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sneezefiction · 4 years

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dreaming of you

Sugawara x Reader - Scenario

@0hakaashi‘s request: “can I request suga with #11 (dreams)? ty💕”

a/n: sometimes you write fluff... sometimes that fluff is sickeningly sweet and makes you want to cry out of pure comfort and warmth. have a little taste of that with Sugawara tonight, my loves <3

warnings: none!

wc: 1750

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Sugawara’s apartment has seen some pretty crazy things.

It witnessed that wild, drunk dancing phase of yours that knocked over way more than just a few breakable items. Your first kisses as a couple and endless domestic, morning pecks with the ever-so gentle boy. It watched as a multitude of sleepovers went from being strict study nights to early morning giggles thanks to distractions like a new song release, Napoleon Dynamite dance routine attempts, and melted ice cream on cherry-tinted lips.

The poster-covered walls knew you better than some of your closest friends. You’d left your mark there. With little, accidental chips and water-stains on wooden furniture. On that old, grey carpet that caught several pain-induced tears, while the rest of your crying was usually muffled by Suga’s thin, white t-shirts. By adding a toothbrush as well as shampoo and conditioner to his bathroom.

You, Sugawara, and this nostalgia-drenched apartment have experienced quite a lot.

And, even if it hasn’t all been perfect, you’ve been lavished in over a year's worth of sunkissed memories. Days that would always start snuggled up under his chin, feeling the reassuring rise and fall of his sturdy chest. With the tenderest of touches, he’d caress your cheek using the back of his hand every morning without fail. Every time you opened your eyes to his chestnut-brown irises, your heart would flutter involuntarily.

It almost seems fake. That this world, which used to be dull and lifeless, could paint itself into a rainbow of colors only the two of you could see.

Once again, you’re splayed across his bed on your stomach, stopping the gentle sway of your legs and placing your phone down in front of you to see Suga’s silvery tufts of hair, his honey-brown eyes gazing thoughtfully at the ceiling.

You’d spent the night at his place again and, as per usual, the morning is quiet. The first 20 or so minutes filled with stretching, phone-scrolling, and snuggles.

He reaches his slender hands upward, stretching his arms toward the open air of the quiet bedroom.

A heavy, golden stream of sunlight casts the shadow of a window onto your wall, along with the outlines of his fingers and thumbs. But as soon as he loses interest in the gleaming sunrise colors that dripped down his hand, Suga drops his arm and lifts himself up to face you, seeking an answer.

Words as soft as a young bird’s feathers ruffle the silence of the cool air.

“Would you be mad if I got super cheesy right now?” Suga asks cooly, his question genuine.

You tilt your head, a small smirk forming because you’ve seen this face before. It’s the look you got before he lavished you with sweet sayings and almost sickening, lovey-dovey phrases.

You used to fuss at him, flick his forehead, cover your face in embarrassment… the whole nine-yards just to avoid his compliments and the tingly feelings that followed.

“I have a feeling you’re just gonna say it anyways, so you might as well.” You roll your eyes, propping yourself up on your elbows and using the palms of your hands to hold your chin.

“You know me so well.” A cheeky grin spreads across his face.

Suga shifts himself up and over to you as he gently lays his head onto your middle.

It’s a tingly, ticklish sensation. His consistent show of closeness and affection always had you melting into him, like clay being warmed by a careful potter's knowing hands. Your hands automatically start carding through his unreasonably soft hair and he hums into the touch before continuing his thoughts.

“Y/n, you’re so good to me.” He breathes out, beginning to build his web of thoughts.

“Things have just… flowed well for me ever since you came into my life.” Suga tilts his head back into your brushing fingers and strokes your thigh with the back of his hand.

“You always make me laugh, you understand me, and wow are you gorgeous. You’re pretty much perfect.” He says while a smile forms on his visage and heat rises to your own face along with a copycat smile of your own.

But the conversation takes an unusual turn.

“And, well, I dunno...”

“...sometimes it almost feels a bit unreal.”

He huffs out an amused sigh because the words sound much funnier out loud than they did in his head. But he might as well continue. You’ve heard him say much weirder, far more… questionable things.

You tug lightly at his sterling strands. With a soft, “Mhmm,” and an unseen smile, you prompt him to continue.

“I’m serious! You’ve somehow even managed to work your way into my dreams most nights, actually.” He admits, letting out a breathy laugh, your own soft giggle following.

He notes how nice it is to feel you laugh against his head, mentally snap-shotting the moment. But Sugawara wants to add one more thing, twisting the moment slightly. Something that could potentially pause that splendid laughter.

“...so when I wake up, I always wonder if you’ll actually still be there... y’know, with me...” The hand that was once twirling his hair now pauses its movements.

You shift yourself upwards so that you’re sitting with your back snug against the bed’s headboard, moving Suga’s head to be in the center of your lap.

With his face more readily availble to you, you’re now tracing the outline of his features while processing his words, gazing deeply into an unreadable expression.

“So you’re trying to tell me…” You brush a few strands of hair away from his eyes, cocking your head to the side with a look that says, ‘Are you being serious right now?’

“...that because things are going so well right now...”

You lean in closer to his face, which lays perpendicular to your own. “...hell, maybe a little too well...”

“...and because I somehow interfere with your subconscious while you’re asleep…” Your nose brushes gently against his, a small flush coloring his pale skin.

“...that you’re worried I might just up and leave you someday?” You quirk an eyebrow and a small smirk appears on your face.

It was an unfounded insecurity... and most insecurities don’t like to listen to logic.

He averts his gaze, a hint of embarrassment flashing in his eyes.

You hover over his face a little longer before tilting your head to ghost your lips meticulously over his.

Even though you’ve taken the initiative, it’s impossible to not get a little flustered with his minty breath gently fanning over your face. You become acutely aware of the subtle shifting of his hands, pressing ever so slightly into the bed at your close contact.

Suga’s golden-brown eyes close and just as he lifts his head off your lap to steal a kiss, you teasingly lean back earning the sweetest of pouts in return.

At your refusal to appease him, Suga rolls his head to the side, avoiding eye-contact with you.

“Well now I just feel silly.” He sulks, face jokingly downcast and blush lightly tinting the apples of his cheeks.

You can’t help but chuckle softly. Your boyfriend has always been a funny one, but it’s hard for you to believe that he would have so little faith in you. Even if it was a passing doubt, you never wanted him to think that the absence of good times meant that you would leave him too.

Because Suga had made a point of always being there.

Always sticking around. Never leaving you, a teammate, a family member, or even a lost stranger behind. He would take anyone by the hand and lead them to a safe place with utmost care. Hell, you bet that even in his dreams, he would still clasp your fingers tightly with his and not let go unless you absolutely begged him… though you doubt that the dream version of youself would ever be stupid enough to ask Suga to untwine your hand from his.

So you decide to be the cheesy one for a change.

You lean over him once more, but this time you use both of your palms to draw his face toward yours. A beautiful, squinty smile adorns your once teasing expression and greets his soft, pouty one. You proceed by blowing cool air into his eyes, causing him to shut them in mild discomfort, which allows you to sneakily take his lips into yours, melding them together tenderly.

He immediately responds by lifting up one of his hands to caress your face, deepening the sleepy, sunrise kiss.

It’s warm and comforting.

And as though a cool breeze had just brushed over your skin, you feel a shiver run down your arms when Suga gently tugs on your bottom lip with his teeth.

Sitting up a little, Sugawara finds himself taking in your saccharine taste. His thumb pleasantly skims over your cheek causing you to smile slightly, breaking the flow of the slow kiss.

As you pull away, you could almost melt at the adoring gaze Sugawara gifts you with. All he can do is blink gratefully at you while relishing in the rare, precious silence. He’s right in front of you, sitting up just enough for the sunlight to catch his silver hair, gracing it with a shimmering gold halo of sorts.

You let out a contented sigh and lean forward to place your forehead on top of his shoulder, inhaling his clean lavender scent. It’s fresh and soft. A little smoky even? It might be from that cologne you gave him last Christmas. Nostalgia combined with a hint of sweetly fragranced detergent. You hum into his white t-shirt and he rests his cheek onto the side of your head.

At his touch, you simply decide that he smells like home.

“Hey Suga…?” You whisper through the thin fabric of his shirt.

“Hmm?”

“You’re a little weird...” A humorous, closed-mouth smile forms on both of your faces.

“Hey now, I thought we were having a moment?” Suga sighs into your hair, some of the lose strands tickling your ear in the process.

“Let me finish!” You quietly huff in mock exasperation.

He nods and you sink a little deeper into the crook of his neck, prompting him to place his arms around you to pull you closer.

“I was gonna say: you’re a little weird, but I’m glad I’ve somehow made my way into your dreams.”

There’s a pause, a breath, and an exhalation.

“I’m glad because I always want to be with you. Whether it’s here in the real world or up there in your pretty little head.”

---

tags: @cherryonigiri, @yams046, @miss-rin, @shou-kunn, @senkuwu-chan, @super-noya, @stcrryskies, @holaaaf, @sugacookiies, @vintgicals, @moonlightaangel, @starboybokuto

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emdythewriter · 5 years

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Scars of our lives | chapter two (acotar)

“I never thought I’d see that again.”

“See what?” Rhys was still sitting at the bar even though it was almost closing time. Feyre was busy cleaning glasses as people left and the few employees she had working tonight cleaned up the tables. He wasn’t drinking anymore, just staying to talk to her.

“My sister letting a guy she just met walk her home,” Feyre answered Rhys’s question. She nodded to the back door where they had watched Nesta and Cassian exit a few moments ago.

“I never thought Cassian offered to walk women home,” he joked causing her to smile. Rhys smiled back admiring the way she tried not to smile but couldn’t help it in the end. It was like Feyre had spent her life avoiding the sign of emotion, or never feeling that she didn’t know what it meant when her muscles lifted her lips.

“How many siblings do you have?” Feyre asked changing the subject after a silence had fallen between the two. She had told Rhys some stories about her family throughout the night. He knew that she had two older sisters, one she got along with and the other she didn’t. He knew both her parents had passed away and that some of the money her father left behind helped her open the bar. Yet the whole she hadn’t asked about his family, though he hadn’t offered any of that information either.

“Just Cassian and Azriel though they’re not by blood,” Rhys answered as he circled the rim of his glass with a finger. “We grew up together though so they’re the closest thing I have to family now. My mom and dad died in a car crash when I was a teenager. I have a little sister, but we didn’t grow up together. After my parents died she got put into the system and eventually was adopted.”

“Where did you go?” Feyre asked even though she was starting to feel guilty for making him talk about his family in the first place.

