#which is really good i'm writing a little bit of a thing for it. maren is really important

[knittedbond]

i was gonna watch dune because it's off netflix tmrw and like whatever i feel an obligation to watch it because that's how they get you but i just realized that killing of a sacred deer is on tubi so i'd much rather watch that gbyeeeee weirdo timmy c

[mycastlescrumblingdown]

fearless tracks 18-26 + crazier review

SUPERSTAR

this song is one of my favorites on the fearless album. idk what it is about it, I just really love it.

i really like the way Taylor wrote about this experience and then became the superstar herself. it's such a full circle moment and I think that's really beautiful.

i think of myself as quite the hopeless romantic, and this song is so me it actually hurts. I cant count the amount of celebrities that I could relate to this for me personally. but oh well

anyways I love the line delivery in this song, but it does sound a little nasally or over-controlled or something sometimes.

either way, I think this song is really good and underrated. I love it

score: 9/10

points for lyrics, style, personal bias, chorus, verses, bridge, instrumentals, vocals, pretty privilege

favorite line: im invisible and everyone knows who you are (but I would choose the whole song if I could)

THE OTHER SIDE OF THE DOOR

the best outro in the album, maybe even taylor's entire discography.

"with your face and the beautiful eyes and the conversation with the little white lies and the faded picture of a beautiful night you CARRIED ME FROM YOUR CAR UP THE sTAiAiAiRs and I broke down crying was she worth this mess? after everything and that little black dress after everything I must confess, I need you <3"

like come on that is such a great outro (although the time between a couple of the lines sounds like they were using different recordings. it's a little bit disconcerting but I can get past that)

what's harder to get past is that i this song kinda reaffirms the whole "women say no but they mean yes so you should just keep trying" thing (because that's the majority of the song) so that's not great and it definitely brings down my opinion of the song and makes it less enjoyable for me, but I'm willing to give Taylor some grace because she was a teenager when she wrote this. but yeah that's not super great

also I just noticed this but in love story she says "you were Romeo, you were throwing pebbles" and in this song there's a line that says "to stand outside my window throwing pebbles" so that's cool

score: 6/10

points for style, chorus, verses, bridge, instrumentals, vocals, pretty privilege, I'm subtracting a point because of a previous comment about when women say no

favorite line: me and my stupid pride are sitting here alone

TODAY WAS A FAIRYTALE

it's a fun song. I don't have that much to say about it but I love singing it and I love the fairytale part of the song. the imagery the song gives me is so pleasant. sort of reminiscent of the love story music video

also in the part right before the bridge I could hear it being mashed up with begin again

(i've been looking at the song title too much. how is fairytale a word)

score 5/10

points for style, chorus, instrumental, vocals, pretty privilege

favorite line: you've got a smile that takes me to another planet

YOU ALL OVER ME

first vault track!! I think the lyricism is incredible here for the era. it would take me months to write even the first verse

i think if I had to guess which song this almost replaced on the track list it would be white horse. they just seem similar to me

also clean reference?? no amount of freedom gets you clean. also the wine stained dress in clean could relate to the you all over me line

i think this song could've done without the feature as well. I don't really hear maren morris on this song as well as I would like to, but I don't think it takes away from the song that much

score 7/10

points for lyrics, personal bias, chorus, verses, instrumental, vocals, pretty privilege

favorite line: held out, and held on God knows, too long

MR PERFECTLY FINE

omg this song. I love this song

i can't even articulate my thoughts but I love it so much!!!!!!!!

score: 8/10 (that even feels too low lol)

points for personal bias, chorus, verses, bridge, instrumental, vocals, pretty privilege, loopability

favorite line: so far above me in every sense, so far above feeling ANYTHING

WE WERE HAPPY

she did us so dirty removing the production of the original. listen to it and tell me I'm wrong

other than that it's a great song and I have absolutely no criticism for it (and I will accept none)

again I feel like this song was super ahead of the fearless album and that might've been why it was left out. I feel like this one would replace you're not sorry (at least with the re-recorded production)

score: 9/10

points for lyrics, personal bias, chorus, verses, bridge, instrumental, vocals, pretty privilege, loopability

favorite line: I hate those voices telling me I'm not in love anymore, but they don't give me choices and that's what these tears are for

