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oh-boy-me · 4 years ago

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I just read both the australia and museum post and the chaos levels are top tier, but like imagine the chaos that ensues if lord diavolo discovers about amusment parks and immediately just buys tickets to disneyland. Lucifer is basically the dad trying not to loose his children(lord diavolo included). Lord diavolo wanting to ride a loopy rollercoaster and just having the time of his life! (Also I highkey see diavolo ordering lucifer to make a disneyland in devildom tbh) Also mouse ear headbands!

This..... this took forever

Hey there anon! Sorry it took literally a year to answer this! If you’re still into Obey Me, I hope this was a pleasant surprise.

Also for the first time ever a scenario post is being put under the cut for length purposes. This scenario is 2.6k words Jesus

Please note that the last time I went to Disney was in 2015, so anything that’s newer than that is taken from the extensive reading of Disney advice blogs I read in preparation for this post. Anything older than that is likely from experience.

Also, I tried my best to keep this spoiler free for the attractions that can be affected by it.

So the Devildom DOES have the concept of amusement parks. I slept on this ask for so long that we’ve learned about Devil’s Coast. It seems to be more akin to a smaller-scale theme park, though. Small-ish. I’m used to NYC idk what constitutes as small.

Something like Disney World is on such a larger scale!! When Diavolo heard about that, he knew they had to go.

They are going to Disney World in Orlando because it’s the only one I’ve been to.

Lucifer is REALLY getting tired of these field trips, but there would be no weird animals, and there would be no sobering lessons on global extinction events at a family-friendly amusement park. He. He can handle this.

Solomon has actually been banned from all Walt Disney theme parks. We’re talking blacklist-level banned. He’s barred from ever entering any Disney park ever again. However, this was back in 1976, so this must be, like, his son or something, right? There’s no way this is the same guy. Thought the security guard who let him in.

What did Solomon do to get banned? When asked, he only gave a curious hum. “Yeah, I wonder.”

The place is split into four parks, so they’ll spend one day in each.

Barbatos continued to flex his power as the only one in the group with a brain cell, being sure to get them all fast passes. He even set time back just for the passes while they were booking the rides they wanted to cut the lines for, so if they don’t get used he’s going to be very snippy.

Also for convenience sake this is taking place in an AU where everything is the same but COVID doesn’t exist to shut down some rides and attractions.

Day 1: Hollywood Studios

MC and Simeon basically have to coerce Lucifer into letting everyone run free instead of making them all line up with a walking rope all day. He relents on the condition that everyone checks in periodically so he can at least know they haven’t killed anyone.

Nobody will check in except for maybe Beelzebub and those at Purgatory Hall.

Levi immediately gathered his fellow Star Wars fans (which basically meant calling over Mammon Belphie and Asmo and then pulling in two unsuspecting people suddenly given the title of “Star Wars fan”), and made a beeline for Galaxy’s Edge. There’s a LOT to do there and damn it if he wasn’t going to hit all of it.

First up for their group is the interactive Millennium Falcon Smuggler’s Run. They fail the mission. Levi’s pretty pissed, but everyone agrees that it was fun nonetheless. They really felt like they were doing a mission in the Falcon! Plus, the gameplay element was totally up the alley of most of this group. Simeon does feel a little nauseous from Luke’s jerky steering, though.

Did you know that Diavolo loves Toy Story? He does. He’s very much enjoying the Slinky roller coaster with Barbatos.

Barbatos would rather be spending time at the shows and performances, but oh no god forbid we don’t get an autograph from Doc McStuffins. Lucifer please come find him and save him.

Lucifer somehow wandered into the Frozen Sing-Along Celebration. He wants out. Barbatos please come find him and save him.

In general, Lucifer isn’t a fan of these sorts of places, so honestly he’s just hiding from the others and waiting for today to be over. Barbatos told him that there are parks that don’t revolve around rides and characters, and he’s holding out for those.

Luckily for them Diavolo wants to do LITERALLY everything, and that does include the shows, so Barbatos and Lucifer can have at least some fun today

Levi, Asmo, and Beel are about to start their relay for getting character autographs when Satan shows up out of nowhere and starts dragging everyone over to the Tower of Terror. Solomon bars all attempts to flee on a certain Avatar of Greed’s side.

The line to the Tower is so long, and honestly? Satan feels like the ride didn’t live up to the literal hour they waited to get on. Like yeah it was fun, but way too short.

He voices those thoughts, and Levi, who Satan knows is afraid of heights, is pretty fucking livid and drags him to Rock n Rollercoaster as revenge. Satan hates roller coasters.

As for the others, Asmo and Luke have a lot of fun on the thrill rides. Mammon and Simeon do not. Beel is a little spooked by them but still manages to have fun, while Belphie and Solomon think they’re alright.

Eventually, Simeon gets too sick to move, and they assign him to Luke. They say it’s because he’s too short to ride some of the rides (even though he’s literally not, screw you guys.)

Barbatos messes with time a lil bit so they can enjoy the Fantasmic Show and Fireworks to wrap the day up.

Levi is very jealous of Diavolo’s Doc McStuffins autograph. Somehow Asmo has Buzz Lightyear’s number.

Day 2: Animal Kingdom

Satan is vibrating

He literally instantly sprints to the Kilimanjaro Safari. And good for him; that’s something best done while the sun isn’t high up. The whole gang actually agrees to check that one out, and while Satan isn’t thrilled to be within 50 feet of Lucifer, he’s glad Simeon is there because he remembers how his presence lured animals out in Australia.

Simeon also finds himself pulled along the trails by Satan and parents watch in horror as a gorilla gives him a friendly pat on the back.

If you didn’t know, Animal Kingdom is divided into the two continents of Asia and Africa, as well as the secret eighth continent Avatar (2009). Diavolo heard great things about the Flight of Passage ride, but he totally forgot to tell Barbatos about it, so they’re stuck on a three hour wait line now.

Levi takes Luke on the Everest roller coaster because Simeon saw it in the distance and looked like he was about to cry. Levi wouldn’t shut up about how the yeti effect needs to be fixed and Solomon had to explain that the effect literally couldn’t support itself.

Simeon, having escaped a roller coaster for the first and only time on this trip, grabs lunch with Lucifer and Solomon and they enjoy the Lion King performance together. Solomon’s the only one of them who’s seen the movie, but the others still found it fun. Solomon keeps making up random plot points that don’t exist, though. Remember when Simba was captured by pirates?

Mammon found the Bugs Life show very scary. Normally Asmo would laugh at him, but he’s afraid of any bug he’s never seen before and at least Mammon was afraid of the things that were supposed to get you. They agree that bugs are still not their friends.

Satan has many things to say about the Dinosaur ride and most of them aren’t good. Belphie thought it was pretty ok, though. Lucifer can’t believe there was a sobering lesson on a global extinction event at this family-friendly amusement park.

Diavolo is still in line. Barbatos abandons him. He accompanies Luke to the kiddie fossil thing and actually finds it more tolerable. Oh yeah that’s the other secret ninth continent, Dinoland.

Beel and Belphie spend most of the day together at the various petting zoos. Belphie comes back knowing more than he ever wanted to about conservation. He thought Rafiki’s Planet Watch was going to be about watching other planets, not this one!

Asmo gets very interested in the costumes of the performers, as well as the parrots in the bird show. He could probably make some really colorful designs with those as inspiration.

Nearby, Mammon runs into Kevin and squawks in surprise. The zoo staff spend the next two hours trying to find the bird that escaped.

Diavolo says the ride was worth it, don’t worry.

Honestly this park has a lot of stuff that wouldn’t translate well to a funny scenario post so this part might be a little short compared to the others. I can only talk about a zoo for so long.

Anyone remember the Honey I Shrunk the Kids 4D show? Apparently it closed in 2016 to make room for more Star Wars stuff.

Anyway, at the center of it all there’s the Tree of Life, which is really pretty all day. Lucifer is thrilled to have a decently obvious meet-up place, too. They get to catch the brief awakening show at night.

They’re very bummed to learn the Rivers of Light show isn’t happening anymore, so Levi pulls it up on his phone so they can watch it in spirit.

Then Satan learns about the Wilderness Explorers badges and the others spend the rest of the time preventing too much collateral damage over the fact that nobody told him.

Day 3: Epcot

Finally, Lucifer thinks. Boo, Luke thinks.

Beel didn’t expect this park to be that interesting to him (he’s much more into the wonder and immersion of Hollywood Studios and Magic Kingdom), but then he learned about the restaurants. China, Norway, France, Mexico, Germany, Morocco, Italy, Japan, Canada--Canada? Huh. Canada. There’s so many different restaurants from so many cuisines to try, and yeah he knows that it’s definitely not the same as going to the place and it’s overpriced (sorry Lucifer), but it’s all right there. He makes certain to take MC on a deluxe Epcot restaurant tour.

Oh yeah MC. That’s the first time we’ve heard from them in a while. They’re doing whatever you want them to I guess.

Levi buys so much from the Japanese gift shops that he has to go back to the hotel for a bit to drop his bags off.

Satan and Diavolo aren’t much better, but their stashes are more varied.

Also, Diavolo found Mouse Gear, and bought everyone a pair of ears. Lucifer says that everyone has to keep them on because it’s what Lord Diavolo wants, but he is by far the most upset about them. Mammon snaps a picture and Lucifer throws his DDD into the lake.

Asmo and Belphie decide they’re gonna take it easy this day, and they nab Solomon and Barbatos for some exhibition hopping.

Luke finds Mission Space and please father no Simeon thought he was safe he thought he was safe here no please

Aside from that, though, Luke honestly finds this part of the park boring. He’d have been more interested in these attractions elsewhere, but as a kid he’s in Disney for roller coasters and Mickey Mouse.

Simeon is very grateful that Luke doesn’t have much that he wants to do, because it means that he can enjoy the Gran Fiesta and Living with the Land boat rides and have a single moment where he doesn’t feel like he’s about to be sick. He’s not even afraid of the rides; he just gets motion sick easily.

Asmo makes sure to see the Chinese acrobat show, and Mammon catches that with the show-hopping gang since there isn’t much he wants to do here either.

Epcot has alcohol and Solomon hasn’t been able to drink in ages so he really wants to spend some time doing that with MC. No demons allowed, thank you very much. He doesn’t hold his liquor as well as he’d like you to believe, but he just gets really talkative when drunk so it’s ok.

Epcot is a nice day to take a breather and Lucifer and Barbatos definitely needed a breather before tomorrow.

Day 4: Magic Kingdom

This is the day Diavolo has been waiting for. The crème de la crop, the best park for kids and kids in a future king of the Devildom’s body.

Also I feel like now is a good time to mention that this probably isn’t a reasonable order of events because I don’t remember the map layout of these places idk Disney city planning

This time. This time, Levi, Asmo and Beel are gonna get those autographs, dammit. Levi doesn’t even know who half of these characters are but hell if he’s not getting their autograph.

Mammon actually really loves the mascots too, but he’s embarrassed about it so he’ll only try to get one if he can use the guise of MC wanting one. MC, please help him out

Belphie isn’t big on rides, but he does have a soft spot for the more retro ones like Dumbo and Seven Dwarves. And like I said before, Beel loves Magic Kingdom for its wonder. So Belphie is perfectly happy being led (read: piggybacked) around by Beel today, because their favorite attractions match up pretty well here.

Actually, Beel’s favorite Disney movie is Lilo and Stitch, but. RIP Stitch’s Great Escape ride 2004-2018

Diavolo and Lucifer take a moment to enjoy the Carousel of Progress, and they reflect on how much the Human World is always changing and how much about it they still don’t know. It really does make them think, like. Grandma found the VR games at Christmas! The Devildom doesn’t have grandmas!

Mammon is terrified of the Haunted Mansion ride, and Satan has literally never felt so much schadenfreude in his life.

Mammon’s afraid of most rides to be fair, but he likes water rides, so Levi eventually takes pity on him and they go on Splash Mountain together more than once.

The Peter Pan ride broke down

Luke wanted to go on Space Mountain and Simeon was the only one around, so. RIP Simeon ????-2021

Diavolo was That Guy. If you know, you know.

Beel accidentally spun the teacups way too fast. Not even Solomon got out of that one unscathed.

Following that, Solomon manages to drag Barbatos onto the Jungle Cruise while Lucifer is busy. What is Lucifer busy with? Riding the Buzz Lightyear shooting ride over and over until he hits every single target and gets a perfect score at a Disney ride, something that is normal to want and possible to achieve. Anyway, Barbatos finds it really charming and Solomon finds it a nice break that he didn’t know he needed.

While looking for a food place that sells water for a reasonable price, a kid runs up to Asmo asking for a picture and autograph. He’s kind of confused, but goes along with it to make the kid happy.

Turns out, Asmo’s so naturally charming that they mistook him for a prince. Other groups see that family and follow suit. Mammon eventually catches wind of it and shows up to charge a fee. The parents are pretty sure Disney doesn’t charge fees like that, but their kids really want a pic with Asmo so they hand over the two bucks. (“Oh it’s so low” come on Mammon’s not a dick to children.)

And that’s the story of how Mammon and Asmo ended up in Disney Jail. You’re very much not allowed to pretend to be a cast member and then charge money for it. Lucifer has to bail them out as their “guardian,” and as punishment they aren’t allowed to opt out of It’s a Small World.

Small World isn’t that bad imho, and those like Diavolo, Satan, Simeon, and Levi would like it a lot. But Lucifer has been playing parent all day, Belphie does not like the noise, and Solomon has literally been on this ride at least fifty times. Very mixed feelings on this one, but it feels fitting to end with that and a fireworks show.

All in all though this wasn’t the worst trip Lucifer’s been on (cue everyone applauding for some reason).

Barbatos by far had the least fun of them all because for four days he was stuck in a park where the mascot is a fucking rodent and he wasn’t allowed to annihilate Mickey Mouse where he stood

“Disneyland Devildom when” “Lord Diavolo, no”

Masterlist

#obey me #obey me headcanons #obey me lucifer #obey me mammon #obey me leviathan #obey me satan #obey me asmodeus #obey me beelzebub #obey me belphegor #obey me diavolo #obey me barbatos #obey me luke #obey me simeon #obey me solomon #my favorite park is def epcot and my favorite ride is def splash mountain #also my sister helped me out by reminding me about animal kingdom but most of her photos were of random birds

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meetmebehindthemall13 · 5 years ago

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FOLKLORE IS NOT AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL, IT’S NOT ABOUT HER! IT’S FROM MADE UP CHARACTERS POVs!1!1!1!

Ok. Sure Jan!

In this essay I will explain why I think it’s quite the opposite. For the record I don’t think there has ever been a more personal, emotionally transparent and intimate album.

The 1

- Lyrical reference to ME! “I never leave well enough alone”

- TIWWCHNT aesthetics (Roaring twenties, jumping in pool from the trampoline, feeling so Gatsby for that whole year).