“Cassian’s family took me in and they tried to fight for my sister as well but it was no use,” Rhys sighed before taking a sip of the water she had given him. “They could barely afford to take me in but they did. Cassian has a big family, he’s the youngest of three brothers and then has two younger sisters. His family had money but they also had a lot of debt and spent most of my childhood trying to pay it off.”

“Sounds like they were great people for doing that for you,” Feyre said setting a glass to the side as she finished drying it.

“Yeah, especially considering they had taken Az in a few years before when he got kicked out of his house,” Rhys added.

“What for?” she asked hoping she wasn’t crossing a line.

“Az had a problem with getting caught for things he never did, mostly because of this kid in high school that believed he was better than Azriel and felt a need to prove it every waking moment. He also got into fights provoked by his brothers that hated his guts. Eventually his dad and stepmom got tired of taking care of his messes and threw him out.”

“What about his biological mom?”

“She lives in a different city and Az didn’t want to leave Velaris so Cassian’s parents gave him a home. His mom sent money every month for him which helped out the Sterling family a bunch.”

“I haven’t met him tonight have I?” Feyre asked wondering about this man that seemed to have one to many fascinating and heartbreaking stories to tell.

“He’s most likely hiding in the shadows, he tends to do that,” Rhys informed her before finishing his glass of water. Feyre furrowed her eyebrows now having more questions than before, and some of them she wasn’t sure he would be okay with her asking like he was the others she had asked.

___

Azriel was in the corner, hidden by shadows. It was the only place he ever felt comfortable, especially when crowds were as big as they had been tonight. Now that the night was winding down, and he figured the bar would be closing soon he knew he could move. He stayed though because something had caught his eye, or rather someone.

In a booth against the opposite wall of where Az currently hid was a woman, and she was mesmerizing. Her hair was down in loose honey brown waves and her eyes seemed to shine from every angle he looked at her in. She was wearing a royal blue sundress that had a deep v-neck cut to it, slowing the side of her breasts. Her skin was a creamy color and he suspected it would be the smoothest surface he ever touched. He wanted to talk to her, but the only issue was she was sitting next to another guy.

The guy with his long red hair, russet colored eyes, and a charm of a snake, Lucien Vanserra. Azriel had grown up with him, and never liked him nor his family. They had been rivals growing up but Lucien was always favored over him, always coming out on top even when he didn’t deserve it. Now that they were no longer in school their days of going head to head should’ve been however, if it wasn’t for Lucien’s father.

His biological father that is who just so happened to own the rival hotel business to Rhys’s. This meant Azriel had to see Lucien on more than one occasion and every time all he wanted to do was pop the red heads head off his shoulders. They were forced to mingle in meetings or on business excursions. They were forced to keep in contact when deals were being made and to keep up with each others lawyers and offices. Az hated every single waking moment when his job crossed over into Lucien’s path.

He knew Rhys was trying to find ways around it even if Az hadn’t personally asked him to do so. His brother just knew him too well and knew all the feelings he had toward Lucien.

Now those feelings arose as he hated the other male for finding this beautiful woman before he did and making a move. She was laughing at whatever stupid thing he just said, and he was moving closer to her. Azriel swore he was going to explode if Lucien actually managed to kiss her before the night was done.

A vein was going to pop in his forehead, Azriel needed to find a distraction. He pushed himself off the wall, ignoring the looks shot his way by the women as he made his way to the bar. Rhys was still there like he had been the whole night chatting with the bartender. He took up the stool next to his brother.

“Whatever is the strongest liquor you have I’ll take the bottle,” Azriel said as he rubbed his hands through his hair and then down his face.

“Speak of the devil,” Rhys said as he clapped a hand onto Az’s shoulder. “Feyre this is Azriel, Az this is Feyre she owns the place.”

He looked up and the woman smiled at him before setting a bottle of whisky in front of him and a glass. He poured himself a helping and then took a long sip, letting the amber liquid burn his throat. Feyre was beautiful as well with her long brown hair that was pulled back for the night. Her eyes were a blue-gray that blended with the background of the bar. Her skin was light but darkening due to days in the sun, and her body had small curves though not really noticeable at first glance.

“Nice to meet you,” Azriel finally said before taking another drink. His voice had sounded rough from the first sip, now it had to be gravel. The whiskey would work perfectly.

“Bad night?” Rhys asked as he watched his brother. Azriel wasn’t surprised he had picked up on his mood so fast. Even if he had bothered to hide his annoyance his brother still would’ve seen right through the mask.

“Look over there and tell me what you think?” Az said as he nodded in the direction of where Lucien sat with the woman.

“What’s he doing here?” Rhys asked.

“You guys know Lucien?” Feyre asked causing both males to look up at her in surprise with wide eyes. “What?”

“How do you know Lucien?” Azriel asked.

“You know Lucien?” Rhys asked.

“He’s best friends with my ex,” Feyre answered giving them both a confused look. She seemed more curious about their relationship with Lucien then they were about hers.

“You dated Tamlin?” this time they had asked the same question at the same time. Feyre jumped a little bit having been startled by their combined raised voices. A few people looked in their direction, sending the trio looks as if to suggest they were crazy.

“When I went to college for a couple of years,” Feyre answered calmly, brushing off the stares. “It wasn’t my proudest moment.” At least she could admit it, thought Azriel.”Now how do you two know Lucien?”

“He was my high school rival.” Azriel answered.

“You dated Tamlin?” Rhys repeated. Az couldn’t blame him for being shocked. While he was getting in trouble for fighting with Lucien Rhys was getting suspended for causing fights with Tamlin.

“Lucien was the guy you were telling me about?” Feyre asked but the question was directed at Rhys, who still looked baffled.

“Yes, now how could you date Tamlin?” He asked leaning forward on the counter. Feyre huffed a breath and crossed her arms over her chest.

“His family helped out mine after my mother passed,” she said but Az had a feeling there was more to it that she wasn’t comfortable sharing. “We got close.”

“Tamlin was my worst enemy growing up but I had no clue he knew you,” Rhys said seemingly puzzled at the thought.

“We didn’t really talk until college and that’s when I found out he was part of the family that helped mine stay above water.” Feyre said, there was a small pause in conversation before she broke it. “Lucien was your rival?

“Rhys told you about that?” Azriel asked as he poured a new glass.

“He told me about how you ended up being raised by Cassian’s parents,” Feyre informed him. Az stopped pouring to look at his brother who just shrugged. He didn’t mind people knowing his story but he was always surprised when Rhys decided to open up. Feyre must be special for him to do that so willingly.

“That was the only good thing Lucien ever did for me,” Azriel commented before taking a sip of the whisky, nursing it more now that he had to focus on a conversation. “My brothers were worse than that asshole over there.” he nodded in Lucien’s direction.

“Should I be worried considering that’s my sister he’s talking to?” Feyre asked looking over her shoulder at the woman Az had been admiring all night. Eyes wide he looked up at the bartender, setting his drink down in the process.

She’s your sister?” He asked trying to keep his voice neutral but it came out sounding as if he was mesmerized, which he supposed he was.

“Yeah, that’s Elain,” Feyre answered. “She’s the gentlest person I’ve ever known.”

“The complete opposite of Azriel here,” Rhys joked causing the other male to elbow him in his ribs, hard. “What? I can’t joke anymore?”

“Your teasing instead of joking,” Azriel retorted as he sent his brother a glare. Rhys smirked knowing by Az’s reaction that he was forming a crush on the woman that was currently chatting up his arch nemesis.

“I wonder what he’s saying to her,” Feyre said bringing their attention back to her. Her back was pressed against the counter, arms crossed over her chest and eyes intently focused on her sister. “I’ve never seen her fake a laugh before.”

___

Elain was getting tired. Her face hurt from all the fake smiles and laughs she was carrying out through this conversation. She knew Lucien from the time Feyre had dated his best friend, but she had never really cared for him. At the time they had met Elain had been dating someone else, Graysen who was now her ex-fiance.

Lucien had tried getting close to her and he was always sweet, but something about him always made Elain want to keep some distance between them. She was fine talking to him but now she wanted a reason to end the conversation. He had told her about his time in college, about finding out the man he grew up believing was his father wasn’t, and about working with his real father these past couple of years.

In return Elain had told him about her college days, her parents’s passing, and the business she had started close to a year ago. She told him about Feyre being the owner of this bar and how she seemed to be patching things up with Nesta lately. That was all fine until Lucien had a few drinks and started flirting.

“I think I’m going to head out,” Elain said. It was passed the time she usually went to bed and the only reason she was still here was because she hadn’t found an opportunity to leave the conversation. Yawning, she began to stand up and make her exit but Lucien followed.

“Let me walk you home,” he said and though she would usually accept the offer she didn’t see the need to.

“Thanks for the offer but I’ll be fine,” She grabbed her bag and wrapped the strap around her shoulder before taking a few steps towards the bar Feyre had been manning the whole night. She would be closing soon and Elain planned on using that as her scapegoat. “Feyre and I live close to each other so we plan on walking together.”

“Your tired and she still has to close the place doesn’t she?” Elain expected that as well, and luckily she planned for it.

“I can help her clean up and make it go by faster,” she started walking away again but Lucien reached out and grabbed her wrist.

“Really I don’t mind walking you home.”

“I appreciate the offer but I’m alright.” Shrugging him off she smiled and turned to go.

“Let me at least give you my number,” Lucien said reaching his hand out for her phone. “Just so I know you got home alright, it would make me feel better.” He added when he saw the hesitation written in her brown eyes.

“Alright,” Elain handed him her phone and once it was programmed into her contacts she made her escape.

There were two guys sitting at the bar still, one nursing a glass of whisky while the other had an empty glass he was stroking the rim of. She took up the stool next to the one with whiskey and reached out for the bottle, drinking straight from it.

“Guess I have nothing to worry about between you and Lucien,” Feyre said as she grabbed a fresh glass for her sister to pour the liquor into.

“I think most of the conversation was about him,” Elain said pouring a hefty glass before handing the bottle back to the man next to her. His hazel eyes were focused on her and she found her cheeks warm at his gaze. “I’m Elain.”

He took the hand she held out for him to shake. It was covered with callouses on one side and tiny scars on the other. She couldn’t help but to admire the beauty of them, even if she was sure he went through hell to get those scars.

“Azriel,” he answered before pulling his hand back slowly like he wasn’t used to people staring at them with admiration.

“They’re beautiful,” she said, nodding to his hands that he was trying to hide between his legs. “You shouldn’t be ashamed of them no matter how the scars got there.”

“You weren’t lying,” the other male said to her sister.” I’m Rhys and your sister was telling us how you have a gentle soul.”

“Most people tell me that,” Elain said blushing softly.”

