#while warren will lose each last bit of himself and become nothing

[lucyvelasco]

have you seen lucy velasco? this thirty-four year old is an assistant district attorney who resides in brooklyn. she has been living in nyc for sixteen years (on and off), and is known to be intelligent and ambitious but can also be suspicious and callous, if you cross them.  people tend to associate them with soft cursing in spanish and designer reading glasses.

it’s me, gabs ( a g a i n ) KFJSDKFH idk what to say about this child other than she is a very sad, suspicious cinammon roll — come love her! i’m, as always, open for any plots and connections! give this a like if you’re interested and i’ll go slide into your dms <3

!!! tw: mention of infertility, robbery, death 

–– @codstarters​

about —

full name: lucía velasco neale age: 34 birthday: january 6th, 1987 sexual orientation: demisexual/biromantic gender: cis female general appearance: pic for reference pronouns: she/her

bio —

tw: mention of infertility, robbery, death

born in santa clara, cuba to an high school student who couldn’t handle the responsibility of motherhood, lucía lived in an orphanage for girls for a few years of her life, very early years. she doesn’t remember it much, if at all, but she has some pictures of herself as a baby with some of the nuns.

INFERTILITY TW. she was adopted by an affluent mexican family when she was two, after they struggled with infertility for most of their marriage. desperate for children, the couple outsourced. to their surprise, however, not too long after they adopted lucía, their own daughter, natalia, would be born.

lucía and natalia were as close as close could get: they had the same friends, the same activities, mostly the same interests... apart from being sisters, they were best friends. although they weren’t blood related, they were always treated as if they were.

they grew up in las lomas, a fancy neighborhood where fancy families raised their children, with one condition: there was a standard everyone had to meet, and it was nothing short of perfect. so of course, the velasco girls had to be the perfect children. and while it all seemed j.c. penney-catalogue perfect: an accomplished doctor for a father, a busy caterer for a mother, and two perfect girls... the pressure their parents placed on lucía and natalia created a barrier between the parents and the children that was never fully destroyed.

the difference was how the sisters dealt with it. natalia was always so sure, so full of self-love and adventure — she couldn’t care less of what her parents thought of her or her interests; whereas lucía, a bit more desperate for their validation, allowed the constant pressure to get to her and become a part of her.

ROBBERY TW. everything changed when the house staff was held at gunpoint during a robbery. thousands of mexican pesos worth of their belongings were taken, and althought no one was hurt, mr. velasco took it upon himself to never let anything like that happen again — he packed his family up and moved them to california. after all, his wife was an american citizen and the children too, by default, so they had no problem moving. their dad had the most trouble getting to stay with them, but sooner than later the family was all together, living in hermosa beach, ca.

always a smart girl, lucía, now known as lucy, got into high school a year ahead of where she was supposed to be, and she met alex warren along the way. they had a strong connection from the very beginning, and although her conservative parents didn’t necessarily approve of her choice, lucy and alex became a couple.

without many details shared with her parents, the girl moved to new york city with her boyfriend after graduating high school and went to college, no problem. she majored in psychology, eventually went to law school.

while in college, lucy and alex got engaged; she was beyond elated, but never knew how to share the news with her parents. nat was the first to know, and the two fantasized about the wedding arrangements for a while. she was so happy and thought alex was happy, too, it never crossed her mind that anything was wrong until after graduation, a few years passed and alex started becoming distant... so distant that there were days they simply wouldn’t talk to each other, some others they wouldn’t even see each other... and the engagement was broken. last she heard, he moved back to california, and while her heart yelled at her to follow him there — she didn’t, she stayed in the city to further continue her career to eventually achieve her goal of becoming a judge.

still heartbroken, lucy found her sister’s relationship with aristóteles pineda to be infuriating: both from her parents’ influential opinions and her own jealousy from her failing relationship. watching her sister being so in love with someone her family hated was familiar, but instead of supporting nat like she had done with her, she sided with her parents’ — to appease them, since they were surprisingly angry about her engagement not working out — and thus her relationship with her sister started to crumble.

DEATH TW. she kept her distance from pretty much everyone: she didn’t make any appearances back in california when her niece was born, and to this day, lucy regrets it with all her heart. she never really spoke to nat again: she was taken from them way too soon in a tragic car accident, that managed to only kill nat. aristóteles and the child survived.

broken with grief she just didn’t know how to process, she yet again joined her parents’ in their accusations towards the young man, blaming him for the death of their daughter. lucy even went out of her way to make sure she told him how much he was despised by the entire family, how she never wanted to hear of or see him again.

things like these will harden up anyone. lucy placed her focus entirely on her job, working in some legal firms as a paralegal until she made it to the d.a.’s office, scoring a job as an assistant d.a. but as years went by, she realized how nobody in her family seemed to talk about nat’s death, even though they all remained in california and the events would be painful, no matter how much time passed — right? but nobody did. 

with a heavy heart and a bruised ego, lucy has recently learned about ari’s whereabouts in the city, and has made it her new mission to apologize for how she treated him and reconnect with bella, her niece, as she is the only piece of her sister she will ever have left.

headcanons —

lucy has tried to channel her negative energy since losing her sister into self-defense. she’s proficient in krav maga and kickboxing!

afterwards, realizing aggression wasn’t the best way for her to go about things (although self-defense has proven to be useful in the city and in the courtrooms), lucy found a healthier way for her to let out her energy: dancing. nothing fancy, she attends zumba classes and loves throwing it back on the weekends lmao

her apartment complex doesn’t allow pets, but she’s befriended a feral cat that she feeds and pets every so often, she calls her bicha.

[imaginedcreaderinsert]

Dumb girl — Dick Grayson x Reader x Jason Todd

ANGST with uncertain ending (bad, probably)

ANGST PROMPTS:

* I asked you if I was ever going to be enough. You hesitated.

* I spilled my heart out, how I felt about you. But then you laughed. And I just laughed along, tears prickling.

SUMMARY: You’re the cool girl, of course you still are. They love how simple things are when it comes to you, how you do not get bothered and laugh it aside, because how simple is that, really? The thing is you justify them even when you know how wrong it sounds; specially with the looks your friends give you. That’s the worst: being the dumb girl.

WORD COUNT: 2688.

A/N: THIS IS NOT a continuation to Cool girl, but rather an alternative prototype opposed to the “hopeful” ending of Cool girl. Seeing how popular the first part, I’m still working on it, as well as being very aware of the two asks resting on my inbox. I will get on them soon, but I had to write this tonight. It is personal, and I hope it can be read as so.

