#which also happened to be the first post with mie ever!!!

[thewildwilds]

It's about time for an Addams Family redux!

Happy Halloween!

[miekasa]

mie….could we please get college au eren headcanons👉🏽👈🏽

Of course. I’m always thinking about his big head anyway <33 might as well put it good use.

One thing he learned in college is how to make his hyperfocus/fixation episodes work for him; that’s why he schedules all his classes as close together as possible. He’d rather have class back to back for 5 hours, than have it spread out with hours in between lectures, because that increases his changes of cutting.

You can always tell when he’s in class and/or what class he’s in by how much he responds to your messages. If he doesn’t text back at all, he’s in a class that hard or one he enjoys, or both. But if he’s sending you iMessage games, then you know he’s in his elective that he couldn’t care else about (and is probably cheating in someway somehow lmfao). 

He usually puts his phone on dnd when he’s in a class that’s important, but you’re in his favorite contacts, so your messages always ring through. What if it’s an emergency and you need him for something? Advanced Roots of Human Biology can wait. 

Some days there are one or two our breaks between his lectures, that’s just how the scheduling works out. When that happens, he usually sneaks into one of your lectures, or goes to your place to take a nap. Your roommates have become accustomed to him, honestly they’ve been considering giving him a key. 

Once, he didn’t realize that your lecture was basically a seminar, with you, the prof and maybe six other students. He still stayed lmao, and the prof was so amazed by his dedication, that she didn’t even mind. Occasionally, you’ll catch the two of them talking after lecture. It’s pretty cute the way she’s adopted him into the class even tho he’s not on the roster. 

You... have to show him where the library is lmfao. He genuinely has not stepped foot in one until you bring him to one. He likes it tho lmao once he gets used to it. 

Speaking of which, do not give him standard directions to find your classes on campus because all you’ll get is, “Babe, I’m gonna keep it real with you, I’ve never heard of the ‘West Quad’ a day in my life. What building are you near.”

He usually comes to see you in the library after all his lectures are done for the day. Sometimes he does homework, sometimes he’s just fucking around on his computer, sometimes he’s just bothering you. When you have to leave to go to class, he stays behind to watch your stuff so you don’t have to pack everything up and come back. 

Very protective when it comes to keeping your seat for you. No, you cannot take that chair to your table you good for nothing freshman; it’s reserved for you. 

He’ll drag you out of the library if you’ve been cooped up all day, tho. Eren will use his height and his strength against you to get you up. Placates you with kisses when he sees your angry expression, and promises to buy you food.

He takes your backpack for you when you’re walking together,m. His backpack is frustratingly light all the time, even during midterms. You swear all he’s got in there is a pencil and some flashcards. 

If you have night classes, he sticks around to walk you home after, especially in the winter when it gets dark faster. If he’s not already on campus, he’ll walk/drive back to meet you; he just doesn’t like you going home alone. Even if your friend/roommate is in the class with you, Eren will walk or drive the both of you home for his own sanity. 

He plays sports, so he usually has practice most evenings, but he’ll find a way to make time. If practice was particularly brutal, he’ll probably crash at your place.

He loves it when you come to meet him after practice. His whole face lights up and he waves obnoxiously, before he gathers up his stuff and all but sprints towards you. You get a cold water bottle to the face, or a bit of water splashed on you usually, which he takes immense amusement in. 

He knows it’s not possible for you to make it to all of his games, and usually it doesn’t bother him much; you’ve got your own life, and work to worry about. All he asks is that you wear his jersey, or any item of his sports apparel/merch on game day (he’s partial to hoodies).

By the time junior year rolls around, he’s not all that interested in attending parties that aren’t hosted by your friends; so, unless it’s at Connie, Jean, or Reiner and Bertholdt’s place, Eren will usually decline. Even team parties, he’s not crazy about unless it’s to celebrate a championship or something. He’d much rather celebrate with you. 

He does get excited about hosting parties though, and he and Jean become pretty damn good co-hosts. They don’t throw ragers, and that’s probably why Eren likes it so much. It’s usually your friend group and a couple plus ones, some good music, games, weed, and take-out. 

He’ll buy you coffee whenever you ask for it. The first time, he just orders something plain, not really knowing the difference between anything; but give it two or three tries, and he’ll get it perfect. He becomes so good that he can order you something new/different and you’ll love it. 

That’s kind of the start of his own coffee addiction, and more often than not, when he buys you a cup, he’s on his second or third of the day himself. The flavor has really grown on him, okay. 

He much prefers your apartment, but on occasion, he’ll ask you to come to his. You’ve been studying for so long, a change of environment should do you good, he claims. He’s a fucking liar tho because that’s all Eren Talk for “I do genuinely want you to come over, but my plans are to coerce you out of doing your assignments and doing me instead.”

Lmfao he adds you on Apple Watch Rings just so you can see him close his rings every day and laugh at you. Even if yours get closed by virtue of walking around campus or working out or whatever, his numbers are stupidly high because he fucking has practice at least 4 days of the week. 

Of course when you’re running on a soccer field for 2 hours every day, you close your Move Ring five times, Eren. Leave the rest of us alone. 

He buys you guys matching accessories for your keychains. It’s something pretty cute, and slightly random, but it reminded him of you. It also serves as a reminder to himself to take his fucking keys with him when he leaves his house. 

He sleeps like a fucking rock, so do not let him fall asleep in the library. Waking him up is a mission, and he’s never happy to be woken up. He looks kinda cute tho. 

He schedules dates for you and his friends. Usually by accident, but hear me out. Sometimes he’ll make plans with Armin, then forget that he has class or a test or something; so his solution is to text you, “hey, i forgot min and i were supposed to go some aquarium tomorrow but i have a midterm so here’s the pdf of my ticket, go with him for me, thanks babe love u” then, boop, you and Armin have an aquarium date Friday evening. 

The same thing happens with Mikasa, though, she usually catches the scheduling conflict before Eren does, and invites you out herself. You and Mikasa hang out quite a bit anyway, so it comes to the point where she tells you when she’s gonna hang out with Eren, so you can make yourself free for when he inevitably remember he has a game that day. 

Mikasa is most amazed that you’ve put up with Eren this long lmao. You’ve certainly lessened her Eren & Armin babysitting hours, and for that she’s eternally grateful. Also, she’s just happy to have another close friend. She loves Eren and Armin, but they’re not the most social beings, and she was literally their only friend besides the other for all their childhood PLEASE she’s so happy you’re around. 

It’s Mikasa, however, who babysits you and Eren whenever you both get too drunk. Says you guys are two peas in a pod (affectionate<2)

If you tell Eren something important that happened, like an internship you got, or a good grade in a class, or something, he usually relays that information to his mom pls. He texts her every day, and if she doesn’t ask for an update on you first, he gives her one.

Carla calls you sometimes, too. At least once every few weeks, just to check on you herself. She really likes you for Eren, and is grateful someone is willing to put up with her hotheaded son. 

Eren’s always using your fucking chapstick. Always. You know he has his own, so why he needs to use yours is beyond you. Finds time to make some dumbass comment about how it’s an “indirect kiss” every time he uses it too. Like bro, we’re dating, and have had many direct kisses why are you like this.

He posts on Instagram every few weeks or so, but you’re on his story every few days. Usually, it’s just a video of you minding your business and doing your work while Eren slowly zooms in before making some loud noise to surprise you, all so he can get your reaction on video and laugh at it. He’s annoying. 

He’s a bit of a copycat when it comes to the products you use. He’ll buy the same brand of pens as you (for that matter, all of his school supplies mirror yours because what does he know about the difference between A4 and A5 notebooks?), put a little hand sanitizer on his backpack like yours (and a lotion, too, for good measure), he even copies your Starbucks order until he finds one he likes for himself. It’s one of his love languages <3

If you’re wondering where your eyelash curler went, Eren stole it to try it on himself, hurt himself, vowed to never use it again, went back because he wanted to “do it right and not give up,” liked the results when he didn’t pinch his eyelid, and now it’s his. 

That being said, stop trying to put your Fenty lipgloss on him, it’s never going to happen. Eye makeup, maybe, only if you sit in his lap and he can have his hands on your ass while you do it. 

What he does love is letting you do his skincare. He will set aside dedicated skincare nights, he adores it. Easily one of his favorite things ever. 

You have his wallet. Not because he’s your sugar daddy or anything (although, if you want something, he’d definitely let you use his card to get it; and even if you bought something without asking, he wouldn’t think twice about it), but because he put it in your bag once and never took it out. 

When you tried to give it back, he just shook his head and told you to keep it, “I have my ID in my phone case anyway, and you’re less likely to lose it. Plus I put all my cards on Apple Pay, so I’m good.”

When you do make it to a game of his, he’s all over you when it’s over. Not in a cocky athlete boyfriend kind of way; in a very sleepy boyfriend kind of way. He’s usually got ice on at least one part of his body, and he’s got half his body weight on you as you walk to the car. 

By the time you guys get back to your place, he’s practically sleep walking. The only thing on his mind is taking a hot shower to soothe his muscles, and heading to bed. The aftermath of game days aren’t all that bad though, because even if you didn’t show, you’re always there to kiss him when he’s home and massage his shoulders, and cuddle him to sleep; and that’s his favorite part. 

[tirorah]

’Minna’s Sky’ is Road to Berlin’s Crowning Achievement

A long time ago, in a universe far, far away, three young girls met each other during a war: Minna, the caring leader; Gertrud, the stalwart defender; and Erica, the lazy prodigy who kept them smiling.

As the fighting continued, a friendship began to form. And now, years later, that friendship lies at the heart of something truly exceptional.

Minna’s Sky is the culmination of twelve-and-a-half years of relationship development, and it gives this special trio the sendoff it deserves. I was overcome with conflicting emotions while I watched this episode; when it finished, I was left shaken and almost lost for words.

…Which is why I wrote an essay on it! And that entire essay is contained under the cut, so you’d best buckle up and hold onto something, because today we’re diving into what I believe to be the pièce de résistance of Strike Witches.

In a previous post speculating on what Minna’s Sky could hold—which, by the way, was thoroughly proven wrong—I took a moment to outline my love for Minna and my frustration with her neglect. Initially, this trend continued in Road to Berlin: in episodes 6 and 8, the characters were faced with circumstances that would’ve been greatly helped by a Witch with Space Understanding magic. Of course, I understand why the writers chose to exclude Minna from these events; having Minna there would’ve negated the drama of Trude thinking Erica was dead, and of Sanya and Eila clashing over conflicting sensory reports.

But Minna’s episode hit back hard. If RtB is Strike Witches’ magnum opus, then Minna’s Sky may well be RtB’s masterpiece among masterpieces. It combines the intensity and raw emotion of Hounds of Vengeance with a ticking time bomb that ratchets up the tension all the way through, finishing with a series of events that makes you feel like anything can happen.

Role Reversal

Minna’s Sky starts with a surprise right away. In episode 8, Minna and Trude expressed anxiety over losing their magic. At this point they’re just under three months removed from their 20th birthdays, where decay will certainly start to set in. But in this episode, we learn Minna’s already feelings the effects. At first this confused me, as their birthdays are only nine days apart, but I do recall seeing something about how Trude’s magical reserves are pretty large, second only to Yoshika’s. I can’t find my source for that, but this could be an explanation for Minna’s earlier decline.