“They’re telling the truth,” he sent her a smile that caused her to blush more. She wasn’t used to compliments, most of the time Feyre and Nesta received them. Elain looked back up at Azriel who was watching her. He was looking her over so she thought to do the same. His hair was dark and falling into the hazel eyes she had first noticed. His skin was browning from exposure to the sun and his body was all muscles.

“Ready to head out?” Feyre asked breaking her out of the staring contest she seemed to have unintentionally started. Her sister was grabbing her bag from behind the bar and hefting it onto her shoulder. “You can tell me all about your new love interest.”

Elain groaned as her sister laughed before standing up to follow her out. Both Rhys and Azriel followed their lead. The couple of employees left were heading out the back and locking it up while their small group went for the main entrance. Feyre turned off the neon signs before locking the doors.

“You know he tried to walk me home,” Elain said starting a new conversation after the old one had been left at the bar. “I had to let him give me his number just to get him to stop offering.”

Feyre laughed causing her sister to glare at her. Rhys couldn’t help the laugh that bubble in his throat though he had at least made an effort. When she looked at Az he gave her a look as if to say he would’ve done the same thing, the difference was she would’ve let him walk her home.

“Poor guy,” her sister started to say as she wrapped her arm around Elain’s shoulders. “You’re finally single and he still can’t get you to fall for him.”

“He’s tried to ask you out before?” Azriel asked curiously.

“Yeah, when we first met he asked me on a date but I was engaged at the time so I turned him down,” Elain explained. She could tell Az wanted to asked what happened between her and her ex, but he decided not to considering their present company, it made her smile.

“You know if you ever date Elain,” Rhys said wrapping his own arm around his brother’s shoulders, much like Feyre with her sister. “It would be the perfect way to make him jealous and mad.”

“I think I piss him off enough by existing,” Azriel retorted, shrugging his brother off.

“You don’t get along with Lucien,” Elain asked turning back to look at them.

“High school rivalry turned work rivalry,” Az explained.

“Lucien and Tamlin have caused a lot of trouble for me and my family over the years,” Rhys added and Elain nodded in thought. She was curious what the two had done to these new friends she was making, but she wasn’t sure they would answer her if she asked, so she didn’t.

“This is us,” Feyre said turning to face the two males that had walked them home without even asking. Elain hadn’t even realized how close they had gotten to their apartment building, and she found herself sad that they hadn’t walked slower, or lived further. The two sisters lived two floors apart from each other, which was nice.

“I’ll see you next time I need a drink,” Rhys said talking to Feyre. They were both smirking at each other clearly waiting for the other to make the first move.

“Or you could call me,” Feyre said taking a step forward and slipping a piece of paper into the front pocket of his jeans. She kissed his cheek before turning and walking up the stairs to her apartment. Rhys watched her go, smiling the whole time.

“Hopefully I’ll see you around,” Elain said wishing she had talked to Azriel the whole night that way it wouldn’t be awkward for her to hand over her number.

“I’ll be around when that happens, “ he smiled at her before turning to catch up with his brother that had started to walk away. She waited until he was out of view before walking up to her apartment as well.

Unlocking the front door, Elain kicked her shoes off and hung up her bag and keys on the hook. Her cat, Jessie rubbed against her ankle as the lights flicked on. She smiled down at her cat before walking to the bedroom to get ready for bed. When that was done she plopped down on the mattress and under the covers.

Elain pulled her text messages up starting a new message. She knew she didn’t have to but she also was afraid Lucien would worry too much and she didn’t want that. Finding his number she entered a simple and to the point text.

It’s Elain, just letting you know I’m safe in my home.

Glad to hear it. See you soon ;)

Elain cringed at the winky face. She knew he was trying to suggest something she had never done, not even with Graysen. He wanted to flirt in a completely different way then she was comfortable with him, so she left Lucien on read.

Setting her alarm for the morning, she turned the lamp off once her phone was plugged up. Jessie curled up at her feet already starting to doze off. Elain tossed and turned slightly as she thought of that damned winky face. She almost gave up on falling asleep until hazel eyes appeared in her vision.

She thought of Azriel. Thought of his hazel eyes and the scars on his hands that had raised so many questions in her mind. Elain thought of the two most beautiful parts of the man that seemed to have been born of darkness. She thought of that darkness and pictured the light that rested in his soul.

As she pictured all this Elain began to fall asleep.

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withastolenlantern · 5 years

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As they wound their way through the fab, Chatham wondered what it would be like to have such a drive, independent of any ethics or human hesitancies. She sometimes felt almost mechanical in her hunt for justice, as if some command line deep inside her been hacked that adolescent evening, over-writing any other directives she might have grown to contemplate. But even then a choice had been made, whether by her own volition or not. She was not a form bound to its function, like these mindless machines, never deviating from their pre-programmed routines. She too had her governance, but within those constraints she was still free to act with some personal will; free to pursue her justice her own way, in direct contravention of orders if and when required, much to her superiors’ irritation. It was a comforting thought, here in this enormous monument to man’s drive to commercial advancement; the almighty pound sterling might still reign supreme, but the detective still got to decide how to spend hers. For now, at least.

Davis broke her from her reverie as he opened a large freight elevator that carried them down to the lower level. “This is a lot to take in, huh?” he asked as they descended. “I don’t know about you, but I’m really worried about what’s happening here.”

Chatham smiled reassuringly. “I’m afraid I don’t have the luxury of anxiety, Mister Santomas,” she lied. “Only a dangerous mix of curiosity and determination.”

The elevator doors parted, and they exited out into a loading dock. It was piled high with crates, each emblazoned with the Ross logo. The detective hunched down below one, prying futilely at the top, but it was nailed shut tight. Davis appeared behind her with a crowbar, and with a concerted effort they lifted the lid off, sending it crashing to the floor with a loud clang.

“What the hell was that?” a voice called from somewhere down the dock.

Chatham dove to the floor, taking cover behind the crate, pulling Santomas down by the belt loops as she fell. He looked to her with a mixture of surprise and fear, and she raised a finger to her lips in caution. “I thought you said no one was supposed to be here,” she whispered.

“They’re not,” he responded in kind. “This unit’s been idled, and I even checked the maintenance logs before we left to double-check. Whoever it is, I don’t think they’re with the Consortium.”

“And there’s no chance they’re Logistics Union?”

“No. The pick-ups are all automated. There’s a shuttered dock further down - basically a big hole in the floor. The haulers come in underneath and the cranes and drones over-head drop the cargo down onto the barges.” He gestured around the corner of the crate down the long axis of the dock. “Can even load standard cargo containers through them.”

The detective leaned around the corner of the crate, looking down the corridor toward the main hatch. Sure enough, she saw a large depression in the floor, which was open to the sea below them, and an enormous crane was lowering an assortment of crates through it. She also saw three figures standing around it, supervising. Two appeared taller, and were staring down at the floor with some kind of implements in their hands. The other was smaller, and must have been the one alerted by the sounds, as they were staring down the dock in Chatham’s direction.

“Stay here,” she instructed Santomas. “Don’t move.”

“Wait, wha-” he tried to interrupt, but before he could protest the detective had started quietly crawling through the maze of crates littered across the dock.

Chatham unzipped her tactical coat to her navel, and reached into the shoulder holster beneath to unclasp her revolver. With a practised ease, she also took out her mobile, and thumbed the commands to switch her glass’s overlay to an infrared filter profile. Her view of the dock instantly turned a near-uniform gray, with only bright orange splotches representing the heat blooms of the figures, and a lower intensity glare of the hot Caribbean air coming through the open dock door.

She slowly approached the figures, each duck-step deliberate as she tried to stay below the cover line of the crates. About five meters from the dock door, she paused to appraise the situation. The taller figures were men, wearing dark tactical gear of some kind. One was operating the crane manually, and the other appeared to be taking inventory as the cargo was lowered down onto what she could see now was some kind of hovercraft parked underneath the load hatch. The third person was a woman, short and wiry, with dark hair swept into a loose bun. She was walking back and forth, absent-mindedly smoking a thin cigarette, and clutching a rather large looking weapon that very closely resembled the holo-model Chatham had seen on the command console earlier.

The crane recessed back up into the dock, and the man with the control input hooked the end through a large eyebolt on another crate. As he swung the crane back over the gap, the crate slammed into the sidewall of the hatch with a large crash, and it pinwheeled on the chain as it lowered down onto the hovercraft.

“Bozhe moi!” the woman swore, startled. “Obratite vnimaniye!” She turned back, facing away from Chatham.

“Seriously,” the man with the datapad said. “If you break any of this shit it’s coming out of your share.”

The loader grunted in assent and resumed lowering the cargo back down through the hatch. The woman flicked the spent butt of her cigarette down with it, landing imperceptibly on the cargo bed of the craft.

“And watch what the fuck you’re doing, too,” the man cautioned sternly. “You know what’s in these crates.”

“Yebat' tebya,” she hissed in response, and took a cheap chemical igniter from her pocket to light another cigarette.

The second Chatham saw the flame flicker to life, she swung out from behind the cover of the crates and charged. Her shoulder landed in the small of the woman’s back, sending the mercenary careening forward and through the open dock door. Before she could attempt to arrest herself, her shoulders smashed into the lid of the suspended crate, sending her sprawling as she continued falling the twenty feet to the bed of the hovercraft. She landed feet first, but with a sickening crack, and crumpled to a heap.

“What the fuck?” the taller man, said clearly startled. Both looked up to see Chatham, her weapon drawn and pointed at them, and took a cautious step back from the load port. “Who the fuck are you?”

“I might ask you the same,” she replied, her gun drawn and aimed at his chest. “I suspect between the two of us, I’m the one here at the Consortium’s invitation.”

“You some kind of cop?”

She nodded in assent, careful to keep her revolver trained mid-chest. “His Royal Majesty’s Enquiry Service. And you are?”

The shorter of the pair took another step back, still holding the control panel for the crane. The taller man spoke for both. “Look lady, we’re just here on a job.”

“And what job would that be, pray tell? This unit is supposed to be decommissioned,” she said.

“Come out here, pick up the crates. Avoid any… entanglements,” he replied, clearly referring to her.

“Who hired you?”

He shrugged. “No idea. Anonymous job. Came in as an encrypted attachment.”

“And you’ve no idea whose crates these are?” she asked, gesturing around the dock.

“Unlike you, we’re paid not to ask questions,” he explained with obvious disdain.

Chatham heard a stir coming from below them, on the deck of the hovercraft. She glanced down to see someone emerge from the bridge area and kneel to examine the body of the woman. “Holy shit!” she heard him exclaim. “What the fuck happened?”

The detective took a step back from the edge of the opening so as to better conceal herself from view. She lifted a finger to her lips. “She fell,” she whispered in instruction.

The men stood silent for a moment before complying. “Dumb bitch fell through the hole,” the taller man yelled down. “I told her to watch out.”

