now.

The tabby just stops his cleaning process, with wide eyes and tongue out he leaves the scene.

"You coward!!!" I shout after him and me and Perry burst out in a laugh.

In the morning the city looks a lot different, but not much more lively. It's weird to see so few people on the streets. I guess for them it's normal or even a crowd, but compared to Chicago for me it's a lot different.

One thing I can see clearly though. Higher in the city, near the forest are the more expensive looking houses, I can even see some backyards with pools. But further down towards the lake it's reminds me more of the hoods back in Chicago. It has a certain charm to it, and I can clearly see the two sides of the tracks in town. Most of the people that I see outside can be chategorized as well.

The north siders are more suburbian looking, everyone smiling and greeting each other. It feels like an episode from black mirror. Perry doesn't seem to mind them, she even stops a lot to introduce us to the random families. Housewives with 60s dresses, limonade in hand, meanwhile husband and son mowing the grass. As I said, creepy.

Down in the 'hood' feels more like my world. No one's smiling randomly at each other, just people minding their own business.

We get to the part of town where most of the stores and small family businesses are. It doesn't take that long to get their, it is a small town after all.

As Perry leads the way I stay behind a bit looking at the store signs. No world-wide known franchise names, like Subway or McDonalds, more like Brenda's Flower shop or Granny's diner. Even the only cinema in town promotes a movie that came out about 20 years ago.

I almost bump into Perry as I'm lost in my thoughts when she suddenly stops.

"We're here, I'm already late, shit." She says looking at her clock.

She turns to me, then points to across the street to a 24/7 store, as she gives me a piece of paper and her credit card.

"Would you please buy these while I make arrangements at work?"

I see no point in arguing, I didn't really want to join her to the animal hospital anyway.

"Sure."

She goes in the door and I look at the small store and head there. I cross the street without looking around, there are almost no cars anyway.

The door rings as I set foot into the local store and the cashier, who is around the same age as I am looks at me up and down and continues until I disappear in the isles.

I pick up the stuff that Perry wrote down, not making a rush of it, because I know she will take forever with small talk with her new boss anyway.

After I look at every shelf and almost every product I get bored so I stand in front of the cashier. She slowly checks in every item, meanwhile looking at me.

"You're new here?" she asks and I nod.

"Yupp."

I don't really like small talk so I don't try to encourage him into a conversation, he does it anyway.

"Cool... I'm Polly! Polly Ambers, I live down at the docks. You're one of the Blackwoods right?"

Okay how does everyone know that, did auntie Primprose put out a sing or what?

"Yeah, how did you-?"

She cuts me off with a smirk.

"This is Detroit, babe, everyone knows everything here. The only action that ever happens in this town is when someone leaves or someone new comes here. People talk a lot."

"Great." I huff, and she laughs.

"Yeah, so pretty much brace yourself for being stared at for at least a month."

She finishes with the products:

"That will be 34.29!"

I reach out with the credit card and she shakes her head pointing at the sign behind the counter.

"Cash only? Seriously?"

I ask dumbstruck and she nods.

"I know. This town is lame."

"Tell me about it..." I say then search in my pockets for any cash.

"Where are you from?" Polly asks as I lay down the money I scraped from my pockets along with some pocket dirt.

"Here, actually. We moved to Chicago when I was 4."

"Chicago." Polly says as she looks into the distance. "I bet it's a big city."

"I mean yeah, but if you've seen one before you've seen all already."

Polly shakes her head.

"Not me, I was born here and I never went anywhere before. I want to, once I get my degree, I will go and travel the world."

She gives me my bag full of food with a smile.

"I can show you around after work if you'd like." she offers.

"Really?" I ask, again dumbstruck.

"Don't act all surprised." She chuckles, her dark hair falling into her face. "Everyone's so fuckin' boring in this town, except for me, obviously. You won't get a better offer and anyway. Aaaand I can show you all the cool places. There aren't a lot, but still."

My smile is genuine as I nod.

"Alright, when do you finish?"

She steps out from behind the counter and rushes me towards the door.

"Now, let's get out of here."

"Wait, what? You're not gonna get in trouble?" I ask as she hurries me out.