Trude notices Minna’s flagging strength, and at that point, a switching of roles takes place.

Minna, who once held Mio at gunpoint for refusing to give up on flight, is now doing the same thing. She’s still herself, but she essentially slips into Mio’s previous role. She takes this burden upon herself and stops communicating with the others over it, even avoiding them during mealtime.

Last episode, we could see her mask starting to slip, and here, all her logic and serenity fades, replaced with a wholly emotional desire. She and her girls have worked so hard to get here, and she wants to uphold her vow of retaking Berlin, so she makes the decision to give this fight everything she has, despite the danger involved.

This puts her at odds with Trude, who slides into the calm and perceptive role Minna used to fill.

You know, Trude may be my favorite character of all time, but she hasn’t always been handled well. In Season 1, she was a great balance of the calm and quiet supporter, and the stern disciplinarian who thought yelling at Erica would make her get up earlier. In Season 2, this equilibrium was lost; it leaned much more into her anger, and there were precious few moments of Trude being the gentle and tender woman I know she can be. The movie had the same problem, as it had to reintroduce eleven characters in one sitting. Operation Victory Arrow worked hard to remedy this problem, focusing on smaller casts which gave them time to show different sides of themselves—like Minna and Trude having breakfast like a married couple. Ahem.

This is one reason why RtB has been so gratifying for me. It knows what it’s doing with Trude and while she’s certainly had some angry moments, RtB has built her up as a more mature, level-headed executive officer. Consequently, it feels natural for her to take up the position Minna would usually hold in this type of situation.

Even when she privately confronts Minna over her magic, there is no anger, only attempts to reason her friend out of her decision. But Minna doesn’t want Kiel to be lost, and at that moment, it’s made clear that she prioritizes Operation Southwind over her own well-being.

And this is entirely contradictory with what she usually tells her girls! Like I said before, the 501st is a circle of love, and while that love motivates them to fight for one another’s sakes, as Sanya did, it now leads Minna down a path of self-sacrifice that would’ve absolutely killed her if it was one of her girls doing it. Moreover, with Trude now filling Minna’s role, she’s the one pleading with Minna not to go, and like Minna once failed to stop Mio, Trude now fails to stop Minna.

This causes inner turmoil. Trude doesn’t want to lose Kiel, but if Minna perishes, she’d never forgive herself. Like she said in Hounds of Vengeance, when she thought Erica was dead, retaking Berlin would have no point if Minna wasn’t there to celebrate it with them.

It says something, then, that Trude chooses to go along with Minna’s wishes, and even keeps her waning magic a secret from the others. Instead of declaring Minna unfit for battle—which I imagine she has every right to do—she instead becomes Minna’s most ardent protector, immediately volunteering for the high-risk operation. When Minna becomes anxious and nearly makes a mistake, Trude is there to rein her in and calm her down. Minna even comments on how this would usually be the other way around.

Fortunately, Minna is better at this self-sacrificing stuff than Mio is. While she initially uses her desire to protect Kiel to justify her actions, a heartfelt campfire scene shows us that she’s aware of the ramifications her death would have. As Erica complains about their fake coffee, Minna promises to make her a proper batch when they return; Trude tells her not to make such promises, but Minna reassures her she’ll come back safe, and even proposes they go to a café together once Berlin is retaken. On the surface, they’re making plans for the future; but underneath, it’s an implied message to Trude: I understand. I’m not going out to die. I’ll come back.

Isn’t that first pic just the cutest Trude shot ever, by the way?

And Trude is pacified. She places her trust in Minna and continues to support her as best she can.

Of course, things are never that simple. Minna succeeds at her objective, and just when the episode seems to be steering to a happy conclusion, the Hive screeches and loads up all its rockets at the same time. As Trude once again begs her to stop, she does the unthinkable: she cuts the line and dives into a suicide run, breaking one promise to keep another.

The facial expressions and body language have been god-tier in RtB.

I must commend Tanaka Rie here. I’ve often complimented Sonozaki Mie (who voices Trude) for her impeccable delivery, but Tanaka Rie is equally excellent, possibly better in some departments (like range, just hear her role in Mai Otome for example). Here, as Negai no Tomoshibi starts playing in the background, the gravity of the scene rests entirely on Tanaka’s voice work. And boy, does she nail it! The exhaustion, the desperation, the sheer will, it’s all there. Her desperate pants and cries at the end are especially powerful, and they make this scene even more dramatic when she faints right after.

Trude manages to catch her—and only Trude was there, because 1: we only saw Trude catching her; 2: the hand we see is Minna’s left, and in the next shot, Trude is carrying her right arm instead; and 3: we only saw one blue dot in the Hive, and the episode previously established one dot was one Witch.

Ahem! Trude catches her and brings her back, and she…breaks down.

Wow. Trude doesn’t cry easily, you know. We’ve seen her depressed, despondent, even heard her sob as she told Yoshika to leave her behind, but until Hounds of Vengeance, we’d never seen Trude cry. While that one ended in a victorious moment, here the emotion is allowed to run its course, and it’s heartbreaking. Trude doesn’t just cry, she weeps, and as she yells and screams at Minna that she could never follow an order that would involve leaving Minna behind, her facial expressions convey just how terrified she truly was.

I said earlier that Minna switched to Mio’s role, and while that’s true, there’s something even more poetic at work here: this episode mirrors Season 1’s Episode 4 in some places, to the point that I feel like it has to be on purpose. That’s one reason why I made this photoset. Just look at this:

Oh look, more apologizing! These two are so emotionally responsible to one another. It’s always good to see.

The roles are shown as reversed, with Trude crying and reprimanding Minna, and Minna apologizing for her actions and agreeing on a better path forward.

Sexy Gal

I also need to devote some space to Erica here. She wasn’t as prominent—Minna and Trude’s bond took center stage—but this episode is probably the best showcase of Erica’s qualities. We already saw her surviving in the woods and rationing her chocolate three episodes prior, but here, it’s clear more than ever what her role is in the Karlsland Trio’s support structure: the morale boost.

In the “Erica Hartmann 1941” manga, we’re shown how Erica becomes a ray of hope for everyone, and especially Minna and Trude, whom she begins to develop a friendship with at that time. It’s this aspect which is finally on full display here: while she’s not as overt with her support as Trude is, she helps in her own way, and her easy-going personality consistently puts a smile on her friends’ faces. That’s why it’s so important that it’s Erica who makes Minna laugh—not once, but twice. In a group where the other two members have their fair share of baggage, Erica is a breath of fresh air and equally important.

Rising Tension

Okay, with the character work out of the way, let’s look at the episode’s story. Because holy crap, I felt like I was watching a movie! At first, I was a little annoyed by some of the stiff animation (especially for RtB’s standards). I was afraid they were going to half-ass Minna’s episode. But as the episode proceeded and absolutely everything got better and better, I realized I was in for a very special ride.

I’ve always had the opinion that Strike Witches is at its best when it plays its war drama straight, but it’s not as simple as striking the serious tone and having the characters fight for their lives. Strike Witches isn’t a pure action show; the stakes in battle often revolve around the characters overcoming their flaws, struggling to protect the world and those they hold dear. Thus, Strike Witches relies on its lighter moments to develop the cast so that when danger comes to them, your emotional investment in the characters helps to create additional tension.

In general, RtB has been great at this, but for me personally, the most emotionally intense episode prior to Minna’s Sky was Episode 6: Hounds of Vengeance.

But that one was different. It started off with relatively low tension, then brought it up to full when Erica was left behind and Trude had a meltdown over it. But when it’s revealed that Trude isn’t just moping around, and that she’s working on a plan, the tension evens out. The central question goes from ‘Will Erica survive?’ to ‘How awesome will Trude be in this episode?’ The climactic action is triumphant, and although Trude’s reaction to Erica’s ‘body’ is heartbreakingly real, we as viewers know that Erica is fine; in fact, she hasn’t seemed that down at all, obviously having faith in her rescue.

Episode 9 doesn’t do that. It immediately confronts you with Minna’s magic issue and her hiding it from her friends, then pretends to be innocent for a while, with Patton being an idiot and Ursula introducing her helmet gun. (“It’s a helmet, with a gun on it.” NO, REALLY?) But as soon as the Komet is introduced, the pressure builds and it never lets up.

It all comes to a head when the trio (plus Ursula) reaches the launch point. Minna’s been dropping death flags all episode, and now things go haywire over and over. An hour left? Nope, the Neuroi spotted you and moved up the rocket’s launch. Barely enough time to intercept the rocket? Hey, there’s that Neuroi that beat the two top aces of the world in single combat, and it’s coming to stop you. Thirty seconds to go for the fuel? The Neuroi gets past Trude and Erica and nearly destroys the Komet, hurts Ursula and blows up one of their trucks. Trude and Erica get it away from there? Oh look, the Hive’s about to launch!

We then get an epic scene where Minna takes off, uses her magic, and destroys the rocket. Speaking of which, I didn’t say anything about this when I talked about episode 8, but I’m so happy we finally get to see some of the Witches’ magic from their point of view! Seeing Eila’s future sight was haunting, and Minna’s is awesome to see as well. Erica and Trude manage to finish off their quarry, showing their skill and adaptability; it seems their prior experience means they’re better prepared to deal with its unique movements this time around.

Erica asks for chocolate and grumbles when Trude tells her she’ll get some later. Minna laughs, but there’s still that tension because Minna’s fuel is almost up, and she’s hanging around that damn Hive.

And then the Hive loads up all its rockets at once, and all hell breaks loose. Trude loses control of the situation as Minna goes on a suicide run, and then the insert song starts playing. It’s difficult to explain the impact of that song without simply showing you the episode. The moment that piano hits, it feels as though a veneer of tragedy descends upon the scene. The Komet nearly stops working, and Minna is on her last legs, and she’s reduced to nothing but cries and gasps. She faints moments after she destroys the last rocket.

And then the music gets louder as Minna plummets into the Hive, red slowly filling the screen. We’re treated to a long shot of Minna falling into the swirling, angry clouds, her tiny form fading into its mass. And at that point I freaked the fuck out.

It was somewhere around Season 2’s finale and watching the movie that I realized Strike Witches doesn’t kill off characters. Let’s just say killing a beloved character probably wouldn’t work too well for future sales. (“Hey, look at this awesome figure of the girl who died! Don’t you just love her? We’ll accept your tears as interest.”) If Mio of all people can have plot armor rivaling the size of the planet, then Minna sure as hell won’t perish here.

And yet, for a fleeting moment, I was absolutely terrified she would. All because of the masterful tension of this episode, and this entire fight scene in particular.

Fortunately, Trude manages to locate Minna in the clouds and brings her back, and the viewer can finally breathe easier as we head to the happy ending they deserve.

…Oh right, the ending.

Yuri alert

Let me start off by saying this ending is complete bullshit. It feels shoehorned in—no, I don’t care what historical event it’s referencing—and it doesn’t fit the tone of the episode at all.