THAT'S WHEN

not my favorite. I honestly think I skip it most times

it's sweet I guess but that's all it really has going for it imo

score: 3/10

points for style, instrumental, vocals

favorite line: and you said "honestly when you were gone did you ever think of me?"

DON'T YOU

it took forever for me to understand this song. I thought it was more accusational with the don't you's. like I thought it was saying "but don't you?" as in do you not when it's actually saying "please don't"

the bridge on this one is superb as well. I just love the whole one

score: 8/10

points for style, personal bias, chorus, verses, bridge, instrumental, vocals, pretty privilege

favorite line: my heart knows what the truth is, i swore i wouldn't do this

BYE BYE BABY

this song is so superior I LOVE IT

the eptiome of fearless songs. cause I never doubted it!! then the here and the now floods in! feels like I'm becoming!!! part of your past!!

score: 10/10

points for style, lyrics, personal bias, chorus, verses, bridge, instrumental, vocals, pretty privilege, loopability

favorite line: feels like I'm becoming part of your past

CRAZIER

it's not really my cup of tea, but I can appreciate it (and I would've recognized it on the eras tour, unlike a certain crowd)

anyways I think this song is really sweet and it'll probably grow on me when I actually find someone I love like that but for now it's not hitting the same as it is for some people.

score: 3/10

points for lyrics, chorus, instrumentals

favorite line: baby you showed me what living is for

[evsvolunteerstotem]

About (solo) trips, dance performances, first lessons, and much more ;)

27.10.2023

Hello again!;D

The time flies and it's literally so strange to already write about the month October, because it feels like I just uploaded my first blog post yesterday. The last weeks have been full of new places, new people, and new adventures and I'm sure you want to hear more about it. So let's get started with a little recap from the month of October.

But first, we have to go back to the end of September and my first solo trip EVER. I wanted to travel alone for a very long time and finally, I knew it was the perfect moment to make it happen. As the 28th was a national holiday and I also had some overtime hours to use for one day off I was able to enjoy a longer weekend of four days. So I booked myself a Bus ticket to Brno and a cute Airbnb for 3 nights and when I arrived in the city I knew it was the right decision. :D

I'd never been to Brno before and didn't know what to expect from it, but then I was welcomed by the city with sunny weather, many cute cafes, nice places to linger, and impressive architecture that I'd also seen like this in Plzeň and Praha before and that still thrilled me again.

Being a tourist I definitely had to visit the "Villa Tugendhat", the city centre with all its churches and cathedrals, the "Špilberk" and many other attractions. To be honest, when you travel alone and especially without your parents paying for every action, you have to think twice if you really want to visit this museum or go to that restaurant. ;D So I mostly cooked in my flat and tried to visit free locations like the botanical garden or the Planetarium - which were still definitely worth it- but also wanted to spend my money on good coffee, a nice book, and - my highlight of the trip- a visit to the "Janáčkovo divadlo". It was a very spontaneous decision to go to the last performance of "Bolero", a ballet about "Human relationships, basic questions of human existence, and question marks over one's own identity" and it was definitely a step out of my comfort zone but in the end, I didn't regret the costs or the decision itself because it was a wonderful and entertaining evening.

On Sunday, October 1st, I was a little bit sad to leave the city but also very happy traveling back to Plzeň, because honestly it already felt like a return home. I also got excited about all the upcoming events in and out of TOTEM.

