#the most recent and most satisfying breakthrough came this morning

[bookshelf-in-progress]

Springtime means that instead of writing, my brain is just cycling through my springtime retellings:

Four different ideas to retell "The Goose Girl"

Two ideas to retell "The Princess and the Pea"

My traditional retelling of "The Twelve Huntsmen"

A couple of the most springtime-y "Cinderella" ideas (thankfully my "Tattercoats" retelling counts as one of these)

Interspersed with the occasional:

I need to develop one of my original fiction ideas to prove I'm not just a hack who can only write retellings

[tundrainafrica]

Title: Household Planning (2/2)

Summary:  

“It was Levi’s household. The plates were arranged and sorted by color and use, the way Levi liked it. The cabinets and the storage were arranged in a way which would be efficient for cooking, or at least the way Levi would have wanted to cook.”

Levi gets sick and Hange is left to navigate household chores.

Link to other chapters: 1

Link to cross-postings: AO3

Notes: Set in the same verse as  “Rough day”  and “Sugar Rush”

“You’re strong enough to make it to the payphone now at least.”

“Only barely, the nurse is pushing the wheelchair."

Hange smiled. It had been four days since his surgery. There were good days. There were also bad days, bad enough for Hange to have to manage her expectations on when things would go back to normal.

She knew it was a long shot. When the doctor said Levi would be in the hospital for a week, she had expected that that meant she could go back to working as soon as her leave was up.

When the doctors tried to get Levi back into physical activity though, Hange was made aware of the harsh reality of the situation. His wound was deep. The infection that ravaged through his digestive system had left its mark and Levi was finding it hard to eat or even sit up for long periods of time.

She sought solace in the small bouts of progress that came with each day, the food trays that got emptier and emptier every time she visited, the amount of time he spent sitting up which only increased as the days went by. The breakthrough came in the form of a surprise phone call, and Levi’s voice seemed stronger and clearer than it had been the past few days.

"I'll be there after I drop Luke off at school."

"You made sure to pack his lunch?"

"I won't make the same mistake again."

She made sure to pack Luke dinner as well. Luke was going to be staying over in a friend's place for the weekend. Her son had been more than enough the past few days to help her understand Levi's cleaning habits.

He was still seven years old though and no seven year old was supposed to be teaching their mother how to manage a house.

She had made that weekend a project for her. Levi was due to be discharged by Monday and the least she could do was try to make the house spotless herself.

She kept that part a secret though as Levi drilled her on how to do laundry using the washing machine he had bought a year back.

The white bottle with the green cap is bleach, you only use it for white clothes.

Separate the lights and the darks.  

Leave it out to dry outdoors or it will stink up the whole house.        

She spent her Saturday alone going through all those points as she did the laundry.

Levi had mentioned separating the lights and darks on three separate occasions when she had mentioned her intention to do the laundry. The whole process had gone smoothly and peacefully enough that Hange had more than enough of a mindspace to think and reflect on the past few days.

Would Luke have been able to do the laundry?

Hange thought back to all the help and effort the young boy had offered to her. She had told Levi about it during her visits while their son was in school.

"When you're at work, who do you think has to keep the kid company?" Levi had said back then.

It dawned on her. She was out of the house for twelve hours at a time, sometimes she was out on weekends too. She had always been on the road, jumping from project to project. She liked the long days. It helped her stay focused. Her preoccupation with her job though had left her completely clueless on household chores.

The washing machine and the basket of clothing felt unnatural to her touch and when she emptied the laundry basket into the washing machine, she found herself wondering whether Levi would have stopped her to point something out if he were there. She still had a lot to learn.

As she waited for the clothes to finish their cycle in the washing machine, she occupied herself by tinkering with the vacuum cleaner.

Levi liked the floor spotless and the vacuum cleaner was a godsend for him. Hange was aware enough of this particular new cleaning tool because it was definitely one of the more popular developments next to the washing machine. Also, Hange had seen Levi using it a few times on the days she was home.

Hange looked down at the floor as she placed the vacuum in the middle of the living room. The floor looked good enough to her. Levi though had an eye for discoloration, delible patches of dirt and a penchant for rubbing them off and Hange had come upon the realization that she owed him enough to at least try to conform to his idea of home.

Hange did not know how often Levi vacuumed or cleaned out the house. Hange though had become aware of the slight changes brought about by his five day absence.

Although Luke had done his part to keep the house clean, being seven years old had limitations.The upper shelves in the kitchen were slightly untidier than the lower shelves. Hange guessed it was because she could never straighten them out perfectly or find the most optimal arrangement for storage. She could not pick out the exact reason though even as she snuck glances at it between other chores. She was sure though Levi would have something to say about it.

Hange's pile of clean clothes was smaller than she had ever seen it before which reminded her of the fact that Levi probably did laundry everyday.

Parts of the house had started to have a faint and unfamiliar musty smell and Hange was sure it was because Levi had left the house completely spotless  before and took pains to make sure each room was aired out everyday. The initial traces of the odor could only be hints to the recent neglect.

Hange found herself in a wistful mood as she tried to think back to her experiences in the house when everything had been arranged perfectly and the only scents that lingered in the air were those of detergent and cleaning liquids. It was the way Levi liked his home and Hange had taken it all for granted.

As Hange emptied the washing machine and  brought out the clothes to dry, she found herself thinking back to their conversation with the doctor when they discussed Levi's discharge.

Four to six weeks. No strenuous physical activity.

Strict bedrest.

Hange knew Levi well enough to know he would be in hell, forced to stay put in a musty and disorganized house. It would be impossible to keep him in bed

I could at least try. That was where Hange even got the motivation to attempt Levi's method for double cleaning everything. If she could at least keep the house clean enough that Levi could rest well would be a good enough achievement.

Going through the motions of mopping, sweeping and vacuuming were easy. Trying to calm herself down as she pondered every possible speck of dust she might have missed was what made the whole ordeal difficult. Hange had to pull herself away from the task and move on to the clothes, two hours after. At that point, she had only finished up the living room and kitchen, having made three rounds around both areas.

The sun was already about to set when Hange decided for herself that she was satisfied with her job on the floors and on the walls.  

It was dark by the time Hange started folding the dry clothes and placing them in the dresser and she was starting to feel the emptiness of the house. The only light on was in the room she shared with Levi. She was alone with her thoughts and consequently, had enough time and space to notice Levi,'s meticulous folding method that left no creases. Hange placed the clothes she had folded next to those at the bottom of the drawer which Levi had left a while back. The two shirts next to each other only reminded Hange that she would probably never be able to replicate it.

Her last task was her own dresser. She opened it to see her own blouse right on top, still neatly pressed, waiting to be worn.

As she looked back at the pile of clothes waiting to be folded and stuffed into the drawer, Hange became aware of her habit of just pulling out blouses and pants from her dresser first thing in the morning and just wearing whatever she could get her hands on. ��If she put all the clothes she had just washed right on top, she would might find herself the next morning in the blouse she wore just yesterday

Yet, every piece of clothing in that drawer was worn a fair amount of times.

She eventually figured out how exactly Levi's system of organizing her clothes worked. Completely aware of her lack of regard for fashion and her constantly being on the go, he most likely always emptied her dresser before putting in the new clothes. Just to make sure, she wore something new everyday.

It was a small detail. With nothing else to ponder in that dark room though, it was the one that occupied her the most because it meant something so much more than that.

She thought back to the faint musty smell, the fruit bowl, the nights she would fall asleep to the sound of metal to wood, the flutter of clothing. She had her difficulties with parts of the house which were Levi's territory. She had never cooked, cleaned or did laundry. For the parts of the house, she did usually find herself interacting with, it was as if they were all tailor fit for her.

Levi was aware she always took a piece of fruit before leaving and had organized the fruit bowl in such a way that nothing would fall when she took one hurriedly.

He was aware she always took the first blouse in a pile so he made sure the one shirt on top was always the one she hadn't worn in a while.

Suddenly, her senses were heightened and as Hange prepared to go to bed, she notice, in the small details, stark contrast between how she went about her homemaking and how Levi went about it.

As she showered that night, she noticed the lack of order in her toiletries.

Conditioner, soap, shampoo

Before Levi got sick, it was always organized in the manner most convenient for her.

As she lay in bed, she noticed the way she had evenly spread out the pillows. Levi on the other hand, had always placed three pillows close to her side, since she had the habit of hugging multiple pillows while she slept.

She lay awake for a long time. She wanted to attribute it to the uncomfortable positioning of the pillows or the faint unfamiliar scents that plagued the house. Those were just amplifiers.

As she rolled from side to side on the bed, trying to find the most comfortable position, Hange had started to become aware as well of the cold spot where Levi used to sleep.

Of course it was cold. He hadn't been home in almost a week and she usually kept to her side of the bed. Hange's heart was heavy as she lay on his side of the bed, trying to warm the cool sheets beneath her.

She missed the warmth, she missed the grunts she'd hear as she rolled towards him in the middle of the night after a nightmare. She missed his arms around her and his whispers of "just sleep."

Hange went out to the living room, sat on the sofa and looked out the window. She had tried to lose herself to the clear night sky, which would help her daydream enough to tire her out. It had done the complete opposite though.

Levi was outside. He was a taxi ride away. All she had to do was put on a coat and call the taxi.

I wonder if he's asleep now.

She eventually gave in. She called a taxi, grabbed a jacket out of her coat and waited outside in the dead of night.

It took around an hour but it felt like ages.

Being part of the patient's immediate family, she was allowed straight into his room, even beyond visiting hours. She opened the door to find him sleeping on his side, his back to the door.

"Levi, it's me…"

Years of fighting for his life, had made Levi a light sleeper, and Hange had expected her voice at least to have woken him up. Levi did not respond. As Hange approached the bed, she made out  an empty glass with medicine wrappers inside it which Hange guessed probably had something to do with it.

She gave herself some more leeway to make noise as she moved a chair to the side of the bed and plopped herself down.

She bent forward and pressed her forehead on his and kissed his nose. The familiar scent of her husband lingered on her nose and she smiled as she studied his face closely. For a man who had experienced enough war, violence and loss to last a thousand lifetimes, Levi somehow still looked like a child in his sleep.

Hange put her arms on the bedside, rested her chin and stared for a while longer.

"I love you. I'm sorry I took you for granted."

                                  Household Planning

"Hey four eyes, wake up."

Hange woke up to a hand on her head. She looked up to see Levi sitting up in bed. Despite his harsh tone of a while ago, he didn't look at all annoyed to see her.

"You got tangled up in my tubes. I couldn't move properly."

"Sorry…" Hange rubbed at her one good eye as she made sense of what was happening.

