#service ac solo

[hebeandersen]

sanremo comunque mi sta insegnando ad accettare i miei horny moments and i guess im thankful?????

[shycoconutt]

high school sweetheart bokuto! who has only ever had crushes on celebrities before he met you. the day you got assigned to be partners for the semester in gym class (which he took even though he was exempt due to volleyball) was the day he went home and tore his bikini-clad posters off the wall and threw away his magazine stash under his bed. he doesn’t need to live in a boyish fantasy anymore, because you are real.

high school sweetheart bokuto! who loves to show off his athleticism. whether it’s tennis, frisbee golf, badminton, swimming, or baseball, he always comes out on top and drags you right there with him. you aren’t the most coordinated of the bunch, but you are competitive and he loves it. seeing you get fired up over a successful play mostly led by him had him reeling. on the train ride home, he finds himself replaying your small “woo”s and “yes bokuto!”s in his head with a stupid grin on his face.

high school sweetheart bokuto! who carries you to the nurse's office bridal-style after you fall and twist your ankle while running laps, cursing himself for not keeping a closer eye on you. while waiting for the nurse to come back with an ice pack, he notices the scrapes on your knees and takes it upon himself to take a warm, wet washcloth to clean off any dirt and debris that settles in the wounds. as you begin to sniffle as he kneels before you, he lifts your chin with a delicate finger, tilting his head in questioning. “i was on track to set a new personal record,” you manage to squeak out with a shy smile. after a pause in disbelief, bokuto’s howling laughter rings throughout the school halls.

high school sweetheart bokuto! who, for the week you are sitting out due to your injury, makes it his mission to make you laugh every single day. during dodgeball, he purposely lets himself get nailed in the face. during tennis, which he plays solo as he refuses to play with anyone else, he gives the loudest, most obnoxious grunts he can muster. during baseball, he hits an impressive triple but runs the bases in the opposite direction. every time he looks over to catch the way your shoulders shake and your eyes crinkle, he feels like a man without water finding a river in the desert.

high school sweetheart bokuto! who is absolutely awestruck to find you up in the stands at his latest volleyball match. going up to serve, right as he is about to start his routine, he hears your beautiful voice as you call out, “bokuto, nice serve!” from above. without skipping a beat, he tosses the ball up in the air, turns his head slightly to give you a wink, and slams the ball to the other side of the court. after hitting a serve that was more like a backcourt spike, he points to you on the sidelines, dedicating his service ace to you. little did he know then that every successful receive, set, spike, and serve from then on out would belong to you.

high school sweetheart bokuto! who finds you after the match and insists on walking you home, draping his jacket over your shoulders to shield you from the cool spring night. without saying anything, you pull out your old mp3 player from your bag and offer him an earbud which he takes eagerly. shoulder to shoulder, you walk the empty streets, bokuto humming along with the music. overtaken by the buzzing atmosphere, your proximity, and an old r&b song he thought he had forgotten about, he snakes his arm around your waist and intertwines his other hand with yours, lifting you off the ground and spinning you around. as you shriek in laughter while gripping onto him for dear life, bokuto vows to dedicate the rest of his days to chasing this feeling of pure joy with you.

a/n: i just had to write something for our sweet bokuto. i think i am going to continue this as a series because it's just soooo cute! this is dedicated to my high school sweetheart who i met in gym class sophomore year. we're celebrating 10 years this weekend! <3

[suckishima]

i am once again thinking about how chapter 297 is titled Master and Student and is focused on how Kuroo has been a mentor to Tsukki in regards to his blocking skills

and then the chapter ends with tsukki acknowledging that he knows kuroo is better than him and that he never had expectations of beating him on his own

only to then perfectly transition into chapter 298 titled Guide (!!!) where yamaguchi is subbing in to serve.

(god i have so much to say about this, it was genuinely difficult not to just paste the entirety of 298 when i quoted panels)

i mean, these next two panels make me crazy. the first one (on the right) is the last panel in 297 and it's the first time we've seen yamaguchi in the whole chapter and furudate has set it up so that it's right when tsukki says that he couldn't do this alone!! and THEN the panel on the left is from the second page of 298 right after kuroo says that while tsukki may not be trying to win on his own, yamaguchi sure looks like he's determined enough to do it—and not only does tsukki agree that yamaguchi probably is thinking of taking them down with his serve, but by saying the "he's always one step ahead of me after all" line he's also admitting that this is a quality of yamaguchi's that he admires and is likely inspired by!!! and THEN in the bottom left of that panel (which is where the eye usually goes last in the way the panels are laid out) we get the chapter title drop to emphasize that yamaguchi is indeed guiding tsukki (despite the implications from the series up til now that yamaguchi is seen as being in tsukki's shadow )

the rest of 298 goes on to essentially beat us over the head with all the ways in which tsukki has come to see yamaguchi as being that guide to him. and the way furudate achieves this is so so well done

in contrast to 297, Master and Student, in 298 furudate doesn't explicitly tell us that yamaguchi is the guide—the title drop and tsukki's 'walks ahead of me line' that i just mentioned are the closest things—instead, in order to get the audience to feel (rather than just know) the importance of their development (together and as individuals), furudate shows it to us.

first, yamaguchi gets a service ace right off the bat (the first one of the match, even before kageyama got one), basically proving that he can beat all of nekoma in a way (which is a nice subtle callback to earlier scenes in the series about how serving is the only solo weapon in the game, the only time you can truly take down the other team on your own)

so this little bit is great for a few reasons, 1 it confirms that yamaguchi's hard work in extra practices/dedication to learn the serve in the first place, is still paying off, 2 it confirms that his confidence in being able to take points on his own is warranted and 3 it confirms that tsukki's confidence in yamaguchi's skill has not been misplaced.

