#squares go psychedelic

[mediamime]

Supernatural and the Concept of Grace

Hi! It's your friendly neighborhood Media Mime and I'm here with a wall of text about my insane thoughts on how Angels work.

From the TV show Supernatural.

I don't know what I'm doing with my life.

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These are headcanons, mind you, so they aren’t supported by the show. I just think way too much about stuff like this.

This all stems from how beings from a different plane of existence would be borderline incomprehensible to humans. The whole, true form and voice not being viewable/hearable led to me thinking about them in more abstract forms.

I’m going to give you some weird background stuff below, but feel free to skip to the end if you’re just here for the Grace mechanics and things.

*Edit: Making the lil click more bar because I realized I never did this and the Post Is Too Long.

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My day job is as a Math Adjunct, so you can imagine I have a bit of a fixation on recurring principles, formulas, geometry, and so on.

It’s my jam. 

Specifically, I have a focus on Mathematics in Nature. It's fascinating to me that we see the same shapes and patterns recurring over and over again in all natural formations.

I want to stress that to get into this kind of thing, you don’t actually need a background in Math. There are several resources online that provide examples and visual guides to this field of study. I’ve provided a visual guide below of some of my favorite phenomena as well as a basic (very basic) explanation of the principle. 

I ain’t getting paid for this right now, so you get what you get!

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Now is also a time to mention that I took some psychedelics in my 20s that made me See Some Shit. This is not meant to be inspirational. I just think I should mention it because you see a lot of Stuff on them, not always Stuff you want to see. You can look up information about psychedelic geometry and skip the hassle of ingesting things you probably shouldn’t.

Don’t do drugs kids, or whatever.

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The Fibonacci Sequence is where numbers ascend by adding the two previous numbers to itself. This plays a key role in something known as the Golden Spiral. For a very basic explanation, you take a square and draw an arc from one corner to the next and repeat with bigger and bigger squares.

1,

1 + 1 = 2,

1 + 2 = 3,

2 + 3 = 5,

3 + 5 = 8,

5 + 8 = 13,

and so on.

The curve itself is seen in the way plants grow, shells form, and weather formations to name a few. 

(The following are not my images, but they are readily available online. )

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Tessellations are repetitive polygons (shapes with 3 or more connecting lines, think triangles, squares, hexagons) that form together, without gaps.

In nature, the real world, there are examples of malformations, but Math is an explanation of the ideal principle.

We can see these structures in scales, honeycombs, and so on.

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Fractals are where we see the same pattern repeat at smaller and smaller forms of itself.

There is a lot of overlap of this with the Fibonacci Sequence (these patterns often appear INSIDE of the spiral), but it is its own concept.

Fun fact, fractals play a significant role in Chaos Theory, which I will not get into here because we would be here all day.

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Anyway!

Sorry!

Carried away there.

Back to Supernatural (what an insane transition) and how this wraps into my concept of Grace.

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Angels are filled with this kind of naturally occurring phenomena, a sort of endless collection of patterns. They are essentially manifestations of this idea or at least they process the physical world in this way.

Castiel mentioned eating molecules ONE TIME and well, I ran with it.

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A couple of examples I feel strongly about, using Castiel as an easier point of entry than say, Lucifer or Gabriel:

Angels think in a series of sensations, like a form of Synesthesia.  Synesthesia is a concept explored in both psychology and cognitive neuroscience where people express the feeling of multiple senses activating at once. So for instance, the words might leave you with an impression of color or sounds may give you a physical sensation. I think Angels can, and do, adopt a more human perspective the longer they interact in the physical world. This is especially relevant during the time they are essentially made human, but I think the way they interpret information remains abstract. Just a fun fact, if you have Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (which is usually shortened to ASMR), you have a higher chance, according to some studies, of having a form of Synesthesia. 

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Angels also think in patterns. For Castiel, in the beginning: His thoughts are very vibrant. Primary colors denote curiosity. The structure of those thoughts are very rigid. He thinks more in straight lines rather than curves. The movement of the thoughts is calculated and repetitive. Learning something for the first time is difficult, so splitting it into individual pieces is easier to comprehend. This is where we get The Face from, you know the one. He perceives things in his own way which makes him socially awkward in human form. As he gets more familiar with the physical world, and the boys in general, his perspective shifts. He has more robust colors dedicated to the people or objects he interacts with and they shift around easier. His thoughts are less linear and more curved and organic. He has less set structure because he isn’t learning as much anymore, he has an understanding he can build off of and make more defined to himself.  Learning to love humanity requires flexibility that doesn’t come naturally to Angels, so he actively works at it.

Seeing souls is easier than interpreting the actual look of people. This is a doozy, but we will take Dean as an example because I’m Destiel/Deancas pilled. To Castiel, Dean looks the way he looks, smells the way he smells, sounds the way he sounds, and so on in physical form. Castiel learns to interpret him in that way as the series goes on, but his soul, the essence of him, has its own set of sensations. The following are not literal, although I’m sure some would translate that way. He sounds like a crackle of fire and a low drum. His colors are darker oranges and blues and greens. He feels like a soft rain and sun on a warm day. He tastes of barrel aged liquor and smoke. He smells like a hearth and earth after it rains. He feels like every aspect of the impala, from the cold metal to the supple warm leather.  Obviously some of these senses shift and change from time to time, but that forms the basis of what Castiel recognizes as Dean.

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Grace is at least partially visible to other angels and partially felt by humans. Other angels can see each other in their vessels. So they have a concept of what they look like in their true forms, despite being hidden inside of something.  This implies they can experience similar sensations as the other angels they look at, although I don’t like the idea that they can see their “thoughts” necessarily. I would imagine they can “feel” a sudden intense set of emotions/sensations from another angel however, in the way that humans can tell someone’s emotions through facial expression or tone of voice.

---

Humans can learn to experience angels, albeit in a form that is easier for them to comprehend.  Dean doesn’t experience anything special about Castiel when they first meet, outside of the generic information we get about Angels and the obvious senses he can use: seeing, hearing, smelling, (gods I wish tasting was on this list but! Alas!) As Dean gets closer with him, he can start to “hear” him. I like to think he sounds like a pleasant hum or a slight ringing, similar to a wind chime, depending on his mood. Dean, specifically, makes him hum lower than usual. If he were to hum out-loud, it would harmonize with the way his grace sounds. It takes longer to perceive colors, but I think Dean would see the little flashes of blue, similar to the way Castiel’s eyes get when he’s using his powers. This is why I typically put a little blue squiggle between them when I draw them together. Plus other senses, sorry but this is long enough as it is. You likely get the point by now!

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Anyway, I’m very happy that literally anyone has even a passing interest in my interpretation of these things.

Formatting this was a nightmare and I feel particularly insane today.

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Writing Notes: Fashion History

for your next poem/story (pt. 2/2)

1950s

The 1950s were a time of large cultural and social change, which was reflected in the world of fashion. The Korean War began in 1950, followed by the introduction of the color TV in 1951. And in 1954, the modern civil rights movement began.

As the suburbs became popular, family and domesticity for women became a prominent force in society. Additionally, teenagers became fashion consumers and market leaders for the first time.

Due to technological advances, new fibers such as polyester, triacetate, and spandex are introduced. 

The prominent trend of the time was femininity, as shown by the prominence of Christian Dior's "New Look". Shape was emphasized by full swing skirts or narrow pencil skirts, as well as fitted bodices and a small waistline achieved with the help of petticoats and girdles. Elegant accessories and jewelry such as hats and pearls were popular at the time, and high heels were ubiquitous. Other trends included Peter Pan collars, tapered or capri pants, and the introduction of the bikini. 

1960s

The Beatles led the music and fashion “British Invasion,” influencing teenagers with their Mod aesthetic.

The Civil Rights movement led to the popularity of ethnic and African-inspired garments such as dashikis and caftans.

The 1960s were marked by eclecticism, both in fashion and society. A plethora of styles were fashionable at one time, ranging from space age fashions using vinyl and synthetics, to bold prints, colors, and disposable paper dresses inspired by Pop Art.

Mod fashion appeared on the London scene, with fashion designer Mary Quant as the “high priestess” of the style, and Twiggy as its supermodel.

Boutiques, a 1960s creation, began offering designer ready-to-wear collections, while easy-care fabrics were increasingly used by the general public.