"Why are you here anyway?"

"I couldn't sleep."

"I couldn't sleep either, kept wondering about what else you might have fucked up at home."

Having been with him long enough, Hange had already gotten used to his offensive and crude humor. She still found herself tearing up, possibly from the implication of his joke or the accumulated stress of the whole ordeal.

"I'm sorry okay... For not knowing how to run a household... For forgetting about Luke… For you having to teach me everything." Hange tried hard not to raise her voice. Too distracted by the whirlwind of emotions that forced itself out of her though, Hange could not tell if she had been shouting.

"Hey, I think you're doing fine." Levi's voice was notably softer. "You think I would have done any better if you asked me to make blueprints for a tram that runs through the capital. It's not like you left me to do the cooking and cleaning while you were out drinking or lazing around. You work just as hard."

"Managing a household is a team effort," Hange argued.

"You have the future of Paradis in your hands. The only thing I have to manage is you and Luke."

"Did you ever feel like I was taking you for granted?" At that point, Hange mustered up the courage to look up at Levi. She managed to catch his look of surprise.

Within a second, Levi’s face softened into a subtle smile. "I don't clean the house or cook dinner for praise. I'm pretty satisfied just making sure you two don't have to worry yourself over these types of things. And to be honest, I'm just losing sleep over the fact that I can't be there to make it any easier for you."

"Are you disappointed about how I went about things while you were here?"

"I’d be lying if I said no. I only realized when this happened that I never really taught you how I did things at home.” Levi lowered his gaze. “It’s my fault."

I should have tried to learn it too. Hange admitted to herself. As she imagined the nights she went straight to the shower and into the bed, the times she brought Luke out for a walk on her days off while Levi cleaned the house or did laundry, Hange realized that she never really thought twice to offer to help.

If Levi asked for help, would I have helped him? Of course she would have. She would have been happy to do so. Levi never did ask for help in anything though and the few times Hange did even consider offering, she assumed he had wanted to do things on his own.

Hange decided against another apology. The best way to give back was to improve from there on. “So I guess you’re going to have to teach me huh?”

“Take the whole month off if you need to.”

                                        Household Planning

When the week long break Hange requested for ended, the former commander found herself back in the office with a similar request. Getting permission from the queen was easy. When it came to Armin though who would be handling a lot of the work, Hange hesitated to even ask. By then though, most of the former members of the Survey Corps had caught wind of the state of the former captain and Armin and Mikasa had promised to step up in her absence.

“You never did take breaks except when you had Luke. After all the work you put into this, a month long break is well deserved.”

All she needed was the blessing of her comrades to find the strength to leave the letter and say her goodbyes. They had promised at least to keep her informed on any new developments so she would at least still be in the loop when she gets back.

As she stepped out of the office once again and into the courtyard, she let the early afternoon breeze greet her like it always did and she let all her thoughts of work wash away with it. She was going to take the whole month off and she had no intention of wasting it. `  

Hange decided to walk home, using that time to clear out any other small bouts of hesitation or regret from her brain. This is for your family. Hange reminded herself too many times on the way home, it seemed like a mantra.

She did not expect to be distracted from any doubts from work when she opened the door of her home. As she stepped into the house, she made out a figure on a chair in front of an open fridge, all of the products which were supposed to be in the refrigerator arranged neatly on the dining table.

“Levi!”

He had only been discharged that morning, unable to make it to the bedroom himself, Hange had to act as his crutch the whole way. A few hours after she had helped him settle in bed, he was once again doing what he always did.

A part of her wanted to smile, laugh at the whole situation. Her apprehensions and her commitment to taking care of her partner though, took over. “What are you doing? I told you I’ll be doing the chores. Just tell me what to do.”

“We’re gonna make it easier for you mommy.” It turned out Luke was next to Levi, concealed by the open refrigerator door just a second ago.

“It’s washable, so I think it’s fine,” Levi added.

Hange went directly behind Levi to get a better idea of what the two had been working on. She looked at the inside of the fridge and once again at the two boys. The different compartments of the fridge had been written on.

Vegetable, Dairy, Cut fruit, Meat,

What made Hange howl in laughter as she made sense of the situation was the fact that every sign had been written by a kid. Levi had at least coached Luke on the right spelling for each label.

As Hange turned her head a little to the side, she had to hold in a snort when she saw the messily written notes on the compartments of the refrigerator door.

Eggs behind cheeses. BE CAREFUL WITH TRAY.

Berries on the top shelf behind juices

Leftovers

EAT ME

COOK ME

Luke’s Lunch

“What’s with you too?” Hange managed to ask as soon as she had gathered enough oxygen inside her to be able to talk again.

“The cheeses and the blueberries went bad, I forgot to tell you about that back in the hospital.” Levi explained, so seriously, Hange almost thought he was answering her question.

“I’ll put everything back, I think you’ve given me enough signs on what to do.” Hange turned to Luke. “Don’t you have homework?”

Luke pouted. “I wanna help…”

“Let mommy learn. You’re too good at this already.” That was enough at least to bolster the young boy’s confidence.

“Just call if you need anything.” Luke grinned at the compliment before retiring into his room.

“And you?” Hange glared accusingly at Levi.

“I’m staying here. You’ll need someone to coach you right?” Levi looked uncomfortable on the dining room chair that had been moved in front of the fridge. It was evident his surgical wounds were still hurting him.

“At least let me move you to the sofa.”

With little to no prodding, Levi obliged. As Hange helped him out of the chair and toward the sofa, she noticed that he had placed all his weight on her.

“You’re tired? Does anything hurt?”

Levi did not answer. Hange knew him long enough though to know that if he wasn’t saying anything, his answer was probably a yes. She lay him gently on the sofa. She took one of the blankets from her room and placed it on top of him. He did not protest the gesture.

“Throw out the cheeses and the blueberries,” Levi reminded as Hange looked through the food scattered on the table.

“What if we just remove the ones with mold.”

“Just don’t risk it.”

Hange separated the rest of the food from those Levi had singled out. “I guess I’ll just follow the compartment labels with these.” Hange gave the pile a once over then looked to Levi.

“The rest of the eggs go in the ‘Cook Me’ compartment. Sliced strawberries in the ‘Eat Me’ compartment. Other than that you’re good.”

Hange went through the motions of it all. The labels had made the process quick and there was little to no reason for error. Levi remained silent the whole time and Hange ended up looking back at Levi multiple times to check if he had fallen asleep. Every single time, he had been staring intently back at her as she refilled the refrigerator, product by product.

“What do you think?” Hange moved out of the way of the refrigerator.

“Three out of five. Passable.”

“I just did what you told me to do.”

“Some of them were crooked, minus one.”

“And the other minus one?”

“You did a shitty job with not cooking. The food I left in the fridge and the food I made you buy were supposed to last you the week. Did you eat out everyday while I was at the hospital or something?”

“I can make us some tea.” Hange brought out two tea bags and two tea cups from the cupboard. “Luke bought some more for you.” Levi liked black tea and she hoped that digression would have been enough for him to forget that particular misdeed.

“So you did eat out everyday.” Levi said matter-of-factly.

Hange let the whistle of the kettle answer the question for her. She placed the tea bags on the cup, and silently waited for the steam to rise to the top.

Hange brought the cups of hot tea to the living room where Levi lay comfortable. “Scooch.” She regretted the command when she saw the subtle wince in Levi made as he sat up to give her space to sit.

She gently edged herself close to Levi, placing the latter in a good position to rest his head on her lap. “I probably would have cooked more if you pointed that part out.”

“I thought food going bad was a given.”

“I had to learn a lot. Give me a break.”

“Blueberries and cheese are expensive. I’m not letting you make that same mistake again.”  

“Then I guess adding those labels was a good idea then.” Hange took a sip of the hot tea. As she imagined the scribbles on the refrigerator once again, she smiled. “I can’t believe you let Luke do that though, his writing looked messy, even for me. Not like you to allow something like that.”

“Hey, it was a team effort.” Levi rested his hand on his side, closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

Hange surmised that with the pain he was in, he probably would not have been able to bend down and write it in all the compartments himself. “So I guess from now on, I get a say on where things go too.”

“Why not? This is our house after all.”  

[ikeromantic]

Ikemen Sengoku Modern AU

I was just daydreaming some AU ideas and this one came to me with more detail than I expected. A modern day corporate ikemen sengoku that reads like a reverse harem. Sigh. I don’t know if I’ll do anything with it but I wanted to share ^_^

MC

MC is the daughter of a powerful CEO that runs a biomedical company called AllCare BioMed

While she isn’t a genius philanthropist like her father, or a connected socialite like her mother, she does everything in her power to move her father’s vision of a world without disease forward. She hosts student events at universities to scope out new talent, meets with hospitalized patients, and oversees the disbursement of charity and grant funds.

Nobunaga

Nobunaga is head of security. He has personally foiled several assassination attempts against you and your family. He is passionate about your father’s goals, and would sacrifice himself to make it happen.

A moment between MC and Nobunaga: “Get behind me princess. I’ll take care of this.” He pushes her behind him as the attacker lunges. Another knife attempt on university grounds during a recruitment event. The man is no match for Nobunaga though. He counters the attacker barehanded, slamming the knife out of his hand. “Don’t hurt him,” she shouts. “If I don’t hurt him, he won’t learn his lesson,” Nobunaga replies. He is calm no matter the threat. Sometimes he’s scary.

Mitsuhide

Mitsuhide is head of cybersecurity, though everyone believes he is secretly corporate espionage. Regardless of the rumors, Nobunaga and the CEO trust him completely. So does MC, even when she isn’t sure she should.

A moment between MC and Mitsuhide: He comes up behind her with silent steps while she’s focused on reviewing the recent charity requests. A series of complex spreadsheets are open on her desktop, and she’s muttering over them. Mitsuhide sets his hand over hers on top the mouse, and his lips brush her ear. “I think the function you’re looking for is here, little one.” He guides the pointer to the right menu and selects it. “You can let go of me now,” she says. “I could,” he laughs, enjoying the way she blushes when he teases her like this.

Hideyoshi

Hideyoshi is the CEO’s head secretary. It may not sound like an important job, but he oversees your father’s schedule, hires and fires all personal assistants, handles employee concerns, reviews contracts . . . there are very few things Hideyoshi doesn’t handle. And he does it without complaint. Like a mother hen, he protects your father’s family, especially you. Sometimes he and Nobunaga do not see eye to eye.