The following Friday Maren and I went to the "Pilsner Fest" and I don't know if it was the free beer we got upon entering or the super fun DJ in one of the beer tents - probably a little of both – in any case, our mood that evening was extremely good. ;D

The next day I had a performance with my dance group Adeto at the "Třetí festival" in the "Kulturní dům JAS". All of us were a little bit nervous but when the music started we just showed our skills and had fun and definitely thrilled the audience. We were also celebrating Adeto's 10th anniversary, so the atmosphere was very good and exuberant and I clearly enjoyed every minute of the evening.

On Monday I then made my way to Praha and finally to the small town of Horoměřice, 15 minutes by bus from the capital of the Czech Republic. You might ask yourself, why I would go there of all places -well- because I spent the following days together with 19 other volunteers at our on-arrival seminar, which also included Maren and Pia, whom I already knew before. :) I think that I could write a single blog post about this week only, because the things I have experienced there, the people I've met, and the lessons I have learned are so numerous. But let me try to sum it up for you in a few sentences:

Our wonderful "leaders" Pavel and Filip not only held workshops on the topics "giving and receiving feedback, Czech language and history as well as our rights and possibilities in our journey as volunteers" but also inspired us on ways to reflect on our experiences and to plan our road ahead. I also had the opportunity to meet many new people, some of them my age others already in their 20s and I enjoyed every talk with one of them. As I listened to their stories and saw the similarities I had with some of them but also how different and unique everyone was, I realized once again that I should never try to compare my volunteer experiences to theirs and that we all have our own path on which we can decide how to proceed. I'm looking forward to meeting many of them at the mid-term seminar again, listening to their news, and telling them about my experiences in TOTEM. We even have a few trips planned, but more on that when the time comes. So stay tuned!;)

On Friday after leaving the hotel in the morning we drove back to Praha. Maren and I explored parts of the city we hadn't been to before, went to small bookstores, and expanded my collection of (really!) beautiful postcards from Praha before we met with Pia and Juli at the café "mamacoffee". The weather was so summery and warm again that we all had to drink a refreshing iced coffee before we continued strolling through the city, passing a few second-hand shops where each of us found a new beautiful piece. After a delicious dinner at Juli's apartment, we went back to the centre to watch the wonderful light constellations of the "Signal Festival" at places all over the city and then it was time to say goodbye to our friends before traveling back to Plzeň.

That week I not only met many lovely people but also received renewed motivation for my project. By visualizing all my goals and ideas about my volunteer service, I was able to get started straight away on Monday with everything I had planned.

Since I had my first German and English conversations the following week, I thought about topics, planned the lessons, and collected ideas for rituals and games that would make learning even more exciting. To be honest, I was very nervous when I walked into the room on Wednesday. All the expectant looks from the students and the questions in my head: "How will they like my lessons? Can I implement everything as intended? Will they get used to me?"

But what can I say? Although not everything went 100% as planned, I still had a good feeling after the first conversations in all 4 courses, which was probably also due to the positive feedback I received from some students. This made me even more motivated when planning my content for the following week and the tension before the lessons also subsided. Meanwhile, I have a feeling for every class and know how to prepare them individually. Every group has its own characteristics and so every lesson is different. It's not always easy, but developing the flexibility and learning to deal with each group in a way that suits everyone is a very valuable insight that will certainly help me further outside of TOTEM and after my voluntary social year.

This month has been a big lesson for me. I have learned to go out of my comfort zone, to try new things, not to judge people too quickly, and sometimes - even though it might seem a little bit scary at first- simply to get involved in things without knowing exactly how they will turn out.

Although my personality hasn't changed completely, I believe that all those experiences have shaped my personal self so far and have helped me to develop further while giving me the chance to grow personally - and I'm already extremely grateful for that!

Light-flooded passage to the “Špilberk” fortress

“pauza na pití” with my Nordic walking group on a sunny October day

The beautiful old town of Brno

Our free beer at the “Pilsner Fest”. Na zdraví!