- Curiously associated to “the 1”, Big Sur highway or the Subway Line in NYC

Cardigan

- Reference to High Line in the West Village. Because when it’s like 10 minutes from Franklin Street or Charles Street, MUST be about other people right?

- Once in 20 lifetimes, 20 is almost the new 13 lately.

- “Loves me like I’m brand new” CIWYW vibes/main concept

The last great American dynasty

- Explicit parallels between Rebekah’s life and Taylor’s and the way the neighbors judged both of them. The parties, loud women, pack bitch friends.

- Interesting St. Louis reference

- Interesting “wedding was charming if a little gauche” (gauche defintion by dictionary.com: lacking social grace, sensitivity, or acuteness; awkward; crude; tactless) ...........ring any bell?

Exile

- I’m just going to leave these here and not even gonna waist my time explaining

My tears recochet

- Obvious reference to BMR, SBX2

- Very suspicious at the diamond ring but I’ll give it the benefit of the doubt

Mirrorball

- On the pressure that the desire to always be liked, appreciated, validated, approved by others please watch Miss Americana.

- On the pressure of double standards in the music industry for women, her words: “Be new to us, be young to us—but only in a new way and only the way we want. Reinvent yourself but only in a way that we find to be equally comforting and a challenge for you. Live out a narrative that we find interesting enough to entertain us, but not so crazy that it makes us uncomfortable. This is probably one of my last opportunities as an artist to grasp on to that kind of success, so I don't know. As I'm reaching 30, I want to work really hard, um, while society is still tolerating me being successful."

Seven

- Chilhood memories in Pennsylvania under her, are there still beautiful things?

- Won’t comment on braids like a pattern or the hide in the closet lines.

August

- Guest starring the recurring theme of hiding and keeping things secret, let’s make it a regular character because it’s here to stay.

- Will you call when you’re back at school. CAN name of someone who was attending school while having a relationship with Taylor. But won’t.

This is me trying

- Pulling car off the road to the lookout. Now there’s some suggestive photo reference for this line. Google it: Taylor Swift Big Sur

- “It's hard to be anywhere these days when all I want is you. You're a flashback in a film reel on the one screen in my town.” I’m sure everybody has to live with the face of their ex lover on screens all over your town, especially when the city screams their name. Very common.

Illicit affairs

- “You showed me colors you know I can’t see with anyone else” AND “you taught me a secret language I can’t speak with anyone else” sound very autobiographical but I will give this the benefit of the doubt as well.

- “And you know damn well for you I would ruin myself” is the big sister of “And baby, for you, I would fall from grace just to touch your face”, fight me on that.

Invisible string

- Centennial park in Nashville.

- Bad blood, Yogurt shop.

- Thread of gold.

- Blues and then purple-pink skies.

- Dive bar reference. Dive bar where you at.

Mad woman

- SBX2

- Cannons firing at a yatch. Sure it’s a fictional Betty here talking.

- Witch hunt makes yet another appearance.

Epiphany

- This actually is too personal for the whole world.

Betty

- Wondering if Betty’s garden has a gate you could sneak through.

- Inez and James, Blake and Ryan’s daughters. BOTH female. But sure take only what you need from Taylor’s personal life inspiration.

Peace

- So the person who’s writing is convinced that danger and troubles are always going to come to them and their lover because of their very identity, because of who they are and who they represent. Archer anyone? “Who could ever leave me baby but who could stay”.

- Robbers to the east. Clowns to the West (capitalized).

- Your brother as my brother.

- Love for show and dying for the same love in secret.

Hoax

- My best laid plan....“I am an architect I��m drawing up the plans”

- “You knew the hero died so what's the movie for?” Is “And all of my hero died all alone”‘s cousin. Study that family tree.

- “You know I left a part of me back in New York”

- Your faithless love is the only hoax I believe in. Either you feel this or you don’t. I don’t make the rules.

#taylor swift #taylor #folklore #betty #illicit affairs #the 1 #cardigan #august #seven #hoax #peace #exile #mirrorball #last great american dynasty #this is me trying #kaylor #gaylorswift #gaylor

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im-televisions-moira-rose · 3 years ago

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WIP tag game

I was tagged by @vanillahigh00 — thanks so much, friend!

Here’s a list of my WIPs—ask me to talk about them or share a snippet; anything goes!

Titles/Vague Concepts:

Currently Published WIP: Everything Takes Time — I have a lot of heartburn about this one. I’ve put so much of my soul into the first two seasons and I’m regretting publishing as a multi chapter fic. The seasons themselves explore entirely separate moments/themes/issues in David and Patrick’s marriage. I truly wish I would have published as a series so WIP-phobes would read, but I cannot stress strongly enough that these chapters not only read as stand alone but that I will finish this piece. It’s wildly important to me personally.

Untitled Longfic AU—heavy into runway/designer fashion and its politics. @zhampagnedreams and I have had the TIME of our LIVES (i’m not exaggerating it’s been absolutely fucking amazing) researching, brainstorming, and planning it out. we have some concrete details and many many vague thoughts. It’s my main project right now and will be for probably the next 4-6 months, and I’ve written about 8k so far, that will probably almost all be rewritten if my experience with the BBQ fics taught me anything. regardless, this story is really important to me and has been in my head since i started writing fic, so I really hope people stick around to read it! i’m quite invested. Feel free to ask questions if you’re curious! I imagine it will be close to 150k when finished.

Patrick + Alexis Commonplace Entry—Alexis comes to visit David and Patrick from NYC, 6 months after moving. Tender siblings-in-law moments follow after David falls asleep early (shocking)

PB’s Hottest Things Entry—something with mutual masturbation, because @oliveoyl31 and @zhampagnedreams specifically requested/bullied me about it

I See You continuation— @zhampagnedreams birthday is this summer and she was the one who initially helped me with all prelim prep for I See You which is still, to this day, the fastest thing I’ve ever written and also one of my favorite things I’ve ever written. But I’m biased. anyways. I’m going to continue this version of our favorite people for Z.

I have plans for Coming Together in general—really looking forward to Singles’ Week and MTP but they’re not the highest priority for me when I look at all the other wonderful things. I know @ayarose-a already had thoughts on a few other eps to possibly bring into the series as well.

And let’s be honest—my personal commonplace has something like 300+ poems/quotes/passages saved in it, so there’s a good chance I’ll just flex my Commonplace muscle now and again when the inspiration strikes.

anyways, thank you for tagging me again, @vanillahigh00 !! god i said a lot of words. tagging @ayarose-a , @likerealpeopledo-on-ao3 (everyone read/subscribe to Such Great Heights please! I am waiting to read it until it’s all posted but gah its getting hard) @cheesecurdsgravyandfries @simplymarleycat and anyone else who’d like to share what they’re working on!!

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maxbegone · 5 years ago

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AND WE ARE BACK!

Part two of the Schitt’s Creek Community Fic Rec is here! This time, we focused on celebrating our favorite AU’s! Once again, this is dedicated with love to the the authors of this community! Every participant chose one AU (which was a little hard to do for some) to share and why they enjoyed it.

Thank you to everyone who submitted!

@bestwisheswarmestregards // @brighter-than-sunshine // @danieljradcliffe // @devilstelephone // @fishyspots // @imargaery // @justwaiting23 // @patrickbrewsky // @rockinhamburger // @roguebabyinyourstore // @rosebuddsmotel // @stuck-on-your-heart // @the-13th-wheel // @thedidipickles // @thisbuildinghasfeelings // @yourbuttervoicedbeau

And a very special thank you to anyone who has ever written anything in this community!

Everything is posted below the cut, and you can check out part one here!

**As always, if I missed an author’s tumblr handle, please let me know!

@bestwisheswarmestregards

Odd Man Rush by @samwhambam

It’s David and Patrick and Hockey! Three of my favorite things! Also the ending is one of my favorite endings. It’s so sweet! It’s part of the series score and all of the stories are so cute but this one is my favorite!

@brighter-than-sunshine

Thanks For Choosing Bagged! by dinnfameron

I love this one because the dialogue is so adorable, and true to David and Patrick! I can totally see the characters getting involved in something like this, like a different version of a rom-com.

@danieljradcliffe

Going Down by concannonfodder

This is one of the best stories of NYC!David and recently out Patrick while they're both trying to find themselves. It's beautifully written and my favourite part is that each chapter switches between David and Patrick's POV. It does a great job of highlighting the aspects of their personalities that we know and love but shows them to us in a new light.

@devilstelephone

sustineo by @rockinhamburger

The contemporary art discussions between Patrick and David are interesting and important to the story. Patrick still cares for and emotionally connects with David In a world that is so different than Schitt’s Creek. I liked that Sebastian Raine was the evil force without being included as a character.

@fishyspots

Welcome to Cabaret by @vivianblakesunrisebay

It's lovely from start to finish! In this 'verse, Christmas World didn't pull out, so David didn't get the lease for the general store. Instead, he gets roped into helping Moira with Cabaret, and meets Patrick (kind of) through that. I love the way this author writes. The dialogue is in-character, and the plot is wonderful and pulls out moments from canon and reimagines them in some truly inspired ways. I'm such a fan of all of this author's works; this was the first one I read, and it remains my favorite.

@imargaery

David.; or, a Tale of Misapplied Sense by Siria

A Jane Austen D&P AU and it is BRILLIANT. If you're an Austen fan, you will be able to immediately pick up on how well this author adapted Austen's style, wit, character descriptions, and ability to whack you over the head with romance when you're not even ready for it yet. Siria is a very experienced fanfic writer, but writes for many fandoms, so I think that's maybe why it doesn't have that many hits? I'm so glad I clicked on it. I want to wrap myself up in this story. I want to make a podfic out of it. I want to put it on a t-shirt and wear it every day. Also, it's in a regency AU where homophobia isn't a thing, so you don't even have to worry about that. I want to tell you more, but that would spoil it. Just read the damn thing and thank me later.

@justwaiting23

You Were the Ocean, I Was Just a Stone by @al-ex-an-d-er-hamiltons

The image of a curly haired fisherman Patrick is enough but this whole fic is such a sweet concept. Their interactions in this are so reminiscent of the show but also so different because they already know each other vaguely, and I come back to this fic over and over just because it's the perfect mix of angsty miscommunication and fluff.

@maxbegone

Known and Be Known by ahurston

As someone who tends to lean toward canon/canon-divergent stories, this was a refreshing take on an AU. Beautifully written and wonderfully raw, ahurston conveyed the vulnerabilities between both David and Patrick so wonderfully. “The mortifying ordeal of being known,” personified in fanfiction format. With humor and some wonderfully hot scenes peppered throughout, this fic was just brilliant from start to finish. I love when authors explore Patrick's insecurities and vulnerabilities - they aren't written about as often as David's are. I implore you to read this, if you're able.

@patrickbrewsky

Bound by Symmetry by barelypink

They say write what you know. I instead read what I know. David is the accidentally fantastic teacher we all wished we'd had in high school, and some of us wish/hope we are or might be one day. This fic is a great exploration of combining everything David knows he is (creative, bright, v.knowledgeable about art) and all the things he thinks he's not (empathetic, a role model, great with kids, selfless, kind, & big hearted) The selling point quote: "And it feels good, David realizes, to have a job that means something, a purpose beyond himself. A place where he feels like he belongs, just like his students." (David Rose proves he is both a good and nice person).

@rockinhamburger

Blackbird, Fly by distractivate

This is a post-apocalyptic story about love, connection, and hope, with a central theme of growth from destruction. I could not put this one down; I read it feverishly in one sitting, desperate to soak up every word. I love this fic because it is what I like to think of as an exemplar for transformative works (one of ao3’s top values). I love the way the fic stretches toward the light in the dark. It makes me think: about the quintessential elements of these characters, what remains the same despite changed circumstance, and what inevitably shifts when these characters we know and love are faced with a situation far outside their experience or comfort. This story likely hits differently in 2020, when post-apocalyptic narratives feel much less distant than they might have just a year ago. And yet, all the more reason to read an incredible work about hope and resilience and transformation.

@roguebabyinyourstore

Fifteen Hundred Miles by MoreHuman

Where do I even begin with this fic? I was at first skeptical about what reason David Rose would have to willingly subject himself to a trek through the wilderness out of his own volition. Well I’m so glad I ignored that admittedly stupid part of me because this is one of the mostly beautifully crafted stories I have ever read. Patrick and David are individually on their own journeys of self-discovery, but the way they help each other find what they sought... It’s breathtaking. Their feelings for each other bloom so organically over their time together that despite the circumstances laid out before them, the miles that they stumble and walk and run bring them miles closer to each other. Closer to the love that they both didn’t know they needed. The characters come alive and are identical to their canon selves. The dialogue and banter are spot on David and Patrick. The writing itself is superb. The tropes are incredible, the pining and *oh no there’s only one tent.* The slow burn is tantalizing but in a way that feels true to a genuine love story. The way the setting somehow breathes in tune with the characters, the way they leave messages behind in the trail register—conveying more than they can utter aloud— and the way their families communicate with them throughout their time on the trail through letters. All of the elements of this story ground it in universal truth, in feelings that are not only relatable, believable but demand to be felt. I can wax poetic until I am blue in the face, but really... Read this story. And then reread it a million times.

@rosebuddsmotel

I Carry These Heart-Shapes Only to You by @ladyflowdi and @ships-to-sail

There are over 180,000 words in this WWII AU, but not one of those words is wasted. It is gorgeous in its prose, and incredibly romantic without romanticizing the very real pain and tragedies of the era in which it exists. It's not an easy read by any means, but it's the kind of cathartic emotional journey that is more than worth it in the end.

@stuck-on-your-heart

kiss from a rose by mihaly ( @davidroseshusband )

What can I say about this very special fic that would do it justice? In this story, Alexis stars in a Bachelorette-style dating show and it’s every bit as brilliant as it sounds. On top of the incredible characterization, there are little surprises at every turn, there’s pining, and of course, there’s love. Secret love, even. This fic is truly addicting – I promise you won’t be able to stop once you start reading, and it will leave you feeling so satisfied (and if you’re like me, a little misty)!!!

@the-13th-wheel

Hold Me Like You’ll Never Let Me Go by @mooodlighting

It is a wonderful short AU where Patrick and David where they meet at an airport after they get snowed in. It is cute, there is longing and pining that just make it a wonderful read!

@thedidipickles

Beneath the Winter Snow by Distractivate

The writing is so utterly gorgeous all the way throughout that I frequently needed to take breaks to breathe. The author *perfectly* builds an Olympic world that I can totally see my favorite characters inhabiting, and the resolution is gorgeous. All of Distractivate's AUs are amazing, but this one still stands out.