Longer hemlines were dominant with maxi skirts and granny dresses, while hot pants and mini skirts were adopted by the younger market. These shorter hemlines popularized the use of pantyhose for modesty. As the decade progressed, chemise dresses that typified the dominant straight A-line silhouette became popular. Turtleneck blouses and sweaters were common, and sleeves were usually three-quarter length. Sleeveless tops were worn after the mid 1960s.

Jacqueline Kennedy became a major fashion icon, famous for her sophisticated style, pillbox hats, and pearls. Overall, hats in general experienced a decline in use, due to the popularity of high bouffant hairstyles.

Knee high go-go boots were popular, patent was often used, and low-heeled, square-toed shoes were common.

Popular accessories included headbands, bold jewelry, and matching shoes and handbags.

1970s

During the 1970s, the eclecticism of the previous decade continued, and influences from subcultures dominated fashion.

The Vietnam War ended in 1973, and the first Earth Day was celebrated in 1974.

The hippie subculture emphasized environmental awareness and social acceptance, translating into the popularity of natural fibers and earth tones, loose garments, blue jeans, and ethnic influences in dress.

Peasant blouses and skirts and psychedelic prints were popular, as well as historic revival styles.

In the late 1970s, music styles such as glam rock, disco, and punk influenced fashion and resulted in flashy, often shocking styles.

For the most part, clothing was loose and unstructured compared to previous decades. Skirts came in a variety of lengths — mini, midi, or maxi — although the mini and maxi were the most popular.

Unisex styles in clothing became a trend and were perpetuated by Diane Keaton’s character in the 1977 film, Annie Hall.

Trousers and blue jeans were worn by women more than ever before. Designer jeans arrived on the market, resulting in the birth of “licensing” for non-fashion products. Polyester was the other preferred textile for trousers.

1980s

With the rise of new media such as MTV, the 80s fashion landscape began to shift rapidly.

The televised wedding of Prince Charles and Diana Spencer caused a fashion frenzy, with "Lady Di's" elegant hats, tailored suits, and evening dresses making her a global style icon. 

The 1980s were known as the "Me" Generation, with an emphasis on logos and designer labels.

The decade also saw the rise of yuppie (young urban professionals) culture, and the introduction of the fitness craze.

In the world of high fashion, postmodernism and avant-garde fashion were vastly influential. With the introduction of yuppie culture, business attire and "power-dressing" with items like shoulder pads was a popular trend.

In light of the fitness craze, leg warmers, tights, and leotards were widely worn, and women accessorized with big hair, flashy costume jewelry, and bright heels.

In terms of undergarments, Madonna and Jean-Paul Gaultier inspired an underwear-as-outerwear trend alongside the popularity of Calvin Klein.

1990s

The 1990s reflected subcultures such as punk, goth, and grunge in fashion.

Hip-hop music became popular and as a result, urban fashion was popularized.

Unlike previous decades, the 1990s was notable for a more relaxed and casual look, as well as the introduction of technology such as cell-phones and pagers.

With the rise of globalization & technology, the fashion cycle began to speed up. 

1990s style was often considered "anti-fashion,"  with purposefully clashing or contradictory aesthetics.

Black, minimalist styles were popular, as well as vintage and 1970s style.

Many younger people sported crop tops, cargo pants, and blue jeans, and athletic wear in daily life. In terms of shoes, high heels, wedges, sandals, platforms, and sneakers were all widely worn.

More Notes: On Fashion ⚜ More: Writing Notes & References

[papafuckingemeritus]

NOT MINE, but and absolute incredible theory on Ghost in the Trees found on Ghostbc subreddit that is too good not to share. Credit to VisAeternitatus on Reddit.

“Buckle up. You'll either find this interesting, or tell me I'm insane.

“The "Ghost in the Trees" VHS tape sitting atop the stack of other videos in the movie caught my attention because it simply doesn't fit and doesn't have anything to do with anything that we know of. Kinda like the cardinal sitting on top of the gravestone in the Square Hammer video. At the time, so random- yet it was a hint. We see this VHS tape twice during the movie, and it's sitting on top of an Infestissumam era tour video ‘Haze over North America Tour 2013’

“I googled "Ghost in the Trees" and came across this psychedelic garage art-rock album by a band called Thee Oh Sees. There's a song of the same name on their album, "The Masters Bedroom is Worth Spending a Night In". Other than carnal delights, why might one spend a night in the Master's bedroom? Usually something to do with conceiving the antichrist, right?

“The album cover and subject matter seemed Ghost-related enough for me to continue going down the rabbit hole, so I listened to the entire album. I have no doubt in my mind that TF is familiar with and has listened to this, I get a lot of raw vibes from it that one might perceive in all three Nihil-era songs.

“So why is this here, and what does it have to do with anything? Good question, and I honestly don't know but I just thought I'd throw out some possible breadcrumb trails. This is all some pretty loosely related stuff, but when considered all together who knows?

“1. I immediately noticed a similarity that the devil on Thee Oh Sees album has to the devil in the center panel of the red tour backdrop that started going up during Square Hammer (third photo).

“2. Proximity to the Infest era tour video along with some Papa II-related stuff in the movie also had me thinking "antichrist stuff". No, not that Copia is the antichrist. Rather, that his twin might be.

“Why? Well, during sister's life flashback scene, right before the twin birth is shown, there are a series of hidden images. We see an eclipse, a still shot from the Year Zero video of a hand reaching up towards a church window, a b&w still from the Dance Macabre video where the devil arrives, and two separate shots of Infest era ghouls. (These images go by so fast that they are practically subliminal!)

“So why are we seeing clips from a Papa II era song, and shots of his ghouls? Why do we see a cut to his face on the stained glass stage backdrop during the movie when Imperator is talking about how everything is "cyclical"? We even see Infestissumam in the background of the VEEPS bonus video.

“So I've seen different theories. Papa II is returning! Copia is the antichrist! Etc, etc.

“I think showing all the Papa II stuff could have something to do with the antichrist, not that Papa II is coming back. Infestissumam was about the antichrist's time on earth. Not to mention that some religious people believe that an eclipse supposedly occurs at the birth of the antichrist (and we are shown an eclipse right at the birth scene!)

“Also, we've seen a lot of antichrist type of imagery related to Copia, he's got the 666 tattoo, etc. If he's a copy (Copia), then his twin could be the antichrist.

“3. Back to the red devil background that appears during Square Hammer. There's a winged pope figure shown above the devil. I thought it was Copia, to be honest. But he's wearing a beehive shaped mitre, and the same shaped mitre appears above him, larger and wrapped in flames. This is actually a Papal Tiara, not a regular mitre. It used to be worn when a new Pope was "crowned". Why would a demon winged Copia be wearing this on a backdrop at the end of the tour? He was already "crowned" in Mexico City. And who appears at the Ministry doors at the very end?! Someone who is about to become the next Papa?

“4. I also wonder, who raised Copia's twin? And how could Copia's twin be the antichrist? Do they have two different Fathers, or was it during some ritual?! Does it have something to do with Papa II? Maybe the twin grew up influenced by him in some way?

“5. I also wonder if "Ghost in the Trees" is a musical stylistic hint of sorts, in relation to the Papa II era. This album is psychedelic post punk garage rock. It's an interesting listen and is all over the place stylistically. "Psychedelic" is frequently used to describe aspects of Infestissumam, too, as is garage rock and surf rock, even.

“I recall an interview where TF said that Phantomime was where he was leaning to take the sound for the future album. Well, there's two specific covers on Phantomime that have similar flavor to Thee Oh Sees- "See No Evil" by Television (often described as post punk/art rock/garage rock) and "Hanging Around" by the Stranglers- which has VERY psychedelic/garage rock vibes.

“So do what you will with that, but I'm wondering if the next album is going to have that element (not in the way the Nihil-era songs do, though!).

“Thank you for reading this mess and if you have any better ideas, please do share. I just wanted to get this off my chest.”

Tobias never ceases to amaze me, and I have no doubt there is something to “Ghost In The Trees.”