Impressive images in the Planetarium of Brno

Me and my girls from Adeto at the "Třetí festival"

Romantic alley in Brno

On one of my autumn walks in “Petrovka”

Golden hour in Praha with my beautiful friends <3

Delicious Latte macchiato at café “Stan” in Plzeň

One of the many beautifully painted walls in Praha

During our swing performance in the "Kulturní dům JAS"

Thank you to everyone who accompanied me this month and will hopefully continue to be a part of my life in the future.

"Pěkný víkend" and see you again in November!

Laila:)

[gascon-en-exil]

Dark Deity Pre-Release Character Opinions

This isn't actually a tier list, but someone helpfully created a template for this game and it's as good a way as any to do a little visual showcase for this cast. Characters are listed by their class sets, which are fixed but offer a nice variety in terms of promotion options. My opinions on each are as follows, from left to right in each row. Most characters have introductory profiles written up on the DD subreddit, if you'd like to check them out yourself.

Warriors

Alexa

You know those buff female blacksmiths in Echoes and Three Houses that some people wish were playable characters? That's pretty much Alexa. Can't say I'm too hyped about her myself, but warrior + tomboyish female character will do that for me...or not do it, I suppose.

Benji

Seems to have been written to become a meme, and I still can't decide whether that's clever or stupid. Kind of like Raphael only with a bigger emphasis on training than on eating, and with brotherly devotion replaced with brotherly angst that might theoretically go somewhere if the character isn't reduced to being a goofy joke all the time.

Fenton

Doesn't have a character profile, so as far as I know he's just a generic dwarf because DD swaps out its inspiration's loli dragons and other vaguely fetishistic shapeshifters for the two most cliché non-human races in Western fantasy. I wonder whether his VA will voice him with a Scottish accent, to go all in on the (ironic?) laziness. There are a handful of elves in the playable cast, but Fenton is the only dwarf so for better or worse he's representing.

Helena

She's the embodiment of the FE exotic swordswoman archetype, but curiously DD seems to have turned that broad ethnic brush inward. Helena's last name is apparently a Japanese verb, her art shows her with a spear (as in the association of the naginata with women), and she studied and trained in a monastery that seems to blend elements of Buddhism and Shintoism. Not sure how all that fits into the larger setting yet, but at this point she's still got more background development than Petra.

Irving

Our Hero, the one front and center on the cover art. He sounds a bit on the blander side as far as lords or lord equivalents go, with his most promising hook for me being his established friendship with Garrick (see the ranger section). At best I can hope for a bit of a romantic friendship dynamic, although they sound a bit rougher overall as they're military academy schoolmates I wonder why DD went with that instead of lordlings of different territories.

Rogues

Brooke

Looks like Camilla; has a backstory like Niles. Cleavage aside though the sexual element of both is toned down here, and there might be some sapphic bodyguard shenanigans to be had as her current employers are a pair of highborn sisters further down this list.

Cia

For some reason she reminds me of Tressa from Octopath Traveler, only bustier and a bartender rather than a merchant. She's still just a small town girl with big city dreams, and this being a tactical war game following those dreams will inevitably involve stabbing people.

Corvan

Hard to judge him at the moment, as his profile was only the second written and so isn't terribly detailed. He's a moon elf with scholarly interests, apparently. Still, as of right now he's the only rogue who doesn't slot loosely into either a ninja/assassin or pirate aesthetic, so that's kind of neat. Also, he's one of several characters to have FEH-esque beach fanart made of them already, so clearly someone's into elf twinks.

Ford

A former officer at the military academy Irving attends and a smuggler who dotes on his niece, Ford has major dad energy. Per developer reveals he's also bi, and as I mentioned before I'm totally fine with that. More bear sex, please - but what guy in this cast would hop in the sack with Ford? Only time will tell. His personal skill makes him extra dodgy, which combined with the mug of booze in his art makes me think of WoW brewmasters who dodge-tank through the power of being wasted.