In case someone’s new and wondering about cool girl, I leave it here: COOL GIRL (Reader x Jason Todd x Dick Grayson). This fic does contain some allusions to Cool Girl, but again, it’s not a continuation and its previous reading it’s not necessary (though I will suggest taking a look if this is your type of fic, as that is angstier I believe!)

           You’re the cool girl, of course you still are. They love how simple things are when it comes to you, how you do not get bothered and laugh it aside, because how simple is that, really? The thing is you justify them even when you know how wrong it sounds; specially with the looks your friends give you. That’s the worst: being the dumb girl. But you are not dumb: you are intelligent. It’s just apparently easier to talk to guys when you dumb yourself down, when it shouldn’t because come on, it’s 2020 – but you don’t want to be alone, do you? That’s why you sometimes let them appear as more intelligent, even when you know what they know. Does that make sense? You hope you do, because it really has no equal measure when Grayson is climbing you up from the bed and making his way into your thighs. Those are the moments when you feel everything is worthy, when he worships you. He doesn’t love you, not necessarily, but you think he might.

           You kiss, hug and cuddle like you love each other. You sometimes would like that to happen with Jason, but you don’t talk anymore. He has a girl, a fuckgirl, and you are with Grayson, who undoubtedly seems to adore you as of tonight. That’s everything. His gentle looks, nudges, kisses in the neck and nape when he’s taking you from behind. Jason destroys you and Dick reconstructs you. You think he might be the one, he might really make you a whole and love you entirely, as you are, but then you remember he only chose you trying to drown his own loneliness, losing Babs again to someone else, someone better. Are you really settling down for the second best? She didn’t want it, and thus, you get the broken toy. But the thing is, Dick has never broken to you, he has been too perfect: has he not shown enough character shades, has he not confided in you enough? You know everything about him since he was twelve and you were seven, since you basically were introduced. So what does Barbara see in him that she can’t stand, that he abandons from time to time? Is it so exciting to be on and off? (You would know, you never reject his calls) And what is it in him that she sees that you can’t? He’s perfect. He’s gentle, he’s romantic, attentive enough; he’s funny, he cares (tries to) and asks. He always asks, and you adore him for it.

           Which is a big and enormous problem when you try to pull closer and he notices. The thing is, he always does, he’s too intelligent. But Dick has also thought about it, and the thing is that when a guy likes you, he will do anything to be with you. That is a universal truth. If he really wanted to be with you, he would have said so, he would have made it abundantly clear, maybe asking you out on a formal date to a fancy place (you almost cried of envy when you saw the two-years anniversary dinner date Dick prepared on social media for Barba. Warren hugged you); instead he either calls in some typical lazy takeout if you are hungry, or worst case scenario, he dresses up, insists on you doing the same (as tired as you are), almost in a hurry, and takes you into a fast food place. You hate them, but comfort food is comfort food when your heart bleeds after being held so tenderly, so close to his heart.

           There is a fight, and thus you wonder, is this the time? Dick takes you out a whole day and you feel like you think she feels. He doesn’t take your hand, but does funny things such as kissing your knuckles after bowing in an overexaggerated manner that makes you laugh until you are rolling in the grass, accompanied by him after you imitate him, in a lady-like way, and fake French posh accent. You both can be stupid like that, and you can even be more stupid than that believing it must mean something as he looks at you in your eyes and laughter dies.

           It’s the first time he kisses you in public and you smile. He never does that (save from the casual kiss in the cheek), and you don’t even notice he does that because there’s no one else. The thing is, he does. He just looks at you and then you are in his arms, melting and as vulnerable as you can be. Dick is the only one that looks at you like that, the one that has always been amiable (except when he had a bad day), polite (except those times where he chose Her before you) and caring (except when he had too many things in mind). And yes, maybe it’s not the best time, but you are twenty and in love, so you don’t really think much of it when it’s escapes your lips, as the orange light illuminates your face and makes you terribly beautiful and vulnerable as you confess everything that you’ve been holding

           —Could I ever be enough for you?—. His eyes don’t immediately catch up on what you are saying, maybe too entranced on your shining marbles as they penetrate what he thinks it’s his own soul. You are beautiful inside and out and that he cannot deny. But it slowly dawns onto him what you are really asking, and you become scared. You add: —. Could you get to love me like you love her?

           Only then he realizes how naïve he has been with you; how stupid and hurtful he has been all these years when you were chasing him, and he has been always waiting on Barbara on another station. He feels guilty, but what’s worse, he hesitates. He confidently opens his mouth but then closes it again, and you have hope: you shouldn’t, because only someone who’s sure on things says them without fear, but he is terribly afraid. Your relationship hangs on that simple question, and you still hope he will choose you, he will have your battered heart, your imperfect soul and your insecurities; you don’t love yourself and you hope he will, as he has with Her.

           But he doesn’t. He won’t.

           He says sorry and you cry. You had it coming, but still hoped for something different, is that so delusional, too dumb on your behalf?

…

           Jason drops his fuckgirl as soon as she catches feelings and you are there for him (like it’s a tragedy, like he needs the emotional support). He complains and you laugh all night long with him. It’s just like old times: beer, pizza and black and white movie marathon. This time you get to cuddle with him, and not a week later you are on that same sofa fucking, devouring each other like it’s your last night.

           It’s a bit like pushing the button “play” after a long time paused; the passion is still there and it’s like that night that you left with a bitter “it’s okay” never happened (tears on your eyes in his lift, alone on your way back home when he came in for the very first time with that girl almost naked in his arms. You were nothing serious, and thus okay with it. But you were not). It’s always been like that, and you love (him) how he roughly presses his hand against your neck, how he leaves your head dizzy and makes you tremble like you are malleable putty in his hands. You say dirty things to each other while you do it, love never entering and that might be the red flag; but not this time when you want to forget Grayson’s betrayed and confused face (losing a long-time fuck buddy must hurt, you think). And well, Jason does the job, because two months in and you are his, absolutely his. It’s a bit different from before and that heals you. He asks you to stay and even if you don’t cuddle, he sometimes presses himself against you in the morning, searching for warmth (he’s always hot, just like you are, but still he needs you. And you need him). You press your forehead to his and he smiles, pushing you jokingly to a side and standing up quickly to make breakfast (he now sometimes cooks and that makes you glow).