[manchesternh]

Mosaic Art Collective is a name I'd heard before I stumbled upon a call for the "Illusions" show, a show focused on blacklight-sensitive and psychedelic art which opened February 8th 2025 in the Hanover Street artspace. I've never been to one of their events but Mosaic shares the space with "See Saw Gallery," a spot where I participated in a group show last year, so I knew what to expect when stepping off the elevator. Still, my expectations were exceeded. Shows I've seen so far in Manchester haven't reached, in my opinion, the potential we hold for an active and imaginative art scene--usually the works featured are small, grouped together without much apparent concern for their interplay, and made of materials available to middle schoolers. As grateful as I am for shows that allow for that kind of work, my hopes were that "Illusions" would exceed those limits, that something would take my breath away. Overall I was not disappointed.

Coming down the hall and stepping into the dark, blue-violet rectangular rooms, you might get caught on the first few pieces in the entryway. These are geometric, sometimes abstract, and have low blacklight reactivity, though they are visible enough. Though I am drawn to abstract work, I am a postmodernist at heart, which is why I found "What if I Made a Self Portrait in Minecraft?" very funny. It is a piece that demonstrates the sort of rote mechanical grind of pixel art, painting squares, and playing Minecraft, all at once, and a portrait to boot. Is this how we chose to see ourselves? In our component colors, our most simplified pieces?

What draws the eye, after one crosses through the hall, is Marisa Egerstrom's "Flores: interstellar mycellium." This is a (roughly) six foot tall sculpture of a sort of luminescent alien flower. The petals are tessellated glass, giving them a sort of scaly look. The stem and stamen house a series of light-up bulbs which slowly blink at different rates, some changing color. It's the kind of piece I would absolutely put in my house, a collaboration of beauty and danger and whimsy which demands that we ask: what if a house plant was going clubbing?

At this point I must admit that my usual method of noting the names and titles of artworks--that is, taking a photo with my phone--was ineffective due to the lighting state of the space. I didn't notice until afterward. This is unfortunate, because I can't name the artist of the piece which is still bouncing hardest around my mind--a sort of stop sign with a styrofoam emerging from it. The face is split in two, with a duct tape mouth and a pensive expression. It makes me think of a person in two minds, and also someone being silenced. I suspect the zine hanging on the wall to the right of the piece explains it a little more, but I was too shy to pull a little paper booklet off the wall and examine it--and the light wasn't ideal for it. Still, I found myself in the position that the best art puts me in, where I am contemplating a message and meaning rather than simply admiring imagery.

Another piece that invites deeper introspection is "Mabel," a statue of a horse painted with checkered print. It's larger than a cat and surrounded by framed 4x6 photos of itself, and various other figures, in different settings, expressing the tendency of Mabel to travel. The statue marks the room's left far corner, and begins a segment of the room dedicated mostly to images of animals and creatures. For instance, "Don't Separate The Party or We're Getting the Band Back Together" is a tiny little pen drawing of creatures--an alien, a deer, a cat, and a skull--in the woods. Their eyes all luminance with a dab of neon paint, a striking effect. The frame is wood, echoing the forest setting of the image. I was impressed with the consideration given to presentation and the vaguely referential title--is this an adventuring party, like in a game? Am I an enemy combatant, to be on the receiving end of such a stare?

Amidst the creatures and woodland artifacts is a stand out piece, Marcia Wood Mertinooke's "Dream of Creme," a temptation for fans of miniatures that depicts the Cremeland drive in signage. Neon thread is used to create the neon sign effect, and it absolutely glows in the blacklight as intended. This might be an opportune time to mention that some pieces, like this one, really utilized the lighting well, while others failed to employ it or were failed by it. Fluorescent paintings or yarn pieces glowed impressively, but other works sunk into the shadows or paled in natural light from the window. I don't think this was a failure on the gallery's part as it's a small space and only so much direct black light can go around. One effect, however, was that I overlooked a few pieces until I set my phone camera on them, and then they came alive on the bright screen where before they'd been unimpressive.

Lofi music is playing at just the right volume in the space on the night of the opening. There's a crowd a half hour after doors, at least twenty people clustering around the small room or in the smaller adjacent nooks. It's a nice turnout but doesn't impede the art-gawking, unless you're impatient or can't follow the flow of traffic. Additionally I didn't feel overwhelmed by the number of works or their density. There was enough there to keep my interest and make it feel worth coming out but not too much.

Mosaic is in their third year of doing shows on Hanover street, according to Liz, the curator of "Illusions." Their next big show is centered on the concept of motion and kinetics. Illusions is on display until February 26th at 66 Hanover #201, Manchester NH, during calling hours.

Edit: a reader helpfully attributed the "stop sign" piece to Brenda Noiseux. See replies to this post for their contact information.

[iwanthermidnightz]

**[my emphasized excerpts below in no particular order]**

These days, Lorde feels locked in to everyone and everything around her. She metaphorically threw her phone in the ocean while making Solar Power, but she’s plugged back in now; tomorrow, she will post her very first TikTok. “I’ve never been more addicted to my phone,” she says. “I think to be a good artist, you have to have a sense of what’s in the water. And I’m on my phone way more, but also I’ve never read more. I’ve never looked at more art. Maybe it balances out somehow.”

And yet, it turns out that getting to this place required a series of dramatic personal upheavals — many of which informed the raw, sublime Virgin. On it, she set out to deconstruct and even destroy the old version of herself. Lead single “What Was That” describes a young woman clearing the smoke from a recently ended relationship, mourning what she lost but free to start anew. But there’s so much more than breakup songs. On Virgin, rebirth is stitched into every line: The album is feral, wild, and physical, full of Lorde’s most from-the-gut singing ever.

As we talk in her apartment and around her city, Lorde often repeats how “terrified” she is to open up about the album — and to let the world hear it. There are songs she forebodingly describes as “rugged,” vulnerable, and messy, fitting for an artist who’s unlearning the conditioning that taught her to be digestible and “good.”

“There’s going to be a lot of people who don’t think I’m a good girl anymore, a good woman. It’s over,” she promises, eyes bright and full of fire. “It will be over for a lot of people, and then for some people, I will have arrived. I’ll be where they always hoped I’d be.”

Returning to New York at the end of 2023 meant taking stock of what was and wasn’t working for her. She was still stuck in a cycle of self-loathing, covering up the mirrors in her home instead of facing herself. She began to realize that her obsession with thinness was controlling her life, that she needed to find a path out of her disordered eating habits. It was the first time she could see a way out. It’s still a journey, Lorde says, to return to her old self, to someone who had a healthier relationship with food and with her body. Her return began once she started to see her compulsion to count and track and restrict as a kind of self-imposed mission to keep herself small in various ways.

“Once I stopped doing that, I had all this energy for making stuff,” Lorde tells me. “I could see that if I cut that cord, maybe I would get something back that I needed to do my work. And it was totally true. Got it all back, and way more.”

She continued her psychedelic treatments through 2024. They helped put her squarely in her body, made her appreciate her physical self and what she’s capable of. “[I’ve] been in the same body [my] whole life,” she says, recalling a realization she had during those trips. “I understood it. I was like, ‘These arms climbed the jungle gym. And they held an award on a TV show.’ I understood the whole spectrum of it and began to enjoy the complexity and ruggedness.”

From there, she experienced what she calls “the ooze”: the act of letting herself take up more space in everything she does, whether physically or creatively. Doing so opened the floodgates of her own identity. “My gender got way more expansive when I gave my body more room,” she explains. This is something her kids have been picking up on, noticing the more masculine touches to her wardrobe in glimpses they’ve seen of her this past year.

Lorde had been reading her own Wikipedia page recently while in a meeting. There’s a quote she had given as a teenager that stuck out to her: “I have nothing against anyone getting naked.… I just don’t think it really would complement my music in any way or help me tell a story any better.”

“That’s the evolution right there,” she says. An hour earlier, at the shoot with Brown, she had draped herself over a couch in her underwear.

As a teenager, Lorde felt protective of her body and her sexuality. Her clothes acted as a kind of armor: long sleeves, high necks, opaque colors. It was a double-edged sword, though: Lorde debuted around the same time that a generation of teen superstars were starting to grow up. Artists like Miley Cyrus and Selena Gomez were shedding the purity rings and forced modesty of their Disney careers in order to embrace their bodies and sexual agency. Lorde, by contrast, became a symbol of some type of moral purity, and her modesty was, in essence, used to slut-shame her peers.

