#thattrashdude

[timebird84]

Hello!! Please sign me up for the advent calendar, the 18th please. I’ve had the 18th two years in a row so now it’s a tradition. Thank you :^) -thattrashdude

Awesome, @thattrashdude! Dec. 18th it is for you! I assume you’re submitting a pic?

[thattrashdude]

My entry for @timebird84 ‘s Seven Sins art contest!!

Lust

I started this so late... it was going to be a gif but my program wasn't into it...

And yes erik is eating an apple whatareyoutalkingabout. Get your head out of the gutter.

[ofbeautsandbeasts]

Hello! (This is thattrashdude) I was wondering if you could do Kay!Erik, masked, and because I play the flute, I was wondering if you could draw him with the flute. Thank you, and congrats on 700! :)

Oh cool, you play the flute? I used to play the clarinet in middle school :PI decided to give Erik a new hairdo. What do y’all think?

[confessionsofanoperaghost]

Ready as I'll ever be (Animatic)

HOLY SHIT GUYS

Thank you @thattrashdude !!! You are a fucking gift! I LOVE MEG SO MUCH IN THIS @queenofthemorgue

[timebird84]

🎄 PotO Advent Calendar ‘19 🎄

Fic by @filmsarefriends​, Pics by @thattrashdude​

This was not going according to plan, at all. It was supposed to be an easy transaction. In and out; a quick outing that unfortunately had to be done during the day. Fortunately, it was the middle of winter, and no one should blink twice at a lanky being overdressed in winter attire, so much so, that only his eyes was kissed by the sun. Yes… completely normal. Erik had spent much longer in town than he wanted; wished desperately to get home and away from the buzzing humdrum. 

As luck would have it, he, of course, was in the middle of a blizzard after the sun had gone down. This would have been difficult enough if his home wasn’t in the middle of the woods of a rural area. Oh the joy. Just had to be the one who hated humanity. 

Erik found himself dragging his tired boots through billows of old and new layers of snow. Tripping his way, hopefully in the right direction, back home.

“I’m too god damn old for this,” he muttered grumpily to himself. His socks were just starting to get soaked through his boots. He hated all seasons: Spring? Bears were awake and hungry; Summer? Too bloody hot; Fall? Bears are tired and hungry; and Winter? Too bloody cold. It was his least favorite time of year. He didn’t have body fat, or anything a normal human would have to keep him warm, and his old bones kept creaking and moaning like an old house. He should be used to the cold, with all the days and nights he spent in the underbelly of the opera house that, at the time, had made the cold seep into his core, spill into his veins. But he was older, grumpier, and didn’t have an endless supply of candles.

But at home, there was Christine…. Oh, his lovely Christine. She was the only one that had warmed his once chilly heart, soothed his aching bones, and made the bad days melt away. Erik found new strength, and began to move a bit faster, thinking about his Christine. 

Erik was supposed to be fast, it was only supposed to take an hour at the most… but Christine had already been waiting several hours. She tried to busy herself with preparing their dinner for the night, taking care of the fire, and tidying up already neat areas of the house...still he did not come through the door. 

He promised he wouldn’t get into trouble, and he promised he would be home in a flash. She had promised to trust him. 

But what if he had gotten into trouble in town? What if someone said something cold to him and he lost himself? What if someone hurt him? Her mind began to race, Erik was never late, he preferred to keep his time outside of their private world to a minimum. 

Her hands began to sting, and as she looked at them, she noticed she had been biting her nail beds until they bled. 

She couldn’t help but worry, it was dark, and the blizzard was getting worse. Something must’ve happened! Before she could think further, she threw on her coat and scarf and rushed out of the warm house, grabbing a lit lantern before slamming the door closed. Christine prayed that it would stay lit in the harsh wind, if she learned anything from her childhood in the freezing Sweden, you could not last the night outside. Where could he be? She had to find him, she needed to find him, before they both turned into human popsicles. 