"I don't work here." she answers and I laugh as I think it's a joke but we hear a toilet flush from behind a door and then the actual cashier, wearing a name tag of 'Rick'. As he sees Polly he points an accusing finger.

"AMBERS I SWEAR TO FUCK, IF YOU COME HERE AGAIN I'LL CALL THE COPS, I'M SERIOUS. YOU ARE BANNED!"

Polly takes my arm and pushes me out the door as she shouts.

"Whatever, Dick!"

We laugh as we run out the store and take a few blocks. As no danger comes our way we stop to catch our breath.

"Do you usually pretend to work at places?" I ask with a chuckle and she shrugs.

"I mean, yes, don't you?" She asks teasingly then turns to walk towards the docks. "Come on, I'm gonna introduce to some of my gang."

"Gang? Like a street gang?" I ask with doubt and she rolls her eyes.

"No, big city, not like a street gang. It's just a phrase."

"Okay, small town!" I tease back and she smiles at me.

"I think you're gonna like the docks. It's the least suburbian looking place in town. Have you seen some of the northside? They are aliens, I'm telling you. Or a cult. Definitely a sex cult."

I chuckle nervously.

"We moved there actually."

She stops in her tracks and turns to look at me.

"Why must you fail me so often?" she asks in the most serious voice. "But really, until you go and dress like people in Mad Men and talk like a woman from the victorian ages, you're fine."

She leads me to the lake and I have to admit it's a pretty sight. Polly asks me about Chicago and about the places I've been before until we reach a boat called 'Harker'. She climbs aboard and looks at me.

"You coming?"

I look at her suspiciously.

"Is a guy going to come out of the bathroom asking why you're on his boat?"

She folds her hands.

"Do you not trust me?"

I laugh and I shake my head.

"Nope, we just met."

"Wise choice, but no, I own this boat. Well, actually my dads are, but still."

I look surprised for a second then join her aboard.

"Yeah, I am adopted with two gay dads before you ask."

"I wasn't going to. I kind of figured after you said 'dads'." I smile at her, then I put down my bag on the boardfloor.

I pull out my phone and text Perry a short message. 'Met a girl in town, she's showing me around. Bought everything, I'll go home later.'

"Are you texting your boyfriend?" Polly asks as she picks up a jacket and puts it on.

"My aunt, so she doesn't freak out where I am."

"Cute, let's go." she says and turns back to walk to town.

"Did we seriously get here just to pick up your jacket?" I ask with a laugh, but still follow her.

"Yeah, I was cold, now come on."

We walk about ten minutes when we reach a gas station/mechanic shop.

"Why are we here?" I ask and tease Polly. "I'm starting to doubt you, oh knower of cool places."

"Have faith, my young apprentice."

She walks toward the garage part of the shop and she greets the people in there. There's a guy about our age, lot taller with brown hair, who meets Polly with a fist bump.

"Whattup Toby?" Polly greets him and nods towards me. "This is the new girl everyone talked about."

"Hey, I'm Juniper" I say awkwardly, I really am socially awkward, huh?

"Hi, Toby Jameson." He says and holds out his hand so I shake it.

"Toby is gay." Polly says and we both look at her suprised. "What?"

"Nice icebreaker, Polls." Toby says with a laugh. "But yeah, it's true."

"Look I was only saying that because Juniper doesn't have a boyfriend and it's better before she falls in love with you, after you act like a straight dude then have her heart broken."

"This isn't a romcom Polly." Toby says then looks at me apologetically.

"Who says I don't have a boyfriend anyway? " I ask with a nervous laugh.

"I asked you and you said you were texting your aunt."

I would start to argue with her logic, but a voice interrupts.

"That doesn't count out anything."

I didn't notice the guy working under the car right until now as he rolls out from under there, all oily and sweaty. He tries to clean his hands as much with a rag, but it's already dirty as it is. He doesn't seem to mind, as he gets up from the floor.

"Well she didn't say anything about having one either." Polly answers to the mechanic.

He looks at me and I try hard to act normal and not stare at his sweaty once white tank top. Cause damn he is hot. Not like yesterday night. He seems to recognise me as well as he says.

