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finmoryo · 3 years

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I took your "Which Tolkien character who gives me gender envy are you" quiz and I got Maedhros! I'm not sure why I did but I'm very very happy! The Noldor in general give me gender envy and I was wondering what aspects of the characters you could get in the quiz, physical or otherwise, are enviable.

I know this stuff is personal for some people but not for others so if you're not comfortable sharing that's 100% understandable!

It's a fantastic premise for a quiz

-@outofangband

@outofangband

Thanks for taking my quiz! I love sharing stuff about myself unfortunately (I can never shut up about myself, and that is probably why I have only one friend), so here we go.

Firstly, I'd just like to be an elf. I romanticize it too much. What I hate the most about Tolkien's lore is probably the diminishment of the elves. I like things staying the same, and I want the elves to prosper and stay super powerful, but clearly that doesn't happen and I've never been able to wrap my head around it.

Legolas - This was probably the hair and the fact that some old people thought I was cis boy when I dressed up as him for Halloween a few years ago (my brother went as Gandalf). I love the look of long hair, especially on men, but I can’t have it anymore. I cut it off for a reason. It gives me too many sensory issues, my hair is super curly and frizzy, and it gives me dysphoria. If I grew my hair out, I'd look even more feminine, even though my hair just looks naturally more masculine than most afabs. Long hair changes that. I'd love it, and I'd probably feel so powerful and euphoric with it after I complete my transition, but it's not going to happen.

Finrod - I think I put this just so the takers could have another option. Finrod is really pretty though, and I like him. Clamavi de Profundis's Battle of Sauron and Finrod Felagund was one of my introductions to the greater world of Tolkien outside the Hobbit and LOTR, so he's held a special place in my heart. He's noble and cool, and people like him. I guess I just want to be liked and seen in the way most people see him. I don't interact with others on here much, so I'm clueless about what people think of me.

Maglor - Out of all the Fëanorians, I loved (past tense bc I have no favorite now I love them all) him the most. I considered naming myself after him, but I thought it would get too confusing. Although considering you're called Nelyo, I might rethink that. Anyway, I've always admired Maglor. Probably for his musical skills and beautiful voice. I'm mediocre at best when it comes to playing instruments (although some would probably argue about my clarinet skills), and I cannot sing. My voice is low, but not as low as I'd like (it's super low rn though, I have a cold and it's at the cost of me coughing nonstop and choking on coughdrops when I fall asleep with them in my mouth). I'd love to have Maglor's beautiful voice and talent.

Sauron - Probably the one I envy most. The reason I got into the Silm. I love Phobs's art, with Sauron having red hair (I’ve seriously considered going ginger when I move out, but I don't want to grow my hair out. I'd wear a wig, but good ones are expensive and idk where to look), glowing eyes, and just an otherworldly presence. I've always imagined what it'd be like to live in a fantasy world, probably because I've been so detached from the real world and have relied on books for comfort and a place to call home or be sucked into. I never really fit in, whether it was in my body (I would love the shapeshifting maia powers) or just in society (I think I'm autistic, though I can't exactly confirm it).

Maedhros - For one thing, I'd like to be tall. I'm 5'1, and because of that I will pretty much always be misgendered or look like a middleschooler. I connect to Maedhros more closely than the other Fëanorians, except maybe Caranthir. I'm an oldest sibling, I just want to get along with people, and a couple other reasons that I can't remember because my memory is just awful.

Thranduil - The Hobbit movies introduced me to Tolkien, and I always thought he was super hot. 13 year old me did not imagine I would become obsessed with the Silm. I'm not exactly sure about this one. Maybe it was his grace, appearing as someone of a higher power, something more divine and beautiful than mankind, being one of the first elves I saw (not counting Elrond. Film Elrond is not a pleasure to look at). Also, my brother calls him "bushy brows" and makes fun of me because I think he's hot. I just wanna be hot, tall, and live in a fantasy world where I fit in. Not that I would, I have no skills and would probably just die.

#wow this is longer than i thought it'd be #time to go back to obsessively making alignment charts i guess #my alignment chart obsession is a problem and i need to stop making them but i can't #organizing things is what i love it's perfect for me

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cryptocism · 3 years

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OK so I just found your comics. I'm not the biggest DC fan but I know a bit so I get most of it. But can you please explain the og thads (1+2 and maybe any others u didn't make for ur too many Thad's au?) Im very confused and Google won't help =[ its fine if u choose not too, I'm just curious

ok yes absolutely here we go ive made some flow charts with visual cues so hopefully this AU will make more sense. consider this the masterpost:

Within DC canon: Barry Allen is Bart's grandfather on his fathers side, President Thaddeus Thawne is Bart's grandfather on his mothers side. After some failed attempts to get Bart to join the Thawne side of the family in all their evildoing, President Thawne created a clone of Bart, tweaked the genes a lil bit, and then named that clone after himself.

Thad Thawne the Second/Inertia is the first clone of Bart to ever be made, and also the one who appears in the pages of Impulse 1998.

Where the Too Many Thad's AU diverges from canon is by deciding that the Inertia who appears after the events of Impulse #65, (causing various random acts of evil before being revenge-murdered in The Flash #760,) was in fact a different person altogether and an entirely separate clone.

This is all the stuff that's been added with the AU:

Three and Four (Thaddeus' the Third and Fourth) were created as backup clones in the event that Thad II botched his mission. (which he did, after he ran off into the speedforce after the events of Mercury Falling and CRAYDL presumed him dead)

The whole "backup clones" concept makes for a nice explanation as to why Thad/Inertia's motivations and behaviors don't align with where he actually left off. Also as an explanation for why Thad didn't know that there even were backup clones: the only reason Three and Four would need to be woken up is in the event of Thad's death. He wouldn't have needed to know.

Where this whole AU goes uhhh off the rails is that after Four gets revenge-murdered, Three proceeds with the plan: continue making more clones. (the idea being "Inertia" is just this terminator-like figure in Bart's life who always comes back no matter how many times he dies)

Unbeknownst to Three, CRAYDL was messing with the cloning equipment long beforehand when they secretly created Eight and Nine, so the whole process is unstable as hell and results in Five - who has to be sprung from stasis early to deal with some Rapid Aging issues, and Six - who seems pretty gung ho about the whole "Inertia" thing until he tries to fight the Teen Titans and gets his shit rocked big time. (this ties into canon in issues #98-100 of Teen Titans, wherein a new Inertia shows up but is never explained lmao)

Afterwards, Six starts focusing instead on timeline manipulation rather than anything to do with President Thawne, Inertia, or Impulse. He also does some Weird Science with the speedforce and basically controls a small facet of the speedforce by binding it to a physical form (this is Seven).

Eight and Nine are the only clones who experienced regular aging and a semi-regular childhood. CRAYDL didn't raise them with an Allen/Thawne Family Obsession, and gave them each their own names so they could forge their own identities outside of being a clone.

Once Three finds out about them that all goes out the window though; he downloads CRAYDL's memories of Eight and Nine and puts those memories on a hard drive, which he keeps as leverage so that they do what he says. (it's a big ol YIKES of a situation)

Actually I guess this means Eight and Nine would be chronologically the 4th and 5th clones of Bart that were made, since they technically were created before Five and Six. But this is confusing enough so I'm going to stop there lmao

#asks #anonymous #too many thads au #the fact that thad is the first clone but is named ''the second'' has destroyed any hope i couldve had of this being simple and easy #so fuck it eight and nine are technically older than five and six this is just HOW IT IS

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virghogh · 3 years

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NCT Dream Birth Charts x Hexaco Results Analysis pt. 1

recently NCT Dream were on a new reality show called Mental Training Camp where they are doing a variety of activities and all of their behavior and interactions are being analyzed by professional psychologists.

ofc my virgo sun mercury ass was thrilled and I had their birth charts pulled up the whole time to cross reference.

I wanted to share some of my personal thoughts on how the 2 might connect!

part 1 // part 2 // part 3

**key: in the hexaco charts the blue represents the Dreamies, the orange is an average result of 300 college students who took the same test**

Mark - “Workaholic Leader”

✨leo sun // aries moon // cancer mercury // virgo venus // scorpio mars✨

they described him as a workaholic leader but quickly added that if he’s not now, he has potential to be in the future, although it seemed they all agreed he has workaholic spirit now

this immediately made sense to me when you look at his chart i mean he’s being driven by a fire sun and moon and a scorpio mars (used to be ruled by mars) and virgo venus both of which are signs that have strong work ethics

the reason I like that they mentioned he could grow into it is because he’s still young and I agree that his placements could become more serious about work and life as he gets older, I think his leo sun/aries moon combo gives him very youthful energy but they’re still very driven signs

mark agreed that even throughout his trainee years when he was still very young, he was always practicing and was always called a workaholic. I see this in the intense drive, work ethic and perfectionism of virgo and scorpio but shining through with the warmth of his sun and moon

lets talk about this hexaco chart, what sticks out the most is Mark’s level of conscientiousness! (its so high like what even-) Conscientious people are careful, precise, detail oriented and in general care about doing their tasks well. I think this is directly connected to his scorpio mars! I always say that no matter what is in a chart, having a scorpio in big 6 will always have a strong influence and with a virgo venus, even though venus is considered a love planet it is also our value system, how we discern what is worthy and unworthy for us, and having virgo there makes him very practical. (as I mentioned though I think all of his placements together reflect a very driven person) (I also think mark is lucky to have a fire moon because if he had a water or earth I think his obsession and perfectionism of scorpio and virgo would make him d*pressed or too hard on himself)

his virgo venus could even be why when they did the bag check they saw he’s quite “frugal” or practical and minimalist in the things he carries around. When you think about Venus, I mentioned it’s our values it’s also our aesthetics and it rules Taurus a materialistic sign, having virgo there gives me the impression of someone who is practical with their belongings, as we saw.

We’ll see later in the post that there are a few Hexaco charts that I felt were a little unexpected but Marks imo was sooo spot on with his placements. With a fire sun and moon he’s very warm and open and has firey emotions. he’s not afraid to show them or be reactive and responsive (emotionality)! I think his honesty-humility reflects this too, he’s not too overly or underly honest, he’s just straightforward what you see is what you get and he answers in such a way too. His emotionality reflects the cancer mercury, the rashness of aries moon, and sensitivity of scorpio mars.

tdlr; the human embodiment of driven, focused and hard working when it comes to his craft, but he loves to have fun in his outside life, and is practical in his inside life <3 his hexaco and birth chart align nicely

Jeno - “A scholar who gets hurt easily”

✨taurus sun // sagittarius moon // aries mercury // aries venus // taurus mars✨

so right off the bat I’m very curious where the scholar part comes in ?? They didn’t really reference it again in that way but I’m assuming they mean he’s very diplomatic? Defcon rephrased it as “you get miffed but well-mannered”

a recurring comment was that he gets annoyed easily but doesn’t show it, I thought that was really funny because I feel like it reflects his aries influence well; being a little hot-headed but he has the patience of his taurus sun and mars to filter it :’)

they talked a lot about how he gets hurt easily and mark even shared a cute lil story that practically had me on the floor because i just think it shows his taurus sooooo much I’d really love to have his house placements one day I’m really curious where his taurus is

if you didn’t see the episode basically mark said one time Jeno was passing some seniors in a building and said hi but they didn’t say hi back ): and just ignored him. Mark said Jeno was really hurt by that and went on about it for a long time saying stuff like “I’m sure they saw me” )): but he never expressed/acted on that hurt. taurus is represented by the bull so they do have a fierce side to them but imo i think taurus can be a really gentle/relaxed sign too; taurus mars is a slow to be angry slow to react placement, and one of the things taurus is well-known for is being fixed, stubborn, holding grudges which explains why that moment hurt and he held on to it. Jeno even agreed he tends to hold in a lot of his feelings and remembers little things that hurt him for a long time!

speaking of his taurus... they had a whole baseball analogy for the group saying that Jeno is a strong catcher, you can have a good pitcher but without a strong catcher the team would fall apart. They also mentioned a lot about Jeno not being in the spotlight, he doesn’t stand out, but he silently strengthens the team. And if that isn’t the most taurus description you’ve ever heard.,,,

I’ve been talking about his taurus a lot but at one point they said Jeno has a strong perfectionist side but he’s also very flexible and it’s difficult to have both. I personally see this a lot in his Sag moon (mutable) in contrast to his taurus placements (fixed). Sag moon to me always seem happy go lucky, if emotions come they go quickly too, mutable gives him that flexibility because they just like when things can change freely. It’s ruled by jupiter and I feel a common theme with sag in big 6 is it’s easy for people to be drawn to their jupiter qualities. They give the same freedom they crave, they can be very easy going and positive. Similar to mark, I also think it helps Jeno to have this moon sign over another!

as for the hexaco, I’ll be honest the level of introvertness/shyness was a little surprising from an astrology stand point. When we see Jeno in all the NCT content I feel like it’s obvious he is on the shy side but if I was looking at only his chart, I don’t think I was expect it to be to the extent of the hexaco chart! (plss i need his birth time) in the same thread, his emotionality is really low and I can’t say I’m surprised from an astrology view😅 it’s not that he’s not compassionate or anything because he does care a lot about not upsetting people, but as we saw he is not very reactive and receptive emotionally ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ his openness is low too which fits what we’ve talked about above about his lack of reaction/expression of emotions, I feel like sag moons also don’t dwell especially with no water placements.