“I remember vividly in that first year of being famous, so many people saying — I’m paraphrasing — ‘It’s so good you don’t take your clothes off like these other sluts,’” she says. “I was up on a pedestal because I wasn’t employing the same tools. And I remember being like, ‘No, no, I will take my clothes off one day. Be ready.’ I’ve always known that having those qualities ascribed to me so young [meant that] me being more open with my body, with my sexuality, [would] carry real weight and agitate and alienate.”

There were expectations placed on Lorde about how a girl becoming a young woman should act. It was another way she made herself small, trying to please the world and be good. But as she oozed, she redefined herself, and she saw that her gender identity could get bigger, too. On Virgin‘s opening track, she lays the tale of her rebirth bare: “Some days I’m a woman/Some days I’m a man.”

I ask her how she identifies now, what it means and what’s changed. “[Chappell Roan] asked me this,” Lorde recalls. The pair have become close friends over the past year. “She was like, ‘So, are you nonbinary now?’ And I was like, ‘I’m a woman except for the days when I’m a man.’ I know that’s not a very satisfying answer, but there’s a part of me that is really resistant to boxing it up.”

Though Lorde still calls herself a cis woman and her pronouns remain unchanged. She describes herself as “in the middle gender-­wise,” a person more comfortable with the fluidity of her expression. In some ways, she feels like her teenage self again, back when her friends were mostly boys and there was a looseness in how she dressed and acted.

When Lorde wrote “Man of the Year,” she was sitting on the floor of her living room, trying to visualize a version of herself “that was fully representative of how [her] gender felt in that moment.” What she saw once again was an image of herself in men’s jeans, this time wearing nothing else but her gold chain and duct tape on her chest. The tape had this feeling of rawness to her, of it “not being a permanent solution.”

“I went to the cupboard, and I got the tape out, and I did it to myself,” she tells me. “I have this picture staring at myself. I was blond [at the time]. It scared me what I saw. I didn’t understand it. But I felt something bursting out of me. It was crazy. It was something jagged. There was this violence to it.”

We talk about the Trump administration’s war against the trans community. While opening up about her own identity terrifies her, she knows she has less on the line than people whose gender identity does not match what they were assigned at birth.

“I don’t think that [my identity] is radical, to be honest,” she says. “I see these incredibly brave young people, and it’s complicated. Making the expression privately is one thing, but I want to make very clear that I’m not trying to take any space from anyone who has more on the line than me. Because I’m, comparatively, in a very safe place as a wealthy, cis, white woman.”

Lorde made her past two albums with Jack Antonoff, whom she calls a “positive, supportive collaborator,” but it was time to shake things up. “I’m very vibes-based,” she says. “I just have to trust when my intuition says to keep moving.”

[oldtypenewtype]

MTV

Funny Funny!! A collection of anime video clips

MUSIC MUSEUM

Are you tired of videos that just feature dancers or have the artist act cheesy? As promo videos become more varied, it's nice to see more videos that use animations and dolls. MTV is going crazy again tonight!

*The title says it all. The writers over at Newtype were excited about the animation displayed in the music videos on MTV in the 11/1985 issue of Newtype magazine. I really love their enthusiasm for animation and the different techniques used in the videos that were featured in the article*

John Fogarty - Vanz Kant Danz

Produced by Will Vinton Productions. The main character is a pig named "TUNES". A 3D animation style with clay pigs and break dancer dolls moving frame by frame. The dancing pigs are really cute.

Dire Straits - Money for Nothing 

Produced by Steve Baron, who has worked on famous promo videos such as "Billie Jean." I was surprised at the beauty of the CG animation overlaid on the live footage from Budapest, Hungary. The color scheme is excellent, not only in the square-like animation but also in the live scenes, where only the instruments are colored. It seems that we will see more of this kind of thing in the future.

Prince - Raspberry Beret 

The video director is Prince himself. It is a rather flashy video that combines live performance scenes, live action of the dancers around him, and animation. The images of people's faces and skies remind me of psychedelic illustrations from the 1960s.

a~ha - Take On Me 

Warner Pioneer This was also made by Steve Barron. The animation was done by Limelight Productions in the US. The strange footage of the members' movements turning into animation seems to have been quite elaborate.

Goon Squad - Eight Arms to Hold You

The second single from Goonies (movie). It's not an animation, but an elaborate piece that moves puppets one frame at a time, like the old monster movies. The punch line of him becoming a hero is also hilarious.

Motoharu Sano - New Age

Among Japanese artists, Motoharu Sano is the one who puts the most effort into making promotional videos. This one was made by Tim Pope, and features a robotically marching doll and a scene of Sano rapping alternating. It's not particularly eccentric, but it's a memorable video.

The Alan Parsons Project - Don't Answer Me

It was produced by D.J. Webster, who recently produced Jeff Beck & Rod Stewart's "People Get Ready." The animation was produced by Broadcast Arts in Washington. It's a wave-like video that's like an American comic that's been animated, with a lot of hard-boiled touches. It shows a new direction for promotional videos.

Elvis Costello and the Attractions - Accidents Will Happen

The production is by female producer Annabel Jankel. The best anime and the painting itself is simple. But it's a radical movement with a touch of emotion to the song. Perfect for the page.

Cars - You might think

The first MTV Video Awards were held in May, this is one of F. Stein's masterpieces. The members of Cars suddenly turn into flies(?) and the skillful combination of live action and animation is eye-catching. The video is more popular than the song itself. Is this your masterpiece?

Go West - We Close Our Eyes

Godley & Creme (formerly of 10cc), a sought-after video director, made this epic film at a cost of $90,000.

-Another fun thing about MTV is the various animated jingles. There are a lot of great pieces of art that last just a few seconds.- *(Link to MTV bumpers of the 1980′s. This is what Newtype was referring to as “animated jingles” in this part of the article.)

[keyofnow]

The Indica Bookshop (and Gallery)

From Jane Asher to Yoko Ono...

The strange little localised (and short-lived) cultural phenomenon called the Indica Bookshop (and Gallery) lives at the axial pivot point of The Beatles Story where Revolver swings and the band's trajectory irrevocably alters.

Painting testimonial pictures....

18 Apr 1963, The Beatles play a BBC radio session at Royal Albert Hall. After the concert Paul meets Jane Asher, and the two start dating.

In late 1963, Jane's brother Peter asks Paul to write a song for his duo Peter and Gordon.

Paul gives them a few unused Lennon/McCartney tunes, includo their massive hit debut single “A World Without Love”.

After a solid string of hits, Asher cashes in some of his success to help realise the Indica Bookshop (and Gallery) with artist John Dunbar and bookseller Barry Miles.

In Nov 1965, the Indica opens its doors, in the same square as The Scotch of St. James (a frequent Beatles hangout).

On 1 Apr 1966, Paul takes John to the Indica Bookshop, where Dunbar presents him with a copy of Timothy Leary and Richard Alpert’s The Psychedelic Experience — the acid-soaked readings of which will, over the next few days, beget “Tomorrow Never Knows”.

Sometime before 13 Apr 1966, Paul writes “Paperback Writer” as a subtle plug for the bookshop.

On 7 Nov 1966, Dunbar invites Lennon to the Indica Gallery for a private preview of the exhibition “Unfinished Paintings” by New York artist Yoko Ono.

On 29 April 1967, Miles co-produces The 14 Hour Technicolor Dream, which Lennon and Dunbar attend.

In Nov 1967, the Indica closes its doors.

What's it all about?!

After that Albert Hall gig in April 1963, Paul and Jane become romantically involved, and by the end of the year Paul is living in a loft at her parents’ house.

Already by that point in The Beatles’ career, in addition to the rapidly accumulating catalog of Beatles hits, John and Paul have been scoring chart success outside The Beatles as songwriters for other artists — namely Billy J Kramer, Cilla Black, The Fourmost, The Applejacks, and The Rolling Stones — the general rule being that any song they deemed substandard for The Beatles was offered to another artist (except for the one they tailored for The Stones, some genuine TLC went into “I Wanna Be Your Man”).

Add now Peter and Gordon, when Jane Asher's older brother Peter approaches Paul about writing a song for his recently signed singing duo.

Luckily for them Paul already had a few in the queue ready to go.