Having said that, as much as this made me laugh (even more than Trude’s literal asspull in Hounds of Vengeance) it did get one thing completely right: yes, Ursula, it IS very beautiful. The love between these three is great. What kind of love that exactly is, I’m not entirely sure anymore.

Yes, you’re going to roll your eyes at this—oh no, she’s going to rant about Minna x Trude again—but…I was watching this ending, right, and I could almost hear the gears in my brain turn as I tried to process this image. Emotionally, I felt like this ending was communicating love of a different sort.

Look, for all I know they’re just best buds who’ve come to deeply rely on one another for emotional and psychological stability, but my god, this ending definitely felt like a ‘oh by the way, the three of them are married to each other’ signal to me. I’m not joking!

Does that make Minna x Trude canon, even as part of an OT3? No. In fact, for all the delightful Minna x Trude subtext this episode had…

Deflection by way of flirtation. Oh là là~!

…Trude did all but confess to Erica in episode 6, and later this week, Mio might finally return in a big way and might have screen time with Minna. But my point is, in that moment, my ship felt realer than ever. In that respect, this episode gave me more than I ever thought I’d receive.

Insert clever ending header here

Right, so that’s my ramble on Minna’s Sky. I hope I’ve managed to get across why I believe it’s the best episode of the entire series. The character writing was top-notch, the tension was through the roof, the music was evocative and the animation was beautiful. Barring an absolutely spectacular final three episodes (and I wouldn’t put it past RtB to deliver that), I think this is as good as it gets. It’s not easy to beat emotional stakes that were established twelve years ago, after all.

Minna’s Sky was absolutely the episode Minna deserved, and I was very happy to see the Karlsland Trio getting its spot in the limelight as we gradually draw closer to the ending. It’s their home they’re trying to take back, after all. And while I have no doubt Minna will continue to fly until the end of the season (she seems to be fine in the preview), Operation Southwind will most likely be the bookend to Minna and Trude’s careers.

I can only hope this won’t be the last we see of Minna and Trude. I’d love it if we got to see their lives after Karlsland’s liberation, either as supporting members of the Wing or trying to live normal lives after fighting a war for nearly a decade. (Shameless plug: I have a Minna x Trude fanfic which explores the latter.)

But most of all, I don’t want Road to Berlin to end.

[gdwessel]

Kizuna Road 2021 Night 3 - 6/16/2021; Government Likely To Lift State Of Emergency Except Okinawa, Go To “Intensive Measures” Elsewhere, Set Hard Attendance Cap At 10,000; Wrestle Grand Slam In Tokyo Dome Rescheduled to 7/25/2021 With Shingo v. Ibushi, Yokohama Stadium Cancelled, Saitama MetLife Dome 9/4 + 9/5/2021 Added; Josh Alexander Debuts On NJPW Strong This Week

The tour continued today, in a show you can see now on NJPWWorld. A 10-man Elimination Match was the headliner today.

- 6/16/2021, Tokyo Korakuen Hall (NJPWWorld)

Yuya Uemura Trial Series: Hiroshi Tanahashi d. Yuya Uemura (Texas Cloverleaf, 13:17)

Yota Tsuji Trial Series: Kazuchika Okada [CHAOS] d. Yota Tsuji (Toque Espaldas, 8:53)

Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima & Yuji Nagata d. Kota Ibushi, Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma (Kojima > Honma, lariat, 11:56)

Taichi, Zack Sabre Jr., El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru [SZKG] d. Tetsuya Naito, SANADA, Shingo Takagi & BUSHI [Los Ingobernables] (Desperado > BUSHI, El Es Claro, 11:30)

Elimination Match: EVIL, Yujiro Takahashi, Dick Togo, Taiji Ishimori & El Phantasmo [Bullet Club] d. Hirooki Goto, Tomohiro Ishii, YOSHI-HASHI, SHO & YOH [CHAOS] (31:28) Order of Eliminations: - Yujiro > YOSHI-HASHI, OTTR - SHO > Yujiro, OTTR - Ishii > Togo, DQ - EVIL > Ishii, OTTR - Goto <> EVIL, OTTR - Phantasmo > YOH, OTTR - SHO > Phantasmo, OTTR - Ishimori > SHO, Bloody Cross

Ishimori taunted RPG3K post-main in the run-up to their title match next week. Naito and SANADA took their autograph trolling to ZSJ tonight. Okada’s finish is one I don’t think I’ve ever seen him do, a lucha finisher that starts like an abdominal stretch before pinning his opponent’s shoulders. Really good looking if done right.

The government seems poised to lift the state of emergency on 6/11/2021 for all covered prefectures except Okinawa, who will keep theirs until 7/11/2021. That date is also set for seven of the other nine prefectures under the state of emergency (Tokyo, Osaka, Aichi, Hokkaido, Hyogo, Kyoto and Fukuoka) to go into “intensive anti-virus measures,” whatever the Hell that means at this point because the state of emergency was treated as anything but. Saitama, Chiba and Kanagawa Prefectures will continue their own “intensive preventative measures” until 7/11/2021 as well, whilst Gifu and Mie Prefectures will completely end their states of emergency.

In addition, the government also looks set to institute a hard attendance cap at major events of 10,000 persons. This will take the place of the incredibly vague “5,000 persons or 50% of capacity” rule that has been in place this whole time, as they finally figured out that making the rule of 5,000 or 50%, whichever was highest, is a good way to have a superspreader event. Of course, these Olympics are very much headed to be that as well. All of this could be for naught, and this Olympiad is still very much at risk of being a complete disaster.

NJPW released some updates today regarding the fate of the Wrestle Grand Slam baseball stadium shows.

Wrestle Grand Slam in Tokyo Dome, which was supposed to take place 5/29/2021 and be headlined by Will Ospreay v. Kazuchika Okada, has now been moved to 7/25/2021, and will instead feature Shingo Takagi’s first defense of the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship v. Kota Ibushi in the main event. This will make Shingo’s first time ever headlining the Tokyo Dome in his storied career. No other matches are announced yet, however no other matches were announced the first time either, so at least that’s not changed.

The Yokohama Stadium event that was postponed from 5/15/2021 has now been fully cancelled, with NJPW stating they could not figure out a suitable date to reschedule the event to. That said, they have announced two days at the Saitama MetLife Dome, home of the Saitama Seibu Lions baseball team, for 9/4/2021 and 9/5/2021. NJPW have not run this arena since the final weekend of G1 Climax 24 back in August 2014, when it was still the Seibu Dome. 

Of course, given the run of luck these shows have had so far, I wouldn’t entirely count on them happening until the opening bell is rung.

Yota Tsuji and Yuya Uemura aren’t the only Young Lions in a trial series right now, as Alex Coughlin seems to be in one himself over on NJPW Strong. This week, he will face the debuting Josh Alexander, the current Impact Wrestling X Division champion. This isn’t the first time the reigning X Division champion has been on NJPW programming recently, as Chris Bey took part in Super J-Cup 2020 whilst holding that belt. However, unless you want to count TJP’s frequent appearances, this will be the first time a current member of the Impact roster has come to NJPW programming since the new co-promotion deal was announced. Now if we can get some AEW talent working Strong (besides Jon Moxley, who just had his first child yesterday! Congratulations to Renee Paquette and Johnathan Good on the birth of Nora.). That show is Friday night at 10pm EDT / 9pm CDT on NJPWWorld.

The tour takes a day off tomorrow, before resuming Friday in a non-streamed show.

- 6/18/2021, Shizuoka Kira Messe Numazu

Togi Makabe, Tomoaki Honma & Yota Tsuji v. HIroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima & Yuji Nagata

Hiroshi Tanahashi & Yuya Uemura v. Minoru Suzuki & DOUKI [SZKG]

Hirooki Goto, Tomohiro Ishii, YOSHI-HASHI & Toru Yano [CHAOS] v. EVIL, Yujiro Takahashi, Dick Togo & Jado [Bullet Club]

SHO, YOH & Kazuchika Okada [CHAOS] v. Taiji Ishimori, El Phantasmo & Gedo [Bullet Club]

Tetsuya Naito, SANADA, Shingo Takagi & BUSHI [Los Ingobernables]  v. Taichi, Zack Sabre Jr., El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru [SZKG]

Strong Style Story Podcast Episode 75 on PWOM

[harry-leroy]

okay: Così opinions? spill. I want to hear them all.

okay okay okay oh boy oh boy oh boy (Thank you, Savannah! It’s time to go absolutely insane...) I’ll tag @vera-dauriac because I said I would go off about the Così opinions. 

So I’m currently in the middle of the Met’s Così stream for tonight - and it’s okay. Definitely not my favorite production. I think the strongest cast member is Isabel Leonard as Dorabella - I might have a bias though, because I absolutely adore her. Thing is, I think it’s the acting that’s bringing this production down for me, not the singing - so time to spill my thoughts about how Così should go down in my head. (These will be about the four lovers, not really about Despina and Don Alfonso - I think I still need to sit with them for a little longer). 

To me, Così is the Love’s Labour’s Lost of opera. (It even got the Shakespeare treatment in 1863 - where Mozart’s score was put to the text of LLL, translated into French. Ferrando and Guglielmo became Ferdinand and Berowne, and the ladies were the Princess of France and Rosaline). While some may read this opera as a sexist joke with fickle and uptight characters, I think there’s a lot more to it than that - and it’s why I prefer the title “The School for Lovers” to “All Women Do It”. Everyone is learning something in this opera, not just the women. I also think the ending is far more complicated than the libretto would have us believe. 

I made a post a while ago about the 2006 Glyndebourne Così giving us a really complicated set of looks from the singers right before the curtain drops. The couples are back where they should be, according to the libretto. Guglielmo is holding Fiordiligi, Ferrando his Dorabella, but then Fiordiligi looks back at Ferrando. Ferrando looks intently and longingly at Fiordiligi, Guglielmo realizes this and looks angrily at Ferrando, only to have Dorabella look at Ferrando, confused and hurt. And I think this is exactly where we should end. While the original couples are supposedly back in place by the end of the opera, I think each of these four young people end up in a totally different place. I think Fiordiligi loves Ferrando. I think Ferrando loves both women. I think Dorabella is lost, and I think Guglielmo wants absolutely no part of it anymore. You can find evidence to support this ending in the score and in the libretto, and you can end up creating much more exciting characters to watch in the process. 

I’ll begin with the boys. Guglielmo was played by Francesco Benucci in the original 1790 production, the one singer in the cast that Mozart could trust (Mozart and Da Ponte had a thing against four out of six people in the original cast). Benucci was the first Figaro, the first Viennese Leporello, and also a singer who was thirty years older than the original Ferrando, Vincenzo Calvesi. You can hear it in the score too. Guglielmo seems older than Ferrando - if you had a pick a leader of the two it would be Guglielmo. He’s also got an ego, and if Mozart’s slight affinity for the man in the original role wasn’t enough indication, you can also look at the libretto. “No one can resist a Guglielmo” he says after wooing Dorabella. His aria “Donne mie, la fate a tanti” is all about  women and their annoying habits, but it also points to the fact that he’s been with a lot of women. Also look at the two love duets we get in this opera, “Il core vi dono” (Guglielmo + Dorabella) and “Fra gli amplessi” (Ferrando + Fiordiligi). Which one seems more sincere? Keeping with the opera buffo style that Benucci was so well accustomed to, “Il core vi dono” plays with the theme of the heartbeat. It’s meant to be funny. Guglielmo, (I think in a good staging) also does not seem as invested in the love duet as Dorabella, and he certainly isn’t invested in her afterwards. He feels bad for Ferrando at points, but keeps up with the idea for soldier’s play. I feel that he’s the man who thinks women would be a fool to turn him down. 