Wren

Like Brooke, he's an assassin from a foreign nation - in his case the same one as Helena so presumably he's a not!Japanese ninja. I'm not really feeling him at the moment. What is it about Hao'Fen (the city/territory he and Helena come from) and massive families? That comes up in both their backstories.

Rangers

Caius

I feel like this is the third or fourth character to grow up in some slum or other; at least they've all been in different towns so far. The relative rarity of noble characters is certainly different from FE, but it reduces the political stakes which leaves me wondering a bit about the story. Anyway, Caius is a small town desert hunter who learned how to make arrows out of animal bones. How aerodynamic is bone, I wonder?

Garrick

Irving's BFF and seemingly the Hector to Irving's Eliwood, only with more flirting (his intro doesn't specify that Garrick is flirting with women, but I'm not going so far as to say that indicates anything). He's the academy headmaster's son, with a strained relationship with his father for some of that hotheaded lead tension. Notably, his VA is the one I'm most familiar with in this cast, as he's the voice of Revali from Breath of the Wild as well as love interests in two different erotic gay dating sims I've played. In other words, I know what this guy sounds like making awkwardly simulated sex noises...and I have no idea what to do with that information.

Maeve

She's a half-elf with a very storied background, so much so that it's all rather hard to follow her exploits when little of what's being described has been fully revealed yet. I'm expecting her to be a mid/lategame recruit, unless she's dropped in early on to reveal that (sun) elves exist or something.

Rose

Imagine if Bernadetta were a commoner, although we can only hope they'll be less screaming. Alternatively, Neimi without an obvious boyfriend. She won the beach contest so now she has official swimsuit art, which I guess makes her a top-tier waifu in the eyes of players who care about such things.

Sophia

A ranger in the "has animal companions" sense, although whether that will come into play mechanically aside from her personal skill - Butter the ferret can attack with her! - remains to be seen. Her preference for the company of animals is explained by a lack of social graces, so prepare for klutz-related humor. Of note to those interested in F/F is that her introduction specifically brings up her connection with Sloane (see the mage section) and how close the two of them are.

Clerics

Faust

Doesn't have a profile yet, so not much to go off other than his decidedly unhinged look. The cleric class set does feature some darker-flavored options, so presumably he's more naturally aligned with those. His VA was announced to be the YouTuber behind So This is Basically Fire Emblem and other similar videos, so I'm picturing a kooky and somewhat demented Henry type.

Lincoln

Also lacks a profile at time of writing...clerics get so little love. The Discord has identified him a bland blond paladin sort, but as we know from the likes of Perceval and especially Dimitri that doesn't necessarily mean he'll be boring (or not gay).

Maren

The soft-spoken healer type, and also a childhood friend of Garrick although her intro sibling-zones him but then this game is inspired by FE so who knows if that'll stick. She may have some interesting thoughts on the theology of the setting, as there seem to be several faiths and she's said to have a complicated relationship with her own. I will be utterly shocked if she's not either Irving or Garrick's eventual love interest.

Samara

One of two princesses of the country of Aramor, which appears to be loosely inspired by the Middle East. Heaven help us if the Khalidstans ever get wind of this game. Unfortunately aside from her bond with her older sister (in the mage section) and the knowledge that Brooke has been hired as their bodyguard there's not much to Samara at the moment. Hopefully the clerics all do some comparative theology in their bond conversations, and this isn't like Sacred Stones where none of the clergy characters from different countries ever compare notes. The succession crisis involving Samara and her sister vs. their less-loved cousin the king's son might be a major plot hook? It's still too early to tell.

Vesta

Much like Maeve her backstory has entirely too much going on to really follow at the moment. Basically she's a human who grew up in a sun elf city because Reasons (seriously, I don't know what they are) and was called to a clerical vocation and also something about taking a journey. Has an unfortunate case of silly boob armor, which unlike a certain other character probably won't be rectified this close to release.