The honesty and humility makes a lot of sense to me because i feel like taurus, aries and sag(!) are very righteous signs too! They care about integrity, they certainly might have their own idea of what is truth,.. but whatever it is, they believe in it!

last note I want to make is on the whole “jeno isn’t funny” bit since they mentioned it. He said it hurt his ego when they first started the joke but it’s been going on for so long that I think he adapted to being able to take it as just that, a joke! It’s also funny to me that it started in the first place because earth signs are often called boring (it’s okay I’m an earth sign too lol) and I also have sag influence and I know people find me quite funny but I never try to be funny and it usually comes after my earth walls are down with close friends.

tdlr; doesn’t ask or need spot light, gets annoyed easily but it doesn’t last, when something does hurt he remembers, slow or unlikely to be reactive and responsive, positive, comfort creature, loyal🥺

Chenle - “Friendly Guardian”

✨Sagittarius sun // Aquarius moon // scorpio mercury // scorpio venus // aquarius mars✨

there is something about chenle’s personality that I’ve always loved, he comes off as very warm, care-free, curious, friendly, caring. I like the personality title they gave him because I think it sums him up well. The members had all laughed when they saw it and enthusiastically agreed. I also love his hexaco chart and think it reflects him really well, with most of it being just outside of the average :’) as far as how it reflects his birth chart, let’s get into it

I do want to disclaim that Chenle was born on the sag/scorpio cusp and to be a sag he would have had to be born after 3pm (!) but I think we would all agree he’s definitely a sagittarius sun anyways

Before this show when I watch nct dream content it always fascinated me how easy going chenle was in chaotic situations, he never seems too demanding or controlling, and sometimes i wondered if he was holding back for the cameras and was actually really frustrated but based off the hexaco it seems like he is actually just that agreeable, from looking at just his chart I don’t know if I would have guessed his agreeableness was that far. I know sag suns can be very easy going and aquarius is a more chilled sign but he has 2 aquarius and 2 scorpio placements they’re both fixed signs and quite like to be in control😅 (can we get a birth time pls)

One argument could be the combination of sag sun with aquarius moon, since we have to look at all of it together. it does give me the impression of someone more easy-going possibly because there is the comfort of confidence! I feel like sag sun/aqua moon + mars would give someone a high opinion of themself (go chenle). this combination could create someone who is easy going because they don’t dwell and aren’t emotionally fueled nor do they fret over people that are. I’d say easy-going or maybe even just cool headed? He’s always laughing things off too, showing he doesn’t take himself too seriously!

Speaking of taking things seriously, I think we can see this in the conscientious part of the hexaco, it was the lowest and I think it can be explained by what I mentioned above. It’s not that he isn’t driven or doesn’t work hard, he’s a full time idol they all work hard but I think it represents that work isn’t the focus of his life but rather people, connection, community, and just being happy is?

they talked about how Chenle is the type of person that you meet and already feel like you’re friends. He could be the youngest in the room and talk down to you and you wouldn’t even think twice. This is huuuuge aquarius energy! I remember one of the first things I learned about aquarius was that they make friends everywhere. They talk to a stranger on the street for directions and next thing you know they’re “friends”

I also want to add that they mention he’s friendly but he gives off “big brother vibes” i feel like we’ve all seen that in other nct content too and would agree. This is interesting to me because sag and aquarius is not the same kind of friendliness as we see with marks leo sun aries moon. Leo and aries are “younger” signs, whereas aquas and sagittarius are towards the end of the signs, they’re considered “mature” signs which I feel contributes to chenle’s “big brother” energy. He has that aqua/sag energy where he seems really sure of himself, and wise and people look up to that.

I want to talk about his scorpio placements real quick because even though I just made a case for how open and easy-going he is, I’m still confused about how the scorpio fits into all of this. scorpio isn’t known to be one to be super open, agreeable or extroverted. I personally see his scorpio come out a lot in his realtionships. you can tell he cares deeply for his members and yes his aqua makes him get along with everyone but I feel like with the dream members we see that scorpio possessiveness and jealousy come out more. Lastly, I do want to add a little mystery to this, although his openness is high and it’s clear he is a very authentic person,,.. I definitely would not call him an open book👀

Chenle wasn’t able to be in the recording of this show unfortunately so all we got was a brief description of his hexaco chart and we won’t get any further analyses ):

although I do agree that his hexaco chart reflects how he comes off in shows, I don’t think it completely reflects his chart so I’m going to say the house placements would help create a better picture!

tdlr; fun and realtionships are a priority, he’s comfortable and confident in himself and people are drawn to that, v friendly😌but he has secrets👀

feedback, thoughts and clarifying questions are always welcome!

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artsy0wl · 3 years

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Maul: A Broken Evil Retrospective

On a Star Wars Amino I’m in, I had made an introspective on why I feel that Maul, while he is a villain is not whole heartedly evil, but broken. I took from said Amino post, with a few needed edit tweaks.

Chaotic Evil

Of course given the fact he was a Sith and some of the decisions he’s made, I don’t completely want to negate that in this discussion. If we were to use the alignment chart (lawful good, true neutral, chaotic evil, etc), he would probably fit best in Neutral Evil. From my understanding, Maul would fit Neutral Evil as a lot if what he does has to do with benefiting himself. Even if that means using allies (i.e. Ezra initially) and potentially betraying them (i.e. blinding Kanan once the Inquisitors were dealt with). He’ll follow things as he needs and can be calculating when he needs (like his take over of Mandalore). He’s not spontaneous enough or lacks enough restraint to be Chaotic Evil (like the Joker for instance), nor is he as calculating and “lawful” to be Lawful Evil (like say Thrawn and/or Palpatine). With that said, I’d agree that Maul has a darkness/evil in him considering all of the things he’s done. Obviously, he’s not winning any hero points by killing people like Qui Gon and Satine or blinding and attempting to kill Kanan.

Onto why I feel he’s broken.

Palpatine: Taken From a Young Age and Molded into what Sidious Wanted

Whether it be Talzin offering Maul as a child in Canon or his mother giving Palpatine Maul as a baby in Legends (Darth Plagueis), Maul was caught in a situation that he really didn’t have much control over. Granted, his life may not have been much better on Dathomir, given how the Nightsisters used their male counterparts, but there’s no telling what kind of life he could have had, had he not been handed over to Palpatine. Maul was molded into a weapon as Darth Sidious’ apprentice. And Maul spent most of his younger years being molded into what Sidious wants. Only to be “cast aside” when he is presumed dead. With Sidious being his only form of human contact/interaction, it’s fair to say that Maul feels a level of rejection/abandonment by the only person he had a bond with.

However, rather than having a level of depression because of it, he’s angry about it. For him that seems to be a common response, along with hatred and arrogance (the latter of which was used to explain how he survived the Phantom Menace). Sidious created a weapon out of Maul. And with that, a character with no real coping mechanism or knowing how to let things go.

A lot of, if not all of, Maul’s issues can be linked back to Sidious in some way. Sidious isn’t exactly Mentor of the Year material. Especially with Maul. Though that could be chopped up to him being a Sith and very manipulative. He wasn’t the kindest person to the Zabrak pre or post Phantom Menace (both in canon and Legends). Either way, a lot of Maul’s issues are a direct result of Palpatine’s involvement in his life.

If it weren’t for Sidious, Maul would have a normal life (or whatever that would equate to on Dathomir). He would have had his family, would have been more level headed and maybe less cocky, and he wouldn’t have enraged abandonment issues. The amount of grief, trauma, and hatred would be vastly different

Family: He Lost a Brother and a Mother

Let’s be real, thanks to Sidious, Maul’s lost a brother and a mother (two brothers when you count Feral, though he never got to meet him). By the time Savage came around in Clone Wars, we got to see Maul sort of build his character more than say the Phantom Menace (the novels did too, but I can’t say that everyone’s read them). We also get to see Maul exhibit more emotion where, again, the movie lacks as well as the introduction of his family, Mother Talzin, Feral, and Savage. And while Maul may not have been what you’d call an “affectionate” brother, he does care for Savage to the best of his ability.

Their deaths still haunted him years after the events of the Prequel Trilogy and Clone Wars. These deaths stuck with him psychologically to the point that he is still effected by it in Rebels. Which in turn, may have contributed some to him wanting Ezra as an apprentice (among other factors).

Torture After Loss

In Son of Dathomir after Maul tries to get back at Sidious, he is captured after his last battle with Sidious in Clone Wars (season 5). It starts off with Maul being interrogated and tortured by Sidious. He makes it through without faltering and escapes with the help of the Shadow Collective. That being said, we never really get to see where his mindset is. During Son of Dathomir, he gets a lot done, capturing Dooku and Grievous (taunting Sidious and working with Dooku to fight Obi Wan and a few other Jedi before escaping). However, we don’t get to see the mental toll Savage’s death here. Though with everything going on, I guess there wasn’t time.

Now the reason I bring this up, is because part of me felt like I should and the timing. Prior to Son of Dathomir, Maul had recently lost Savage. At the end, he loses his mother. The torture and the scheming in between shows how he didn’t catch a break. And while he was able to stay strong when he had to, they never really explored how the torture effected him, which one would think he would have been.

Obsession, Insanity, Arrogance: Maul’s Faults

I do feel like I address this point. I’ve already kind of touched on his anger and arrogance (synonymously with cockiness). While training Maul, Sidious didn’t consider how arrogant he had let the Zabrak become (according to Darth Plagueis, the novel). This has Maul’s Achilles Heel since the Phantom Menace. While having a healthy dose of pride never hurt anyone, a healthy dose, Maul dose not possess.

His obsession with getting Obi Wan and Sidious is another issue. This really only pops up after his apparent death in Phantom Menace. Because after that point, Maul finds out that he was replaced by Sidious (with Dooku) and that he was bested by a mere Padawan (Obi Wan). I feel like this obsessive tendency is a combination of his feelings of abandonment and having his ego damaged.

And of course, I feel like Maul’s roughly decade long battle with insanity really didn’t help his psyche. While his sanity was restored thanks to Mother Talzin and Savage, I do feel like that’s caused more harm than good. Something like that had to feel draining after getting his sanity restored. He was sitting on a trash planet and on his own. Along with not having anything from the waist down and forced to manage with what he had. Hatred may have helped keep him alive, but his psyche during those ten years didn’t.

He has a lot of internal conflict in an emotional and mental sense. Unfortunately, these negative emotions, obsession and pride especially, cause him more harm than good.

The Ezra Bond: Feeling a Need to Replicate a Connection, Even if He Approaches it Incorrectly

By the time Rebels rolls around, Maul is older and calmer (though still proud). Obviously, he still wants to get back at the Empire for what they (more specifically Sidious) did to him. And at first, Ezra seemed like someone that he could use. This is an element that is prevalent, however, not the only aspect of their relationship.

According to Sam Witwer, Maul’s VA, Maul did have a (platonic) fondness for Ezra. And on top of wanting to make Ezra his apprentice, Maul wanted to emulate a sense of brotherhood between him and Ezra. For example, his phrase in Visions and Voices when Maul says “...We can walk that path together. As friends. As brothers.” How he said it shows how he does miss Savage and wants that family back.

That being said, how he approached this connection could be seen as manipulative and more than likely one sided. Sure, over the course of Twilight of the Apprentice, Ezra grows on Maul, to the point where Maul wants to make him his apprentice and has an appreciation for Ezra. However, his pride and lack of planning cause a rift between them and there was a lot of mistrust on Ezra’s part, not that one could blame him.

Subsequent episodes show that Maul is hellbent on making Ezra his apprentice through any means possible.

Maul lost Savage and Talzin, and Ezra was one of the first few people to trust him in years. I think it’s safe to say that, in Maul’s mind, Ezra gave him a sense of belonging or connection.

Maul’s need for a connection could be interpreted as him trying to find something good in life. However, manipulative tendencies and how he was brought up, hinder him doing that in a healthy and positive way. With Savage, he didn’t need to do anything as they both had a similar plan when they met (Savage being indoctrinated into the ways of the Sith). But subsequent relationships (i.e. Ezra), Maul is at a bit of a disadvantage emotionally and morally.

Sure, he could relate to Ezra since they both lost people they care for because of the Empire (and by extent Sidious), but manipulation and harming Ezra’s allies hinder a smoother connection. Even if a force bond was eventually made. Ezra, arguably, could have been what he needed for what he wanted and a possible change/redemption/blank slate only for things not to entirely go as plan.

Could Maul Have Something Along the Lines of PTSD?

Now, I could do a mini theory about this as I’ve speculated that with another character before. It’d be an interesting way to look at Maul’s psychology. It’s one last little avenue I thought I’d address before closing this post out. Of course, it’s worth noting that I am not a Psychology major (as interesting as psychology is). I have, however, done some research.

I do believe that Maul, to some degree, may have PTSD. But instead of exhibiting panic/anxiety, depression or easily startled, Maul has more aggressive tendencies and is easy to anger. He still lives with the trauma of the death of his brother (and mother) and flashbacks of that and other events in his life, I’m sure he’d be effected by.

Conclusion

In conclusion, while I certainly think that Maul is no hero, his life experiences certainly effected what kind of person he became. Being raised as a weapon, abandoned, and tortured would bring any normal person way down. And because that was all Maul knew, I don’t think that entirely means he’s evil. Rather, he’s a character who’s been used and abused to the point that he’s mentally and psychologically broken. Unfortunately, that effects his life in ways that make him arrogant, hateful and obsessive. And when he tries to build bonds later in life, he doesn’t know how to in a way that, while laced in trauma, has manipulative and one sided undertones.

That being said, I feel like I should round out this introspective with a little positive. While he’s definitely been through a lot, Maul is pretty resilient all things considered. He’s cheated death and managed to live through a lot of abuse. The fact that he could keep bouncing back shows just hoe resilient and determined the character is.