By all accounts, “A World Without Love” was an old Paul song predating The Beatles, gathering dust and never a serious contender because of its opening line, “Please lock me away,” which John thought was a laugh.

Apart from Beatles records, “A World Without Love” was the first Lennon-McCartney song to break the US Top 40, making it all the way to #1 on both sides of the Atlantic.

Peter and Gordon followed it with two more unrealised Lennon/McCartney songs, “Nobody I Know” and “I Don't Want To See You Again”; the Del Shannon composition “Go To Pieces”; and covers of Buddy Holly's “True Love Ways”, Phil Spector's “To Know You Is To Love You”, and Barbara Lewis's “Baby I'm Yours”. In all they scored seven consecutive hits, all substantial.

When Peter was approached about the prospect of opening a joint bookshop-gallery, he agreed to become a silent partner.

The deeper you go...

Peter Asher's business partners in the Indica were his mate John Dunbar, and their associate Barry Miles.

John Dunbar was a visual artist, husband to Marianne Faithful, and occasional companion to The Beatles (especially John and Paul) during these psychedelic years.

Barry Miles was a dedicated bookseller and aficionado of the cultural underground. In helping produce The 14 Hour Technicolor Dream on 29 April 1967, he featured performances by Pink Floyd, Yoko Ono, Arthur Brown, Tomorrow, The Pretty Things, and Soft Machine, among (I'm told) many others.

The Indica Bookshop folded after two short years, but its legendary status is outsized in Beatledom.

And in the end...

Peter Asher, of course, was at the early core of Apple in 1968 — producing the first recordings by up and coming singer-songwriter James Taylor, for whom he resigned his post at Apple to become Taylor's fulltime manager.

Barry Miles continued to surround himself with art, music, and literature, and eventually became Paul's official biographer.

John Dunbar divorced Marianna Faithful in 1970, and otherwise still does his art with an ear to the underground.

Pink Floyd became who they are.

And we know what became of John and Yoko.

🍏

[elderscrollsconceptart]

Text below is transcribed from Ray Lederer's 2012 blogpost about Adam Adamowicz after Adam had passed away.

Both were artists on Skyrim and shared an office together. They were very very close.

---

[Ray Lederer (L) and Adam Adamowicz (R)]

-Tuesday, February 14, 2012

I first met Adam when I started working at a tiny game development studio in Boulder, Colorado back in 1998 called Devil’s Thumb Entertainment. I walked into the studio on my first day of work and I’m pretty sure The Cramps were playing full blast from his general direction. There he was, sun baked and surrounded with what at the time I assumed were rare Jaimie Hewlett sketches pasted up around him, loads of cds and flyers for rockabilly rollerderby raver chicks with squids on their heads. ‘Welcome to the monster factory!’ he said and I thought instantly ‘Oh hell yeah! I came to the right place!’ It didn’t take long to figure out that what I thought were Jaimie Hewlett drawings were actually his and to be quite honest were 10 times more appealing and hilarious. (No offense Jaimie!)

When I finally got the chance to see his apartment in Denver I realized I was stepping into the mind of a creative genius. His entire apartment from floor to ceiling, front to back was covered with his paintings, massive cardboard sculptural cat like gargoyles, christmas lights, intricate costumes (designed with little more than a leather jacket, cheap sombrero, toys from a thrift shop, black and silver spray paint and hot glue) flyers for previous rent parties from his old warehouse, Tank Girl comics, Low Rider and American Artist magazines, Thomas Pynchon novels and a constant stream of music. Every square inch was interesting and VITAL and ALIVE. This was an intellect far beyond anyone else I’d ever met and there was not a single hint of pretentiousness to him. His entire life was a beautifully structured and disciplined chaos. Even then I began to see that not only was I in the presence of greatness, I was in the presence of one of the more important illustrators of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. He just didn’t know it yet and neither did anyone else. Quite frankly he wouldn’t give a shit if someone gave him that label. He simply wanted to come up with more ideas and get better at drawing. Period.

Since then we got into many beer soaked adventures that sometimes included late night bike rides through the city streets of Denver with a boom-box strapped to the back blasting Big Audio Dynamite with sparklers hanging off the handlebars(and some stiches on the scalp of yours truly). Dangerously drunken skateboarding with cap guns, ditching psychedelic parties to go laugh our asses off and throw giant rocks in a frozen river, concerts, weekend long patio surfing tours in the Colorado summers, trips to the reservoir to float around wearing finely crafted and thrilling 12pack headgear, lunchtime bike rides up to our favorite outdoor patio Rhumba in Boulder for $2 Red Stripes and then back to work again, and many hours working close to him and learning as much as I could about being an artist and a better human being. He once said to me “I may not be Mozart, but at least I can try to be the Pixies.” He just wanted to entertain people in any way he could.

In his last few days we spent together in the hospital we sat on his hospital bed listening to music for hours, talking, and drawing in our sketchbooks. Our conversations were tinted with what was happening for him in the moment certainly, but mostly we talked about friends, art, music, and life. We spoke without much nostalgia or finality, just very real and present and forward looking despite the circumstances. He kept drawing until he couldn't possibly draw anymore, squeezing every last ounce he could out of life, just as he always had.

Watch papa go to work.

I love you Adam. You continue to be my friend, mentor, and greatest inspiration

---

Original post can be found here:

[henrysglock]

High Existence and ZeroSpace: The First Shadow and NINA May Be Massive, Immersive Drug Trips

The blurb in last Friday's video from TFS sounded familiar, but I couldn't place it. I found a lot of sites quoting The Alchemist about the universe conspiring to give you what you truly want (which is similar and it's probably what I was thinking of when this blurb registered as familiar), but I couldn't find this exact quote:

Well...not at first, anyway. I decided to stick every word I could make out here ^ into my search bar...and I found where the blurb comes from:

This blog post is quite literally the only source I could find for it, and the whole damn thing is directly lifted.

Right off the bat, the site fucking jump-scared me:

And it doesn't end there. Let's dive in, because this rabbit hole is a trip unto itself...no MDMA​ ​required.

1. The Fucking Website...#1 (HighExistence.com)

High Existence is a sort of drug-induced-spiritual-trip centered self-help site.

It's got blog posts and podcasts and all that jazz. Here are some of the highlights:

Wow! That was...a lot. A lot of words from the word show, too:

Wholeness, heroes, ancient aliens, prisons of politeness, and the fucking Shire, too, I guess. Why not?

(An Aside: I've included the VR in here too because of the sheer similarities between Henry's experience with the Shadow in VR, El's experience in NINA, and The First Shadow in general.)

Like fuck it, why not keep going, these posts date back to at least 2017:

And don't let me start in on that Creel boy and Faust...

[Jason voice] "[Eddie] made a deal with the devil and now he has his powers!" (Also we get it, one of them is neurotic and the other is psychotic. I've been saying this since like...forever)

Of course, all that insanity aside, the Russian base arc has just...an insane amount of ST4 and TFS stuff packed into it in general:

(And this isn't even all of it. I know others [cough] Stav Heroesbyler [cough] have covered it even more...but bro it is THERE)

But most importantly for the NINA arc:

Three things: Dialogue doubling (there's the one I showed, plus a) Robin yelling "Wipeout!" at Steve which has the pipeline -> "Wipeout!" at Rink-O-Mania -> 002-005 bullying El in a very similar manner and b) Steve's "that's amazing" line about the water fountain -> "This is amazing!" not only from Alice irt the Creel house but also from Mike irt Will's painting on their way to save El from NINA. Again, these are just a few of MANY instances), makeup doubling with the bloodshot eyes, and my beloved: set/prop doubling.

I love that beautiful framing on the nearly-identical square clocks. I have so much to say about that clock, but specifically:

The clocks being set 9 minutes apart, which happens to be the exact length of time from the end of Vecna's voiceover in 4.07 to the start of the fight sequence in 4.07 (aka the length of One's frozen-clock monologue).

Not only that, but the clock isn't even right. It says it's 3:55, but it's definitely not 3:55 AM (see: movie theater scene) but it's also not 3:55 PM:

(And why do we have a clock in an elevator anyway? That's the real question. That thang only exists to deliver subtext, baby! It exists to connect the two scenes further!)