“She’s fucking dead!” came the response. “You guys okay up there?” Chatham saw him pick up the weapon the woman had been carrying. She gestured with the barrel of her pistol, and nodded silently.

The men hesitated. She could see the shorter one shifting his weight on his heels, rocking nervously. Perhaps this was his first job, or at least he hadn’t expected any kind of trouble. The taller man stood upright, with an almost defiant confidence. He was clearly the leader, and she shifted her focus to him as he considered his options. She could almost read the calculus on his stoic face as he assessed the situation: for all he knew, she was alone, and whomever was paying them was unlikely to accept any explanation for their failure to deliver the goods. Killing an officer of the Commonwealth carried a substantial risk, but they hovered perilously above the great depths of the Caribbean sea, and it would be trivial to dump her body such that their neither their employer nor hers would ever find her. She rolled her eyes in a combination of disgust and frustration as she saw his face come alight with the same realization, and started a dive towards the cover of the crates before he’d even opened his mouth. “Fuck no, we’ve got company. Light it up!”

#long post #the world ocean #it's... still happening I guess

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robertkstone · 6 years

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2019 Byton M-Byte First Look: Mega-Byte

A couple of years ago, at the press introduction of the Toyota Prius C in San Diego, I was chatting with chief engineer Satoshi Ogiso, a central figure in the history Toyota’s hybrid technology. As we both stared at a Prius parked at the curb, I asked him what worried a guy like him about the future.

He answered more quickly than I expected (I’m paraphrasing here): “Startup car electric car companies. A gasoline engine has thousands of parts, and it takes a big company with a lot of resources to manufacture. But an electric motor is cheap with one moving part. The barrier for an electric car startup is very low. I worry about them.”

Five years later, his fear is realized: The entire drivetrain of the imminently arriving China-based Byton—its motors and powertrain electrics from Bosch, its underfloor battery pack from BMW-supplier CATL, with prismatic cells chargeable at a 180 kW rate—has been outsourced.

This particular version of Ogiso-san’s nightmare adds a twist, though: The Byton isn’t just another 0–60 EV railgun. While the 680-hp Tesla Model S P100D, 1,000-hp Lucid Air, and 754-hp Rivian R1T will all bazooka onto on-ramps, the Byton’s standard configuration—with a modest 272 hp rear motor and 71-kW-hr battery (250-mile range)—will be merely “quick.” Its “fast” version adds a front 204-hp motor that’s really just a shortened (cheaper) version of rear one, and the automaker claims can travel a Tesla-like 325 miles on 95 kW-hr. But even then, its combined 476 hp won’t raise one eyebrow among performance wonks these days. Although Tesla has sometimes crowed in their quarterly reports about MotorTrend’s blistering Model S 0–60 times, Byton President Daniel Kirchert tepidly defended his car’s performance to me, saying it’s “not a lame duck.”

Underwhelming? It’s intentional, one leg of a three-legged stool of foundational design bets, each totally dependent on the other two.

To be honest, the keystone is probably another company entirely: Aurora Innovation, Byton’s autonomous-tech partner. Although overshadowed by Waymo, Aurora is a first-tier player headed by Chris Urmson, from autonomous hotbed Carnegie Mellon, who became Chief Technology Officer of Alphabet’s self-driving program; Sterling Anderson, MIT robotics Ph.D. who led the team that created Tesla’s Autopilot; and Drew Bagnell, associate professor at Carnegie Mellon’s Robotics Institute and founding member of Uber’s Advanced Technology Center. It’s an all-star trio Byton is relying on when the M-Byte (Byton’s initial crossover offering) is delivered with available Level 3 autonomy late this year in China and 2020 in the U.S. and Europe. The prototype of the second Byton, the K-Byte sedan (due in 2021), even shows off visually obvious lidars—literally wearing its potential for Level 4 and 5 capability on its sleeve.

The puzzle pieces are starting to come together. Think about it: If a car is geofenced Level 3 autonomous, everyone inside is also usually a passenger, meaning the drivetrain really needs no more than chauffeur-level performance. All that supercar-level of horsepower is a waste of money better spent on the user’s digital experience and autonomy tech.

I’ve spent some time in Cadillac’s excellent L2+ Super Cruise system, and after about 10 freeway miles, you’re thinking two things. One: This thing’s noticeably destressing. Two: You’re pretty quickly bored. So last year I pilgrimaged to the opening of Byton’s satellite Santa Clara office—a 13-minute drive from Aurora’s Palo Alto location—where at that time, 150 people were focused on developing The Screen.

This thing is ridiculous

At 48 inches wide—spanning A-pillar to A-pillar—and 10 inches tall, The Screen has the surface area of more than 24 iPhone 10 Maxes. The glowing heart of the car, it’s the precious centerpiece that Byton isn’t outsourcing like its drivetrain or automation, and it’s designed to be replaceable as screen technology improves. Will it be 24 times more compelling than an iPhone 10? Our own Miguel Cortina, who grew up in Mexico City, saw the movie Roma in 70mm film at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood after first watching it on his tablet via Netflix. Better, Miguel? He strongly nods. Then again, while screen size matters, what matters most is what’s on it.

Directed by the Byton operating system, called Byton Life, the digital world being cooked up inside borders on the fantastical. Climb in the cockpit, and cameras on the dash identify you and everybody else while your phone and wrist heart-rate data is synced to the car. Blended with your seat-measured weight, health tips might appear: For instance, after setting a nav destination, the system might ask if you might like to park a half mile away from there to get a needed walk. The digital instrument display moves up and down on the screen when you adjust the steering wheel—there are plenty of extra pixels.

On the highway in Level 3, the Faurecia-supplied front seats can each swivel 12 degrees toward each other for easier chatting. To instruct the giant screen, the driver has a 7.0-inch touchpad on the steering wheel itself; no, the image doesn’t turn with the wheel (Byton calls the steering wheel an engineering feat all its own, given the airbag). The front passenger has an 8.0-inch touchpad in the center console, and both can just finger-point to spots on the screen using its gesture recognition. What about hand-bounce over bumps? Accelerometers compensate and predict where you’re pointing.

If you and a friend separately ask Alexa to play your individual music, it recognizes whose voice is whose. Do you like steak but your passenger is into seafood? Asking for a lunch recommendation returns places that serve both. Abe Chen, who leads Byton’s digital technology department, described another example: “Let’s say you drop your kid off every day at school and then go to Starbucks. The car recognizes your coffee appetite and suggests an interesting alternative nearby.” To enable this, the M-Byte will be the first car to have full connectivity on the go via multiple antennas and 5G preparation.

Creeped out by all this connectedness? Chen understands. At Apple, he created their worldwide new-product security team; he was Tesla’s director of information and product security; and in 2017, his group bested 75 other teams to win DEF CON’s Car Hacking Village Capture the Flag competition. CEO Carsten Breitfeld calls the Byton “mobility’s smartphone moment.”

Who the heck are these guys?

Carsten is a craggy, steel-eyed Ph.D. in mechanical engineering, a 20-year BMW veteran, a 10-year BMW Group Vice President, and most recently project manager of BMW’s carbon-tub Batmobile i8. His co-founder and Byton’s president, Daniel Kirchert, is lean, speaks concisely, and has spent much of his life in China learning its culture and business ropes as managing director of Infiniti China. These guys are the antithesis of an Asian web tycoon-turned-lawsuit-refugee or pot-puffing Twitter warrior. Breitfeld and Kirchert are seasoned, no-nonsense auto-industry Germans with decades of experience experiencing “manufacturing hell,” brought together by a Chinese seed-money investor.

During a Q&A session after the car’s debut at CES 2018, the more spontaneous Breitfeld leaned back and got to free-talking (in a manner that reminds me of a German James Mason). At 50 years of age, he could have ridden out that big career at BMW. But he chose to throw himself into one last life-defining battle and pull the ripcord into this uncharted new jungle of EVs and autonomous and connected cars.

One reason is the conviction that China will be writing the next chapter of the automobile. Problems at Byton, he says, are fixed by the time a legacy automaker would be drawing up a Gantt chart. Quickening the timeline is designer Benoit Jacob, responsible for the BMW i3 and i8. Breitfeld relies on his sensitivity to production practicalities, to avoid time-wasting misunderstandings between engineering and design. The $45,000 base-price M-Byte advanced from a conversation to reality in 28 months compared to the customary four, even five years for most automakers. Maintaining that pace, their third car—a bigger, seven-passenger MPV—will be based on the same platform and drivetrain as the M and K. (Byton openly questions Tesla judgement in creating two platforms.)

Although hubbed in Shanghai, Byton’s 1,500 employees are dispersed among five locations. Construction of the nearby Nangyang factory is complete with equipment now being installed. (Breitfeld says its initial capacity of 100,000 cars is a critical threshold for meaningful economies of scale; total capacity will be 300,000.) Roughly 100 M-Byte prototypes are being tested right now; design and engineering happens in Munich.

When I asked where Breitfeld finds scarce software engineers in the Silicon Valley area, Carsten smiled. “They just drive north up Interstate 5 from Gardena,” he said. That’s code for the home of Faraday Future and its perilous existence. Mention Faraday, and Byton’s founders simultaneously wince. Yep, they fully understand the skepticism—another futuristic, China-based EV startup, right? At every opportunity they seem anxious to be crystal-clear about their financials and partners.

The Ride

One evening during this year’s Los Angeles Auto Show, I stood in the chill night outside the mostly deserted convention center waiting my turn to ride in an M-byte prototype.

The car was a cobbled-together mule that snail-drummed over the street’s ripples and snapped Buddy Rich rimshots over the potholes. In actuality, its screen graphics were just a quickly monotonous video loop. So I sat back and just stared as the streets of downtown L.A. slowly reeled by me.

Ahead are two illuminated worlds. Looking up, the still-glowing neon office towers are slowly sliding past each other like giant playing cards. Left and right, people are prowling the dirty sidewalks beneath the renovated Depression-Era masonry lofts. Some of them are pausing to consider a restaurant I don’t know or crowding around a club or gallery that might be fun. Cocooned in this car, I’m abstracted from them. Like watching aquarium fish through the thick glass.

I stared at the other illuminated world in front of me—the panoramic Byton screen that’s still looping its same graphics. In a matter of months this could be the portal through that barrier, merging me to them, those places, that world out there. Recently, I called the Tesla Model 3 the Automobile 2.0. Maybe the Byton is what the post-automobile will look like. It’s not about driving. It’s about living. Suddenly conventional cars seem one-dimensional. Go from here. To there. This is 3-D.