Mages

Alden

Maren's precocious younger brother, also basically Ricken up to and including the comically oversized hat. As a unit he follows the tradition of Donnel, Mozu, and Cyril of having a personal skill that buffs his stat gains, so it's safe to say he's a growth unit. At least he'll probably join early.

Liberty

Comes with dead brother angst and a connection to the "aspects" system that will hopefully make more sense once I've played the game and know how it functions both mechanically and from a storytelling perspective. Otherwise she looks to be a busty older - as in, not a teenage - mage in the vein of Calill.

Monroe

Got the first ever character profile, so it's really short. He's the son of a duke and sounds like a bit of a snob, albeit one that can make explosions happen to back up his haughtiness. He's got some scarring around his eye that surely must come with a story. Someone also made featured fanart of him in Heroes summer banner style, so I guess he's got somebody horny already.

Sara

Samara's half-sister, with comparable fantasy Middle Eastern flavoring. Has an interest in discovering magical artifacts and being a just ruler in the event she winds up on the throne (so, almost definitely), and she and Samara travel around with the assassin Brooke as their bodyguard. There's maybe some lesbian possibilities there? Either way, Sara has enough development where I could see her as a major supporting character.

Sloane

Comes with a genuinely fascinating backstory involving manipulative double-crossing parents, an education in the cruelties and deceptions of social life (reflected in her personal skill), and disinheritance - and yet it's all likely to be overshadowed because she may go down as DD's equivalent to Fates's face-touching. Her initial art is even more revealing than Camilla's, and while the developers later gave her a more modest redesign after negative feedback I get the feeling that this controversy may live on. Her introduction mentions her hunting for both heirs and heiresses and she's now been linked to Sophia, so safe to say she's another confirmed bi character.

Adepts

While the other class sets are standard fantasy fare adepts require a bit more explanation. They have innate magical abilities and appear to be feared and distrusted most places in the setting. Functionally they remind me of adepts from the Golden Sun series, if anyone is familiar with those games. The classes in the adept group tend more toward physical/magical hybridization than those of other sets, so that will probably be their mechanical niche. Oh, and their default weapon type is lances, which is a plus in my book.

Aurima

Along with Caius and the royal sisters, he's another one from the desert nation of Aramor. An arena fighter who got touched by a god in what I assume was a non-sexual way and came out of it with a new appearance and adept powers. Also, he's confirmed to be over 40 - how often do you see that in games like this?

Bianca

Looks like a more carefree Mathilda from Echoes. She's a ranking officer in the Delian army which sounds like it'd sit uneasily with her adept powers. Her profile describes Lincoln as her close friend, which is still about the most we know about him at this point.

Elias

This guy's writing plays more into the fairly standard coding that comes with adept powers, as we know they manifested shortly before he was going to confess his feelings to a male paramour and afterwards he was forced to flee his homeland and wander the world. He also spent time among dwarves, so insert short bear jokes here? In the present he's attached to Cia in what seems to be a platonic way; maybe she's a fruit fly, or maybe she just likes having a friend who can light drunken assholes on fire? Elias is definitely into guys, but I would still be a little surprised if he turned out to be totally gay as that's such a rarity in these sorts of things.

Iris

Oof, another lengthy and rough backstory. Iris had better parents than Sloane, but she also had to deal with permanent facial scarring (hence the mask) after a bandit kidnapping and the stigma of manifesting as an adept pretty much eliminating the prospects of her making a good political marriage. Also, she and Elias both come from Neullais, which is prominently featured on the continental map on the DD subreddit but doesn't seem to come up all too often in backstories. I think it's a not!France? Hard to tell.

Thae'lanel

A World of Warcraft blood elf, flowing anime hair and apostrophe'd name and all. I like WoW so that's not terribly grating, but as he has no profile yet there's little else I can say. Thae'lanel is mentioned in Maeve's introduction as a member of a sun elf group called the Exiled, which I'm guessing is tied to his adept status in some way. He and Maeve form yet another adventurer/bodyguard duo.