A moment between MC and Hideyoshi: He sits down across from her and takes her hands in his. “You look pale. Are you eating well? Sleeping ok?” She reassures him that she is. “I am just a little tired today. Too much on my schedule.” She smiles wanly at him. Hideyoshi isn’t satisfied with her answer. He leans across the narrow desk and presses his lips to her forehead to check her temperature. It’s an intimate touch, but one MC is used to from Hideyoshi. But sometimes, she feels like he’s less a big brother than a shy lover. This is one of those times. He tilts her chin up to look him in the eye, still so close she can feel his lips move when he speaks. “You’re too warm. Let me take you up to bed. To rest.”

Ieyasu

Ieyasu is the lead doctor on MC’s father’s research team. He was recruited right out of university at one of MC’s recruitment events. MC didn’t think he would join up, since he was so rude and dismissive at the event, but she’s glad he did. His brilliant insights are part of what pushes the company forward in its mission to cure all diseases.

A moment between MC and Ieyasu: “Don’t touch that, idiot.” He snaps at her when her hand lands on a pile of papers atop his desk. “You’ll get it out of order.” MC moves her hand too quickly, knocking the stack of papers on the floor. “Oh, I’m sorry!” He always makes her feel so clumsy and foolish. She kneels down to pick them up. Ieyasu is beside her in a heartbeat. “Just leave them be. I’ll get it.” MC starts to argue but he holds a finger to her lips. “It’s fine. They aren’t that important anyway.” He shoves the pile back onto his desk and looks at her again. “Why don’t we go get a coffee? You look like you need a break.”

Mitsunari

Mitsunari is the brilliant legal counsel for the company. He was hired by MC’s mother. Mitsunari is a stunner in the office and out of it, something he seems oblivious to. 

A moment between MC and Mitsunari: “I brought you the contracts for this quarter’s grant recipients,” MC calls out as she enters his office. It’s always important to announce a visit, as Mitsunari gets so involved in his work he might not notice someone arriving. Mitsunari looks up from his office couch. It’s covered in huge legislative opinion and ruling guides. He knocks them on to the floor, flustered. “Oh! You came by!” He stands to greet MC. “I didn’t expect you.” MC smiles at him. “I sent you an email this morning. You replied ‘OK’ but if this is a bad time . . .” Mitsunari grabs her hand. “It’s never a bad time. I like it when you stop by. Here. Sit with me.” He tugs her toward the couch, but with all the books on the floor, she trips and ends up on his lap. “Oh, or this. This is better.” He smiles at her happily as she blushes ear to ear. 

Masamune

Masamune is the finance manager. He’s ruthless with friends or enemies when it comes to inking a deal, closing a sale, signing off on a loan. The CEO would be lost without Masamune’s business acumen and his relentless energy. He’s also known for being the office snack guy - always bringing treats to people.

A moment between MC and Masamune: “Get over here, lass. I haven’t seen you in weeks!” Masamune spots MC across the lobby. Before she can start to move, he’s across the room. “Have you been avoiding me,” he demands. His one blue eye is intense and impossible to look away from. “N-no,” MC stammers. Masamune always leaves her feeling off balance and unsure. “Good! I was worried. Are you on your way to a meeting?” “N-no,” MC stammers again. Before she can add anything else, Masamune jumps in. “Great! I’m going to make you lunch. I’ve got a batch of fresh fish delivered this morning and I wanted to try some things out.” And before MC can agree or decline, he’s got her out the door and into a waiting car - as if his staff knew exactly what would happen the second he spotted her.

Ranmaru

Ranmaru is front desk staff. His cheerful, beautiful face greets every person coming in or out of the building. He knows every researcher, office assistant, secretary, lawyer, and security person on staff, and every guest they’ve ever cleared. Despite his cheery attitude, there is always a certain sadness when he’s not busy.

A moment between MC and Ranmaru: “Did you get your hair done,” Ranmaru asks, after greeting MC on an early morning. “I did! Mom sent me to the stylist she hired for Mitsunari, since Mitsu missed his appointment. Again.” Ranmaru laughs. “That sounds like him.” He stands up and comes around the desk. “Well, turn around so I can appreciate all of it!” He claps his hands as she spins around to model. “Gorgeous,” Ranmaru sighs. MC laughs. “I have to work at it. Not like you. I think you get out of bed looking like that -” She gestures to his perfect hair and clothes. Ranmaru blushes and leans against MC. “You always say the sweetest things.” He kisses her cheek lightly before slipping around the desk to his spot, as if the touch never happened.

Kenshin

Kenshin is a partner of the CareAll BioMed corporation, a competitor. He’s known for being ruthless in business and ice-cold in personal interactions. While his goals are similar to MC’s father, he believes AllCare is responsible for the closure of the lab researching a cure for his late wife’s disease. She died without any treatment, and he will never forgive MC’s father or his company for that. 

A moment between MC and Kenshin: MC attends one of her mother’s fundraising events, hoping to put in a brief appearance before she can get back to the work she prefers. Kenshin catches her eye from across the crowded ballroom. How could he not? He is imposing and frigidly beautiful, and younger than she expected for a man of so many accomplishments. For reasons MC can’t understand, he approaches her. “You are his daughter,” Kenshin says by way of greeting. “I am. You must be Doctor Uesugi?” He regards her coldly. “Are you trying to be pleasant?” Flustered, MC nods. “It is a social gathering. Should I be rude instead?” Kenshin considers this idea and then shakes his head. “Your father is my enemy, not you.” For a moment, a breath, there is a flash of emotion in his mismatched eyes, the briefest twitch of his lips in a smile, and then he is ice cold again.

Shingen

Shingen is the other half of CareAll - the competitor looking to put your father’s company out of business. Where Kenshin is the strong arm of his company, Shingen is the face. He meets and greets investors and recruits, and handles the day to day affairs of the company. Rumors say he was one of the first patients in the company’s breakthrough heart treatment.

A moment between MC and Shingen: “You are easily the most beautiful woman here. Did you know that?” The words accompany a light touch on MC’s hand. Shingen. The devil, as MC knows him. “Flatterer,” she replies dryly, wishing her heart wouldn’t betray her by galloping off like this when he greets her. “I only speak the truth to angels.” Shingen smiles and the warmth is enough to set MC to blushing. She pulls her hand away from him. “Whatever. Are you here to steal my recruits again?” “All is fair in love and war, fair lady.” MC gives him side eye. “And which is this?” Shingen laughs and does not reply.

Yukimura

Yukimura is the lead researcher for CareAll and works directly with Shingen to direct the company’s research efforts. His gruff manner and blunt commentary are legendary, but the people that work with him claim he’s actually a great boss. 

A moment between MC and Yukimura: “You can’t corrupt me,” Yuki says when he spots MC coming toward him at a conference. MC blinks, surprised by his outburst. “I was just going to say hello. Even if you work for the competition, there’s no reason to be rude. We’re all working toward the same goal, right?” For a moment Yukimura says nothing, but his wide eyes and the faint color in his cheeks speak volumes. In a more subdued tone he agrees. “You’re right. Sorry about that. Anyway, you want to get a coffee together? To make up for - for what I said.”

Sasuke

Sasuke Sarutobi is the genius doctor behind most of CareAll’s advancements. It was his pioneering work that cured Shingen’s heart trouble, and his efforts that continue to open up new discoveries to the world of medicine. There are some nasty rumors that he’s secretly a corporate spy, stealing top secret data from military and government installations - but there’s no proof. Besides, how can one man have enough time to study medicine so intensely and still ninja his way into secret labs and data stores?

A moment between MC and Sasuke: Doctor Sarutobi blinks as he sees MC walking through the hospital ward. She’s carrying several bags with care packages for patients, a smile on her face. He takes off his glasses and wipes at his eyes, trying to clear them. “Hello Doctor,” MC says. He turns to greet her. “It’s so good to see you here again. You can call me Sasuke, please.” MC laughs. “Alright, Sasuke. But you’re talking to an IV trolley.” Sasuke blushes and shoves his glasses back onto his nose. There’s still a strange brightness in the hall, but it doesn’t seem to be connected to his lenses. “Sorry about that. I can’t see anything without my glasses on.” MC smiles. “It’s alright.” She turns to continue on her rounds. “Wait,” Sasuke calls out. “Oh, did you need something?” Sasuke realizes he does. “I’d like to come with you, if that’s alright. The patients open up more to you than to just another doctor.” MC nods. “I’d like that. And - Sasuke - you’re not just another doctor. I think you’re amazing. And I am sure the patients do too.”

Kennyo

Kennyo is a bitter former hospital director. His hospital was closed down due to budget cuts and a lack of private investment. He blames MC’s father and the Uesugi-Takeda alliance equally. He wants to take them both down so that something better can rise in their place, and works to sabotage them any way he can. Rumors suggest he is behind the assassination attempts on MC’s family.

A moment between MC and Kennyo: “Aren’t you afraid, little girl? Out here alone, in the dark?” Kennyo asks. MC is standing near the parking garage elevators at a downtown hospital. The walls are covered in graffiti, and the floor is littered with garbage, broken needles, and other signs of poverty and drug use. MC meets his intense gaze. “I’m not afraid of anything. The people here need our help as much as the people in the nicer districts. More even.” She takes a step toward him. “Should I be afraid?” Kennyo is surprised into silence. He expected MC to be a sheltered little rich girl, but perhaps there’s more to her. He curls his lips in a cruel smile. “Few would look at your presence here as a kindness. In a place like this, you’re just another victim.” MC studies his expression. “Maybe I am. We are all victims of one thing or another. It’s what we choose to do with that pain that matters.” Before Kennyo can reply, MC’s car arrives. Nobunaga gives the old hospital director a hard look before driving MC away.

Yoshimoto

Yoshimoto is a socialite, the orphaned son of one of the most wealthy families in the country. His businesses are overseen by a board of ambitious and greedy directors looking to enrich themselves, but he is more interested in philanthropy. MC’s mother is always trying to throw them together in the hopes her daughter will net such a wealthy and respected husband.

A moment between MC and Yoshimoto: “So . . . this is nice. We can see the whole city from this balcony,” MC says awkwardly. Yoshimoto reclines against the balcony rail, his fine features perfectly profiled by the glow of city lights. He is silent. “I - I didn’t mean to interrupt you. My mother . . . she wanted me to say hello. Since it’s been awhile.” MC edges back toward the door. Yoshimoto turns his head to look at her, a sad smile playing at the edges of his lips. “You are never an interruption.” “Oh! I’m glad.” Yoshimoto turns back to the view. “Come and stand beside me. You can see better from here.” MC does as he asks, gasping as she sees the whole of it. “It’s like the stars in the sky meet the city lights at the horizon and go on forever!” Yoshimoto sets his hand over hers on the balcony rail. “Just so. I knew you could appreciate it.”

