#thank you to my middle school and high school bff being obsessed with these books and telling me everything despite me never reading them

[snowangeldotmp3]

i think reading the hunger games and already knowing what happens makes the story more tragic, actually. i already know katniss and peeta win. i know what happens to glimmer and rue and everyone else. i know they have to go on in catching fire for the games there. i know what happens to gale and prim. i start the story already knowing the risks and consequences and yet still katniss has no choice but to act on them. all of these people will still die, the capitol still showing them off as entertainment. you know these people are walking into their graves! and you can’t unlearn these things!!!

[felicia-cat-hardy]

My 'Pretty Little Liars' Obsession Led Me To My Best Friend

“Got a secret, can you keep it?” Well, I’ve got one: Though Pretty Little Liars ended in 2017, the seven-season mystery thriller schemed its way into being an integral part of my life for the long haul, so much so that the opening credits live in my head rent-free. To this day, each time I hear the sinister theme song — “Secret” by The Pierces — I’m brought right back to my childhood comfort show (ahem, obsession). The visuals begin with a swipe of mascara, the smear of red lipstick, and a clasp of a heel onto a porcelain doll, which makes me feel like I’m watching someone get pampered for prom. Until, of course, it cuts to four girls standing in front of a casket. It's a chilling moment, one that, until Season 6B, ended with Aria Montgomery (Lucy Hale) delivering her iconic “shh.” I got cast under the show’s spell the first time I saw it, and I wasn’t the only one: Pretty Little Liars led me to my best friend.

Ironically, plotlines about deceit and betrayal actually helped ignite a long-lasting friendship. In 2011, the only other person I knew to be watching PLL was my now-BFF, Taylor, who’s been by my side for over a decade. We were only about 11 and 12 when it premiered, so shout out to our parents for letting us watch a show that dealt with very adult themes like substance use disorder, assault, and grief. Unlike our classmates, who watched tween-appropriate hits like iCarly and Victorious, we became PLL stans.

As fans know, the show is loosely based on the Sara Shepard YA series of the same name, and the first book was my entry point into the PLL universe. I loved reading about blackmailers and murderers navigating high school, but I thought I was the only one who was into it. (Was this my ~I’m different~ complex showing, or were my peers just naturally more inclined to recap Dance Moms? I’ll never know.) So, Taylor first struck up a conversation with me at school because she spotted the first PLL book on my desk — you know, the one painted with porcelain wax dolls warning to “never trust a pretty girl with an ugly secret” in a Gothic script. She asked if I’d watched the TV adaptation yet and we immediately exchanged phone numbers to text about upcoming episodes. We then fell into the fandom. Fast.

I’d never talked to Taylor before this interaction — we had only been in a few classes together — but I always saw her as approachable and friendly. Universally, the beginning of middle school is a big and terrifying year when kids from different elementary schools unite. Eager to meet new people, I reached for friendship at any chance I could get. Taylor made it easy. Aside from being a genuinely kind person (a rare trait for a middle schooler!), she was fangirling over the same thing as me.

Fast forward over a decade later, and the show still feels timeless, especially in its accurate depictions of how dramatic high school can get. It’s no surprise there’s a PLL HBO Max reboot on the way along with the remakes of other buzzy shows from that era (hello, 2010s nostalgia). Ah. It was a simpler time. Back then, Freeform was still ABC Family and for me, Tuesdays meant one thing: PLL is on. What first started as a solo viewing experience soon became a designated hangout time, a time slot reserved for me and Taylor to gush over how much we loved Ashley Benson. (We still do!)

The series had a vibe similar to Gossip Girl or Bridgerton in that a mysterious, unidentifiable pot-stirrer keeps fans guessing each episode, but it was arguably so much better since “A,” the anonymous villain, is out for, you know, murder. Ultimately, it was the type of whodunit that made me and Taylor (and millions of viewers) go down a couple of Reddit rabbit holes — remember the “Aria is A” suspicion? — and this is where my and Taylor’s experience with fan theories began.

Oh, and let’s not forget the location. PLL takes place in the fictional suburb of Rosewood, Pennsylvania, and for two girls from Bucks Country — aka the Philadelphia ‘burbs — we ate it up. The beloved “Welcome to the Dollhouse” episode was exceptionally creepy not only because the Liars get locked into a life-size replica of their bedrooms, but also because our real neighborhood looks extremely similar to their hometown. It operates like Rosewood, too, in that small-town gossip travels at lightning speed.

The Pennsylvania-based plotline also made it easier for us to identify with the characters, who felt like extensions of ourselves. In many ways, we got to know each other through their personalities. Taylor is studious and high-achieving, obviously a Spencer. And I owned feather earrings because I saw Lucy Hale sport them in Season 1, so obviously an Aria. Asking “Are you more of a Hanna or an Emily?” held as much weight in 2012 as asking someone their rising sign in 2021. While it might not say much, it also tells you everything you need to know about a person.

PLL got its start right before live-tweeting shows became popularized, so when we weren’t together, I used to text Taylor on my slide-out keyboard phone (only Zillennials will remember) to compare notes without stumbling upon many spoilers. They read something like this: “Caleb and Hanna are soul mates, TBH.” Like every other fan, we theorized about why A had to be Ian… and Melissa… and Jenna… and Mona… and, you get the point. When our elaborate speculations ran cold, we’d pause DVR’d episodes to gather more clues, like glimpses of Red Coat’s face in her second season introduction, or inspections of those eerie-gloved hands assembling dolls and sharpening knives at the end of each episode.

This game of Clue made room for conversations about all the things. We were in high school during the show’s peak, so it felt like the Liars had laid the groundwork for how to operate our school’s halls. Rosewood High was not traditional — uh, multiple students came back from the dead (*cough* Mona and Alison) — but it did prepare us for the stressors of college applications and first romantic relationships. In fact, Benson’s Hanna Marin would be proud of my matchmaking skills because back then, I introduced Taylor to the boyfriend she’s still with today.

As we both grew up with the show, our friendship got even deeper. The Liars weren’t the only ones to share secrets, and I found it incredibly easy to confide in Taylor. She’s trustworthy, level-headed, compassionate, and an excellent listener. She’s someone I know will always pick up on the second ring and is the type of friend to be there with advice, reassurance, and a quick-witted one-liner. She once joked about never needing a diary because we’ve transcribed the past 10 years of our lives via text.

Our bond has remained strong, especially because the most outrageous PLL-esque plotlines of our lives are ones we’ve experienced together. I love Taylor because I don’t have to provide background for my stories. I’m even so familiar with the cast of characters in her life that when someone re-enters after a long period, I like to say they Alison DiLaurentis’ed her.

And on the off-chance she’s not there to witness something meaningful happen to me IRL, she’s always ready to decipher what went down over texts or dinner and drinks — just like we did when we were teens trying to figure out who A was (minus the wine, of course).

The way she can reconstruct my way of thinking and offer up a perspective I hadn’t seen before is almost paranormal. Whether these are Taylor’s naturally given talents or traits learned from peeling back all the layers of the series, I’m not sure. But she’s always there to decode situations with me — whether they relate to a TV show or during moments when I feel lost.

I couldn’t be more thankful that Taylor entered my life and that PLL played a role in our friendship. I feel so incredibly lucky to know someone like her. Plus, now I have someone who is obligated to watch the reboot with me. Ali was right: Friends do share secrets. And she’s ~quite literally~ the reason Taylor’s got all of mine. Spencer and Aria, you’ve got some competition.

Get Relationship Advice Here

[kyn19]

1 THROUGH 98! I WANT TO KNOW THE ANSWERS AND I CAN'T STAND GETTING THEM PIDDLING BIT BY PIDDLY BIT!!!!!

Lmaooooo what a fuckin Mood. Thank you!!!!! Also, you’re getting Drunk Kylie answers which are arguably the Best answers. For the courtesy of everyone’s dash, answers are below the cut!! <3 <3 <3

1. coffee mugs, teacups, wine glasses, water bottles, or soda cans?

Coffee mugs! I have a sizable collection lmao #WriterLife

2. chocolate bars or lollipops?

omg such a tough one, both are aces. seriously I can think of so many combatting pros & cons!! the only fair way i can currently conceive is which i would want weed in. Which is lollipops bc (#UnpopularOpinion) pot makes chocolate taste bad.

3. bubblegum or cotton candy?

both are great, but def bubblegum.

4. how did your elementary school teachers describe you?

“Pleasure to have in class” in true Gifted Child fashion

5. do you prefer to drink soda from soda cans, soda bottles, plastic cups or glass cups?

i’ll rate them in order: 1) can (absolutely preferred), 2) bottle if alone but plastic (lez be honest, Red Solo Cup) if with company, 3) glass (do not like)

6. pastel, boho, tomboy, preppy, goth, grunge, formal or sportswear?

#1 goth all the way. Pastel and Formal guest appearances

7. earbuds or headphones?

headphone, bc earbuds usually hurt my ears.

8. movies or tv shows?

first of all, how dare you. second of all, tv shows ONLY BECAUSE if all my fave movies were given tv shows so that they could last longer i would choose so

9. favorite smell in the summer?

idk i guess pool chlorine? dislike summer

10. game you were best at in p.e.?

bruh fuckin none. elementary school: too long ago to recall. middle school: escaped having to take gym at all. high school: had a medical excuse to take online PE. least athletic girl u know

11. what you have for breakfast on an average day?

i don’t have bfast bc eating close to when i awaken makes my tummy upset

12. name of your favorite playlist?

hmm 4-way tie between “#motivate #bitch” (gets me pumped to work) and “Friends Of The Illness” (my playlist of songs about and/or artist who are mentally ill) and “Ominous/haunting” (speaks to my creepy side) and “Bad Bitches” (self-explanatory amirite)

13. lanyard or key ring?

Key ring. Straight up I use an extra shoelace as my key ring string, despite owning multiple lanyards.