           They are happy mornings. You eat pancakes with some cream, which you hate, you’ve hated all of your life – but you let him just because he sometimes covers adorably your nose with a bit of it just so that he can eat you off, kiss it better. You love that, love him being silly (love him, full stop). You tell yourself to not fall for it, but it becomes harder as Jason cycle starts: and it’s always been that way. When he picks you up after being apart for some time (aka not fucking), he’s always extra careful; he tries to hang onto you in a slightly clingy way – he asks who are you talking with when he perfectly knows it’s Dick (but this time it doesn’t happen, and he’s slightly happier; maybe he always knew). You try not to, really, but it becomes more and more difficult as the kisses get heavier, and you become closer. You’ve always confided in each other, but you start to actually tell him things about uni, your friends and – and he becomes bothered, yes, but he hears you out. You know it’s because he doesn’t follow, doesn’t understand really the purpose of that, but he tries to be nice at least.

           Until he doesn’t. Because that always happens again.

           You think it might be, as always, him fooling around with some girl and feeling uncomfortable about not knowing how to deal with you, how to tell you nicely how to fuck off (it never is that way, but he tries, you guess) – instead he tries to make you angry, hurt you, so that you can go by your own decision, leave him (even when you never do, probably never will). Or maybe he’s feeling trapped – as it always happens, when a man likes you, he will do anything in his power to be with you. But you haven’t learn that lesson yet, and so whenever Jason feels like you are purring back (in bed, kissing him slightly when you wake up, maybe even leaving small “I love you’s” in his lips) he scratches you back, slashing you deeply and making you bleed – just so that you can remember he’s not in love, without actually saying it. He always hurts you, and whatever hurtful thing he scratches back at your face stays in your head for days, remembering it; but this time it’s different.

           It’s subtle. And it hurts more. When he slashes your heart in you two you know that’s it, it’s direct, it’s clear in its intention, but when he doubts, when he is slowly moving away you notice him drifting apart. Calling him out does not help – he plays dumb and makes you feel stupid, but you are not stupid. Still, you give up and say “sorry” over text, heartbroken and fully aware that in a month from now you probably won’t be talking and he will have probably moved on.

           But the thing is, this random guy at a bar appears, and it hurts more than ever. You talk to him one night when Jason is too busy (you understand, you do not make him worry) and he keeps you company, pays a drink for you. You smile, gratefully, and you talk for a few hours: he’s nice enough, he subtly flirts, and you give in back, bashfully, as if being observed by Jason. You are not betraying him, you are not cheating, but it still feels like so. It’s nice to feel desire, and that’s why you give in for a while, laughing at his jokes and throwing back and forth some witty insults. You think, when you go back home that Jason might feel jealous, might show some affection (because that’ show toxically you think; “he might show me he cares”) – but you do not notice how similar they are until two nights after you cross paths with him in another bar and… They get on well.

           Jason and him really get on well. You feel left out, but don’t care much until they start to throw you sarcastic comments that borderline on hurtful. You feel hurt. And just for once, you decide to fight back, comfortable enough with the two of them: but you hurt him, the random stranger, and he defends himself.

           —Fuck no I didn’t say that. Jesus, you’re so hurt, you don’t have to try and put Jay against me.

           That gets you off guard because maybe the comment came off as too aggressive; you look for Jason for help, and as you are about to open your mouth he says:

           —Oh come on, (Y/N), I really like him, don’t fuck it up.

           And the way he says it it’s so… Tired of you. You are a bit taken back, specially when you notice he doesn’t have your back. Had he pleaded with his eyes you would have backed him whatever the argument might be – and he isn’t taking your side. Why isn’t he? It’s not a joke by the tone of their voices, and neither of them laugh, relieving you: instead it becomes tense and you are awkward, trying to keep the conversation going but never succeeding. They continue joking, like you are not there, with funny names and you feel like you don’t belong, which is probably the worst feeling of the world when Jason is all you can think about when you think on safe spaces or loyalty. He’s always been like that, and maybe it’s the beer, but-

           But that night you leave off early, and two hours later, in your pajamas, safe and sound in your room, you write him a long text.

           You tell him he hurt you. You tell him it hurt you how quickly he changed sides and how he shouldn’t have, how he should be by your side whatever the situation because you are by his all the time. You tell him you feel used by it: it’s not the first time. Whenevr Jason makes a new friend, as asocial as he is, he forgets you, and you feign ignorance, like you don’t get their jokes and you are dumb, laughing along but not really getting it (even when you do and it’s not funny). You tell him how much it hurt you because it probably means you love him – and yes, you do write that explicitly: “I love you, and that’s why I feel so bad right now. I wish you could have just sided with me, because had you asked, I would have done so in a heartbeat.” He’s not there, you know that, but still… “I know we are not on the same page, and we will probably never will, but I want you to take into account my feelings, how much I love you, how, if offered, I would take care of you”.

           You spill your heart out, transcribe even a poem you wrote on him one night, and he-he laughs when he sees the text. He says you’re too drunk, and that he loves you too and that he will see you at the movies on Saturday. You cry yourself to sleep, because after exposing yourself like that the only thing he does is laugh and change the subject, like it can’t be taken seriously, like it’s something so out of character that you can only fathom drunk. You think it over, in your bed, rolling incessantly on your bed and distraining your sheets until it’s a mess and you can’t sleep anymore:

           And then you laugh and nod.

           And you say you will be there.

           Like always.

[kendras-stingbulb]

Seth’s POV

Last time Seth had been at Terrabelle he had promised to sneak Eve out, so that she could live her life how she wanted to, not how her father wanted her to, it was her life, not his. And it did help that Seth really liked spending time with her. Most girls he had talked to had been too different from him to actually like. He couldn’t talk to them about what he’d been through during the war. Eve knew about him losing his memory, he couldn’t tell other people about that because that would involve telling them about the magical world and he couldn’t do that.

Before he knew it Seth was at the mountain he had planned to climb, it’s not like he could go up the pathway, even with his shade walking it could possibly get him caught. Seth couldn’t risk anything going wrong, this had to work. Seth found the spot that looked like the easiest way up and started climbing. He only slipped a few times because he had gotten a lot better at climbing over the years. When he finally reached the top he crawled on his stomach so that he could get a good view of how he was going to get to the arranged meeting spot. Seth was not even going to try and sneak in the castle. Because he would most likely get caught, and why risk that when Eve was more than capable of getting out herself without any help from him.