Erik was not far from home when he saw a small, dim light coming toward him amidst the flurries of snowflakes. He pulled down his scarf from his eyes to try and get a better view. His first thought was that death had finally come for him, after all these years of avoiding her, she had finally come to claim his soul. Just when he had gotten a grasp on as much as happiness life had taken from him, he was going to lose it all, all because of this little storm. Maybe it was a blessing, the world would finally be rid of his existence, and Christine would no longer be bound by pity and actually have a full life with someone else… Erik shook violently, and his hands gripped into fists in his pockets out of a natural instinct he had found hard to shake. As the light approached he noticed a figure, and as it kept getting closer, he began to recognize the figure. It was his Christine! All alone in this storm, looking worried and frantic. 

“Christine?... Christine!” He called out to her. 

She began to run toward him, galloping over the sheet of snow covering the ground until she collided with him in a warm, inviting hug. Almost making both of them topple over if his boots weren’t already frozen into the ground. She planted kisses all over his cheek and the accessible part of his neck, cold tears spilling down her cheeks. 

“Christine, my love, my flower, my light… is it you? Or are you a trick or my eyes giving me one last gift before I freeze to death?” His arms held her as he greedily scoured for any warmth. 

She looked up at him, her eyes bright and watery, she cupped his covered cheek with her free hand and smiled, “It's me Erik! Oh Erik…. I-I was so w-worried about y-you!” She stuttered from the cold, finding her tongue refusing to work anymore. 

Erik gave out a sigh of relief, and held her hand cupping his cheek, he whispered into the deafening silence of the blizzard “Oh, mon ange, your hands… they are freezing.” He brought her hand to his lips and tried his best to warm them with his breath. But when you’re frozen down to the bones, it doesn’t help much. 

“You w-were supposed to come b-back hours ago! I was so w-worried ssssomething happened to you.” She stressed, burying her face into his chest. 

Erik sighed “I’m sorry I’m late, my love. Things didn’t go as smoothly as I expected.” He pulled her face up and wiped the tears from her face. Making Christine jump from the icy sharpness of Erik’s fingers on her red hot cheeks. He pulled away quickly, and muttered his apologies, but Christine pulled his hand back to her cheek, “May we go home now before we both freeze?” 

Erik looked down at his beautiful Christine, groaned dramatically, “I thought you’d never ask! I’m only freezing to death here.” 

Christine laughed and started to pull him along, “w-well let’s go then and warm you up, you old b-bugger.” 

“This is no way to treat a sick, old, feeble man.” Erik whined. 

“Y-you are not dying Erik-“ 

“We are all dying, my love.” 

“Shut up Erik, and lets get go home before dinner g-gets cold.” Christine huffed, leading Erik with determination. 

She was leading him by the hand back to their private little world together. His light in the storm, his Christine.

[thattrashdude]

😐 but that's ok!

“You seem a little distant from others.”

I guess you could say that, I just don’t usually respond to people, because this is my side blog... It proves to be quite difficult. I also try to stay out of drama since most of the time I just don’t care.

But, I’m a skeleton in the basement, so what can you expect from a cryptic?

[confessionsofanoperaghost]

since everything's a little weird right now & most seem to be bored I thought we could play a quarantine game 💘 answer the following! 1. how has your day been? 2. what is the last thing that made you smile? 3. what's keeping you entertained these days? 4. if you are in some kind of quarantine/self isolation: is there anything you'd like to achieve in this time? 5. post a selfie! (if you're comfortable with that) 6. last but not least: send this to some mutuals to keep the game going 🥰

I will try. Executive function has been difficult for me lately

1) my day has been crying. That’s it. Just crying and stopping crying long enough to eat or sleep

2) https://m.imgur.com/gallery/MSB5j

3) entertained? Well that is actually probably part of what I’m doing wrong. I had intended to be watching Haikyu by now, but that hasn’t happened

4) yes I am in self-imposed social distancing and am inside. I hope to get some real sewing done the instant I start having a grain of self confidence to build on

5)

6) do I tag people? I feel like I haven’t been actually active here in months. Um. @pagesofangels and @missdouwes um. @spiritwho @notaghost3 @thattrashdude @phantomofthetrashcan

Sorry

[rienerose]