14. favorite non-chocolate candy?

god another fkn hard one. Listen y’all, you dont understand how much of a sugar fiend i am. candy is my JAM. Starbursts, Sour Straws, Skittles, Jolly Ranchers...who can choose?!

15. favorite book you read as a school assignment?

“Ceremony” by Leslie Marmon Silko. Highly recommend!!!!!!!!!!!

16. most comfortable position to sit in?

laying down lol sitting is for suckers

17. most frequently worn pair of shoes?

combat boots like the gay i am

18. ideal weather?

low 70′s degrees (F*), intermittent showers during the day but clear starry skies overnight

19. sleeping position?

mostly fetal, mostly on my side but chest is towards the bed, one arm under the pillow under my head

20. preferred place to write (i.e., in a note book, on your laptop, sketchpad, post-it notes, etc.)?

Laptop. I used to love writing in notebooks, but ya girl got weak fingy joints nowadays

21. obsession from childhood?

pfft as if they aren’t the same obsessions i have now

22. role model?

so many!!!!! Jameela Jamil is the first that comes to mind

23. strange habits?

lmao i am ass-deep in idiosyncrasies, if you ain’t read the blog title already

24. favorite crystal?

i don’t know anything about crystals. does blue topaz count? cuz that’s my birthstone and i like that one a lot. i even had the foresight to pick that as my engagement ring’s stone in my utterly preposterous & failed relationship

25. first song you remember hearing?

oh wow, no idea. music has always been huge for me. probably either a Britney Spears or Mary J. Blige song???

26. favorite activity to do in warm weather?

stay inside lmao

27. favorite activity to do in cold weather?

WEAR SWEATERS & DRINK HOT CHOCOLATE, BITCH!!!!!!!!!

28. five songs to describe you?

oof ok, hard, but here goes:

“Here” by Alessia Cara

“Wannabe” by the Spice Girls

“I’m Just a Kid and Life Is A Nightmare” by Simple Plan

“No Daddy” by Teairra Mari

“Brick By Boring Brick” by Paramore

29. best way to bond with you?

i am straight up not easy to make friends with (bc my own bullshit, not trying to be pretentious), so bonding is hard. the best way is probably a combo of queer + memes + loves food + correct morals + being the dominant talker

30. places that you find sacred?

Libraries, locally owned coffee shops, Walmarts at 3am, playgrounds in the middle of the night, side of a rural road at 12am, my bed

31. what outfit do you wear to kick ass and take names?

Blazer + shirt with a titty window + high waisted plaid pants + platform booties

32. top five favorite vines?

OMG I LOVE VINES OK OK OK OMG I LOVE SO MANY SO HERE ARE JUST THE ONES I QUOTE THE MOST OK:

Josh Kennedy: “What’s up my name’s Jared I’m 19 and I never fucking learned how to read”

Sarah Schauer: [dont remember the beginning] “didn’t you..?” “sleep in this? yes. mama needs A DRINK”

Evan Breer: “What’s up my & my boys are going to see Uncle Kracker - give me my hat back Jordan, do you see Uncle Kracker or no - *gasp!*”

Drew Gooden: “Road work ahead? Um yeah, I sure hope it does...”

Nathan Enick: “Yo how much money do you have?” “69 cents” “Oh you know what that means!” “...i don’t have enough money for chicken nuggets :( ...”

33. most used phrase in your phone?

bruh like how even am i supposed to answer this?? like texts or Siri requests or????? bc if it’s Siri requests then it’s 100% for arithmetic

34. advertisements you have stuck in your head?

Stanley Steamer. you kno the one

35. average time you fall asleep?

3:30am

36. what is the first meme you remember ever seeing?

bitch i’m a 90′s child of the internet, i was around the web before YouTube launched, i was there when the first modern memes were fucking conceived. i will say the biggest repository of meme culture that i was a part of was YouTube and icanhazcheezburger.com & its side-sites.

37. suitcase or duffel bag?

duffel - Tie-Dye Girl from the Lindsey Lohan “Parent Trap” made quite the impression on me

38. lemonade or tea?

Lemonade! hate the leaf water

39. lemon cake or lemon meringue pie?

Lemon cake! Not a meringue pie girl saly

40. weirdest thing to ever happen at your school?

I’ve been to a lot of schools yo lol. My undergrad college was def the “weirdest” ofc, bc it was an art school lol. An instance that stands out was a string of “Solid Gold Clit” graffiti after a Sophia Wallace visit to campus right before i started there.

41. last person you texted?

My bff triad pals @backwardswriter and @bristarshine

42. jacket pockets or pants pockets?

damn tough call. Probably jacket pockets bc i’m more likely to have those as a lady who wears lady-targeted pants

43. hoodie, leather jacket, cardigan, jean jacket or bomber jacket?

Hoodie

44. favorite scent for soap?

Plum!

45. which genre: sci-fi, fantasy or superhero?

Fantasy, though sci-fi is a solid 2nd. Not much of a superhero gal

46. most comfortable outfit to sleep in?

.....underwear only. Sometimes an oversized t-shirt too.

47. favorite type of cheese?

Mozzarella!!!

48. if you were a fruit, what kind would you be?

I would want to be like a pomegranate, but i’m probably a nectarine

49. what saying or quote do you live by?

“If you hope for the best but expect the worst, you’ll never be disappointed.”

50. what made you laugh the hardest you ever have?

bitch i’m a giggle monster, i taught myself to be easily amused as a survival mechanism.

51. current stresses?

My own lack of discipline.

52. favorite font?

oooooof i have so many ok. too name a few: Centaur, Garamont, Book Antigua, Times New Roman, Montserrat.....mostly Serif fonts bc I’m an old books bitch

53. what is the current state of your hands?

I don’t love my hands (how homophobic of me, I know). Currently they’re kinda dry and full of sandwich

54. what did you learn from your first job?

what kind of boss I like. also that my customer service voice is frighteningly pleasant

55. favorite fairy tale?

Original tale: Thumbelina. Adaptations: Snow White.

56. favorite tradition?

uhhh Thanksgiving feast I guess? i am not a traditions gal

57. the three biggest struggles you’ve overcome?

I am very very fortunate to not have a lot or a severity of these. The ones that I’ve had the worst of are: gender discrimination/harassment as a woman, hardcore emotional abuse in a relationship, and heavy heavy mental illness

58. four talents you’re proud of having?

Tangible talents: writing, lying. Intangible: A+ imagination, useless trivia.

59. if you were a video game character, what would your catchphrase be?

“I support you!”

60. if you were a character in an anime, what kind of anime would you want it to be?

like if Tokyo Mew Mew and Higurashi No Naku Koro Ni had a baby

61. favorite line you heard from a book/movie/tv show/etc.?

Again, how dare you. Like literally, asking me to pick a favorite line from something is like asking what my favorite breed of dog is. Legit impossible

62. seven characters you relate to?

Ananka Fishbein (Kiki Strike series), Mermista (She Ra & the Princesses of Power), Luna Lovegood (Harry Potter), Gwen (Total Drama), Rori Gilmore (Gilmore Girls), Villanelle (Killing Eve), Andrea (St. Trinian’s)

so like all very- to semi-weird white girls lmao

63. five songs that would play in your club?

[by the term “club” i assume that i’m limited to pop and electronic music. even with the limitation, though, a super hard question]

“Talking Body” by Tove Lo

“Hot in Herre” by Nelly

“Because the Night” by Cascada

“Nails, Hair, Hips, Heels” by Todrick Hall

“Break Free” by Ariana Grande ft. Zedd

64. favorite website from your childhood?

pretty much any doll franchise’s site (Barbie, Bratz, My Scene, Polly Pocket, Diva Girlz, everGirl, etc you name it)

65. any permanent scars?

Yep. One by a dog scratch (it was honestly a weak/shallow/innocent scratch, i still have no idea why it scarred at all), and a few from a car crash last year

66. favorite flower(s)?

i don’t really like flowers? i usually just say Forget-Me-Not’s for ease

67. good luck charms?

bitch idk but i’m knocking on wood just from thinking bout it

68. worst flavor of any food or drink you’ve ever tried?

you ever taste that chocolate Laffy Taffy? vile bruh

69. a fun fact that you don’t know how you learned?

I am annoying enough to know how i learnt all my facts, but the funnest fact I like to annoy people with is that ducks have corkscrew penises evolved from their main form of mating being rape

70. left or right handed?

Right (like any ol’ simp)

71. least favorite pattern?

polka dots

72. worst subject?

MATH and also PHYS ED

73. favorite weird flavor combo?

One time whilst high, I put nacho cheese Doritos on a tuna sandwich. Winning combo, I’m telling you

74. at what pain level out of ten (1 through 10) do you have to be at before you take an advil or ibuprofen?

My pain tolerance is straight up unpredictable, so like anywhere from a 3 to a 9

75. when did you lose your first tooth?

5 years old

76. what’s your favorite potato food (i.e. tater tots, baked potatoes, fries, chips, etc.)?

Mashed potatoes

77. best plant to grow on a windowsill?

I am not a plant person. Moss.

78. coffee from a gas station or sushi from a grocery store?

fucking neither but i at least like coffee so i guess the former....

(i know, it’s tragic and barbaric that i dislike sushi, i wish i had another answer for you)

79. which looks better, your school id photo or your driver’s license photo?

Neither lmao - I got them within a month of each other (six years ago) so they’re essentially the same photo.

80. earth tones or jewel tones?

Jewel!

81. fireflies or lightning bugs?

I mean those are the same bug so I assume this is asking about which terminology I typically use/prefer. Which i would say both bc I’m a cultured ho

82. pc or console?

I don’t game so I guess PC lmao

83. writing or drawing?

Writing but I like both

84. podcasts or talk radio?

damn neither lmao I can’t focus on non-music audio only. I guess talk radio, just bc I can do like ten minute radio segments at least lol

84. barbie or polly pocket?

both were lit but I had more Barbies

85. fairy tales or mythology?

not to sound like a broken record but FIRST OF ALL HOW DARE YOU? second of all, I essentially consider them in the same category at this point in modernity, so my answer is Yes.