A few years ago, we did a speculative story about what an Apple Car might be like. (Apple’s Project Titan was an open secret.) Soon after, Tim Cook pulled its plug, though smart money says they’re still developing an autonomous system. Now, the iPhone’s sales have softened, Apple’s stock has tumbled, and its failure to bet big again in the time since the Steve Jobs days is coming to roost. I ask you, Mr, Cook, how did the scrappy guys at Byton build the Apple Car you guys couldn’t?

IFTTT

#IFTTT #PerformanceJunk WP Feed 3

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sheminecrafts · 6 years

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Should cash-strapped Snapchat sell out? To Netflix?

Snapchat needs a sugar daddy. Its cash reserves dwindling from giant quarterly losses. Poor morale from a battered share price and cost-cutting measures sap momentum. And intense competition from Facebook is preventing rapid growth. With just $1.4 billion in assets remaining at the end of a brutal Q3 2018 and analysts estimating it will lose $1.5 billion in 2019 alone, Snapchat could run out of money well before it’s projected to break even in 2020 or 2021.

So what are Snap’s options?

A long and lonely road

Snap’s big hope is to show a business turnaround story like Twitter, which saw its stock jump 14 percent this week despite losing monthly active users by deepening daily user engagement and producing profits. But without some change that massively increases daily time spent while reducing costs, it could take years for Snap to reach profitability. The company has already laid off 120 employees in March, or 7 percent of its workforce. And 40 percent of the remaining 3,000 employees plan to leave — up 11 percentage points from Q1 2018 according to internal survey data attained by Cheddar’s Alex Heath.

Snapchat is relying on the Project Mushroom engineering overhaul of its Android app to speed up performance, and thereby accelerate user growth and retention. Snap neglected the developing world’s Android market for years as it focused on iPhone-toting US teens. Given Snapchat is all about quick videos, slow load times made it nearly unusable, especially in markets with slower network connections and older phones.

Looking at the competitive landscape, WhatsApp’s Snapchat Stories clone Status has grown to 450 million daily users while Instagram Stories has reached 400 million dailies — much of that coming in the developing world, thereby blocking Snap’s growth abroad as I predicted when Insta Stories launched. Snap actually lost 3 million daily users in Q2 2018. Snap Map hasn’t become ubiquitous, Snap’s Original Shows still aren’t premium enough to drag in tons of new users, Discover is a clickbait-overloaded mess, and Instagram has already copied the best parts of its ephemeral messaging.

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – SEPTEMBER 09: Evan Spiegel of Snapchat attends TechCruch Disrupt SF 2013 at San Francisco Design Center on September 9, 2013 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Steve Jennings/Getty Images for TechCrunch)

As BTIG’s Rich Greenfield points out, CEO Evan Spiegel claims Snapchat is the fastest way to communicate, but it’s not for text messaging, and the default that chats disappear makes it unreliable of utilitarian chat. And if WhatsApp were to add an ephemeral messaging feature of its own, growth for Snapchat could get even tougher. Snap will have to hope it can hold on to its existing users and squeeze more cash out of them to keep reducing losses.

All those product missteps and and market neglect have metastasized into a serious growth problem for Snapchat. It lost another 2 million users this quarter, and expects to sink further in Q4. Even with the Android rebuild, Spiegel’s assurances for renewed user growth in 2019 seem spurious. That means it’s highly unlikely that Snapchat will achieve Speigel’s goal of hitting profitability in 2019. It needs either an investor or acquirer to come to its aid.

Snapchat loses 2M more users in Q3 as shares sink to new low

A bailout check

Snap could sell more equity to raise money. $500 million to $1 billion would probably give it the runway necessary to get into the black. But from where? With all the scrutiny on Saudi Arabia, Snap might avoid taking money from the kingdom. Saudi’s Prince Al-Waleed Talal already invested $250 million to buy 2.5 percent of Snap on the open market.

Snap’s best bet might be to take more money from Chinese internet giant Tencent. The massive corporation already spent around $2 billion to buy a 12 percent stake in Snap from the open market. The WeChat owner has plenty of synergies with Snapchat, especially since it runs a massive gaming business and Snap is planning to launch a third-party developer gaming platform.

Tencent could still be a potential acquirer for Snap, but given President Trump’s trade war with China, he might push regulators to block a sale. The state of American social networks like Twitter and Facebook that are under siege by foreign election interference, trolls, and hackers might make the US government understandably concerned about a Chinese giant owning one of the top teen apps.

Regardless of who would invest, they’d likely demand real voting rights — something Snap has denied investors through a governance structure. Spiegel and his co-founder Bobby Murphy both get 10 votes per share. That’s estimated to amount to 89 percent of the voting rights. Shares issued in the IPO came with zero voting rights.

Evan Spiegel and Bobby Murphy, developers of Snapchat (Photo by J. Emilio Flores/Corbis via Getty Images)

But that surely wouldn’t sit well with any investor willing to pour hundreds of millions of dollars into the beleaguered company. Spiegel has taken responsibility for pushing the disastrous redesign early this year that coincided with a significant drop in its download rank. It also inspired a tweet from mega-celebrity Kylie Jenner bashing the app that shaved $1.3 billion off the company’s market cap.

Between the redesign flop, stagnant product innovation, and Spiegel laughing off Facebook’s competition only to be crushed by it, the CEO no longer has the sterling reputation that allowed him to secure total voting control for the co-founders. That means investors will want assurance that if they inject a ton of cash, they’ll have some recourse if Spiegel mismanages it. He may need to swallow his pride, issue voting shares, and commit to milestones he’s required to hit to retain his role as chief executive.

A Soft Landing Somewhere Else

Snap could alternatively surrender as an independent company and be acquired by a deep-pocketed tech giant. Without having to worry about finances or short-term goals, Snap could invest in improving its features and app performance for the long-term. Social networks are tough to kill entirely, so despite competition, Snap could become lucrative if aided through this rough spot.

Combine that with the $637 million bonus Spiegel got for taking Snap public, and he has little financial incentive or shareholder pressure compelling him to sell. Even if the company was bleeding out much worse than it is already, Spiegel could ride it into the ground.

Again, the biggest barrier to this path is Spiegel. Combine totalitarian voting control with the $637 million bonus Spiegel got for taking Snap public, and he has little financial incentive or shareholder pressure compelling him to sell. Even if the company was bleeding out much worse than it is already, Spiegel could ride it into the ground. The only way to get a deal done might be to make Spiegel perceive it as a win.

Selling to Disney could be spun as a such. It hasn’t really figured out mobile amidst distraction from super heroes and Star Wars. Its core tween audience are addicted to YouTube and Snap even if they shouldn’t be on them. They’re both LA companies. And Disney already ponied up $350 million to buy kids desktop social networking game Club Penguin. Becoming head of mobile or something like that for the most iconic entertainment company ever could a vaulted-enough position to entice Spiegel. I could see him being a Disney CEO candidate one day.

What about walking in the footsteps of Steve Jobs? Apple isn’t social. It failed so badly with efforts like its Ping music listeners network that it’s basically abdicated the whole market. iMessage and its cutesy Animoji are its only stakes. Meanwhile, it’s getting tougher and tougher to differentiate with mobile hardware. Each new iPhone seems closer to the last. Apple has resorted to questionable decisions like ditching the oft-missed headphone jack and reliable TouchID to keep the industrial design in flux.

Increasingly, Apple must rely on its iOS software to compete for customers with Android headsets. But you know who’s great at making interesting software? Snapchat. You know who has a great relationship with the next generation of phone owners? Snapchat. And do you know whose CEO could probably smile earnestly beside Tim Cook announcing a brighter future for social media unlocked by two privacy-focused companies joining forces? Snapchat. Plus, think of all the fun Snapple jokes?

There’s a chance to take revenge on Facebook if Snapchat wanted to team up with Mark Zuckerberg’s old arch nemesis Google . After Zuck declared “Carthage must be destroyed”, Google+ flopped and its messaging apps became a fragmented mess. Alphabet has since leaned away from social networking. Of course it still has the juggernaut that is YouTube — a perennial teen favorite alongside Snapchat and Instagram. And it’s got the perfect complement to Snap’s ephemerality in the form of Google Photos, the best-in-class permanent photo archiving tool. With the consume side of Google+ shutting down after accidentally exposing user data, Google still lacks a traditional social network where being a friend comes before being a fan.

What Google does have is a reputation for delivering the future. From Waymo’s self-driving cars to Calico’s plan to make you live forever, Google is an inventive place where big ideas come to fruition. Spiegel could frame Google as aligned with its philosophy of creating new ways to organize and consume information that adapt to human behavior. He surely wouldn’t mind being lumped in with Internet visionaries like Larry Page and Sergei Brin. Google’s Android expertise could reinvigorate Snap in emerging markets. And together they could take a stronger swing at Facebook.

But there are problems with all of these options. Buying Snap would be a massive bet for Disney, and Snap’s lingering bad rap as a sexting app might dissuade Mickey Mouse’s overlords. Apple rarely buys such late-stage public companies. CEO Tim Cook has been able to take the moral high ground because Apple makes its money from hardware rather than off of personal info through ad targeting. If Apple owned Snap, it’d be in the data exploitation business just like everyone else.

And Google’s existing dominance in software might draw the attention of regulators. The prevailing sentiment is that it was a massive mistake to let Facebook acquire Instagram and WhatsApp, as it centralized power and created a social empire. With Google already owning YouTube, the government might see problems with it buying one of the other most popular teen apps.

That’s why I think Netflix could be a great acquirer for Snap. They’re both video entertainment companies at the vanguard of cultural relevance, yet have no overlap in products. Netflix already showed its appreciation for Snapchat’s innovation by adopting a Stories-like vertical video clip format for discovering and previewing what you could watch. The two could partner to promote Netflix Originals and subscriptions inside of Snapchat. Netflix could teach Snap how to win at exclusive content while gaining a place to distribute video that’s under 20 minutes long.

With a $130 billion market cap, Netflix could certainly afford it. Though since Netflix already has $6 billion in debt from financing Originals, it would have to either sell more debt or issue Netflix shares to Snapchat’s owners. But given Netflix’s high-flying performance, massive market share, and cultural primacy, the big question is whether Snap would drag it down.

So how much would it potentially cost? Snap’s market cap is hovering around $8.8 billion with a $6.28 share price. That’s around its all-time low and just over a quarter of its IPO pop share price high. Acquiring Snap would surely require paying a premium above the market cap. Remember, Google already reportedly offered to acquire Snap for $30 billion prior to its final funding round and IPO. But that was before Snap’s growth rate sunk and it started losing the Stories War to Facebook. A much smaller offer could look a lot prettier now.

Social networks are hard to kill. If Snap can cut costs, fix its product, improve revenue per users, and score some outside investment, it could survive and slowly climb. If Twitter is any indication, aging social networks can reflower into lucrative businesses given enough time and product care. But if Snapchat wants to play in the big leagues and continue having a major influence on the mobile future, it may have to snap out of the idea that it can win on its own.