Dear Artists, I have a request

If anyone is hunting for inspiration, I have a request.  I’d like to see a piece where Erik is standing in the passage behind the mirror and looking into Christine's dressing room, but from HIS point of view, where he is clear but she is hazy and dreamy.  He’s staring at her with this longing expression...or lustful...or threatening...however you want to interpret the scene.  We frequently see this depicted from Christine’s POV, with Erik’s mask hovering, in the musical, etc, but it would be interesting to see it from his angle. @coatntails   @ofbeautsandbeasts   @thattrashdude   @muirin007   @epwhales   @ilustrariane   @klausscrimshaw   @wicked-elegy    @alvadee  @drawnby27emilys    @cinema-phantom   @chronasolti    @madmoro   @depplosion   @cocokat   @disaster-musician   @kendyllromine  @toastysalt @timebird84  @inbetweeness   @tazan-sk   @lilyvonk   @hananilsson   @licieoic  @mistressofthelair   @dellamorteco  @mrdraws   @isittheghost  @honeybee-bzz  @juladoodles  @wolfgangamaderik  @la-fumettista   @awesome-linch  @batherik

and anyone else who draws that I’ve accidentally left out! Thanks so much for giving it some consideration.  I am constantly awed by your talents, and finding a new art piece is such a delight!

[timebird84]

🎄 PotO Advent Calendar ‘18🎄

Wintertime by @thattrashdude

The soft snow fell silently outside the little home in the forest of Sweden. A soft melody floated from the violin, moving around and falling like the soft snow outside. The sweet sound danced around until a sour note broke the beautiful tranquility.

Erik growled and put his violin down harshly. He had been in this music room for the past day, fiddling away trying to make the perfect present for the perfect woman. But nothing was ever near wonderful as she was. He crumpled up the paper that had notes scribbled on it, running his hands through his hair and picked up his mask, setting it back into place. His eyes wandered over to the door. It had been awhile since he had seen Christine, and he wanted to know what she had been up to, hopefully she had not burned or broken anything in his absence.

Erik opened the door and left the room, walking out into the dark hallway, his eyes followed the light coming from the drawing room. He started moving towards the light, for where ever the light was, so was Christine.

He was still thinking he was in a wonderful dream, or that he died and had gone to heaven… But some days he didn't believe that Christine had choose him. Erik! The monster! After everything he had done to her, she chose him, rather than a life of ease… a normal life. She was truly an angel, one he didn’t deserve, but was never not thankful for. And if this was truly a dream, he never ever wished to wake.

Christine was sitting on the couch by a burning fire, the soft glow seemed to wrap around her. She was focusing intensely on a dark object in her hands, it almost looked like a hat, a top hat. She was sewing the pieces together and was taking great care in every stitch she made.

Erik slipped into the drawing room as silent as the falling snow, he made his way closer to his beloved, who was still entirely focused on her small project.

He moved up behind her and looked down at her small figure. He wasn't sure to do, he found himself still being awkward, unfortunately, a few weeks won't help his many years away from all human contact.

Christine let out a satisfied sigh and moved to look at her creation, finally noticing the looming figure above her. She let out a small surprised peep, holding the object close and looking up at Erik with wide eyes.

“Oh! Erik, you scared me!” She let out a relieved breath.

“I tend to have that effect on people.” Erik replied, looking away from her and fiddling with his ring behind his back.

“Erik please.” she sighed “I was just so focused on making this” she gestured to the hat looking object, “and I wasn't expecting you out so soon…”

Erik looked down at her almost getting lost in her bright blue eyes, he felt like he was drowning. “Ah, yes, well I decided I would come check on you… I wouldn't be a very good.... husband… if I didn't.”

She smiled gently and stood, she moved gently and cupped his masked cheek tenderly, “You are a wonderful husband.”

Erik blushed deeply and moved his face away from her warm hand, even though every part of him was begging him to stay in the warmth a little longer. Christine blushed in embarrassment and moved her hand to her chest, looking away from Erik as well. That was much to bold of her.

“I see y-you made a fire” He pointed out, trying to get rid of the awkward silence. He would have gladly just gone back to his room and hide in embarrassment, but he had promised to be the best husband she could ask for.

Once Christine had said those holy words back then, Erik thought he had died, he had collapsed onto the floor and desperately kissed the hem of her dress, he clung like a child, weeping and babbling sweet promises.

He intended to keep those promises, even though he felt like he was always failing, he could never be good enough for a goddess. But he kept trying, for her and his own sake.

“Yes, I found myself cold so I made a fire…” Her silky voice broke his thoughts, and his eyes were brought up to her smooth face, a light blush dusting her cheeks, and the fire flicking on her, making her glow as if she was the fire itself.