Ferrando is a little different. He’s the younger of the two, infinitely more passionate, and possibly could be depressed - to me, he’s a classic enneagram 4. If Guglielmo’s the leader, then Ferrando certainly follows his lead. Until “Un’aura amorosa”, he lets Guglielmo take control of wooing the women. I really think that when Ferrando sings “Un’aura amorosa”, he should have the stage all to himself. It’s the first little hint of his personality that diverts from Guglielmo’s, and shows that he cares about not having his heart broken, more than keeping his ego intact. In fact, I don’t think Ferrando is at all afraid to have his ego wounded. After Dorabella’s moment of infidelity, he toggles between love and revenge in “In qual fiero contrasto”, but is ultimately softened a bit by love. His love for Dorabella will always nag at him. I think his revenge (to woo Fiordiligi) is more against Guglielmo than it is against Dorabella. Guglielmo’s never felt the pain he just had to go through, and Ferrando’s going to make sure he does. But the lengths to where Ferrando goes to win Fiordiligi tell me that he’s more invested in her than originally thought. As he holds a sword against his throat, I think a believable Ferrando would have let her drive the blade in. It’s the moments where Ferrando acts independently of Guglielmo that are the most exciting to watch. It’s where he asks Fiordiligi for “just one glance”, it’s imagining what happened on that walk with her offstage, it’s “Un’aura amorosa” if it’s staged right. (It’s that one last glance at Fiordiligi at the end of the Glyndebourne Così!). He and Fiordiligi have this link in which they’ve been following Guglielmo’s lead for what feels like all their lives. Ferrando is shaped by Guglielmo’s philosophy, just as Fiordiligi is shaped by the (false and perhaps social) need to remain loyal to Guglielmo. 

That said, I think the reason that Fiordiligi is so uptight in this opera is because she’s young, and she’s got the hottest soldier in town for a fiancé. She’s got the man that women could only dream about, and until Ferrando (in disguise) shows up to break her defences, I think she’s never thought about the idea of not being with Guglielmo. I don’t think she’s all that in love with Guglielmo when it comes down to it, but in love with the idea of being in love with Guglielmo. They would easily be the it-couple of their social circles, why throw that away? It takes all of the courage that Fiordiligi has to say in “Fra gli amplessi” that final “I am yours” - do with me what you will, because falling in love, real love, is the scariest thing that a young person will ever go through. I think, if done right, both Ferrando and Fiordiligi should be terrified the entire love duet-  terrified of rejection, terrified of yielding their hearts up, terrified because ‘is this what real love feels like?’. (That terror is missing from Guglielmo in “Il core vi dono”). I also assume that because she owns a house, and she has a maid, that Fiordiligi is rich - it’s very possible that many choices in her life have been made for her, and making those independent choices for the first time can also be terrifying. That said, I completely understand her obstinate behavior. 

And that leaves Dorabella, my poor darling. I really think she gets the short end of the stick here, and it’s because of Guglielmo mostly. When I first saw Così, I really wanted the switched couples to stay together, but I think that was because of Ferrando and Fiordiligi, and when you watch the Glyndebourne production, you just see how much Ferrando and Fiordiligi love one another. But now that I’ve seen a few more productions, I really just want Ferrando and Fiordiligi to be together. Guglielmo and Dorabella actually don’t have that sincere of a connection, and while Ferrando does love Dorabella, I’m not sure how much we can recover from their love after watching the passion between him and Fiordiligi just moments before. Dorabella is someone who follows Fiordiligi’s lead for the most part, but also has her own moments of independence, and I think in that way, she’s like Ferrando. Both she and Ferrando have moments of passion, far more than their counterparts. “È amore un ladroncello” is a marvellous aria, and I think it’s because Dorabella gets it. She gets that love is about putting your heart on the line and going for broke, and she knows how terrifying that is, and she found that in Ferrando and Guglielmo, but I’m not entirely certain that the boys found it in her. In that way, she is the most mature of the four, but she also gets left with the least. 

So back to that ending, I think that we should understand that it’s not just that these lovers are getting back with their original couples, but that they all have a lot of individual work to do and a lot to think about. It’s the school for lovers and they’ve all learned their individual lessons. Guglielmo learned how to have his heart broken, Fiordiligi learned how to love, Ferrando walks away with a conflicted heart, and Dorabella has to swallow her own words: love is a thief. They may have forgiven each other, but their story is far from resolved. 

If I were staging this, I would love to stage it in the regency period - like 1810s England, because there would be no end to the Austenite yearning and the costumes would be gorgeous. You would also get the boys rolling up like the desperate romantics they are (especially Ferrando). I’ve also been entertaining a gender-bent version, probably set in the same period, because of how sex-charged the opera’s connotations are, but I also think it would work really well. 

Obviously, there are places in this discussion of mine that you could probably tear and stretch a bit. It’s not the only reading of Così out there - but I think we need to give this opera a more human shape rather than make it a battle of the sexes or an opera where the characters are caricatures, which is why I think a conflicting ending (like the one that Glyndebourne did) works so well. No one group is supposed to win the day at the end, but I think forgiveness is a good first step. 

[chatchalita]

I feels like writing something, since I rarely write things these days and I feels like my English will go down the drain soon, if I’m not writing.

Since I impulsively bought a plane ticket again, it’s time for me to summarize my other two trips I had this year as like a build-up for my upcoming new adventure the Taiwan trip in November. 

This first post is about my side trip from business trip...I guess

I don’t know how I usually start my traveling post, I guess I start with a disclaimer that this post is not informative at all, just me writing about my trip for future me to reminisce about it.

It has been 2 years since I last visit Mikawa Anjo, the last time was for internship purpose, (which I happened to not write about the experience :/)  I was greeted by the familiar feelings, I missed this place.  I finally semi-ly made it back.  I worked hard in this company for the past 1 year and I feels like it paid off a little.

This trip was my 6th time in Japan and took 14 days (Aug, 18th- Sep, 1st).  Since this is a business trip, I’m able to ride Thai Airways, finally something that not low-cost and I’m able to load my luggage lol. The flight is TG644, I arrived at Japan around 8am, I decided to stop by my hotel for luggage storage, then go on an adventure to Okazaki Castle.  

Before Okazaki Castle, I visited about 6 Japanese castles, so I know what I should expected from the castle.  And spoiler alert, it was disappointing for me, I don’t know why, maybe because I’m burned out from visiting castle, or maybe because I saw a greater castle?  Or maybe because I expected something from the castle that said to be the birthplace of Tokugawa Ieyasu? The Evangelion exhibition saved this castle from a total disappointment, at least there are something interesting.  

After the castle I went back to my hotel and then meet up with my boss and some Japanese co-workers for a little nomikai.  Alcohol intake, not that much.

The second day, which is Monday, it’s the old atmosphere everybody was as welcoming as ever.  I only spent half day there because I had to visit other supplier factory in Gifu, I’m still cursing myself for not taken any photos in my phone (for the location purpose), then that night another nomikai, and this time I drunk so much sake that actually made me drunk and made me worry for tomorrow.  I’m not the kind of person to have hangover, so I didn’t worried about that, I was more worry about  how much alcohol I will have left in my blood, since Tuesday, I will have to attend welcome party.

Tuesday, another nomikai, thank god my body can handle another round.  That day, I was not drunk whatsoever, but I did drink Calpis sawla for at least 5 glasses, and other other things...overall probaby 15-20 glasses of alcohol.  Those are nothing to sake I previously drunk on Monday though.

Wednesday, nothing worth mentioning ohh except I walked 2 km for Matsumoto Kiyoshi to get the stuffs ppl asked me to buy for them.

Thursday, yakiniku with my co-workers.

Friday, actually nothing?

So one week has passed, most the weekdays activity either hung out” with my co-workers or went to grocery shopping, my co-workers (in Thailand) asked me to buy kimono for them, and they keep called it yukata.  It was a short kimono that you wear with hakama, these people want to wear them as “fashion”, these really culture appropriation *sigh*

Saturday, Saturday, where did I go on Saturday...oh Meiji Mura...again.  I actually went there two years ago to dress in Hakama while this year is to see very small fireworks with actual same age people.  Because I already went there once, not many pictures were taken 

Sunday, the manager in charge of me took me to Iga, MIe to see some ninja.  Iga Ueno castle is actually in the list of castle I want to visit.  If you talking about Iga ninja, Hattori Hanzo, probably the famous ninja from that “school”?

The ninja demonstration was interesting, idk what I expected, I guess I did low-key expected movie stunts ninjutsu, but it turned out to be just ninja technique.

I do loves Iga Ueno Castle since I could see both the life of ninja and samurai in one place.  The ninja village is really fun place and touristy.

So far the day went very well and pretty much free since the manager paid for everything, but my dumbass has to be extra and went to Nishio to see lantern festival (alone).  And you know what, the taxi cost 6000 yen round-trip just for the station to the festival ground.  And this is what 6000 yen gave me...

It only 8pm and the festival already over.  I learned something new every time I went to Japan.  Apparently, 8pm is late for the festival.  I live in the city, 8pm is still early for me.  

Monday, kaiten sushi with the same age people

Tuesday, in the afternoon I went to Toyohashi to see printing factory and the person asked me what is the food that I want to eat but have not eaten yet, and I replied “unagi”, which is something very expensive.  

I think this was about 5000 yen for a set.  In the evening, he treated me tempura like in actually tempura shop, where the chef actually fried tempura in front of us.

As a nekojita, I was suffering but it was so delicious.

Wednesday, I got stood up by the manager that took care of me 2 years ago.  No biggie.

Thursday & Friday, spent my last day in Anjo as lonely as ever.  (and spent 2 hours try to figure how to pack everything in my suitcase because of what people asked me to buy)

Saturday, I bought a day tour from Klook to Takayama and Shirakawago, the thing about tour is it convenience and probably cheaper than finding the transportation myself, but the downfall always, the time.  There are not enough time!!  I guess that is something I have to accept when it a day trip.  In the bus, I was the only non-Chinese speaking person there.

Takayama...I was eating, so I didn’t had much time to explore, but you know what I feels like if you went to Kyoto, you don’t need to go to Takayama.  It has it own charmed, I just didn’t had enough time to enjoy its charm.

The raw beef is the best out of the 3, this Hida beef made visiting Takayama worth it.

Next stop, Shirakawago, the highlight of the trip.  The sunlight and everything made the pictures look colorful and amazing.  The photos taken there was one of my favorite set of photos of all my trips. 

Shirakawago, a place I would loved to visit again during winter and spent more time there.  Due to the lack of time, I can only take pictures of here and there instead of absorb myself.  I wanted to visit more museum, more historical stuff, but the time is limited :/

After the day tour, I went to Hikone and stay at the hotel there.