the chapter continues by transitioning to show how yamaguchi's serve can still lead to points even when he doesn't get an ace, by showcasing his and tsukki's first perfect serve and block combo. it shows the way the two of them are wordlessly thinking in sync, how mentally connected they are,

and then it shows us how, even though they haven't practiced it directly with each other, they've both been working toward this moment for a long time (a quick panel of bokuto calling tsukki's blocks wussy, cutting to tsukki having a monster block that mirror's kuroo's from chapter 297, and then a beat later a quick panel of yamaguchi overhearing ukai say that other than an ace, a serve and block is the perfect/ideal play)

but then, for me, the real magic of this is that furudate doesn't emphasize those moments as the most meaningful ones that got them here. yes those were the moments that allowed them to consciously start practicing the physical skills that they needed to pull it off, but those panels are small and more for context, because what furudate does want to emphasize is what emotionally and mentally led them (especially tsukki) to be here. the things off the court and away from the game that still contributed here

furudate (again instead of just telling us) shows us the payoff of tsukki saying "he's always been one step ahead of me after all," shows us how tsukki came to think that in the first place. which furudate does by redrawing, recontextualizing, and reframing moments that we've already seen throughout the series, but this time framing them to clearly be from tsukishima's perspective

there's no dialogue between the two of them in the whole chapter, and no narration in these few pages, just the new redrawn panels that show how tsukki has been aware this whole time of how where yamaguchi started, how yamaguchi was the one looking up to him, and how he watched as yamaguchi passed him by.

the audience has seen these scenes before, but never from this lens—some were small, or inconsequential, or they were important but, they were one-off events—before they certainly didn't seem connected. and now, we feel the moments again as tsukki feels them, remembers them; it puts us directly into his head, and imo, it makes the ending of the chapter hit even harder

because we've just felt the triumph that tsukki and yamaguchi felt in succeeding in that play, and on the court in the story kuroo too could see tsukki enjoying himself and he (teasingly) asks him how he's been liking volleyball lately

and this is it. this is the culmination of tsukki's character arc right here.

yes, his stuff block against ushijima was the moment that hooked him, but imo this takes it even a step further. (the moment in the shiratorizawa match was about his skill—his blocking abilities, his mental resolve to track the ball, to learn, trick, and bait the setter—and allowing himself to feel pride in his hard work despite years of telling himself that hard work didn't necessitate results)

but here, now, tsukki makes a point to emphasize that it's because of everyone that he finally has fun playing volleyball. chapter 297 talked about the importance of tsukki physically learning to be a better blocker from kuroo, and 298 showed us how he was inspired by yamaguchi's dedication to better emotionally/mentally commit to the game. and both chapters come together here and circle back around to one of haikyuu's biggest themes: connection, and connection as a form of love.

if yamaguchi hadn't told tsukki he was being lame at the tokyo training camp, tsukki wouldn't have gone to ask bokuto what he liked about volleyball, he wouldn't have asked kuroo for blocking tips, he wouldn't have had the skill to stuff ushijima, or to pull of the serve and block here with yamaguchi. and he wouldn't have had the inspiration to even try to care to do any of that in the first place. because for tsukki, it was never really about the skills. it was about not understanding why he should care to learn those skills in the first place.

kuroo taught him what to do, bokuto told him how it could happen and yamaguchi showed him why it was worth striving for at all. without those friendships, without those connections, tsukishima would have never found this happiness, this self worth. he may not have been able to truly reconnect with his brother.

without everyone, he wouldn't go on to play professional volleyball for a div. 2 team.

this still volleyball. all plays are connected.

and furudate put us right into the moment to let us feel it alongside him. across the net, through the page, we connect too

[thydungeongal]

A New Party Emerges

So, to pass the time I have been playing solo Old-School Essentials using a randomly generated sandbox generated via Hexroll and with a party of characters whose random stat rolls were outsourced to Tumblr.

To get up to speed on recent events.

Since my last attempt ended on a party wipe, I thus created a new party. This first post will simply be to introduce the new party.

Himbo Baggins Str 15 Int 6 Wis 9 Dex 13 Con 9 Cha 9 Halfling, Lawful 1 hp AC 6 Leather, crossbow + 20 bolts, silver dagger, sack (small), mirror (hand-sized, steel), backpack, tinder box, 1 torch, waterskin, 5 rations, 10 gp

Himbo is a simple little halfling from Heretoforeshire who got bored of the simple halfling life of vaping with his cousins Rippin "Fat Cotton" Took and Merry Randyfuck. He hopes to make a good fortune adventuring so that he may one day retire in a nice hole, but in the meantime he wants to meet new people, help them, and see the world!

Gorn Battleforge Str 16 Int 9 Wis 9 Dex 10 Con 15 Cha 11 Dwarf, Chaotic 2 hp AC 4 Chainmail + shield, spear, sling + 20 stones, sack (small), mirror (hand-sized, steel), backpack, tinder box, 6 torches, waterskin, 4 rations, 10 gp

Gorn is a dwarf, tentatively of the clan Battleforge but somewhat ostracized by the rest of his clan for his unorthodox ways and disrespect for tradition. Gorn wishes for nothing more than to gain money, glory, and power.