“I apologize that I did not think of that sooner.”

Christine looked up at him, making eye contact that seemed like it lasted for years, “hm? Oh please, Erik, I can take care of myself, you don’t have to wait on my every beck and call.”

“Yes, but as a good husba-”

Christine cut him off with a finger, and she was surprised at how well he was listening today.

“Erik” She started softly making her way closer to him, who found himself glued the floor, “You are a fine husband. Now, come with me, I made something for you.” She finished with a small grin, slipping her hand into his.

Her fingers wrapped around his gloved ones, and she led him over to the door. She put her boots on and opened the door with a childlike glee.

“Come outside, but dress warmly, it's snowing.” And with that, she disappeared into the white abyss, letting Erik’s hand feel colder than it usually did.

Erik put his top hat on, and his coat that Christine had gotten him; he had never really needed a jacket before this, he never went outside, and if he did, he just had his cloak- but that wasn't very practical for any normal occasions.

He closed the door behind him and stepped foot into the deep snow, a soft crunching beneath his shoes. He thought back to his mother and his old childhood home, he would always just watch, never touch, that's how it was for everything.

As he walked around the house, the crunching reminded him of his childhood dog, Sasha. She always loved the snow… when she hadn't been left outside for the entire night. Mother always had a reason to yell at poor Sasha, she always had a reason to yell no matter what.

Times were different now, Sasha and his mother were long gone, and he was now with Christine in their own house, how long would the happiness last before it all came crumbling down?

He followed Christine's small footsteps to a clearing beside the house. There, Christine was standing beside a few lumps of snow on top of each other. She reached up and placed the object that she had been holding earlier, on top of the lumps, and then she smiled to herself. Her eyes moved over to Erik, and then her beautiful lips curled up brighter.

“Erik! Come and see!”

Erik made his way over and studied the three lumps of snow that was covered in sticks, grass, rocks, and some fabric. He stood close to Christine, trying to figure out what it was. A snowman… The lack of sleep for the past few days and then the bright snow was probably not the best on his aging eyes.

Christine looked up at him with bright and expecting look.

“Well? What do you think?”  

“It is… good…” he looked at it some more and frowned, “Is it me?” He asked.

“Yes! When I was younger, my father and I used to make snow people of each other. That was until… Well… I just thought it would be nice to start that tradition again.” She had a sweet smile on her face and Erik couldn't remember when last she looked this peaceful. Moving to Sweden was a good choice then.

“It looks nothing like me.” He remarked.

“What?! Yes it does!” Christine protested.

Erik looked down at the snowman and a small smile formed on his lips. To have Christine share this personal tradition, with him, he felt his heart hurt. Maybe he was having a heart attack, if so, then he would gladly accept it, as this was the happiest he has ever been.

“I did try my best… “Christine pouted, crossing her arms, “I think it looks like you... “

“Why I’m I frowning?” He asked.

“Because you’re always frowning!”

“I am not always frowning” He replied frowning.

Christine sighed, and grabbed his hand, leading him away from the snowman.

“Now it's your turn to make one of me” She remarked an excited grin forming back on to her face.

Erik sighed, this was very much… Christine’s thing, not something Erik found wanting to do. He just wanted to make sure she hadn't run away, and then get back to work, he didn’t plan on getting roped up in something so trivial.

“Lovely Christine, this is… nice, but I am very busy.” He made an excuse, moving his hand out of Christine's grip. He looked back down at Christine and it looked as if he had just killed her best friend. Which, he actually almost did. He frowned and looked around for another excuse that she might accept. “And, I… I don’t know how to build a snowman.” Yes! That will deter her!

“I can help you!” She replied helpfully.

No!

Erik sighed and looked back to the house, and then back to her face, full of excitement. He sighed and gave up, a few minutes wouldn't hurt if it meant it would make Christine happy. He looked down at her and nodded his head.

“Alright, show me how to build a… snowman.”

Christine's face lit up, she grabbed his face and kissed his cheek lightly on her tippy toes. Erik blushed deeply and looked away shyly, Christine beamed brightly, and light blush dusting her face.

“Thank you Erik… you better make it look like me!” She remarked with a grin, holding on to Erik’s hand.