#Darth Maul #Star Wars #Rebels #Clone Wars #Movies #Retrospective #Theory #Speculation #Discussion #PTSD?#Chaotic Evil #Maul #Star Wars Rebels #Star Wars Clone Wars #Zabrak #Prequel Trilogy

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liam-93-productions · 5 years

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Liam Payne is on the cover of Esquire Middle East's June 2019 issue

The One Direction star was photographed on a rainy day in London

During the shoot, Payne opens up about the media's obsession with romance rumours

"Most of what you read online about me is straight BS" says Payne

It’s raining in West London. Every weather man, woman, and app had forecast that sunshine would be on the agenda for the day. But no. It’s raining. So, we’re stuck inside instead.

Alternating between balancing on a set of dumbbells (...) Liam Payne doesn’t seem to mind all that much about the weather. He’s used to plans changing pretty quickly.

“I’ve found in my life at the moment, because of the way things have happened, that everything’s kind of fast-forwarded,” says Payne, his dark eyes lighting up like those of a prospector that’s just panned a nugget of gold, “everything has fast-forwarded.”

Payne’s lived pretty much his entire life on fast-forward. He had his first X-Factortelevision appearance at the age of fourteen. He embarked on his first world tour with a little band named One Direction—you might have heard of them—only four years later. The band sold more than 50 million albums worldwide, and had four albums debut at number one in the US charts. (...)

As Payne ambles about the studio, it’s hard not to notice that even the tattoo on his forearm bears a striking resemblance to the fast-forward button on a television remote. Or a Spotify skip button.

Having recently performed alongside Rita Ora at the Global Teacher Prize concert in Dubai, Payne looks healthy and tanned, kissed by the sun even though his visit to the region was greeted by weather not dissimilar to today’s overcast conditions. “I think the weather’s just following me around at the minute,” he says with a laugh as abrupt as the first half of a hiccup. “There’s an air of something almost Vegas-y about Dubai,” adds Payne, “everything’s a little bit of a show there.”

Payne is no stranger to bit of a show. As well as having spent the better part of a decade touring the world with One Direction (the band is currently on a definitely indefinite hiatus) Payne helped break a concert attendance record in the Middle East last year by performing in front of 110,000 people. “I didn’t eat anything at dinner beforehand because I was thinking no-one’s going to turn up,” he admits.

To make Liam Payne nervous certainly takes some doing. Back in 2009—when ambitions of winning X-Factor as a solo performer were still very much at the forefront of his mind—Payne sang in front of over 29,000 fans as part of the pre-match entertainment of a game between his local football team Wolverhampton Wanderers and Manchester United. A pretty heady experience for a boy not yet old enough to drive a car.

Now 25, Payne knew from an early age that he could “hold a tune”. What it took him longer to realise was that others couldn’t. “I think I thought it was just a normal thing that people could get on with,” he says with a shrug. That may well have been the case when it came to his local theatre group, but when considering most of the “normal things”that people “get on with”, we’d hazard a guess that the majority don’t involve amassing over two billion streams on Spotify.

But that’s Liam Payne for you: unassuming, self-effacing, and—for the most part—a guy who seems just genuinely happy to be here. It’s easy to forget when deliberating the merits of Linkin Park’s nu-metal masterpiece ‘Meteora’ with Payne that his face was once plastered on the bedroom walls of millions of tweens the world over.

Payne’s achieved extraordinary success in the quarter of a century he’s exhausted so far. So much so that you’d expect the moment that sparked off his passion for music to be equally spectacular. A real spontaneous Kevin Bacon dancing-in-an-abandoned-warehouse sort of epiphany. The reality is that it wasn’t romantic or sexy in the slightest. It was karaoke. “I used to go out to Cornwall and see my grandad and we’d always go to this karaoke bar and we’d sing a load of different stuff,” says Payne.

What sort of “stuff” does a future pop-star sing in a karaoke bar in a small town on the west coast of the UK? Well, the same oeuvre that you or I are have probably crooned into a microphone at midnight at Lucky Voice: ‘Angels’ by Robbie Williams.

While Payne isn’t ashamed to admit that he was listening to Williams pretty much 24/7 as a youngster (“No, I really was”), one of the first CDs he bought with his own money was an Eminem record. Growing up with both Robbie Williams and Marshall Mathers as his idols, he places his own sound as “somewhere in-between the two”.

A little bit Slim Shady and a little bit Rock DJ, that intersection of pop and rap is reflected in Payne’s solo career so far. His debut single, the catchy-as-the-plague earworm ‘Strip That Down’, featured Migos alum Quavo and went on to be certified platinum in both the US and the UK. The title track of his First Time EP also saw Payne join forces with rapper French Montana. Payne’s certainly not the first popstar to align themselves with a more urban sound in an attempt to appeal to an older demographic. Nor will he be the last. The transition from squeaky-clean boyband member to fullyfledged solo artist is, after all, anything but easy. To use a Take That comparison: for every one Robbie Williams, there are a hundred Mark Owens.

When it comes to One Direction, it’s still a bit too soon to tell who the Robbies and the Marks of the bunch are going to be. “When we did the band stuff it was very—not exactly scripted—but let’s just say you kind of knew your audience very well,” says Payne. “We’d usually sell a tour out before we’d even done an album. And then they [the record producers] would go: ‘Right, you’re doing stadiums’. And then you’d go: ‘Okay, so we need longer choruses—the kind of songs that people can chant in a stadium’. You had to kind of write around the tour.”

If that process sounds a bit paint-by-numbers, that’s because—by Payne’s own admission—it was. “It’s a very backwards way to do it,” he admits, “obviously people don’t really tend to write like that. But we just had no time, so it was like: ‘Quick! We need another hit and another and another!’ It was actually easier to write in that scenario because there were so many hoops you had to jump through. It wouldn’t necessarily be my choice of music now—it wasn’t something that I would listen to—but I just knew how to make it, if that makes sense?”

Going from such a canned bop formula to a world of complete creative freedom is a daunting prospect for anyone looking to make it as a solo act. But that was far from the only challenge Payne faced. Streaming services like Spotify and Apple Music have drastically altered the music industry since the phone-to-vote days that launched One Direction. “The way that the industry kind of works now is kind of a difficult one because of the way albums are and the introduction of Spotify,” says Payne. “When I was in the band, Spotify wasn’t really a thing for us, we didn’t really care. We used to sell a lot of albums and physical copies, so it was different for us. As I got more into the solo stuff it was a kind of, like, a bit f**king confusing.”

All you need to do is look at the chains that Payne draped around his neck during the releases of a series of sophomore singles to see a man adopting a kabuki mask that didn’t quite fit. A man who was, in his words, a bit f**king confused. “‘Strip That Down’ was amazing and I was really happy with the success of it—but it didn’t necessarily paint the right picture of me and who I actually am,” he says, “I always found, to start off with, that with a lot of the chains and the clothes and the fashion, I was kind of hiding behind something. We did a billion streams for ‘Strip That Down’ but it still all gets a bit heady and at a certain point you’re like: ‘what the f**k am I doing here?’ It’s a bit like being stuck out in deep water and you’re just going ‘well, it would be really nice to get back now.’”

Payne might still be far from the shore, but he seems to be treading water at a more comfortable pace nowadays. “It took me a long to get my head around it,” he says (...)

And where is Liam Payne now? Well, he’s sat in front of me looking comparatively anxiety-free: comfortable and relaxed in a plain black tee and pair of tailored HUGO trousers. “My style and my fashion sense are all quite laid back now because that’s kind of the way I am as well. I don’t feel the need to hide behind the clothes anymore. I feel I can finally be who I am and enjoy myself.”

The last few years have witnessed a real boy-to-man transition for the ex-boy band squaddie. A coming-of-age moment came when he arrived at Frank Sinatra’s house in Palm Springs to record his part of ‘For You’ with Rita Ora. A crooning, finger-snapping, rather embarrassingly-waist-coated rendition of ‘Fly Me to The Moon’ was what Payne sang to get through his first ever X-Factor audition. Walking into Old Blue Eyes’ home, for Payne, came with the realisation that he’d “made that complete full-circle journey”.

Suffice it to say there’s no turning around for Payne in that journey when it comes to the fame front; he’s well in the thickets of the tabloid jungle. Headlines about who’s “breaking silence on romance rumours” with the popstar are a daily occurrence in the British papers. So too are accompanying photographs of his face. Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Payne has, after all, got a rather nice face. The latest use of which has seen it become the face of Hugo Boss’s latest HUGO menswear line.

“To be honest, they called me and it just seemed to make a lot of sense at the time. It was a direction that I knew I’d love to go down,” says Payne on how his partnership with the brand first came about. “It’s very rare that a big company like Hugo Bosscomes around asking for you to be the face of it. It’s a bit of a dream come true actually.”

Previous Hugo Boss ambassadors include the likes of Chris Hemsworth, Jamie Dornan and Gerard Butler. Handsome faces. Familiar faces. Faces that are now forever immortalised in the public conscience. A fact that Payne is all-too conscious of himself. “I was looking through the different people that they’ve had on their roster over the years and they’re all people that I look up to,” says Payne, “So, I’m obviously quite excited but it’s also a bit daunting because these things,” he spreads his arms in a gesture that aptly sums up the rigmarole of press junkets and interviews, “are literally around for forever now.”

Moving from location to location and outfit to outfit, it becomes evident that dressing to hide who he is, is no longer on Payne’s agenda. As he’s grown (both figuratively and literally) in the public eye, and Payne’s now come to accept the lane he’s in. “I’ve become more in tune with things now,” he says, “as the years go by, I think you gain a different level of confidence and find out what works for you and what doesn’t, rather than constantly trying to be something that you’re not. If that makes sense?” It does.

What makes less sense is why Payne decided to go with chains in the first place “It was quite funny at the time when everyone used to get really mad about it,” he says referencing outraged headlines like: Sleepy Liam Payne leaves a London studio wearing a HUGE gold chain. “It just didn’t really matter to me.”

What matters to Payne is when those stories affect the lives of those around him. One particular article published in the British newspaper, The Daily Mail, last year that attempted to insinuate he was romantically linked with a member of his team irked Payne so much that the usually apolitical Twitterer took to social media to criticising the newspaper.

“The difference with that story was that the people that they were putting me with have families, boyfriends, girlfriends,” explains Payne, “I go home every night and know that people write horses**t about me daily. I won’t worry about it because I know it’s f**king bulls**t. But for someone who’s never had a story written about them before? If they go home and their partner’s reading the paper going like: ‘what the f**k is this?’ It’s difficult for them to be able to explain that.” Payne’s voice ratchets up a few decibels when he says this. He uses more than a few words we’re not legally allowed to print. I can tell that he cares about this. That it needles him. That it’s not something he has to say, but rather something that he needs to say. So, I let him.“I asked for this, I get paid very handsomely to be here and it’s part of my life and I get it. It’s alright. You can write what the f**k you want about me but when it comes to other people who work with me? That is not on.”

The only way for Payne to cut through that noise is by doing the thing he knows best: making music. “Everything I do is very, very public a lot of the time. I get reported on a lot for different things. I just think there’s a certain line where I have to have my say. And that there’s only one way for me to do that—which is through my music.”

(...)

Communicating as a public figure becomes increasingly difficult when navigating the glut of information that exists online. Do a quick Google search for ‘Liam Payne’ and you’ll be greeted by countless fan sites with a never-ending litany of “facts” about the man. Facts like:

“Liam Payne prefers showers over baths” “Liam Payne sleeps naked” “Liam Payne has a phobia of spoons”

While Payne is quick to assure me that most of what you’ll read online is straight B.S., one fact did keep cropping up again and again. And I mean, c’mon, I couldn’t not ask him about the spoons, could I?

“Yeah, I did have a fear of spoons,” he groans with the weariness of a man who’s been pelted with countless pieces of cutlery, “but it wasn’t so much a fear as something that’s now turned into a thing because of the internet. I was forced in detention once to wash up dirty plates and spoons and I think it just put me off looking at how dirty some of these spoons came back. But people used to throw spoons at me in concerts! I should have said I had a fear of pillows—that would have been comfier.”

All things considered, a fear of spoons is a fairly harmless rumour to spread. But rumours rarely ever are. Most are vicious; spreading like wildfire and burning all of those they touch. “I’ve been dead,” says Payne abruptly. “People I love have been dead.”

The non-stop 24-hour nature of the news cycles can be overwhelming to read, let alone to be involved in via the announcement of your own death. “You have to learn fast and we [One Direction] had to grow up pretty quick in the circumstances that we were under or else you kind of f**k it a little bit,” he says. If you’ve ever seen clips of The Beatles or BTS getting mobbed on the streets, you know the kind of hysteria that can ensue when boyband members are seen out in public.

“I don’t think I struggle in the sense of what you would naturally think of when I’m walking down the street with every person stopping me,” says Payne, “I mean, it happens sometimes but it’s mainly mentally where you struggle with it. It’s the getting ready and always knowing that you might be photographed.” From elaborate airport fits to the loungewear he puts on to pick up a pint of semiskimmed milk from the shop down the road, there’s never a moment where Payne and his clothing aren’t in danger of becoming front page news.

One of the ways that Payne combats that simmering anxiety is by going for a run at 5am every morning. It’s probably why he’s been able to maintain his sanity so far. And probably why he’s in—as evidenced by his numerous topless Instagram photos—such great nick.

“I love it. I get myself outside and into the day and get past that fear of ‘what if this happens?’ or ‘what if that happens?’. Because, for a long time, I became—what’s the word?” says Payne, gesticulating wildly as if he’ll catch the phrase careening around his head like a runaway wasp, “there’s a word for this condition where you stay inside and never leave, it’s in Ocean’s Twelve…”

I saw Ocean’s Twelve last week. The word he’s looking for is agoraphobia.