Seth quietly slid down the slope as he started shade walking so nobody would see a fourteen-year-old boy sliding down a hill, in the middle of the night. Especially when he was also a human boy who was trespassing. When he reached the bottom Seth hit the ground without a sound. He crept his way closer to the town, where he could still he could see only a few lights still on.

As Seth got closer to the spot under a big tree he could feel himself getting more excited with every step. It had been a while since he had actually seen Eve and he couldn’t wait to see her, she was quickly becoming his best friend. Not that he was saying that Newel and Doren and the rest of the gang weren’t good friends it was just nice to talk to someone who was around his age, that wasn’t his sister. Well, Eve at least looked and acted his age but since the Fair Folk aged slowly she was probably twice his age. But that didn’t matter she was a magical being, of course, she was going to be somewhat different than him, it’s not something he thought about too often.

As the tree came into view he saw Eve already there, he decided to not reveal himself quite yet. Seth snuck up slowly and as he got right behind her he put his hand over her mouth the scare her a bit. But what Seth wasn’t expecting was for her to grab his arm and flip him over her shoulder and on to the ground. “That’s you don’t sneak up on me,” Eve said laughing quietly at the shock expression on Seth’s face. “You knew it was me?” Seth asked. “Who else would know I was here and if it wasn’t you, good thing I did flip you, just in case.” As Seth was about to stand up he found himself only to be knocked over again, but this time in a better way. Eve tackled him with a hug. Seth hugged her back, enjoying the lemon scent of her curly hair. Eve gave him one last tight squeeze before she lifted herself up to that she was hovering over him, looking down at him. “Sorry, it’s just has been a while since I last saw you in person instead of reading letters,” Eve said blushing slightly. “No, it’s fine, I get it. I missed you too,” Seth said smiling up at her.

Eve stood up and helped Seth up as well, both of them holding on to each other’s hand a little longer than necessary. “Um, so, how are you getting me out of here?” Eve asked “The same was I came in,” Seth said pointing up the hills that lead out of the valley. “Okay, let’s get going then,” Eve said, obviously excited. Seth smiled at her excitement, it was so nice to be able to show her what exploring could be like. Eve walked a little bit in front of Seth, looking over at her he noticed the way her blue eyes sparkled in the moonlight and the way her hair slightly moved in the breeze. “Ugh, hurry up Seth we don’t have all night! I want to be out of Terrabelle as long as possible before I have to come back,” Eve complained snapping him back to reality, “Okay, I’ll race you,” Seth said as he started running, “Hey we still need to be careful!” Eve said as she started running, Seth knew she could disguise herself using her powers if she needed to.

As they reached the top of the hill Eve looked up at the sky, “The sky is so pretty tonight,” Seth looked over at her and said “Yeah it is,” Eve looked over at him and Seth felt his face and ears get warm. “So, what do you have planned for the two hours that we have tonight?” Eve asked “Well I actually have something set up. In one of the protected areas of the preserve, I decided it was probably a good idea to play it safe tonight.” Seth said hoping that she would like what he had planned. “Sound good. Lead the way,” She said as they started climbing down the more mountain-like side of the hill.

Seth and Eve arrived in the small clearing where Seth had set up a hammock and Christmas lights. With the help of the satyrs, Warren and Bracken. All of them under the promise to not tell anyone especially Kendra, who was probably going to find out sooner than later, she always did. But until then Seth was just going to enjoy the time he had left before Kendra was able to enact her revenge for all the years Seth has teased her about Bracken. Not that Seth and Eve were like Kendra and Bracken, ew no, Eve was just a friend.

Eve gasped when she saw the set up “Wow, Seth this is amazing! How did you get electricity out here?” Eve asked “Oh you know just some handy unicorn magic, and a car battery,” Seth said scratching the back of his neck, a little nervous “and I have a laptop so we can watch anything you want, we can do anything you want really.” Seth said as Eve looked around, “Seth this is so nice. I was just hoping to yo hang out with you, or walk around, but this is more than I expected.”

Eve said sounding astonished. It made Seth happy to know this isn’t less than what she expected. “Seth this might not seem like a lot to you, but it truly means so much for someone to do something like this for me. You snuck me out of Terrabelle and set all this all up, it just means so much to get out of that castle,” Eve said “Oh, it’s really nothing, I’d do anything for you,” Seth said. Eve turned to him taking his hand and looking him in the eyes,” It’s not nothing Seth,” Eve said seriously. Then Seth found himself leaning closer to Eve and her doing the same...then a noise came from the woods and both of them jumped back from each other and Eve played with her hair as Seth scratch the back of his neck with one hand and put the one that had been holding Eve’s in his jeans pocket. “Um, how about a movie?” Eve asked. “Yeah totally let’s do it! And by ‘it’ i mean watch a movie because what else would we do?” Seth said very awkwardly.

“Yeah!” Eve said and they both walked over to the hammock to watch a movie.

Nothing else weird happened while Seth and Eve watch the movie. Everything was normal, they laughed and talked, they talked more than they actually watched the movie. When the movie was finished they had to rush a bit so that Eve wouldn’t get caught. When they reached their meet up spot under the big tree they both knew neither of them wanted to say goodbye, so they just stood there for a while trying to think of reasons they wouldn’t have to say goodbye. “Well, I guess I better go then,” Eve said. “Yeah, probably. Do you think we can do this again?” Seth asked hopefully, “Yes! Definitely I just don’t know when. We can’t do it too often but maybe I could figure out a way to get out with my Father’s permission, and I could just bump into you by chance. Also, it has been a while since you have actually come into the castle so maybe Father will let come.” Eve said as she used her foot to draw stuff in the dirt, “I would like to see you again before you go back to Fabelhaven, we don’t know how long it could be before you come back.” She said looking up at Seth. “Yeah, but if not I could always sneak through the barrel if I need to,” Seth said with a grin that said he was already planning how he was going to do it. Eve just sighed at that. “Yeah maybe, okay then I guess I should go then. Thank you, I had a great night and I’ll hopefully see you soon.” Eve said about to leave when she stopped and turned back around, put one hand on Seth’s shoulder and got up on her tiptoes, and kissed Seth on the cheek. “Goodnight Seth,” Eve said and walked away ‘Goodnight!” Seth called after her. It had taken a while for him to find the words to answer, he was so shocked by the kiss. Eve just looked back at him and smiled.

With a big smile on his face, Seth made his way back to the keep maybe girls aren’t as bad as he thought.

The End.