Motonari Mouri

Motonari is the head of a private security team known for black ops and corporate sabotage. His work is barely legal, and it’s surprising he has actual headquarters in the city like a real business. Some say that Motonari is insane, a brute without any morals.

A moment between MC and Motonari: Rough hands snatch MC from the university walkway. She starts to call out for security, knowing Nobunaga won’t be far away, but her cries are silenced by the slam of a car door as she’s placed in the back seat of a large, black sedan. “Glad you could join me, girl. Drink?” Motonari holds out an unopened beer. MC glares at him, fear and anger warring in her features. “Is this a kidnapping? What do you want from me?” Motonari laughs. “It could be. I could just keep you and see what happens. I bet that father of yours would do anything for his baby girl.” MC crosses her arms. “I’d rather die than be leverage.” “That can be arranged, girl.” He closes the distance with her, pressing against her side. “Maybe I want something off the books instead.” MC shoves him back. “Don’t touch me!” Motonari’s grin looks wild in the dim light of the sedan’s interior. “One day, girl, you’ll beg me to touch you.” He calls up to the driver. “We can let the girl out here. I’m done with her. For today.”

[therumbellehappyendingaward-blog]

Summary: Rumplestiltskin tries to rid himself of the dagger, but things don’t go according to plan and he is left feeling more vulnerable than he has in centuries and now he fears he will lose everything but Belle isn’t about to let him give up and with her help he may just learn the true nature of magic and the power of wishful thinking. 

Chapter 1 Writer: @sieben9

PROMPT: MAGIC

AO3: HERE

A crash shook the castle, setting the old walls trembling, and making Belle jump so badly that she nearly sent her book flying halfway across the library. She backed against a wall and waited with bated breath for the shudders to subside. It had been some time since one of Rumplestiltskin's dabblings in magic had gone wrong quite this spectacularly, and she didn't want to risk being nearly crushed by a falling piece of furniture. Again.

Finally, the trembling abated, and Belle breathed a sigh of relief, before surveying the damage around her. Considering how intense the shaking had been, it wasn't too bad. Quite a lot of books had tumbled down from their shelves, and Belle flinched at the thought of the damage the fall might have caused them, before setting out to clear up the mess. She piled the more seriously afflicted tomes in a corner. Maybe she could convince Rumplestiltskin to repair them as an apology. If he stayed true to form, it wouldn't take him long to appear somewhere in the room under the guise of complaining about the chaos, while really apologising for causing it in the first place and, most likely, checking up on her safety.

A silly ruse, really, but he was often like that: Concerned with maintaining a fearsome reputation that she knew was mostly for show. The fact that she was able spent her evenings reading in this library — the library he had all but admitted building for her — was maybe the clearest sign of that. These days, her duties in the castle seemed minimal, at most, and brought her suspiciously often into the company of its owner. Belle suspected that the building was either capable of cleaning itself, or that Rumplestiltskin simply maintained most rooms with magic.

It took Belle a while to realise that Rumplestiltskin wasn't going to make an appearance. Outside, the sun was already setting, and she was nearly done tidying up the library. It seemed odd enough that a twinge of worry tugged at her gut, silly as it seemed. After all, what could possibly have harmed the Dark One? He probably just wanted to avoid apologising — he certainly made it look like the act caused him physical pain each time.

Well, Belle decided, if Rumplestiltskin wasn't going to come looking for her, she was just going to have to go looking for him. It certainly didn't have anything to do with that persistent feeling of worry; she simply wanted him to fix these books for her. Yes, that was definitely it.

Her first thought was to just check his usual haunts within the castle, but she quickly gave up on the idea. She only saw him in the more open rooms during the day, and that was certainly not the place where he conducted his magical experiments. No, if she wanted to find Rumplestiltskin, she would have to find the source of the explosion. This train of thought led her along new cracks and flaws in the castle's structure all the way to the opposite end of the building, and up into another tower where she found an open door.

"Rumplestiltskin?" she asked. Even if they had a more familiar relationship these days, it seemed imprudent to surprise a busy sorcerer.

No reply came, so she knocked on the door, repeating more loudly, "Rumplestiltskin? Are you in there?"

Silent seconds passed, and Belle was about to resign herself to the idea that she might have been wrong about his whereabouts, when she heard a very quiet "Come in."

With a satisfied smile — she had found him after all — Belle pushed open the door and stepped into the room. It was larger than she had expected, and the air smelled like a meadow after a thunderstorm, coppery and strange, but also fresh and washed clean. Various shelves and clutter of no doubt magical items took up most of the space, but in the middle stood a single table that was suspiciously clear of any disarray. Next to it, a figure sat slumped on a stool, and it took Belle a moment to recognise it as Rumplestiltskin.

"I've never seen this place before," Belle whispered, mostly to herself.

"That would explain why I leave tracks in the dust whenever I come in here."

Belle looked down pointedly at the spotless floor — well, spotless save for the recent signs of disarray, at least — but didn't rise to the bait otherwise. "I was cleaning and heard a noise. Are you alright?" Calling the almighty thunder from earlier 'a noise' felt like even more of a lie than claiming that she was cleaning while actually reading in the library, but she doubted that he would call her on it.

Indeed, Rumplestiltskin just waved her off. "Yes, yes, I'm fine. Everything is fine. Now go away."

Belle raised an eyebrow. This did not seem like him. If nothing else, he should have taken the opportunity to tease her about the allegedly terrible condition of the castle. Squinting, she took a closer look at him, and saw that he looked visibly dishevelled, if unharmed. "Are you sure your alright?" she asked again. "Half the castle seems to have fallen in on itself and—"

" I said I'm fine!" he snapped, now all but snarling at her. He never got up from his stool, but Belle still flinched back. At that, his face softened, but only for a moment. "I am in the middle of a very important breakthrough. Now leave, before you can cause any more damage."

"I'm sorry," Belle managed to say. "I was just worried—"

"I said leave!" His arm moved lightning quick and Belle ducked away instinctively. Behind her something shattered, and when she looked around, she saw the remains of an empty beaker. Without another word, she backed out of the door and fled back to her room.

##

The next morning, Belle woke up determined to find Rumplestiltskin and confront him about his behaviour on the night before. Yes, he had a temper, but he had never really lost it at her like that since she had set free that poor man who had tried to steal from him. Something was wrong, and he was going to tell her what.

However, when Belle went looking for him once again infuriating man seemed nowhere to be found. More than that, as the day went on it became clear to Belle that he was actively avoiding her. While his schedule had never been entirely predictable, Belle had gained the impression that he would usually turn up in the dinner hall at the appropriate times, and on most days, she would happen across him several times a day while going about her — now relatively few — duties. They would talk, or at least trade banter, and both would usually leave the conversation in a better mood than when they had begun it. Now, however, she saw neither hair, nor sparkly hide of him for the entire day, save for a short run-in in the evening, when she went back to her room and found him leaning against the wall, looking decidedly exhausted.

“Are you—” she began, her earlier irritation already forgotten.

“You should be asleep,” he replied, ignoring her question. “Good night.”

Belle tried to engage him again, but he fell silent and refused to even look at her, until she stalked off, once again intensely irritated. Only later did she realise that she'd never seen him actually walking the corridors before. Part of her had always assumed that he magically appeared and disappeared as he pleased, never bothering with mundane concerns like corridors or stairs.

This pattern of evasion continued for two more days. In the end, Belle simply lost patience and went looking for the castle’s elusive owner. Her search didn’t take long. She found him in a previously empty room on the ground floor, buried in a thick tome with something about "Protective Spells" in the title. Belle only caught a glimpse of the cover, before he slammed it shut to glare at her. "What is it now?" Rumplestiltskin asked in a none-too-gentle tone.

"You have been avoiding me for three days," Belle said, trying to keep calm. "Ever since the accident in the lab. I just wanted to make sure—"

"I'm fine," Rumplestiltskin snarled and his emphasis alone convinced Belle that he wasn't.

"You've been avoiding me." Belle couldn't help but let the words sound like an accusation.

"Maybe because I was getting tired of your inane questions." Rumplestiltskin never moved, but his words had gained a dangerous edge.

"Don't be ridiculous! We've spoken exactly once in the last days, and you were ready to bolt to avoid that conversation, too. Not to mention that you threw something at me to avoid explaining what happened. This isn't like you."

"Oh, and you would be the expert on what is 'like me', I suppose?" A nasty grin, devoid of any humour, flashed across his face. "No doubt through the long hours of deep conversations we've had, where I bared my heart and soul to you, and which, of course, make you amply qualified to judge my state of mind."

Belle pressed her lips together. "This is exactly what I mean," she said, although this was much more like him. He could be cruel, sometimes, but rarely without reason, and almost never to her. Not in the recent weeks, at least. "And I'm going to keep asking you questions until you tell me what is wrong. You can't avoid me forever."

His eyes flashed. "Maybe not. But I can certainly lock you in your old cell if you won't leave me alone, when I order you to."

Silence fell, and Belle felt the blood drain from her face. "I think," she said, choosing each word carefully, "that we should end this conversation right now."

Even Rumplestiltskin seemed to realise that he had gone too far. His eyes widened, and he moved to get up. "No, wait," he began. "Belle, I'm sorry, I didn't mean—"

"I don't think I will." The words seemed to come from far away, even though it was her mouth saying them. "When you're ready to talk, come and find me. You usually know where. Until then, I don't think I have anything to say to you, Rumplestiltskin." With that, she stalked off, fighting against the tears that were stinging her eyes.

##

Belle woke in almost complete darkness, wedged into a tight space, with aching muscles and dry eyes. For a moment, her thoughts raced, trying to remember where she was. After her fight with Rumplestiltskin, she hadn't been able to face going back to her room, still too shaken by Rumplestiltskin's threat. She liked to think that he would never follow through on it, but the thought of waking up in that dungeon again had felt like an iron vice squeezing her chest until it was fit to crumple in on itself. Instead, she had gone to the only place that still felt like safety.

The library. Right. She was in the library, wedged between two shelves that hid her from view of anyone who might be glancing casually into the room.

She remembered crying a little, before forcing herself to calm down and pulling a book down from the shelves. She must have fallen asleep while reading, because the moon now stood high in the sky and cast its pale light through the library's windows. Belle sighed. Comforting as the books were, the library did not make for good sleeping quarters. She would have to go to her room, or be completely exhausted in the morning.

Just as she was getting up, she heard a faint thump on the stairs and froze. There was really only one option for who could be making noise at this hour in the castle, and Belle had no desire to confront Rumplestiltskin when she was tired and aching all over from her ill-advised nap.