"Nice to see you in pants for a change. For a second there I thought you didn't own any."

Polly and Toby looks between the two of us confused and then the girl looks at Mr. Asshole.

"Marcus tell me you didn't fuck the new girl."

"What?!" I look at her offended, and Marcus waves Polly off.

"No, and I wasn't planning to don't worry."

"Well good." Polly says and then looks at me. "Why did he saw you without your pants then?"

I roll my eyes very annoyed by the subject.

"I answered the door in my pajamas, it was after 10. And he was there with nutjob mayor, I can't remember his name."

Polly and Toby looks at Marcus accusingly.

"Why the fuck were you with Forrester?"

Marcus sighs as he gets some tools to continue his work.

"I fixed up his car and he told me he would pay me if I drove him there."

"Why?" Polly asks and Marcus sighs again.

"I don't know Polly! I don't care now can you leave me to work, I'm not gonna babysit you all, and if you're not working you are wasting my time."

Polly shrugs and takes my arm to go back to town.

"You are being rude, Marcus."

"And you are annoying, bye now!"

When I get home it' already after dark. I hanged out with Polly and Toby for the rest of the day. Turns out they are really fun to talk to and as I return home I feel a lot better about living in Oregon. Polly promised me to take out on the lake before summer is over and Toby said he would drive us to Salem to go and watch a movie.

But my mood is killed as I step into the house and I hear Perry slamming the fridge door.

"Juniper Billie Blackwood!" she says angrily as she comes out, her hands on her hips and her face all angry.

Oh oh. I think as I smile at her apologetically.

"I'm sorry I'm late."

She disregards my apology.

"You skipped the meeting with the principal, you are lucky that I talked your way out and that Eli was nice enough to understand your behaviour."

Eli? I think. Since when is she on first name terms with my principal.

"Shit. I forgot."

"You for..." She breaths heavily. "You forgot? After I told you a million times over an over again how important it was?" She raises her voice and I look at my shoes nervously.

"I'm sorry we lost track of time and..."

She doesn't let me finish as she continues.

"Are you trying to sabotage us?" I look up at her at that.

"No!" I say offended at her accusation.

"Don't lie to me! You were not happy to come here in the first place, you were not happy with the house and my job. And that you have to attend school. You didn't even tell the mayor came to visit yesterday night. Juniper you were so rude you have no excuse for your behaviour other than sabotaging our stay here on purpose!"

"Well excuse me I don't like being dragged away from my home and friends to a place in nowhere. And I was having fun with two possible new friends and yeah, I forgot about the stupid mayor but that doesn't mean I am doing this because I wanted to sabotage you! "

Perry shakes her head and looks at my hand.

"Where are the grocieres?"

Shit. I facepalm, already exhausted from this fight.

"I left it on the boat I think. I'm sorry."

"Well go down and bring them here."

I look at her serious face and roll my eyes.

"Whatever."

I leave the house and slam the door behind me. I can still hear her arguing but I'm already on my way to the docks. I'm grumpy to walk in the cold breeze, I should have at least put on a jacket, but I still don't plan on hurrying until Perry calms down a bit.

I admit I should have been a bit more catious with the time and joined her at the school but I honestly forgot about that when Polly and Toby was making me feel somewhat at home.

I look for the boat on the docks, but in the dim light I can barely make out the names. As I search between the boats I don't really notice the footsteps behind me. In Chicago I was used to walking in a crowd so I don't think much of it now as well. That's why I don't notice in time the stranger in the hood, until I get hit in the head.