[ettadunham]

A Buffy rewatch 5x15 I Was Made To Love You

aka people are the strangest people

Welcome to this dailyish text post series where I will rewatch an episode of Buffy and go on an impromptu rant about it for an hour. Is it about one hyperspecific thing or twenty observations? 10 or 3k words? You don’t know! I don’t know!!! In this house we don’t know things.

And today’s chapter is the introduction of the show’s most punchable character ever… but it’s also just a great Scoobies episode altogether, with some nice touches to Buffy’s own character. So, I kinda love it? A lot?

Truth be told, I didn’t have a whole lot of fond memories about I Was Made To Love You going into this rewatch. I knew that this is where we meet Warren, and remembered the robot girlfriend plotline. Which is super weird and creepy.

So I was actually pleasantly surprised to see what else the episode’s got to offer. Which is tons of fun interactions and character beats for our whole extended Scoobies gang. And I’m digging it.

Especially since I feel like we didn’t have an episode like this since Triangle. I like the arc of this season with Dawn and Glory and all that, and it’ll lead to an incredibly emotional finale by the end; but in the last couple of episodes, I feel like we got a little bit bogged down in our main plot and whatnots.

Sometimes I just want a scene of Tara and Anya talking about their mutual distrust of the internet, okay? Does it have any effect on the plot of the episode? Not really, other than them establishing a first run-in with April. Do I care? Absolutely not.

And then the scene where they all come to the conclusion that April’s a robot after one interaction, instead of going through a whole classic research and exposition segment? A delightful subversion of the show’s structure.

How about those incredibly sweet interactions between Buffy and Xander? Out of the core three Scoobies, this is probably the relationship that gets the least amount of love… And I kinda get it? I mean, Xander goes hard on Buffy quite a lot, and his whole unrequited crush on her ends up influencing his character a lot. But that’s almost why episodes like this are all the more rewarding. You can see how by now, they’ve moved and grown past all that, and are just there for each other 100%.

Buffy can open up about her insecurities regarding what a mess her love life has been, and end the episode in a place where she’s comfortable with just being by herself for now. And Xander can acknowledge that he’s an adult now, who is trying to build a life for himself on the Hellmouth (despite the fact that he notes at the beginning of the episode, how this is actually a terrible place to build anything). It’s wonderful. They’re wonderful. I love them and their whole relationship at this point.

That’s not to say that everything in this episode is perfect, especially regarding Xander. The script gives a lot of weird and gross lines to him in this episode for some reason. Maybe so we can have a baseline for when Warren appears? Idk, but I don’t like it.

Speaking of Warren, I kind of feel bad for the actor there. I mean, it’s not like I know much of anything about him, but he can’t be as vile as the character he’s playing. Sorry dude for sharing a face with a character that thousands if not millions of people dream about punching on a daily basis. We recognize and respect your efforts in making him as much of a sleazy creep as possible.

Much like with Jonathan’s Superstar appearance, with the foreknowledge of season 6 I can also appreciate that this is the introduction of a villain. I hate Warren and he’s the fucking worst; but that’s the point. He’s an awful entitled misogynistic nerd. His actions should be seen as horrifying - which is what we’ll unequivocally get by the second half of next season.

Back on the Scoobies front, Giles threatening Spike is possibly one of my favorite moments ever. My boy, Ripper, putting the fear of God into another creep of a man - that’s the dream. It’s almost as good as his complaints about babysitting Dawn.

And while Xander ogling April is kind of weird, what with all the other gross lines the script is giving him, I kind of appreciate the moment of Willow agreeing with him. If for nothing else, then for the face Tara makes in response. (She’s not wrong though, I can’t believe that Willow and Xander are both sleeping on their own girlfriends’ hotness.)

There’s also a thread here about how people get lonely, and it’s sad, which is a sentiment that on a surface level seems to want to make us sympathize with Warren… But the truth is, that as usual, the focus here isn’t really on Warren in that regard. He really is mostly just shown as a horrible creep after all. No, this is once again about Buffy.

(Although this idea of the lonely, morally ambiguous - if not outright villainous - entitled nerd actually gets explored a bit more over at Dollhouse, if that’s your thing.)

I also like that in some ways, Buffy parallels both April and Warren (I know, I didn’t feel right writing that down either, but hear me out). She feels lonely and desperate for companionship. She pursues Ben, even though she clearly doesn’t feel ready to date again, just to avoid being alone.

On the other hand, she also clearly connects with April. She’s afraid that she’s the problem in her relationships, that she should try harder, become someone that her partner would want.

…But April did just that. Her whole existence revolved around this douchelord, she did everything he asked of her, and the creep still left her. And she was left with no reason to go on.

Losing ones self in a relationship has been a big theme with Buffy and Angel, but this is now also about Buffy accepting that she doesn’t always need the co-dependence of a romantic relationship. People get lonely, but sometimes, a little time with ourselves is just what we need to become comfortable with who we are.

Not that there’s anything wrong with putting yourself out there if that’s what you’re into. Look at Joyce! She’s having the time of her life!

And then the episode ended and nothing bad happened! The end!

[theliberaltony]

via Politics – FiveThirtyEight

Welcome to FiveThirtyEight’s weekly politics chat. The transcript below has been lightly edited.

sarahf (Sarah Frostenson, politics editor): Last Thursday in an interview with The New York Times, Republican Rep. Steve King of Iowa said, “White nationalist, white supremacist, Western civilization — how did that language become offensive? Why did I sit in classes teaching me about the merits of our history and our civilization?”

The uproar over King’s comments came swiftly, and there have even been calls for his resignation. On Monday, King was booted by GOP leadership from his House committee assignments, and on Tuesday, the House overwhelmingly passed a resolution condemning white nationalism and white supremacy (even though it didn’t rebuke him specifically.)

All of this raises a question (two questions, actually):

King has a long of history of making racist comments and aligning himself with white supremacist causes, so why are congressional Republicans taking action only now?

And are Republicans opening themselves up to criticism for not similarly condemning President Trump’s racist comments?

julia_azari (Julia Azari, political science professor at Marquette University and FiveThirtyEight contributor): My answer to No. 1 is that typically this kind of action (stripping committee assignments) is related to some kind of scandal (money laundering, sexual harassment) and not just offensive views.