“Yeah, that’s it. I developed a bit of agoraphobia. I would never leave the house. And I do sometimes suffer with it a bit in the sense that I’ll get days where I just don’t want to leave my house. Even if it’s just going to the shop. I’d be going i to order a coffee at Starbucks and I would sweat because I wouldn’t know whether I was doing the right thing or not. I would be thinking: ‘f**k, I don’t want to be here’.”

I worry for a moment whether Payne is feeling that same feeling today but decide instead to take likely misplaced solace that my innate knowledge of the Ocean’s film franchise has won him over. “I even used to have a really bad problem with going to petrol stations and paying for petrol. I can feel it now—it was like this horrible anxiety where I’d be sweating buckets in the car thinking ‘I don’t want to do this’.”

Many people suffer from moments of panic and instances where we feel crushed by the weight of the world’s expectations and Payne is all-too aware that his specific anxieties stem from a position of privilege. “Unfortunately, it does happen to everybody in this industry,” he says, “I think at a certain point you just have to get over it as quickly as you can.”

There we are once again: back to doing things quickly. Back to being on fast-forward. Back to doing countless interviews in specifically allotted time slots. Back to that constant pressure where “everything happens a little bit quicker in my world than it does in everyone else’s”.

Everything might be happening a hell of a lot quicker for Liam Payne than me, but I’m still interested to know: what’s next for the man? What does he want to achieve in the not-yet fast-forwarded future? “I’m hoping for something a lot more than what I’ve done so far, if that makes sense?” Having listened to Payne’s solo discography in preparation for this interview, it really does.

Sure, Payne’s produced a spate of bonafide bangers—songs that will have you singing along as you whip down Emirates Road—but they’re also songs that are, for the most part, still formulaic. They’re catchy, glossily well-produced, yet contain something of an air of inauthenticity about them.

And, having met Payne, I can’t help but feel they seem at odds with his unabashedly authentic self. As he tells me: “People can see right through that s**t and it’s difficult for you to then go and say ‘buy this record!’ if you don’t really believe in what’s going on.”

So, what does a man who’s (sort of) afraid of spoons actually believe in? Moreover, what does a man who eats ice cream with a fork want to be remembered as having believed in? “I’m obviously really happy with some of the stuff I’ve done. Like breaking world records with the band and all sorts of amazing stuff. But in the recent years, it’s been a bit topsy-turvy with me kind of finding my way. And I’d rather not be remembered for a lot of those things. I want to make a really amazing album that’s not, like,” and he air-quotes here, “important, but something that people really get into. Something that makes certain people feel a couple things. I think that would be the best thing for me. I just want to make people move, if that makes sense?”

In case you haven’t already noticed, that question (‘if that makes sense?”) is practically punctuation to Payne. It’s a caveat that ends many of his statements; an interrogation of his own beliefs and a moment where his PR armour reveals its chinks and offers a glimpse of the man beneath the surface. A man that is equal parts cocksure and uncertain—a man who’s very rarely both and almost never neither.

While he might be living on fast-forward—and shows no signs of slowing anytime soon—Liam Payne, for the moment at least, might just be in the midst of the most interesting time of his life. His legacy is currently being written, awaiting the day we’ll eventually look back with a clearer idea of whether he’s a Robbie Williams or a Mark Owen. As for me, I’m just hoping that the next evolution of Liam Payne’s career is a lot more Liam Payne than the last. If that makes sense?

#liam payne #esquire middle east #liam's interview #hugo boss #30.05.2019 #long post

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gg-astrology · 5 years

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I am quite curious about this year 2019 for Seventeen. Recently, someone did the tarot readings for the boys. She said that the boys were exhausted both mentally and physically. I am quite worried indeed, since seventeen has been working really hard but the result was not as expected. Can the seventeen bomb can explode this year? If you have free time, please take a look at this *sob* Thank you so much :333>. Seventeen Debut day is 26 May 2015, at 6PM KST

Hey there!! 💕💕💕 Sorry you had to wait for so long ksdjnn but I hope I can do it for you now!! 💕💕

[Natal and Solar Return for Seventeen (2019/2020)]

Alrighty let’s start with natal:

Okay! Gemini sun babies with Scorpio Ascendant!!

Driven, hard-working, intense – physicality that’s known in Scorpio is prevalent, but on the DSC (Taurus) also talks about comforting side, homey, reassuring and nurturing that they also balance/align themselves with (planets in 7th).

The Sun/Mars/Mercury are all in Gemini (7th) all in opposition to Saturn rx in 1st – there’s a balance of maturity, trust/foundation building at the fore-front of the mind. But at the same time they do acknowledge the type of youthful, liveliness and certain restriction/maturity that Gemini brings as well.

This aspect to saturn (representing maturity or maybe even authority figures) can sometimes be a mindset of ‘what? we’re gonna talk about it/discuss it amongst ourselves’ and a kinda ?? hesitance, towards accepting things immediately if they haven’t thought it out/communicate and ‘be on the same page’ as well

Generally, even as they age (Saturn in 1st) or appear ‘older/mature’ than how they are before– there’s a strong part of them that would oppose and try to retain a youthfulness and that charming nature of Gemini in order to ‘not get jaded’ by things.

Or rather that’s what the chart would like to suggest, because there’s an energy/strong indications with those Gemini stelliums that certain things that ‘may’ seem good or logical can still be missed out if they were to sacrifice a ‘part’ of them that they may not take back (so to consider the possibilities of that as well)

Because of it’s mutable energy – they can sometimes ‘appear’ one way but also notice another. Think of it as ratios. ‘This’ much play ‘this’ much subdued. There’s genuine affection and effort in interactions, but also besides that is a vulnerability that needs to be acknowledged for as well (7th house)

There’s an association here to having fun, being able to communicate/speak freely within their mind and ‘staying true’ to who they are even if it comes across as a little bit more traditional sometimes (Taurus ruling the DC).

Besides this– they can also be active engagers in self-reflection and one-on-one evaluation of themselves. In the 7th house (in this context) they may value communication and reflecting/seeing where they can improve on alot.

Gemini as an air/mutable sign in the 7th house of reflection may often drive their strength and support from the stability of one-on-one interactions with fans (or rather, concerts or direct-communication with people without a third hand involved/barriers in that regard) the Mars (Gemini) Mercury (Gemini) and Sun (Gemini) aims for versatility, engagement and also interests from others that evoke responses from them.

It’s a playfulness to the nature but also a reliance on trust/foundation because Taurus rules the house these Gemini placements are placed in. So underneath all that teasing/playfulness, is also a deep rooted bond and loyalty that is seen/felt by both sides as well.

Alright, back to that Saturn in 1st. There’s a seriousness to their image, or what they want to construct/build it with it. The goal/idea is along the line of longevity and transformation. Scorpio rules the 1st house and thus the Saturn that falls into it may be going ‘okay so we don’t want to stay stagnant, we can only do this for so long (this concept/image) what else would we want to progress into in order to transform?’

Continuity from building on a foundation– they had a strong start, so the idea is to figure out how to continue the story line and go about it from there. Because Saturn is in retrograde (and Sagittarius) a part of the dilemma has to do with second-guessing choices/themselves but perhaps putting on a brave front in order to not let those vulnerabilities show. Another thing about it is also the idea of internationality, fame, foreign travels and engaging in different demographics (diversity) that can make them nervous.

The nervousness is amplified by that Gemini opposition– kinda like ‘can we engage with them?? will they like this?? is this too simple/not complex enough?? do we need to do more?’ – because Sagittarius is expanding on that idea of making a bigger vibration to their Gemini, and it’s also squaring their Neptune (Pisces) in 4th which also talks about ‘how will parents percieve us? family oriented? what about our families?’ things like that.

It could– come up, due to having foreign members in the team. Particularly because it may be an experienced the member might’ve shared with them which is why it’s on the mind/awareness of the issue and seeing it reflected as part of the self (they are a gemini group after all, and also placements in 7th – which can sometimes be looking at a problem and seeing if the self goes through the same situation as well/if it comes up what will you do)

This particular Pisces Neptune in 4th is also squaring the Gemini placements in 7th – dreams/hopes versus family/rootedness. Certain things have to be decided on– the youthful energy will have to be engaged in a way that talks about maturity/independence (Sagittarius Saturn in 1st) not wanting to grow up but also internal maturity and dreams/collecting goals (Gemini in 7th/Neptune in 4th) hopefully it can become a topic that they can put into their sounds– but for now, Gemini Mercury in 7th does talk about communicating in relationships, experience (finding new experience) and engaging in different interests independently as well (not about the member but about the group’s musical taste).

Let’s look at Venus– Cancer Venus in 9th opposition to Capricorn Pluto in 2nd. Travelling/going on tour or even vacation to other places can be jarring if not necessarily in order to make coins. There’s a building sense of self and self discovery from Pluto Capricorn in 2nd aspect to Virgo Moon in 10th– helping them edit, refine and work out part of their subconscious/motive/identity.

As well as it’s aspect to Neptune Pisces in 4th – inspiration, muses, feeling at home but also a tight-knit sense of ‘If I’m not with these people I wouldn’t want to be here at all’ and reclusivity in certain times (staying at the hotel) if the turbulence from Pluto (Capricorn) becomes too much (in order to regain internal balance/work shit out by themselves)

Whilst travelling definitely inspires their muse (Cancer Venus trine Pisces Neptune) there’s also intense awareness that unexpected things can happen and turbulence and appear at any time (square Capricorn Pluto/authority figures like the embassy and how Jun/Minghao couldn’t come on tour sometimes – also square Aries Uranus in 5th, performance having to adapt/erratic nature due to lack of control/wanting to do something but not being able to)

– there’s imbalance in certain external circumstances that takes ‘control’ out of their hands and can leave impressions on them (Cancer) but at the same time– they ARE a communicative and ‘what can we do about this now that we’re aware of it’ group and talk/communicate alot amongst themselves as well. So it’s kinda like a Crab?? who ducks out of it’s shell to scurry around/have fun and then it sees an incoming human and ducks back in/hides quickly in order to deal with things sometimes as well.

Phew, next is Virgo Moon square to the Sun/Mars/Mercury. Virgo Moon here is in the 10th– people know them for their detail-oriented, humbling, organized and stream-line persona. In a way the Moon here is focused on ‘team’ and ‘teamwork’ – as part of an organized micro-unit that makes up a bigger structure (Virgo – small parts that makes bigger things, focusing on the details, what they can do, what they can put their effort into, taking what is given at a bigger scope when they ‘deserve’ it)

It’s squared to their Gemini in 7th because the Virgo here may engage with the public a certain way, may be more subdued, a little more ‘see what my efforts are’ whilst Gemini in 7th wants to show itself to others around them as well– there’s a fear of disrupencies, kinda like ‘what if they misunderstood me? I have a this Gemini side to me too and i want to be open about that/be recognized for that but what if they think we’re a little– boring?’

Which is– y know, its anxiety/nervousness that comes with mutable signs but it can make things hard for the team themselves bc Virgo Moons ARE pretty hard on their effort/energy and what they’re obsessively doing/showing as well.

Whilst the hard-working Virgo Moon nature isn’t a bad thing to be seen as with the industry/community theyre in (locals) perhaps the intention isn’t aligned with what they had in mind or they may want to communicate more– communicate openly and on an interpersonal level (thank god they got instagram)

Their moon being in the 10th house (public/expression) with harsh aspects to the 4th and 7th house can often ‘sacrifice’ things (family/consistency/support, relationships/self) in order to bring this ‘forward’

Minor things to talk about: Aquarius Ceres in 3rd-- loves to communicate, contemplate, think about things. Sibling relationships (3rd house/sibling, neighbourhoods) nurturing comes from this sense of trust, progression, bond and individuality. It’s also where their pars fortunae is-- so what they are noticed for, why they seem ‘close’ and also how ‘boy next door’ (get it? cause its close to the 4th house) they seem to be

If I have to summarize this really quickly: things to look at are Gemini placements opposing that Saturn in 1st and a lot of a ‘;) we’re gonna do it anyways!’ attitude sometimes towards listening to people (in a good way, not in a bad way)

Now with the SR

Alrighty, now onto their solar return!

Moon is in 4th house in Pisces-- resting, period of recovery, self-analysis (aspect to Mercury and Sun in 8th and 7th) building back relationships and also at the apex of it all --- ‘home’

Isn’t that the song they came out with? Anyways Pisces Moon in 4th aspecting Cancer Mars in 8th -- a lot of growth coming from this period, doing a lot of relationship building, self-investigation, analysis of one’s self and balancing intuitive placements into something that can manifest/work for them in something more ‘grounded’ or ‘stable’

One thing to note is Leo MC and Pars Fortunae in 9th -- if they were to perform internationally (Pars fortunae in 9th) it could be very beneficial for them, particularly because Leo MC gives way to an impactful performance as well. Now is a fortunate time to do so, and their NN is in Cancer in 9th -- travelling could be potentially good for them if they’re looking for things to consider.

Neptune at the apex of a talent triangle between Taurus Venus (7th) and Capricorn Saturn/Pluto (3rd) points to a lot of foundation building (Taurus/Capricorn) nurture, healing, and maturity and carrying on those growth/dreams into performance, building up muses and conceptual ideas, working on regrouping and manifesting the things they want to do can be helpful in this aspect (Pisces Neptune in 5th).

Mostly it’s that Capricorn Saturn (domicile) and Pluto in 3rd -- relationships with siblings have grown to be more mature, changes are made, giving back to people and also just evaluation of long-term goals, established reputation, what they can do with that nature and how they can use it to help others as well.