I don't lose concious at first I just kind of stumble down on the ground with the sudden pain in my head. I look up but my view is blurry so I can't see a clear picture of the person standing over me. I can only embrace another hit in the head as I now lose conciousness and everything turns to black.

tags: @onl-you

[xoxogossiphq]

new year, same gossip girl.

that’s right, upper east siders, i was at the party and i saw it all. there were a lot of kisses this new year’s eve, so i won’t tell all, but there’s certainly enough gossip to warrant this blast. 

as expected, caspian and little g reunited with a kiss as the bells tolled midnight, but does she know that he was seen sneaking off with cynthia earlier? there’s nothing more fun than a woman scorned. and yet again, caspian sneaks off with hannah doing who knows what – we thought it would be flighty georgie using caspian, but maybe it’s the other way around.

speaking of hannah, she arrived with her boyfriend, sebastian valmont, before engaging in a heated conversation with nikolai. after that, she spent the evening downing pills and potions until she looked after her brother, jaime, after nikolai knocked him in the face – twice. i love a good fight, but this one looked a little unprovoked. we wonder whether it was his encounter with hannah or his heated conversation in the hallway with genevieve van buren that set him off. either way, jaime madison didn’t stand a chance, especially after a mood-killing argument with margot vanderbilt in the middle of the dance floor. didn’t seem to bother margot though – she was spotted leaving the dance with ex-boyfriend federico greco. wonder what camilla newhouse thinks of her fiance spending the remainder of the evening with another woman.

guess margot wasn’t too annoyed by rick bordeaux’s kiss with ex-girlfriend claudia windsor at midnight either – she was too busy locking lips with the enemy – sloane taylor.

but fede’s night was anything but smooth sailing after a mysterious encounter with kenny durand sent him packing to the emergency room with his finger snapped in two – they’ve never gotten along, but i wonder what inspired this particular outburst. however, it seems kenny got his happy ending after a new year’s kiss with pip renetti sent them exiting the ballroom rather quickly. oh, if walls could talk – or take photographs. i’d love to see a snap of natalie tate’s face.

i heard dakota worthington got their midnight kiss too, with none other than marley redd. didn’t marley’s twin, emery, used to date theodore? i guess affection for the redds runs in the family. theo himself was seen spotted off before midnight with maybe-boyfriend collin clarke.

our final surprise kiss of the evening was giulia greco, who kissed future queen catriona grimaldi. i wonder if any photos of this will make their way back to the royal court. 

xoxo, gossip girl

[yoymialterego]

Jon Anderson: la entrañable, imperecedera realeza del rock

Jon Anderson es para mí uno de los miembros más ilustres de la realeza del rock. Su opípara trayectoria como vocalista de Yes, una de las bandas quintaesenciales del género progresivo, nos lo hace patente desde finales de los años 60 del siglo pasado, especialmente durante su época dorada, allá por la primera mitad de los setenta.

En aquellos tiempos su seguidilla de álbums maestros ("Fragile", "Close to the edge", "Tales from Topographic Oceans" y "Relayer") marcaron una era dentro del rock progresivo más elevado, y aún hoy siguen siendo obras fundamentales, lúcidas, inagotables.

Pues bien, una parte muy importante en la concepción y realización de esos discos fue faena de Jon Anderson, quien solo o a dúo con Chris Squire o -principalmente- Steve Howe compuso mucho de ese material (toda la suite de "Close to the edge" es de Anderson-Howe por ejemplo).

Pero aparte de su importante papel como hacedor de obras valiosas, hay una característica esencial que no puede pasar desaprecibida a nadie cuando escucha a Jon Anderson: su voz. Su finísima, impoluta, angelical voz. OK, "angelical" es un clasificativo que puede sonar equívoco al profano del universo progresivo, y exageradamente cursi para sus detractores (que los tiene, conozco a varios), pero es quizá el que mejor le sienta.

El punto cardinal es la tesitura: Anderson canta en tono de contra tenor, es decir, como si estuviésemos escuchando a un chamaco o a una chica. Y no se trata exactamente de que se esfuerce por alcanzar esas agudas notas, sino que ese es su rango vocal natural. Es decir, hay cantantes que logran o lograban tonos quizá más agudos y un rango vocal más amplio (el viejo Robert Plant en Led Zeppelin, por ejemplo, o Axl Rose, o Prince con falsete), pero cuya tesitura seguía siendo de tenor.

Jon Anderson en cambio no tiene una muy amplia paleta vocal, pero su registro cae en el rango de las notas más altas para un hombre. Y no es que se desgañite cantando sino todo lo contrario. Su altura vocal le da para satinar, pulir, aterciopelar desde ese agudo lugar las canciones. Y esa es una característica sumamente singular (vaya, no recuerdo de momento a otro cantante contra tenor en el rock).