Sunday, the last day let’s make it count.  I first planned to go see Tonbokiri in western shiga (which I forgot the name of the place), but because it was so far away and I don’t want to wake up early and my main goal was HIkone castle.  I ended up with visited Nagahama Castle in the morning.  That Sunday probably the day I cursed google map the most because the train schedule in there just not right!  I didn’t missed the train, but like the map told me it departs at 9, I arrived at 8:50, the trained in the google map is the train that not stop in this station like what’s going on.  And that happened a lot that day, I probably spent like almost 2 hour in (different) train station because the time in google map was earlier than the actual train. 

Anyway, back to Nagahama castle, a castle built by Totoyomi Hideyoshi

In my opinion, definitely better than Okazaki, the overall atmosphere made it “feels” more significant than Okazaki castle.  The view from the tenshuu is very pretty, in which you can actually see Biwa lake.

I just loves this kind of scenery.

After Nagahama, I went to Omi-Hachiman for some unknown reason.  I’m like that awkward person that wouldn’t push the stop button because nobody seem to get off at this stop, and just kept riding the bus until many ppl get off.  I mean they are Japanese people, they know what’s good right?  Turned out, the popular spot Japanese people are going is like a “dessert park” called La Collina, I called it dessert park because they mainly sell dessert there, and “park” because they have large greenery area.

Their most famous dessert is Baumkuchen, I personally not that big fan of it, so I bought the small size along with macaron.

Then, I followed google map to Omihachiman canal area to find the bus to get back to the station.

The canal area is what I intended to go.

I’m glad I was awkward and decided to follow Japanese people because I got have variety of scenic photos.

Next stop, the highlight of this trip Hikone Castle, 1 of the 12 original castles yayyy.

I love Japanese garden, so first visited the garden in the castle area and just like other garden I visited (except Kokura Castle garden), i was not disappointed.

The Hikone Castle, I loved the castle that I have to work my way to see the tenshu.  I love climbing, just to see castle.

The view from the tenshu also amazing.

After HIkone, I went back to Nagoya to see my same age co-workers? friends? comrades? again for the last time, and we ate “Taiwanese Ramen” which just spicy ramen

And then I got back at the airport, which seem very empty at night.

Good bye, Aichi.  I hope they will send me there for business trip again next year.  

If you read this far, stay tuned for another Japan trip, which is like 2 weeks later from this Japan trip.

[kittyprincessofcats]

I’m back home! And caught up on sleep. Grenoble was an experience I don’t think I’ll ever forget. I’ll want to watch every figure skating competition in person from now on. It’s /so/ much better than just seeing it on TV!

I already made a post about my first day, so here’s my experiences/thoughts of saturday and sunday (aka the free skates and the gala):

- We didn’t watch the practices on saturday because it would have just been too much and we needed a break. So we arrived around midday for the Men’s free skate and there was already a HUGE line in front of the arena. Way longer than the day before. And at one point Vanessa James ran past the line and waved at everyone. The whole atmosphere was just amazing. So casual and yet so festive.

- The arena was way fuller for the free skate and everything was even more festive than the day before.

- You know those parts where they film the people in the audience? My dad and I ended up on camera twice. let’s hope that got cut out

- Watching the men’s free skate was an amazing experience. I’m happy that Nathan managed to redeem himself from the short and win the gold after all. Congrats on making the final! But I’m even more happy for Jason Brown. SO nice to see him finally do well this season! So nice to see him win a medal (and without quads!) He was absolutely amazing. I also love how even though he didn’t make the final, him winning silver here instead of Alexander Samarin is the reason Junhwan Cha got into the final. TCC teamwork!

- I don’t remember much about the Free Dance tbh, but the victory ceremony was fun! I don’t get why they were using those ugly, big plastic things instead of medals, though. The skaters already had to hold the flowers and watches and people usually only have two hands. Medals they can hang around their necks would have been more practical.

- And here was my biggest annoyance of the day: The organisation of the event was a bit of a chaos. For saturday, you had to buy a ticket for the afternoon (Men and Dance) and another for the evening (Ladies and Pairs). And instead of letting people stay inside and just checking their second ticket, they made everyone leave the arena and stand in line outside again. And if you wanted to watch the victory ceremonies until the end and quickly have dinner (since it was 6 pm), you had literally no time. We left the building after the men’s victory ceremony and the line was already huge again and they weren’t letting people back inside yet. So we ran to get some food before quickly getting back in line. At that point they seemed to realize they hadn’t thought this through and were letting people in quicker. Still, we barely made it back in time for the beginning of Stanislava’s performance. Some people behind us missed the first or first two ladies. There really should have been a way to organize that better. Either let people stay inside, or make the break between the two parts longer or something.

- The ladies. Oh god, I was nervous. I was /so/ nervous for the second group. Bradie was surprisingly cool to watch. I’m glad Marin finally managed two clean programs.

- Mai was absolutely beautiful and it only hit me after the whole thing was over how /close/ she came to making the final. I didn’t really expect her to qualify, but look at how close she came! Two points more and she would have been in. It’s a little frustrating now that I think about it. She’d have deserved it. But at least she still seemed super happy with her medal.

- Rika, my darling Rika <3. At first I was disappointed when she didn’t do the 3A3T, beacause I REALLY wanted to see it in person, but in retrospect, I understand. She knew she didn’t have to win to qualify for the final. She saw the others’ scores and knew she didn’t need another highscore. Making the final was more important than beating her personal best, so I understand why she played it safe. And it was enough to win, which I’m delighted about. Congrats on your second GP win and on making the final, darling, you deserve it.

- Zhenya </3. I was gutted about that one. I really wanted her in the final. But at the end of the day, the result was fair. There just happened to be many others in this GP series who were better. That being said, I still believe in her and wish her all the best. It’s not the end of the world. Ups and downs are a part of any athlete’s career, and as I said before, she’s going through a lot of changes right now, so the struggles are understandable. Maybe she’ll come back stronger for Russian Nationals and do well there. Or maybe she’ll struggle the whole season, and that’s okay, too. Give her time. Don’t jump to conclusions. And most importantly, be respectful and don’t hate on her.

- On a happier note, the Pairs’ Free was amazing and I’m SO happy for Vanessa and Morgan! And they’re such nice people, too. They look two victory laps after the VC and made sure to wave at all the fans and thank everyone. I really want them to win the GPF now.

- Speaking of nice people: Did you see Rika and Mai on the podium and after? alsjdflaksjdf CUTIES!!! That moment when they came back wrapped in flags because they were freezing... or when they hugged each other... my heart melted right then and there. The only thing I got annoyed about was the old photographer who made them stay for so long they couldn’t really do a victory lap. I was really thinking ‘come on, dude, you already have so many photos! just let them celebrate with their fans for a bit’. And they’re such sweethearts. Both of them were cold, but they still went over to the fans near the K&C, signed a buch of autographs and took selfies with fans. Unfortunately, I was sitting all the way on the other side of the rink. I considered running over there and asking for an autograph, but Rika and Mai already seemed they like they were cold, so I didn’t want to annoy them and make them stay even longer.

- A thing I forgot earlier: After the Ladies’ FS, I walked past Mie Hamada on my way to the toilet and she seemed super happy. I wonder why

- And finally, there was the gala on sunday, which was really nice. I’m glad we decided to stay for that after all. The minute of silence for Denis Ten was really moving. I’m glad Zhenya seemed to be in a good mood at the gala. I still love Rika’s dress. Jason’s EX was the best. I was disappointed they didn’t invite the Russian Power Rangers (Popova/ Mozgov) to the gala, though. That would have been cool to see.

- All in all, I had an amazing time in France, and I definitely want to go to a competition again next year. It’s an amazing experience and I highly recommend it.

[iguana012]

Japanese Nats: The Aftermath

This recap is almost 3 weeks late but fwiw I judged the event on The Judges’ Table. If you’re interested in my (serious) opinions about the competition, you can read them there. If you’re interested in my less censored opinions, I will include as much as I can in this post. 

So what happened is that Japan crowned their tiniest champions ever, Satoko Miyahara (her 3rd title) and Shoma Uno (his 1st title). But some people were less interested in that and more interested in receiving updates on Yuzuru Hanyu’s recovery after he decided to withdraw from the competition in order to prioritize his health, thus generating earthquakes among his sensitive fans. Other people (those who attended the competition) went just to see Mao Asada but they were polite enough not to get up and empty the arena while Mao wasn’t skating unlike what happened at the Sochi Olympics when Evgeni Plushenko withdrew from the men’s event. 

Now I’m not pretending to be some advocate of justice and I’m not intending to preach. But I believe this is a good opportunity to highlight frequent problems in the skating fandom so you won’t be tempted to fall into their traps. 

DISCLAIMER: I do realize I’m already in a very high risk of getting attacked by some Yuzu fans via anon asks or salty replies/reblogs but I’m gonna say this again: it’s okay if you’re not into my kind of “”””humor”””. You can ignore me and I promise I won’t get a boo-boo. GETTING TO THE SUBJECT NOW!

THE LADIES EVENT aka Game Of Thrones

Satoko Miyahara waltzed into this event giving negative fucks and the results showed: when she gives negative fucks, that 3Lz-3T combo in the second half of her SP is miraculously rotated. As a consequence she got 76 for her program and further established her new position as one of the most overscored skaters currently competing (don’t believe me? Ask the Russian ubers and Mao ubers). I also thought “damn, this empty program actually looks nice when neither she nor I have to worry about rotations”. But the key here is to make the program look like that when you give a lot of fucks as opposed to negative fucks, and Mie Hamada knew that. So the next day before Satoko skated her FS, Hamada annoyed the crap out of her and pressured her as a strategy to make her get used to skating clean when she gives a lot of fucks, such as when she’s thinking she’s gotta get a medal in a relevant event, including the Olympics. For now, Satoko is still failing that test because she had a step-out on the 3Lz-3T combo and a couple of carrots. 

Wakaba Higuchi finally - I repeat - FINALLY skated a clean short program and it was so adorable to see her get all excited and happy about it. Except it wasn’t a squeaky-clean program because she got a wrong edge call on her flip. What can ya do, if ya got a good lutz ya gotta lip and when ya got a good flip ya gotta flutz. She’s gonna have to follow Satoko’s example and replace that lip with a loop and be done with it. Other than that, damn this girl got huge jumps. Everyone loves some huge jumps. However, the disadvantage of huge jumps is that you gotta have very good control of the landing and you have to know how to manage your speed, when to speed up, when to slow down, otherwise you’re doomed to pull a Midori Ito and land your jumps over the cameraman outside the boards. (Have you imagined Evgenia Medvedeva landing one of her 3-3-3 combos on Tarasova’s table cause I did and I cracked myself up really). 

Another skater who is fast as crap and has great technique on top of that is Mai Mihara who won the bronze medal and got herself a ticket to Worlds. Just a year ago around this time she was watching Nationals on TV from a hospital bed having been diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. Doesn’t that make a great Cinderella story? She is, actually, skating to Cinderella but her style is still stuck somewhere on the road between junior and senior (she was pretty good as a junior but I didn’t like her skating then and I’m not necessarily warming up now) but she seems like a very sweet girl and if there’s anyone who deserved going to Worlds aside from Satoko and Wakaba, it’s this young lady. 