Ceres in Sagittarius 2nd as well as Sagittarius Jupiter-- expansion, using resources to travel (perhaps) caring for others, listening for others. Again, this a period of recovery and absorption-- sometimes it’s kinda like, you’re kirby and you open your mouth really wide to absorb things in. But eventually you also have to release it and take care of yourself away from that as well. So it’s kinda that nature. A certain stability towards it-- mutable/water energy but that doesn’t mean they’ve lost the ‘drive’ they are well known for

In fact it’s more about working on the conceptual muse for the performance, regathering details and re-aligning what they want/need in their work. There’s certain hardships that comes with it (Chiron Aries in 5th) but also a lot of inspiration and dreams/focus towards it as well (Neptune in 5th)

If they draw inspiration from their childhood/youthfulness and combine that with their progression/how they’ve come-- seeing that manifest into a tangible piece of work can be rewarding this year considering their placements.

Uranus conjunct DC in Taurus -- considering Taurus Uranus and it’s nature, unexpected push/attraction to certain things that are less planned out or doesn’t utilize the full ‘work through’ can cut down on their effort. In another regard, if they stay ‘stagnant’ in this period for too long (earth/fixed) they may become frustrated and would have to learn how to get a co-ordinator (time management) to work with them in moving things along (stages to stages)

Aquarius IC -- movement, perhaps at the dorm. Maybe they’ve already moved, but it can talk about shifting base as well.

Oh and Taurus Uranus in 6th being in a talent triangle with Cancer Mars in 8th and Pisces Moon in 4th -- drawing from the analysis/relationships of Cancer Mars and balancing that with the intuitive/compassionate nature of Pisces Moon in 4th can help a lot with coming up with new innovative ideas, perhaps a darker or more homey concept (can u believe) but also environment/aligning their environment to be more conductive like that as well.

Not a lot to say because everything is turning out nicely for them? Compared to their natal -- their sr this year seems to be more harmonious than the usual, a lot of just chill-ness, regrouping, the only thing that should be addressed is Sagittarius Jupiter in 2nd square to Pisces Neptune in 5th -- whether or not they make it big this year (bigger than they are!) is up to them!

#seventeen natal #seventeen solar return #seventeen astrology #svt #seventeen #svt astrology #kpop astrology #lynrin99 #asks

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playboi-reads · 7 years

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Astrology, the Basics

“Wait, so i’m not just an Aries?!”

No, you’re not. In fact none of us are just one anything. So let’s dial it back to day we were born. The stars and planets in the sky aligned to convey a story completely unique to you, and thus your natal chart was born!

Our Sun sign

“Playboi, what’s a Sun Sign?”

Well, the Sun Sign is the sign everyone typically knows about themselves. It’s the sign you were born under that immediately correlates with your birthday. Meaning, “I was born in April so I’m a Taurus!” Your sun sign is the sign the Sun was in on the day of your birth. So what does the sun represent in astrology? Our vitality and ego, “who we are.” The thing about the Sun is we’re constantly growing into ourselves and our egos, constantly learning ourselves and strengths, so we’re constantly growing into our Suns. Many people write off astrology due to their inability to relate to their Sun signs when so much more goes into a person. Your Sun sign is less “who i am” and more so “who i’m becoming.” And sometimes we never fully become the poster child of our Sun signs because we grow at different rates and resonate with different things, not to mention the housing of the Sun plays a heavy role in how our “egos” will play out. Also aspects made to our Sun by other planets are most important as they shape our Sun’s characteristics, but that’s another post!

Our Moon Sign

“...okay, so I understand Sun Signs now, but what’s a moon sign?”

The moon sign in astrology is of immense importance. This is where we feel most comfortable and secure and our primal emotional reactions. As I mentioned previously, the sun is “who we’re becoming’’ while the moon can be defined as “who we always are.” Unlike the Sun who illuminates everything, the moon is a softer, dimmer light. It lights up the dark sky at night and it does the same for our personal dark sky emotionally. Simply put, the moon is our emotions. Emotions can be simply irrational and erratic, so we suppress them because throwing a hissy fit in public is not that endearing. My point being that our moons can sometimes be overlooked by others as well as our selves because the attributes of our moons are highly subconscious at times.The moon is how we were nourished, and in turn how we nourish others. It’s an extremely sentimental and personal part of our being.It’s what makes us feel safe as well as habitual patterns we carry. A balanced moon is very important as an unbalanced one can take a toll on us physically. When the needs our moon requires aren’t met, we can start to display it’s negative attributes and fall into a bit of a depression, eat less, and never leave your bed. Or perhaps become more aggressive and angry depending on your moon sign. It’s also equally important to understand that others around us have different moon placements then us natally. Everyone requires different things to feel emotionally secure, sometimes we’re harder on others because their love languages differ from our own.

Our Mercury Sign

“What does Mercury have to do with anything?”

Well, everything. Mercury rules over the mind, how we think, how fast we think, how we learn, our speech, and even our style of writing. He’s the fastest moving planet in the solar system so it’s fitting that he rules the nervous system. The poor guy gets glossed over a lot until he turns retrograde and everyone starts running around like chickens missing their heads because that’s when we notice most how strong Mercury’s influence is on our lives. Mercury is not an emotional planet but more so an intellectual one. It’s how we asses things and use logic before we act, if we use logic before we act.

Our Venus Sign

“I KNOW THIS ONE...LOVE RIGHT?”

You’ve guessed it, Venus rules over romance but a lot more as well. She’s our social graces, if we have any social graces at all. How we charm others as well as what we personally find pleasurable. Venus rules over our attitude towards money and material things. How much we spend and how often we treat ourselves. What we like to eat, what tastes good, what feels good. Venus is also our attractiveness, and what we’re attracted to. She gives us a clue to our love language on a more superficial level, what it takes to woo us. How we like to be seduced and pursued. Venus is diplomatic, she shows us how we make peace with others. Venus also rules over artistry and how appreciate the arts and even the possibility of having artistic gifts as well. Venus also highlights our sexual nature in terms of what we find pleasurable, what feels right, and what we find acceptable.

Our Mars Sign

“Mars is our...anger?”

He can be, yes. After all he is the God of War. Mars in astrology represents energy. Our physical energy and vitality, and especially our sexual energy. He’s all about action, what it physically takes us to do...well, anything. He’s our day to day strength and drive. He exemplifies how aggressive and assertive we are. Our ambitions, durability, temperament, action, and drive. Do we exercise? How sexual are we? Our sexual style? Our competitiveness? All can be answered by our mars sign. Mars showcases how quick we are to anger, what makes us tick/explode. He’s also the last of the personal planets.

Our Jupiter Sign

“......”

Jupiter is the first non personal planet as it stays in the same for an entire year. Everyone born within that year will have the same Jupiter sign. That doesn’t negate Jupiter’s importance in anyway, so don’t skim over him. It just means we have take a closer look at him in our natal chart by examining his house placement and aspects made towards him by other planets. Jupiter rules over good fortune, philosophy, travel, and higher level learning (different from mercury.) He is expansive and optimistic. He’s a grand catalyst to spiritual growth. He’s where we overindulge, our generosity, and wisdom.

Our Saturn Sign

“So what does Saturn do?”

Saturn is like our astrological father. He sets the rules and regulations, the routine. And like when we disobey our paternal father there’s consequences the same applies for Saturn. Saturn is not out to punish anyone, he just returns anything we put out into the universe. “What goes around comes around.” Sound familiar? Saturn rules over Karma. Saturn in our chart shows us where he grounds us, where we must be held responsible, where we must work hard. Our careers, the practicality of how we achieve success.

Our Uranus Sign

“and Uranus?”

Uranus is a much slower moving planet. His energy is very erratic, spontaneous, and rebellious. He’s extremely progressive and an advocate for originality. Uranus has to be looked at by house placement to determine its effects on us individually, as people from the same generation will share the same Uranus sign. Uranus in our charts will show us where we are unpredictable and rebellious. How and where we go against the grain. Our humanitarian side. How interested in activism we are, where we are liberated ourselves.

Our Neptune Sign

“that Sea God?”

Indeed. Neptune is the God of the Sea. In astrology Neptune rules over spirituality, all things hazy, confusion, love and romance on a deeper, ethereal level. He is illusions and our dreams. Intuition and psychic abilities. Neptune has dominion over deeper creativity and artistic abilities. He also shows us where we might try to escape reality and what we may try to use to escape reality with. He is addiction, substance abuse, and deception. Our fantasies.

Our Pluto Sign

“isn’t Pluto like not even a planet anymore?”

Yes, technically Pluto is a planetoid, but we still refer to Pluto as a planet in astrology so he will be respected as such! Despite his small size and the grand amount of distance he is from us his effects are undeniable.Pluto in our charts shows us where we are transformed and regenerated. Where we must die to be born again. His energy is very subconscious, we don’t always see it, but we feel it. He is obsession, and our hunger for power, where we struggle for power. He is how we react to sex on a deeper, subconscious level. Where and what we become drawn and attached to. His energy is very primal. He also highlights where we’re manipulative or jealous if we’re displaying the negative attributes of Pluto.

Our Ascendant Sign

“our...what sign?”

Our Ascendant sign is crowned the ruler of our chart, and is of equal importance as our Sun and Moon signs. It’s specific to our birth time and location. The Ascendant is like the mask we put on to face the world. It’s our initial reaction to external forces. The lens we see life through on a day to day basis. Our ascendant is our physical bodies, how we look and how we act in public. It’s how people initially receive you, our first impressions, our mannerisms. Our outer personality. If people were to describe you they’d likely describe this sign.

So, as you can see a lot goes into a persons personality even more than what’s been mentioned above, humans are complex beings who can’t be described as just one sign, or one anything. We are more than our sun signs, we are more than signs period.

- playboi

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stevecanmakeanythingnerdy · 5 years

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Battle #28

The Mamas and The Papas: Farewell To The First Golden Era (Side B )

Vs.

The Who: Who’s Next (Side 2 )

The Mamas and The Papas: Farewell To The First Golden Era (Side B )

The Mamas & the Papas were an American folk rock vocal group who recorded and performed from 1965 to 1968. The group was a defining force in the music scene of the counterculture of the 1960s. They were composed of John Phillips, Denny Doherty, Cass Elliot, and Michelle Phillips. Their sound was based on vocal harmonies arranged by John Phillips, the songwriter, musician, and leader of the group who adapted folk to the new beat style of the early sixties. It sounds like (in reading some of the history of the group) he was a bit of an obsessive perfectionist and all around A*hole. The group is best known for songs like “Monday, Monday” and “California Dreamin’” but believe it or not, those were pretty ahead of their time. Up to that point nothing in the folk music world really sounded like that. It was more basic and acoustic. For the introduction of a more rock element (massive harmonies and extra percussion) John Phillips does get credit for a good idea. John and Michelle are also the parents of Chyna Phillips (of Wilson Phillips fame) so I guess(?) mark that one in the pro column. In the negative column though, please note that another daughter! Mackenzie Phillips told in her memoirs that she had been in a long term sexual relationship with her late father. You read that correctly. Father/daughter Game of Thrones shit. He did have a serious coke problem in the 70s and 80s... I believe the words we are looking for here are AAAANYWAAAYS....The Mamas and The Papas put out some good tunes. This album is one that Dunhill records put out while the band was on a musical hiatus. It’s essentially some new tunes and some previously released, but is technically a new album. “Creeque Alley” begins. Jangly pop with a wall of male and female vocals are soul and blues. The lyrics seem to be calling out Mama Cass for being a large lady...? Light and easy fanfare featuring piano and guitar. Next is a sleepy little number with finger cymbals in “Got A Feelin’”. Not really much else to say about it. “Twelve-Thirty” is about as electric as this band dare go. The piano and guitar represent, but flute returns for an impact as well. Are these guys just a bunch of band geeks? Gentle but brutal all at once. “I Call Your Name” rocks and rolls accapella style. Is that a thing? Hot little jazzy number. It kind of lends itself to the next tune, “I Saw Her Again Last Night”. Bells are ringing and the girls are singing. Strings and things make this somehow unique and catchy. A very Monkees type tune. The last song is the one everybody knows. “California Dreamin’” was one of the groups biggest hits. It’s difficult to explain how a song could have a flute solo and still shred. It just has a haunting feeling and very powerful imagery latent in the lyrics. The cacophony of vocals and layers of structure are what really distinguished them from other groups at the time. It is just so humorous considering all of the behind the scenes chaos because the music has such a wholesome and simple essence to it.

The Who: Who’s Next (Side 2 )

Here we have another 60s and 70s staple, The Who. If you haven’t heard of this band, well who the F%#& are you?! (#seewhatididthere). The Who are an English rock band formed in 1964. Their classic line-up consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist John Entwistle, and (one of my all time favorite drummers) drummer Keith Moon. They are considered one of the most influential rock bands of the 20th century, selling well over 100 million albums. Everyone from rock bands to punk bands cite them as influential. They started as a band called The Detours and aligned with the art and mod movement popular of the time. Eventually they changed names and became The Who. By the 70s they were a rock powerhouse. Often cited for their destructive live shows wherein instruments were smashed, they became a household name. It really cemented itself with their album Tommy, which was a rock opera. One of the first in fact. Very innovative and slightly left of center, the band established themselves as a creative force. Among the group's contributions to rock are included the power chord, the windmill strum and the use of non-musical instrument noise such as feedback. All pretty powerful things. Who’s Next is their 5th studio album and follow up to Tommy. “Getting In Tune” starts off the second side, and you are treated to Daltry’s soulful voice in full fledge. Relatively Jam-esque and quiet for this band, but still with a locked in groove. The rock and roll experiences a surge in “Going Mobile” and Moon’s fills are subtle. Floyd’s method of pink (#seewhatididthere). Pedal effectiveness prevails as well. The next tune is recognizable. “Behind Blue Eyes” has a melancholy sourness. It’s brilliant in its discordance. Vocal paint as imagery. Really pretty great and a mild charting success. The next song, “Won’t Get Fooled Again”, is perhaps one of the greatest Who songs in my opinion. It is a very powerful and empowering song. It has a great driving bass line and some loooong, pioneering synth solos (technically it’s an organ, the VCS3) complete with delay. That’s what I love about these guys. They were not afraid to do new things and embrace the future. You can’t help but scream along with Daltrey when he yells a bloodcurdling “yeeeaaaaahhhh” to kick the song back in. Everything shines on this one. Even the lyrics are perfect! “Meet the new boss...same as the old boss”. Damn! Great way to end that’s for sure. I even love that they kept the little flub halfway through. True brilliance.