So she held perfectly still while his steps approached. Were they just a little slower than usual? And what was that faint thump that followed them? Tap-tap-thunk. Tap-tap-thunk.

The sounds changed when he reached the top of the stairs, and she could hear him breathe. Her ears painted a picture of golden skin glittering in the silvery light, while he walked through the room, no doubt looking for her. She heard wood scraping on wood — the ladder, he's using the ladder — and a faint rustling noise.

Silence followed, and Belle listened, barely breathing, for his next move.

It came as a resounding, and almost comically protracted crash. One moment, the library was as quiet as a grave, and in the next, filled with the sound of falling books, falling shelves, and one falling Dark One, who let out a thoroughly undignified curse. Belle flinched and ducked, out of sheer habit, until the crashing had abided. She then cautiously peeked around the shelf, to see Rumplestiltskin lying sprawled amidst scattered books, groaning faintly in what she had to assume was pain.

"Rumplestiltskin?" she asked.

He flinched at the sound of his name, quickly pushing himself up from the ground and into a sitting position, but not getting up entirely. He looked around, clearly searching for something and Belle stepped closer and into a beam of moonlight that fell through a window and illuminated the room.

He flinched and scrambled backwards, away from her, eyes impossibly wide and dark in the faint light. "Who—" He broke off. "Belle?"

She didn't ask who else he had been expecting. For some reason, seeing her seemed to terrify him, and even the thought that he might be scared of her was abhorrent. "I'm sorry," she said, keeping her voice low and soothing. "I didn't know you were here until I heard the crash." That wasn't entirely true, but it was close enough. She certainly hadn't meant to spy on him. "What happened?"

His face closed off again. "I fell."

Belle waited, holding her breath, afraid that anything she might say would only make him close up more. Something was terribly wrong with Rumplestiltskin, that much was clear, but if he didn't tell her what it was, there was no chance of her helping him with it. Only a very small part of Belle was surprised that her first instinct was indeed to help a man who technically still held her captive.

The silence stretched between them, their eyes locked, neither of them willing to make the next move. Then, as if something inside him had snapped under the tension, Rumplestiltskin deflated. "I fell, because I was trying to take out a new book, while still holding this one on the other hand, and put weight on my bad leg."

"I didn't know you had a bad leg," Belle said carefully.

Rumplestiltskin made a sound that could almost be called a laugh. "Of course you didn't," he said bitterly, dropping his gaze from hers. "Normally, I make up for the injury with magic."

This time, Belle didn't say anything. She had the feeling that he was working his way towards what he really wanted to say, and she didn't want to throw him off his path with a wrong word.

After a while, Rumplestiltskin spoke again.  "It was the potion," he explained. "I was trying to — never mind what I was trying to do. Something went wrong, and…" His gaze was fixed on his hands in his lap. "I lost it."

Belle frowned. "Lost what?" She suspected that she already knew the answer, but even forming the thought in her head seemed ludicrous. She had to hear him say it..

Rumplestiltskin took a deep breath and said, in a clear and measured voice, "I lost my magic."

[mafreemantle]

Meeting Esther Mahlangu

For Apartamento Magazine

She may be a celebrated international artist whose work has been exhibited alongside the likes of Warhol, Hockney and Raucschenberg, but Esther Mahlangu remains relatively obscure in her own country. It’s hard to find South Africans who know her well. It’s almost as hard to find Mahlangu herself, living as she does in the tiny rural community of Weltevreden - old Afrikaans for ‘satisfied’ - in the KwaMhlanga region of Mpumaplanga, three hours drive from Johannesburg.

And it is there Mahlangu may have stayed her whole life, painting traditional Ndebele designs on the houses of her village, like her mother and her mother’s mother had done for decades, had a group of French art curators not stumbled across her village in the late eighties. That chance encounter led to an exhibition at the Pompidou in Paris, which in turn caught the eye of the curators of the BMW Art Car series and since then, Mahlangu, who turns 76 in November, has been to places she and her family scarcely knew existed. In the relatively tiny Ndebele community, it is no small matter for someone to have travelled as far as Johannesburg; to have gone abroad is almost miraculous. She herself refers to these various foreign destinations as being ‘Over the seas’, while outside her home a sign reads: ‘Ndebele Art School for Children: Done by Esther Mahlangu. THE 1st LADY TO VISIT OVER SEA.’

Mahlangu was born in 1935 on a farm near Middelburg, in the Mpumalanga Province, not half an hour from where I find her, dressed as always in traditional Ndebele clothing, this crisp, stark winter morning. She was the first of nine children. Her mother, and her mother’s mother, were simple traditional women who decorated their houses as a matter of custom. When Esther was 10 years old, she was taught to paint. Mahlangu’s work has been widely described as ‘traditional contemporary’ and certainly her more modern take on ancient Ndebele art - brighter colours, shapes derived from more modern objects such as her trademark razor blade or itjhefana - fits that description. She has also been mentioned alongside abstract geometric contemporary artists Sol Lewitt and even Damien Hirst, both of whom have experimented with bold, colourful and often huge geometric works. Not that Mahlangu knows, or cares, who these other artists are.

We sit for the interview over lunch of roast potatoes, chicken, mashed butternut, spinach, rice, beans in a rich gravy and a French salad, served dutifully by family at the guest house. Later, she will proudly lead me around the complex, pointing out recent renovations - five new rooms in a modern hut built in the traditional Ndebele fashion; circular, thick-walled, covered with a thatch roof. The small bedrooms have curved walls and bright beds with almost luminous linen that might be garish if it didn’t somehow fit perfectly. There are bright purple couches laminated in plastic covers, frilly pink duvet covers and, of course, Ndebele designs are festooned on the walls, teapots, mugs and just about everything with a paintable surface. It is at once an utterly strange and charming guesthouse, unlike anything I have ever seen and without question the only one of its kind.

Outside, a young boy is painting the exterior with painstaking attention, dabbing small green brushstrokes inside a triangular space. The first of many clues that beyond the accolades and the plaudits and the international fame, Mahlangu is most concerned with doing what her mother and her mother’s mother did before her: taking Ndebele art into the next generation.

Apartamento: I found it very strange while researching your work that you are very famous around the world but far less so at home, despite your various awards, international shows and so on. How do you feel about this?

Esther Mahlangu: It’s not so good. People do know me here, but not very well. I think people should know me here.

In a foreword for your 2003 retrospective at the Irma Stern Museum in Cape Town, Harvard Professor Kyle D Kaufmann referred to your show at the prestigious Documenta 9 festival as further evidence of this strange anonymity at home. He wrote, “Perhaps it is because the others, including William Kentridge and Marlene Dumas, are closer to the tastes of those who curate and collect contemporary South African art. Perhaps it is because  Ms Mahlangu’s work is too ‘African’.” What do you make of that?

Too African? I don’t know. For whatever some reason Ndebele art here is just not as appreciated as it is overseas. But what can I say about that, really? It is how it is.

Do you remember your first attempts at painting?

When I started, my mother and her grandmother were not happy with my painting at all! When they used to go for lunch I would go to where they were painting and paint as well. I thought I'd done something beautiful, but when they came back they said, ‘Esther, what have you made here!' So they said I should not begin by painting the front of the house - I should start at the back! Over there where people couldn't see, they said. So I painted and painted and painted and when they came to look they said, 'No this is not right...make it dead!’ But after a short while they began to like it and after a long time they said, 'Ok, you can come to the front now'.”

It would have been the 1940s when you started, and being in a rural town I’m interested in what sort of materials you were using at the time?

We used what we could find, what my family had been using for a long time before me. We weren't painting with paint, you understand, it was earth; white earth, red earth, black earth, whatever we could find around the farm. We would mix it with water and wet cow dung. We used to make brushes with chicken feathers and stronger ones brush with baboon hair. I still use the chicken feather brushes today but the cow dung has been replaced. It helped to bind everything. It made the paint stronger. But if it rains heavily or hails, the paint will wash away.  When I was growing up, we used to paint in winter - there was a lot of competition among the different villages around who was doing the best work - but then in the rainy summer months all the work would wash away and we’d paint again in the winter. That's why these days we use normal paint, so it lasts longer.

When did you first start experimenting with these bright colours and trademark shapes, like the razor blade - or ‘itjhefana’ - you have made your own?

I remember seeing colourful paints in the nearby town Middelburg when we used to visit. I thought - I want to use those colours, and soon I was able to get hold of some. My mother and grandmother didn’t like the new colours at all when I started, because it wasn’t traditional in their eyes, after a while they started to like it. The shapes are all taken from actual things, like lamps or boiled sweets or, yes, razor blades.

Your line is almost perfectly straight, as was that of the student painting the outside of the guest house when I arrived. Yet I’ve heard you have never used any form of ruler, tape or any aids whatsoever.

Yes, I’ve always used a free hand; that is the Ndebele way. That’s why it can take a lot of time to complete some of these bigger jobs I’ve been asked to do, like painting he entire front of a first floor office block in Japan. It was my second big job after Pompidou, and I had actually turned it down at first because I told them didn’t offer enough money (laughs). But when they saw how much work went into it they ended up paying me more than I had asked for.

Your breakthrough came when you were into your fifties, when the researchers from the Pompidou invited you to exhibit in France. That was truly a life-changing few weeks in your life. Could you tell me the story?

I remember it very clearly. There was a man who came from France, who came to take pictures. After that, when I was at the Botshobelo Museum, I heard from them to say that my work had been chosen from a whole list of other art. To me this was 'Number One'! They came back and asked for me at the museum, they said, 'We are looking for Esther'. I said, 'That's me'. You?, they said. Yes, me! They showed me a photo they had taken and I said, 'That one, that's my house!' So they said I should go overseas to France to paint. I said ok. Then I asked, where is France?!'

They told me it was overseas. I asked, 'With what am I going to get there?!'. With an aeroplane, they said. I said how long will I be in the aeroplane? They said if you leave today you will be there tomorrow. I stood dead still and said, 'No! I can't say yes or no. I must go home and ask what they say.'  So I went home and told my family. They said, 'No mama, you surely heard them wrong. I told them I didn't know who I was going with. My son Elias said, ‘I will come with you’. I said ok. I hadn't told the people at the museum yet, I wanted to talk to my family. When I told my bosses that they want me to to overseas, they said 'Who does?. I said there's some people from France here who took some pictures of my house and these French people want me to go and paint. They said 'No Esther are you mad!' I said no I'm not mad I speak the truth!