[smokeyloki]

You Know What Sparks Joy in my Life?

The phandom folks currently reading this post.

@ladycavalier, @wheel-of-fish, @pippa-writes, @timebird84, @tallestsilver, @lordjazor, @epwhales, @soignante, @jamiepage19, @ilustrariane, @phantomofthetrashcan, @cherikcinnamonroll, @jennyfair7, @tasteofthebitchpudding, @whereisyourredscarf, @jeremystollemyheart, @depplosion, @kwat01, @theoperagangster, @operaofthephantom, @bekahsrebloggyplace, @mlledasha, @muirin007, @gusiny-pashtet, @wolfgangamaderik, @your-angel-of-music, @ofbeautsandbeasts, @eriks-attic, @eriksangel666, @phantoonsoftheopera, @i-ate-my-hat, @the-young-soprano-daae, @abandonthot, @inmypheelings, @erik-the-diva-of-the-opera, @dakotathewhale, @cocoaru, @opryghost, @louiesteinphanart, @phant0m0fmusic, @ilikeyourcape, @the-erik-police, @thephantomvampire, @thattrashdude, @maestrooftheopera, @violon-du-mort, @myfictionaldarlings, @phantomoftheplace, @haunted-hideaway, @no-backwards-glances, @staminaoverlook, @phantom-of-the-uhhhpera, @corpsepixie, @winters-s0ldier-of-the-opera, @since-when-do-ghosts-write, @iferikcouldhearmysoul, @yellow-mushroom, @masksonmasks, @another-chorus-girl, @stranger-than-u-dreamt-it

These are all the folks I follow.  Feel free to share this with other people I don’t know about who are also part of this awesome phamily!

....And...honestly, I care about you guys.  So much.  Probably more than I should.  I just got on this site and I’m seeing people getting called out, thrown under the bus, accused of being something they’re not...maybe even believing themselves to be something they’re not.  And I know that it’ll all get smoothed out; it’s life.  We all have to experience it.  We all have to get over some things.  But...man...it hurts, seeing other people getting trash-talked (or even talking trash about themselves, sometimes).  It hurts to see...and I just want you to know that every one of you is in my thoughts and prayers.  

You’re all so great and there are people who love you.  I’m not trying to sound like a creep or anything, but gosh.  We love you so much!  Thanks for being you, for being here.  

[timebird84]

Evil!Daroga reminds me of Evil!Spock from the mirror universe from Star Trek TOS. And a mirror universe is probably the only explanation I would accept as a reason for tge existence of an Evil!Daroga I suppose. 

What idea did you have in mind, @wheel-of-fish, when you came up with him?

have yet to find an idea that unsettles people more than evil!daroga

[epwhales]

Hey your art is wonderful. Would you draw E&C as Beauty and the Beast? 🎵tale as old as time 🎵

Bittersweet and strange

This has been on my mind for a while and I’m happy to say that I’ve finally worked on it! And lemme tell you I went through some serious trial and error hAaaa

(If it looks too blurry try tapping/clicking on it for better quality!!)

Sorry they turned out blurrier than I had hoped (this was the crispiest one out of many) the lighting indoors was too low lit and warm toned so I had to do some post editing!!

I was able to snap a picture at DCA yesterday (right smack dab in Beast’s Library located in Sorcerer’s Workshop) and I wanted to make this a series, but I just was too exhausted by the time I finished this drawing.

Perhaps I will be able to get some more in the near future?

For now I just want to thank @thattrashdude for being a tremendous help in deciding some major decisions and @meganezaru for screeching at her all night while I did this!

((I will post the full digital in the near future! This picture really doesn’t do it justice, but I just really wanted to try giving this project a shot!))

[wheel-of-fish]

Phan artist roundup

Since it’s Secret Santa/gift-giving season, I’ve been looking at stuff for sale from our friendly local fandom artists, and I thought maybe someone else would find it helpful if I shared what I’ve compiled? Sooo, here’s a list!

@aliceheart247: society6

@alvadee: society6

@coatntails: etsy

@corpsepixie: commissions

@ofbeautsandbeasts: society6

@rjdaae: redbubble

@thattrashdude​: commissions | redbubble

I’ve only included people from replies to my post asking for shops. If you want me to add you (or someone else), please let me know!