So today The Mamas and The Papas said farewell to the first golden era and also Goodbye to a few calories. 137 to be exact. Over 6 songs and 19 minutes. That’s an average of 22.83 calories burned per song and 7.21 calories burned per minute. They earned 12 out of 18 possible stars. The Who didn’t get fooled again, and begged the question Who’s Next? They burned 154 calories over 21 minutes and 4 tunes. That is 38.50 calories burned per song and 7.33 calories burned per minute. The Who earned 10 out of 12 possible stars. Who took the cake today? The Who, that’s who!

The Who: “Won’t Get Fooled Again” (live because it’s better that way)

https://youtu.be/ODKZGBrAtxY

#Randomrecordworkoutseasonsix

#Randomrecordworkout

#randomrecordworkout #randomrecordworkoutseason6 #vinyl #60s #60s music #the who #mamas and the papas #music #records #classic rock #folk rock

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yasbxxgie · 6 years

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The forgotten story of Pure Hell, America’s first black punk band The four-piece lived with the New York Dolls and played with Sid Vicious, but they’ve been largely written out of cultural history

An essential part of learning history is questioning it, asking what has become part of our cultural memory and what might have been left out. When it comes to the history of punk music, there are few bands who have been as overlooked as Pure Hell.

The band’s story began in West Philadelphia in 1974, when four teenagers – lead vocalist Kenny ‘Stinker’ Gordon, bassist Lenny ‘Steel’ Boles, guitarist Preston ‘Chip Wreck’ Morris and drummer Michael ‘Spider’ Sanders, set out to follow in the footsteps of their musical idols. A shared obsession with the sounds of Iggy, Bowie, Cooper, and Hendrix inspired them to create music that was louder, faster and more provocative than even those artists’ most experimental records. Pure Hell’s unique sound led them to New York, where they became characters in a seminal subculture recognised today as punk. As musicians of colour, their contribution to a predominately white underground scene is all the more significant. “We were the first black punk band in the world,” says Boles. “We were the ones who paid the dues for it, we broke the doors down. We were genuinely the first. And we still get no credit for it.”

The title of the ‘first black punk band’ has, in recent years, been informally given to Detroit-based Death, whose music was mostly unheralded at the time but has since been rediscovered and praised for its progressive ideas. But while Death were creating proto-punk music in isolation in the early 1970s, Pure Hell was completely entrenched in the New York City underground scene, living and performing alongside the legends of American punk. Arriving the same month that Patti Smith and Television began their two-month residencies at CBGB and leaving just after Nancy Spungen’s murder, Pure Hell’s active years in the city aligned perfectly with the birth and death of a dynamic chapter of music history. “I don’t want to be remembered just because we were black,” says Kenny Gordon. “I want to be remembered for being a part of the first tier of punk in the 70s.”

Being just 155km from Greenwich Village, Philadelphia was somewhat of a pipeline of New York subculture – Gordon remembers his teenage years at the movie theatre watching John Waters films like Polyester and Pink Flamingos, and hanging out at Artemis, a spot frequented by Philly scenesters like Nancy Spungen and Neon Leon. “I heard (The Rolling Stones’) ‘Satisfaction’ and knew it was the kind of music I wanted to play,” recalls bassist Lenny Boles. “I was too poor to afford instruments, so if someone had one, I would befriend them.”

The quad quickly gained notoriety on their home turf. “Growing up in West Philadelphia, which was all black, we were some of the craziest guys you could have possibly seen walking the streets back then,” says Gordon. “We dressed in drag and wore wigs, basically daring people to bother us. People in the neighbourhood would say, ‘Don’t go into houses with those guys, you may not come out!’”

Pure Hell swan dove into the New York underground scene in 1975, in pursuit of the people, places, and sounds they’d read about for years in the pages of Rock Scene and Cream magazine. The band moved into the Chelsea Hotel, the temporary home of a long list of influential characters, including Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, Edie Sedgwick, Patti Smith, and Robert Mapplethorpe. Their first gig in the city was hosted at Frenzy’s thrift, a storefront on St. Marks place, where guitarist Preston Morris “rather memorably caught the amplifier on fire due to a combination of maximum volume and faulty wires”, says Gordon. Drummer Michael Sanders’ friendship with Neon Leon led the band to the New York Dolls, who were acting as mentors for younger artists like Debbie Harry and Richard Hell at the time. Pure Hell was soon invited to perform for the Dolls in their loft.

“Honestly, we were scared to death of them,” Boles says. “When we walked in, they were all dressed up, smoking joints and watching The Untouchables on TV. Fortunately, we played and blew them away.” Gordon adds: “Underneath their outer appearance, they were just a bunch of guys from Queens. We had the same lingo. We were both really street and really genuine. It’s like, they were white but playing black, and we were just the opposite. We were innovative and they definitely appreciated us for it.”

After being kicked out of the Chelsea for not paying rent, Pure Hell moved into the Dolls’ loft. “Everybody hated us at first. We had a bad reputation because of our association with the New York Dolls, who were doing a lot of dope at the time,” says Boles. “The way we looked, everybody thought we were in a gang. Actually, we used to live in gang territory in West Philly, and people were always trying to get us to join. We never did. And with a name like Pure Hell, people thought we were devil worshippers.”

Gordon adds: “This was New York City, this was punk. People don’t realise it was ruthlessly competitive. It was dog eat dog.” Although they felt that few people were on their side, their kinship with Johnny Thunders led to numerous gigs at Andy Warhol’s haunt, Max’s Kansas City, and Mother’s, a Chelsea gay bar turned punk club, where Blondie first performed. The band was featured in a number of publications, namely Warhol’s own Interview magazine, marking their ‘place’ in a scene cultural influencers.

Despite their growing presence in the underground, Pure Hell still didn’t have a manager. After reading a biography of Jimi Hendrix by Curtis Knight, the singer and frontman of Hendrix’s first band The Squires, Lenny Boles chased down the author’s address and arrived on his doorstep. Boles’ bold act of promotion earned them management from the man credited with Hendrix’s discovery. Kathy Knight, Curtis’s then-partner in life and business, recalls her ex-husband’s first impressions of Pure Hell. “He loved them immediately,” she says. “After Lenny knocked on the door, Curtis brought me to one of the clubs where they were performing on Bleecker Street. Stinker (Kenny Gordon) almost landed in my lap when he did a backflip off the stage. We were so blown away that we put everything we had into them at the time.”

Those who saw Pure Hell in action describe their shows similarly. Gordon’s background in gymnastics gave them an unparalleled stage presence, with choreography that he says he performed “crash dummy style”. Pure Hell’s sound was harsher than their peers and predecessors and is today recognised as proto-hardcore. “We were like four Jimi Hendrixes, and Curtis knew it,” Gordon says. “We aimed for impact, just because we could. A lot of people at the time couldn’t play like Chip, doing Hennessy licks and everything. Not everyone could copy that.”

Curtis and Kathy Knight were so enthusiastic about Pure Hell that they sacrificed three months of rent money for studio sessions. Knight organised Pure Hell’s first European tour in 1978, which resulted in their single “These Boots are Made for Walking” reaching number four in the UK alternative charts. Later, they opened for Sid Vicious at Max’s during his New York residency. It would end up being his last public appearance, and Pure Hell found themselves looped into the media circus surrounding Nancy Spungen’s death. “We were on the second page of the majority of the tabloids, like New Musical Express, Sounds,and Melody Maker,” says Gordon.

But beyond their association with Vicious, Pure Hell’s European tour was a major success in part due to Curtis Knight’s strategic marketing campaign, which sensationalised their race. After arriving, Knight created a big poster with an image of the band taken by legendary rock photographer Bob Gruen in front of Buckingham Palace with the slogan: “From the United States of America, the world’s only black punk band”. Boles was angry at the time. “I said to Curtis, ‘Why do you have to call us a black band?’ Of course, that’s what we were, but we really didn’t think in those terms at the time. People in Europe were curious about the band before we even arrived. They were looking at it like a novelty. They didn’t believe we really existed.”

Boles says the band was “plastered by this campaign”, but were able to reap its fruits while touring Holland and the UK. Landing smack dab in the middle of the London punk scene, Pure Hell were welcomed by a parallel movement that had clearer political convictions and more dynamic cross-cultural discourse. “All the punks listened to reggae,” says Boles. “It was about all rebel music.” Gordon adds that “people, incorrectly, view punk as this angry, white, urban, male genre. Black culture is really the source of punk, and a lot of people don’t recognise it – or don’t want to recognise it.”

Although they eventually felt accepted in New York, and even celebrated in Europe, the legacy of Jim Crow still haunted the industry, where genres remained segregated. “We experienced racism, but didn’t know it at the time,” says Lenny Boles. “We were watching all of these bands around us, with far less talent, get signed. It had us second guessing ourselves, thinking we weren’t good enough. Obviously we were. It was a while before we realised we were getting snubbed.” While their white peers were being cut cheques, Pure Hell found themselves courted by a number of record labels, all of whom insisted they change their music in order to align with racial stereotypes. “Everybody was trying to make us do this Motown thing, saying like, ‘You guys are black so you’ve gotta do something that’s danceable,’” Boles adds. “They kept trying to make us more ‘funky’. Everything we liked had nothing to do with dance music. We were not having it. So we opted not to get signed.”

Integrity and profitability don’t often go hand-in-hand, and Pure Hell’s refusal to comply with the industry’s limitations meant they sacrificed career opportunities. After a second European tour in 1979, the band suffered a fall-out with Knight. A messy legal conflict resulted in Knight flying back to the US alone, with the band’s master tapes in tow. Pure Hell remained in Europe without any of the rights, or access, to their recordings, which Kathy Knight salvaged after her husband attempted to destroy them.

Pure Hell eventually finagled their way back to the US, where they settled in Los Angeles. Although they played historic bills at the Masque (LA’s equivalent to CBGB) with iconic groups like the Germs, the Cramps, and the Dead Boys, Pure Hell lost their momentum. With no management, no record deal, and no access to their recorded output, the band felt the flames of Pure Hell die out. “It was all totally over by 1980,” says Kenny Gordon. “Really, punk died with Nancy’s murder. Everyone was burning the candle from both ends. You had to be extreme to be in those kinds of circles.” Bad Brains’ explosion onto the music scene in the early 80s also left Pure Hell feeling robbed of their title of ‘the first black punk band’. “You know, we took the blow for being black, so why didn’t they give it to us in the end?” Boles asks.

As decades passed and history books were written, Pure Hell’s memory faded to legend. But in the early 2000s, Kathy Knight fatefully decided to auction off Pure Hell’s master tapes on eBay. Their unreleased album Noise Addiction was purchased by an enthusiastic Mike Schneider of Welfare Records. “Mike wanted them so badly he came himself to pick them up,” Knight recalls. Pure Hell’s legacy has also been promoted and protected by hardcore legend Henry Rollins of Black Flag, who tracked down the original acetate of the band’s first single and reissued it on his label 2.13.61, in collaboration with In the Red Records, last year. Rollins first learned of the band’s existence in 1979, after seeing their single at Yesterday & Today Records in Rockville, Maryland, with his friend Ian MacKaye of Minor Threat and Fugazi. He remained on the lookout for traces of the band for over 30 years.

“At auction time, I was able to secure the record,” Rollins says. “I listened to it and was amazed at how good it sounded. I checked in with Kenny (Gordon) and he confirmed it was the only source for the two songs.” Beyond simply highlighting and celebrating the rare black punk bands of the time, Pure Hell held particular significance to Rollins because their urban myth was real. “The rumour was that they had made an album and that it was sitting in a closet,” he says. “Noise Addiction, released in 2006, decades after it had been recorded, is really great. If the album had come out when they made it, that would have been a game changer. I believe (it) would have had a tremendous impact. It’s one of those missed opportunity stories.”

In addition to Rollins, indie talent rep Gina Parker-Lawton ranks as one of Pure Hell’s greatest advocates. Parker-Lawton met drummer Michael Sanders on Sunset Boulevard in the 80s, and counted him as a friend during their overlapping years in LA. It was after she learned of Sanders’ death in 2003 that Parker-Lawton made contact with the other band members and became their publicist. “They were just kind of overlooked in all of the punk history books,” she says. “After learning their story and what they had actually accomplished, by being the first truly all-black punk band, I wanted to ensure they were remembered.” Parker-Lawton has since been advocating for their deserved place in music history, and recently helped secure their induction into the Smithsonian African American Museum of History and Culture. Their induction will be marked by the donation of Sanders’ leather jacket, which he wore on tour in Europe and around LA.

Pure Hell’s story beckons essential questions about the integrity of our cultural memory, reminding us that “history” is written within the constructs of unjust society. “It’s just so important to me that history be correct,” says Parker-Lawton. “Taking the risks that they took, daring to be so different, they were outlaws and true pioneers. When people are that true to their art and that brave, it has to be recognised.” Although their musical careers didn’t necessarily bring wealth or fame, Boles and Gordon describe their years in Pure Hell as paramount. “I had so much fun, it doesn’t matter that I never saw a penny for it,” he says. “For us, it wasn’t about making money. It was about following our hearts and doing exactly what we wanted to do.”