86. cookies or cupcakes?

Cupcakes, but both are exquisite

87. your greatest fear?

spiders, heights, clowns, seeing bad things happening to animals, that my consciousness will exist even after death, y’know normal stuff

88. your greatest wish?

to transfer myself into one of my fave fictional worlds

89. who would you put before everyone else?

dogs, next question

90. luckiest mistake?

i make a lot of those honestly, so who knows

91. boxes or bags?

LISTEN I LOVE CONTAINERS OF ALL SORTS, YOU CAN’T MAKE ME CHOOSE, IM PANSEXUAL FOR A REASON

92. lamps, overhead lights, sunlight or fairy lights?

FLASHLIGHTS, BITCH

93. nicknames?

Ky, KyKy, Moonshine, SugarTits, Goog Bones

94. favorite season?

Autumn (yes i call it that instead of Fall bc i’m a pretentious ass bitch lol)

95. favorite app on your phone?

Tumblr, c’mon

96. desktop background?

Currently a digital art painting of a flowing stag in a swamp that I downloaded from DeviantArt. I change it every few months though (to other downloaded digital art from DA that I collect periodically lmao)

97. how many phone numbers do you have memorized?

Seven - mine, my mom’s 2 numbers, my grandma’s, my pop’s cell and office (also my old office) numbers, and my childhood house phone number lol

98. favorite historical era?

Golden Age of Piracy, specifically bc the piracy lol

Thank you so much for the asks, this was so much fun!!!

[readingaway]

Danielle Babbles About Books - Geekerella by Ashley Poston

Rating: 3/5 stars

Adult Content: abuse

Review: *There’s no spoilers for a retelling!* I almost DNF’d in the second chapter and I’m frankly really really tired of the trope of “nerds” being bullied and how nerd culture is supposed to be “so weird.” Maybe I did just have an abnormal high school experience because I’m an oblivious person but when I was bullied it was for failing to understand social norms and therefore I was acting way out of line and making the other kids uncomfortable and didn’t get that (thanks ADHD!) [and calling me names, harassing me, and just being generally terrible didn’t make me more normal; who’d’ve thunk?] or it was because I didn’t have any interest in Twilight (not kidding that was the entire reason my #1 middle school bully bullied me). The most popular kid in my high school was obsessed with anime. My sorta friends would sit around ragging on other girls because they were “so popular” yet those girls were pretty average and were generally liked because they were polite and friendly. I’m also really tired of “this hot actor is actually a really down to earth normal guy and the protagonist who hates him learns this and they fall in love!” Anyway! When I started this I hadn’t realized that this was a legit retelling which is the first thing that threw me before the “nerds are so persecuted!” and the “angel actor” tropes really got on my nerves. I noticed that it’s very similar to Ever After (1998) I mean the protagonist is a redhead named Danielle (check!) who builds up a romance with the love interest who instead of being a prince is a TV star (check) who the mean stepsister is very determined to catch (check!), there is a nice but spineless stepsister who helps Danielle out and they stay friends (check), Danielle has a queer-coded artist best friend (check! this time the best friend doesn’t start as the bff and is confirmed gay), the stepmother is selling everything off due to her poor financial management (check! and no this isn’t something that happens in every retelling), the stepsisters steal Danielle’s parent’s possessions (check!), there’s a masquerade ball that Danielle wears her mother’s gorgeous dress to and during which Danielle is exposed by her stepfamily (check! really this was a fix-it for the movie’s scene which doesn’t end well). Danielle goes home to face severe punishment and is trapped away from her friends and out of contact with the prince Darien. You get the picture. My issues aside I still enjoyed the ride and the conclusion and was very, very frustrated with Danielle’s acceptance of the abuse she receives, how powerless she feels because while it’s an important aspect of the story and makes sense for the character it’s just so different from me and my personality.

Favorite Quote: “My dad said that the impossible is only impossible if you don’t even try. So I want to try.”  

[tahere-ravenwick]

My worst teacher ever!

Okay so I've had so many fucked up teachers (-_-) I lived in a rural area, so far off the beaten track, that if someone screwed up badly(but not enough to be fired) they got sent there, so we had a lot of jilted and surly twats, we also had a lot of teachers new fresh out of university and a few close to retiring or with disabilities but still wanting to teach, those ones were generally nice and pretty cool. Generally the rules were a bit more lax for the teachers since they had already messed up but were being given a second chance, and that lead to some great(but strict) teachers, since they were there as a punishment and they wanted to get out of there and back into their old jobs asap,(we had a lot of teacher turnover) but there was also a lot of shenanigans; teachers busted by students having sex in classrooms, teachers thieving, taking drugs, openly perving on highschool girls, etc...

But despite all of that in my whole school career(primary and secondary) there was only One instance where a teacher at our school actually got fired although they called it "Permanent Leave"... we did have a couple who had mental breakdowns and quit.. but thats different...

Anyway it was in my 10th year of school, he was an English teacher and he was one of those older middle age crisis types (cheesy gangsta wannabe, band t-shirts, shorts hanging low, baseball cap backwards, cheap rapper bling and he was obsessed with ponchos). He tried so hard to seem cool and hip.. but he was just so creepy.

And he barely lasted a year.

He was openly bias and judgemental in class, favoring the academically inclined/more wealthy kids and snubbing the kids who weren't at the top of the class/less wealthy(going so far as to kick them out of class. Then he'd do a complete 180 outside of class and try to be all best friends buddy buddy with everyone like he thought he was the most favourite teacher in the school. He really wasn't. (¤_¤)

I was one of his favorites (unfortunately..) I think its because I had a lot of smart/wealthier friends and he though I was really "smart". I was on the higher end of poor and yes I was kinda smart but I hung out and got along with a lot of people, it was a really small town and everyone knew each other since preschool so we all got along for the most part and we all hung out often.

I was also one of those quiet artsy types, I doodled in my note books to help remember the content of the lesson.. He latched onto that like a maggot on rancid meat. He would go through my school bag pulling out my art books and rummaging through my stuff! And would give me Word Art to colour in and draw on as homework! Hell I remember one incident where I threw my phone at him to get my art books off of him.. that he had grabbed from my bag during someone else's class!(we left them in a seperate area to the classroom)

Who the fuck does that!?

I had to get a fucking padlock for my school bag!

And the really sad(annoying) thing is, I actually enjoyed English class before he showed his nasty face. That year we were meant to be studying Shakespeare and Chaucer and all of the old English books which I've been reading since I was little and it was my year to shine! But he made me feel like a fucking toddler with his "colour in the pretty picture" (○u○)

That his classes generally consisted of watching movies/music videos and slacking off(not so great since we had really big important tests at the end of the year that decided our futures...) and him having hissyfits if anyone objected.. I spent half the time skipping his class and hiding out in the library.

Really didn't help that he had a real short fuse, trowing tantrums and screaming at anyone who questioned him..

I remember one big incident towards the end of year, I dont know what caused it since I wasn't part of the class, but I saw the ass end of it as I was walking past on my way to the library. He was having a massive tantrum screaming his head off, purple faced and throwing anything he could get his hands on. Including a chair that hit one of my bffs and knocking her down in the middle of class, seeing this I knock on the door, giving the excuse that bffs mum wanted her and was waiting at the main office(our parents were really close so one of us delivering messages like that was normal) I got her out of there and took her to the nurses office because the chair had cut her arm and reported what was happening to the main office(he didn't get the sack for that, but it definitely added fuel to the fire) when bffs mum was called in to pick up bff she stormed right over to the fucktard and tore him a new one(shes short but holy crap she's fucking scary) he steered clear of bff and her family(me included as extended family) after that.

So many kids were reporting him and trying to get him gone, but things really came to a head at the end of the year after the results for the HSC* came back. Thanks to Him everyone in his class failed the HSC, including graduate aged students who needed the HSC to get into university. Since about 2/3rd of the school failed the HSC the Board of Education sent someone to investigate what had happened.

It was a really big deal, kids were called in to be interviewed (those in his classes and some outside for confirmation) All of us were given an intensive 2 week course by another teacher and a second chance to sit our HSC (a very big deal! board of education never allows do-overs!), but in the end many of us barely scraped a pass and its affected our chances of getting into university and future career paths. Several in my year dropped out and others moved schools.

Thankfully it was the final nail in his coffin and he was gone for good, I moved after that year(for unrelated reasons) so I dont know how things went in the next years aftermath, but I hope the kids in the years to come never have to deal with something like that happening to them!

*Quick explanation of what the HSC is...HSC stands for High School Certificate. In the last 3 years of high school students take 3 HSC tests(that we call the HSCs) to prove we are ready to move onto the next year of study. There are 3 tests in the HSCs the students must pass to achieve the minimum standard and recieve our HSC– reading, writing and numeracy.

Each years HSC qualifies students for new opportunities:

Recieving the Year10 high school certificate means that you can go onto years 11 and 12 or drop out and go to TAFE(aka community college).

Recieving 11 & 12 qualifies for University entry although the qualifying courses change depending on how high you score in those tests.

So years 10, 11 and 12 are really full of studying and prep for those tests because they are so important to our futures.

[watchingspn-blog]

spn rewatch | the woman in white (pilot)

Okay so I can safely say I’ve seen the pilot episode at least half a dozen times, if not more. I got season one on DVD for my 14th birthday (which I 100% binged with my BFF at the time to the point where we were beyond exhausted for my actual birthday festivities the next day) and would watch over and over in the days before Netflix. So for me the first couple of seasons are way more familiar to me than the later seasons. Especially since at some point after I started college when I didn’t have as easy access to television and streaming services weren’t quite what they are today I fell off the bandwagon. Pretty much everything I know about the show from mid-season eight onwards comes from gif sets on Tumblr and the occasional Facebook posts. Which brings me to this rewatch/first time viewing. 