Marin Honda is another skater who finally - I repeat - FINALLY skated a clean short program after burying herself in competitions right from the start. The poor girl has been under so much constant pressure this season I feel like she’s always on the verge of having an emotional breakdown. It’s not only the fact that she’s cried a number of times after her performances, but this season she always looked like she was terrified of her results no matter how she skated. I’m not a fan of either of her programs this season (SP is similar to last season’s and the FS is a hot mess combo of Yuzuru’s Romeo & Juliet 1 and 2) but she has excellent skating skills, musicality, expression, projection to the audience for her age. She doesn’t have the best jump technique but she is one of the few lucky ones with a clean lutz AND flip. After a smooth short program, a popped jump in the free prevented her from stepping onto the podium but that’s how it is in competition; it’s not about what you’re able to do, it’s about what you end up doing when it counts. 

Rika Hongo has been in serious trouble ever since the beginning of this season - or maybe as far as the previous Nationals - and the worst case scenario happened. She finished 5th and now the juniors ahead of her are old enough to go to Worlds in her place. While she was 2nd in the SP with the best performance of the season, she went down to 6th in the FS and finished 5th overall despite bringing back Riverdance, a program that worked for her last year. Unfortunately the spark, the freedom and the joy that was present last season was absent in this competition as she was very nervous even before she took the ice. 

Yuna Shiraiwa on the other hand... I’m only going to say this. Clean 3Lz-3T and (second half) 3F-3T combos in the FS. No UR calls. Highest TES (71.74) of the evening. She’s the real MVP in Hamada’s team. 

THE OLD(ER) GENERATION

This was Mao Asada’s worst result at Nationals but instead of having retirement thoughts (like she had last season at Nationals even though she skated better), she’s still determined to come back stronger next season. An old knee injury prevented her from landing the 3A and rotating a lot of her jumps but at this point she’s obviously not skating for the medals as much as she’s skating for herself. No skater wants to leave the competitive world with regrets so who are we to judge Mao’s decision to continue in spite of physical difficulties? With Yuzuru absent due to influenza, most fans attended the competition to see Mao and it was obvious just counting the number of flowers that were thrown on the ice for her compared to the other skaters. 

Redemption from Kanako Murakami, who is also nearing the end of her career but managed to deliver the first clean FS she’s skated in ages. That’s all she wanted from this competition, she got it, and she awarded the audience with her signature Kanako Smile.

Painful competition for Haruka Imai, former Japanese Jr National Champion and 4th at the 2014 4CC. No GP assignments this season, she was plagued by inflammation of her hips and knees but she fought to land the 3Lz and 3F. This was also the first time we got to see one of her new programs (the FS, which is Primavera by Einaudi) and she’s still beautiful to watch. 

SHOMA UNO & CO.

It was kind of depressing to watch the men’s event this year because only a couple of years ago it was the fiercest event at Nationals. Keiji Tanaka seized his chance to grab onto the silver medal while Takahito Mura’s bronze was (once again) useless - as harsh as it sounds. Shoma wasn’t at his best here but he showed that he learned a new lesson (tag a 3T to a different jump if you screw up one of your planned combos!!) and he came out of this alive and well. The added pressure of having to “live up to expectations” in the absence of Olympic King Zuzu was another thing he suddenly had to put up with (good job Fuji). But there’s an old saying; “better here than at Worlds”. 

CONTROVERSIES 

While Satoko and Shoma are the tiniest champions Japan has ever had, they’re also the most criticized. They both have to skate under the shadows of two skating giants, Mao and Yuzuru, who have hoards of fans. Among those hoards of fans there are ubers, people who have made a habit out of bashing their favorite skaters’ successors. In Japan there already are Mao ubers whose jobs are to tear Satoko apart and the disease has long spread worldwide. You can see it on forums, you can see it on comment sections of YouTube videos, you can even hear it on television (looking at you Simon Reed). People who write passive-aggressive, sarcastic remarks, calling Satoko names and whatnot. Shoma gets similar (though mellower) treatment from overseas fans, but not from Japanese fans, possibly due to the fact that he’s a Daisuke Takahashi fan so most of Dai’s fans are now supporting him. 

These two young skaters (and not only) deserve all the support in the world. It’s not easy to become Japan’s supporting pillar and leading lady after the great Mao Asada, but Satoko is doing an incredible job. Appreciate more, bash less. Don’t let the judges cloud your judgement. There’s also a massive amount of PR in figure skating; Mao has so many sponsors you can see her in commercials, you can see fluff videos about her because that’s what the general audience wants. She’s been advertised as a child prodigy (which she was) and people consider her part of their family. Satoko doesn’t benefit from that kind of treatment so people tend to be cold and judgmental towards her because she’s nothing compared to Mao-chan (oh dear those jumps, oh dear the way she bends her knee, oh dear her face). 

Recently Marin Honda has been getting the “heir of Mao” treatment, getting sponsorship from JAL, shooting CMs for Ghana and stuff. I feel like I have to point out the fact that all of her siblings, including herself, are managed by a hugely influential management company. If you’re into Japanese entertainment, you might have heard of it. It’s called Oscar Promotion and it’s a talent agency whose famous names include actresses Emi Takei, Aya Ueto and Ayame Gouriki. She’s been promoted and modeled by a talent agency since she was a young child so she’s an expert at working with the camera, the audience and the reporters. As a result she’s also been gathering - well, pretty scary fans who are downright infatuated with her and will start arguments if you dare criticize her. Similar to idol group fans, I’d say. 

But this is figure skating and crack commentaries aside we’re talking about real, young people with feelings who are training every day from dawn till dusk, who get injured, who sacrifice their childhood and adolescence. We’re also talking about real fans behind the computer screen who like who they like and no one person is entitled to criticize or ridicule the things that make them happy. At the same time, no one is entitled to attack fans who criticize your favorite skater(s) as long as they bring valid arguments and they’re polite about it. And no one is entitled to attack another fan whose way of seeing or perceiving things is either more or less intense than yours. Be nice to each other. #PEACE

[battybat-boss]

Danish Doctor Issues Warning about HPV Vaccine: “The Vaccine Should be Stopped Immediately!”

Image from the Danish documentary: The Vaccinated Girls – Sick and Betrayed. The documentary has been removed from YouTube.

HPV Vaccine Controversy: A Danish Doctor's Perspective

by Dr. Stig Gerdes SaneVax, Inc.

[Note from SaneVax: The HPV vaccine controversy has been raging since the FDA approved Gardasil in 2006 in virtually every country utilizing this new medical intervention.

Dr. Stig Gerdes wrote this open letter to Danish Health authorities, the medical community, and local journalists hoping to shed some light on the very real consequences many Danish families were forced to deal with post-HPV vaccine use.

Unfortunately, for medical consumers, the letter below was written well over two years ago. HPV vaccine stakeholders are still trying to deny the facts Dr. Gerdes was courageous enough to put in writing. The letter is printed in its entirety below with permission from the author. The SaneVax team would like to thank Mie Thorsen for providing the translation to English.]

Panic before closing

The pharmaceutical industry, The Danish Health and Medicines Authority, The Ministry of Health, The Minister of Health, Cancer Inc., Statens Serum Institute and The Regions are panicked at the low coverage of the HPV vaccine, which is now below 25%. Cancer Inc. has hired a company “Focus” to make phone calls to parents with the following message: “Your daughter is turning 12 years old this year, and she must have the HPV vaccine.”

The Minister of Health recently announced that something must be done to raise the vaccination coverage. This is the same Minister of Health who was against the HPV vaccine before she became the minister.

Do all of these agencies not understand that Danes can think for themselves? No one will let their children or themselves vaccinate and risk being destroyed by the side effects caused by a totally unnecessary and sparsely documented vaccine.

The HPV vaccine damaged are ridiculed, ignored, viewed with suspicion, and left to stand completely alone with their disease without help from our health care system.

The 5 HPV centers release the sick girls quickly while referring them to the Center for Functional Disorders without investigation or treatment. It's a huge “blunder” that the health service in Denmark relegates the HPV vaccine injured to the psychiatric category of enfant terrible “Functional Disorders”! (Note: Enfant terrible means a child whose inopportune remarks cause embarrassment.) By doing so, the authorities avoid potential compensation because the disease is psychological, not triggered by the vaccine!

It should be known that Merck, the manufacturer of the HPV vaccine Gardasil, has stated in their Gardasil Product Information Leaflet, that there are over 45 side-effects which may be experienced after Gardasil injections and that this occurs in 3.2% of those injected and that 1/3 of these are serious (life-threatening) side effects. Despite this, The Danish Health Authority wants concrete medical evidence that it's Gardasil that triggers these serious side effects in some of the vaccine users. Merck's own figures correspond to Denmark's experience in that about 20.000 youngsters have side effects, including around 6-7000 so serious that the survivors end up confined to bed 24-7.

The proponents continue to argue that the FDA and EMA (National Board of Health in the US and Europe) claim there are no serious side effects caused by Gardasil. But, their statements are based on a false premise. Furthermore, they keep saying that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages, despite all evidence to the contrary.

Gardasil contains among other things aluminum adjuvant nanoparticles, and it is this that promotes negative side effects by hitting the mitochondria, triggering autoimmune reactions, and interfering with the body's hormones which regulate metabolism and menstruation. One of the symptoms frequently exhibited is severe tiredness. The pregnant have an increased tendency to miscarriages and often give birth early in the week from 24 to 28. Furthermore, the risk of experiencing cell changes in the cervix is increased by 45%, when you get vaccinated, if you have HPV virus in the body before vaccinated.

The nano-adjuvanted aluminum particles are so small they can pass through the blood vessels into the tissue, pass through the blood-brain barrier and destroy the sections of the brain resulting in neurological failure symptoms such as Guillain-Barré. The particles can also pass from the pregnant mother to the placenta to the fetus. Babies can be born with side effects such as increased irritability, poor sucking ability, severe fatigue, skin changes, and other sequelae. Aluminum nano-particles also can be transmitted through breast milk to the child, so the child's symptoms gradually get worse if it has side effects at birth.

The HPV vaccine is not required to prevent cervical cancer. There is no evidence that the HPV vaccines prevent cervical cancer. The HPV vaccine is not tested to see if it causes cancer itself. All women should instead take a pap smear every 3 years from 23 years of age until they die, and a pap smear if they experience unusual bleeding.

It is possible with current techniques to replace the side effect-causing aluminum adjuvant nano-particles with organic material, for example, leukocytes. HPV vaccines would then have no serious adverse events. This applies not only to the HPV vaccine but all vaccines in the Danish vaccination program. The HPV vaccine incidence of adverse events is 100 fold higher than the other vaccines.

The disease the HPV vaccine induces is Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME), a physical disease triggered by viral infections, bacterial infections, heavy metals, vaccines, trauma and fungi of various kinds. It is important to point out that patients with ME, triggered by heavy metals and vaccines, should not be vaccinated later in life. If they are, it could trigger relapse and/or exacerbation of ME disease.