Lucy Str 9 Int 9 Wis 8 Dex 16 Con 12 Cha 10 Tiefling (alternate racial class found in Carcass Crawler #3), Neutral 5 hp AC 2 Black eyes, red skin, Fire resistance, cast mirror image once/day Chain mail + shield, silver dagger, sword, holy water, wolfsbane, backpack, tinder box, 1 torch, waterskin, 6 rations, 11 gp

Lucy (full name "Lucia") is a tiefling, a person with a touch of demonic influence. Despite her demonic origin, Lucy is actually a kind person, if a bit vain and mischievous. She is mostly in the life of adventure for the thrill of it.

Bernard Str 11 Int 8 Wis 14 Dex 13 Con 10 Cha 11 Cleric, Neutral 1 hp AC 1 Plate mail + shield, sling + 20 stones, mace, mirror (hand-sized, steel), holy water, backpack, tinder box, 6 torches, waterskin, 3 rations, 14 gp

Bernard is a priest of the church of Neutrality, wandering the world in search of adventure and preaching the value of moderation in all things and "it's impossible to say whether things are bad or good."

Jennifred Str 7 Int 10 Wis 11 Dex 7 Con 14 Cha 17 Magic-User, Neutral Detect magic 2 hp AC 9 Dagger, mirror (hand-sized, steel), pole (10' long, wooden), backpack, tinder box, 3 torches, waterskin, 4 rations, 6 gp

Jennifred is, by all accounts, a nice girl who just happens to be a magic-user. She's not particularly bright, she's clumsy, but she was still able to complete her apprenticeship through sheer positive attitude and lots of nights spent studying while burning the midnight oil.

Anyway, so that's our new party. Unfortunately, as it turns out, the free version of Hexroll doesn't save the state of solo sandboxes on its server, which I think is entirely fair because server storage isn't infinite and neither is maintaining such a service free. I am currently mulling through my options, including whether to become a supporter of Hexroll to be able to maintain continuity between my solo ventures, but for now this new party will have to go into an entirely new solo sandbox.

EDIT: In the meantime, if someone wishes to explore the previous sandbox, here it is!

[bearterritory]

Cal Sweeps NC State For First ACC Win

Well-Balanced Bears Cruise To Victory

Maggie Li Leads Court With 13 Kills

BERKELEY – California volleyball responded in the best way possible to being swept by #1 Pitt last week, taking to the court Sunday afternoon with a newfound fire and defeating visitor NC State in straight sets, 25-19, 25-21, 25-14, to earn its first ACC win as a program and improve to 9-7 (1-3 ACC) on the year while snapping a four-match losing streak.   "Our passing was fantastic today," head coach Jen Malcom said. "Today just shows that when everyone is on task, good things can happen."   Sophomore Xuemeng (Maggie) Li once again led the Bears' offense, posting 13 kills on .367 hitting to lead both teams while also pacing the Bears with two service aces; junior Natalie Lau, meanwhile, added 34 assists to surpass 400 on the season.   As a team, Cal recorded 11 total blocks, led by sophomore Sawyer Thomsen's six, while senior Ellie Hamm and freshman Kate Mansfield each contributed five to help hold the Wolfpack (7-5, 2-2) to just .126 offensive efficiency – their lowest hitting percentage of the year. Senior Gianna Bartalo recorded a match-high 14 digs to further aid the Bears' defensive efforts.   "Our communication was very effective and our gameplan went really well," Li said. "I'm just really proud of everyone."   Cal's offense was at its best in the first set as the Bears hit .303, with Li posting four kills. Despite dropping the first point, Li's first ace of the day gave the Blue & Gold a 2-1 lead that the home squad never relinquished. NC State was forced to call its first timeout after a kill from DeJardin brought the score to 9-5 but were able to close the gap to just one point at 14-13, then again at 15-14. It was Thomsen who responded with the next kill to increase Cal's advantage once again, which they were able to increase thanks to a slew of Wolfpack errors. Junior Peyton DeJardin ultimately clinched the set for the Bears with her second kill of the match.   Both teams hit very well early in the second set, but the advantage once again went to Cal as the Bears finished at .300. The Wolfpack forced five ties but only took the lead once, stringing together three-consecutive points after Mansfield posted the first score (and kill) of the set. Cal stayed in control but was unable to stretch its own lead to more than three points until the very end, with a block from Thomsen and Lau putting the Bears up two sets to none.   The Bears' block came out in full force in the third set, with both Thomsen and Hamm recording solo stops in addition to another three two-person stuffs. Li's six kills powered Cal's offense, which included four runs of three-or-more points; it was the first of these, a six-point streak punctuated by a desperate NC State timeout, that broke open the set for the Bears and led to victory. DeJardin once again made her mark by slamming down her ninth kill of the day to bring the score to 23-12 – an 11-point difference, the largest of the match. Cal eventually went to Li at match point and she delivered with kill number 13, sending the crowd into an uproar and the Bears racing to embrace each other in triumph at the center of the court.  