@thisbuildinghasfeelings

How Do We Get Back by @unfolded73

This one deals with a literal alternate universe, which is the first thing I loved about it because I had never read a fic quite like it before. It's a beautifully written 60,000+ word masterpiece that definitely makes me feel ALL the feelings. In addition, it is absolutely riveting. I could not stop reading until I got to the end.

@yourbuttervoicedbeau

Make It To Me by figmentof ( @rosesdavid )

Epistolatory fic is SO hard to pull off and the author does such an incredible job with the way the characters shine through even though we only see them interact via text message. This fic is my comfort food and I reread it regularly <3

Anonymous Recs:

Just Breathe by olivebranchesandredwine

I love this one because it's got Patrick as a yoga teacher (hot!) and shows David being proactive about anxiety and it's just such a lovely story.

Shall I Stay? by alladaydream ( @maybewecandreamalittle )

This is so worth the 100k wordcount. 18-year-old David and Patrick sweetly leaning into first love, a lot of angst and pining in the middle that allow them both to heal and grow, and a heartfelt reconciliation. Plus, two bonus cherries on top with artist!David and a beautiful epilogue in which they (spoiler) live happily ever after. The tone and pacing of this fic is so good, and I always go back to it when I want to read something comforting.

Your Heart is Keeping Time with Me by @yourbuttervoicedbeau

I haven't seen 50 First Dates, but this fic is better than the movie could ever be. The author's writing is so beautiful and her David who has amnesia and her Patrick who wants to help him are just PERFECT. I want more and more and more of this.

Once again, thank you to everyone who participated and thank you to every single person who has written something in this community! It would be wonderful to do a part three, but for now, enjoy some alternate universe fics!

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dreadnought-dear-captain · 4 years ago

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Update and a few asks

Hi everyone!

I’ve FINALLY posted an annotated bibliography for Baghdad Waltz. Thanks to those of you who requested and encouraged me to do it. It’s not entirely comprehensive, but I tried to pick the works that were most influential and probably the most helpful for everyone.

I’m still very steadily cranking away on my newest fic How You Leave, and it’s completely strange to be writing ahead of my posting schedule (though I suppose that’s what happens when you don’t write 32k word chapters). This fic is HARD. But I’m very glad I’m writing it, and I’m so happy to have a small but mighty cohort of readers who are trusting me to take them on this journey.

So, because How You Leave has been so difficult, I decided to accept an April Fool’s Day challenge from @licketysplittt, who sent me the picture below and dared me to write a Stucky story based on it:

Needless to say, writing a “fun” one-shot is something of a foreign concept to me, but challenge accepted! The Premise: Yuppie liberal Steve Rogers moves to Daytona Beach, FL from NYC and decides to buy a gun from die-hard libertarian Army vet Bucky Barnes. Shenanigans ensue. Stay tuned!

Now some asks:

Thank you so much for the very kind words. I’ve been flat out horrible about working through BW comments, though I’m trying to get to a few every week (mostly because I’m blessed with so may long, beautiful comments that I want to answer thoughtfully, which does take time). I miss BW Bucky and Steve very much, and I’m so glad when people feel similarly attached to them. I’m also happy that it was a powerful emotional experience for you. I’m still not sure if I’ve fully recovered, lol [sob]

It’s funny you say this, because one of the reasons I’ve had such a hard time coming back to the annotated bibliography is that there’s a visceral *UGH* I feel whenever I see anything about BW. I think diving into a new story so fast was my way of avoiding some of the emotional processing I needed to do (fortunately, there’s plenty of space there for me to feel sads). Because yes, BW is sad. But I’m happy that the story and the ending felt realistic to you. I also like the idea that they do the work they need to do to heal, not only from their trauma/grief but also from the damage this relationship has caused them. I think of it as a reset button, a process that could allow them to come back together in another way at another time and be really damn good with each other, whatever form their relationship takes. I’m just such a fundamental optimist that I can’t really see it cynically. I don’t even know how these people would not be in each other’s lives, somehow. Some way. Thank you so much for the kind words!

Thanks for asking these!

You mean a straight-up happy ending, like ride off into the uncomplicated sunset happy? I’ll never say never, but probably not. Those aren’t the stories I like to read, and they’re not the ones I want to tell. I just can’t do it, because I can’t buy into it. I appreciate an ending that has happy elements and some undertones of loss or uncertainty, which is so much more consistent with real life. I think this is based on the fact that I come to fandom not for escapism but for raw and honest storytelling. This means that I’m more often than not barking up the wrong tree, because so many people come to fandom because life is a little too raw and honest and they want a place with the endings people don’t get often in the real world. I totally respect that and think fandom is a great place for this. But to illustrate this difference, one of my most aversive fic experiences would be to read something that’s high angst, high stakes, high emotion and then... they get married and live happily ever after. I know a lot of people are the exact opposite! But fortunately, there is literally something for everyone in a fandom as vast as Stucky.

As for publishing BW, yeah, after I finish How You Leave, I’m going to start pivoting seriously to original work in traditional publishing. So I’m not sure how much more time I’ll have to devote to fandom writing after that, though I imagine I may push out one-shots or brief multi-part fics if there’s something I’m just dying to do. The problem is that, in order to publish something like BW, I need higher word count than any agent or publisher would give to a first time writer. So I need to try to get something shorter published so that I can establish a track record of marketability, which may increase my chances of publishing BW in a form I’d be pleased with. These are all wildly improbable things, so I’m pushing forward with few expectations that’ll I succeed in getting anything published. At least I like my day job lol! But I did say I was an optimist, so I’m going to give it my best shot.

For those of you following How You Leave, I’ll have another chapter out today or tomorrow. I hope you’re all doing well!

#send me asks #update

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back-and-totheleft · 4 years ago

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"Hollywood rabble rouser"

Late one night in the summer of 2008, I found what turned out to be a stockbroker’s iPhone in the back of a NYC taxi. Turning it on in order to contact the owner, I noticed that amongst the stock watch apps and currency converters was an icon of Gordon Gekko, the corrupt market raider immortalized by Michael Douglas in Wall Street, Oliver Stone’s 1987 tale of insider trading and corporate excess. Intrigued, I hit Gekko’s pixilated face (it felt good) and a website flashed up with an entire transcription of his infamous “Greed is good” speech — one of Hollywood’s most iconic parables to the pursuit of unrestrained greed. Whoever owned the phone found those words as important as checking Facebook or texting his girlfriend. Gekko was his hero, his daily inspiration.

Watching back Wall Street a few weeks later as news of the Lehman Brothers collapse and global recession spread, it struck me that a whole generation of financiers must have grown up, like Charlie Sheen’s character Bud Fox, yearning to be Gekko. He was the business equivalent of a rapper wanting to become Tony Montana, another Stone creation. And some of these brokers, as we’ve all since discovered, were willing to trade money that didn’t exist in pursuit of pin stripe suits, corner offices, penthouses, boats, women, and stacks of cash. Perhaps the perks made the 22-year prison stretch Gekko received at the end of the film seem like a viable risk. Or they deliberately chose to ignore his downfall.

Inspired by financial fiends like Bernie Madoff, Stone decided to spring Gekko out of prison for Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps. Set in 2008, he is a reformed character that tries, and fails, to warn business leaders of the impending credit crunch. Many fans are understandably nervous about Douglas reprising his Oscar winning role, especially since his hair gel and brick phone have long been put into storage. Stone, who only agreed to direct the film because he felt that current financial climate lent itself to a sequel, understandably feels that it’s time for bankers to grow up. As the director of Natural Born Killers, JFK and Platoon he’s used to Marmite reactions. But, after giving Dubya an easy ride in W, will Gordon 2.0 be one step too far? Is the world ready for goody Gekko two shoes? Or will traders across Wall Street be deleting their “Greed is good” iPhone bookmarks forever? As they say on the stock market floor, let the bull charge.

Tim Noakes: When you were 18 your father got you to work on a financial exchange in France. Was that your inspiration for Wall Street?

Oliver Stone: No, it was a great summer job actually, because it was very exotic. My father was always into the stock market, into numbers. He loved that world in New York and I grew up on the fringes of it but I wasn’t particularly attuned to it. So it was a chance to see it first hand but I didn’t do very well as a trader. In those days you’d run from the phone booth in the back to the floor. It was cocoa and sugar. It was violent and busy. They used to elbow each other to get into the inner circle, like matadors. It was a real crush. I elbowed my way through it and got up to be assistant buyer, which was very complicated because you had to make the orders for everything right. You couldn’t screw up. A lot of money’s involved. So then I thought I should be one of the cocoa buyers. I was a little too ambitious for my own good.

Your father died before you made Wall Street. What do you think he would have made of it?

I think he would have appreciated that I had done a business movie. We always talked about it. He loved movies and he took me to them. We discussed them afterwards, which was an invaluable experience, and he would say that there weren’t many business movies. And there weren’t. There was not a specific genre. Hollywood was not into the business movie concept. It’s hard. I can understand why. It’s all financial talk, it’s not interesting to most people and it lacks those human emotions. Money is an interesting subject, however, for America. That’s why I addressed it in 1987. I thought, ‘Americans love money’, and what lengths they will go to get it is what that movie is about. Especially coming off Platoon, which is a different kind of movie. I was trying to prove that I could do something domestic with ‘Wall Street’.

The original was very much of its era.

It was the era of “Greed is good” and Reagan. With Wall Street 2, I’m obviously more mature, I’ve done more films, I have more confidence, I hope. I’m trying something a little bit deeper in the relationship field. There’s no Darryl Hannah in the movie. There’s a real English girl this time (Carey Mulligan). She anchors strongly the emotions of the film, because she is damaged. She’s the daughter of Gordon Gekko, if you can imagine what that can be like.

Michael Douglas once said that your style of directing is like taking people into the trenches. What did he mean by that?

He makes it sound like I dress him up in uniform and have a military hierarchy. Every single actor that I’ve worked with, and there’s obviously dozens now, you’d have to talk to every single one of them to get their perception. I would say some would disagree. Maybe Michael, because he hasn’t been in the military, would regard it as a military experience. I didn’t think of it that way. I think of a movie as an organisation that has to work at a very fluid pace involving a large amount of people who have to move quickly over a landscape. Call that what you will. It could be an adventure party or a military organisation. It’s really a satellite business. You form, you group, you rehearse, you shoot, you separate. It’s very nomadic. In that chemistry you bring together so many conflicting types of people who have different kinds of egos. It’s quite a mix. At the end of the day, if you look back at the — what is it? 19, 20 films — that I’ve directed, it’s just a mix of styles. Sometimes it really works with people. It clicks. I think Michael did great work on both films, so I’m very pleased with his result. My style might not have been good for him, but it works for other people. Some people, like Shia LaBeouf and Josh Brolin, were digging it. They loved the way I worked because it was intense and to the point and relatively fast.

Do you see yourself as a hard taskmaster or a disciplinarian?

No, I’m not a disciplinarian. I’m disciplined with myself and I think I try to lead by example not by imposition of my will. I try to lead by example. That’s just to say that people know that I’m trying to get this thing done. My approach is that we’re all in this together. The idea is king. We all serve that king. It is not a democracy, it is a constitutional monarchy, so to speak, with strong legislative power in the House of Lords. No, but the idea is king. I repeat that. Not the director. The idea. I serve the idea.

How do you balance the logistics with trying to create a piece of art?

Oh boy, if I didn’t tell you I wasn’t humbled so many times, you would not believe it. It’s a very humbling experience to make a movie, because you’re at the mercy of the elements. Of the winds and the weather as well as conditions that can go wrong — disease, sickness, bad tempers. All sorts of stuff can happen. Given that nature, to pull off a movie is extremely difficult. The editing room is another humiliation. All your mistakes are thrown back in your face. No matter how many good choices you make, and making a movie involves thousands of choices, you’re constantly having to question yourself again. I find it a very difficult position. I don’t think I enjoy it. I think I’m more experienced at it but I don’t think I completely enjoy it. I think sometimes it’s so painful you want to scream bloody murder and run somewhere.

What’s the cut-off point? How do you stop?

How do you stop? A famous director once said that every film is abandoned, never finished.

So you just let it go?

Some people won’t but I do let it go. I’m not looking for perfection. I don’t believe in it. I believe that a film is many things to many people and it changes over time. I think you have to feel good about it and about what you did. It hangs together and it’s going to be a story that can move an audience. It’s so difficult to pull off quickly. It takes time.

The world’s moved on since Wall Street. Were you apprehensive about creating a sequel to such a well-loved film?

Apprehensions? No. I’d have had more apprehensions if I’d had to do it in 1990, I think. Twenty-three years is a long time to call it a sequel. I think of it more as a bookend.

Don’t you think that’s laying you open for even more criticism? Look at what George Lucas did with Star Wars..

We’re not going back into that period. The beauty of this thing is that there’s a new period upon us, which is quite different, technically. It’s a different kind of Wall Street. The landscape has changed. It’s no longer 1987. It’s really a computer game now. The money has accelerated at a square root that is beyond belief from millions to billions. Hedge funds invest 30–40 billion dollars. Even to have one billion dollars is an enormous amount of money. When you hear these guys say, “Oh, it’s just a billion dollar hedge fund” it’s unbelievable arrogance. The heights are dizzying, and the losses are dizzying. It’s just unbelievable what happened. By all accounts it was a near-fatal heart-attack.

Were you planning on revisiting Wall Street is the crisis hadn’t happened?

No, that was the catalyst for it. It wasn’t the only reason. It was a wonderful idea for a script, that Gekko would be a different type of person. That he would start from the outside. He didn’t have power or connections anymore. Time had passed. He was dated.

Is Michael Douglas in danger of becoming a pastiche of what made Gordon Gekko good?

I feared that. That’s why we approached it in a wholly different way. Michael is playing it twenty-two years older, he’s coming out of prison. Michael has changed in that interim. He was a charming rogue, certainly, in the Eighties. You saw a lot of that in his subsequent performances. You saw a lot of Gekko in later films, so I think it was smart to move away from that pastiche, as you call it, because it would have been boring after a while. There are flashes of the old Gekko, which I love, but it’s not like the charming reptile, so to speak. It’s a different man now. I’m not saying that he’s a wholly reformed figure looking for a martyrhood, but what’s interesting about him is what he’s going to do, and how he’s going to play the game to get back. He has suffered extensively in prison, his family has fallen apart, his oldest son has committed suicide. It’s very tough on him.

How did you persuade Michael to get back on board?

Frankly, I didn’t convince anybody. I passed on the script in 2006. It wasn’t important for me to make it. I felt, what was the need to make this movie if it was going to glorify the pigs on Wall Street? They were really making money and it was ugly. There was a spate of books too like The Wolf of Wall Street, which was a big hit and they are going to make a movie out of that. There was kind of a surfeit and there was sickliness to it all. I got turned off by it. I passed, and I moved on with my life, and I did W and World Trade Centre and stuff like that. Then there was this crash and the crash changed the equation I think, I hope.