Snapchat loses 2M more users in Q3 as shares sink to new low

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theinvinciblenoob · 6 years

Link

So what are Snap’s options?

A long and lonely road

Snapchat loses 2M more users in Q3 as shares sink to new low

A bailout check

Evan Spiegel and Bobby Murphy, developers of Snapchat (Photo by J. Emilio Flores/Corbis via Getty Images)

A Soft Landing Somewhere Else

Snapchat loses 2M more users in Q3 as shares sink to new low

via TechCrunch

#IFTTT #TechCrunch

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fmservers · 6 years

Text

Should cash-strapped Snapchat sell out? To Netflix?

So what are Snap’s options?

A long and lonely road

A bailout check

Evan Spiegel and Bobby Murphy, developers of Snapchat (Photo by J. Emilio Flores/Corbis via Getty Images)

A Soft Landing Somewhere Else

Via Josh Constine https://techcrunch.com

#TechCrunch

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purelyfrivolous · 7 years

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Before throwing last year into the mental trash bin and letting ourselves get lost in looking forward, I thought it’d be good to stop and reflect on the things in 2017 that weren’t terrible.

Unfortunately it’s true that – while a grouping of 365 days can be neither good nor bad, as they’re just days – many uncomfortable and unfortunate things did cover last year in a bit of a deep fog. On a personal level, it was one of the darkest periods of time in my entire life. BUT, there was light and there was hope. AND WE MADE IT.

The death of my father and the worsening of my mother’s cancer brought me closer to my family and made me realize, deeper than ever before, that we cannot take anything for granted. The sudden passing of a former color guard student, in whom I saw so much of myself, caused me to take a look at my mental health and begin reaching out instead of turning in towards myself. The onset of a deeper-than-normal depression and a heightening of my anxiety led to a reevaluation of my priorities and allowed me to take a step back to regroup. Following my gut and doing what I felt was right instead of what I felt was required of me turned into one of the best summers of my life, full of laughter, growth, and joy – which, sandwiched between the difficult beginning and end to the year, was made even sweeter.

And, there’s no getting around the fact that the world is a little unhinged. That can sometimes make getting out of bed in the morning even more challenging. There are reasons to get up, my friends. There are things that are worth it and there always will be, if we make sure to continue looking for them.

So here I am, writing this post (the first of three) with some of my favorite things from 2017. This one is dedicated to some odds and ends as well as the two current books that I read last year. The next will feature the music that kept me going, and the last will contain the movies and television that made an impact on me.

Without further ado, here are a few of my favorite things that 2017 had to offer (in no particular order)!

Turtles All The Way Down, John Green & Little Fires Everywhere, Celeste Ng

The Voice & Addison Agen

“Call Me Mother” on SYTYCD by Mark Kanemura

Football?!

Santa Clara Vanguard, “Ouroboros”

Sterling K. Brown, This Is Us

Museums

Theater (and NYC!)

The Lonely, Swimming Pygmy Sloth from Planet Earth II

“The Hilarious World of Depression” Podcast / John Green / VlogBrothers / NYT Article

The Costumes and Production Design of Film and Television

Turtles All the Way Down & Little Fires Everywhere

Of the 20 books I read last year only two of them were released in 2017. They both ended up being phenomenal. John Green‘s Turtles All the Way Down was released this fall when I was amidst the darkness of losing my former student to suicide and dealing with my own inner demons. It was a little beam of light that helped illuminate the path forward. While the plot is sometimes head-scratchingly strange (the Tuatara, anyone?), it is the honesty with which Green brings OCD and anxiety to life through the main character, Aza Holmes, that sticks with me. There were moments while reading this book that I couldn’t shake the feeling that someone else understood a little part of my brain that I’d long believed no one else could. As Aza falls into her “though spirals” and picks away at a literal open wound she paints a picture of what it’s actually like to live mental illness on a day to day basis. I identified so strongly with this young woman that whatever issues arose in the plot didn’t matter. John Green is a brilliant writer and for those who often feels lost in their youth, still trying to find themselves, he is a kind of comforting truth. Turtles is a sometimes difficult read but it is one that will stay with me for a very long time.

If you escaped 2017 without seeing Celeste Ng‘s novel Little Fires Everywhere somewhere, you’re possibly a hermit. It was everywhere: Amazon’s “best novel of 2017,” New York Times Bestseller, Goodreads Readers’ Choice Award winner for Fiction, and the top of numerous other “best” lists. I’m naturally inclined to avoid such items as they surely cannot live up to the hype. For some reason I was drawn to this book nonetheless, and it did not disappoint. The titular fires became, for me, two of the central characters’ spirits. Along the way you’re introduced to a couple of women with spunky personalities that are unpredictable and endlessly interesting. Two families collide in surprising ways and there is an exploration of family dynamics that creates numerous meaningful moments. This novel isn’t exciting in an eventful plot kind of way but after a slow ignition, the metaphorical flames burn bright and enrapture.

The Voice & Addison Agen

I’d given up on The Voice after Season 4 for numerous reasons, most importantly the mammoth time commitment to catch each of the many hours that were broadcast each week over multiple nights. Occasionally I’d hear something I liked or a name would pop up on social media and I’d take note again for a second, but I’d largely moved on. For some reason I had to see what Jennifer Hudson was going to bring to Season 13, so I reluctantly tuned in. What a fulfilling choice that ended up being. The talent this past season was astounding. It is rare for me to watch a reality competition of any kind and like more than a small handful of contestants, but I constantly found myself loving a majority of the performances week after week. A core group stood out from the beginning – Chloe Kohanski, Brook Simpson, Noah Mac, Davon Fleming, and youngster Addison Agen – and astounded with each song in their own unique ways. It was the last in that list, 16-year-old Addison, that seized my attention. As with an actor that I’ll mention later in the list, Addison’s performances did something to me. She hit a nerve that cannot be explained. While she was on stage I couldn’t take my ears and eyes away. She, unlike many of the the most seasoned performers in the world, feels the music and conveys those emotions to her audience. She lives the notes. I truly believe that there is an enormous career ahead of her if she gets the right people around her and makes the kind of music she began leaning into throughout the course of The Voice. (“Tennessee Rain” is a legitimately wonderful track!) It is rare that someone comes along with the entire package – the voice, the stage presence, the songwriting skills, and the adorable and genuine personality. Watch out for this one. She is a superstar.

“Call Me Mother” on SYTYCD by Mark Kanemura

So You Think You Can Dance was another show that I’d sadly given up on following but found my way back to in 2017. The format had changed a bit since I’d last watched and I’d found it to be more exciting and than ever before. The all-stars brought so much to the show (I will watch Robert Roldan dance anything, anytime, forever) and the choreography was off the charts, not to mention the immense talent of the Season 14 contestants. The highlight of highlights however was a group number during the Top 8 episode that was choreographed by SYTYCD alum Mark Kanemura to the song “Call Me Mother” by RuPaul. Talk about a convergence of favorite things! Kanemura is a staple in my daily social media life with his hilarious Instagram antics (and obsession with Carly Rae Jepsen) and RuPaul is one of the most amazing humans on the planet, so when this number began my heart paused as to not interrupt the magic of it all. The unique choreography style that Kanemura has doesn’t always land, and his Gaga-dancer-days show up in certain moments, but this was the rare convergence of right song/right time/right moves/right performers. It all just worked, and it did so because of the bold (brave?) choices that Kanemura makes. He’s a person filled with unbridled energy and in this case his “go big or go home” style made for a hugely entertaining success. #YouRideThatTrainGurlllll

Football?!

Immediately following the dance number above, this seems an unlikely entry in the list. It’s as surprising to me as it is to most of my family and friends when I say that one of my favorite things from the last year was sitting down and voluntarily watching professional football. I’d avoided watching sports on television for most of my life, hiding out in my room while my father and brother took in game after game, but a joke interest in the Seattle Seahawks turned into a legitimate love of the NFL. I became a “fan” of the Seahawks because I liked their uniforms. My favorite color combination (my “wedding colors” as I’m annoying known to say) is bright green and navy blue and the northwestern vibe of the logo is an interesting departure from the mundanity of the rest of the NFL logo lineup. I watched a few games and began paying a little more attention to their coach and some of the players, and ended up finding myself getting more invested than I’d anticipated. I’d become a legitimate “12” and picked up a “backup team” along the way, too (Go Panthers!). It turns out that there’s a lot to appreciate in the game – and the athleticism, strategy, and philosophy behind the sport aren’t really that far away from my alternate universe of marching band & drum corps. Who knew?!

Santa Clara Vanguard, “Ouroboros”

Speaking of that alternate universe, one of the things that gave me immense joy in 2017 was the show “Ouroboros” by the drum and bugle corps Santa Clara Vanguard. The mythical snake-eating-it’s-tail idea was turned into an impeccably designed, cohesive, exciting, and original production that was performed at an unbelievable level. The uniforms (with their supper body serpent detail and scale-effect circular pattern), the musical selections, the gorgeous flag designs, the ridiculously effective choreography and movement, and those brilliant props! It all coalesces into one of my favorite drum corps shows of all time. Second place has never looked (or sounded) so good.

Sterling K. Brown, This Is Us & Elisabeth Moss, The Handmaid’s Tale

As with Addison Agen earlier in the list, there is something unexplainable about the actor Sterling K. Brown and the performances he gives. A standout in The People V. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story, he burst onto the scene and began picking up awards at every turn, but it is his stunning portrayal of “Randall Pearson” on This Is Us that establishes him as one of the best actors working today. I can’t pinpoint what exactly he does that makes me feel the way I feel when I watch him on screen. He, like Addison with music, strikes that nerve. He finds layers within a character and he manages to bring them all forward. A look, a tear, a monologue…he breathes life into the story and elevates it in a special way. Each week I tune in and find myself with tears in my eyes, saying, “I love him so much.”

Similarly, Elisabeth Moss astounds in every single second of her time on Hulu’s accolade-stealing hit, The Handmaid’s Tale. The show is a masterpiece (episode four is one of the most gorgeous, haunting, brilliant episodes of television I’ve ever seen) but it is vaulted into the atmosphere by the central performance of Moss as “June Osborne / Offred.” It is not an overstatement to say that she can command a scene and say paragraphs with only her eyes. She is beyond gifted as an actress and there is no denying that she is also one of the best in the business.