[anxiety-lemsbian]

‧͙⁺˚･˖ ࣪⭑☾[ᴅᴏ ʏᴏᴜ ʀᴇᴍᴇᴍʙᴇʀ ʜᴏᴡ ᴛʜᴇ ʀᴀʙʙɪᴛꜱ ɢʟᴀʀᴇᴅ ᴀꜱ ᴡᴇ ᴅʀᴏᴠᴇ ᴅᴏᴡɴ ᴛʜᴇ ʀᴏᴀᴅ? ᴊᴇᴀʟᴏᴜꜱ, ᴍᴀʏʙᴇ, ᴏʀ ꜱᴄᴀʀᴇᴅ. ɪ ᴡᴀꜱ ᴀʟᴡᴀʏꜱ ʙᴇʜɪɴᴅ ʜᴇʀ ᴡᴀɪᴛɪɴɢ ꜰᴏʀ ᴛʜᴇ ᴡɪɴᴅᴏᴡ ᴛᴏ ᴅʀᴏᴘ. ᴛʜᴇ ʟᴀᴛɪɴ ɴᴀᴍᴇ ꜰᴏʀ ᴛʜᴇ ꜰᴏx ɪꜱ ᴠᴜʟᴘᴇꜱ ᴠᴜʟᴘᴇꜱ. ʏᴏᴜ ᴀʟᴡᴀʏꜱ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ꜱᴏᴜɴᴅᴇᴅ ɴɪᴄᴇ.]☽˖ ࣪⭑･˚⁺‧͙

hi! i'm aster.

she/they, minor, ENG + some ESP and Auslan, poet, audhd, sapphic ace, careless man’s careful daughter, infj, shark lover, sylvia plath stan, lucy dacus listener, aries sun, gemini moon, pisces rising, #1 boygenius (+ solo careers) obsessor, ravenclaw but FUCK JKR, pinterest princess (androgynous), aspiring forest witch, chronic fatigue + generalized anxiety disorder + depression sufferer, greek salad lover

FREE PALESTINE 🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸

current hyperfixation/talk to me about:

the ark x boygenius parallels

special interests:

sylvia plath, boygenius, bluey, sharks

fandoms:

everything sucks, boygenius (+solo careers), jucy, gilmore girls, brooklyn 99, heartbreak high, bluey, bridgerton, osemanverse, sunflowers and lavender, kiki’s delivery service, hamilton, matilda the musical, ruby redfort, aurora cycle (zila's my GIRL), nevermoor, stargirl, agggtm, biac, wednesday, lady bird, the owl house

books:

the anthropocene reviewed, the bell jar, stargirl, loveless, radio silence, death sets sail, goddess girls series, dear poppy, aurora cycle, anne of green gables series, sick bay, henry hamlet’s heart, hani and ishu’s guide to fake dating, nevermoor, iwbft, heartstopper, solitare

ships:

wenclair, lumity, cazzie, emisue,

artists:

lucy dacus, chappell roan, hozier, florence and the machine, radiohead, phoebe bridgers, julien baker, gracie abrams, noah kahan, boygenius, taylor swift? (melbourne n3), lorde, cavetown, mitski, eliza and the delusionals, boyish, beabadoobee

songs:

claw machine, nuvole bianche, leonard cohen, garden song, there it goes, triple dog dare, home by now, no surprises, cartwheel, me and my dog, american teenager, good news, scorpio rising, townie, last words of a shooting star, strawberry blond, we’re in love

playlist:

psa: when i use 'girl' in relation to me (crafty girl summer, etc.) i mean it androdgynously :))

my sideblogs are:

@leftfromrightfromwrong : boygenius and sometimes art

@listen2yourownvoice : radio silence+ a bit of general osemanverse

tags: # aster writes- poetry. #aster writes i guess- more poetry. #asters saved posts- saved posts. #aster loves boygenius- me loving boygenius. #aster's lyric rambles- when i just post a bunch of song lyrics in a format. #aster bawls on the floor- due to sadness, cringiness or laughter, i am on the floor and out for the count. # aster thinks (not really) - what it sounds like pretty much # it’s me i’m the girlfriend - can’t even explain this one actually #percy <3- literally just @trashmeowcan #ari 🌻 - @waitingforthesunrise

@asterisalemsbian • Pronouns.page

link to my old intro post:

[casablancarossa]

Taemin leaving SM; a retrospective rant from a severely uneducated and overly caffeinated fan.

I have thoughts about Taemin leaving SM and by extention Onew too. Might as well drag Minho and Key into this.

Since this is majorly about Taemin, let's talk about him first.

Taemin & SM (pre-NGDA era)

Taemin has been with the company for 16 years, closer to 19 if you count his trainee days. As an older shawol (LLO-era, got me whipped BAD), it was seriously out of the blue that Taemin would be the first to debut solo. SM at the time (i.e in their prime) was a vocal powerhouse and I genuinely thought Jonghyun would be the first one to go solo. SM made the right decision dedicating time and resources in letting him shine and 'Ace' was a phenomenal debut album for Taemin and really stamped that 'Taemin vibe/sound' we all know and love' Generally speaking SM not the best for promotions/scheduling, but the company still had their shit together when 'Move' came out, it felt like it was everywhere and surpassed the noteriety Guilty had achieved. I feel like when Taemin does variety shows, up to now, Move was always the most referenced and remembered act, even amongst the junior idols, that he did and thats because SM did go hard on promoting that song and picked a quiet month to do that comback in.