A lot of research is going on with the HPV vaccine and there will be earth-shattering results for the next 3-6 months. A world congress in Leipzig in March 2016 related to autoimmune diseases revealed this.

The vaccine should be stopped immediately! There are so many unanswered questions that should be answered before we continue to vaccinate. With each injection, there is a risk of incapacitating a previously young strong human.

Sincerely,

Chairman of the Civil Rights Movement and General Practitioner

Stig Gerdes

Read the full article at SaneVax.org.

Comment on this article at VaccineImpact.com.

More information about Gardasil

Illinois Teen Dies Three Weeks After Being Injected with HPV Gardasil Vaccine

California Nurse Gives Gardasil Vaccine to Own Daughter who Develops Leukemia and Dies

Infant Accidentally Vaccinated with Gardasil – Mother Blamed for Vaccine Injuries and Baby Medically Kidnapped

Iowa Girl Faces Death: Life Destroyed by Gardasil Vaccine

Gardasil Vaccine Given without Consent and Ruins Life of 14 Year Old Girl

After 3 Years of Suffering 19 Year Old Girl Dies from Gardasil Vaccine Injuries

Gardasil: The Decision We Will Always Regret

15 Year Old French Girl's “Descent into Hell” After Gardasil Vaccine – Wheelchair Bound and Paralyzed

The Gardasil Vaccine After-Life: My Daughter is a Shadow of Her Former Self

Gardasil: An Experience no Child Should Have to Go Through

I Want my Daughter's Life Back the Way it was Before Gardasil

Gardasil Vaccine: Destroyed and Abandoned

15-Year-Old Vaccinated by Force with Gardasil now Suffers from Paralysis and Pain

Recovering from my Gardasil Vaccine Nightmare

Gardasil: We Thought It Was The Right Choice

“HPV Vaccine Has Done This to My Child”

13 Year Old World Championship Karate Student Forced to Quit After Gardasil Vaccine

If I Could Turn Back Time, Korey Would not Have Received any Gardasil Shots

What Doctors Don't Tell You: Our Gardasil Horror Story

Family Fights U.S. Government over Compensation for Gardasil Vaccine Injuries

Gardasil: When Will our Nightmare End?

HPV Vaccine Injuries: “I Cannot Begin to Describe What it is Like to Watch your Daughter Live in Such Agony”

Gardasil: Don't Let Your Child Become “One Less”

The Gardasil Vaccine Changed Our Definition of “Normal”

Gardasil: I Should Have Researched First

“They've Been Robbed of Their Womanhood” – Local Milwaukee Media Covers Gardasil Vaccine Injuries

Gardasil: The Day Our Daughter's Life Changed

Gardasil: The Decision I will Always Regret

Gardasil Vaccine: One More Girl Dead

Gardasil: A Parent's Worst Nightmare

After Gardasil: I Simply Want my Healthy Daughter Back

Gardasil: My Family Suffers with Me

Gardasil Changed my Health, my Life, and Family's Lives Forever

Gardasil: Ashlie's Near-Death Experience

Gardasil: My Daughter's Worst Nightmare

My Personal Battle After the Gardasil Vaccine

Gardasil: The Worst Thing That Ever Happened to Me

A Ruined Life from Gardasil

HPV Vaccines: My Journey Through Gardasil Injuries

The Dark Side of Gardasil – A Nightmare that Became Real

Toddler Wrongly Injected with Gardasil Vaccine Develops Rare Form of Leukaemia

Dr. Andrew Moulden: Every Vaccine Produces Harm

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Canadian physician Dr. Andrew Moulden provided clear scientific evidence to prove that every dose of vaccine given to a child or an adult produces harm. The truth that he uncovered was rejected by the conventional medical system and the pharmaceutical industry. Nevertheless, his warning and his message to America remains as a solid legacy of the man who stood up against big pharma and their program to vaccinate every person on the Earth.

Dr. Moulden died unexpectedly in November of 2013 at age 49.

Because of the strong opposition from big pharma concerning Dr. Moulden's research, we became concerned that the name of this brilliant researcher and his life's work had nearly been deleted from the internet. His reputation was being disparaged, and his message of warning and hope was being distorted and buried without a tombstone. This book summarizes his teaching and is a must-read for everyone who wants to learn the “other-side” of the vaccine debate that the mainstream media routinely censors.

Read Dr. Andrew Moulden: Every Vaccine Produces Harm on your mobile device or computer by ordering the eBook!

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Leaving a lucrative career as a nephrologist (kidney doctor), Dr. Suzanne Humphries is now free to actually help cure people. In this autobiography she explains why good doctors are constrained within the current corrupt medical system from practicing real, ethical medicine. FREE Shipping Available! Order here.

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Book – The Vaccine Court, by Wayne Rohde – 240 pages

“The Dark Truth of America's Vaccine Injury Compensation Program”

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ORDER HERE!

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Say NO to Mandatory Vaccines T-Shirt

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Big Pharma and government health authorities are trying to pass laws mandating vaccines for all children, and even adults.

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[lopezdorothy70-blog]

Danish Doctor Issues Warning about HPV Vaccine: “The Vaccine Should be Stopped Immediately!”

Image from the Danish documentary: The Vaccinated Girls – Sick and Betrayed. The documentary has been removed from YouTube.

HPV Vaccine Controversy: A Danish Doctor's Perspective

by Dr. Stig Gerdes SaneVax, Inc.

[Note from SaneVax: The HPV vaccine controversy has been raging since the FDA approved Gardasil in 2006 in virtually every country utilizing this new medical intervention.

Dr. Stig Gerdes wrote this open letter to Danish Health authorities, the medical community, and local journalists hoping to shed some light on the very real consequences many Danish families were forced to deal with post-HPV vaccine use.

Unfortunately, for medical consumers, the letter below was written well over two years ago. HPV vaccine stakeholders are still trying to deny the facts Dr. Gerdes was courageous enough to put in writing. The letter is printed in its entirety below with permission from the author. The SaneVax team would like to thank Mie Thorsen for providing the translation to English.]

Panic before closing

The pharmaceutical industry, The Danish Health and Medicines Authority, The Ministry of Health, The Minister of Health, Cancer Inc., Statens Serum Institute and The Regions are panicked at the low coverage of the HPV vaccine, which is now below 25%. Cancer Inc. has hired a company “Focus” to make phone calls to parents with the following message: “Your daughter is turning 12 years old this year, and she must have the HPV vaccine.”

The Minister of Health recently announced that something must be done to raise the vaccination coverage. This is the same Minister of Health who was against the HPV vaccine before she became the minister.

Do all of these agencies not understand that Danes can think for themselves? No one will let their children or themselves vaccinate and risk being destroyed by the side effects caused by a totally unnecessary and sparsely documented vaccine.

The HPV vaccine damaged are ridiculed, ignored, viewed with suspicion, and left to stand completely alone with their disease without help from our health care system.

The 5 HPV centers release the sick girls quickly while referring them to the Center for Functional Disorders without investigation or treatment. It's a huge “blunder” that the health service in Denmark relegates the HPV vaccine injured to the psychiatric category of enfant terrible “Functional Disorders”! (Note: Enfant terrible means a child whose inopportune remarks cause embarrassment.) By doing so, the authorities avoid potential compensation because the disease is psychological, not triggered by the vaccine!

It should be known that Merck, the manufacturer of the HPV vaccine Gardasil, has stated in their Gardasil Product Information Leaflet, that there are over 45 side-effects which may be experienced after Gardasil injections and that this occurs in 3.2% of those injected and that 1/3 of these are serious (life-threatening) side effects. Despite this, The Danish Health Authority wants concrete medical evidence that it's Gardasil that triggers these serious side effects in some of the vaccine users. Merck's own figures correspond to Denmark's experience in that about 20.000 youngsters have side effects, including around 6-7000 so serious that the survivors end up confined to bed 24-7.

The proponents continue to argue that the FDA and EMA (National Board of Health in the US and Europe) claim there are no serious side effects caused by Gardasil. But, their statements are based on a false premise. Furthermore, they keep saying that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages, despite all evidence to the contrary.

Gardasil contains among other things aluminum adjuvant nanoparticles, and it is this that promotes negative side effects by hitting the mitochondria, triggering autoimmune reactions, and interfering with the body's hormones which regulate metabolism and menstruation. One of the symptoms frequently exhibited is severe tiredness. The pregnant have an increased tendency to miscarriages and often give birth early in the week from 24 to 28. Furthermore, the risk of experiencing cell changes in the cervix is increased by 45%, when you get vaccinated, if you have HPV virus in the body before vaccinated.

The nano-adjuvanted aluminum particles are so small they can pass through the blood vessels into the tissue, pass through the blood-brain barrier and destroy the sections of the brain resulting in neurological failure symptoms such as Guillain-Barré. The particles can also pass from the pregnant mother to the placenta to the fetus. Babies can be born with side effects such as increased irritability, poor sucking ability, severe fatigue, skin changes, and other sequelae. Aluminum nano-particles also can be transmitted through breast milk to the child, so the child's symptoms gradually get worse if it has side effects at birth.

The HPV vaccine is not required to prevent cervical cancer. There is no evidence that the HPV vaccines prevent cervical cancer. The HPV vaccine is not tested to see if it causes cancer itself. All women should instead take a pap smear every 3 years from 23 years of age until they die, and a pap smear if they experience unusual bleeding.

It is possible with current techniques to replace the side effect-causing aluminum adjuvant nano-particles with organic material, for example, leukocytes. HPV vaccines would then have no serious adverse events. This applies not only to the HPV vaccine but all vaccines in the Danish vaccination program. The HPV vaccine incidence of adverse events is 100 fold higher than the other vaccines.

The disease the HPV vaccine induces is Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME), a physical disease triggered by viral infections, bacterial infections, heavy metals, vaccines, trauma and fungi of various kinds. It is important to point out that patients with ME, triggered by heavy metals and vaccines, should not be vaccinated later in life. If they are, it could trigger relapse and/or exacerbation of ME disease.

A lot of research is going on with the HPV vaccine and there will be earth-shattering results for the next 3-6 months. A world congress in Leipzig in March 2016 related to autoimmune diseases revealed this.

The vaccine should be stopped immediately! There are so many unanswered questions that should be answered before we continue to vaccinate. With each injection, there is a risk of incapacitating a previously young strong human.

Sincerely,

Chairman of the Civil Rights Movement and General Practitioner

Stig Gerdes

Read the full article at SaneVax.org.

Comment on this article at VaccineImpact.com.