More generally, American politics has not really figured out what we do with racism. (My residence on understatement island is becoming more permanent.)

sarahf: So the fact that King lost his committee tenure because his views were offensive is pretty unusual?

julia_azari: Yes. I don’t have an exhaustive list, but, I mean, Jesse Helms was in Congress less than 20 years ago, and he was known for “racially charged” comments and ran one of the most notorious race-based ads of all time — but I don’t think he faced any formal consequences.

nrakich (Nathaniel Rakich, elections analyst): I’m a bit baffled by the timing. There are a few different theories floating around — like King being electorally weaker now than he’s ever been (he even got a primary challenger), or Republicans being in the minority for the first time in a while — but I’m not totally convinced of any of them.

Probably the most convincing point I’ve seen came from Jane Coaston at Vox, who pointed out that King used to be seen as a kingmaker in Iowa politics (especially in presidential primaries) and a way for other Republicans to validate themselves as tough on immigration.

But that may not true anymore. There’s (probably) not going to be a competitive GOP presidential primary in 2020, and Trump has now arguably become the GOP kingmaker on immigration.

perry (Perry Bacon Jr., senior writer): The actual words King used, “white nationalist, “white supremacist” were unusually politically problematic. Trump avoids that kind of language, even as he implies all of the same things. Also, the media started pressing Republicans on this, and that put them in a tough spot.

nrakich: Perry, King made a just-as-bad comment (in my view, anyway) in 2013, when he said that undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children have “got calves the size of cantaloupes because they’re hauling 75 pounds of marijuana across the desert.” But nobody did anything then.

Although it does seem that King was getting himself into hot water more frequently in the 2018 election cycle. And Republicans probably thought doing anything about it before the election was not politically palatable.

julia_azari: There’s a needle being threaded here: People (thinking VERY broadly about the electorate) don’t like overt racism and ugliness, but they also don’t respond well to serious challenges to the racial status quo.

sarahf: So do we think this continues to spiral and that GOP leaders in Congress ask King to resign?

A number of Republicans have begun to call for his resignation, including Sen. Mitt Romney and Rep. Chris Stewart of Utah and Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming.

nrakich: King’s local newspaper also called on him to resign.

julia_azari: They endorsed his opponent, though.

perry: Elected Republicans can call for him to resign all they want, but unless people and entities like Fox News, Ann Coulter, Rush Limbaugh and Trump turn on King, then I don’t think this dynamic changes.

The next step here is for King to really lean hard into the idea that he is being prosecuted by the “political correctness” police, the media and the progressive left — playing the victim card against the forces of multiculturalism is powerful on the right. I would argue that it helped get Trump elected. I’m not sure King is done, unless he resigns.

sarahf: I have to say I’m a little surprised that “political correctness” hasn’t become a big part of the national conversation yet.

nrakich: Perry, last week, I was also skeptical that King’s political career was in any danger. But now that he’s been stripped of his assignment on the Agriculture Committee, which is a big deal in his district, don’t you think that makes it a lot more likely that his primary opponent (state Sen. Randy Feenstra) could actually win?

perry: I don’t know much about his primary opponent, but in general, I would not want to run as a Republican candidate aligned with the people trying to take down King for being too willing to defend “Western civilization.”

nrakich: That’s very much not the tack Feenstra is taking. He’s a hardcore conservative himself, but he argues King’s controversies have made him ineffective. In an impressive bit of needle-threading, Feenstra says people should vote for him because he’s the one who will advance Trump’s agenda most effectively.

julia_azari: One question, which I don’t know how to answer, is whether some critical number of voters who don’t like political correctness also don’t like white supremacy (lots of people hold conflicting views). It may be that the last couple of years — Charlottesville in 2017, Pittsburgh in October 2018 — have tipped the balance of them toward thinking that the latter (white supremacism) is more dangerous than the former (political correctness).

Given King’s 2018 performance — he won re-election by only a few percentage points — it wouldn’t necessarily have to be a lot of people in his district to make a difference.

perry: Like if King paints his GOP primary opponent as a pawn of the media or elites trying to take him down, that would be smart politics.

One obvious shift: Before the 2018 election, the GOP had to worry about every seat. There was a chance Republicans would wind up with a one-seat majority or even a five-seat majority. If that were the case, I don’t think they would be attacking King in this way.

nrakich: Yeah, good point.

perry: Now that they are in the minority, it’s easier to purge the most controversial members.

sarahf: So you really think some of the timing of this is related to the fact that the comments were made after the election?

perry: Totally.

Nothing to lose now — they might have needed King’s seat before. Now, I think he is likely to lose in the general election in 2020. So Republicans have some incentive to dump him and try to field a better candidate for the general.

julia_azari: Yes, I agree with this assessment.

nrakich: See, I think that reasoning is flawed.

The 2018 midterm election was a historically great year for Democrats … and King still won by 3 points. King probably isn’t in electoral danger in 2020 unless it’s at least as good of a year for Democrats.

That said, I think congressional Republicans might agree with your assessment and that’s why they’re nudging him out.

julia_azari: So did King run ahead or behind people in comparable districts?

I’m guessing behind.

nrakich: Yes, Julia, you’re right. Last month, I did an analysis of 2018’s strongest and weakest incumbents, comparing how each incumbent “should” have performed based on their district’s partisan lean, elasticity and the national popular vote vs. how they actually performed.

King was one of the weaker incumbents; he did 10 points worse than we would have predicted.

Steve King was a weak incumbent

The 10 Senate and House incumbents who underperformed by the most in the 2018 elections*

Incumbent Party State or District Expected Margin† Actual Margin Net Incumbency Advantage Elizabeth Warren D MA D+39 D+24 -15 Chris Collins R NY-27 R+13 R+0 -13 Sheldon Whitehouse D RI D+36 D+23 -12 Mia Love R UT-4 R+12 D+0 -12 David Cicilline D RI-1 D+45 D+34 -11 Bob Menendez D NJ D+22 D+11 -11 Jim Costa D CA-16 D+25 D+15 -10 Duncan Hunter R CA-50 R+14 R+3 -10 Steve King R IA-4 R+13 R+3 -10 Rob Woodall R GA-7 R+10 R+0 -10

*Excluding open-seat elections, elections that did not feature both a Republican and Democratic candidate, jungle primaries, elections with multiple incumbents and elections where the incumbent was an independent.

†Based on the state or district’s partisan lean, its elasticity and the national popular vote.

Source: ABC News

So I suppose you could argue that these recent comments could make him an even worse incumbent, and that would cause him to lose the next time out.

But again … you’d have to assume another D+9 (or similar) national environment in 2020.