Taemin vs SM (during/post-NGDA era)

Somewhere along the lines, SM really dropped the ball with promoting Act 1 especially during Taemin's 'Criminal' comeback. They heavily prioritized their newer groups and suddenly their legendary acts were getting shafted with poor promotions and what felt like less dedicated management and resources. I recall, SM postponed the release for Criminal, squashed Taemin in Super-M activties and focused on their new acts while simultaneously over working them (honestly Mark has had such a hectic few years). My internal speculation/assumtion is that, SM figured that acts like SuJu, EXO, SHINee, GG and RV and solo/ duo units, wouldn't need as much dedicated promotions because they are iconic acts and they are fully dependant on fanbases to generate the buzz. Which leads me to my main hypothesis that after a few years of being active, SM really does not care about an artist anymore. Mind you artists that put them on the fucking map to begin with. SM won't double down on these artists because they believe they can't appeal to a younger audience. With the shitshow that was the Criminal promotions. SM really didn't do any better with 'Advice'. Pinning aespa's comeback a day before was a low blow instead of focusing on the talent that's about to go into the military, if they are aware enough to give Taemin a mini comeback so his relevancy sticks throughout his service, why damage it with an aespa release (that felt like it was to tactically avoid facing off the BTS release later than month) and basically doing NOTHING bar announcing pre-orders. Then we enter the 'Guilty' era. Which as we saw was a hit, but mainly because SM capitalized on the power of social media trends, placing Taemin in VARIOUS online contents and slowly dropped related media during winter. I mean we are still not over his 'Guilty' era, the Metamorph concert still has us at a chokehold. I 'd like to think that Taemin became more vocal in what he wanted and expected out of SM when he came back. Obviously the priority to them is/was SHINee and that's fair. DCM did really well with promos (althoughlike most shawols would say, LSM did have a major part to play with that). HOWEVER it was their 15th anniversary comeback last year and I feel like SM treated it like it was just another comeback instead of a major milestone. There were no interviews or press releases for Hard, when events were happening, it felt like it was gate kept to just local fans, like it made me feel like I was living under a rock because it was so last minute and I was not aware of anything. I want to believe that just because SM did an okay job now, excuses them for the last 3 years. What's worse is it's undeniable, Taemin lives to perform and it's no secret he sets some high goals and standard for himself and probably the toll 1) not getting to preform Guilty in GDA, despite wanting to and 2) probably not getting a solid backing for touring globally, despite very vocal fan support. I am not sure if anyone saw that SM forecast for the first two quarters of 2024, but it genuinely feels like Taemin knows that him and SHINee will not be a priority after promotions are finished. I hope I am not dense enough to assume that obviously SHINee has spoken about this privately and internally for a while now. It's really something you can't avoid talking about. Taemin has spoken to his hyungs, people in his circle inside and outside of the industry. Hopefully he is well informed and supported and it seems definite that SHINee is still active as a group.

Key vs SM.

Someone has already mentioned it but if anyone was leaving SM for creative freedom, I genuinely thought it would be Key. 'Bad Love' was an amazing release and Key fought with SM to release with his own brand/aesthetic. Because Taemin's imminent departure is so publicized, SM might be keeping the talks with Minho and Key super under wraps and trying to offer a btter deal. Although recently, bar Good and Great, SM has been using Key as a 'Variety' idol than an actual singer, which sucks because Key is super talented and if SM doesn't recognize that star power now, good luck to them. Also apparently, Kany is signed with BPM? I know she is close with SHInee in general, but I would assume it'd be Key joining her ya'know?

Minho vs SM.

Imma put it out there, the promotions for 'Stay for a Night' was lackluster? I feel like they treat solo Minho and SHINee Minho as two separate entities. Like yes there is a dualism of being a group preformer vs solo preformer. But on the rare occasion SHINee does get promoted Minho seems to get more attention, but as a solo artist, I don't feel the same love for his solo promotions. I hope Minho gets to write and contribute more, which I believe he does in the background. If he does stick to SM, I pray they open other avenues of artistry, primarily, he does really well with his acting roles and yes it really helps that he does fit the 'K-drama ML' look.

Onew vs SM

I feel like Onew gets the short-end of the stick out of the rest of SHINee, never mind that the man has the voice of an angel, but again, he is another one that SM never bothered to market right. It kind of make sense that he would want to leave the company and seek ones that would expand his career inside and outside of singing and while the one good thing SM did recently is make sure Onew was healing and taking care of himself, recent SHINee promo activities feels like they are treating Onew's break as a hush hush 'taboo topic' Honestly, bring back the era where our idols would randomly disappear during promotions because they were casted to be on-stage again. I am still forever clinging onto Onew singing opera, because despite him not being trained for that, he has the talent to do so. It'd be nice to hear him produce his own music, or give acting another shot.

[reflections-in-a-critical-eye]

Ngl, I had to look up Ace of Base...oh, the one the Bellas sang in Pitch Perfect!

In light of your reaction to MUSE, I'm wondering if you think it's time Jimin worked with a different creative team? Is he too dependent on PDogg and Evan and Ghstloop? Does the man need to get out of his comfort zone a bit--the way JK did?

Oh wow, you heard of Ace of Base from Pitch Perfect and not on the radio or from a cassette player.....I watched those films but I don't remember how/when the songs were used.

I think that for a kickstart to a solo career, working with a team he's comfortable with was a good choice. They are in sync. They know exactly how to pick up on whatever sounds Jimin makes, whatever keyboards he touches. Not that outside producers wouldn't, but from everything Jimin had said, working together as a band proved to be a good thing.

Now, distancing himself from that could bring other sounds, other ways of producing, maybe of a higher quality. And one can't be stuck simply because of friendship and comfort zone. But perhaps that's something to happen later, post military service. Jimin (like others) had a small window to come up with music. And it's not easy for someone who hasn't delved into a project like that at that level. Time for more exploration can come later.

[great-tusk]

Child Champion gang rise up!