It’s easily been at least three or four years since I’ve watched the pilot but it’s still so familiar to me which I feel like says a lot for the show. Or just says that I was way too obsessed with this show as a teenager. But anyway, here we go.

First of all, I don’t know about anyone else but I’m honestly a little weirded out by seeing JDM looking younger and not having a beard. Like it’s strange to me and I don’t know how to feel about it and I’m glad this is the only scene where he looks like this. The beard does him wonders in all walks of life and I’m glad it’s a look he’s stuck with in just about everything he’s in these days. (Also you can totally see one of JDM’s tattoos under the sleeve of his t-shirt and it just makes me want to headcanon John with a couple tattoos from his time in the service despite looking so clean cut when they have the flashbacks with Matt Cohen.)

Secondly, I want to know when they came up with the backstory that Mary was a hunter and came from a family of hunters and that she’d been in that life before she settled down with John. Because I feel like if that backstory had been mapped out before the pilot her reactions when she woke up to the baby monitor would be more suspicious. But that could also be me just being too picky. Like it’s totally valid that Mary, just waking up didn’t pick up on the static or the flickering lights. I just want to know if they’d had her history in mind when this started or if that came up later once they’d developed the story and characters more. 

Okay, so I don’t have any major attachments to Jess, mainly because we just don’t spend enough time with her. She’s got a whole three (?) scenes where she’s mostly delegated to the supportive girlfriend who’s also over-sexualized. Like they seriously chose to introduce a female character and have all of her outfits be revealing to the point where other characters are commenting on it before killing her. Like I have no issues with female characters wearing whatever the fuck they want, there’s nothing wrong with that. But it wasn’t given any more depth than “here’s this sexual object for our audience to look at” and that’s what bugs me. But I am glad that they showed her being genuinely concerned when Sam is packing like wanting to make sure he’s okay and make sure he’s not doing something reckless for people who’ve actively avoided being in his life over the last few years. She’s incredibly supportive of Sam and it makes me happy that he had that in his life even if I do hate that it was taken away in a horribly gruesome way.

Adrianne Palicki is just ridiculously talented and deserves way more recognition than she’s gotten over the years. 

Now, I’m gonna be real. I was a Dean girl from the get go. I loved me a smartass bad boy when I was thirteen and I was head over heels for Jensen Ackles from the first time I saw this show (probably because I’d never seen him anything else before but I already knew Jared as Dean from Gilmore Girls who wasn’t my favorite as a middle schooler). It also probably doesn’t hurt that I saw an episode of season two as my first intro to the show instead of the pilot. Because honestly, watching his first scene as a 26 year old, he doesn’t come off in the best light. Between breaking into Sam’s apartment, their whole tussle in the dark living room, and then him hitting on Jess right in front of Sam, he’s kind of an ass. Which yes, Dean is not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. All of these characters are fucked up, especially after fourteen seasons and counting. But this just doesn’t line up with how Dean is in the rest of season one even, I feel like. 

Like Dean telling Jess that she’s way out of Sam’s league is one thing. I expect nothing less from him. But then him just being creepy and ogling her is just uncomfortable to watch now. 

Also the lighting budget for the entire first season is just horrendous. It’s like they wanted to show that they were scary and edgy but really it just meant I couldn’t make out what was happening in any scene that didn’t take place in broad daylight. 

Okay, on to the spooks. Having a woman in white for the first MOTW (monster of the week) was kind of cool to me because it was something I actually knew about before the show, thanks to reading any and every book on ghosts my school library had to offer. And Sarah Shahi is super gorgeous. Like hot damn. And as cheesy as some of the effects are in the earlier episodes, I actually like the way that she kind of flickers in and out along the side of the road as Troy’s driving up and then the way you don’t actually see her in the passenger seat when it shows her getting in. None of the effects are too crazy over the top (at least not until the very end of the episode when she finally goes home and has that weird as fuck death scene with her creepy kids) and it works.

As a thirteen year old, I thought it was totally believable that Sam and Dean could be US marshals and the local cops were just being jerks. As a twenty-six year old, the idea that those two could pass as any kind of law enforcement other than like maybe a couple of rookie cops is ridiculous. I’m the same age that Dean was at the start of the show and I’ve got people assuming I’m still in high school. I couldn’t get past the crime scene tape for anything. But I guess if you’re confident enough and tall enough, anything’s possible. Also as if they didn’t already look hella conspicuous, they act like a couple of five year olds with all their stomping and smacking, like no wonder the cops were suspicious. 

Also can we take a moment to appreciate the awesome mid-2000s goth look Amy and her friend are rocking? Because it’s fantastic and I’m here for it. Also kudos to them for being the only women to make it to the end of the episode alive. 

I never really thought about it when I was younger but it’s not surprising that Sam isn’t as gung ho about hunting down the demon that killed Mary like John and Dean are. His memories of Mary are entirely built on stories and pictures and not from anything he actually remembers himself. And like it’s totally valid for him to want to get away from the hunter lifestyle and follow a different path instead of just killing monsters and running credit card scams for the rest of his life. 

All I can think about when they break into the room John was renting is that gif of Charlie from Always Sunny with all the papers and strings on the walls. 

One of the better aspects of Supernatural, in my opinion, are the actors they get to randomly guest star on the show. And not necessarily big names (although those can be fun) but like the ones that you’ve never seen anywhere else. Because the guy who plays Joseph Welch is fantastic in his one scene on screen. There’s so much emotion there as he’s talking about a clearly sensitive subject and being able to show the grief and also some of the guilt over being unfaithful. It’s a fantastic scene so like major shoutout to Steve Railsback for being awesome.

The whole showdown with Constance’s ghost is kind of like mediocre compared to future fights. Like it’s a pretty quick scene and the effects once they actually get her to the house to face her creepy children are kind of the worst. Like they used their whole special effects budget doing that flickering thing in her first scene and had to settle for this instead. Also like yes they stopped her and she won’t be able to kidnap and kill skeezy men in the future but like I feel kind of bad for Amy and Troy’s family because they’re just left with zero closure whatsoever. Like I never thought about it but there are a lot of people over the years where it’s like yes we stopped the monster but those families never actually know what happened to their loved ones. 

Okay, I get that it’s supposed to be a serious, intense scene, and the first time I saw it - yes it was shocking and heartbreaking and terrifying but the effects for Jess’s appearance on the ceiling are just bad. She doesn’t look like a person, she looks like a mannequin. And I’m still annoyed that they brought her in and showed how much her and Sam loved and cared for each other only to kill her horribly at the end of the episode. It’s just frustrating. And honestly this should’ve warned all of us that pretty much no female character is safe on this show. None of them. 

The “we’ve got work to do” at the end is still hella iconic. Like there’s a couple of lines that still give me that little excitement I got when I first watched it and that’s one of them. I love it. 

BODY COUNT: 3 humans (Mary Winchester, Troy Squire, Jessica Moore), 1 ghost (Constance Welch - do her kids count too? They didn’t really show up until was time for Constance to like melt into the floor all creepy like)

RATING: 7/10 - the effects are kind of garbage and there’s some stuff that hasn’t aged well but I still think this is one of the better pilots I’ve seen as far as getting you hooked into the story and characters. 

[incorrectquotesconaisseur]

OMGGG thanks so much for the tag!!

last book I bought: This Is How You Lose The Time War, it's pretty high on my tbr list, I hope I can get to reading it in the next month :)

borrowed: Marina by Carlos Ruiz Zafon, borrowed to me by my bff and I finished it in a couple of days in february

was gifted: Gallant by V. E. Schwab although idk if it's a real gift if I forced my parents into buying it for me (and the autographed hardback version too)

gave/lent to someone: ughh I didn't borrow a book to anyone in a long time, but I remember giving The Wolf Princess by Cathryn Constable to a colleague in middle school

started: currently reading The Queen of Nothing and the biography of Oscar Wilde written by Andre Gide - extremely intriguing, especially if you're passionate about taboo lgbt historg like me :)

finished: I read the Cruel Prince and The Wicked King and I REALLY LOVE the whole trilogy

gave 5 stars: I gave 5 stars to quite a few books this year, among which are Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo, If We Were Villains by M. L. Rio, The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde and Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Sir Terry Pratchett

did not finish: I watched a few versions of Hamlet (the 2009 being my favourite, cause that's the kind of person I am) but I never actually got around to reading the play - I read half of it, learned Hamlet's soliloquy by heart and stopped halfway - I DO PLAN ON GOINGT THROUGH WITH IT AT SOME POINT

personal recs: I highly encourage everyone to read Oscar Wilde's De Profundis - it's basically a 100 pages long letter to his ex, a very lyrical, touching, bitchy and iconic rant that I adored. And OFX my current obsession being Good Omens, it is my full-time job to corrupt more people to read it - an angel and a demon who have clandestinely worked with each other for 6000 years have to cooperate to save the Eartg from the upcoming Armageddon, but they are queer and incompetent so it all goes to shit :) add some witches, cool kids, dry humor and witty plot and you have a recipe for success. I also love His Dark Materials A LOT - the antithesis of The Chronicles of Narnia, it's ultimately a bitch-slap to the Catholic church, featuring a badass, sly young girl as the protagonist, a war between science and religion, cool polar bears, ???MULTIVERSE???, gay angels, killing God and many other fun features

PHEW THIS WAS LONG ok I'm tagging the lovely @ninamorozova @alonlyfangirl @brekkercookie

Super superrrr psyched that @everyforkedroad recommended that I give this a shot how exciting!!! I almost exclusively read queer fiction, I swear I keep trying to branch out but there's so much EPIC queer content...

So, that being said...

The last book I bought was: Summer Sons by Lee Mandelo (Southern Gothic queer horror story- slow burn romance and just so, so beautifully written.)