They asked if I had been given anything, a piece of paper or anything. I told them I did. So I brought out the piece of paper and gave it to them. But nobody could understand it because it was written in French! That was funny. So they said, ok, we're going to take this piece of paper to the big office in Middelburg and we'll show them. The Middelburg office sent it somewhere else because nobody could speak French there either. But days later they told me, Esther, you're right, it's true, they want you to go and you must go. I said I don't know who I'm going with but they said I had to go alone. So the time arrived, they came to fetch me at home and took me to the airport. They told me we we're going on a Sunday but came on a Saturday. My grandchild wasn't here, he was in Pretoria. So I told them I can't go because my grandchild isn't here. They said no Esther, we're going, we'll pick him up on the way. We didn't pick him up and when we got the the airport I told them we had to go back home and check if he's come home. We went to his house, and they said he'd gone to my house. They said, It's time to go! I said I'm not going if he doesn't come with. I'm waiting for Elias! They said, we must go today, they will bring Elias the next week. I said alright.

So they told me, ‘Where the aeroplane stops, you must get off. When you see the people walking off you must follow them out the door. Then you'll see someone there to pick you up.’ When I got out in France I saw the people who had come to pick me up signaling for me to come over. But I told them no, I'm waiting for my mielie-meal! (Mielie meal is a traditional Ndebele staple, made from corn). I brought a whole lot of mielie meal because they said there wouldn't be any in France.

I was wearing the traditional Ndebele clothes. So I went off to the place. They showed me which house I was going to paint - a house that had been built exactly like my house, except without a thatch roof. I couldn’t believe it. On Monday Elias was still not there, but they said they were getting him on Tuesday. I said I'm coming with. He will see my clothes and know where to go! They said don't worry. When he came back Pierre told me he couldn't get Elias. I said, 'PIERRE!  told you! But then Elias came round the corner…we laughed so much.

So, when I arrived I was preparing to paint, buying the colours and so on. I realised that I needed cow dung, so I told Pierre - go and fetch me some! He said, 'In Paris?'. So he went off looking for some and came back with some dung. I said no Pierre, this is horse dung! But I said ok, I can use it, and I started on my house. The day came, it was a big party, and afterwards they said to me - you must go to Bordeaux to paint a caravan. I said ok, and I went. Then I was invited to Japan.

Since then you have travelled all over the world. Do you remember the places you loved the most, and the people you most loved meeting?

Let’s see. I’ve been to Lisbon, Nantes, Livorno, Belgium, Lyon, Amsterdam, Italy, Spain, America, Washington DC, New York, California, Charleston, Pennsylvania, Pittsburg, Atlanta, South Carolina, New Jersey, New Orleans, Texas. And Germany and Switzerland. And Brazil. And Australia. All the countries I've been to, people loved me very much. They smile, they laugh. They were very happy to see me, because they wondered, ‘How do you sleep wearing this stuff?' 'How do you eat?' 'How do you wash?'. I tell them I wash nicely! I don't take them off. I walk with them, sleep with them, take showers with them, because this is the Ndebele wedding ring. The rings around your neck your parents give you; those around around the ankles your husband gives you. There are some inconveniences - when I go through airport security I always set the machine off! (laughs) When the machine goes off they always ask me to take the rings off before I walk through and I say No I can't take them off!

You have been to so  many beautiful cities. I wonder, have you ever been tempted to live elsewhere?

No, no, no. I can go to all these places, but I must come back. I must come home. My place is South Africa. My children are here, my grandchildren are here. This is where I was born, this is  my home. I can't leave.

You must have met many famous people along the way, famous artists in particular?

I have met so many famous people, but I can't remember them. (laughs)

I notice you have pictures of Nelson Mandela (his successor) Thabo Mbeki and a few other dignitaries on your walls. Have you met them?

Yes, I’ve met Madiba, and Mbeki and Jacob Zuma. The other two I met overseas, but Madiba was the only one to have visited me at the Ndebele Royal Kraal. It was a long while ago but that was special.

Seaking of politics, it could be said that your work has in recent decades taken on a more political significance. In his book ‘A Portrait with Keys’, local writer Ivan Vladislavic remembers the moment Ndebele painting became a fad in Johannesburg in the wake of the Art Car. He wrote “It was a striking symbolic moment in the invention of the new South Africa, a supposedly traditional, indigenous culture laying claim to one of the most desirable products our consumer society had to offer, smoothly wrapping this contemporary symbol of status, wealth and sophisticated style in its colours...It suited the early nineties perfectly: Africa was coming to the suburbs in the nicest possible way.” How political is your work?

I wouldn’t know what to say to that. I stay out of politics. I paint because I love it. It stretches my heart wide, and when I’m doing it I am very very happy.

Photo: Nico Krijno

[sarahburness]

3 Things That Are Helping Me Deal with Stress, Pain, and Loss

“Being on a spiritual path does not prevent you from facing times of darkness; but it teaches you how to use the darkness as a tool to grow.” ~Unknown

Life has not been kind lately.

My aunt passed away in October. She had been suffering from cancer, but her family kept the extent of her illness to themselves, and hence I did not have a chance to see her before she passed away. I felt bad about that.

My father followed her a month later, just after Thanksgiving. He had been ailing from Parkinson’s Disease, but his death as well was not expected when it happened.

Two weeks after him, a friend of mine who lives abroad informed me of her diagnosis with a rare form of incurable cancer. She has since passed away before I had a chance to visit her. She was not yet fifty years old.

Right after that happened, the veterinarian diagnosed my dog with heart failure, and his days too are numbered.

In mid-January, my mother, who had been depressed after my father’s death, collapsed with a seizure. A tumor was discovered in her brain. Though easily removed, it was traced back to her lung. She too has a rare form of aggressive cancer and though outwardly healthy, her life will probably be limited to months or a couple of years.

The whole ordeal until diagnosis unfolded over the course of an extremely stressful month, and the future is both frightening and terribly uncertain. Because of this uncertainty, I have needed to change my life plans—I had been ready to relocate and change jobs.

In the last two weeks, I have had another friend in her forties diagnosed with advanced cancer with a poor prognosis, and my sister’s marriage has come apart.

Every week it seems brings some new tragedy. As just about everyone who knows me has said: “It’s a lot.” It certainly is.

I can’t put a happy face on this. Life has just been awful, and I wake up each day praying for no more bad news. There has been such a procession of misfortune that I feel more numb than anything else.

And yet, I haven’t been destroyed. I’m not depressed. When someone is depressed, whether it's situational or clinical, they often become self-obsessed and turn just about any event, however positive, into a negative commentary on their life. I’ve been there before, and this is not depression.

I’m scared, but I feel strong. I know I can handle this. And, I’m very thankful—thankful for what gave me the strength to endure these times: my spiritual journey.

In 2012, after a years-long series of illnesses, bad romantic relationships, frayed friendships, work drama, and general instability in my life, I had a total breakdown.

By “breakdown” I mean the whole nine yards—massive depression, professional psychological help, medication, and inability to work or even function normally. However, following this breakdown came the clichéd spiritual awakening.

This spiritual awakening taught me so many things, most of which you’ve probably already read about, for example: the ego, the importance of being present, the power of vulnerability, etc.

It was such a fragile period of intense learning and growth built atop a well of deep suffering. It felt terrible, but I learned and changed so much. Though it’s unlikely that I will experience such drastic spiritual growth in such a short period of time again, I realized that I had embarked on a life-long spiritual journey with no end.

Along the way, there have been fewer but no less rewarding “Aha moments” and new realizations made possible by the consciousness I had gained. Furthermore, there have been many spiritual tests, and each time I worry that I will fail to live the lessons I’ve already internalized, I surprise myself and come through.

And now I’ve reached an objectively extraordinarily difficult time. This is not a crisis of egoic drama or hurt feelings but real pain—physical suffering and death for so many people who I care about in a matter of months.

While the spiritual journey is a continuum with multiple themes that are difficult to unravel from each other, there are a few concepts that are sustaining me through it all:

1. Presence and the now

The weight of all of it has pushed me into a very intense NOW. I try not to hope because hope has let me down a lot recently, but perhaps more importantly, hope is focused on an unknowable and largely inalterable future. Though in the context of a lot of terrible events, rarely is there anything wrong with this very moment. Despite the pain of recent events, right now there is so much going right.

Choosing to focus on the good isn’t delusional—it’s an accurate reflection of reality.

My mother is dying. We don’t know when and there isn’t too much we can do, but thinking of that future is enough to ruin every day. And yet, with our time together now so valuable, I have no choice but to be fully present with her as much as I can.

I have experienced so much loss recently, but bitterly clinging to that loss will distract me from the precious time I have left with my mother and friends, and it will do nothing to bring back my dad, my aunt, or anyone else.

However, there isn’t much wrong with right now. My mom isn’t suffering, I’m lucky to be free from work to be with her, and my family has come together in support of each other. The birds sing each morning, the weather is fine, and the forest near our house is beautiful. That’s all real too, and there is much joy to be had in each moment.

Should something arise in the moment, that’s when I’ll deal with it. While I do occasionally find myself worrying over the future, that serves no purpose and only spoils the now.

2. Boundaries

In times of extreme stress when so many things are going wrong, it is critical to exercise self-care; you cannot be a positive force in the world if you’re falling apart inside.

Boundaries are key to protecting your time and energy, which are particularly challenged in very difficult times, from behaviors that drain them. However, most of the time life is much easier, so we allow people to skate by and “go along to get along” as not to be difficult. After all, we don’t want to seem mean or selfish or unforgiving. We aim to please.

However, while the importance of boundaries is particularly stark in times of crisis, even in normal times they play an important role in self-care and building healthy relationships.  This is clear when we see what can happen when we don’t enforce boundaries.

Oftentimes, trying to be nice and agreeable, we allow someone to repeatedly cross the line with no repercussions. As our resentment builds, we may act out in retaliation, doing nothing helpful for ourselves or the world.

A relationship of true intimacy and mutual respect should be able to easily withstand one party making his or her boundaries clear. If the other can’t handle that, then how deep of relationship is it anyway? In fact, establishing a level of trust with someone to feel comfortable enough to discuss boundaries is in itself a sign of a strong relationship.

Enforcing boundaries involves a level of honesty that can deepen relationships.

During my mother’s time in the hospital, frustrated with being confined to bed, she unleashed a stream of vitriol at me that were without a doubt the most hurtful words anyone has ever said to me.

As difficult as it was to do with her health in such a fragile state, I felt I had no choice; I had to enforce my boundaries. If I am to be her primary caregiver, I couldn’t endure a situation in which she directs her frustrations at me—it wouldn’t work for me, and it wouldn’t work for her. Unfortunately, it was a repeated behavior of hers over many years.