Also PLEASE tell me about your Pokemon S/I I've been meaning to send an ask for more info for a WHILE I just keep forgetting give me ALL the details prettiest of pleases <3

HELL YEAH! It’s under the cut because I wrote a Lot. It’s kinda out of order, but hopefully it still makes sense. It’s mostly backstory and character relations.

My little guy is Quentin. He was born in Unova. He’s the grandson of Drayden, the brother of Iris and (later) Drayton.

As a very young child, he got sent over to Kanto for a year to learn from Lance and people who Lance knew. (He frequently left Quentin with Agatha, which is why she’s like a grandmother to him.) While there, he met Blue. An instant sort of dislike spread within him. He very much hates people who are obsessed with acting like they’re better than everyone else.

When they met again later, after Blue learned humility and became a gym leader, they became much closer, and eventually started dating. Neither of their little kid selves would have guessed that LMAO. Some years after that, Blue was visiting Unova for the PWT, and excited to see his bf again because they had barely been able to see each other in person since then, and let me just say that he was TERRIFIED when he found out that Kyurem froze Opelucid City, the place where Quentin lived and promised Blue that he’d be if he wanted to come visit once he got there. Like straight up petrified. He felt so useless, and Quentin wasn’t picking up his phone since service was down. Fun emotional ship stuff. Quentin was okay, though. He was out there soloing Team Plasma grunts to help give Rosa more time.

His Dragonite was a Dratini given to him by the elder in the Dragon’s Den after Lance invited him in. His Haxorus was an egg given to him by Drayden (and the son of Drayden’s own Haxorus). His Samurott was an Oshawott given to him by Professor Juniper.

This is something like what his team looked something like when he started his Unova journey, because he’d been catching and training Pokémon for a while under Drayden.

He also has a fun blue-ish purple-ish letterman jacket that he wears. It has a Dragonite on the back. (I like to think of it like an anime ahoge that changes with emotions, like the picture is a sad Dragonite when he’s sad and a cheerful Dragonite when he’s happy. I’m not sure if I’ll make this canon or not, but I think that the idea is really fun.)

He became champion at a pretty young age, having beaten Iris, but it was a really close battle. They’re pretty evenly matched.

He loves to visit every region that he can, and has caught a bunch of Pokémon. (He filled the entire Paldea dex, and flexes the shiny charm that he got from Jacq to anyone who’ll look at it.)

When Red and Blue went to Alola for the Battle Tree, he’s like “Blue Oak. We are married. You are bringing me on your interregional trip. I don’t care if you’ll be working. You can spend all of the time that you’re NOT working kissing me!!!” and so Blue brings him even though Blue likes the weather warm and the heat makes Quentin miserable.

Blue also keeps the AC really cold at night because Quentin can’t sleep without a bunch of blankets but overheats easily.

As for his personality, he’s a hopeless romantic. Clings pretty tightly to whoever he knows the best in situations. Socially awkward. Fairly cheerful, unless he’s annoyed or tired (which is pretty frequently), in which case he’s more sarcastic and irritable. He’s also pretty hotheaded and easily riled up.

[ultrakdramamama]

Lee Taemin has been a K-pop idol for more than half his life, and has embodied innovation and ingenuity throughout his career. The 30-year-old began making music at 14, and has cemented himself as the industry's ace.

Taemin debuted as a member of group SHINee in 2008 and began work as a soloist in 2014. He is also a member of K-pop supergroup SuperM.

At his core, Taemin is a visionary dedicated to his craft. He constantly strives to challenge himself, pursuing new concepts and different angles to his artistic identity with each release. His work is hard to qualify, with the artist describing it "Taemin-cliché."

And "Guilty", his latest offering, sets the stage for a new era.

"Preparing for this album, I feel like it's a fresh start," he told USA TODAY.

Taemin pulls back the curtain on 'Guilty'

Taemin's fourth mini album "Guilty" released Oct. 30. The six-track EP is the artist's first solo release in two years. His last EP "Advice" in 2021 came before he enlisted for South Korea's mandated military service.

The atmosphere of "Advice" felt as if it closed the curtain to a period, said Taemin. As a result, "Guilty" acts almost like a reintroduction to who Taemin is as an artist.

"Making too much changes felt like it's too risky, but I wanted to take that risk if there was an appropriate track ready," he said.

"Guilty" proved to be that risk worth taking, serving as the helm of a mini album that presents new aspects to Taemin, while also strengthening his established skills.

In the EP, Taemin traverses various moods and tones, journeying through guilt, heartbreak, melancholy and love. Through this EP, Taemin wanted to create a "color that covers what I have been doing in my career."

'Guilty' encapsulates Taemin's artistry

The concept of "Guilty" took inspiration from the book "Erotism" by Georges Bataille. "As an artist, it is my job to be more appealing and more attractive. I wanted to understand what attracts other people," said Taemin.

The book presented Taemin with scope on this notion. His delicate, compelling vocals are the enticement with hypnotic and sharp choreography completely pulling you in.

"I want to introduce who Taemin is through the performances," he said.

Taemin reflects on growth over the last 15 years

Since debut, Taemin has come into his own. He started at very young age and has grown and evolved not only to become an accomplished creative, but also a humble human.

"People learn a lot from experience," he said. "I tried to build my own identity and challenged myself with diverse concepts, and it’s interesting to see that it became my own color."

He also heavily values the relationships he's fostered along the way.

This responsibility is something Taemin carries with him. Often referred to as the "idol of idols," Taemin has been an inspiration to many in the industry.