Borrowed: Drag Teen by Jeffery Self. (Cute, very cute story.)

Was Gifted: A Little Life By Hanya Yanagihara (It counts if I gifted it to myself, yes? Had them gift wrap it and everything) Also, it broke my Little heart. I still find myself muttering quotes from the book randomly in utter disbelief.

Gave/Lent to Someone: The Woman Who Made Me Feel Strange by Anna Ferrara (Such a good book- part of a trilogy, if I'm not mistaken and I plan on reading the other two soon BUT THE FIRST ONE WAS epiCccc)

Started: You Owe Me A Murder by Eileen Cook (Not a queer book- like I said I'm trying to branch out- and it's a thriller sort of crime thing? Not too bad so far)

Finished: We Need To Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver (Whew.)

Gave 5 Stars: The Library on Mount Char by Scott Hawkins ( One of my favourite lines: "I'd drop-kick the baby Jesus for a Marlboro." That is all.)

Didn't Finish: Avatar, The Last Airbender: The Shadow of Kyoshi by F.C. Yee (Things became intense and I got scared- I will eventually go back to it but first I intend to forget what made me stop reading in the first place.)

Personal reccomendationsssss cus I also love recommendations: They Year of the Witching by Alexis Henderson. Supernatural horror vibes with an amazing, epic woman of colour as the main character. Couldn't reccomend it enough.

Soooo, it'd be super cool if @use-your-words , @squash1 , @envyclearlace anddddd @crownamedtod shared their recently reads etc as well. anddddd anyone else!💜💜💜

[vrenaewrites]

CRAVE by Tracy Wolff thoughts: Ch 22 - ch 48

Full video here.

CH 22: Baby, it’s hot in here

Like, baby it’s cold outside?

Sooooo much internal monologuing about her first boyfriend and how no one has made her feel like Jaxon does…

“The big picture is that the most popular boys in school are obsessed with you”

“He looks at you like it physically hurts him not to be touching you. Baby, if he wanted you anymore he’d spontaneously combust”

Macy wants the tea about her and Jaxon

She says flint and him had a “massive pissing contest over her” lmao

“Are you trying to be reassuring or scare me?” “yes”

She tells heather ttyf? Am i stupid??? What does that mean?

TALK TO YOU FOREVER?!?!?!?!?!?!!?!?!?

“It sounds like every cliche in the book, but he’s different around you. Somehow less intense, but more intense.”

“You can trust me, we’re family” and grace almost starts crying :(

CH 23: never bring an ice cream scoop to a gunfight

Macy FINALLY comes clean re: flint and jaxon are mortal enemies

“What is this the breakfast club? Even they figured out they could all get along” grace just be quiet and let the girl who actually knows wtf is up at this school tell you wtf is up. You been wanting her to talk for so long, be quiet.

Ooh something big happened a year ago that made them all break up into factions

It’s about hudson jaxon’s brother!

Or is his name spelled Hyudsin because stupid spellings

Ooh macy warned grace not to become the chew toy between flint and jaxon

CH 24: waffles are the way to a girl’s everything

I want to hate this but i fucking love waffles so like…

Someone’s texting her about her ankle...i thought it was jaxon...AND IT IS!

“I don’t know the punchline to whatever knock knock joke you’re setting up” I BURST OUT LAUGHING BECAUSE “he’s funny over text” ma’am...this isn’t funny? Maybe a lil snarky, but funny?

Now she’s telling jokes over text and we’re having a whole long stupid text fucking exchange….i hate this so much

Then he tries, “what do you get when you cross a vampire and a snowman? Frostbite” and my soul leaves my body because what in the 8th grade twilight fanfiction is happening…

She texts him brb instead of just responding when when she was done peeing and then he stops answering her, this used to happen to me with the toxic dudes i talked to in high school...am i reading too much into this? Idk yet

And then she’s spiraling about why he stopped texting and UGH I REMEMBER THIS FEELING!!!!!!!!!

Jaxon has food sent up to her room from the...cafeteria? Wtf…

He says he doesn’t like the food and she says “So what do you like to eat” and then is like “wow that sounded suggestive” lmao

And he says “i don’t think we’re there yet but let me know when we are” WHAT DOES THAT MEAN

CH 25: truly madly deeply bitten

And we’re really just gonna keep texting 21 questions

She loves tatbilb...i mean same lana condor is the loml, but

Jaxon loves rogue one………

I don’t care AT ALL. NOT ONE BIT DO I CARE, TRACY WOLFF.

“I wish i could ask the real jaxon vega to please stand up” i rolled my eyes but i also giggled

“You suck” “you have no idea how much” i threw up in my mouth.

Niall horan reference, hozier reference, rhianna reference

JAXON’S. FAVORITE. SONG. IS. TRULY. MADLY. DEEPLY.

INSERT SNAPCHAT OF ME CRYING LAUGHING HERE

Gambino reference, beethoven reference???, and then brown-eyed girl which personally offends me because my mom used to sing that to me

This makes her hands shake

She plays brown eyed girl a bunch of times

Then another woman comes to deliver a package to grace...from jaxon...it’s a library book

It’s twilight

Insert snap of me screaming stfu here

Macy is laughing her ass off about this because she isn’t stupid, she knows what jaxon is

And grace says she never read it when it was popular all those years ago…

Baby you said you liked reading. No way did you survive middle school without reading it.

And then he shows up!!!!!

She makes a shitty joke to lighten to the mood

He’s massaging her hurt ankle...oh shiiii

They ALMOST kiss

He gives her a little note wrapped in a ribbon

“I wonder how i’m going to keep this beautiful, broken boy from cracking my already battered heart wide open”

Hades voice: we were so CLOSE!

CH 26: the uniform doesn’t make the woman, but it sure brings out the insecurities

He ripped a page out of anais nin’s journals that says some shit like “i dreamed you, i wished for you”

So cute sentiment but you ripped a book my dude? Cardinal sin

Grace is finally going to class

The cafeteria is goth as fuuuuck

The music is “creepy af”

Jaxon sits next to her in front of everyone

CH 27: 10 degree weather gives a whole new meaning to “the cool kid’s table”

He sits in the super ornate chair backwards and it makes her horny

The order is kind of ragging on jaxon about being cute to grace which is funny

We get all the dude’s names at one - raphael luca liam mickey?? I think

“A dark and devastating desperation” in his eyes

And then we got byron who’s more angsty than jaxon - “mad bad and dangerous to know” just like his namesake

CH 28: “to be or not to be is a question, not a pick-up line”

Jaxon walks her to class

Wanting him feels like opening a vein

“I love the way your hair smells”

“My heart is beating like a heavy metal drummer”

We were so close!!!!!!!!!

We’re doing hamlet in class ofc

The teacher says “although you look like the shy type despite your association with katmere’s most notorious student”

Instead of just saying the halls are like playing frogger she describes the old video game where you try to get the frog across the road...is it just people in the south that say playing frogger when describing crossing traffic? Or is this a well known phrase??

Apparently there’s hidden tunnels so flint takes her to them

Her intuition is like BITCH DON’T GO IN THE TUNNELS but she ignores it AGAIN

CH 29: with friends like these, everyone needs hard hats

There are beds with shackles?!?!?!?!

Leah shows up and turns out they’re going to the same class? But flint insists on walking her to class…

Leah and flint are NOT friendly

Damn she offends flint with a buffalo bill joke

There’s bones in the tunnels and a giant chandelier in the rotunda that’s also made of bones…

There’s an earthquake!

CH 30: you make the earth shake under my feet, and everywhere else too

And it stops as soon as they get out of the tunnel

Jaxon is there and being a dick to flint and grace has HAD it

CH 31: big girls don’t cry, unless they want to

Grace gets hit with a basketball in gym

All the order has been walking her to class because jaxon knew she was mad at him

Does jaxon cause the earthquakes somehow?

She finally reads the texts jaxon had sent and feels bad for being mad at him when he was just worried - no he acted like a dick. Be mad.

She’s making sooooo many excuses for his anger: the earthquake, the fact that he’s already rescued her before so of course he’s worried…

Aww a student is playing autumn leaves which was her dad’s favorite song :(

She starts to boo-hoo “grief is a wild thing within me”

Civil twilight AGAIN

Jaxon is standing there when she finally stops

CH 32: it’s not a coincidence that denali and denial use all the same letters

He opens the door in the alcove and it’s like a clubhouse? Oh it’s his dorm room???? Confusion

So it’s like the living room and NOW he’s leading her into his bedroom

She says she’s terrified of him touching her because of the intensity but then says she has no trepidations about doing or being anywhere with him...ya just said...nvm

They go out to the roof

CH 33: Madonna’s not the only one with a lucky star

Please decide if grace is a silly teen who doesn’t know what frogger is or an old soul who loves madonna pls

She asks if he’s an alien…

And she tells him he’s the hottest person ever and that his scar makes him sexy as hell and he's all like “me?!” which is a nice role reversal

This is his favorite place

And there's a meteor shower!!

CH 34: all’s fair in love and earthquakes

Thanks i hate this

When she touches him she realizes how cold he is and thinks it’s from being outside which makes him act all weird

Someone please just tell this girl what’s going on!!!!!!!!! I HATE when the reader is 8,000 steps ahead of the MC

“A craving in his eyes” WE’VE SAID THE TITLE FOLKS!

She makes the move to close the space and says she’s dazzled, GUYS

She’s making the MOVE! “Did you ever want something but you were scared of taking it?” “yes” “what did you do” “i took it anyway” and then he kisses her!!!!!!

The kiss is as soft as a snowflake, as delicate as the permafrost

Then “his mouth goes crazy on mine lips tongue teeth, it’s a cacophony of sensations, a riot of pleasure”

“My knees go weak at his tongue on mine, just like one of those heroines in a novel”

His hands are vices on my biceps...his hands were around her back at first which seems way more romantic than manhandling her arms??

There’s an earthquake...and jaxon is like you have to go

A window breaks and cuts her and then she blacks out????