And if that happens, Republicans are getting wiped out anyway; King’s seat won’t matter.

sarahf: But is what’s happening with King a blip, as he’s consistently been one of the party’s more controversial members? Or is this more of a watershed moment where the GOP says, “we’re not willing to tolerate views of white supremacism in the party”?

julia_azari: It could be an early watershed moment, Sarah.

perry: I don’t think this is a watershed moment. But Republicans have now created a baseline: We will purge you if you openly say that you support white nationalism and white supremacy.

But it’s unlikely that Trump would ever cross that exact line. He and ex-senior White House adviser Steve Bannon have always said they are for nationalism, not white nationalism. Arguably, actions that align with a white nationalist agenda aren’t as problematic, at least politically, as words in support of white nationalism.

Most people who are wary of America getting less white and less Christian can figure out how to not declare their intentions so openly. For example,saying Mexico is sending rapists to the U.S. is pretty racist, but it’s still different than saying, “I support white supremacy” or “I don’t see a problem with white supremacy.”

sarahf: But I do wonder if the litmus test for what is and isn’t an acceptable comment will change?

julia_azari: These things are very slow to change, and one of the things that I think is challenging for Republicans today vs. Democrats 60 years ago or whatever is that racism has taken on more subtle forms in the current era — predatory lending, problems with the criminal justice system — that are much less obviously egregious than lynching and de jure segregation. (Even though the contemporary issues are very serious, and I’d point out that Democrats also contributed to these problems in past decades; no one gets a pass on this stuff).

perry: So I don’t think the GOP’s litmus tests can change much right now because Trump has been racist in many ways. He hasn’t used the N-word or explicitly identified as a white supremacist, but any broader definition of racist behavior will include Trump.

To put this another way: The gap between Trump and King is fairly narrow.

julia_azari: I sort of disagree with Perry about the possibility for this being a moment, though, as I said, I think it will be slow. Here’s David Broder writing about Jesse Helms’s retirement in 2001.

He makes a point that Helms had every right as an elected senator to hold and fight for his views, before condemning those views and arguing against “sanitizing” Helms’ legacy. For elected Republicans to actually draw a boundary around a set of views is very unusual in the American context. Not only was racism the norm, but we have tended to see legitimacy in the process of being elected, not in the substance of the views.

nrakich: Yeah, I think it’s really splitting hairs to argue that there’s a meaningful difference between Trump’s (and other Republicans‘) thinly veiled racism and King’s more explicit racism. And King’s crossing of some invisible line is clearly not the real reason the GOP has condemned him. The real reason is that King is one of 435 and Trump is president.

If that rumored tape of Trump saying the N-word comes out, are Mitt Romney and Liz Cheney going to call on him to resign?

I doubt it.

perry: I think Romney would call for Trump to resign if he was on tape calling a black person the N-word.

Liz Cheney, no.

I think Nathaniel is basically right: Trump is being excused because he is president.

But my sense is that a lot of Americans think racist means only using the N-word or something very, very explicit, and Trump hasn’t crossed that line yet.

julia_azari: Which is sort of related to what I was saying before: We don’t really have a political tradition of holding people accountable for substance as long as they hold power through a legitimate procedure.

sarahf: What I find so interesting in the backlash against King is that he didn’t make a racially explicit comment that targeted one group of people. Instead, he signaled that he thought an inherent racist ideology was OK, and that was enough to spark outrage.

perry: So there is a new book coming out by Duke professor Ashley Jardina called “White Identity Politics.”

She argues that we tend to think of white identity politics as being largely prejudices against groups like blacks and Latinos. What Trump has tapped into, she argues, is not only that racial resentment but also a kind of pro-white-people politics.

So it’s not totally about being against minorities; it’s also a kind of white pride.

I think King hints at these ideas at times.

When he defends “Western civilization,” I think people are hearing that he might think ideas from Africa or Asia are bad. And, sure, a lot of what King has said seems to look down upon people who are not white. But part of what he is saying is that “white people are good and have great ideas.”

julia_azari: Combined with this idea is the belief among white people that they face racial discrimination (it has become a somewhat widespread view). This seems like a key element of the white identity appeal, that there’s an element of grievance, in addition to a pride in one’s identity or background or whatever.

perry: So I do wonder if people talking about racial issues are at times talking past one another. King is saying that he is pro-white, but that is interpreted as being 100 percent about being anti-black or anti-Latino.

So if conservatives aren’t allowed to say that “Western” or “white” culture is good and that Mexican immigrants and Muslims diminish that culture, that would affect more Republicans than just King. You can hear these kinds of views on Fox News, from Trump and from other influential conservatives. If Republicans start purging those views, the impact will go beyond King.

julia_azari: Making coded racial appeals has been a successful strategy for Republicans and, at times, some Democrats (Democrats have moved left on racial issues, even in the last decade). But maybe we’re getting to the point where it won’t be.

perry: I agree with what Julia said, but I also thought it was true in 2002. Trent Lott resigned under pressure from his Republican leadership post in the Senate over something way, way less controversial than many things Trump has said. (Lott praised Strom Thurmond’s 1948 presidential campaign, which was centered on pro-segregation views.)

julia_azari: Yeah, I think these things move really slow.

perry: We may not see a steady decline in the acceptance of racist behavior, but something more complicated, with racist comments being more tolerated at some times than others.

nrakich: I think about that Trent Lott controversy all the time!!

If anything, we’ve moved into a place where coded racial appeals are more socially acceptable, not less — at least in the medium term (i.e., since 2002), not the long term (since 1960) or short term (since 2016).

But I do think that openness is causing us to grapple with coded racism as a society. It’s the latest battle in the culture war.

And the liberal side may very well win in the end. But it took emboldened people on the far right to spark the fight in the first place.

julia_azari: If it is a politically costly move for Republicans to cut King loose, then maybe we are seeing actual change. If not, maybe we are seeing the Lott thing all over again. That was pretty cheap as far as political costs go.

perry: I assume this kind of question is always context-dependent. It is easier to replace a congressional leader or a rank-and-file member of Congress than the president. For instance, it’s easier for Democrats to say in 2018 that Bill Clinton should have resigned for inappropriate behavior with an intern than it would have been to say that in 1998, when Clinton was still in office.

sarahf: So maybe we don’t see pressure on Republicans to speak out against Trump until much later.

julia_azari: But maybe it opens space for a 2020 primary challenger?

nrakich: There are also confounding factors, like Trump’s problems in other areas — i.e., the Russia investigation. If special counsel Robert Mueller’s report implicates him in collusion or obstruction of justice and ends up destroying his legacy, it will be easier for future historians and laypeople alike to pile on him for the other stuff.