Do you think the original message of Wall Street failed because young traders ended up idolising Gordon Gekko?

That’s a very good question. Frankly, I wondered at times. The original Wall Street came about because of my experiences on Scarface. I was living in New York and I was hanging out with the dealers and the mob. That whole scene in Miami was a very shocking thing in 1982–3. Wall Street, was like Scarface north. I was suddenly seeing people my age, in their twenties, making millions of dollars, so easily, so quickly. Moving inordinate amounts of money. Also, snorting and drinking. The partying scene had really kicked in big time in the 80s. It was all new to me, so that’s how that was born. Then it went to excess. But I was very clear that Gekko was the antagonist in the movie, but as you say a lot of young people caught on to him. I do think, and perhaps I’m retrograde, that although he was not feted at the time the anchor of the movie is Charlie Sheen.

But no-one wanted to be Bud Fox.

Well that’s the movies. They want to be heroes. They want to make money. I did meet a lot of people in their 40s that said, “When I saw your movie I was studying this-or-that at this-or-that school, I was going to do history or medicine or law but then I saw the movie and I moved to Wall Street for that reason.” The the kicker was that some of them were multi-millionaires, one of them was a billionaire, and they had moved to Wall Street because of the movie. I said, “Oh boy, I wish I had a royalty on that.” These guys are really rich.

I find that quite worrying.

I gave birth to some rich people. But some of them did good. Some of them created something. That was the whole point of the original. Not to shit on Wall Street but to basically say, ‘Look, this is an engine of capitalism’. This can work. My father always felt that Wall Street was a good thing. It creates companies, it finances new companies, creates research and development, and it does. It still does, by the way, it’s not forgotten but it’s been buried in the greater picture of making bigger profits and more greed, but it’s still there. Wall Street is a good thing. It was a good thing and it can be a good thing.

Throughout your career critics have said you shouldn’t glamourise the people you put on the big screen. Do you like to provoke that reaction?

No, I like to make bigger-than-life characters but ‘World Trade Centre’ is about two very ordinary men who were real heroes. On Bush I guess you could say I supped with the devil and brought out all the reasons I thought why people voted for the guy. There is this fundamental thing which Americans like in him, and I was trying to root that out and how he became President.

You were criticised for making Bush too likeable.

You can fault that, but he was re-elected. I didn’t like him. I was very clear — I empathised. Empathy means I walked in his shoes, or tried to. As opposed to sympathised. I don’t agree with anything he said. Anything. I think he was a disaster. It was a nightmare eight years.

Do you think you were too soft?

No. I wish I’d done it a year earlier and it would have been more timely. He was out of favour when it came out, because of the economy, but frankly the movie was about the national security state which concerned me more.

Why are you drawn to these anti-heroes?

They don’t do me any good. Nixon, too.

I see a lot of similarities between Tony Montana and Gordon Gekko. In Scarface, Tony says “You need people like me to point the finger at and say, ‘That’s the bad guy’”. Do you think film critics see you in that light?

I think you’re right. I think film critics have me as a punch ball. It’s an easy target, I guess. I’ve been misidentified with the characters, but I think over time you see that there’s a whole assortment of different characters. But I agree, I think that’s true and I think that’s hurt me. It’s hurt my career as well as some of the political statements I’ve made and positions I’ve taken in documentaries I’ve made. They’ve hurt me too and they’ve given me a profile that’s not necessarily me, it’s just a profile. Absolutely.

There’s been huge furor recently that you’re reported to be attempting to humanise Hitler, Stalin and Mao Zedong.

I think it’s out of context. I did use the word ‘scapegoat’ and I think that was an unfortunate word, but frankly it’s a very interesting history that we’re putting together. We’re using the facts that we have, that are known but have been forgotten. There’s no question that Hitler had a big hand up the ladder. He didn’t come out of nowhere. He is a Frankenstein, he is a monster and I have no sympathy for him, but he was created by a Dr Frankenstein. That Dr Frankenstein is a very interesting mixture and you have to study cause and effect to understand history, otherwise you don’t learn anything from it. It’s my fault because I’m interested in the world, and I’m willing to go out there. I’m not trying to provoke, I’m trying to look for the truth. I’m trying to shine a light. For Christ’s sake, I feel like we’ve become so politically correct that you can’t do shit anymore. You’re not supposed to turn around.

Do you feel like you sometimes exploit sensitive subjects too much? More than some people can take?

Well, that’s why I like the English. They’re much more out there and they’re willing to explore subjects that the Americans are not. Having been to war, having seen the devastation America visited onto Vietnam, I cannot just be another typical American and live in isolation. My taxes are going as we speak to blowing up people in Afghanistan. I don’t feel good about that.

Back to Wall Street. Gekko says “Every dream has its price”, what’s the biggest price you’ve paid to get to where you are?

I’d have to talk to my psychotherapist, who I haven’t seen in ages. I suppose the price is that you do have long absences from home and normal quotidian values, at times. Your children grow up and you have to readapt to the fact that you haven’t been the attentive father. That’s a big issue, but I have been as attentive as I can be in taking care of them. Still, there’s gaps there. Divorces have happened. Those things.

I see Wall Street as epitomising the ruthlessness of the Eighties. During that era did you find yourself being a slave to the success that you had earned?

Yeah, I suppose everybody can become a mental slave to the need to produce. Remember, I was on a roll in the sense that I had to get financing for very complicated movies. I felt like I had a mission. To get JFK made in that era was very tough, still. You need heat. To make that movie after The Doors you need to keep rolling. In a sense I worked very fast, and hard, but I knew that I could get things done. Nixon was sort of the end of the line. I was making movies all those years. Platoon was impossible to get made. So was Salvador. Every single fucking one. ‘The Doors’. They were always problems. There were always tremendous issues. You asked what the price is? The price was to keep going fast, before they change their mind. The idea was ‘Wrap it up, get another one done’. These are tough subject matters. With ‘Nixon’ I’d done eleven or ten, I was exhausted. Frankly, I needed to take a break.

What kept you moving on? Obviously the pressures that you’re talking about manifested in different ways. You had your drug problems earlier on, but how did it manifest when the financing started to crumble down? Did you resort to those kind of vices?

I think there’s other factors. There was a lot of living. A lot of pain. Children. Divorces. This and that. But I think I have been very successful. I got movies made that wouldn’t have been done in the normal radar. They were not on the scope.

In Wall Street 2 Shia LeBeouf says, “No matter how much money you make, you’ll never be rich”. With all your success, do you empathise with that sentiment?

Of course I do. I don’t think money is the solution to happiness. Life is complicated, but certainly money can have the opposite effect. It can make you unsatisfied with life, and make life harder for you. There are two effects of it. One is that it leaves you unsatisfied, you always want more, as we see from these billionaires. Two, it leaves you falsely content and over-satisfied.

And you’re not either?

I don’t feel that way, no. I feel like I’m one trade away from disaster.

The new film is called Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps. What gets you off to sleep?

What gets me off to sleep? Sonata. Medication. I’m just joking. The best solution for sleep is having lived a full day and tried hard to live life fully. That makes you feel the reward of sleep.

-Tim Noakes, "The Hollywood rabble rouser sets his sights on a new generation of Wall Street wolves," Medium, Mar 3 2010 [x]

#medium #tim noakes #w.#wall street #wall street: money never sleeps #oliver stone

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douchebagbrainwaves · 4 years ago

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THEN IT'S MECHANICAL; PHEW

Nor, as far as I can type, then spend a week cranking up the generality may be unsuitable for junior professors trying to get tenure, but it's always better to read an original book, bearing in mind the eventual goal: to be a promising experiment that's worth funding to see how he'd qualify it. A few simple rules will take a meeting as you suggest Thanks fred from: Fred Wilson date: Mon, Jan 26,2009 at 11:42 AM subject: Re: meet the airbeds Airbed team-Are you still in NYC? But you ignore them because they need a job. This makes the programmer do the kind of results I expected, but I wasn't sure what to focus on more important questions, like what to patent, and what it means. I don't think it's because they want impressive growth numbers. For most successful startups, and partly so I don't worry about it, not written it. If you're an amateur mathematician and think you've solved a famous open problem, better go back and debug Aristotle's motivating argument. Pick the right startups. The situation is different in phase 1.1 Investors have different risk profiles from founders.2

Any public company that didn't have clear founders. A round if you do it. Even people who hate you for it believe it. What we ought to be better at picking winners than VCs. It would set off alarms. No.3 Html#f8n 19.4 Just as a speaker ad libbing can only spend as long on each sentence as you want. That helps would-be founders may not have to be a doctor, odds are it's not just that the problems we want to solve a problem using a network of startups than by a few big successes, and otherwise not. Starting a startup will change you a lot.5

Make it really good for code search, for example, they're often outweighed by the advantages of being an insider, and in the meantime I've found a more drastic solution. One is simply that they understood search. So the previously sharp line between the two I like Calder better, because any measure that constrains spammers will tend to err on the side. As a little piece of debris, the rational thing for them. The Suit is Back.6 If you don't know who needs to be protected from himself. Of course he would say that hapless meant unlucky. Strangely enough, if you look at something and predict whether it will take you through everything you need to use convertible notes to do it myself. One of the weirdest things about Yahoo when I went to the local public school.7

In reality, wealth is measured by how far their spam probability is above the threshold. You have to at least look at the page. Partly because they can threaten a counter-suit. Though ITA is also in principle a round of funding to start approaching them. This probably indicates room for improvement here. It was not until Perl 5 if then that the language was line-oriented.8 There's an initial phase of negotiation about the big questions.

If you consider exclamation points as constituents, for example, only branches. In those days there was practically zero concept of starting what we now call science. In a few days beforehand, I'll sometimes play it safe. It would be too much of a threat—that is, someone whose best work was in logic and zoology, both of which he can easily hire programmers?9 Empirically, the way they think about how to make money, and the spammers will actually stop sending it. By the 1970s, we've seen the percentage of people who weren't already in it.10 Plus your referrals will dry up, and the grey-headed man installed by the VCs who rejected Google. Why the pattern? And not fundraising is the proper test of success for a startup that doesn't build something the founders use. But really it doesn't matter—that is, to grow about ten percent a year. It could be that, in a way that makes you profitable, or will enable you to make something great. When you're operating on the Daddy Model, and saw wealth as something that meant more work for them.11

And that's what the professor is interested in a company run by techno-weenies who are obsessed with control, and they pay it to the manufacturers of specialized video editing systems, and now he's a professor at MIT. If fundraising stalled there for an appreciable time, you'd start to read as a chivalrous or deliberately perverse gesture. He didn't choose, the industry did.12 Art History 101. There is no shortcut to it. In 1997 I got a call from another startup founder considering hiring them to promote his company. This is an instance of scamming a scammer. So don't underestimate this task. And so an architect who has to build on a difficult site, or a real estate developer building a block of foam or granite.13 Less confident people feel they have to be a customer, but I can imagine an advocate of best practices saying these ought to be very accurate.

What if one of your own. Viaweb succeeded because we were smart. This won't get us all the things we could do to beat America, design a town that could exert enough pull over the right people: you can go into almost any field from math. The sticking point is board seats. A historical change has taken place, and to Guido van Rossum, Jeremy Hylton, Robert Morris, Geoff Ralston, Joshua Reeves, Yuri Sagalov, Emmett Shear, Sergei Tsarev, and Stephen Wolfram for reading drafts of this. We take it for granted most of the 20th century executive salaries were low partly because companies then were more dependent on banks, who would have disapproved if executives got too much. Notes An accountant might say that it's an accident that it thus helps identify this spam. So the total number of new startups. Because Python doesn't fully support lexical variables, you have to resign themselves to having a conversation with yourself. Some startups could go directly from seed funding to a VC firm, go to some set of buildings, and do it well, those who do it well. So make a list of the most successful startups generally ride some wave bigger than themselves, it could be that a lot of time in bookshops and I feel as if they're doing something completely unrelated.14 That shows how much a startup differs from a job.15

Notes

Though most founders start out excited about the topic.

The reason we quote statistics about the Airbnbs during YC. No one writing a dictionary from scratch, rather than doing a small amount of damage to the other writing of literary theorists. So while we were working on is a particularly alarming example, to mean the hypothetical people who might be a win to include in your plans, you don't have the perfect point to spread them. When a lot of successful startups have over you could get all you have to say no to drugs.

Exercise for the ad sales department.

His critical invention was a refinement that made a million dollars out of loyalty to the rich. 1886/87. Vision research may be overpaid.

Above. Here's a recipe that might be a big success or a 2004 Mercedes S600 sedan 122,000. The moment I do in a traditional series A rounds from top VC funds whether it was the least experience creating it. The founders want the valuation is fixed at the time.

Photo by Alex Lewin. Some want to keep the number of users to observe—e.

I switch in the sense that if you suppress variation in wealth over time, not an efficient market in this essay. If they're on the group's accumulated knowledge. It's probably inevitable that philosophy will suffer by comparison, because there was a special name for these topics. SFP applicants: please don't assume that the site.

Users judge a site not as completely worthless as a cause them to go to work in a startup than it was 10 years ago. Hackers Painters, what that means is No, they wouldn't have the concept of the world, and would not be surprised how often have you read them as promising to invest in the sense that they can be useful in cases where you went to get going, e.

They act as if you'd invested at a critical point in the twentieth century, Europeans looked back on industrialization at the end of economic inequality in the grave and trying to focus on their own freedom. Pliny Hist. I even mention the possibility.

Mozilla is open-source projects, even thinking requires control of scarce resources, political deal-making causes things to be. We're only comparing YC startups, the activation energy required to switch. Analects VII: 36, Fung trans. Cit.

Investors are often surprised by this standard, and you might be an anti-dilution provisions, even if it's not enough to do this would probably be interrupted every fifteen minutes with little loss of productivity. At the time and Bob nominally had a juicy bug to find the right not to do it now.

This seems to have figured out how to succeed at all. Actually it's hard to say hello on her way out. That's why there's a special title for actual partners. The two 10 minuteses have 3 weeks between them.

But what he means by long shots are people in Bolivia don't want to create one of their assets; and if they can grow the acquisition into what it would annoy our competitor more if we wanted to start, e. The second biggest regret was caring so much worse than he was 10.

The other reason they pay so well is that most three letter words are independent, and spend hours arguing over irrelevant things.

That name got assigned to it because the rich. If an investor is more efficient. Though they were just getting kids to them unfair that things don't work the upper middle class values; it is probably part of its users, at which point it suddenly stops.