More information about Gardasil

Illinois Teen Dies Three Weeks After Being Injected with HPV Gardasil Vaccine

California Nurse Gives Gardasil Vaccine to Own Daughter who Develops Leukemia and Dies

Infant Accidentally Vaccinated with Gardasil – Mother Blamed for Vaccine Injuries and Baby Medically Kidnapped

Iowa Girl Faces Death: Life Destroyed by Gardasil Vaccine

Gardasil Vaccine Given without Consent and Ruins Life of 14 Year Old Girl

After 3 Years of Suffering 19 Year Old Girl Dies from Gardasil Vaccine Injuries

Gardasil: The Decision We Will Always Regret

15 Year Old French Girl's “Descent into Hell” After Gardasil Vaccine – Wheelchair Bound and Paralyzed

The Gardasil Vaccine After-Life: My Daughter is a Shadow of Her Former Self

Gardasil: An Experience no Child Should Have to Go Through

I Want my Daughter's Life Back the Way it was Before Gardasil

Gardasil Vaccine: Destroyed and Abandoned

15-Year-Old Vaccinated by Force with Gardasil now Suffers from Paralysis and Pain

Recovering from my Gardasil Vaccine Nightmare

Gardasil: We Thought It Was The Right Choice

“HPV Vaccine Has Done This to My Child”

13 Year Old World Championship Karate Student Forced to Quit After Gardasil Vaccine

If I Could Turn Back Time, Korey Would not Have Received any Gardasil Shots

What Doctors Don't Tell You: Our Gardasil Horror Story

Family Fights U.S. Government over Compensation for Gardasil Vaccine Injuries

Gardasil: When Will our Nightmare End?

HPV Vaccine Injuries: “I Cannot Begin to Describe What it is Like to Watch your Daughter Live in Such Agony”

Gardasil: Don't Let Your Child Become “One Less”

The Gardasil Vaccine Changed Our Definition of “Normal”

Gardasil: I Should Have Researched First

“They've Been Robbed of Their Womanhood” – Local Milwaukee Media Covers Gardasil Vaccine Injuries

Gardasil: The Day Our Daughter's Life Changed

Gardasil: The Decision I will Always Regret

Gardasil Vaccine: One More Girl Dead

Gardasil: A Parent's Worst Nightmare

After Gardasil: I Simply Want my Healthy Daughter Back

Gardasil: My Family Suffers with Me

Gardasil Changed my Health, my Life, and Family's Lives Forever

Gardasil: Ashlie's Near-Death Experience

Gardasil: My Daughter's Worst Nightmare

My Personal Battle After the Gardasil Vaccine

Gardasil: The Worst Thing That Ever Happened to Me

A Ruined Life from Gardasil

HPV Vaccines: My Journey Through Gardasil Injuries

The Dark Side of Gardasil – A Nightmare that Became Real

Toddler Wrongly Injected with Gardasil Vaccine Develops Rare Form of Leukaemia

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[miss-becca]

it’s week 12 out of 15 now. 3 more weeks of university, and 3 days per week. these numbers seem to accurately track where i’m at in my exchange year, but the last 9 weeks could never be simplified into a class schedule. nor could they ever be adequately portrayed by listing out the places i visited, the events i attended and the sights i saw. these things tend to be the reflexive go-to answers when someone asks me how the exchange lifestyles is treating me. they’re the experiences that are the most easily relatable, the ones that fold up neatly into a box, convenient and complete and conversational. this year i’ve learnt that the reality of exchange is neither convenient, nor complete nor good fodder for small talk. and i guess that’s the reason my writing is so much focused on what i do; just like with my huge pile of university assessment which i haven’t started, i’d rather begin by chipping at the easiest job. so i’ll pick up where i left off.

4th november: machikane festival

the biggest annual(?) festival of osaka university, i was super impressed by the level of effort which the students dedicated to this event. from the big entrance arch to the signs of the food stalls to the performances of jugglers, singers, dancers and bands, right down to the smaller details of everyone’s energy and smiles, my own university’s orientation week event really seems lacking in comparison.

following up the pleasant day by walking ishisbashi with a friend (thanks for coming all the way out!) and then eventually ending up roaming the streets of umeda was perfection. uptown osaka never ceases to surprise. who knew there could be a shrine (temple? oh dear..) hidden right in the middle of the shopping street?

5th november: kifune jinja

what a beautiful place, and it would never have been possible without our local tour guide (thank you for inviting us!). the kifune jinja is located up in the mountains, not too close to the city area of kyoto. though most famous for the steps out the front of the shrine, it was the lead up to that climax which made the experience. it was freezing cold, but the water-top lanterns and restaurant lined streets were just wow. worth.

13th-14th november: hiroshima and miyajima

coming back here as a school trip was really a nostalgic rollercoaster. missing the friends i’d visited hiroshima with before but trying to be in the moment was a difficult balance. however, there were new things to be experienced this time. my attention was shifted away from my wallowing self-pity when we had an atomic bomb survivor share her story.

the effects of the bomb were further and wider than i had imagined. when i visited the museum last time, i was choked up by the sight of the remnants of children’s clothing or bento boxes or even hair and nails put on display. there were stories of people who had died years after the explosion from leukaemia or other cancers caused by the radiation. what i didn’t think of was that people could possibly still be suffering directly from it. that children of the survivors could be carrying health problems caused by a war they didn’t fight. that people would discriminate against them. that there would be shame in admitting where they were from and what their parents had gone through.

it’s humbling to see the city now, a memorial of those who were harmed and a people who stand up for the banning of nuclear weapons.

miyajima was exactly as i remembered it, with an extra dash of colourful leaves. the oysters were fresh and the company was fresher.

hall of remembrance

view from our tatami room

dinner

miyajima again

the reddest tree i saw all season

miyajima’s famous oysters

thanks for the ice cream and beer!

lunch

20th and 23rd november: kyoto trips for days

november is the season for seeing japanese momiji (the red leaves), and kyoto is apparently the place to be. so we went again, once to the fushimi inari and another time to (almost) settsu-kyo. ;)

fushimi inari

so much of this

and so many steps

outside settsu-kyo

this was my favourite

and then kyoto city

25th-28th november: tokyo disney

this heading speaks for itself – その週休み、本当にありがとう！一緒に遊びはめっちゃたのしかった！the theme parks are so aesthetic, and i adore the fast pass system they have going.

disneysea

the aesthetics of this place was really something else

and the food was really not bad either

perfectly christmassy too

nabe for dinner to counter the freezing cold

disneyland

breadcones. what a world we live in.

aiba from arashi’s family restaurant was closed when we got there…

tokyo skytree

cake with kazuma and soki to end the trip!

2nd-5th december: okinawa

  okinawa airport greeted me with an aquarium

the bay by my airbnb room

nearly got hit by a car taking this but yay pretty street

okinawa soba – looks really chinese

shuri castle

this tree needs to teach me how to lay down roots

the view from the top

had to take this 20 times to get it somewhat right

hi duck

mango and cherry softcream

accidentally walked all the way down this path and had to consequently walk all the way back up

but there were pretty flowers!

got lost and walked down this pretty road too

the bay at night

kokusaidori – biggest shopping street in naha

taco rice and a live performance as background music

streets were somehow dead by 8

visited the pottery museum with my airbnb host

pottery street

the hole at the top of the vase is in the shape of okinawa island

meow

last meal before leaving naha

first meal with bae and the fam

first time i enjoyed eating goya (bitter melon)

also ate some raw horse

heading to the most famous aquarium of japan!

hello mr. lobster

wishing i was 12 again so i could jump on this beauty of a playground

this boasted being the biggest viewing glass of 2002 hahahah

super needy fish clinging onto a turtle

goya farm

pineapple farm – look at the tiny pineapples thoughh

literally sashimi for days

pretty rock formation

the sign nearby said beware of venomous snakes, but the view was nice

display of the old kingdom of ryukyu

8th december: kobe luminarie

神戸ルミナリエ was an event i somehow heard about right at the beginning of this exchange year, so naturally i was pretty stoked to go. because of sickness (post-okinawa blues), i thought i’d miss out on it, so i was ecstatic to have a friend in kobe agree to meet me and see the lights (yay thank you!). somehow, the evening was beautifully warm and uncrowded, and the show greeted us with some sweet, sweet music too. ;)

from a nearby skyscraper

10th december: christmas usj

this was by far the most crowded day of usj i’ve been to, and oh my word there were so many people i almost couldn’t breathe. we didn’t go on any rides, and only saw one or two shows, but we won a giant snoopy plushie!

yay tree!

tree at night!

dinner at one of my favourite restaurants and snoopyyy

14th december: my first jazz gig

this was. amazing. i was a little nervous walking into a tiny bar alone, but damnnn. misa’s incredible voice (thanks for inviting me!) and the most amazing jazz pianist ever, all wrapped into a lovely christmas night, with a bonus of being able to touch the piano at the end too. :D

23rd-28th december: reunions in the philippines

admittedly, this trip to the philippines entailed very little time spent actually seeing the lovely city of manila. instead, i was spoilt left, right and centre by my hosts (thank you so much for having me!), attending christmas dinners (and just a lot of food related events in general) and meeting families who have now become like family to me. and oh my word don’t get me started on the festive light displays. we spent hours touring neighbouring streets, ooh-ing and ahh-ing at the wonderland which we somehow found ourselves in. as facebook has kindly informed everyone, leaving this country was tough and tearful. there’s so much more i want to see, and so many more people i want to meet, and so much family i want to spend more time with – somehow in 6 days, this country transformed from foreign into another kind of home. <3

dawggggg

so many pretty lights in this city

and a casual venice replica

dinner with my new bear family

29th-31st december: mie, ise and kyoto

i was saved from my post-philippines blues by vince coming to see me from korea. ending the year with a road trip to somewhere new with him and my very first friend in japan was absolute perfection. we hit up the nabana no sato illuminations in mie before traveling down to the ise jingu, and finally stopping by the kyoto aquarium on the way to our new year countdown in karaoke bar. めっちゃ笑った、めっちゃ寝た、めっちゃ楽しかった！そうきありがとう〜！嬉しいだよ！

なばなの里

yay reflected trees!

and the light tunnel oh my..

a movie made up of thousands of strings of led lights

the autumn tunnel

outside the ise-jingu

scored front seats to this show outside an udon store

the front of the jingu

somehow booked out the cutest log house for the night

the interior is even cuter

sleeping in the loft

nabe to help us through a cold night

yay kyoto tower

all the joyous in-betweens

then there were uncountable precious moments just in my darling osaka which made the school times more than bearable even when tiredness was overwhelming.

my favourite andyy

tart date #1

after uni/work dinners with soki :D

minami senri park – autumn edition

tart date #2

saizeriya tiramisu :D

care package from melbourne (THANK YOU NUG)!

more after uni/work dinners

and desserts

pie date with the tart date girls <3

gudetama cafe date with my fellow canberrans

first nabe and kotatsu experience ever! thank youu! ^_^

truly the last two months of 2016 were filled with magic and ever-more love from the people around me and not around me. i saw so many places i didn’t expect to see, and spent time with people who i can now count among my most treasured humans. exchange is infinitely more than i could have ever expected, and if so many things could have happened in the last two months, then so much more is also waiting for me in the next two. sometimes i have to remind myself of this to rescue myself from the weight of the impending ending (oops that got a little too real).

but anyhow, this brings us to 2017. it will be the year of returning, of (hopefully) hard work and some australia travels and (more hopefully) out-of-australia travels. i’m scared and excited and sad and super looking forward to the new joys and memories and friendships which are waiting to be experienced!

happy new year! 明けましておめでとう！新年快樂！may we all look forward to a 2017 filled with abundant blessings! <3

day #288: what words can’t describe it's week 12 out of 15 now. 3 more weeks of university, and 3 days per week.