Without getting into the details, we had a very frank discussion about this, and to be fair, it’s something I let her get away with for a long time by not enforcing my boundaries.

While initially very painful, this talk led to me sharing deep dark memories and thoughts I never would have otherwise said and clearing a lot of what stood in the way of our relationship as mother and son. That very likely would not have happened had I not stood firm, and I never would have established that open a relationship with her.  However long she has left in this world, I know that this issue, my past hurt from her actions, won’t stand between us again.

3. Having an open mind

When faced with a diagnosis as dire as what my mom was given, unless you completely give up, keeping an open mind is often the only way to find good news that you would have otherwise overlooked.

For example, in beginning my research on this type of cancer, I was dismayed to learn that there has been no material change to the standard of care in about forty years. All of those recent breakthroughs in cancer treatment you’ve heard about, they don’t apply to this one!

However, rather than declaring defeat right away, I did decide to dig a little deeper. What I found was that there actually are a lot of clinical trials going on in our area for this type of cancer, many of which may provide a good second-line treatment option. Moreover, one of the trial drugs is very likely to get FDA approval in the next year, giving us some options where before there was none. Taking advantage of these would require changing hospitals, so these are developments I never would have learned about had I given up.

I’ve been reminded to keep an open mind about people too. My mother, typically pretty volatile, has faced this all with amazing strength and equanimity—certainly more than I’ve shown! For someone totally uninterested in spirituality, she shown a remarkable perspective on all of this in the context of her life, with which she is very satisfied.

My sister, also going through marital problems while taking care of her baby and usually very emotional, has coped perhaps the best of any of us and has exhibited some very healthy habits for staying even. My brother, on the other hand, himself a doctor, has probably been the most scattered and emotionally crippled by the recent events.

The point is that whatever you think you know about a person, it can change any day, any time. People can surprise you, for better or worse. While it’s totally rational to make judgment calls about peoples’ strengths and weaknesses, abilities and attributes, you must always realize that you can be wrong, or that the person might change—in fact, people are changing all of time!

Spirituality is not about finding a happy hiding place insulated from temporal concerns. It’s quite the opposite—it’s about moving through life with eyes and arms wide open to whatever happens. It’s the way we get down in the mud and go through the wringer and remain who we are.

Spirituality is a muscle. It gets stronger with exercise, and exercise causes discomfort. But once recuperated, you find you’re able to lift even more weight than before.

I’ve never had to deal with such a painful series of events, and hopefully I never will again. But however insignificant what I’ve already been through seems in comparison, that past started me on a spiritual journey that prepared me for this present time. Whatever happens, I know I’ll emerge stronger from this too.

About Joshua Kauffman

Joshua Kauffman is a recovering over-achiever and workaholic. Leaving behind a high-powered life in business, he has become a world traveler, aspiring coach, and entrepreneur of pretty things. Amateur author of a recent memoir Footprints Through The Desert, he is trying to find ways to share his awakening experience, particularly to those lost in the rat race like he was.

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from Tiny Buddha https://tinybuddha.com/blog/3-things-that-are-helping-me-deal-with-stress-pain-and-loss/

[mystlnewsonline]

New Post has been published on https://www.stl.news/the-blame-games-continues-on-day-two-of-federal-government-shutdown/71541/

The Blame Games Continues on Day Two of Federal Government Shutdown

Could Bipartisan Senate Group Bring Some Hope to Ending the Shutdown?

January 21, 2018 (STL.News) As the squabbling continues and the blame game intensifies, the federal government remains in day two of the shutdown with no path to an amicable ending.  There is no love lost between the Republicans and the Democrats, and unfortunately for everyone else… no concrete end in sight for this insanity.

The government shut down early Saturday morning when a four-week spending bill failed to get enough votes to proceed to the Senate.  Disappointment continued throughout the day as the White House, and Republican and Democratic leaders spent most of their time throwing accusations at each other in order to shape the political fallout from the shutdown and finding no solution.  The House and the Senate are back to work today trying to come up with a break through.

It appears for the time being a majority of members on both sides are dug in refusing to budge in the hours before a tentative scheduled Senate vote at 1:00 am Monday morning on whether to end the government shutdown.  If an agreement is not struck before that time, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) plans to move forward with a procedural vote on the proposal of a short-term funding bill — a “continuing resolution” — funding the government through February 8th.  It’s still unclear that there are enough votes for that legislation to pass.

Despite early talk of a compromise, a new round of bitter partisan bickering makes any kind of quick fix to a desirable outcome highly unlikely.  The shutdown came one year to the day after President Trump’s inauguration …a time when Republican and Democratic leaders should be working together to find a way to restart the flow of funds.  Instead the house leaders were on the floor Sunday morning pointing the finger at each other.

Central to the stand-off between the two parties is the fate of the Dreamers (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA.) Last September, President Trump proposed to end the Obama-era program that protected them from deportation.  The president gave Congress until the beginning of March to find a solution.  Democrats are insisting the spending legislation contain a provision to protect DACA immigrants now and moving forward.

So, what exactly will happen if a solution is not found and the government remains closed down?  According to a Pentagon planning memo recently posted, all active duty uniformed personnel are to continue their duties, but they will not be paid until after the shutdown is resolved.  On Friday, Defense Secretary, Jim Mattis, said there are more than 740,000 Defense Department civilians and about half of them would be furloughed.

Working without a paycheck or getting furloughed are not the only issues facing the military.  Already taking place is the temporary suspension of $100,000 payments promised to military families in the event their loved one dies so that they can travel and prepare funerals.

The Trump administration is blaming what he calls the ‘loser’ Democrats for putting party above military families. Yet, it was Senator Claire McCaskill (D-Missouri) who introduced a resolution shortly after midnight Friday that would have ensured the troops’ salaries and death benefits would be paid throughout the shutdown without disruption.

“I don’t want one moment to pass with there being any uncertainty of any soldier anywhere in the world that they will be paid for the valiant work they do on behalf of our national security,” McCaskill said.

Republican Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell, thwarted that effort by objecting to McCaskill’s motion.  McCaskill went one step further by introducing legislation to withhold the pay of members of Congress during a government shutdown in hopes of motivating members to be more reasonable in negotiations.

“If members of Congress can’t figure this out and keep the government open, then none of us should get paid,” McCaskill said.

That legislation is also co-sponsored by Senators Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, Jon Tester of Montana, Debbie Stabenow of Michigan, and Joe Manchin of West Virginia.  Although a meaningful gesture, even if the bill passed it could not take effect for quite some time due to the 27th amendment which prevents Congress from raising or lowering its pay.  Therefore the legislation could not take effect until the 116th Congress, beginning in January 2019.

As anxiety continues with each passing day that the shutdown goes on, both parties have to be feeling some concerns about being blamed by voters.  Both sides are convinced they have the upper hand but both know that the longer the stalemate goes on, the bigger the political stakes.  It also stands to reason that the longer the shutdown drags on and both sides dig in, it will be more difficult to come to terms on substantive issues like the fate of the Dreamers. For those that don’t remember, the 2013 shutdown lasted more than two weeks.

Early this morning, President Trump sent out a tweet calling on Senate Majority Leader McConnell to invoke the so-called nuclear option.  This would change the chamber’s rules removing any leverage for Senate Democrats.  But even though the 60-vote threshold makes it tough for Republicans to pass their priorities, so far, there doesn’t seem to be any desire on either side of the aisle to do away with the rule. For now the only possible light at the end of the tunnel comes by way of a bipartisan group of about 22 senators who are hard at work today on various proposals in hopes of coming up with a compromise that will satisfy all.  The group calls themselves the Common Sense Coalition and is led by Senator Susan Collins, (R-Maine), and Senator Lisa Markowski (R-Alaska.)

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) has been one of the most outspoken critics on the entire predicament and has acknowledged his frustration with his colleagues on both sides of the aisle, and even the President himself. Appearing on CNN on Sunday, he expressed his optimism of a possible breakthrough to resolve the shutdown.

Graham has been working on bringing everyone together and agrees that immigration issues need to be brought to the floor with results.  He is only agreeing to a CR until Feb 8th with a promise from McConnell that they’re going to work on all of the deals together in a bipartisan way, including all kind of issues.  And, if they don’t resolve the immigration situation by then, he says McConnell is committed to taking up the issue again.

He says that the senate is the perfect body to do this and believes that if a deal is to be made, it will be with their vote tonight.  However, there still needs to be a commitment from the leadership and so far although they’ve said they are willing to open negotiations, they have not spoken.

Graham believes the president is willing to make some sort of deal, but is listening too much to his staff, namely, Steve Miller, who he says holds opinions on immigration that are outside of mainstream views.  The White House did not immediately return a request for comment on Graham’s remarks.

So, for now, all eyes are on the bipartisan Senate group with the goal of crafting a proposal to set up an immigration vote in that chamber, as well as an agreement to reopen the government until February 8th.  And hopefully, 2018 will be the year of compromise since there is such a need to restore the art of negotiation and bring civility back into politics.  Good governing is good politics and both parties benefit from it, but more significantly, the nation benefits from it the most.

_____

By Kara Savio – published on STL.News by St. Louis Media, LLC

[scozziesquash]

Report – Baltimore JCT 2018

  Baltimore JCT – MLK Weekend

The penultimate JCT was contested and then concluded on MLK Day 2018. Baltimore was the host and it threw up an absolute thriller of a weekend. Meadow Mills 16 court facility was vibrant from start of play at 8am on Saturday all the way through to close at 3pm on Monday, with endless enthralling squash entertainment and satisfied spectators. Scozzie took a group of 18 strong players and made their own ‘Scozzie Statement’ on the event with some trademark results and performances. It was a huge tournament to kick off 2018 and build from the successes of last weekends GCC Gold… read on to hear all about it.

Phenomenal Finals

Shaam incredibly made it to his 4th successive JCT final, as he continued his quest to have a record breaking undefeated domestic season. The first game he dropped came in the semi final and represented his number 1 seeding in style. In the final he faced the #2 seed and long term divisional rival, who was out for revenge after Shaam got the better of him in his home JCT final in 2017. The final looked like it could be a toss up, but from the start, Shaam’s relentless pace proved impossible to match. His opponent held on until the later parts of each game, but that’s exactly the time Shaam ramped the tempo up and brought his unmatchable ‘top gear’ of squash. His 3-0 victory produced some of the best squash the US has ever seen at the U15 age bracket and Shaam is destined for a huge 2018 with the last JCT and Nationals still ahead. His dominant display was a true reflection of his dominant season as he made it 4 JCT titles from 4 and point him within touching distance of the Perfect 5, only ever achieved in one maybe two rare occasions. His performances were an absolute joy to witness all weekend and he is this weeks ‘Scozzie of the Week’ another deserved award to our record breaking Scozzie individual.