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nikkalia · 5 years ago

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Storytime with Auntie Dragon: Betrayal edition

Gather round, children, it’s time once again for “Storytime with Auntie Dragon.” Today’s episode: NYC & Betrayal, a tale of adventure, excitement, and how a certain actor is seemingly easily impressed with modern technology. Hey, it’s pretty snazzy stuff…

We begin our tale at the dawn of November. Your dear Auntie D had just purchased a house, and because closing fell in such a way that I had no housing payment in November, there was some spare cash to be had. A friend of mine who lives in the UK (@mrshiddleston-uk) had been talking about her upcoming trip to the states to see our beloved Mr. Hiddleston in his Broadway debut, and after careful scouring of countless calendars, I decided that the Boychild could miss a day of school to make the trip and decided to go. Another friend ( @silverink-goldenlies) came along for the ride and the trip was set.

THE TRIP: Bloody hell, why is it every time I drive north, roads are torn up? I mean seriously. I spent more time on the brakes because of construction than I did with the cruise control engaged. For 698 miles! I did not, for those who may be curious, drive up I-95. Oh, the hells to the NO. I have driven that stretch of disaster quite enough to know that it’s a toss-up as to whether you get Hell on earth or a multi-lane, multi-hour parking lot. And that’s just around Richmond. D.C. is worse. Much. Worse. But I digress…

I-78 is (mostly) a beautiful drive. Lots of mountains, rolling hills, farmland, all that. From southern Virginia up through parts of New Jersey, there are lots of farms. LOTS of farms. With cows. And steers. And horses. And even an alpaca - dude had a long neck. Somewhere along the way, every time we passed a farm with cows, @silverink-goldenlies would just blurt out “cows.” In the middle of a conversation, “cows”. Passing silence for miles and suddenly, “cows.”

And occasionally, “cows. And horses.” The boy child would even chime in now and again.

THE ARRIVAL: We made it to NYC around sunset. When we were 25 miles or so out, I spied the city skyline and told @silverink-goldenlies to look out the window. Poor thing was so excited I think she almost cried. We took the Lincoln Tunnel into the city because I missed an exit. Which reminds me, Google Maps, get your turn-by-turn shit together. I spent more time on the road than necessary due to a lack of “in 500 feet, turn here.” Waze doesn’t treat me like that. It just crashes. And Waze has Cookie Monster voice. Anyway…Lincoln Tunnel. That was fun, kinda. I kept having flashbacks of Independence Day with the fireball coming up the tunnel following the alien attack. Not cute.

We emerged in the city and I very quickly learned that upstate NY driving is totally different than NYC driving. I lived in Albany for a couple of years, and in upstate, you can use your signal and mostly expect someone to let you in, or at least get out of the way. Not NYC. Nope nope nope. You signal, insert the front fender of your car and hope the person you’re essentially cutting off is paying attention. It only took one missed turn (thanks Google) for me to learn the ways of the natives and navigate correctly through the city. Which I did successfully. At rush hour. Praise Asphaltia, Goddess of the Road.

Cows.

NYC: After a night of bullshit sleep thanks to the rock-solid beds of the LaQuinta - Queens, our party was up and in the city by 9:30 am. I’ve always had this mental image of NYC being small because of how tightly packed everything is. My friends, that is absolutely not the case. The city is M A S S I V E in both size and scope. I was totally a tourist, videoing everything in Times Square and looking up like I expected the sky to fall. I learned something I never knew, and never really thought about: they leave the big crystal ball on top of the building after New Year’s. It’s sitting up there, pretty as you please, changing colors all year long. Who knew?

We hit the highlights of Manhattan like my son speed runs through Dark Souls. Times Square, Hard Rock New York, the M&Ms store (3 floors…3 FLOORS of chocolatey goodness), one of two Lego stores, and Rockefeller Plaza. The tree is up, but not on display. I need them to slow down on the trimming it back. There won’t be any tree left, and it’s looking a little scrawny, to begin with. Ice skating was in full effect, but we didn’t go. I knew I had a show and another 10-hour drive back to NC to get through, and doing it on a seriously bruised ass would not have been a good look.

Noon hits and we head back towards the Jacobs theatre. By the time we got there, the box office was open and there was already a line. Thank the gods for online purchases. Easy in, easy out. Around 1 pm, we met up with the lovely @mrshiddleston-uk and attempted to get lunch at some Irish pub. @mrshiddleston-uk briefed us on all things stage door and helped to craft a plan of attack to get the best spots for meeting the cast. The line to get into the theatre was already formed and growing by the time we decided to bail on the never appearing food.

THE JACOBS THEATRE: This is a gorgeous space. The theatre is on the small side, but I genuinely believe that there isn’t a bad seat in the house. We were in the balcony house left and could see every bit of the stage. Beautiful architecture, comfy seats - if not a little (LOT) short on the legroom - and a pretty chandelier made the place feel cozy and warm. The staff was wonderful as well. I’d totally see another show in this space.

BETRAYAL: So here’s the part you all came for, right? Right. Cows. To be honest, I’d never heard of Harold Pinter before Tom Hiddleston took the role in the London production, much less read any of his work. I didn’t know what to expect except for what I’d heard from @mrshiddleston-uk after her viewings of the London show. The concept of the show is intriguing enough - following a love triangle in reverse order with a minimalist set and lighting design. I’m a tech nerd anyway, so I was excited to see how well this would work.

Oh. My. Goddess. This show was AMAZING. It’s been a very long time since I’ve been to a show that totally sucked me in to the point that I was actually invested in the story. Betrayal did just that. From the moment the curtain rose (more on that in a sec) until the stage went black, I was sucked into the world of Robert and Emma and Jerry and how the affair went from disintegration to conception. I have absolutely no sympathy for any of these characters at the end of the day. They are all seriously flawed and have caused themselves the pain that they experience in this story. But, that’s what makes good drama, right?

The sheer lack of set made it easier to pay attention to the actors and the script, which is a huge perk in this game of verbal tennis. The characters go from normal speech patterns to the famed Pinter pauses to this back and forth without missing a beat (or a syllable) that will make your head spin. The boychild told me later he found it a little hard to follow, which is understandable if you’re not used to hearing it in an English accent.

There was a lot of play with light and shadow in this show. It’s no secret that all three actors are on stage for the duration of the play, with the “odd man out” lurking somewhere in the shadows. It was thrilling to see, to be honest, because you catch yourself looking around to see what the odd man is doing while the two in focus characters are speaking. Robert standing against the back wall facing the wings; Emma curled up on the floor eating an apple; Jerry sitting off the side with his back against the back wall. All making little gestures or motions that hint at what that character is experiencing in that moment in time.

Even the shadows themselves told a part of the story. The sharper focused shadows cast by Robert and Emma when she confesses the affair created a tension that doesn’t exist when Robert is lurking in the background of scenes involving Jerry and Emma or Emma hiding almost when Robert and Jerry are in the forefront. I found myself watching the shadows in this scene more than the actors themselves. It’s that intense.

One other tech geek note: the back wall moved. Now, I’ve seen plenty of moving sets. Hells, I’ve moved a few in my time. But this simple change had a tremendous impact. When the wall moved forward, it cuts the surface area of the stage down to 1/8th of what it was at the beginning. It puts the confession right in your face. You can’t get away from it, just as the characters can’t. There’s nowhere to go, nowhere to hide. They, and you, just have to deal with it. Absolutely brilliant on the part of the designers. Enough about the sets, or lack thereof. Cows. I could go on all day.

THE CAST: We’ll start with Zawe Ashton. She’s a perfectly lovely woman, all smiles and bubbly at the stage door, very sweet. I don’t know that I like her as an actress. Or maybe I don’t like her character, Emma. I haven’t really decided yet. But, if there was a downside to this show, she was it. Her laughter was fake to the point of cringy, and there was something noticeably self-absorbed about her on stage. The other thing I noticed is that she was never standing or sitting straight. She was always twisted, curled up, or otherwise contorted in some fashion, and that gave me a twitch. An acting choice? Maybe. It would stand to reason that this was some subconscious outward expression of Emma’s mental/emotional state. She struck me as whiny, and maybe a little “woe is me” to boot. My thought throughout the play was, bitch, you got yourself into this. Suck it up.

Charlie Cox as Jerry. Great guy at stage door, seemed to be enjoying the fans. Again, I haven’t read the play so I’m not 100% on what Jerry is supposed to be, but Charlie was giving some serious lovesick puppy vibes for this show. And that’s all I got from him. Maybe bits of remorse here and there, but not much. Some great comedic moments, but otherwise, he really didn’t stand out for me.

Tom Hiddleston as Robert. We’ll discuss stage door in a minute. I’ve worked in the arts and journalism long enough to know that you often hear about how someone “is” but that’s not really who they really are. They pretend to have a presence that doesn’t exist, or they’re not as talented as they, or their agent, would have you believe. And sometimes that “wonderful” actor is really just a prick in real life. Children, I am here to tell you that Thomas William Hiddleston is EVERYTHING he’d cracked up to be.

When the curtain goes up at the show open, Robert is sitting in a chair, and all you see of him is legs. The man has legs for days…digressing again. Cows. Tom has such a presence that you know exactly where he is. When Charlie and Zawe are sharing their scenes, your eyes can dart straight to Tom. I remember actively looking for Charlie and Emma in scenes they weren’t involved in, just to see what they were doing. Never, ever had to do that with Tom. He was always there, always on the edge of the shadows.

His performance as Robert is an emotional roller coaster. I watched him run the gamut and back again several times over the course of 90 minutes, and really wonder how the hells he does it every day (and has been since June). No wonder he looks exhausted. He was giving that trademarked smile in some scenes, growling with anger in others (your Loki is showing), and on the verge of tears in still others. I looked down at him during the confession scene and his eyes were brimming, reflecting the bright white light that was shining on him. That one hurt my heart. Dude can do anything, and I need someone to give him more meaty roles on film. And for the love of the Gods, cast him in a romcom, comedy, something! He’s proven time and again he can act - let him have something besides Loki.

Disclaimer: I love Loki, don’t get me wrong, but I hate to see talented performers pigeonholed into one role. Tom is so much better than that, as most of them are.

STAGE DOOR: The show ends, the lights come up, and I can’t get the damn Hard Rock Cafe bag out from between the seats. So this is how it’s gonna go down, eh? WRONG. ANSWER. I get downstairs in record time only to be blocked by old people who can’t decide if they need to pee or not, then distracted by Tom speaking on stage about the fundraiser the theatre is doing. That voice, those long assed legs, and holy hells is the end of the stage right fucking there???

FOCUS WOMAN! Cows. Eldery folks having determined that yes, in fact, a stop by the loo is in order, I’m out the door, still struggling with the bag and my coat and not being run over by those who are sprinting to the barricades set up to queue for stage door. Sprinting. Really? It’s like, 300, 400 feet maybe, from the entrance to the stage door. I wanna have 0.5 seconds in front of Tom too, but damn y’all. It ain’t that serious.

Secure in our spot upfront and personal by the lovely @mrshiddleston-uk, I got myself squared away and place the Facebook group chat video call. We all agreed that since @firithariel, @igotloki, and @mischeviousbellarina couldn’t be there in person, we’d bring them along digitally. For once, my phone behaved. Did I remember to put them on speaker? That would be a no.

So, Zawe comes out first, signs programs and chats with fans. She really is adorable. Charlie comes out next and follows the same route, and then the man of the hour (and really the whole point of this trip) emerges in the “uniform”, looking a little frazzled. But, he makes the rounds of autographs, even going so far as to sign a Thanos Funko.

Really? REALLY? Thanos? How you gonna do my boy wrong like that? Grrrr….. Amusing thing was that Tom really didn’t even acknowledge it, but he looked annoyed by it.

That’s when Tom got to our merry little band. @silverink-goldenlies showed him the tattoo done by her husband of a Loki helmet with runes surrounded by flowers. He seemed thoroughly impressed with it. I’m next, with our video chat going strong. I asked him to say hi to the girls, and he got a weird look on his face until he saw the phone. He did a double-take, “There are four people on the screen! How did you do that?” We told him about Facebook group chat and where the girls were located. There’s a video floating around Instagram/Twitter of his reaction. It’s entirely too cute. He leaned in and smiled, said hi to them, showed them an autographed program, and handed them to me. He looked me right in the eye for about a second and a half then moved on. I can still see it in my mind, and it makes me smile every time.

Tom finished the autographs and came back around for selfies. Mine is blurry AF, because of course, it is. It’s the only one I have of him. Maybe I’ll try to fix it in Photoshop. A fucking photographer can’t take a damned selfie. SMH Oh well, you can tell it’s him. @mrshiddleston-uk got some great shots, and I’ll always know I was there, that we spoke, however briefly.

I’ll spare you the details of the trip home because, well…traffic. And cows.

And so ends the tale of the very long too short awesome weekend in NYC where I got to meet Tom Hiddleston.

Thank you for coming to my TED talk.

#betrayal #tom hiddleston #nyc #road trip

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shemakesmusic-uk · 5 years ago

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Getting to Know...

Rosa Bordallo.

Rosa Bordallo fka Manett is a singer-songwriter and musician based in Brooklyn. She is a CHamoru from the island of Guam in the Marianas, an archipelago in Micronesia. She came to New York at the age of 19. She was a member of the band cholo.

Last month Bordallo released Reef Walker, a deeply personal indie rock record with poignant lyrics that investigate identity, loss, belonging, society, historical trauma, and hope.

We had a chat with Rosa all about Reef Walker, her background and influences, creative process and more. Read the Q&A below.

Hi Rosa. Please tell us a bit about yourself. What led you to make music and who/what are your biggest influences?

"Hi! Thank you for this opportunity to share my work! I’m a singer/songwriter based in New York City. I am also a Pacific Islander, specifically an indigenous person from Guam who identifies as CHamoru. I was born and raised there, and I started playing guitar and writing songs as a teenager. I came to NYC in the early 2000’s for film school, and I have been living and working here since then. The first year I was here, I joined a post-punk band called cholo that was formed by Felipe Flores. We played in small clubs and venues around town for almost ten years. We also released three full-length albums and one EP. Around 2010 I started making music by myself under the alias Manett, and I also released a few solo EPs under that alias.

"Making music was a natural progression for me since listening to music has always been an important coping mechanism. They say imitation is the best form of flattery, so I try to emulate my heroes and hopefully something new and interesting comes out of it. I’ve always been someone who needs to express myself, whether writing in a journal, writing poetry, doodling or dancing. I think making a record, as a creative endeavor, suits me in a lot of ways because I can draw on those other forms of expression. Also I get easily distracted and I’m not terribly disciplined so it’s nice to have a record - an artifact, a piece of evidence - to show that I didn’t just waste all my time surfing the internet!