Anyway, as you all likely noticed, this site mostly deals in psychedelics, stimulants, and empathogens.

link

Hell, you could even pull One's bit on the ecosystem into it, since he's describing connections between beings that are being disturbed/destroyed by humanity.

Anyway, the site tends to center specifically on DMT and MDMA...so let's talk about those:

MDMA & DMT An aside: Interesting to me that psychosis here can be counteracted with sedatives. Makes me wonder if whatever happened in 1979 could have been halted if they'd just tranq'd One. Hm.

First off: Did I read that right? Piggy-backing? Damn, son. 4.09, The Piggyback, is pictured in that paragraph. So is Brenner's candy bit with the children -> "candy flipping" vs LSD use in Brenner's lab.

Second: Ah, how nice. Intravenous/injectable. Just like how El is constantly being shot up with...something...to enter NINA.

Now, nearly all psychedelics can induce psychosis, but especially so if they're combined with other psychoactive substances and/or if the user has a history of psychosis (either themselves or in their family).

However, MDMA specifically has been posited as a treatment for PTSD and retrograde/traumagenic amnesia:

link Like...wow. Okay, I guess!

tl;dr: One seems to have been tripping fucking balls during the monologue. Literally every fucking version of him. El likely is as well. Funny how that works. Was any of that real? [smash cut to the way blood pours down the walls and the dead children dance around in the VR version of NINA] And either way, Henry in TFS isn't far behind with his hallucinogenic moments.

The connection? Whatever the hell is going on in Hawkins Labs...and symptoms of drug use.

I was not expecting to get this much out of a single rabbit hole. But...that's life with this show, isn't it? And this is only Part 1.

2. The Fucking Website...#2 (Futurism.com)

The guy who made that original post that TFS lifted the blurb from (Jordan Lejuwaan) runs a couple different websites. The most interesting one is Futurism, which is basically an online version of the Weekly Watcher:

It won't let me filter by date, but it seems to have been founded in 2017, stemming from an infographic subreddit. (Now, it says it's a trustworthy news source, and maybe it is, but... Do your own assessment of that. I'm not your mother, yknow?)

Jordan Lejuwaan was also involved in something far more interesting irt Stranger Things...

3. Zero Space

Jordan co-founded an immersive, interactive theater experience called ZeroSpace back in 2018. As we all know, TFS was just in the beginning phase of its creation around this time.

So...This was like a brick to the skull:

"Alice in Wonderland" (don't get me started: rabbit fuckery, DRUGS!!!!!, clocks/being later, Alice Creel, Fringe connections (Through The Looking Glass and What Walter Found There being the episode about the pocket universe where 20 years passed in 5 days...and also wherein we find out about him hiding away an Observer child that he will later time travel with to save the world from the Observer takeover...erasing himself from time/the timeline by doing so...there is SO much) not to mention the "one pill makes you larger/smaller" vs teen El and baby El...it's too much to try and fit in this post), "ALIENS AND LASERS", "stretch the perceived reality of the sense", "art, actors and your own mind converge to prompt MORE QUESTIONS THAN ANSWERS" (which was a common complaint about TFS: it leaves people with more questions than answers).

("See you on the other side" being an in-show line from Henry in the lab to Patty in the void, but this image is ripped directly from the same promo video that the High Existence blurb appears in.)

Here's a little taste of what ZeroSpace is like, but I suggest going to the actual page to see it in action:

It's heavily heavily reminiscent of TFS, even just in the content warnings...

Not to mention the actual show content SFX:

However, the goal of TFS isn't to stretch our senses. We're just watching. We are not the volunteer seeing the other side.

For most of the show, that person is Henry (except the first 5 mins, when it's Cptn. Brenner and his crew literally experiencing the other side). Henry is doing the experiencing. He's the one breaking the fourth wall by picking at/breaking the sets, the one running through the audience and leaving out the theater doors (only to end up right back on stage just like El in the Rainbow Room in 4.05).

With each bit of info I find out adjacent to the play, the more convinced I am that this is some secret third boy's experience in a NINA-like simulation.

Overall—

a) TFS most likely isn't wholly real, and it seems very likely that it's the same kind of simulation as NINA.

b) El was probably drugged up with some kind of empathogenic psychedelic going into NINA, likely with the goal of setting her up to form emotional connections quickly and deeply only to rip that deep connection away in order to bolster her abilities.

c) NINA is not, then, wholly based in truth. Parts of NINA (staring at the bullying from 002-005) may have been generated from El's memories of the outside world.

d) With NINA and TFS seeming so similar, I wouldn't be shocked if parts of it are just one massive empathogen trip (staring at how quickly Henry and Patty bond, similarly to how quickly Henry and El bond in NINA).

e) Whoever is in NINA with teen El is also tripping balls, most likely, and may have gone off the rails in that regard. However, that's in a simulation...hard to assign guilt or blame for things done in a fictional/unreal world.

f) Whoever was with baby El in 1979 may have been in a similar situation "moving chess pieces"-style instead. Read: drugged in order to put him in a situation where he would bolster El's latent abilities...and it went wrong (see also: Walter Bishop's orchestrated/fake massacre meant to bolster Olivia's latent abilities.)

g) Richard Brenner having been the head of narcotics makes me question which Brenner we're seeing at any given time: Martin, or Richard?

[oomox-oclock]

0. There Was A Time

fic chapters/warnings/disclaimers/ect

:DISCLAIMER:

Mentions of drugs/ sex ect.

English is not my first language

POV changes

x reader

inconsistent updates

time line is not perfect or accurate

Character may also not be accurate

I'll also be posting this on wattpad and maybe ao3

So if you see it wasn't stolen<3

Also i dont know how tumblr works and how to link chapters together(someone send help)

ALSO THIS NOT EDITED IN ANYWAY SO SORRY IF THERE ARE SPELLING MISTAKES

THANK YOU FOR READING MWUAH MWUAH

LEAVE COMMENTS <3

The studio was warm in the coldest night of this Autumn, warm yellowish light and the red carpeted floor made it feel like a cosy log cabin. A full drum set with a few too many ride cymbals and windchimes sat close to the middle of the fat bare bricked wall, with a small metal bucket that had the remains of broken splinter drumsticks. A rack of guitars and two bass holders stood next to the right wall where an old armchair sits, a few different sized amps scattered round the square room. Right in front of the glass that separates the control room from the studio three mic stand in a line with noise cancelling boxes surrounding each of them.

In the control room there is a strong smell of weed and other smokeable herbs, "No! You can't take Runaway Blues off the album!" A man with short shoulder length brown hair and a moustache protested as he puffed on his cigarette as he lied back on the couch, his dark glasses fell back on his face as he tilted his head back. "I agree with Jake. It shows how good we are even when we're shit faced." The man with long curly hair, a gorgeous ethnic nose, stood up – towering over the other 4 people in the sesh – and began to roll another blunt on one of the control panels. The one that started this debated piped in, "Thanks Dan for taking my side." He said sarcastically, his curly mullet was like a solid cloud on his head, and he has a moustache like Jake. "We'll our wonderful manager and producer here," A man that looked like Jesus pointed to a woman that sat next to Jake on the couch. "Was the one that wasn't shit faced, I think that's why it was actually good, Joshua." He finished. "Hey, hey, I'm not saying it's shit because of you, please believe me y/n!" Josh dramatically pleaded to y/n. She was looking up at the ceiling. Pupils dilated. Blunt in hand. "Just, make it shorter." She said confidently, waving her hand a bit. Still not looking at anyone and head craned back. "You have the answer to everything." Danny said his mouth slightly gaped that such a simple solution didn't register in any of their minds. Or he's just on a psychedelic trip and can't spark up a brain cell.

The following week the band had dates in LA since they were still doing there 'Dreams in Gold' Tour. The band was already at the venue setting up, some still sleeping in the bus. Y/n had some business to attend to in their studio in New York before going down to LA. She decided to walk down the infamous Sunset Strip, as a historic music place like this could not go untrekked when having the chance. Wearing a black turtleneck, dark blue flare jeans with dark brown boots and a satchel bag hanging from her shoulder, a small suitcase's handle in the other hand while the silver case dragged its wheels on the floor. As she caught the sight of the colourful sign of The Rainbow, a voice called to her. "Y/n?" A older man, short blondish hair, leather jacket, sunglasses.