"I also looked up to someone else as well and I never would’ve thought that I’ll become one," he said. "It gives me faith in myself because it’s one of the proving moments that my decisions were correct."

Ultimately, Taemin hopes to break barriers and limitations through his art.

[solarwynd]

Shippers and Akages are fighting over "ace duo" on twitter and i saw a tweet from KTHs saying "taehyung is the only ace of the group and he's the nest vocalist of the group" with hundreads of likes and when i say these people are never going to get off their high horses?? Like man's literally a sub vocalist in the group and his stans calling him the best in group. Mind you they asked taehyung what is something difficult he realised doing solo or something like that and he straight up admitted that singing the whole song by yourself is difficult cause when he's in the group he can easily rely on the members and doesn't have to do that much smtg and here his stans.

There's also two threads i saw Cause they were dragging jm into a tweet so one thread was made by a jkkr and other by a tkkr the jkkr one was with jkk on charts and the tkkr retaliated that jkkrs' thread with a tk thread was about likes on tweets and people that joined lives and how much Shipper tag was trending i mean imagine you're calling your fav a ace and you're using likes and and tags mention to retaliate his chart relevancy with his husband?? Like do they not feel embarrased? Oh the tk thread was made by dionysustkk, a pjms posted ss of them since loose head dinosaur has me blocked

TH is serviceable in his roles, nothing exceptional. He does what he needs to do in the group but calling him an ace or the only one is a leap and a bound. lmao.

[bluemoonpunch]

⭐BTS 2023 - 2025 Outlook - Oracle and Tarot Reading

[This reading covers the currently foreseen potentials from 2023 to 2025 for all members of BTS. This reading contains collective energetic analysis and individual personal outlooks for all members.]

Reading Performed: January 12, 2023 Posted: January 14, 2023

For this reading, I wanted to keep it simple as there are not any important things happening that could influence the collective, and this reading is meant to cover the time period between all seven of them going through and coming out of their mandatory military service, which is intended to be complete by the end of 2025. With this, I’ve just done an energetic observation of the current and recently passed states of being for the group and individuals, and have also done an energetic outlook observation for the group and individuals in 2025. Here, we can begin with the group’s projection and outlook.

On the left side, this set represents the group's last energetic projection when they were all together as a unit. The centerpiece is The Poet, which is about creative and honest expression, as well as this sense of timeless transition and personal evolution. In this context for them, this card came with this feeling of release and a tinge of grief for what was being released. It’s as if when they initially separated, as in when Jin went in for his military service, they weren’t letting go of Jin, all seven of them were letting go of their lives up to that point, who they were, and who they knew each other to be. With this, and leading up to Jin’s departure, that deep and personal questioning around who they are, what they want as individuals, and what they feel they can achieve on their own was bubbling up in all of them and for the most part, the answers came for all of them within the realm of writing, producing, and performing.

This is a piece of The Poet’s description for reference: “When The Poet's energy is present, there is a call for deep honesty and reflection, for seeing the big picture within the little one. The Poet rides effortlessly between the personal and universal. It’s possible that others may not seem to listen or care about The Poet’s work, but do not be discouraged. The words of The Poet ring true for centuries to come, soothing the wounds of despair and violence that captivate our world. The Poet’s work is never finished. Find your voice, and trust that the wind will carry it.”

Around The Poet, there are four sets of cards to help elaborate on and display areas of focus or significant projections from the main state of The Poet. At the top, there is the Page of Pentacles with the 2 of Pentacles, which connects down to the left side with the Ace of Pentacles. These three put a lot of attention on money, finances, resources, and connections, and the assessment of these things for the sake of planning things out going forward. This can be in relation to planning out a certain budget for solo production, performance, and advertising with the company, or this is more about thinking ahead about what their careers will look like at the end of their service and getting things in order for whatever “yes” or “no” they’ll face when they come back.

Full reading with individual outlooks for all 7 members on bluemoonpunch.com!

[daddymothxxx]

⸺ 𝐆𝐄𝐓 𝐓𝐎 𝐊𝐍𝐎𝐖 : Asche

what's your phone wallpaper: Art of some ghost pokemon in a graveyard.

last song you listened to: ITTY BITTY TITTY COMIMITTEE - Ham Sandwich

currently reading: Still working on "System Collapse" from the Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells

last movie: Well, according to my various streaming services; War For The Planet of the Apes.

how tall are you?: 5'6"

what are you wearing right now?: dark gray A-shirt and light gray sleep shorts. Only thing I wear indoors lmao.

piercings / tattoos?: septum, lobe gauges (14mm), & upper lobe studs / tora - tiger kanji between my shoulder blades to see what getting one was like (did not go to a tattoo parlor >.> )

glasses / contacts: glasses

last thing you ate?: colby-jack on white grilled cheese and spruced up knorr buttered noodles

favorite color: gray, blue, purple

current obsession: ...word searches lmao

do you have a crush right now?: nah, too ace for that. never had a crush.

favorite fictional character: probably Murderbot right now honestly

last place you travelled: Baltimore, Maryland! First solo-road trip and everything.

tagged by ;; --

tagging ;; Open!

[prototypesteve]

Solo Travel: Try new things.

I didn’t know anything about travelling by rail. How do train stations work? Is there a security section like in an airport? Do trains run late? How do you find your train in a big station? Can you get motion sickness in a train? Where does your luggage go? How do the stations in smaller towns work? And and and.

So, I picked the fastest and most exciting way to find out. I added a few train-trips to my April visit to England. Exciting, scary, overwhelming, fun, and useful.