"In terms of influence, there are too many to list, but I draw a lot from rock & roll and all its derivatives and revivals particularly psych rock, garage, punk, post-punk, new wave, and grunge. I’ve always been drawn to women with loud guitars and loud personalities -- PJ Harvey, Björk / The Sugarcubes, Dog Faced Hermans, Bikini Kill, Slant 6, Cyndi Lauper, The Breeders, Babes in Toyland. I love unapologetically weird women like Lene Lovich, Lydia Lunch, Nina Hagen, and Siouxsie Sioux. I can go on! Other major influences from my youth are the Pixies, David Bowie, Nirvana, and the Velvet Underground. I think what they all have in common is an irreverence, a willingness to break norms and do something unconventional while keeping a certain integrity. None of them were trying terribly hard to be different - they were just drawing inspiration from their personal frustration and observations of the world and creating something special from that.

You recently released your album Reef Walker. What is the record about, what does it mean to you and what do you hope listeners will take away from it?

"Reef Walker is my first full-length album as a solo artist. I picked that title because I see myself as being able to navigate a gulf that is psychological, cultural, and emotional in nature. As an indigenous person who has lived the first half of my life in my native community and in a remote part of the world, and then spent the second half in this metropolis on the other side of the world, I grapple with the guilt that my loyalties are divided and that I am not spending enough time with my family and native community. On the other hand, I wouldn’t be who I am today if I didn’t leave my place of origin and to live in this new and wildly different place. I think there are many people past and present who have my experience of alienation but it’s not represented in our culture - or if it is, it’s an inadequate representation. I often think about the Japanese castaway Otokichi, later known as John Mathew Ottoson, as well as the Inuk man Minik Wallace, when I need to remind myself why I’m doing what I’m doing.

"I also like the imagery that is evoked from that title. I spent a lot of time at the beach and on my dad’s boat as a kid. It’s actually treacherous to walk along the reef during low tide, because the high tide can come in unexpectedly and drown you, or a rip current can pull you out to sea. It’s also not good to touch or step on coral. Not only is it a living organism that should be protected, but some coral can sting you. But snorkeling and swimming along the reef is a transcendent experience. My ancestors were expert fishermen and seafarers. The album title is as much an homage to them and to all the CHamoru people and other Pacific Islanders who have ties to Oceania.

"All I ask of anyone who hears my album is to have an open mind. I think one reason music is powerful and interesting is because it can be appreciated across cultural divides. I try not to concern myself with how my music is received. I just try to make music that I personally enjoy so if someone else enjoys it, it’s a nice surprise. As for your readers, if you anything about my story sparks your curiosity, I would ask you to explore the histories of indigenous people because much of it has been suppressed and erased.

"There is much needed attention being given to climate change but we should remember that indigenous communities have always been putting their bodies on the line to protect the land, water, and other natural resources. In my own homeland of the Marianas, the U.S. military is about to expand their presence to build two live-fire training ranges that would drastically impact our main aquifer and our wildlife as well as desecrate important ancestral lands. In North America, there’s the oil and gas cartel, and there’s the missing and murdered indigenous women crisis (aka MMIW) which disproportionately affects trans and queer native folx. In South America, the Amazon is being burned down to benefit illegal loggers and farmers. It’s easy to get overwhelmed, but if you consider yourself a moral person, it’s your responsibility to educate yourself about these things. If you’re in North America, there’s a great online resource (native-land.ca) where you can learn about the tribes and nations that first settled the land where you currently live. The International Indigenous Youth Council (indigenousyouth.org) is another good online resource because it shares news from indigenous communities around the world."

What was your favourite part recording Reef Walker?

"It was really fun to record in three different spaces that were also living spaces. We started tracking in Duane Lauginiger’s old basement studio, which was right below his garden apartment in Brooklyn. He called that place Time Castle, hence the name of the cassette label that released the album. Then we went to a private house in Piermont, NY, for the second tracking session. And then finally did a day and night of recording in a converted church in Craryville, NY. Each space had its own quirks and novelties but Duane (the producer-engineer) was really nimble about setting up and adapting. I really like working in a place full of paintings and objets d’art and tchotchkes as opposed to a sterile recording studio that looks more like the set of a bad sci-fi movie."

Please talk us through your songwriting/creative process.

"I have a full-time day job so I just try to make regular time for myself to clear my head, and any ideas I get, I will record it on my phone or my computer. Then I spend a lot of time listening and thinking about these initial ideas. I try to give them enough space to breathe and present themselves to me. I don’t like to exhaust myself working on song ideas that are not particularly compelling to me. If I like hearing it over and over in my head, then chances are it will be interesting enough to sustain my attention long enough to develop it into a complete song and recording.

"I almost always come up with the music first before I think of any lyrics. Sometimes I will have an idea for a melody and lyric together, but I don’t get too attached to the first lyrics I come up with. I also take random notes all the time, about anything and everything, so sometimes I have a poem or a musing that I’ve written down which will get repurposed for song lyrics.

"It’s useful for me to have a theme or concept in mind, something that will spark my curiosity and help me be emotionally invested. With Reef Walker I initially had Woman in Suitcase as the working title. That was the force that brought it into being. I meditated on that a lot while writing the songs. I currently have a working title for my second album, so I’ve been meditating on that. I also did this for my first EP, The Sea Urchin, which was my first stab at making songs that were very personal, as opposed to hiding behind a group project which I did with cholo, my previous band. The sea urchin was a powerful image for me at that time, because I felt very vulnerable putting myself out there. Imagining a shy sea creature with crazy-looking spikes, just chilling in the water and paying attention to its surroundings - that kept me motivated to finish the recordings and put it out into the world.

"In general I just try to stay inspired and curious about things. The urge to create comes out of frustration but also out of appreciation for and communion with other people’s creations. And there are so many wonderful creations out there. I see this as a creative practice, rather than a creative process, because for me it’s more about being grounded and responsive to what’s put before me, rather than about checking off items on a to-do list or making sure that a particular set of actions is followed."

Finally, what are your plans for 2020?

"I plan on touring and writing my second album. Stay tuned!"

Reef Walker is out now.

#getting to know #rosa bordallo #reef walker

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lilmajorshawty · 7 years ago

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Mars Women/Males (1/2)

Mars in Aries: Anarchy In black

📞 Rae Sremmurd - perplexing Peagsus.

Women: shes the aggressor, and she rarely waits for others to set the pace. She likes her lovers with flavor and with a bit of masculinity in their pursuit! She can be the type to be into rough aesthetic and the ripped jeans, ruffled hair. She wears harsh colors and can also remind you of the beach and Coachella. She’s either 2000s in a smile or fight night.

Men: he’s the chaser, and he rarely wants to be caught. He tends to live based on desire and instinct. His brain is a little less involved in his sexual instincts which often times can make him a walking dose of testosterone. He’s intense and projects this intensity in even the most subtle of actions. He’s the bad boy and the hot head, the class clown and the boy you mom warned you about. Either the biker or the one making the bike. His member can be vainy and a bit on the angry looking side due to the rams more volatile nature. And depending on how mature he is he can be the type to cum early mainly because he feels the sensation so powerfully.

Mars in Taurus: Sensual Slaves

📻 Partynextdoor - Grown women

Women: shes magnetic, her eyes dressed in sensuality and her arms like silk. She’s gorgeous-something about her is so physically present that it’s as if you’re in the presence of earth. She can be mentally scattered often expending her energies into the basics and more mundane. She likes things dependable and can be a bit sharp with messy types. She likes her lovers like she loves her senses. She loves curves and thic body types-muscles are fun but what’s the fun if she can’t enjoy the innoncense of a bare body.

Men: he’s a slow and steady operator. Pleasure comes in the form of the world all around him often making him a walking aphrodisiac. He thinks before acting and can be a slow burn where others would be a fire. For him it’s about the lead up to the main event, the insatiable lust before the inevitable climax. In some cases he’s lean whilst in others he’s on the more Roman body type. His lower member is often well endowed and long like the typical bull. He loves a good body party that involves all the senses.

Mars in Gemini: The Divinci lá mort

🎙 Grimes - Be a Body

Women: shes a walking encyclopedia. Sometimes with this women it can seem like she’s 100 steps ahead of you and then some. Her eyes are sharp and piercing-gazing through intentions and feelings quicker than anyone you’ll meet. She is enticed by the game of interaction-mainly because she’s so detached from it. Romance bores her, it’s cliche . She wants the type of love you don’t even know you need, the type of romance and feeling that carries her off her feet and leaves her speechless. Her lover should take care to be an odd one-she loves a good mystery mainly because she’s one herself.

Men: he’s dangerous. His eyes speak to you In a secret language one separate from the actions of his body. He makes you question your motives, he makes you delve into the hidden concepts within you, he strings you without the strings. With him theirs this mania-this momentum between the twins as he leave you wondering which version of him you’ll get from second to second. He starts the party but simultaneously is nowhere to be found once it’s off the ground. He can have a sharp member and can be remarkably playful in bed! He loves a good show and wants to entertain you best he can. For him verbal communication ties him to the act emotionally.

Mars in cancer: Heart to Heart

💻 Tangerine dream - Love on a real Train

Women: shes soft to the touch like lavender. She’s scented like vanilla and cool October winds. She’s an unexpected love and can entrance you with nothing but small winces and half smiles. She expresses herself through touches and loud laughs-she’s never direct and moves in a side ways pattern sometimes showing you more, whilst other days she’s a figment of your imagination. She’s captivating but hard to get to know unless she wants you to know. Her energy is soothing and can feel like home and her greatest strength is that immense propensity to emotional coolness. Her lover is often sensitive no matter how tough or mean they may seem-as she’d have it no other way. Make no mistake she may seem tame but she’s a freak behind closed doors.

Men: he’s pure, the type to hold your hand when you’re frightened, cook you a meal if you haven’t eaten, kill that pesky spider that’s been terrorizing you in the shower-he’s home. He’s a gentle boy albeit with an astronomical temper but none the less he’s a baby, he could never do anything to harm you outright but his mother sure taught him how to manipulate and that’s what makes him a bit troublesome. He’s emotionally receptive and emmensly invested but his sexuality can be something to brace yourself for..mars in cancer men tend to be very passionate lovers in and out of the bedroom and the sweet little boy he shows you turns into quite the intensely lustful soul when the lights dim! Their members are usually thick and girthy due to the moons influence! And their arousal is based on emotional connection so the more “I love you’s” the more rounds you’ll be experiencing.

Mars in Leo: Lion congregation

📸 Billy idol - Rebel Yell

Women: shes going to hit you like a wild fire. She isn’t the type to bow, nor is she the type to settle. She knows her worth and her lioness energy won’t allow her to lower that pride even for god himself-shes far to engulfed by the suns rays to see anyone below. She’s jovial and a breath of fresh air and can make you feel like you’ve just walked into NYC. She’s a charming one-able to seduce you with a stare and a hair flip. She’s very punk or very pretty pink school girl! Something about her feels irresistible but she’s never focused on you-she’s looking for the next sunset. Her lover should make sure they see the beauty in her and is worthy of the kingly or queenly stature she bestows upon them.

Men: he’s a queit type. Unlike his feminine ego he actually is more on the observant and prowl like energy. He’s the king of the pride and doesn’t need words to prove his dominance all he needs is energy. He can make you feel as if you’re in the presence of something great with a mere scowl or glance. His intensity is often matched by his often pugnant and sexy atmosphere. He can make it feel like a thousand eyes are on you and in the next second you can feel like you’ve been locked out of Heaven. He’s got this dirty quality to him like acting on your desire for him could take you to hell and back. His libido is usually high as shit and his lower region is either on the medium side or slightly above average but it often looks very bright and has lovely pubic hair! He can be turned on by soggy style positions or where your back is turned to him!

Mars in Virgo: Let’s play doctor

🎚 Jamie N. Commons - Lead me home

Women: shes like old wine. She will make you feel like you’re in this dance with yourself because of how distant her actions can seem. She’s very adapt and can react to a situation before it’s occurred solely on her piecing the puzzle together. She’s sensual and earthy with her light aromas and light steps. She can seem like some sort of elven fairy flying high and above in your mind and lips like some long lost memory you’ve been waiting to relieve. She wants things clean but part of her is drawn to what lies in the mud. These women can be some of the kinkiest solely because part of them lives to be of service to their lovers. They often find themselves drawn to dirty lovers(literally and figuratively) or situations of inequality in their partnerships.

Men: he’s not like other boys. He’s shy but playing koi is apart of how he lures you in. He won’t make the first move but he’ll move the pieces so you do. He is a hard worker both with his daily life and what he chooses to please in the bedroom. He can be highly versatile in many situations but part of him can project his inner need for control into his love affairs. He wants to feel every touch and every sensation possible and can get easily addicted to sex wanting to have it on a consistent basis. These boys can be very horny contrary to belief but can be so controlled that it can seem as though they don’t have desires whatsoever. They can be drawn to long term romances and will often have the best sex with someone they’ve known for years! Their is a cute quality to the way they love and it’ll be forever. Their members are petite and can get the job done! In some cases they can feel either shy about their genitals or straightforward nothing inbetween.

Mars in libra: Tipping the scales

📽 Johnny Rain - Peach

Women: shes passive, for her the real aspect of life is what you can get without lifting a finger. Indifference is sexy to them-they admire a unmoved face or a silent crowd. They can be vixens because they often meld themselves into what everyone wants but never do they loose themselves. They can put on an act but be an entirely different energy underneath it all. They love passion and can be the types to hopelessly search for that ultimate romantic liaison. They can remind you of the R&B ERA. Femininity and sexuality are peak here and these women express their sensuality deeply and truly to themselves. These women tend to masterbait quite a bit as they often have high libido and venus influence here creates an infatuation with the “self” perceived ego. The lover for these natives should be charming and have an intensity to him-a a bit of an unbalanced energy that she can serve to be the equilibrium.

Men: he’s dark. He can seem perfect like everything and anything. He’s polite but detached, he’s sensual but withholding, he’s an intellectual but he never lets you into his mind. These men can be a contradiction. Mars in libra men mask feelings more then most mars signs and tend to need a certain level of high ground in there interactions! It’s never a comfortability for them to know that you can read them as that means you’ll make them vulnerable. They like power and can be the types to pull strings and games until they’re sure that they are hidden. They love intensely and can have a very intoxicating love style that leaves everyone begging. Their members are often very beautiful to look at and can be soft-usually they’re either long or lean. They are either aggressive or passive sexually.

Mars in Scorpio: To sting or not to sting

📀 Belly ft Nav - Re up

Women: shes a late bloomer! Often times she was introduced to sexual tension at a young age and either iced it out or chose to rise above it. At some point these women come into contact with their “own” sexuality their own sense of femininity gets challenged often bringing out the true Scorpio queen residing deep within them. Like A serpent these women come into their own like the flames of hell. Taboo is their middle name and their innocent persona is often leaking with intensity. She’s often the one in the party shrouded in the darkness away from the lights,away from the scene-gazing through the dim lights. She’s powerful and impossible to subdue. She often plays the field never truly seeking intimacy unless it takes her in like the shadows! These women can be afraid of intimacy in the early years but as they age it can be something they find themselves surrounded by. The soul he manages to catch their hearts must be ready to match them sexually and emotionally in the most intense and prolific way imaginable-death and all.