CH 35: baked alaska is more than just a yummy dessert

Intimidating af is the nurse

The glass nicked her artery!!!!!! The FUCK. or did jaxon bite her?????

Her mom died like that… yikes on bikes

He fucking bit her...this is a lie...i’m calling it…

FINN ABOUT TO COME CLEAN!!!...but the nurse stops him.

Macy is an OG bff she is the best

Or is grace the one making shit happen??

Grace notices the sheets are fixed but that macy never went to the bed

Macy asked what they were doing when the earthquake hit...WHY

CH 36: no harm, all foul

Grace goes after Jaxon and he’s like “our kiss didn’t matter”

He says he put her in a lot of danger by being around her, a “target on her back” and wants her to stay away from him but he can’t pull himself away

But then he does

CH 37: don’t ask the question if you can’t handle the answer

Leah drops the bomb that she and Jaxon are expected to carry on like a family dynasty sitch since Hudson died

CH 38: nothing says “i like you” like a fang to the throat

She’s freaking out of course

Mickey says jaxon def didn’t bit her and she’s even more confused and me too

Jaxon is in the mountains...he wants her to wait but she’s pissed

“I take a deep breath and hold onto it with both hands” ….?????

Because i have to hear it out loud, “what did make these marks?”

Say it, out loud

CH 39: there’s never a hallucinogen around when you need one

She’s furious and she should be! I’m glad she’s not replying to Jaxon

We finally get to the bottom of it all!!!!!!

Macy admits Jaxon is a vampire

Leah is one too!!!!

Flint is a dragon!!!!! CALLED IT

He’s got fire? With a name like flint how could he not PUKE

“Who needs LSD when you go to monster high?” Shut UP

Macy is a witch DUH

“You should have been one too”

CH 40: be careful what you witch for

GO FUCK YOURSELF WITH THIS TITLE

Grace’s dad was a warlock but he lost his power when he fell for grace’s mom...oh no was their accident like a magical mafia hit??

“What kind of witch are you if you can’t do something an 11 year old can?” “the kind that doesn’t come from JK Rowling’s brilliant imagination”...THAT aged poorly…

“This is a less bloody version of game of thrones” shut UP

The school nurse bit her because jaxon used his vampire venom to heal her cut, and it worked too well so she needed to cut through the healed skin with her vampire teeth

Because this is twilight satire so of course they have venom…

“So vampires can just override each other’s venom?”

Most of the vamps would have had a hard time not draining you dry, but not jaxon

I absolutely called it: witches, vampires, dragons, and werewolves confirmed.

CH 41: Vampires dragon and werewolves, oh my

This physically hurts

She’s kind of categorizing the students now that she knows which is totally something i would do

God almighty is flint just a jacob clone…

CH 42: good thing pancakes aren’t on today’s menu

The chandelier is falling onto her and someone pushes her out of the way - it’s jaxon!

His eyes smolder at her

She dresses his cut on his head and his arm

“I wouldn’t have had to save you if you were in your room where i told you to be” he grinds the last part out through clenched teeth

He finally lays it out that someone has been getting her hurt on purpose

CH 43: what doesn’t kill you still scares the hell out of you

Her uncle wants to talk to her before she sees jaxon again and i smell an info dump coming

Dangerous af

“Macy told me she spilled all the tea” said her UNCLE with no hint of like “is that what you kids say these days”. GTFO

“I wait for the other shoe to drop even though 100 have already fallen” that’s not how that idiom works

She’s like “how could he think i wouldn’t figure it out i knew something was wrong” no ma’am! No you didn’t!! You kept shrugging it off until chapter 24 at the EARLIEST when you settled on aliens

Getting the tea on the turf war between dragons and vampires - so it’s not like twilight because it’s not the werewolves. Whatever.

Uncle says it was probably some witch who got too loose with her powers and grace is like yeah no absolutely no one is trying to kill me it was yet ANOTHER freak accident

Uncle wants to sent her back to cali

CH 44: Sweet home alaska

So she doesn’t wanna go because of jaxon, not because her only family in the world is in Alaska….

It’s only been a WEEK

“I know jaxon can be...seductive” says her UNCLE

the guys in the order are born vampires, not made, it’s a v big deal

Info dump city re how vampirism is a genetic mutation…

There are 6 ancient families of vampires...this all sounds like the first draft of my new wip where I was trying to figure out how the secret society worked…

Then he says he’s not in the habit of talking students with other students….we just did...this whole chapter…

Another earthquake???

Ch 45: I always knew there was fire between us, I just didn’t know it was your breath

Dude shut up

She goes to the library and wonders if the books about vampires etc would be under non fiction or biology lmao

The librarian is a native Alaskan with elemental magic….yikes

She does a weird eye swirling “you’re more than you think you are” thing to grace

Flints in the library and she asks him about dragons and I swear to god if we get a chapter devoted to learning about each species via info dump I will burn this place to the ground

He singes the marshmallow with his fire breath, loves it

And he can breathe ice? He cools the water down

He can bloom flowers in his hand????

“They’re beautiful” “you’re beautiful” “but I’m not hitting on you??”

Because when I hit on you, it’ll be because you want me to!!!!! We Stan flint!!!

Ch 46: I’ll get you and your little dog too

Enough

Dry throat around flint now, oh shiiiiiii

Oh shit the order is on the move!! There’s trouble

She chases them into a classroom and sees jaxon making shit fly everywhere with just his mind...is he a vampire and a witch??

There’s a werewolf vampire brawl

Damn jaxon can freeze everyone with his mind!

She tries to stop him but he’s put up a barrier

She breaks through!!!!

And jaxon bites cole!!!!!!! ALMOST KILLS COLE!!!!!!!!!!!

“This is your only warning”

CH 47: the first bite is the deepest

Jaxon pulls grace away, this whole time grace’s inner monologue is her feeling responsible for the carnage

“I won’t hurt you” “I know” “you know? do you have a death wish?”

But jaxon is so disgusted at himself that she's just like “well did he deserve to almost be killed?” She has accepted this shit with sociopathic speed

“The power you wield...it’s unfathomable” sis has turned the corner

“You don’t scare me jaxon”

They flipped the script and she breaks down his defenses and it’s kind of hot ngl

She tells him she needs him and he bites her??????

Ch 48: is that a wooden stake in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?

They’re getting worse

But it’s not a hurting bite it’s like a sex bite…like she describes an orgasm basically..

Then they kiss

The earthquakes are jaxon! Called it

At this point I am sooooo annoyed because just make him a witch!!!! We really wanted the twilight combo so badly we made him a telekinetic earth-shaking vampire?????????

They go to his room...and she goes to his drum kit instead of his bed, you dumb bitch

Now they’re talking in the bed

The jokes are just so fucking bad

He cuts them off by pulling her on top of him and kissing her!!! In bed!!!! We ain’t in twilight no more henny