En fin, que considero a Jon Anderson como un compositor y cantante excepcional, y aparte de sus logros con Yes, tiene igual su lado solista, que viéndolo bien y despacio -y hablando de calidades- no puede equiparase con lo logrado junto al grupo. Sin embargo su obra en solitario conforma un cuerpo musical apreciable.

Son ya quince álbums como solista los de Anderson. Quince álbums que inició con el legendario "Olias Of Sunhillow", de 1976, y cuyo más reciente portavoz lleva por nombre "1000 Hands: Chapter One" (2019), que si me apremian un poco, podría considerar su mejor álbum hasta el momento. Claro, todo es relativo, como quizá dijo alguna vez Albert Einstein a sus cuates en una carne asada.

En el nuevo disco de Jon hay, como suele decirse, "de todo". Pero ese "todo" no es más que una especie de revisión de estilos. Aquí confluyen desde el progresivo más acendrado hasta la venerable balada pop, pasando por el rock un tanto más directo, el folk a la inglesa, el jazz fino y, bueno, incluso el reggae (que no suena exactamente a una canción jamaicana, sino a un tema de Jon Anderson haciendo una versión de reggae en senectud luminosa, digamos. No sé si me entiendan... y si no me entienden procuren escuchar "First Born Leaders", el tercer track de disco, que termina siendo un canto coral multi-percusivo, y que no es para mi gusto la mejor canción del álbum, pero que ejemplifica algo de lo que sucede en el proceso).

También hay en "1000 Hands: Chapter One" rock fusión paradigmático, con grandes figuras invitadas: Chick Corea en el teclado, Billy Cobham en la batería, Jean-Luc Ponty en el violín, Larry Coryell en la guitarra, Stuart Hamm en el bajo, que conviven armoniosamente en el tema "Come Up”, parte básica del disco, y ese sí, uno de los mejores.

Hablando de los sobresalientes invitados, también están aquí Ian Anderson, el líder de Jethro Tull y su flauta, el tecladista de Journey Jonathan Cain, el baterista Carmine Appice, el guitarrista Rick Derringer, el violinista Jerry Goodman, la sección de metales de la banda Tower of Power, y los socios de Anderson en Yes, Chris Squire y Alan White, entre otros muchos.

Apunto que el desaparecido Chris Squire aparece como colaborador porque este proyecto de Anderson tiene una data añeja: hizo los tracks básicos al inicio de los años 90, y después de guardar las cintas maestras por años, recuperó la idea en el 2016, para terminarlo como lo escuchamos hoy, en el 2019.

Una cosa que me reconforta, y debería reconfortar a cualquier aficionado a la buena música, es la excelente forma que guarda Anderson en la actualidad: su voz suena como en sus mejores tiempos. No es una frase hecha, sino la completa y absoluta verdad. Y eso que el buen Jon anda pisando ya las siete décadas y media de existencia, y que no hace mucho se recuperó de una aguda crisis de asma que lo alejó de los escenarios por meses... ¡qué privilegio escuchar su exquisita voz aliviada y repuesta!

"1000 Hands: Chapter One" está en la mejor tradición creativa del cantante. El álbum es roca sólida con composiciones robustas y a la vez delicadas, arregladas con esplendor. Tienen variantes de atmósfera, de ritmo, de intención, tal y como solían tenerlas los viejos temas de Yes. Y bueno, no digo que éste álbum se equipare con alguno de los mejores del grupo, porque esos son sencillamente incomparables, pero sí atesoran presencias, resabios de aquél aplomado y épico Yes.

Jon Anderson practica hoy día un rock alado, como de libélula ingrávida, como de escarcha cayendo, con unas vocalizaciones levitantes y cristalinas que se equiparan a lo mejor que ha hecho en su dilatada carrera. Sus canciones son mensajes en una botella lanzadas al infinito espacio sideral. Esa es la impresión que dan en su vastedad y su calibre. Su nueva álbum es, así lo veo, la representación legítima de la realeza del rock que no desmaya: vital, trascendente, entrañable, imperecedera.