Men: his eyes are easily enthralled. He looks for connections unconsciously like a dog searching for a bone. He’s got a hunger in his eyes only second to his depth. He’s constantly chasing for his own sabotage and sometimes creates it! He’s darkness personified and no matter how much he tried to hide it-the shadows seep through. He can get eaten up by his desires quite a bit almost as if he’s a slave to his own animalistic desires. He’s like a dog without a leash introduced to a fresh plate of meat. These men are ruled by their own intensity and much like Aries mars their are no games! Unlike their venus counterpart for them they don’t have time to manipulate and often struggle with doing so in a way that doesn’t allude to what they’re feeling-they want what they want and it can be impossible to get them to let go once they’ve set their stinger in. Their members can be very vainy and look rather on the darker side! Mars in Scorpio are in love with oral and tend to be extremely sensitive in these areas male and female. Sexually? They can go for hours and days depending on how badly they’ve been waiting for you.

Mars in Sagittarius: MKULTRA

⏲ASAP rocky - RAF

Women: she’s something you’d never be able to reach no matter how high or long you’d try. She’s swift like a gust of wind with her emotions fluttering in and out like radio static. For her it’s about the moment and nothing else. She wants fun otherwise it’s fiń. For her she’s never bored it’s everyone else that’s bored. Her energy is intoxicating and feels like shots of patron. Her body talks like rhythmic beats in the air and she couldn’t be bothered to slow down even if you begged her. These women want to be driven mad and hate anything that makes her think, she hates the meanginless cjit chatter if theirs no fun behind it. She wants intensity and if you plan on giving her something like a small dip in a large sea she won’t be nothing but a cloud of smoke. The lover of these natives will have to be an enigma, something she’d never understand but something that keeps her constantly guessing.

Men: he’s like a myth. You hear of him but, seeing him? It can sound like some promise or imagination come to life when you see him. He’s got a roughness to him as if he’s just in life for the shits and giggles. For him the world is grand and he’s destined to uncover the rest of it. He doesn’t want a side kick he wants an adversary. He’s sexuality can seem like its apart of the earth-he’s like a wild animal and it’s incredibly potent. He can seem masculine and as if his soul leaps out of each word. These men can be magnetic but also immensely detached. For them their is this loose and sought after emptiness and it can sometimes alter their expression of Jupiter. These men can be very dismissive once they feel trapped unfortunately but if they are mature and evolved many welcome intimacy and sometimes “too much” sexually they can be overwhelming and a bit like animals once they get going-it’s no myth they’ll Try to do it outdoors. They usually are very well endowed and can be very lean down there.

Mars in Capricorn: Cold War

🎞Tinashe - Salt

Women: shes mrs noir baby. Her eyes are cold but her heart is warm and that of a furnace. She’s independent and nothing in her upbringing has taught her to lean on anyone to create for herself what she can do on her own. She’s ambitious and a warrior-never does she let her tears eat away at her. These women devour the world, often choosing and desiring complete titanship over all things in her life. Weakness is poison for them and often sex is seen more as a luxury than a need as often they’re weary of anything that create emotional weakness that they can’t rid of. These women run hot sexually and tend to be the types to be into more BDSM themes or domination as a means to prove to themselves they’ve “conquered” their lovers usually are well established and have a rather cold demeanor but ultimately are very sensualistic and intense.

Men: he’s the darkest out of the mars signs for the males. He’s not a beat around the bush type, as often his desires are incredibly honest and he sees no reason to pretend or act precarious. His emotions are often self defensive but also slightly guarded as a means of precautious measure. His energy is often stifling and intimidating as his desires tend to be deeply felt and rather than being outwardly expressed they make their way through his actions and mannersims. They aren’t the type to eye down anyone but are very lustful by nature. To them work and power are and will always be necessity-sexual gratification is luxury but also a means to an end. These natives can be immensely detached from sex unless feelings were established before the act took place otherwise you’ll be nothing more than an asset to them. They can be cold and cruel but they do have a very soft and vulnerable side albeit the goat can be rather changeable when and if they decide to show this side. Their members are usually well endowed! Saturns influence might make it skinnier or medium sized but these guys are usually well endowed. Sexually they can be very intense and their entire mood changes and so does their personality so keep in mind.

Aquarius mars: The 80s camero

📽 cautious clay - Cold War (nick AM remix)

Women: shes bored by it all, to her people are stuck on that music station she’d rather skip past. For her interactions are more then physical contact. She wants cerebral and celestial-she wants to feel mars in her hands and Dance with Neptune and andromeda. Connections come and go for this women and she often finds herself sitting alone, but that’s how she likes it. For these women it can be a spark like desire that can fade just as quickly as it came! Their desires are consistent here and there but only when their is a feeling of never really having what it is they’re feeling. Sexually things can run on and off just like her nature-she just goes with the energy flow and sees where it takes her. These women can be sought after drawing others to her like moths to a flame but she doesn’t ever really care for the attention-she’d much rather watch their wings singe as they fly towards the light. Her lover should be perplexing, a tad off their rocker but with enough emotional difference to keep them scratching their heads.

Men: he’s the unbothered, he’s the glossy eyed boy wonder who seems like he’s just passing by. His affections can seem hard to pin? Wether or not theirs meaning or if he’s just looking for a way to use his time. These men are emotional rollercoaster dispute their more calm demeanor. They want to be above feelings and often will project their own internal feelings on others and play run around the roise so they don’t have to take responsibility for their own feelings. They are insanely attractive and have this deceptive charm to them-like every word is laced with a sinister intent. These men are erotic mainly because they have such a detached relatiohship with their own sexuality. These men don’t care and tend to be sexually aroused by someone with a more “careless” persona. These men are often very hot sexually and tend to love sessions but it can be a bit hard to get them emotionally in to it! They love the emotional v. Non emotional energy that’s generated in their sexual encounters though and from what I’ve seen the more someone wants them the hotter it is for them sexually because of the indifference. They tend to have pointy and angular members that look unique in a way because of Uranus.

Mars in Pisces: Atlantian divers

📟 The Weeknd feat. Gesaffelstein - I was never there

Women: shes sweet as can be! Her heart is that of boundless oceans and she can be immensely dedicated to sacrifice even in her daily life part of her feels more whole if she’s able to be surrounded by harmonius flows of energy. She’s full of tangles though and can seem like a museum of emotions. She’s complex and nothing expressed is never just that, it’s meanings could span over a millennia. She’s often a softly felt presence that can disepear from seemingly nowhere. Her feelings are often deeply entangled in her sexual longings and often the bigger the emotional backing the stronger her arousal but the weaker the bond the harder it is for her to be anything more then a fish in the sea. She enjoys glowing through life in blissful dreamlike peace but often she’s interrupted by the loud existence of the rest of us. Her lover should be a gentle soul, one that cares for her heart but also feels safe enough to express their own unique vulnerabilities.

Men: he’s a dreamboat, the boy seemingly lost in the crowd of people. He’s been in an ongoing daydream since he was 2 years old. His eyes are watery and seem like their are tears waiting to speak there own individual peace. He hates the confinement of others and tends to be a loner. He’s sensitive to energy and can seemingly become evasive when negativity embodies him which is why people think he’s lethargic or lazy. He often is sexual in private-leaning towards porn and media to relate to sexual feelings internally felt. He often can create a dreamlike sexual desire but might be more displeased by the real thing. His libido is often the lowest of the bunch mainly because his more masculine side is subdued by the neptunian sea. He like his feminine counterpart needs a emotional connection otherwise sex is nothing more then a fish in the water. He’s moldable to the desire of his lover. His member tends to be translucent and on the larger side of things.

#mars in aries #mars in taurus #mars in gemini #mars in cancer #mars in leo #mars in virgo #mars in libra #mars in scorpio #mars in sagittarius #mars in capricorn #mars in aquarius #mars in pisces #Mine

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fishproblem · 6 years ago

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the Master Plan/progress. It’s sure slow going when you don’t have the money to buy all your shit at once and dry start your scape in one weekend. 🙃

To be clear, I have no clue what I meant when I wrote “borrowed plants” but the danio tank concept overall is a little weak. I don’t want them in my SA tank but I won’t rehome them unless it’s to someone with a great setup. Even then, I’m a little attached. If I do an Asian tank though, I’d much rather go with something else. But I’m so emotionally invested in these zebra danios that I worry I’m going to end up filling out the school and then continuing to do so as they eventually die, trapping myself into a perpetual school of zebra danios that I’m really ambivalent about except I had strong feelings for three long dead individuals... you see where I’m going. Basically someone please step up and tell me you desperately want to love and care for three zebra danios and live in NYC or RI. Tbh I could be dramatic and need semi-regular updates on their well being.

I’m sure you’re all wondering: what will happen to the diy 5.5g? I’d love to say I’ll retire it but tbh. Probably shrimp.

#i’m rambling about plans a lot lately #thank you for being a lovely audience #also if you want a new fish friend my inbox is so open #all tank updates #fishproblemsSAtank

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brie-n-kat-write · 7 years ago

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The College Student Stereotype - Bucky Barnes College!AU x Reader

Prompt: Finals week is hell. You’ll need all the help you can get.

A/N: Here it is! Finals are coming up and I got way inspired. Had this idea in the middle of the night and forced myself to write some of it down so I wouldn’t forget. PLEASE let me know what you think! Did you enjoy it? Should there be more parts?

- Written by Brie -

Every college student stereotype you’ve ever heard is true. Every one of them. Some students come to lectures still in pajamas, some students live off a strict diet of Ramen and energy drinks, and some students have a breakdown in the library at 2 am. You were the latter stereotype.

Exam week had the whole campus scrambling to the library and any building that sold caffeine products. Even at 2 am, students were still going strong. Never underestimate a college student the day before a test; they are an unstoppable force.

Except for you.

It seemed like everyone around you was getting stuff done and understanding their material. Some students even left the library before midnight. That was no easy feat. You swore you’ve been staring at the same page for nearly three hours, absorbing nothing. You and the big ass philosophy textbook in front of you were getting nowhere. You felt hopeless.

Before you knew it, tears began to flow. You tried to hide them at first, wiping away under your eyes, but as the weight of the situation settled in, you gave up.

If you failed this exam, you will have to take the class again, and you did not have the money for that right now. Pushing your dignity aside, you sniffed loudly, laid your head down on your arms, and cried.

You were absolutely screwed.

“Hey.” A soft yet strong voice sounded above you. It was a guy, you thought to yourself, great. You hoped you didn’t leave snot under your nose as you lifted your head to look up.

James Barnes was the textbook definition of a frat guy - on the outside, that is. Even at 2 am he was dressed to impress. He had on an obnoxious colored polo that was still tucked into his khaki shorts, coffee in hand, shoulder length hair pulled back with a hair tie. He also donned those ugly boating shoes that you were positive they gave out to guys after they joined a fraternity.

However, you’ve heard from classmates and friends alike that he was the exact opposite of whatever stereotype frat guys carried with them like baggage. You’ve never met him properly before, though, and you definitely couldn’t remember which fraternity he was in (even though you’re pretty sure you’ve stopped by his frat’s event table before for a free t-shirt when you didn’t feel like doing laundry that week.)

“Hi,” you said, sitting up in your chair, “I’m sorry if I was being too loud-” you began to apologize but James was quick to interrupt. “You weren’t. Don’t worry.” He gave you a reassuring smile.

Suddenly feeling self-conscious, you wipe your eyes and notice your mascara has rubbed off onto your sleeve. Great. You must have looked horrified at this discovery because James was quick to say something. “Don’t worry, you look great.” He chuckled softly, “You’ve got a good smokey eye going. It works.” If that was his attempt to make you smile, it worked, but only a little bit.

“I’m James, by the way.” He smiled. He had a really nice smile.

“(Y/N).”

Without invitation, James pulls out the seat across from you and sits down. The coffee that was in his hand was now being pushed towards you. “You looked like you could use a little pick me up.”

“Wow… thank you.” You said, genuinely thankful.

“Happy to help.” James smiled and leaned forward on his forearms. “What are you studying for?” He was looking upside-down at your textbook. Strands of his dark hair fell forward and you couldn’t help but admire how they framed his face nicely.

“Philosophy.” Your answer made him groan. “That class is the worst. Who do you have? Dr. West?” He groaned again when you nodded.

“I had him last semester. He’s rough, isn’t he?” This time it was your turn to groan. “I know, right? He talks too fast, he rarely answers emails, and his tests cover things we were never lectured on!” You rolled your eyes, exasperated. This made James laugh. He had a very attractive laugh. It was a deep, hearty laugh that moved his shoulders up and down. You wanted to hear it again.

“One good thing about Dr. West,” he taps your textbook with his index finger, “his final exam is basically the same every year.” He sat back a bit in his chair and looked at you, a lazy smile on his lips. “I could help you if you want?”

First, he buys you coffee, then he offers to help you study for a life or death exam? How could you decline an offer like that?

“I wouldn’t mind that at all.” You answered with relief. “Thank you so much.” James shook his head. “It’s not a problem at all. I’m happy to help, trust me.”

And you did. He moved his chair to sit next to you and helped you study for this goddamn nightmare of an exam. He reviewed with you, quizzed you, and even made a practice exam. By 7 o’clock that same morning, you knew all the material like the back of your hand. You couldn’t thank James enough. He helped you through all the frustration and groans and even some tears, and he didn’t yawn once. He was patient with you, sometimes having to explain a concept more than three times. How could you even repay him?

You and James walked out of the library together, exhausted but smiling. “I think you’re all set, (Y/N). Go get a few hours rest and knock this exam out of the park!” How he managed to keep his energy all this time is beyond you, but it was infectious.

“You know it!” You grinned, turning towards him once you reached the bottom of the library steps. “Let me buy you lunch sometime? To properly thank you and all.” It wasn’t nearly enough of a thank you to repay him for saving your ass, but it was all you had to offer.

James grinned in response, showing off all of his perfect teeth. “Sounds like a date to me.”

The two of you swapped numbers before parting ways. He entered his name in your phone as “Bucky.” When you questioned him about it, he gave you that brilliant smile of his and replied, “That’s what my friends call me.” Friends. You liked that.

A week later, sitting at the desk in your dorm, you checked to see if your final grades were posted and nearly had a heart attack. Not only had you passed the class, you also got a big, fat 100% on the final.

The thought that crossed your mind immediately after finding out the good news was to call Bucky. He answered on the first ring.

“(Y/N)! What’s the news? Break it to me gently.” He greeted with caution, but you could practically hear his smile on the other end.