Axl Rose.

And like the trigger of a gun being pulled,

A life was lost.

(or misplaced)

Y/n's POV:

Everything stood still,

I stood still.

Then it all went dark. It was a black lifeless void.

Falling backwards but being physically still.

Time was reversing.

A previous life. My life?

Memories rolling past like an old film.

My head spiralled.

I can't comprehend this. What is happening to me?

My first years of school, late 60's early 70's. That's not right. It was the early 2000's.

Falling in love with music, Queen, Elton John.

Highschool was trip. My parents being stricter than anyone else's, they didn't believe I could have a job as in the music industry.

Studying music in college then going on the Uni and taking a science course to get my folks off my back.

One of my most successful record deals was Mötley Crüe and Bon Jovi.

Before they even started writing lyrics for their songs, I knew it off by heart and helped them gain success with it and recording went like dream.

Now I was searching the East Coast for a new band to sign.

March 1985, The City of Angels.

A flash of light, and my eyes flickered open.

It a cold night, dark but the city light was somewhat comforting.

It was the Sunset Strip, but something was...

Off.

------------

OMG SORRY IF IT'S SHIT

THIS WAS LIKE THE INTRODUCTION, FIRST PART IS COMING OUT SOON 

IM SO EXCITED

(Band at the beginning is greta van fleet )

[tobiasdrake]

So, I guess we'll try harder to help people out this time around. And maybe figure out what else we can do different.

Let's start with Mira. Hey Mira! Did you know someone super wants to meet you?

It's the... the woman. The one with the hair. You know the hair! Just find a woman with hair and talk to her. And then maybe I won't die ironically.

There we go. Mission complete. What else can we do?

Then why even include it in a book on Craft!?

This book is fucking with me. I'm going to burn it. It's okay to burn things because psychedelic lemon drop will unburn them when I die.

Would this even be considered getting another blessing? We went back in time so technically, I never got a blessing. Unless the Change God exists outside of time.

Mm. That's a possibility.

I'll just make sure to ask for something different than last time. That way, I can say I changed my blessing. That should make us square.

OH

SHIT

Speaking of gods, I was supposed to go see the Favor Tree! I completely spaced.

Please don't call them "forever naps". That gives me an ominous sense of foreboding about my Lemon Do-Over.

Anyway, gotta get to that tree. So you at the sleepover, Isa.

Hello? If someone is out there with hostile intent, I should have you know that I am very fast and my sign is good for poking eyes. I have been known to aggressively and reflexively poke people. You have been warned.

PSYCHEDELIC LEMON DROP IS THAT YOU

Did I eat you?

...

...are we... are we going out now?

Should I start calling you my lemonfriend?

OH GOD YOU ARE MY LEMONFRIEND

I AM NOT READY FOR THIS LEVEL OF COMMITMENT

I'VE NEVER EVEN HELD HANDS WITH A LEMON BEFORE

Though I did eat you. So. I guess I can't claim to be entirely naive.

Oh, and you're stalking me too. Seems awfully clingy, Lemonfriend. We've had one date. If this is how you're going to be then I might need some space.

Oh, cool. I'm half they/them on my parent's side so I know how that goes.

YOU'VE READ MY POCKET NOTES!?

Okay just because I was eating you last night, that doesn't mean it's okay to go through my stuff. I am getting all of the red flags from this conversation.

Oh fuck me, you heard my pun, didn't you?

And I was so glad that got erased from history, too. I really thought I was out of the woods on that one.

That's a good idea, honestly. Convincing them that I can loop through time will be a hard sell but not impossible. But having everyone keep an eye out for information I might want to take back with me could be a good thing.

I imagine that's how I break the loop, right? It's not like I'm on a timer. I don't think. So we just repeat these two days until my crew pulls it off or time freezes forever? That sounds simple enough.

Now I want to eat a pineapple just to test that theory.

Well, I still appreciate the help. You weird lemon drop who may or may not be going out with me now, but who I will be nice to because I fear the consequences of questioning whatever relationship we have at this time.

I feel vulnerable right now.

Okay that's obviously suspicious and-- OH RIGHT IMPORTANT PAPERS

This drawing is sacred and must be picked up on every loop, I will hear no question about it.

...

What was I doing? Oh well. Must not have been important.

[dustedmagazine]

Cell\Borg — Smash Blips (Dot Dash Sounds)

Cell\Borg vibrates to a Teutonic frequency, channelling Neu! in radiant, repeated synth cadences that could go on “für immer” without breaking a sweat. The bicoastal trio, with members from both Brooklyn and Los Angeles, channels Michael Rother’s eternal, unchanging pulse, which drives towards receding horizons, always moving, never arriving.

Yet while these synth grooves evoke the chill and mystery of late 20th century motorism, they also flirt with conventional song structure, a la Depeche Mode . Buzz-sawed, synth swelling “Oktober” is all austerity as an instrumental piece, but it flowers to frigid, stylish life in the verse and chorus. The singing floats like a mirage over oogah-chooging synth beats, disembodied but recognizably human. Indeed, while the robotic syncopations of “Coriander Duplex” imply gleaming, shimmering post-human landscapes, warm swathes of guitar and bass bring us into more communal territories.

Occasionally these underground music lifers edge over almost entirely into rock territory, as in the vamping, riffing, psychedelic “Who’s Got the Square Waves,” which sounds more like Purling Hiss or Writhing Squares than Cluster. “Instant Pass” falls closer to GBV’s lofi lyricism. A wistful vocal melody sits uneasily atop thrusting, jutting, synth-powered boogie, fragility alongside swagger.

Still there’s hardly a track here that wouldn’t support a pop-locking, herky jerky robot dance, not the undulating mystery of “Count to Zero,” not the pop-corn-y staccato of “7x returning.” Here’s music for a future that will likely never happen, where androids stick their hands in the air and move to the beat, much nicer than our timeline where they labor for billionaire to plot profitable paths to destruction.  

Jennifer Kelly

[mariacallous]

At his rally on Sunday at New York City’s Madison Square Garden, former president and Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump said that if elected he would allow wellness conspiracist and anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to “go wild on health.” Kennedy, a former Democrat and scion of the famous political family, initially ran as an independent third-party and potential spoiler candidate, and has spent the better part of two decades spreading conspiracy theories that would likely inform the policies of a Trump administration.

In August, Kennedy suspended his presidential campaign and threw his weight behind Trump. (Both the Trump and Kennedy campaigns received support from billionaire donor Timothy Mellon.) There were early indications that he might have a place in a possible Trump administration, particularly in some areas focused on health. Kennedy himself even created a spinoff of Trump’s MAGA slogan with his own Make America Healthy Again, or MAHA. But Trump’s speech seems to indicate that Kennedy would indeed have a place in the cabinet, perhaps running Health and Human Services (HHS).

Kennedy has since hit the campaign trail stumping for Trump alongside another former Democrat and conspiracy theorist, Tulsi Gabbard.

Kennedy has spent years spreading health mis- and disinformation, particularly about vaccines. In 2014, Kennedy joined Children’s Health Defense (CHD) as a member of its board. CHD pushes debunked conspiracy theories linking conditions like autism with vaccines and other environmental factors. In 2021, Meta banned Kennedy’s Instagram account for spreading disinformation about the Covid-19 vaccine, and he was named by the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) as one of 12 people responsible for 65 percent of vaccine disinformation across Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. Thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic, Kennedy’s own profile, as well as that of CHD, began to rise. CHD raised more money in 2021 than it ever had before.

Meta reinstated Kennedy’s Instagram account last year when he announced his run for the presidency, and it remains up, despite the fact that he is no longer running for office. CHD remains banned from Meta’s platforms. More recently, Kennedy has echoed unfounded conspiracies that could undermine faith in the integrity of the 2024 elections.

During his presidential campaign, Kennedy tried to distance himself from the anti-vax movement. Still, he continued to spread disinformation, like falsely saying that the Biden administration had violated the Nuremburg Code by mandating vaccines. And his vision for making America healthy again is drastic. Last Friday, he posted on X to warn the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that its “aggressive suppression of psychedelics, peptides, stem cells, raw milk, hyperbaric therapies, chelating compounds, ivermectin, [and] hydroxychloroquine” was about to end.