Images:

Pure Hell courtesy of Pure Hell

Pure Hell with Sid Vicious in Melody Maker magazine. Early punk artists often flirted with Nazi symbolism for shock value.

Pure Hell live at Max’s Kansas City

Pure Hell courtesy of Pure Hell

#pure hell #black punk band #black punk bands #punk band #punk bands #rock music #black rock music #music #black music #dazed magazine #interview #Interviews #punk rock #black punk rock

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cryptocoinguides · 3 years

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HUGE! Bitcoin Price Prediction

Hello and welcome back to Crypto Lion. Today, we’ll be discussing whether you can retire early through Bitcoin and subscribe to this channel to see more videos like this one. Bitcoin is the first cryptocurrency to ever be created, sparking the birth of an entire industry and thousands upon thousands of old coins to be created in its image. Not only is Bitcoin the first of its kind, but it’s been designed to disrupt and replace paper-based fiat currencies to become the global digital currency used by the entire population, regardless of what country or region they live in.

Bitcoin price has lately become the hot button topic since the forefather of old cryptocurrencies is making headway and revisiting its highest price level at twenty thousand dollars established on December 17th, 2017.

However, a wise investor should always think far ahead and ask themselves what Bitcoin will be worth in five years. We’d also like to offer our Bitcoin price prediction for the next five to 10 years, taking into account the Bitcoin price history and its fundamental value. Needless to say that ever since people announced that it’s stepping into the cryptocurrency space by offering its three hundred and sixty million users an option to buy Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin, cash, and Litecoin directly on its online platform, the price of Bitcoin has been pumping hard. The performance profile of the first cryptocurrency looks as follows eighty-seven point four percent of the upside against the US in one year, forty-two point three percent gain in a month, and five-point four percent price appreciation in the past seven days.

This is undoubtedly bullish performance and it’s had a significant impact on the alignment of forces, so to speak, on the Bitcoin historical chart, the Bitcoin price chart for the year ahead.

Twenty twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-five, and twenty-thirty confirm that the uptrend will persist throughout that period of time. Our Bitcoin price prediction model suggests that in six months, Bitcoin will be worth twenty-eight thousand three hundred and thirty dollars, whereas the 12-month projection puts Bitcoin at thirty-eight thousand one hundred and four dollars, which marks one hundred and thirty-five percent price appreciation. This price expectation is supported by the fact that the famo around the cryptocurrency hasn’t even kicked in yet. As the Google search data still shows that the interest in Bitcoin remains quite low, especially when compared to that of twenty seventeen.

Besides, the majority of search inquiries about Bitcoin price come from developing countries, which is great for adoption purposes but also signifies the fact that retail investors from the first world economies haven’t jumped on the bandwagon yet.

Once they do, the US disvalue of Bitcoin will rise exponentially. So there is little to no doubt that the all-time high is going to be met and surpassed over the course of this year, despite the fact that Bitcoin remains a risky asset that has the proclivity towards significant price fluctuations like those we’ve witnessed during twenty 20 this cryptocurrency as one important trait, which is adding a zero to its price at least once every few years.

Right now, we might be looking at the nascent stage of the bull market that could last for three to five years, since the cryptocurrency industry itself in the market by association has been getting more mature, which means more protracted but also more sustainable periods of market growth before it naturally begins to degrade. One Bloomberg analyst claims that the maturity time during which Bitcoin goes from one price hike to another tends to double with every cycle, which puts Bitcoin price and USD at over one hundred thousand dollars by twenty twenty-five and beyond.

In four years, the price of Bitcoin will shoot up by one thousand four hundred and sixteen percent and put a two hundred and forty-six thousand dollar price tag on it.

And to answer the question, what will bitcoin be worth in twenty, twenty-five? Our model insists that Bitcoin will rise to the stratosphere by about two thousand nine hundred and thirteen percent and end up being valued at four hundred eighty-eight thousand eight hundred eighty-six dollars. Our prediction falls in line with that of Max Keiser, the well-known broadcaster and Bitcoin proponent who sees Bitcoin at four hundred thousand dollars in the next few years.

To summarize, in five years Bitcoin will be worth anywhere from one hundred thousand dollars to four hundred and eighty-eight thousand dollars, which suggests that now might be the best time to buy Bitcoin. Since the bull market is at the nascent stage, Bitcoin offers one of the most compelling RESCORED profiles among assets, as our analysis suggests, should scale from roughly two hundred billion dollars today to one to five trillion dollars net or capitalization during the next five to 10 years.

Whether you’re an existing or prospective investor, you’ve probably been watching Bitcoin’s recent performance obsessively.

With a current market cap of about six hundred and forty-two billion and a price of thirty-four thousand six hundred twenty dollars, Bitcoin is far outstripped its previous all time high of twenty thousand. Its bullish run began in early November, rising from thirteen thousand one hundred and twenty-four dollars to fifteen thousand four hundred sixty-three in the space of just one week. Since then, its price hasn’t slowed down. In fact, it was averaging a daily growth rate of almost a thousand dollars a day before the end of twenty-twenty.

Ever since Bitcoin came to our computers in 2009. The world of cryptocurrency has been famously hard to predict. Some people believe that crypto would never take off, while others thought that it would replace fiat money within a matter of years. Neither of those outcomes has happened yet, but we have seen the price of Bitcoin skyrocket and crash numerous times in the last decade. In twenty twenty-two, provisionally, Bitcoin expects the price of Bitcoin to reach a top price of two hundred and twenty-six thousand dollars, although this is equal to the heights that Tom Fitzpatrick has predicted in the lead, Citibank reports it’s still a very encouraging value.

The platform expects the Bitcoin asset price to hit a hundred thousand dollars in January twenty twenty-two before skyrocketing to double that by April, an incredible growth rate of more than one hundred percent in less than four months, according to this forecast November twenty twenty-two, we’ll see the price of Bitcoin fall back down to one hundred forty-six thousand, though Bitcoin price will reclaim two hundred eighty-two thousand before the end of twenty twenty two.

But do you want to retire early? I guess you might be saying no by twenty twenty-five, Bitcoin will be traded between one hundred thousand dollars and four hundred thousand dollars in twenty-thirty. Bitcoin is likely to be worth over one million with the rate of increase in Bitcoin price and shooting up with future predictions, I don’t think you should be eager to retire soon. Why not work a little bit more and enjoy a more productive income at the end?

Bitcoin price in the following ten years will be determined not as much by its supply to demand ratio as around 90 percent of the twenty-one million coins have already been mined, but rather by the rate of adoption of both block, chain, and Bitcoin.

Right now, all on-chain metrics are extremely positive for Bitcoin, which means that in 10 years’ time we’ll see a true mass adoption of Bitcoin and other strong cryptocurrencies is that might well push the price of Bitcoin to one million dollars or higher. The year 20 30 could catch investors in the midst of the third bull market. That is likely to begin taking shape in twenty twenty-four after the next Bitcoin having an event that will cut the block reward to three thousand one hundred twenty-five coins and ultimately shorten the supply and drop the inflation rate. Plus, let’s not forget that Bitcoin represents arguably the most lucrative market for millennials and the people of Generation X who are likely to choose a digital asset over something like commodities and property, thus bringing Bitcoin’s market capitalization and its price to a whole new level.

The recent bull run in the crypto markets has been incredibly exciting to watch, with Bitcoin smashing records in early January after surging to forty-one thousand nine hundred forty-one dollars. Institutional adoption has led to a favorable forecast in the short term, but for investors who are concerned, they may be buying at a bad time.

Bitcoin price prediction for twenty twenty-five can prove useful. Bitcoin’s market cap has the potential to reach three trillion dollars in just four years’ time. This would result in a price of bitcoin of about one hundred and forty thousand dollars, although triple-digit growth may seem exceedingly outlandish.

Do remember that Bitcoin achieved this and much more in twenty-twenty alone. Here’s some proof of the rise in Bitcoin price in the future, Robert Kiyosaki, New York Times best selling author of the book Rich Dad.

Poor Dad has been recommending his followers to buy gold and bitcoin. He calls for gold to reach three thousand an ounce and Bitcoin to reach seventy-five thousand dollars within the next three years. Max Keiser, investor, and host of the Kaisa Report call for one hundred thousand dollar Bitcoin in the short term, but four hundred thousand dollars in the long term is one of Bitcoin’s most outspoken bulls, calling for one hundred thousand dollars since the asset was just trading at one dollar.

His new one hundred thousand dollar target those for the end of twenty-twenty. Meanwhile, four hundred thousand is a long-term goal to do the coronavirus and the comparison to gold. Bitcoin developer and early electronic cash pioneer Adam Beck says the Bitcoin should reach as high as three hundred thousand dollars over the next several years.

The price of Bitcoin will peak in twenty twenty-three at one hundred thirty thousand dollars over the next two years. Bitcoin price will continue to climb before falling again in the run-up to twenty twenty-six.

We believe the bitcoin will hit the following yearly highs. One hundred and twenty-one thousand eight hundred seventy-one and twenty twenty two, an all-time high of one hundred and thirty thousand in twenty twenty-three.

Twenty twenty-four would see a drop back down to ninety thousand and closing off twenty twenty-five at any nine thousand dollars. This outlook is ultimately a mix of good and bad news for any investors who are worried that Bitcoin’s bullish run will proceed to a massive and sudden crash that will take it back to its predecessor prices.

It’s an encouraging sign, and just like a new bull market started and the bubble pattern began again right after each hardcoded, having another one is due towards the end of twenty twenty-four and into twenty twenty-five.

Twenty twenty-five should line up. Well, with the current price action since the having takes place roughly every four years, giving Bitcoin a unique four-year market cycle, considering all of the massive price projections and forecasts from industry experts, that’s just bitcoin will someday replace all currencies across the globe. It’s easy to see why so many are bullish on Bitcoin and why Bitcoin price predictions can reach such high numbers.

The revolutionary technology has sparked an entire industry aimed at disrupting traditional finance, and cryptocurrencies are already well on their way to widespread adoption and regular use by the mainstream public. With Bitcoin about to take off on yet another bull run, the opportunity to profit has never been greater.

And with Bitcoin price expected to reach a hundred thousand dollars to as much as one million per bitcoin, it’s never too late to get started. We hope you enjoyed this video, and if you did, please give it a thumbs up. Subscribe and click on that notification. Bill, what other bitcoin topics would you like us to talk about? Let us know in the comments below.

Read More: Litecoin LTC Price Prediction 2021

via HUGE! Bitcoin Price Prediction

#bitcoin news #ethereum news #xrp news #cardano news #crypto news #best cryptocurrency to buy #best crypt

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awed-frog · 7 years

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spn alignment chart (round table)

So, I’ve gotten quite a few interesting answers and asks to my flawed attempt at making an SPN alignment chart (thank you, guys!), so I decided to pool them all in one post. I’m putting this stuff under a cut because it’s likely to be long and I guess not everyone’s interested, but you’re of course welcome to reblog and add your own ideas.

Just as a caveat - I’m an idiot, and I only now realize, thanks to one of the asks I received, that this exercise may not be, in the end, very useful. An alignment chart is, really, an extremely schematic way of looking at things, and probably not the best way to describe characters we’ve known for years.

[The original post with my alignment ideas is here, and here’s the description of how to classify characters according to this system.]

I'm thinking about your alignment chart and the various challenges people are making to it, and I was wondering whether you think intentions or actions are more important when it comes to the characters? How about what the character would think of themselves vs. how they are interpreted by other characters? Does a character's personal view of themselves mean nothing if you don't agree with their insights? Castiel, for instance, has certainly challenged his sense of right and wrong over the years but I don't think he ever stopped wanting to do the right thing as his ultimate goal. I do think his obsession with keeping the Winchesters alive at all costs is wrapped in his concept of doing the right thing, because that is one of the only unambiguous correct choice he ever made. He trusts Dean and Sam to do the right thing, so keeping them alive is Cas doing the right thing. (I don't agree with this, but I do think that's Cas' thinking). His intent is good, even if his actions aren't always. (via @anon)

Yes - you are so right about all of this. This is mostly why this discussion, for me, will end with this post - because ultimately, real world building is too complex to use an alignment chart. Thanks for pointing it out, anon. I liked the idea of updating the chart because I’d seen so many versions of it (and, interestingly, it’s mostly Sam who moves around - but then, we already knew he’s a mysterious character), but I now realize all of this may be a bit pointless. Making an alignment chart may be useful for RPGs, when you need to know important stuff about characters you’re only just making up, but if we’re talking really developed fictional characters, then - ideally - they become like real people, which means it’s not possible to reduce them to these basic traits.

(If anyone’s interested in why I put Cas down as a true neutral, I answered that here.)

Don't you get it? This is all meaningless. Heaven, Hell, this world. If it ever meant anything, that moment is past. Nothing down here but a bunch of hopeless distraction addicts, so filled with emptiness, so desperate to fill up the void... they don't mind being served another stale rerun of a rerun of a rerun. You know what my plan is? I don't have one. I'm just gonna keep on smashing Daddy's already broken toys and make you watch. Lucifer=chaotic evil. (@anon)

As I said here, I’m struggling to see Lucifer as a chaotic anything. Sure, this is what he says, but if he looks at his actions - he’s deliberately put himself into situations that would give him love, adoration, obedience, and an audience. Even his creation of a Nephilim is more the symptom of a midlife crisis than anything else. Plus, my understanding is that a true chaotic evil would accept damage to themselves, as long as the hero is harmed in some way. This doesn’t seem to be the case with Lucifer, who’s doing all he can to save himself and not sent back in the Cage. On the other hand, it’s also hard to define what a chaotic evil even is, and if any character fits the characteristics (I’ve been thinking about villains all morning, but I can always find a reason why I’m not quite happy with classifying them as chaotic evil). Here’s an interesting discussion on the subject, but it’s mostly about videogames characters I know nothing about. This is an excellent blog entry on the subject, but, again, I can’t find any characters who really fit - maybe more someone like the guys from Natural Born Killers - but they were inspired by real people, so I’m not sure it counts.