“The kiss curls my toes but the yank curls everything else” wut

“I don’t want you anywhere near that world, and I sure as hell don’t want that world anywhere near you” - someone. Anyone. Take a second pass

~~~

[americangonekiwi-blog]

December 20th, 2017

Well, if you stumbled upon this, then I guess welcome to my new blog. 

Let’s make this first post about muah. 

Let me introduce myself. 

My name is Madison, but i’m begging you to call me Madi because Madison sounds too much like medicine. Yuck.

 I’m 20 years old & I guess you can say I haven’t done much with my life so far. Pitiful, right?

I was born & raised in the mid-west town known as Valparaiso, Indiana. I know, it’s quite unfortunate. Actually, it’s really not that bad. BUT, once you get a taste of something a little bit different, ya never wanna go back. (sorry to my former English teachers reading this, you’re great)

I went to Boone Grove schools in, well, the “boondocks”. Let’s face it, the curriculum wasn’t that great, but the staff (mostly) was amazing.

I kind of screwed up while attending school. The first two years were kind of a popularity contest for me. I went from being that awkward, fat girl in middle school who wore a Blink 182 hoodie every day (I didn’t even know who they were at that point) to that obnoxious, try hard in high school who just wanted everyone to like me. 

Tried too hard to fit into Abercrombie & Fitch clothing. Drank a bit too much Skol Vodka. Talked a little too loud and too much. Tried following all of the trends. All while I should’ve been studying for that test and memorizing the Periodic Table of Elements.

Skip forward about 2 years and a couple fake friends later, I sort of got my shit together. 

My momma told me to. Plus, I had to maintain a certain grade point average to keep my scholarship for a full ride.

I had gotten my first job at Burger King to pay for, I suppose, whatever I needed. Except I spent all of that money on Starbucks, clothes, and a nasty habit that i’m pretty sure all my colleagues smelled. Sry bros.

I started hitting the books when I was at work on night shifts as long as I wasn’t getting yelled at by my managers. Let’s face it, I was getting yelled at by my managers. HA.

I stayed up all night doing homework even if it required a bit of Adderall that was(n’t) prescribed to me. 

When I hit my senior year, Senioritis ( a colloquial term mainly used in the United States and Canada to describe the decreased motivation toward studies displayed by students who are nearing the end of their high school, college, and graduate school careers, or the end of the school year in general) kicked in MAJORLY. 

I cheated on everything. BUT, in my defense, all the cool kids were doing it.

aaaaand they all air dropped me the answers (we had iPads instead of books at this point). 

At this point, it was also decided that I wanted to become a nurse. So, I tried kicking ass in every school subject, hence the above.

I made great friends at my job who I now don’t really speak to (except you, Mayah. You da real MVP and my best friend, and oh my god, I love you so much and I miss you) but they were my greatest support system up until graduation. 

That’s when my life started to crack around the edges.

& let me tell you how it started.

I knew my life was about to be the definition of bad luck when at my graduation, I got hit in the head with a fake pillar. Literally. I don’t really want to talk about it partially because it gave me a concussion and I don’t remember even getting my diploma and because it was super embarrassing. Go ahead and laugh, assholes. Then:

My car broke down

Only 3 friends showed up to my open house

I lost my full ride scholarship

I was still working at Burger King

Got my heart broken

I had no $$

etc.

So, I started drinking. A lot. To “celebrate me graduating”... for the whole summer.

There was no way I was going to IUN for nursing now. I gave up, basically. 

(this is nearing the end, don’t worry. i’m getting to the point where I tell you about how I ended up at the bottom of the earth)

I felt alone and lost, really. So, I made an account on meetme to basically mess with people and get to talk to someone. Not for a boyfriend. Seriously. No.

And then, ladies and gents, is when I met my bff (and current boyfriend) Mr. Jamie.

Pretty much found out he was from New Zealand and had an accent, and that’s all I really cared about because he sounded Australian. We all know the obsession in the states with the Australian accent. TOTALLY HOT, RIGHT?!?!

By the way, Australian and Kiwi accents are different.

If we’re being COMPLETELY honest here, I had no idea where New Zealand was. I totally thought it was where Madagascar is.

Anyways, Mr. Jamie was coming to Chicago [2015] to go to Grace (a Michelin star restaraunt, by the way, he’s a chef if you haven’t stalked him on my Facebook yet) so I met him when he came 3 months later in December.

It was super awkward, to say the least.

During that time we first started getting to know each other, he helped me realize that I wanted to be a baker. I decided against it my freshman year when I found out it’s hard to get far in that career, but it’s what I wanted and still want to do.

Flash forward after he left, we got together, yaddayaddayadda. Mushy gushy blah blah blah.

By the way, don’t do long distance relationships. They are literally the worst and people are snakes.

During 2016, 

I moved out

 got an apartment in downtown Valparaiso with my dog Buddy (xoxoxoxoxoxoxxoxo) & older brother, Tyler

Got a new car

Had my heartbroken again

Glued it back together and became a boss ass bitch who took shit from no one

Waited for Jamie to come back in December

My mom, stepdad, and little brother moved to Florida

Got a job at Family Express Bakery

Jamie came in November and stayed until the end of January. After he left, I realized how depressing and lonely I was in Valpo. Long story short, him and I decided I was coming to New Zealand.

In that mean time, I HAD to get out of NWI.

I packed my car and dog up, and headed south to FlOrIdAAAAa. 

Two months after arriving, I saved every penny I had and moved to New Zealand.

There’s my little (big) introduction if ya didn’t already know that about me. From here on out, the rest of this blog is going to be about adapting to the new culture and adventures away from home.

Thanks for reading, lovelies. Talk to ya lataaaa, alligata.

Xoxo, 

Gossip Girl

Madi

[-outofcontext-]

82 Truths

I was tagged by @onceuponabookblr Thanks for the tag!

Rules: Once you’ve been tagged, write a post with 82 truths about yourself and then tag 25 people

My Favourites:

Animal: turtles

Colour: purple

Drink: dark chocolate lattes 

Food: anything potato!

Time of year: Summer (I’m a So Cal beachbum) 

Films: Back to the Future, The Matrix, Ghost, City of Angels, You’ve Got Mail, everything with Tom Hanks, more I can’t think of right now lol

Book: Oh man! Um. The Catcher in the Rye, Little Women, Everything by Sarah J Maas, Leigh Bardugo, John Green, and Sarah Dessen. Haha, this question isn’t fair for Booklrs! 

Subject in school: English

Flower: Tulips

Fruit: Pineapple

About Me:

I’m 38 and still play make believe, and climb trees, and roll down grass hills. I’ll never grow up

I work at a library and absolutely love my job!

I live in Southern California, and visit the beach almost daily

Though I finally got a BA in Journalism, my college years were the most traumatic having lost my mother to breast cancer, and I ended up changing majors 6 times in six years.

I was born in Manila, Philippines but raised in Long Beach, CA U.S.A.

As a result go that upbringing, I can understand Tagolog but can’t speak it.

I have one older brother but 7 step brothers and sisters.

I’m obsessed with folktales and mythologies from all over the world.

I have a teddy bear I love so much he travels everywhere with me and is now way more popular on Instagram than I will ever be LOL

33 is the magic number. It was the age my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer, and growing up I thought that was the age I would die. Now I’m living on borrowed time. 

Most recent:

Phone call: My best friend

Text: Also my best friend

Food: Langonisa and fried rice 

Drink: Coffee

Book: A Darkly Beating Heart by Lindsay Smith

Purchase: Wonder Woman: Warbringer by Leigh Bardugo 

Song I listened to: Despacito, because unfortunately its been playing every damn hour on the radio

Reason to be excited: I got one of my fave authors to agree to make a visit to the library I work at! 

TV show: Younger. OMG I swear I have thought about doing the same thing LOL

Obsession: Books!

Memories:

Happiest: About five years ago, I got to visit the Philippines for the first time since I was a child. I did so much sightseeing and island hopping. And I met over a dozen of my cousins that weren't even born when I left.  

Saddest: Nov. 20, 1999. Mom lost her fight with breast cancer. 

Strangest: I think this one comes from my dreams. I don’t dream vividly usually. I can never remember my dreams. But once in a blue moon, I dream in a way that I can recall it like a movie I watched. And I recently dreamed I was an alien superhero lol

Scariest: When I was 21, I fell into a bonfire pit at the beach, fire and coals and all. I ended up suffering 2nd and 3rd degree burns on the bottom of my feet. I thought I was never going to walk again. It took a long time and a lot of therapy but I can :)

Funniest: There’s a community in Long Beach referred to as Midget Town. It’s a closed community of little people. When my best friend and I were in high school, we drove all around Long Beach trying to find the entrance in the middle of the night. We never found it, but we were delirious with laughter the whole time. 

Exciting: I think the first time I went to an SCBWI conference in 2011. I was so inspired and in awe, and it was the first time I felt like I belonged somewhere. I had found my tribe, I was a writer after all. 

Proudest: When I finished writing my first ever YA novel. 

Boring: When I was a preteen (Can’t remember exact age), there was a day when I sat on my bed and stared at the wall all day, from waking to when I fell asleep. I don’t remember why I did it, but I remember that’s just what I wanted to do. 

Biggest Fears

Being in a car crash (IDK why it’s always on my mind)

Spiders!

Clowns

Drowning

Public Speaking lol

Excited for in Life:

Publishing my first book

Travelling

Finding “the one”

Becoming a mom

Learning new things (like surfing & archery)

Learning to cook lol

Reading great books and meeting more authors

I am always…

Checking my social media

Reading

Still playing Candy Crush...

Taking pictures of my teddy beat

Texting my BFF

Checking emails

Looking for something to snack on lol

Looking up book sites for book news

Stalking authors in twitter

Daydreaming...

I wish I was, and I eventually will be…

A published author

A decent cook lol

Confident and self-assured

Better at managing money

An archer

A wife and mom (hopefully)

A world traveller

A speaker of my native land’s language 

A ninja warrior (My latest obsession lol)

A homeowner 

Favourite Things about Myself:

I am a very positive person

I always try to look for the good in people

I am extremely inquisitive and love learning new things

Long hair, don’t care lol

I have an eye and appreciation for art

I am a very loyal and supportive friend

I will go above and beyond for my family and those I love

Once I care, I will never stop caring about you

I will never give up

Finally, my blog…

I wanted to find a blog where there were great inspirational and sometimes funny quotes from my fave YA books. So I created one myself. 

Probably needs more artistic posts of the books I’m reading, but creating those are harder than it looks man!

Is really just for me, but I truly hope you all enjoy it as well. 

Tagging booklrs I’d like to know more about. But anyone and everyone is welcome to post :) @readers-live-a-thousand-lifes @yaliteraturebookshelf @feysandsmut @teachingliteracy @quietya @tsundokusam @yabookers @yaseriesinsiders @aliteraryescape @dailyya

[nighttimefjaeril]

Hey~! Saiyuki ask meme~!]] 1) Favourite member of the Sanzo Ikkou | 2) A character that grew on you | 5) if you ship characters, what is your favourite pairing | 11) Most adorable character in the series | 22) Which character do you think is most like you? | 29) An alternate universe you'd like to see annnd...I think Jyoan is one of your faves, right? So, 48) if Jyoan had a tumblr, what would he reblog? [[that's all~! I hope you have fun answering these~. Also hope you had a great day~!]]

Heeeeyyy thank you so much for sending these questions, what a great selection! :3 Let’s see...

5) if you ship characters, what is your favourite pairing?