Our second finalist was in the GU19, as Elle continued to break her own record as the female to make the most JCT finals in US history. She’s had a great start to 2018 building off her season best performance at the US Open, where she was a whisker away from lifting the coveted title. Once again she faced top seed and National #1 and the girls once again produced a fascinating finale. Game 1 proved to be vital with both girls finding a great balance between offense and defense and struggling to break each other down. Unfortunately Elle lost it 11/9 and her opponent then built further momentum playing superb squash from start to finish to take the match 3/0.

Consolation Classics

The star of the show was the man, the myth, the legend – Mr Teddy Eill. He was seeded in the very bottom bracket of the BU19’s, but the young man didn’t not let that deter his confidence… it was actually, the complete opposite. After overcoming a minor injury whilst adapting to the court in R1, Teddy stormed back winning four matches back to back guaranteeing a top 10 finish. His victories included several W’s over 5.5+ rated players and many top 20 ranked, a huge statement form the Shipley junior. This result alongside his semi final at last weekends Gold will proper him into the top 32 with a whole 18 months to go before he ages out! With Teddy’s current improvement curve exponentially increasing, who would bet against him being inside top 10 by the end of the year?!

Lauren and Maya both had breakthrough events in the Gu15 and Gu17s. Maya was 2-1 up and only a couple of points away from upsetting the number 2 seed in R2. Her performance was awarded Scozzie ‘Match of the Weeeknd’ and it was truly brilliant, a boasting masterclass showcasing masterful attacking squash. Whilst her opponent went on to final before losing 14/12 on the 5th, Maya also used the confidence gained from such an heroic performance to put together her best finish of her season. She beat two higher rated opponents, before losing another 3/2 thriller in the Consol semis. Likewise, Lauren lost out at exactly the same stage, but should also be extremely happy with her weekend efforts. After losing R1, she won 3 matches back to back to reach the Consol semis and then went 2-0 up and within touching distance of the final! She couldn’t quite finish the job, but 11th Place was her season best and she’ll edge ever closer to a top 20 ranking.

Our 4th Consol semi finalist on Monday morning, was 11 year old Winston who is in his down year at U13. After he reached the final of his first ever Gold last weekend, he then took his game to the next level in Baltimore. Like Teddy, Seeded in the bottom bracket, he was disappointed to lose R1 but gained a lot of positivity from his performance. He then responded with a charge through the Consols, including an epic 3/2 comeback victory against a top 8 ranked opponent. He then faced the Egyptian phenomenon who entered the weekend after reaching semi finals of the US Open and carried an amazing 4.9 rating (equivalent to many U17 JcT players). Winston played some of the best squash of his life and can be extremely proud of getting over 20 points in the match! He’s a dark horse for Nationals with his current development thriving… can’t wait to see what the young man can do in 2018.

Classic Plate Classics

Eric and Meghna were both disappointed to lose in the quarter finals, but in Scozzie esq bounce back ability, responded in a true positive manner to reach the Classic Plate Finals. Meghna defeated Abby in an All Scozzie Semi (after Abby lost to Elle in Quarters) and faced the Penn JCT Champion of 2017. Meghna came out on fire and went 1-0 up. Then she responded at 2-1 down to take it to 5th set shootout. Unfortunately some important calls and breaks in game 5 went against Meghna and she lost out in the decider to finish 6th Place.

Eric lost to the eventual winner in the Quarters, but won every other match in the JCT 3/0 to reach the CP Final to face a rematch of his epic Boston JCT quarter final victory. It was another 3/0 victory for Eric in the 5/6 with his opponent unfortunately struggling with a stomach bug. Four 3/0 wins and only losing to the winner would be sufficient for most, but Eric will be hungry to bounce back stronger in San Francisco before targeting a first National title in March.

Scozzie Tradition creating Unexpected Upsets 

On top of all our trophy winners, it was another JCT weekend for the Scozzie underdog to come home to PA with more unexpected upset victories.

The last time Matt Wang competed at Meadow Mill, it was less than 12 months ago and it was the first time he won a US Squash trophy… for 5th Place in a Silver! Then he was ranked outside the top 150 and had only just began competing in certified squash competition. His incredible journey and rise in the last 12 months has been one of the most significant developments across the whole US. Matt is closing in on top 32, improving well over 100 spots within the year and was ecstatic to qualify for his first JCT. To win a match was the goal, but once again Matt went over and above. After losing to a top 4 seed in R1, he then won back to back matches including beating #14 in the country, who had defeated him 3/0 only 2 weeks previous at a recent Gold semi final. A top 16 performance was a deserved reward for all his hard work and he was only a whisker away from top 12. What will 2018 have in store for the young man as he enjoys his final few months in U15?!

Kristen won the GU17 plate with 3 successive wins against top 32 opponents. The 15 year old saved her best form for Sunday and Monday and she’ll build lots of confidence from her last few matches moving into the business side of the season. Alexis and Devon both finished solidly inside top 16 and will both target quarter final finishes at the next JCT in February.

Oh and did we mention that the Eagles were also 3.5 point underdogs in the NFC Championship semi final against Atlanta… who remembers the results on Saturday night?!? E-AG-L-E-S!!!!! Bring on Minnesota next week…. we’re coming for the SuperBowl!

It’s been a hectic fortnight which has seen the penultimate PA Gold and JCT’s both conclude with huge Scozzie performances throughout and some massive results. As the focus turns to school squash for the next couple of weeks, it’s a great opportunity for Scozzies to get ahead of their rivals with some extremely hard work in training, before things really pick back up on the US Squash circuit in February. Once again, a huge congratulation to Shaam (our Scozzie of the Week) for another huge step in his record breaking season and for another memorable Scozzie weekend! We’re 2 weeks into 2018, what do the next 50 have in store… boy we’re excited to see!!

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[jenikkaluna]

Good morning, Honey! (Langnese media launch)

Germany’s No. 1 Langnese Honey is now in the Philippines

Last January 19 is one of the breakthroughs of Langnese products as it finally launched in the media. It was a fun filled brunch event. 

Fly Ace Corporation introduces another high-quality product that recently hit the stores nationwide: Germany’s no.1 Langnese Honey. A family-owned brand distributed in over 45 countries, Langnese Honey is primarily known for its purest and most versatile flavors.

Honey is considered one of nature’s sweetest gifts from nectar that’s collected by bees and naturally broken into simple sugar. With the constant fanning of the bees’ wings, evaporation takes place in the unique design of the honeycomb that produces the thick, syrupy liquid we now know as honey. 

Interestingly, the color and flavor of honey is an indicator of its type of flower nectar collected by bees, thus leaves consumers with more flavor options.

Here are five facts that make Langnese Honey a game changer that will reboot your appreciation for high-quality honey:

1. Highest quality and purity since 1927

Langnese Honey is a family-owned brand for nine decades; it’s also a reputable market leader with a seal of approval from Germany’s Honey Ordinance and European Standard Basic Principles that strictly requires the safest and unadulterated quality. Meaning, it should be raw, unfiltered, and residue-free, with a limit of between 16% - 21% water content only. With Langnese Honey, it doesn’t only surpass these requirements, its name is a seal of guarantee that nothing is added nor removed from it!

2. No short cuts and no compromise

Ever wondered what makes Langnese Honey truly satisfying? Its serious commitment to quality and purity puts a premium importance on selection and processing, market analysis, coupled with direct and long-standing relationship with the beekeepers in the countries of origin. Much more, it also boasts a plethora of certifications from International Featured Standards (IFS) Kosher, and Halal that are true marks of its reliable source.

3. Pollen-packed and certified safe.

Did you know that when a honey comes back negative for pollen test, it’s a sure sign of ultra-processing? That shouldn’t be the case, according to the makers of Langnese Honey Fürsten - Reform’s Export Manager Mark Baumgärtner,  “Absence of pollens in the honey means there’s no way to determine whether the honey came from legitimate and safe sources, as verified as well by the German Honey Directive and World Health Organization. Langnese Honey mindfully takes into account the latest scientific findings using modern technology and unfiltered process that effectively determines the origin and type of honey.”

4. Chic and convenient.

Featuring a honey dispenser technology famously known as “Bee Easy”, this chic and convenient packaging is also guaranteed no drip and no stickiness in every serving.  

Available in 250 g and 500 g PET dispensers, it’s also well loved by kids who find fun and enjoyment with their food. What’s more, you can take delight as you please, as its five yummy flavors might be the best you’ve ever tasted.

5. Five decadent flavors for all types of fete and feasts.

Aside from Langnese Honey’s credible process and source, there’s none quite like its well-balanced, rich, and golden flavors that’s arguably highly nutritious! Considered a staple for its subtle and mildly sweet taste, Acacia is the ultimate breakfast companion that lends character to teas, cereals, and desserts.  Golden Clear on the other hand, offers a sweet antidote to dips, salads, cocktails, and hot drinks, or to just about anything. Meanwhile, cooks and foodies can never go wrong with Black Forest that’s surely a luscious ingredient from the straightforward to the flashy recipes.  While Wild Flower is pretty much suited for sweetening all types of food and beverage, it makes breads and pastries tastier and way healthier instead of refined sugar. Last but not the least, Lavender is also lovely for sweetening all types of beverages like tea and is a luscious spread on breads.

The launching was held in Marriot Hotel hosted by the very beautiful Patty Yap- Laurel.

Ms. Patty Yap - Laurel with the @mediamomsph :)

It was also jam-packed with amazing speakers who most likely talk about the benefits we can get from honey and how important to know the real honey from which are not.

After the presentations, it was followed by Marriott Hotel Manila Excutive Chef Meik Brammer demo for including honey in our recipes.

(And believe me, they’re soooo goood!)

“Fly Ace Corporation is proud to welcome Langnese Honey in the Philippines, as we reinforce our commitment to bring the best of the world’s food and beverages to the Filipinos.” concludes Fly Ace Corporation President Jun Cochanco.  “When it comes to honey, there’s a reason why Langnese has been around for decades and a consistent market leader all these years--its name is the ultimate representation of what a real and reliable honey should be.“

Fly Ace Corporation is one of the leading food and beverage consumer goods companies in the country today. Propelling limitless multiple-category growth by bringing the best of the world closer to Filipino homes, Fly Ace Corporation’s portfolio of food and beverage products includes house brands and exclusively distributed brands. Learn more at www.flyacecorp.com.

Langnese Honey is exclusively distributed by Fly Ace Corporation and is available in supermarkets nationwide.