The Department of Health and Human Services oversees 13 agencies, including the FDA and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). In an interview with NBC News while he was still running for president, Kennedy said he would gut those agencies, which he has said are now captured by corporations. He would also impose more testing on already existing vaccines, which health experts told NBC would result in many children being unable to get vaccinated. (Trump, for his part, has claimed he would withhold funding from schools that require vaccination.) Kennedy’s plan would also include dismissing scientists at the NIH who study infectious diseases, focusing instead on the environmental factors and vaccines that he believes cause illnesses.

During his campaign, he held a health policy roundtable with doctors that pushed fake Covid-19 treatments.

Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung told WIRED that “President Trump announced a Trump-Vance transition leadership group to initiate the process of preparing for what comes after the election. But formal discussions of who will serve in a second Trump Administration is [sic] premature.”

[unitedsongbird]

Love Warm as the Sunshine

Dear readers and listeners-

One of the biggest compliments I got this week from a follower on xtwitter: “You’ve got the spark and the ear. Turning songs into soul-touching stories. I’m looking forward to what the future holds for you. Don’t stop. It’s okay to pause if you need to, but don’t ever quit.”

Messages like that… They remind me why I do this. Why I keep going. Even when it’s hard — I go the distance. And yeah, not gonna lie — brought a tear to my eye and a smile to my face.

I’m sharing this because I know someone out there might need a lift right now. I’ve said it before — I know what it feels like to be 'the fool on the hill'. And you know what? I’ve learned to embrace that label. Truth is, there’s grace in standing apart, in seeing things others might miss. To everyone quietly navigating their own uphill climb: I see you.

I saved this song of the moment for you and I...if you like some 60s music, which I have not posted one in a while, then come on let's go. Johnny Rivers is one of those artists whose story feels like a mixtape of American music history. Born John Henry Ramistella and raised in Baton Rouge, Louisiana — where Southern blues and R&B shaped him and his sound of Rock & roll, blue-eyed soul, folk, country rock, and rhythm & blues.

Rivers founded his own label (Soul City Records), launching The 5th Dimension and giving Jimmy Webb his first big break. Rivers is also known for his electrifying shows — especially at the Whisky à Go Go, where he helped define the go-go rock scene.

“Summer Rain” by Johnny Rivers is a wistful reflection on love, freedom, and the cultural spirit of 1967 — the famed Summer of Love. Written by James Hendricks and released in late 1967, the song captures the feeling of a romantic summer spent with someone special, wrapped in music, nature, and a sense of timelessness.

Lines like “Never gave a thought for tomorrow- Just let tomorrow be” stirs a carefree, present-focused mindset — a hallmark of the counterculture movement. The repeated reference to Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band places the song squarely in the psychedelic era, nodding to the Beatles’ influence and the soundtrack of that summer.

His music bridged the gap between early rock and the introspective singer-songwriter era of the late ’60s. Versatility- Covered everything from Motown to Dylan, always adding his own soulful twist.

[jacqueline-p-rose]

I’ve had a spate of good luck with op shops lately. I found the cutest corduroy blazer that perfectly matches my high-waist baggy corduroy trousers. I found a beautiful psychedelic floral pattern dress that I put back initially because I thought it wouldn’t fit (size 8, oof), but then came back weeks later and it was still there tempting me, so I tried it on and it actually fits!* I found this long black suede jacket for $20 that is very Gender in that way of like, remember in the late 80’s slash early 90’s when women’s clothes were emulate masculine? The shoulder pads, the boxy, square cut of everything, daggy blue jeans and button down business shirts, you know what I mean? But then the new millennium hits and women’s clothes are supposed to show off your curves (and everything else besides), so jackets were fitted in an hourglass shape again, shirts were cropped, and jeans were skinny and low slung. Well this jacket is somewhere in between there, it had half-arsed shoulder pads that I immediately pulled out, and it’s not square but not fitted either. It kind of looks like I’m wearing my boyfriends jacket, but if I had a boyfriend and he wore it, he’d get teased for being a metrosexual. It’s my new favourite thing.

All of that, though, pales in comparison to this: About a month ago I went to the op shop closest to my house, and along with my new favourite jacket, I also bought the first and third book of Hugh Howey’s Silo Saga, Wool and Dust. I have no idea why they would only have the first and third of a series, who is donating just those two and keeping the middle book? Or did they never have the middle book to begin with? They enjoyed the first book enough to want to know how the series ends but not enough to slog through the middle? I have this series as ebooks, so it’s not the end of the world (and honestly that could explain the missing middle, I have series where I own part as ebooks too), but it was just niggling at me. I asked the gorgeous woman working there if they had Shift (the middle book) as well, but she didn’t know and said she would hold it for me if she saw it. Great idea in theory, but I’m not particularly remarkable so it seems unlikely that she would remember. Besides, I got the impression that she was just script-reading without specific intention.

Fast forward to Tuesday just gone, I’m in an unaffiliated op shop over the other side of town with my partner, and I think you can see where this is going. They’re browsing books while I flick through the CDs, and I jokingly asked “Do they have Shift by Hugh Howey?” Could you imagine my surprise when, yeah, they did! And only Shift. Either someone only had the middle book not realizing, or this is the mythical missing book from the same person as before. Which begs the question, what kind of person has all three books of a trilogy to donate, but splits them up like that? One and Three to an op shop on this side of town, and Two to a totally unrelated op shop on the other side of town? I can’t imagine splitting them up like that accidentally, so I can only imagine it’s deliberate, out of pure spite or impish whimsy. Well jokes on you Hypothetical Guy, my op shop lucky streak has given me another win, and foiled your plans of entropic disruption.

My partner also found this adorable lucky cat, which might be the culmination of my good luck run, but I don’t know how partnership weighs into personal karma, so it might be unrelated.

*when I say “fits”, I mean it does up to below my boobs. I can zip it all the way up but it pancakes my C’s like standing on a water balloon. Fortunately, the zip is at the front, and it’s still cute and holds it’s shape with a cami underneath, so I call that a win.

[antoschauniverse]

I won't deny that his house photographs well from the outside. It has nice amenities such as the pool, the steam shower,a basement which seems to be stated on the listing but not shown. I don't think the entire house was shown.

For someone like me the everyday Joe, I would love to have 3800 square feet on an acre of land. With that being said, there are "no-goes" to the home such as layout, the materials used, and what appear to be relatively small bedrooms for such a big home. Could it just be the angles of the pictures that make the rooms look small. For 12 million dollars and a customer built home, why aren't the bedrooms more spacious and comforting. I am sure there must have been a reason for cement flooring, but I don't get it. Most of the square footage must be in the open floor plan and living areas. The 3800 square footage has to be the main home and separate from what I am guessing is a guest house/gym/pool house, right? I like open living rooms, but I am also fond of more trading styles like a true kitchen feeling and a dedicated and comforting dining room for special occasions.

The house gives off a bachelor pad feeling. Not old money but maybe new money and an entertaining or party house. Personal dislike- all the windows that are also exterior walls. Who cleans those windows? Can you imagine the upkeep of keeping such huge windows clean and maintained. I hate when my fridge's seal gets a littlw misaligned. I would go crazy making sure the window-walls maintain their integrity to avoid heat or cool loss and of course maintaining security. This must be a modern style and very specific personal taste.

This house is a bachelor's pad. David built it for himself and according to his preferences. If it weren't for the books, a few personal items, and a few old things from David's old apartment, the house would look more like a hotel room with dark furniture that looks more like walls.

The open floor plan is more suitable for parties. Open combined rooms give the impression of a large space, but it is difficult to understand what they are for. Whether it's a gym, an office, or a place for psychedelic parties on an eclectic couch or a room to accommodate guests. It's great for parties, but it's unlikely for life.

Watching TV knowing that there is a glass wall/door a meter behind you is also uncomfortable for many people. The bedrooms are of normal size, but compared to the other rooms they really seem small, no bigger than bathrooms😂. Three rooms is very small for a family with even one child. And glass walls are not very popular with people with children, because children, especially small ones, often do not notice visible obstacles, especially since they can easily overlook the glass wall.

The house is suitable for a wealthy bachelor without a family and children. Or for a rich man to use the house as his men's den to relax away from his family and children. In other cases, such a house is more of an encumbrance for future owners.