Personally, I’d switch Mary and Cas. Mary has been making far more decisions that aren’t ‘good’ ie nearly killing Jody, or working with the BMoL to wipe out monsters so that her kids can have a 'normal’ life, which to me seems more neutral than good. Cas, on the other hand... Sure, this season has seen him making more decisions closer to true neutral (killing Billie to save the Winchesters), but I believe that he is too inherently good to be overshadowed by this. He's going back to Heaven, despite the fact that this probably won't end up helping him personally, because he thinks he and the angels can help with the nephilim (although what happens with that will be the true test of everyone's alignments ah I refresh my dash and see your post about Cas just after I sent you that ask! What you say is true, Cas has made many decisions to save the Ws that screw others over, but on the other hand, many of Cas' decisions have been about saving humanity (and not just Dean lol) from the angel's self righteousness and haven't solely revolved around the Ws. For example, all of the various times he's gone back to Heaven to try to repair the messes/prevent the apocalypses (ex S5-stopping Raphael, S9) (via @quiescentcastiel)

Mary was a big problem, and I’m not happy about I classified her. I sort of think that, even after an entire season, I simply don’t know enough about her motivations to put her anywhere. Because here you see it again - yes, maybe she’s hunting to make the world a safer place for her kids, but the thing is, she likes it. She relishes it. And not those other parts of the hunt, which the BMoL helpfully took care of so she wouldn’t have to (the ‘get this’, the ‘is this even a case’, the asking around and talking to terrified witnesses and putting the puzzle together); no, what Mary seems to like, whatever she says, is the killing. Unlike Ketch, she’s not a sadist, so she doesn’t draw it out, and she doesn’t enjoy the pain of others, but there is still something about the kill that she likes - needs, even - and this is why, in the end, I don’t like her all that much as a person. She may tell herself she’s acting for her sons, but the thing is, given who she is, this is probably the only way she can be there for them. Sam and Dean didn’t need her to kill monsters for them, and they certainly didn’t need it back when they were infants (what if she’d been killed? with John unaware of his wife’s activities, they wouldn’t even have known what had happened to her). And I’m not saying this because she’s a woman - I mostly dislike this character trait in men as well. So, anyway, I don’t know what to make of her.

As for Cas, I’ve already said why I put him down as true neutral, but you make some good points. The thing is, though - is Cas working with the angels to truly save the world from the Nephilim (after all, he’s met another Nephilim, and the Antichrist, and both were nice, decent people and why did that never come up?) or does he realize that this will be a messy fight, especially now Dagon is involved, and since the Winchesters won’t lose interest in it any time soon, they’ll need all the help they can get? We don’t know, of course. If Cas had gone back to Heaven to fix some kind of thing that had no influence on Dean’s life whatsoever, then I might be more inclined to agree with you, but as it is, I still think the more Cas falls in love with Dean, the more his moral compass gets unbalanced and wobbly. Which is not necessarily a bad thing, of course (I think all of us would do anything to keep those we love safe, if we had the power to, so this shows Cas is simply becoming more human), but given his powers, it’s still dangerous for everybody involved.

i’m not sure i agree with those alignments for mary and sam but the others i do. i feel like sam might be more neutral good and mary perhaps true neutral or neutral neutral but she’s trickier to pin down (via @thejabberwock)

Yep, those are two characters I really struggle with. Who even knows.

You’ve got Mr. “Make a deal, keep it” as chaotic? I agree with the neutral part, given his wavering between good and evil these days, but I would have put Crowley at Lawful Neutral, or maybe True Neutral, but he’s certainly not chaotic. (via @thayerkerbasy)

You’re right, but - I really didn’t know where else to put him. Like, in that post evil is described as ‘impeding the heroes is their main goal’, and good, of course, is about helping the hero - neither fits Crowley. Neutral is more about being selfish in some way, which I’m still not happy with, but whatever. As for the chaotic part, I simply feel Crowley’s been acting a bit erratically this season (which may be bad writing tbh). This whole ‘keeping Lucifer around’ thing - that’s almost chaotic evil territory, because Crowley wants to hurt Lucifer so badly he doesn’t much care if he himself gets killed in the process (because, yes, he may have put in place all the fail-safes ever invented, but this is Lucifer - how likely it is, really, that one of them won’t fail?). He was almost a chaotic good when he broke that lance, but a true neutral who didn’t care about anyone but himself when Sam and Dean were in that secret prison (and, again, I feel like my Crowley would have busted them out of there, but whatever). And this applies to last year too - stopping to have an orgy and kill a few people when there were a million urgent things to do - that was very chaotic evil of him, but doing his part to work with TFW, and even God, to bring down Amara - that was back into almost lawful good territory.

I think the conclusion here is, Crowley needs his own spin-off and I want to write that.

I strongly feel that Dean is actually LG. He has a strict moral code that, while different from society’s, is still pretty inflexible. Saving people, hunting things. He’s softened on it over the years, but he doesn’t act unpredictably. I’d say Cas is more CG; he’s always trying to do the right thing but he’s lost without the guidance of Heaven. His loyalty is to the Winchesters, but his application is less than consistent. Sam is NG; he does whatever he has to do protect others, including sacrificing himself, drinking demon blood, etc. (via @destielmixtape)

Those are all excellent points, and I completely agree.

#spn alignment chart #ask #character building #long post #dean winchester #sam winchester #castiel #lucifer #crowley #mary winchester

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ouraidengray4 · 8 years

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The Secret to Keeping Your Goals When You Have Zero Willpower

Don't worry, this is not another New Year's resolutions how-to article. This is a beautiful challenge to be accepted, a desperate call to action, and a massive opportunity for you to save your own ass.

Are you ready to answer that call? If not, you can stop reading right now. Otherwise, hop on board the S.S. Goalz—and chart a course to the very heart of radical self-honesty and transformation.

The Real Reason You Don't Accomplish Your Goals

You suck at setting fitness goals.

Did that hurt a little? Good. Comfort is overrated, and I need to be brutally honest. You’ve heard of growing pains, right?

Being bad at goal setting is nothing to be ashamed of, but it is something you need to address directly and consistently in order to achieve your goals—regardless of whether you want to lose weight, build muscle, or do your first pull-up.

Behavior change and goal setting are at the heart of your journey to greatness. And every single health and fitness goal requires that you change your behavior—permanently.

Everything you need to achieve your goals is already inside of you. Encouraging, right? Then why haven’t you reached your goals yet? Because you are constantly setting yourself up to fail. You are single-handedly creating all the obstacles to your own success. Hang with me for a minute.

For the last 16 years I’ve worked as a holistic personal trainer—taking a 360-degree approach to fitness and wellness. I’ve helped people of all ages, dispositions, and attitudes achieve their goals. And the biggest barrier is always a variation of the same thing: self-imposed limitations. Here are a few I hear all the time:

"I'd work out more if I had more time.” Everyone gets 24 hours in a day. Time isn't the problem; it's your priorities.

"I feel embarrassed and anxious at the gym. And my body hurts after I work out." All the more reason to learn how to heal your body and become more confident—two things exercise directly affects.

"I don't know the best exercises to achieve my goals!" Great! Become a student of the body. You’ll achieve your goals and learn a bunch of useful stuff along the way.

None of these are actual limitations. "I don't have enough time" might actually be "I don’t have enough time because I’m binge-watching Netflix and browsing Facebook three hours per day." It’s time for a reality check.

You are your greatest obstacle and your most valuable ally on this journey to self-empowerment. The more quickly you can be honest with yourself, the sooner you’ll be able to catch yourself in self-deception. Becoming aware of it is (nearly) all it takes to stop.

The Little-Known Fact That Changes Everything

You are—at your very core—an animal. If you approach goal setting from an overly analytical perspective, you’ll never even begin to approach your real potential.

My own personal story can provide some real insight. I’m a recovered drug addict. I was able to turn my entire life around using ritual, movement, and meditation. After years of suffering, I had a moment while staring at myself in the mirror. I thought, “I’m not a victim. I’m doing this to myself. It’s up to me to stop.”

That was the ritual part: sacrificing my inner victim who blamed everyone else and avoided personal responsibility. It was a crucial first step that let the light flood into the dark closet I’d been living in for years.

But it was only the first step. Shortly after that, I became obsessed with working out. Despite starting out scared, humbled, and lacking in self-confidence, working out allowed me to heal the damage I’d done to myself, to my family, and to my own body.

What fueled that workout obsession? Was it because I knew exercise creates new neurons in the brain in the areas affected by addiction? Hell no! Even though that’s true, I didn’t know it at the time and wouldn’t have cared if I did.

My workout obsession was fueled by girls! I was an 18-year-old boy, so all I cared about was trying to get girls to like me and—let’s be honest—get naked with me.

To put it more plainly: My fixation with women and sex saved me from drug addiction. I didn’t start working out because I knew it’d help my recovery; I did it to get laid.

This is where radical self-honesty kicks into high-gear. If you can’t be honest about what primal needs you’re lacking, you’re going to have trouble finding purpose in your health goals. Without that deep meaning, your goal is entirely dependent on personal motivation and willpower, which, for most, will be long gone by February. Primal. Emotional. And fun. You might not be a horny teenager (or maybe you are!), but the point is the same. You need to connect your fitness goals to the things in life you secretly desire but dare not speak out loud. Maybe it’s your desire to look good for someone else, maybe it’s your ability to take care of yourself, or maybe it’s your wish to overcome the proverbial bad guys in your life. If you don’t focus on the foundation, everything else will crumble. You have to set goals that honor your animal nature—your reptilian brain. Think sex, survival, and shelter.

Tap into your emotions; they help generate the consistent drive it takes to achieve any goal. And have fun! If you think working out has to suck and be painful, you’re on the wrong track. Go dancing, play sports, learn a martial art—whatever it is that is intrinsically motivating to you. Go in that direction and forget about the militarization of fitness that preaches "no pain, no gain."

The more you see a direct link between what you want so badly (for instance, love or friendship) and your health goals, the less you have to rely on motivation. Health and fitness are not separate from the rest of your life, so don’t separate them!

How to Master the Process and Avoid Self-Sabotage

1. Set goals that are realistic.

By far the biggest mistake people make with their New Year’s resolutions is falling victim to the quick-fix mentality. You can get quick results, or you can get real results. Pick one.

Having unrealistic expectations and then having them crash headfirst into reality obliterates your motivation.

Besides, what exactly is the rush? If you’ve picked goals that truly matter—primal goals that light you up—aren’t they worth the time, energy, and sacrifice?

2. Focus on process goals, not outcome goals.

Losing five pounds or getting rid of belly fat is an outcome goal. Doing a YouTube workout four times per week for three weeks is a process goal. The process is your foundation; all the results are built upon it and only happen after you’ve achieved your process goals, not before. If you’re not willing to show up regularly for your goal, pick a different goal—or don’t even bother making a New Year’s resolution.

Mistakes are not the enemy; lack of commitment is the real problem. If you’re committed but make mistakes, you’ll learn and grow from them. For instance, let's say you stay out late drinking with friends and miss your morning workout as a result. If you're committed, you'll see the direct correlation between drinking and not working out, and won't make the same mistake again. If you’re not committed, you’ll use the mistakes as an excuse to quit—right before you’re about to learn something and make real progress. Now that is self-sabotage!

3. Break large goals into smaller goals and measure your progress obsessively.

When I was first getting into working out, my college roommate was a football player. He taught me how to create a simple spreadsheet to track my progress. I’d print out my workouts beforehand and put them in a binder. That became my bible. If I fit in six workouts in a week, or one extra rep doing push-ups, I was thrilled, because that meant I was one step closer to a hot date.

It doesn’t matter if you go analog or use a mobile app—you need to track your progress. The most important metrics I’d suggest tracking are: How much did I move today? Was it fun? What did I learn? As long as you’re moving, having fun, and learning regularly, any goal is achievable.

4. Fall in love with the process.

If you fall in love with the process, you'll find excuses to keep trying, learning, growing, and discovering. And, most importantly, keep getting back on the horse.

This is a skill in and of itself. Life is full of obstacles, and it's rare that everything is in perfect alignment. Sh*t happens. You get sick. Or depressed. Or work/kids/partners derail your plans. The question is: How quickly do you get back on the horse? Bad stuff happens, but don't let a three-day cold turn into not working out for a month.

5. Look backward before you look forward.

Taking stock of what kind of year 2016 has been will help you create the best 2017 possible. I wrote a whole blog post about it, but basically, look back at your year and ask yourself these three questions:

What were your five biggest success in 2016?

What were the five biggest challenges?

Is there any important unfinished business you need to wrap up?

Looking backward provides context, continuity, and orientation to your future goals. And guess what? If something real crappy happened to you last year, good! Not because I’m a sadistic jerk, but because that “bad" thing might be exactly the source of fuel you need to make meaningful resolutions.

Here's the truth. You haven’t made the big changes you already know you need to make because you’re scared. Making real change is uncomfortable and forces you to be vulnerable and courageous in the face of uncertainty.

Honestly, if a goal or new activity scares you (in an existential way, not in an "I might actually die" kind of way), that’s a very good sign you're on the right path. Follow the fear and know every single obstacle you face—be it internal or external—is an opportunity to get stronger and truly embrace your power to create the life you deserve.

Will it be easy? No. Comfortable? Definitely not. Worth it? More than you can possibly imagine.

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