Every time you try something new, you chip away at all the ways you constrain yourself to a template. “This is what people like me do. This is where people like me go. This is how people like me move. This is all there is to me.”

As a solo traveller you have the luxury of trying new things. You’re not throwing a wrench into your group’s plans, because there is no group. You don’t have to negotiate how to try the new cuisine, the new activity, or the big change in wardrobe, because you’re everyone who’ll be trying the new thing.

It turns out, I absolutely fell in love with the rail service in England and Scotland, and now I want to go see what the rail systems (tech and experience) are like in a bunch of other countries which weren’t even on my “gotta see” list.

The photos from the original post are from Sunday’s journey from London King’s Cross stations to Edinburgh Waverley Station, aboard an LNER Azuma train that got up to speeds just above 200 km/h.

Disclaimer: Not every new thing has to end well. I tried whale watching, and I got sick. I tried milk in my tea, and still don’t have words to describe how wrong it felt. I still grew. I still wound up with more room to move.

Aspec applications. Homework for my fellow aces and aros: If you’re being totally honest, are there ways you’ve been constraining yourself to a template that has nothing at all to do with your sexual or romantic orientations, but just is the way it is because someone said so?

[tres-fidelis]

"N-No fighting Miss!" Nanako looks rather determined to stop whatever Rin is yelling about.

It happened only once in a while. The usual bout of customers needing their vehicles or other mechanical problems repaired never gave Rin any sort of problems. But sometimes, the cranky Karen reared their ugly head just to test the shop's hospitality services, as well as Rin's patience. An expensive payment, shabby adjustments or additions made under the shop's surveillance, it grew to be quite a common trend when facing displeased clients. Usually, her aunt took to mending the problem while Rin finished the dirty work. However, she found herself solo running both the house and work space today. Without any proper adult supervision in close proximity, it spelled a pending disaster should the older teen fully embrace her boiling frustration.

But a little angel came to her rescue! Brunette pigtails bounced up and down, matching brown eyes appearing innocent and worried hearing the nearby voices raise in pitch. Rin forgot about the temporary babysitting service she promised Dojima-san today, which meant even more responsibilities piled on her shoulders. Between working with clients, appeasing her current patron, and the pleading shouts from Inaba's sweetest little peach, Rin couldn't make any mistakes. It was too much all at once.

She shouldn't get angry either, especially not in front of Nanako...of all people.

"...my apologies, sir." Her fists relaxed, tension releasing from her fingers as she tucked them inside her jean pockets. "I'll take a'notha look at th' internals tah make sure everythin's fixed. Is prolly summthin' ta do wit' th' AC unit in yer car..." It didn't hurt to look over her work again, in case she overlooked one little part or section. But she never missed anything. So what happened this time around?

For the time being, Rin saw the customer off into the waiting room then turned to catch Nanako's attention. "...thought I told ya not ta be comin' in here, squirt. It's dangerous fer someone as small as ya ta be near these kinds of tools."

She could practically hear Dojima's voice tearing her ear off if he found out about this...

[bearterritory]

Cal Hands Wyoming First Loss

Offense, Defense Both Key In 3-1 Victory

Golden Bears Improve to 6-2

BOULDER, Colo. – California volleyball kicked off its last tournament of the season yesterday afternoon, facing an undefeated Wyoming squad in the first match of the Buffs Invitational at CU Events Center. Even after dropping the first set, the Golden Bears (6-2) turned things around in a gutsy performance to earn a 3-1 win (14-25, 25-23, 25-21, 28-26) over the Cowgirls (5-1).   Setter Natalie Lau posted her third-straight double-double, notching 45 assists and 13 digs on the night while adding a career-high four blocks to her stat line. Mikayla Hayden and Sawyer Thomsen each recorded nine kills and five blocks, respectively hitting .471 and .571. Three Bears – Xuemeng (Maggie) Li (13), Peyton DeJardin (11) and Kate Mansfield (10) – reached double-digit kills, while another trio – Lau, Sophia Johnson (16) and Gianna Bartalo (12) – each produced double-digit digs; Johnson's team-leading total was also a career best.   As a team, Wyoming out-hit Cal .282 to .250 on the match but also gifted the Bears a total of 15 points from service errors.   Cal struggled in the first set, hitting just .036 on the way to an 11-point loss, but managed to improve its efficiency by nearly .300 in the second set while also recording three aces; Hayden was especially sharp in that second set, slamming down four kills at a .667 clip, while Mansfield added three of her own that included the set-winning point. The Bears' defense came to life in the third, with five players contributing a total of six blocks, including a solo from Lau, to hold Wyoming to just .162 hitting; meanwhile, Cal's offense stayed consistent at a .320 pace, with Thomsen hitting a perfect 3-for-3 and Mansfield once again finishing off the set with a kill.

Although Wyoming's offense rebounded in the fourth set, forcing the Bears to play from behind early, Cal would not be denied its third-straight win. Down 15-19 at the mid-set media timeout, the comeback began with Li's 10th kill of the match, which she shortly followed up with her 11th and a service ace. One point later, DeJardin contributed two straight kills, bringing the score to 20-21 and forcing a Wyoming timeout. Cal's next two kills also belonged to DeJardin, after which the Bears finally tied up the score at 23 with a triple block from Li, Hayden and Lau. Finally – for the third-straight set – it was Mansfield who sealed the deal for Cal, joining reliable blocks-partner Thomsen for one last stop to end the match.