I’ve replied to this one previously, but to save you some time, here’s the condensed version: two twinks in a temple, one is totally NOT obsessed with his (aesthetically perfect) rival who’s better at him at everything with zero effort; said rival trolls the other twink relentelessely because he’s a prickly, but deep-down lovable, asshole. They’re both weirdos. And fabulous ones at that.

2)A character that grew on you

Ok, that’s gonna sound pretty strange but... I will have to go with Gyokumen. xD Basically, there isn’t a Saiyuki character I dislike. but back when I was younger hating the big baddies seemed to be the thing, right? And everyone and their mother, me included, constantly hated on Gyokumen for being, well, a complete bitch. Actually, I still think she is. But god, what a fabulous one at that! She’s such a fun character: unapoloegitically ruthless, vain, self-absorbed, lustful, has no regards for human decency and only cares about her own agenda...so, goals? x’D Kidding aside, characters like that are just so enjoyable to me, she’s like a beautiful, sexy evil queen, and what’s not to love about that?

11) Most adorable character in the series 

Hmm that’s pretty tough, ‘cause there are so many characters that I find adorable, for many different reasons...as somebody else pointed out, even someone like Sanzo can be classified as “adorable” really :D But going for the most obvious definition, I think I have to go for both Genkai and Taruchie, I mean, just look at them! They have this “cute but creepy” vibe which totally resonates with me :3 But baby Goku of Gaiden too tho... so precious, so pure! :’)

29) An alternate universe you'd like to see 

Oh man, I’m a sucker for AUs, I have so many in my head (where probably are goin to stay ) and love hearing other people’s too! Can I go with two? One it’s “general Saiyuki-based”, the other one is completely Ibun...

The first one may sound a tad trite but... school kids AU with the ikkou, Kou-tachi, Kami-sama and Hazel as middle-schoolers :’); Kanaan is in there too. Kanzeon is the school principal, she’s a transgender woman and is married to Jiroushin, is Kouryuu’s aunt and Goku’s guardian (Goku is still in elementary, along with his bff Nataku and Lirin). Ukoku is the creepy science teacher who’s also married to Hwang, also a teacher, but they’re both cheating on each other (Hwang with Kou’s step mother Gyokumen, Ukoku with Kouryuu’s single dad Koumyou x°), who also is the music teacher ).They’ve adopted Kami. Gojyo has also spent much of his childhood in an orphanage, but now lives with his college-age half-brother Jien, who also works part-time at the school as the basket coach (Kou’s the captain of the team). Hakkai and Kanaan (who know Gojyo from their orphanage days) live with their uncle Tenpou, whose partner best friend is the leader of the punk-rock band “Black Ants” Kenren, which is Gojyo’s favorite group (also because everybody tells him that there is a resemblance between them ;) ). Because he plays guitar, and Hakkai plays the keyboard, he wants to start a band. They recruit (not without struggle) Kouryuu as the singer and bass player, and Goku as the drummer, who despite his age is a terrific player. From there, all sorts of high-school-band-AU shenanigans ensue. x’D

About the Ibun one... that one has a much more complex plot, so since I don’t wanna bore people to death I’m gonna try and keep it short; it’s basically a 70′s hard-boiled/thriller set in Japan, with mysteries, investigators, police, yakuza, unsavory nightlife, gay bars, sex, drugs and rock ‘n roll :’D I just want to point out that I was inspired by some Ibun pictures, specifically the “Born to be wild” one (where Gichou looks so much like a private eye it’s hilarious), and the one with Houmei, Doutaku, Sho’un and Jyoan where they look like four yakuzas...actually, scratch that: three yakuzas and a male hustler. xD

48) if Jyoan had a tumblr, what would he reblog? 

AHAHHAAHHAH oh man, my bias is so obvious already, I’ve been clocked once again :’) Well, let me tell you, if Jyoan had tumblr he’d be the posterchild for ~*edgy tumblr tween aesthetic*~ x°) His blog would be an aesthetic dream (or nightmare, depending on how you see it): lots of pastels (especially purples) and black, pretentious and angsty quotes, probably a lot of Lana del Rey, but also a lot of underground cinema and book stuff that he probably doesn’t even like, but they sound refined and cool. Also, artistic selfies overload and, from time to time, Rupaul’s drag race gifsets (but he tries to refrain himself to do it because they don’t really fit in well with the rest, so he had to start a side-blog just dedicated to that).

Again, thank you so much for these questions, I’ve had a great time replying! ^^

[hoynovoy]

My 'Pretty Little Liars' Obsession Led Me To My Best Friend

“Got a secret, can you keep it?” Well, I’ve got one: Though Pretty Little Liars ended in 2017, the seven-season mystery thriller schemed its way into being an integral part of my life for the long haul, so much so that the opening credits live in my head rent-free. To this day, each time I hear the sinister theme song — “Secret” by The Pierces — I’m brought right back to my childhood comfort show (ahem, obsession). The visuals begin with a swipe of mascara, the smear of red lipstick, and a clasp of a heel onto a porcelain doll, which makes me feel like I’m watching someone get pampered for prom. Until, of course, it cuts to four girls standing in front of a casket. It's a chilling moment, one that, until Season 6B, ended with Aria Montgomery (Lucy Hale) delivering her iconic “shh.” I got cast under the show’s spell the first time I saw it, and I wasn’t the only one: Pretty Little Liars led me to my best friend.

Ironically, plotlines about deceit and betrayal actually helped ignite a long-lasting friendship. In 2011, the only other person I knew to be watching PLL was my now-BFF, Taylor, who’s been by my side for over a decade. We were only about 11 and 12 when it premiered, so shout out to our parents for letting us watch a show that dealt with very adult themes like substance use disorder, assault, and grief. Unlike our classmates, who watched tween-appropriate hits like iCarly and Victorious, we became PLL stans.

As fans know, the show is loosely based on the Sara Shepard YA series of the same name, and the first book was my entry point into the PLL universe. I loved reading about blackmailers and murderers navigating high school, but I thought I was the only one who was into it. (Was this my ~I’m different~ complex showing, or were my peers just naturally more inclined to recap Dance Moms? I’ll never know.) So, Taylor first struck up a conversation with me at school because she spotted the first PLL book on my desk — you know, the one painted with porcelain wax dolls warning to “never trust a pretty girl with an ugly secret” in a Gothic script. She asked if I’d watched the TV adaptation yet and we immediately exchanged phone numbers to text about upcoming episodes. We then fell into the fandom. Fast.

I’d never talked to Taylor before this interaction — we had only been in a few classes together — but I always saw her as approachable and friendly. Universally, the beginning of middle school is a big and terrifying year when kids from different elementary schools unite. Eager to meet new people, I reached for friendship at any chance I could get. Taylor made it easy. Aside from being a genuinely kind person (a rare trait for a middle schooler!), she was fangirling over the same thing as me.

Fast forward over a decade later, and the show still feels timeless, especially in its accurate depictions of how dramatic high school can get. It’s no surprise there’s a PLL HBO Max reboot on the way along with the remakes of other buzzy shows from that era (hello, 2010s nostalgia). Ah. It was a simpler time. Back then, Freeform was still ABC Family and for me, Tuesdays meant one thing: PLL is on. What first started as a solo viewing experience soon became a designated hangout time, a time slot reserved for me and Taylor to gush over how much we loved Ashley Benson. (We still do!)

The series had a vibe similar to Gossip Girl or Bridgerton in that a mysterious, unidentifiable pot-stirrer keeps fans guessing each episode, but it was arguably so much better since “A,” the anonymous villain, is out for, you know, murder. Ultimately, it was the type of whodunit that made me and Taylor (and millions of viewers) go down a couple of Reddit rabbit holes — remember the “Aria is A” suspicion? — and this is where my and Taylor’s experience with fan theories began.

Oh, and let’s not forget the location. PLL takes place in the fictional suburb of Rosewood, Pennsylvania, and for two girls from Bucks Country — aka the Philadelphia ‘burbs — we ate it up. The beloved “Welcome to the Dollhouse” episode was exceptionally creepy not only because the Liars get locked into a life-size replica of their bedrooms, but also because our real neighborhood looks extremely similar to their hometown. It operates like Rosewood, too, in that small-town gossip travels at lightning speed.

The Pennsylvania-based plotline also made it easier for us to identify with the characters, who felt like extensions of ourselves. In many ways, we got to know each other through their personalities. Taylor is studious and high-achieving, obviously a Spencer. And I owned feather earrings because I saw Lucy Hale sport them in Season 1, so obviously an Aria. Asking “Are you more of a Hanna or an Emily?” held as much weight in 2012 as asking someone their rising sign in 2021. While it might not say much, it also tells you everything you need to know about a person.

PLL got its start right before live-tweeting shows became popularized, so when we weren’t together, I used to text Taylor on my slide-out keyboard phone (only Zillennials will remember) to compare notes without stumbling upon many spoilers. They read something like this: “Caleb and Hanna are soul mates, TBH.” Like every other fan, we theorized about why A had to be Ian… and Melissa… and Jenna… and Mona… and, you get the point. When our elaborate speculations ran cold, we’d pause DVR’d episodes to gather more clues, like glimpses of Red Coat’s face in her second season introduction, or inspections of those eerie-gloved hands assembling dolls and sharpening knives at the end of each episode.

This game of Clue made room for conversations about all the things. We were in high school during the show’s peak, so it felt like the Liars had laid the groundwork for how to operate our school’s halls. Rosewood High was not traditional — uh, multiple students came back from the dead (*cough* Mona and Alison) — but it did prepare us for the stressors of college applications and first romantic relationships. In fact, Benson’s Hanna Marin would be proud of my matchmaking skills because back then, I introduced Taylor to the boyfriend she’s still with today.

As we both grew up with the show, our friendship got even deeper. The Liars weren’t the only ones to share secrets, and I found it incredibly easy to confide in Taylor. She’s trustworthy, level-headed, compassionate, and an excellent listener. She’s someone I know will always pick up on the second ring and is the type of friend to be there with advice, reassurance, and a quick-witted one-liner. She once joked about never needing a diary because we’ve transcribed the past 10 years of our lives via text.

Our bond has remained strong, especially because the most outrageous PLL-esque plotlines of our lives are ones we’ve experienced together. I love Taylor because I don’t have to provide background for my stories. I’m even so familiar with the cast of characters in her life that when someone re-enters after a long period, I like to say they Alison DiLaurentis’ed her.

And on the off-chance she’s not there to witness something meaningful happen to me IRL, she’s always ready to decipher what went down over texts or dinner and drinks — just like we did when we were teens trying to figure out who A was (minus the wine, of course).

The way she can reconstruct my way of thinking and offer up a perspective I hadn’t seen before is almost paranormal. Whether these are Taylor’s naturally given talents or traits learned from peeling back all the layers of the series, I’m not sure. But she’s always there to decode situations with me — whether they relate to a TV show or during moments when I feel lost.

I couldn’t be more thankful that Taylor entered my life and that PLL played a role in our friendship. I feel so incredibly lucky to know someone like her. Plus, now I have someone who is obligated to watch the reboot with me. Ali was right: Friends do share secrets. And she’s ~quite literally~ the reason Taylor’s got all of mine. Spencer and Aria, you’ve got some competition.

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