[confessionsofanoperaghost]

BLESS YOU!!!! 🤣😆

Bad guys use masks to cover their lower face while good guys cover their upper face. Explain how you break this rule.

[clio2626]

1, 4, 9, 15, 18 and 19

Girl thank you, it was so fun getting to answer these! & i am deeply sorry about how insanely long this turned out oh my god

1. Who is your favorite ALW musical Phantom? 

Okay. SO. My first live Phantom was Derrick Davis, whom I saw last October and whom I literally never stop gushing about. My icon is a picture of him! He is hands-down my number one Phantom for several reasons, but mostly because: one, he is a baritone, and his voice is honestly so deep and rich and sensual, and his high notes are just so tender, I weep lmao; and two, his acting and his physicality are phenomenal - his presence as the Opera Ghost is so seductive and compelling but he brings this frenetic energy to his more emotional scenes, especially when he’s around Christine. I just die. 

I also love Ramin, because - well, how can you not?? Even though I find he often struggles with pitch, I can let it go because he’s clearly just feeling all the emotions, and I actually think it’s really effective in conveying the Phantom’s anguish :P And Ben Lewis!!! Holy god does that man have a voice. I would sell my firstborn even for just a bootleg. Norm Lewis is also an excellent Phantom, and I especially like that he’s older. Thanks to the stream last night, I now like Gary Mauer, too! I like Hugh Panaro for his smugness and the iconic self-caress lol but his voice isn’t my favourite. Sorry, that was a long answer!

4. If you were to make a Phantom movie, who would you cast (dead or alive)?

Oh lord… that depends. Is it Leroux, Kay, or ALW? If it were Leroux, I might cast Doug Jones (basic, I know, but cmon he’d be perfect) OR Peter Cushing (RIP) as Erik. I would cast a literal golden retriever as Raoul. As for Christine, I would maybe cast Sierra Boggess (with blonde hair of course), because she gave one of the strongest performances of ALW!Christine. She definitely looks older than early-20s but if I can have Peter Cushing back from the grave then I can have early-20s Sierra Boggess. :P AND if I can have those, then I can have aged-up Ramin Karimloo as the Daroga! 

My dream cast for an ALW movie would be Derrick Davis or Norm Lewis as the Phantom, Sierra Boggess (or Kelly Mathieson - her voice is sublime) as Christine, Hadley Fraser as shouty!Raoul (I haven’t seen any clips but I feel like Rodney Ingram would also be a solid Raoul? Or maybe Jordan Donica? He seemed good too), and tbh I would throw the Daroga in because he deserves it.

Also Carlotta should be played at all times by either Wendy Ferguson or Michele McConnell.   

9. Do the Phantom’s hand gestures in the musical turn you on?

Lol is water wet? 

15. Have you fantasized deeply about time-traveling to 1880s Paris and meeting Erik?

Not about specifically time-traveling and meeting Erik, and actually now that I think about it I’ve mostly daydreamed about AU or post-canon possibilities in 1880s Paris - I’m more familiar with 16-17th century French history than I am with 19th century, but Paris during the Belle Époque is so fascinating and I would looove to write a fic set around then.

18. Who are your favorite artists/writers in the phandom?

Oh my god all of them?? Everyone is ridiculously talented, and i’m definitely missing some people, but I adore muirin007, drawnby27emilys, thattrashdude, rjdaae, toastysalt, wheel-of-fish, morrigan, outlaw, MC, spooky-mormon-hell-dream, rienerose, therosenpants, and you, of course!! & can’t talk about phandom art without bringing up breadstick’s kazoo saga. pure art. 

(also if anyone’s got any recommendations for more people to follow hmu!)

19. How often have you seen the musical?

I was fortunate enough to see it live last October when it came to Ottawa! If I end up having the means to travel, I may get to see it live this summer, either in Toronto (restaged tour) or possibly on Broadway (preferable to the restaged tour tbh but I shouldn’t be picky) if I can play the graduating-university card and convince my parents to get tickets :P Otherwise, I’ve watched the RAH performance an embarrassing number of times, and I’ve also seen two bootlegs courtesy of Phandom Fridays :) 

[confessionsofanoperaghost]

@thattrashdude, if you ever want to try something a little different, this would be really adorable (........and so much better than what actually happens in the play, but y'know.)