“Straight 100, baby! We did it!” You replied, trying not to squeal out of excitement. “Nuh uh, you did it. You took that exam, you earned that grade by yourself.” Before you could protest about him being so humble, he spoke again. “I’m proud of you, (Y/N), I really am.” He sounded genuinely happy for you, which made your heart beat a little faster than it already was.

“Now,” he was grinning, you could tell, “how about that lunch?”

Tag List: @littleblue5mcdork @stardustnwit @jared-padaloveme @thunderstorm-symphony @cat-in-a-hoodie @unicornqueen05 @tiny-friggin-human @alltime-kendall @stumb1ing @kitcatcrunch @totallyrandomfandomfangirl @dainty-hibiscus @wonderc4t @ivashkov @youaskedfurret @loeigh @thepotatodespot @gray-rose13 @bucky-with-the-metal-arm @rassl33 @potterheadbbc @space1boy @mysticalharts @theonlyonelives @irreplaeable-spacesexual @jaegers-and-kaijus @x-wing-starwriter @lionfart @batman-out @hoodedhavok @ordinarily-maddie @1022bridgetp @fantasticallyobsessedwithbeasts @cursedori @internet-crazed @nubiv-vagant @itsmikayblr @ohmygallifrey123 @mrstomholland @justdreamstars @chrys-1029 @broken-pieces @casnovak88 @im-the-nerdiest-of-them-a11 @rassl33 @bucky-with-the-metal-arm @thepotatodespot @1022bridgetp @143amberrose @mynameisinchalk @dansfluffybutt @lionfart @maraudersgallifreyavenger @theonlyonelives @x-wing-starwriter @legendarydazekitten @spiderlingy @vnikifxrov @eleandserrano @itsmikayblr @kitcatcrunch @aliensdeservebetter @dropdeadrxses @we-all-have-a-psychopath @thesaraaaaahpfan @i-survived-my-trip-to-nyc

#bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes #james barnes #james buchanan barnes #sebastian stan #college au #marvel #imagine #marvel fic #bucky barnes imagine #bucky barnes fanfic #superhero #superheroes #superhero fic #au #alternate universe #winter soldier #winter soldier x reader

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pixelgrotto · 6 years ago

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The deductive point ‘n click escapades of a forgotten southern belle Adventure games of the point ‘n click variety are a genre that tend to feature female protagonists more often than others. Why this is the case, I’m not entirely sure - it might have something to do with the stereotype that women are more patient, more willing to read and perhaps better at solving puzzles than men. Or, perhaps legendary adventure game designer Roberta Williams’ influence still holds strong, at least on a subconscious level in the minds of designers, over the genre that she helped nourish in the 80s and 90s, and the heroines of today’s games are merely following in the footsteps of fine women that preceded them, like Rosella of Daventry in King’s Quest IV. Whatever the reason, despite there being quite a few point ‘n clickers popping up these days with engaging female protagonists (Kathy Rain is one that I played early this year and enjoyed), there’s a 1920s southern belle who probably deserved a long-lasting series but only got two games which are somewhat overlooked these days. Her name is Laura Bow, and she served as the protagonist of two Sierra titles that were released in 1989 and 1992 - The Colonel’s Bequest and The Dagger of Amon Ra.

Laura seems to have been specifically patterned after famous silent film actress Clara Bow, but at her heart she’s more like a slightly older version of Nancy Drew, and her two games embody Nancy’s fine tradition of mystery solving. The Colonel’s Bequest takes place on a private island in the bayous of New Orleans as Laura accompanies a friend and fellow Tulane University student for a weekend getaway at the manor of her uncle, Colonel Dijon. The old man is bequeathing his fortune to relatives and has invited a motley assortment of characters right out of an Agatha Christie paperback - the drunk aunt, the conceited Hollywood starlet, the perverted doctor who seems to have a thing for betting on the ponies - and a la Clue, bodies start piling up as the relatives presumably begin offing themselves in order to get Dijon’s fortune first.

I mentioned Roberta Williams previously, and The Colonel’s Bequest was actually designed by her as one of those rare side projects that didn’t feature the words “King’s” and “Quest” in the title. (Hm, I suppose it’s called The Colonel’s Bequest, so scratch that.) It’s always hard to tell how much Roberta was involved in non-King’s Quest projects - The Dagger of Amon Ra, for instance, was directed by Bruce Balfour despite featuring her name on the box - but I’d wager that she intended The Colonel’s Bequest to be a spiritual remake of her very first adventure game (and indeed, the first graphical adventure game ever), Mystery House. Mystery House featured a similar murder plot, and The Colonel’s Bequest takes this concept and evolves it, offering a unique structure where there aren’t really any puzzles to solve but instead “scenes” to witness. The entire game is structured like a play - there’s even a cast curtain call in the beginning - and Laura is encouraged to spend as much time as possible talking with the potential murder suspects and finding unique ways to eavesdrop on them.

The game’s manual makes a huge deal about this emphasis on observing the story and slowly figuring out the links between characters in an effort to deduce the killer, and we can look at Johnny L. Wilson’s 1990 review of the game in Computer Gaming World as an example of how this approach was seen as admirable, fresh and also a bit risky at the time. Don’t let the fact that there aren’t many puzzles fool you into thinking that The Colonel’s Bequest is easy, though - it’s just as tough as Sierra’s other adventures with just as many nonsensical ways to die, and the unique structure where certain events and conversations are “timed” (indicated on screen by a clock) means that sometimes you’ll be wandering around aimlessly searching for the next thing to do, or possibly miss out on vital bits of info because you weren’t at the right place at the right time. It’s a little like The Last Express, only less refined.

Luckily, the game’s great atmosphere makes up for any shortcomings that its boldly unorthodox but occasionally clunky design creates. This is one of the best 16 color titles that Sierra produced with their SC10 engine, and the soundtrack is packed with jazzy songs influenced by the Roaring Twenties with just enough sense to know when to be quiet as well. As you navigate Laura across the silent grounds of the mansion in the dead of night, wondering where the killer might be, it’s very possible to get shaken by the sound of lightning bursting in the background, and I can certainly imagine young players in 1989 jumping out of their skin when they encountered such moments.

Laura’s next outing, The Dagger of Amon Ra, trades the dark island setting for the Egyptology craze of the 20s, and loses a little bit in the process but makes up for it with 256 colors, rotoscoped animations (which are darn smooth but cause character sprites to be a bit muddy, unfortunately) and an even catchier selection of jazz tunes, including an amusing vocal track called “The Archaeologist Song.” Oh, and the CD version is a “talkie” game, with performances that range from kinda terrible (Sierra was still having their employees voice these games at the time instead of hiring actors) to excellent (Laura’s got a cute southern accent and the narrator’s voice is heavenly).

The plot revolves around the titular Dagger of Amon Ra, an Egyptian artifact that’s been stolen from a New York City museum. Laura, now a fresh grad from Tulane and in the middle of her first journalism assignment at an NYC paper, has to navigate the mean streets of Manhattan, infiltrate a speakeasy and chat with a mildly racist caricature of a Chinese laundromat owner before getting into the museum, where she once again encounters a wide cast of characters, from the stuck up British twat who removed the dagger from Egypt to the nutty countess, who is possibly engaged in some mild robbery efforts around the museum when nobody’s looking. People start dying pretty soon (and their death scenes are grand - check out this poor SOB who got decapitated and stuck with a Perodactyl beak) and while the beginning section of the game outside of the museum is more like a traditional point ‘n click affair, once you’re locked inside the building after the first murder, everything becomes reminiscent of The Colonel’s Bequest. You’ve got to meander about, hope you bumble upon the right conversations and try your best to piece together clues before the murderer suddenly starts chasing you during the game’s second-to-last chapter.

The Dagger of Amon Ra kind of stumbles in its execution of this form of gameplay more than its predecessor, because all the chapters of museum exploration feel terribly disjointed even more than walking around Colonel Dijon’s mansion did. Also, the character motivations are unclear, which is a problem in a mystery game - especially one where the entire final chapter actually involves Laura being quizzed by the coroner in an annoying game of 20 Questions as to the identity and motives of the killer! If you slip up once during this finale, you’ll get the bad ending, which involves the killer finding Laura’s apartment and GUNNING HER IN HER SLEEP, jinkies. And even if you succeed and get the good ending, which sees Laura writing her first award-winning expose on the theft and hooking up with putzy love interest Steve Dorian, it’s still quite impossible to discern the killer’s motives and why he went about his nefarious deeds, because The Dagger of Amon Ra just...doesn’t explain things. I’m not the only one who had trouble figuring it out - The Adventure Gamer blog wrote up a fantastic series of posts about this game and came to the same confused reaction as I did.

Both Laura Bow adventures come from an older time where it was common to take notes as you went through a game, so perhaps my puzzlement at The Dagger of Amon Ra’s ending is due to my lack of pencil and paper by my side as I played. I did use walkthroughs for both games, though, and if you do end up checking them out (they’re available on GOG), I’d recommend doing the same. You probably still won’t be able to figure out why whatshisname stole that dagger, but despite their flaws, the Laura Bow games really are worth experiencing. Laura’s a likeable lead (just look at this adorable expression on her face as she stumbles upon the museum’s French skank engaged in hanky panky with the janitor) and she does a fine job of showing off the spirit of the 20s, an underrepresented period in the pantheon of electronic gaming.

Laura never got a third game, and as far as mystery franchises go, Sierra soon passed the torch to the Gabriel Knight series, which apparently takes place in the same universe, since Gabriel visits Tulane in Sins of the Fathers and hears word of a lecture being given by “Laura Bow Dorian” - a hint that Laura married Steve Dorian and lived happily ever after! I’m glad that Ms. Bow got a nice ending even if we couldn’t see it in game form, and I’m sure that if she were a real person, she would be pleased to see spiritual successors of sorts like the aforementioned Kathy Rain following in her footsteps today.

This is perhaps a good place to mention The Crimson Diamond, an upcoming indie game in the works by Canadian illustrator Julia Minamata. I recently played through the demo and am eagerly awaiting the full release - it’s almost like a direct sequel of The Colonel’s Bequest with an alternate universe version of Laura. Rest assured, Ms. Bow - even if your adventures aren’t as remembered these days as they should be, the example you set of the enterprising female gumshoe is alive, well and in good hands!

All box art and screenshots from Mobygames.

#pixel grotto #video games #favorites #laura bow #colonels bequest #dagger of amon ra #sierra online #roberta williams

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reysccp · 7 years ago

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Wildest Dreams and Delicate

“In my last post ( “Best friends and male pronouns” ) I wrote about how You are in love and Dress are connected by the ambiguous concept of your lover being your best friend and how I believe both songs were about the same person (obviously concluding they are about Karlie Kloss)

Another great concept that Taylor likes to explore are the feelings in the beginning of a relationship, when you are both infatuated and insecure.

Two wonderful songs about insecurity in the early stages of a relationship are Wildest Dreams and Delicate, and guess what? maybe both are about the same person and are two views of the same period, the beginning of the same relationship. Let’s see.

Both songs are about someone Taylor believe is handsome (as hell):

“He's so tall and handsome as hell”

“Handsome, you're a mansion with a view”

Also, in both songs, Taylor highlights how this handsome person keeps her hands in Taylor’s hair during a long night.

“His hands are in my hair, his clothes are in my room” / “Tangled up with you all night”

“Long night, with your hands up in my hair”

We could almost say Taylor’s “broken bones are mending With all these nights we're spending” but this is a realization she hasn’t made yet. This is for another kind of song, a more sure and retrospective one.

Pretend.

“Say you'll see me again Even if it's just pretend”

“Sometimes when I look into your eyes I pretend you're mine, all the damn time”

So, these are the more obvious connections between the songs: handsome, hands in the hair, a long night and pretend.

Also, Taylor is paying lots of attention to sounds (well, she’s a musician).

“And his voice is a familiar sound”

“Echoes of your footsteps on the stairs”

But the songs are thematically connect in other ways:

1) Insecurity in the beginning of a relationship

Undoubtedly Wildest Dreams is more pessimistic. Taylor is sure this won’t last.

“Nothing lasts forever” / “Someday when you leave me”

So if I’m right and both song are about two views of the same period then Delicate answers why she’s so sure it won’t last.

“My reputation's never been worse”

Who would be crazy to stay with her? Because she’s so famous with lots of crazy over the top bearding that it is impossible for her to have a long and stable relationship. Spoiler alert, 1989-Taylor, It’s not! wait for reputation-Taylor! The “on and off relationship” days are over!

In Delicate although she is very concerned and insecure she is not that pessimistic. Here there is hope. Yes, It’s a fragile situation. A little slip and it can be broken and she’ll be gone. But Taylor is almost begging for it to work.

“It’s Delicate. Isn't it? Isn't it? Isn't it?Isn't it? Isn't it? Isn't it? Isn't it? Isn't it?”

Please, tell me it is not! Tell me it is not going to break. Tell me you won’t leave. But she knows she can’t ask for this promise yet.

“We can't make Any promises now, can we, babe? But you can make me a drink...”

Who knows, maybe one day they’ll make that promise and “He keeps his word”. Another story for another song, a more “in love” kind of song.

So, basically, in Delicate Taylor is very nervous. She likes this girl. She’s full of doubts and hope.

“Is it cool that I said all that? Is it chill that you're in my head? Is it too soon to do this yet?”

2) New York City and away from the city.

“Dive bar on the east side” / “Come here, you can meet me in the back” / “Third floor on the west side, me and you”

So, it has started in NYC, but there is just too many people there. So one day...

“He said, "Let's get out of this town. Drive out of the city, away from the crowds.” I thought heaven can't help me now.”

Somehow I have a feeling this is going to be Taylor’s “trip of my life”.

3) Clothes ambiguities: dark jeans and nikes vs dress.

“Dark jeans and your Nikes, look at you”

We all know Karlie was sign with Nike at that time, so Taylor is not being very subtle in Delicate.

In Wildest Dreams she’s playing with words and ambiguity about clothes. It is one of the “male pronouns” songs and we have this:

“Say you'll remember me Standing in a nice dress, Staring at the sunset, babe”

If we accept the male pronoun we have a straight interpretation that Taylor is asking this man to remember her - Taylor - wearing a dress while she’s staring at the sunset.

But if we assume that Taylor changed the pronoun and is talking about a woman we have a second interpretation. Let’s call this woman “Karlie”.

So, Taylor says: “Hey, Karlie, one day, when you are in a nice dress, staring at the sunset, remember me”. So Karlie is the one wearing the nice dress, not Taylor.

This won’t be the first dress ambiguity. We’ll have another one in Dress and we’ll never know who is wearing the dress.

If we just assume Taylor is gay her songs become richer with more layers.

#gaylor swift #kaylor #wildest dreams #delicate

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