Museums

During my time at Iowa State University this past year I began looking more closely at museums and expanding my already large interest in art and exhibitions. I began the year with an internship on campus at the Textiles & Clothing Museum. It was a wonderful experience that forever changed the way that I look at museums and the objects they contain. With more knowledge of the behind-the-scenes process I developed a deeper appreciation for a good museum and all that it can offer. On the surface museums offer a place for the public to explore the treasures of the world and expose us to animals, paintings, sculptures, clothing, science experiments, and minerals that we otherwise would never get the chance to view. But they are so much more. They are institutions of learning for the most educated individuals doing research and for children on class field trips, and everyone in-between. They are a form of artistic expression in their own right, each having a specific vision and mission statement, and each working to enrich the world in a different way. Over the course of the year I made stops at many superb places including: The Des Moines Art Center (“Drawing in Space” was a phenomenal), the Metropolitan Museum of Art (what can you say other than WOW?), Cooper Hewitt (so unique and interactive – the future of the small museum!), The Museum at FIT (a tour with the curator of “Paris Refashioned, 1957-1968” was so enthralling that I came back only hours later to tour the whole museum), MoMA (Seeing Vincent van Gogh’s The Starry Night in person was so moving that I walked away to avoid crying in public), The Field Museum (an interesting look at the history of the tattoo was a highlight), the Joslyn Art Museum (gorgeous building!), the State Historical Museum of Iowa (where I kept gravitating back towards “Hollywood in the Heartland“), as well as Taliesin (Frank Lloyd Wright’s home and studio in Spring Green, WI.), and the zoos (Which are considered museums! Fun fact!) in Des Moines, IA., Madison, WI., Indianapolis, IN., and Chicago, IL. (Lincoln Park).

Cooper Hewitt, NYC

Joslyn, Omaha

State Historical Museum of Iowa

DSM Art Center

Theater (and NYC!)

I love theater. I especially love musicals, but anything on a stage will do. I attend a handful of productions each year but this year I outdid myself. Aside from the shows on national tours (Mamma Mia!, Fun Home, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nite-Time, Something Rotten!, Shaping Sound Co. (dance), and The Color Purple) my husband and I went all out during our vacation to NYC in March and in one week we saw 6 more productions! The Glass Menagerie was our first-ever play on Broadway and it featured Sally Field, Finn Wittrock, Joe Mantello, and Madison Ferris. The sparse staging and unique direction from Tony Award-winning director Sam Gold made for a polarizing production that ultimately failed to win over many of the critics and the most ardent theater-goers. Overall it was an unforgettable experience and quite the way to kick off our week in the city. Sunday in the Park with George was such a draw for us that we moved our trip back a few days so that we could catch the show before it closed. We couldn’t have made a better decision. It’s hard to describe how it felt to be sitting in that theater watching Jake Gyllenhaal and Annaleigh Ashford sing some of the most incredible songs ever written for the theater. I wasn’t a super fan of Stephen Sondheim, though I had enjoyed Sweeney Todd and Into The Woods, but this experience changed everything. Like Menagerie, there was a minimalist approach to the set design so the music and the performances were even more exposed than usual. I had expected to be distracted by Jake, being such a ginormous movie star, but I found myself unable to take my eyes off of Annaleigh. They were both remarkable (!!!) but there is that “something special” about Annaleigh and she was captivating. The whole show moved me so much more than I had expected. It was absolutely one of my all-time favorite theater moments.

Broadway Backwards was a last minute splurge for us in an attempt to avoid the unexpected cold and snow that accompanied a surprise winter storm during our “spring break” trip. While technically not a Broadway show, it was a stage production that took place in the area and had numerous Broadway actors, so it counts! Josh Groban, Cynthia Erivo, Julie White, Sierra Boggess, John Glover, Andrew Rannells, Santino Fontana, Carolee Carmello, Kathleen Turner, Andrew Keenan-Bolger and Jay Armstrong Johnson, as well as many other, performed songs written for the “opposite gender.” It was a once in a lifetime BLAST. We loved every moment of it. Then, there was the real reason we had made the trip to NYC: Dear Evan Hansen. I can’t say anything other than it instantly became my favorite musical of all time and Ben Platt’s performance will forever be seared into my mind. He was beyond words. I honestly cannot describe it without getting worked up and babbling endlessly. If you have not seen it, you must find a way. Even without Ben in the lead, it must not be missed. Seriously.

The same day that we saw D.E.H, we scored cheap tickets at the last minute for The Great Comet. It was the most complete theater experience I’ve had. From the moment you walked through the front doors into the lobby area you were transported to another time and place. The dilapidated walls adorned with Russian propaganda and the harsh fluorescent lighting in the “bunker” catch you off guard but, more importantly, they create a contrast that becomes apparent when you finally enter the main theater. Inside it is a velvety-red Swarovski fantasy. With 20,000 Swarovski crystals on the (gorgeous) starburst chandeliers, and another 110,00+ on the costumes, the entire room sparkled nearly as bright as the comet at the heart of the show. The immersive staging took everything up a notch and created an experience unlike any other. I didn’t always follow the famously complicated story line nor did I enjoy ever tiny aspect of the musical’s book, lyrics and score, but my goodness, what a production! Lastly, we finished out our week in Manhattan with a show that we had planned to see a year before when it first opened, Waitress. A change in plans meant that we had to wait to see Sara Bareilles’ heartwarming, hilarious, brilliant music come to life on stage. It was worth it. Christopher Fitzgerald and Drew Gehling made me laugh so hard I was in tears. Jessie Mueller demonstrated why she is one of the best on Broadway. We got to see the show again when it came to Des Moines on tour and it was just as wonderful the second time around. I wish I could bottle the feeling I have when I leave a theater after watching a show and keep it on hand for when I need a little boost in life. It is my therapy.

***OH! And, Caroline Rhea sat directly in front of us (a few rows behind Josh Gad) and took a selfie with us. So, basically, the BEST DAY EVER.

CAROLINE RHEA!

The Lonely, Swimming Pygmy Sloth from Planet Earth II

By far the weirdest entry in my list, this little guy stole my heart and I smile every time I think about him. A Pygmy Sloth is shown looking for a mate on an episode of Planet Earth II, and it is must-see television. It is narrated by David Attenborough and that spectacularly written script is key to the cuteness factor of the video (sadly the video below does not contain that narration). We learn that he hears a female across a body of water so he swims his little self across, only to find that the object of his affection already has a baby and is unable to mate. It. Is. So. Ridiculously. Adorable. Do yourself a favor and watch the entire series, which is astounding, and get the full version of this slothiest-sloth thing that has ever been.

“The Hilarious World of Depression” Podcast / John Green / VlogBrothers / NYT Article

The phenomenal book of John Green’s that I talked about at the top of this 3000-(and counting)-word post tied in with a set of other things that were extraordinarily important to me this past year. John appeared on a podcast that I’d fallen in love with called “The Hilarious World of Depression.” It solidified my appreciation for that podcast and made it something that I look forward to on a weekly basis. There’s something to be said for hearing people talk openly about the things that society has told us we should be ashamed of. I have spent my whole life feeling like my anxiety and depression were secrets that I had to mask and pretend didn’t exist. With this podcast you’re able to see that funny, famous, “important” people also have these issues, and we shouldn’t shy away from discussing them. It is only through bringing these things into the conversation that we will begin to remove the stigma, and possibly save lives.

John and his brother, Hank, also have a YouTube channel called “Vlogbrothers,” and I have grown to love their quirky uploads that explore a vast array of topics. Recorded as messages to each other, Hank and John shed light on different subjects but, more importantly, show us who they are as human beings. They are open and genuine, both qualities that aren’t currently overflowing in the social media world. It’s refreshing. Again, seeing them deal with their demons makes it just a little bit easier to deal with my own. Speaking of which, the last random part of this entry in the list is an article from the New York Times that came into my life at that darkest of dark times. It was called, “Why Are More American Teenagers Than Ever Suffering From Severe Anxiety?” and I had never read anything that discussed certain parts of my past in the way that this piece did. I missed a very large chunk of elementary school when I got sick at school and subsequently could not go back. I had a meltdown and became so afraid that I’d get sick again that I refused to leave my house. It was a terrible experience, working with someone to help me get in the car…then drive to the school…then get out of the car…then go into the school…each as their own step, over multiple days. I’d always held that somewhere deep within me, ashamed and absolutely convinced that my experience was complete unique. This article, published 24 years after my struggle, finally showed me that what I had gone through had a name – emetophobia. They describe it in this article as, “a fear of vomit that can be so debilitating that people will sometimes restrict what they eat and refuse to leave the house, lest they encounter someone with a stomach flu.” It turned out that I wasn’t crazy, and other people had dealt with similar things. I found myself in so many of the people described in the piece. It rang true and gave me the courage to finally reach out and begin my journey towards a life in which my mental health no longer controls me. It will be a struggle, but I’m grateful for this assortment of authors, podcasters, and vloggers that have already made it easier.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/11/magazine/why-are-more-american-teenagers-than-ever-suffering-from-severe-anxiety.html?mtrref=www.google.com&gwh=299DF44B0602F2616509623F61F4A9D7&gwt=pay

The Costumes and Production Design of Film and Television

Lastly, some of my favorite things this past year were costumes and sets in television shows and films. As an apparel-minded person I’ve always been drawn to costumes but my interest in the production design, cinematography, and the overall design of the entertainment I consume is new. I’ve opened my eyes to the whole product instead of just focusing solely on what the characters are wearing. The costumes have more purpose now and they are more meaningful because they exist within a complex world that has layers of meaning. Each detail comes together to tell the story and that makes for a richer viewing experience. Some highlights of the year were: The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (which I have discussed briefly here), The Shape of Water (a bit about the production design here), Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (even though I did not care for the film itself), The Crown, Wonder Woman, Beauty and the Beast, The Greatest Showman, Will & Grace, Riverdale, The Handmaid’s Tale, and Schitt’s Creek.

Sally Hawkins & Richard Jenkins in The Shape of Water

“Sally Hawkins in a scene from Shape of Water. The window arch was directly inspired by one in 1948’s The Red Shoes” ©Kerry Hayes/Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation.

GotG Vol 2. “Ayesha (Elizabeth Debicki)” – Photo: Film Frame/Marvel Studios

GotG Vol 2. “Mantis”

Wonder Woman

Rebecca Ferguson – The Greatest Showman

Hugh Jackman and the cast of The Greatest Showman

Fendi Jacket from Will & Grace

Schitt’s Creek

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Faves From 2017 (It Wasn’t Completely Terrible!) Before throwing last year into the mental trash bin and letting ourselves get lost in looking forward, I thought it'd be good to stop and reflect on the things in 2017 that weren't terrible.

#entertainment #Film #Television #video

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junker-town · 7 years

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Top daily fantasy football plays for Week 14 of the NFL season

With Week 14 of the NFL season upon us, we take a look at some of the best values to be found on Draftkings and FanDuel, and some players worth fading.

SB Nation will be bringing you the top Daily Fantasy options each week through the regular season and into the playoffs. We have a small sample size of which offenses look good to target and others we should avoid until further notice. As for who should be in your lineups, here are the top value plays of the week, with an eye toward low ownership and high upside.

Quarterback

Alex Smith, Kansas City Chiefs vs. Oakland Raiders ($6,500 DK, $8,200 FD)

Philip Rivers is going to be the popular play after his four-week run of excellence, combined with a plus matchup against Washington. But Smith is back on the upswing, as well, after torching the Jets last week. The Raiders are among the worst pass defenses in the league and the Chiefs are in desperation mode at home. Smith is a solid pivot off Rivers in tournaments.

Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks at Jacksonville Jaguars ($6,200 DK, $7,700 FD)

Casual DFS players are going to see Jacksonville as the opponent and write Wilson off. That’s fine for the rest of us, as the Jaguars might be without Jalen Ramsey and Wilson is, essentially, the entire Seattle offense at this point, as a passer and a runner. Wilson’s salary is the lowest it’s been all season, down $900 from last week. That’s called bargain shopping right there.

Jimmy Garoppolo, San Francisco 49ers at Houston Texans ($5,500 DK, $7,000 FD)

The numbers would tell you that Garoppolo struggled last week against the Bears in Chicago, but he actually played well against a tough pass defense on the road, leading an expert final drive for the win. Bill Belichick loved Jimmy G and the 49ers are about to find out why. So, too, I suspect, will the depleted Texans defense. Garoppolo might be the top point-per-dollar play on the slate.

DeShone Kizer, Cleveland Browns vs. Green Bay Packers ($4,900 DK, $6,400 FD)

Don’t look now, but Kizer is starting to become fantasy relevant down the stretch. He topped 20 DK points in 2 of 3 games before last Sunday and had a respectable 15 points against the brutal Chargers defense last week. Josh Gordon and Corey Coleman give Kizer two legit receiving weapons and the Packers secondary is an absolute mess right now. If Kizer can just stop with the turnovers, he’s capable of a massive output in this one.

Discount Darling: Eli Manning, New York Giants vs. Dallas Cowboys ($4,800 DK, $6,000 FD)

Holy narratives, Batman! The proud, two-time Super Bowl champion re-takes the field as the starter following the sacking of the coach and GM who benched him. The emotion in this game is going to be off the charts, and the Cowboys defense, even with the return of Sean Lee, might not be capable of stopping this wave. A Manning-Sterling Shepard-Evan Engram stack is definitely in play here.

Avoid: Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers vs. Minnesota Vikings ($6,200 DK, $7,700 FD)

The Vikings are going to take away Devin Funchess (Xavier Rhodes) and they possess the best defense in the NFL against running quarterbacks. That’s too many weapons that Cam won’t have at his disposal to justify his salary.

Also consider: Philip Rivers, Los Angeles Chargers; Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys; Blaine Gabbert, Arizona Cardinals

Running back

LeSean McCoy, Buffalo Bills vs. Indianapolis Colts ($7,200 DK, $9,000 FD)

There’s really only two possibilities here: Either a walking-wounded Tyrod Taylor starts, or Nathan “Five Picks” Peterman gets the call. In either scenario, it only makes sense that the Bills will try to rely heavily on Shady, who gets to face one of the worst defenses in the league against pass-catching backs. This could be check-down heaven for the full-point players on DraftKings.

Jamaal Williams, Green Bay Packers at Cleveland Browns ($5,900 DK, $6,600 FD)

With Ty Montgomery on IR, Williams will remain the lead back, despite the presence of Aaron Jones, who vulture the game-winning touchdown in overtime last week – his only carry of the game. Williams has 21 carries in each of the past two games and a similar workload is in the offing against a Browns defense that is softening lately against the run.

Lamar Miller, Houston Texans vs. San Francisco 49ers ($5,800 DK, $6,600 FD)

Miller also gets to face a defense that’s atrocious at stopping running backs who catch passes, allowing the most yards in the league in that category. With the receiving corps again short-handed, the Texans will rely on Miller a great deal, as they have the past few weeks.

Frank Gore, Colts at Bills ($3,900 DK, $5,500 FD)

The Bills have been downright dreadful at stopping the run since they traded Marcell Dareus. They are fourth-worst in the league in rushing yards allowed and dead last with 18 rushing touchdowns – 11 in the past five weeks. This is a great spot for Gore to enjoy a last hurrah and a great salary saver to allow for some of the high-priced backs to make a roster.

Discount Darling: Giovani Bernard, Cincinnati Bengals vs. Chicago Bears ($3,100 DK, $5,100 FD)

He might be the chalkiest chalk that ever chalked, with ownership north of 50 percent, but at $3,100 for the amount of production he’s going to provide, he’s going to be near impossible to fade. You just can’t get 8K production at that price. Eat the chalk and thank yourself later.

Avoid: Peyton Barber, Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Detroit Lions ($4,500 DK, $5,500 FD)

Barber was looking like another solid value play until Doug Martin cleared concussion protocol. Barber should still have a role, but nothing like last week, when he was named the starter right before kickoff and ran wild on the Packers. Sadly, the volume just won’t be there this time.

Also consider: Todd Gurley, Los Angeles Rams; Kareem Hunt, Kansas City Chiefs; Mike Davis, Seattle Seahawks.

Wide receiver

Adam Thielen, Minnesota Vikings at Carolina Panthers ($7,200 DK, $7,500 FD)

The Panthers have been routinely blown up by opposing wide receivers and Thielen is probably going to have a depressed ownership level after a genuine stinker last week, coming off the heels of a somewhat underwhelming Thanksgiving Day performance. Third one the charm? That’s a bet DFS players should be willing to take.

Michael Crabtree, Oakland Raiders at Kansas City Chiefs ($6,700 DK, $7,100 FD)

Just as Crabtree returns from a one-game suspension, Chiefs top cornerback Marcus Peters heads off with a one-game ban. Talk about timing. Add to that the strong likelihood that Amari Cooper either sits out with injury or plays on limited basis. In game with enormous playoff ramifications, expect Crabtree to come out angry and loaded with target share.

Marquise Goodwin, San Francisco 49ers at Houston Texans ($5,100 DK, $5,700 FD)

Whenever a new quarterback takes over, it can take a while for pricing to catch up the actual roles the receivers take on after the adjustment period. The small sample size seems to indicate that Jimmy Garoppolo enjoys throwing the ball to Goodwin, whom was targeted eight times last week in Chicago. Goodwin caught all eight, so there’s chemistry there right off the bat. Against a soft pass defense, Goodwin could be a smash candidate at just over 5K.

Corey Coleman, Cleveland Browns vs. Green Bay Packers ($4,100 DK, $5,700 FD)

Josh Gordon is going to be the super-chalk at wide receiver. But unlike Gio Bernard, this chalk can be faded with confidence. With so much ownership going to Gordon, Coleman is going to go almost entirely overlooked against a defense that will struggle with all Browns pass-catchers. This is a potential GPP-winning pivot play, as Kizer and Coleman already have a solid rapport, pre-Gordon.

Discount Darling: Chester Rogers, Indianapolis Colts at Buffalo Bills ($3,000 DK, $5,100 FD)

This is my favorite play on the entire slate, and I’m praying the DFS community doesn’t get wise to the opportunity here. With Donte Moncrief ruled out, Rogers should see increased work as the opposite receiver from T.Y. Hilton. Rogers has 16 targets over his past three games and torched the Steelers, of all teams, three weeks ago for 25 DK points. The Colts want to see what they have with Rogers and the Bills are in the top-10 for most catches allowed to wide receivers this season.

Avoid: Corey Davis, Tennessee Titans at Arizona Cardinals ($4,200 DK, $5,600 FD)

Patrick Peterson alert. Move along.

Also consider: Keenan Allen, Los Angeles Chargers; Mike Evans, Tampa Bay Buccaneers; Cooper Kupp, Los Angeles Rams.

Tight end

Delanie Walker, Tennessee Titans at Arizona Cardinals ($5,700 DK, $6,600 FD)

Did we mention that Corey Davis is going to get the Patrick Peterson treatment? With RIshard Matthews active but coming off a hamstring injury, Marcus Mariota will likely lean on his trusty tight end who has six straight games in double-figure DK points. Walker is as un-sexy as it gets, but he produces at low ownership, and that’s all you can ask for.

Jimmy Graham, Seattle Seahawks at Jacksonville Jaguars ($5,000 DK, $,6090 FD)

Like Wilson, DFS owners are going to shy away from Graham because of the matchup, but Graham stands as the most prolific tight end inside the red zone and has scored at least one touchdown in four straight games and 7 of 8. Wilson will run around in the backfield for five minutes, then hit Graham for a score. Bank on it.

Austin Seferian-Jenkins, New York Jets at Denver Broncos ($3,600 DK, $5,900 FD)

If the refs actually get the call right, you can almost guarantee ASJ gets a touchdown this week against one of the worst defenses against the tight end position in the league. It’s been the Robby Anderson/Jermaine Kearse show for the Jets the past few weeks, but Aqib Talib and Chris Harris will likely flip that script this week, and Seferian-Jenkins should be the prime benefactor.

Ricky Seals-Jones, Cardinals vs. Titans ($3,400 DK, $4,500 FD)

Until Blaine Gabbert decides he actually doesn’t love showering Seals-Jones with targets, we’re going to keep listing him here. The Titans are very beatable through the air, and outside of Larry Fitzgerald, this the pass-catcher on the Cardinals worth investing in.

Discount Darling: Stephen Anderson, Houston Texans vs. San Francisco 49ers ($3,200 DK, $4,500 FD)

Will Fuller is expected back, but C.J. Fiedorowicz and Bruce Ellington are on IR and Braxton Miller has been ruled out. Anderson had a 5-79-1 line on 12 targets and he should see similar volume and production against the 49ers.

Avoid: Kyle Rudolph, Minnesota Vikings at Carolina Panthers ($4,800 DK, $6,000 FD)

The Panthers allow next to nothing to opposing tight ends, which makes Rudolph’s high salary a no-go.

Also consider: Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs; Jason Witten, Dallas Cowboys; David Njoku, Cleveland Browns.

Defense

Los Angeles Chargers vs. Washington ($3,600 DK, $5,100 FD)

Indianapolis Colts at Buffalo Bills ($3,500 DK, $4,100 FD)

Cincinnati Bengals vs. Chicago Bears ($3,300 DK, $4,600 FD)

New York Jets at Denver Broncos ($3,300 DK, $4,500 FD)

Discount Darling: Minnesota Vikings at Carolina Panthers ($2,700 DK, $4,600 FD)

Avoid: Houston Texans vs. San Francisco 49ers ($3,200 DK, $4,800 FD)

0 notes