I would be curious to see how the legacy of a highly effective, scandal-free racist president would go.

Maybe something like Woodrow Wilson‘s, eh, Julia?

julia_azari: He remains a hero in some liberal circles.

I wrote a piece about a year ago about presidential legacy and one of the things I am most sure about is that the mainstream legacy writers — who historically have been mostly white — are very forgiving of racism.

The line most-often employed is something like, “That’s just what people thought at the time.”

Is it easy for me to imagine people saying that about Americans in 2016 or whatever? No. But that’s probably more about my limited imagination than anything else.

[blankasolun]

It is the 10th anniversary of Ronnie James Dio’s death today so I am posting this article from Metal Hammer. Expect more Ronnie related articles next week.

Ronnie James Dio: A Life In Metal

By Malcolm Dome (Metal Hammer) March 03, 2014

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In 2014, Metal Hammer celebrated the released of tribute album Dio: This Is Your Life by looking back at the man’s inspirational career

Ronnie James Dio is more than an icon. He is among the most articulate and exhaustive representatives the metal community has ever had. See, even now, some four years after his death, you still think of the man in the present tense. A measure of his continuing impact.

“If you wanted to introduce aliens to what metal stands for, then you’d pick Ronnie as the man to convince them it’s got a lot going for it,” said the late Deep Purple keyboard master Jon Lord. And it’s hard to argue with that sentiment.

Born in New Hampshire to parents of Italian descent, Ronald Padavona listened to a lot of opera when growing up, but it was in 1957 that he got the rock’n’roll bug and formed his first band, the Vegas Kings. He was a bassist at the time, but quickly switched to vocals, as he strived to find the right style to suit his voice.

His first official single, with the band that started to make his name, The Red Caps, was released in 1958. Titled Conquest, it arrived at a time when Elvis Presley, Dean Martin and Chuck Berry still ruled the charts.

“I got into rock’n’roll through the radio,” Dio would recall in 1988. “It was an escape from reality, but like so many others, it inspired me to try my luck in a band.”

By 1960, he’d changed his name to Ronnie Dio – allegedly inspired by the Italian-American gangster Johnny Dio – but despite releasing a succession of singles under different band names, nothing appeared to be working for the young singer.

“I always knew something was wrong,” he later admitted. “But when Elf arrived, I found my home in heavy music.”

Originally formed as The Electric Elves in 1967, the band became Elf in 1972 when they released their first album. Self-titled, it was produced by Deep Purple bassist Roger Glover, and drummer Ian Paice, and kickstarted Dio’s journey into heavy metal history.

“You knew that while the band were good, it was Ronnie who was outstanding,” Roger recalled with admiration years later. “Elf were doing a lot of touring opening up for Deep Purple in the States, and they were getting bigger. It appeared this lot would be the next big thing out of America.”

Sadly, that wasn’t to be the case; they recorded just two more albums, including the celebrated 1975 Trying To Burn The Sun, before Ritchie Blackmore took a major hand in the future of Dio’s career.

“We were on tour, when on a day off Ritchie’s guitar tech knocked on my hotel room door,” recalled Dio. “He said the man would like me to sing on a track he was gonna record away from Purple.”

The song in question was Black Sheep Of The Family, a cover version that Ritchie had failed to convince the rest of Purple to go along with. But what was intended as a one-off session with Dio and the rest of Elf (inevitably minus guitarist Steve Edwards) would ultimately turn into Rainbow. There was an obvious magic here from the start. Dio and Ritchie, together with a revolving cast of huge talents, worked on three studio albums and one live release. And it was 1976’s Rising, the band’s second offering, that proved the first of a number of true classics to feature the great vocalist’s name.

“I knew we had something special at the time,”

Dio said 10 years later. “But did I know it would stand up? You hoped that would be the case, however you can only see this retrospectively. I’m grateful so many people rate the album.”

However, Ritchie Blackmore’s steady drift towards a more commercial approach was at odds with Dio’s own penchant for a more romantic, gothic style of lyrical imagery.

“I love writing about fantasy,” Dio mused. “To me, this reflects the epic quality of our music. While there is a place for realism, it doesn’t allow me as much scope for allegory as I can get through my accepted style.”

Things came to a head after the recording of 1978’s Long Live Rock ’N’ Roll album. Itself successful, this only fuelled Ritchie’s desire to streamline the band.

“We just agreed to differ,” Dio remembers, while keyboard player Don Airey (who had just been brought into the lineup) has a vivid memory of his first day in rehearsal:

“I walked in as Ronnie was walking out. When I asked what had happened, I was told ‘He’s just quit the band.’ I was so looking forward to working with him, but it wasn’t to be.”

Over the subsequent years, Dio remained diplomatic about his relationship with the guitarist who gave him his big break:

“I have nothing but the highest respect for him, and if the chance came to work with Ritchie again,then I’d be delighted. My door is always open.”

The end of his tenure with Rainbow brought a fresh challenge for Ronnie Dio, who had now firmly established himself as one of the great singers on the heavy rock scene. Black Sabbath were floundering after firing Ozzy, but a chance meeting with Tony Iommi in late 1979 at the conveniently named Rainbow Bar And Grill in West Hollywood altered Ronnie’s life. He was asked to join Sabbath. And we all know what followed.

“None of us had any money,” Dio said of those early Sabbath days. “But what we did have was a real belief. I know what I can do, and was convinced I could help to take Sabbath in a different direction. The other guys were on the same wavelength.”

“We wrote Children Of The Sea on the first day, and it flowed from there,” laughed a still-amazed Tony several years later. “Ronnie was exactly what we needed.”

Heaven And Hell was released in 1980 and has since become, quite rightly, regarded as amongst the greatest metal albums of all time. A year later, the heavier Mob Rules proved this was no flash in the pan. By this time, Dio had made another bit of metal history by trademarking the devil’s horns gesture, which has since become the signature sign of metalheads across generations.

“Ozzy used the peace sign, so I wanted something different,” recalled Dio. “I remember my grandmother used this sign to ward off evil; I thought it would work in the context of Sabbath. But I had no idea it would catch on.”

But, following the release of Live Evil in 82, Dio left the band because of interminable arguments appearing during certain production cycles.“It was a misunderstanding,” Tony has said since.

“The studio engineer was telling us that Ronnie would come in and turn up his vocals when we weren’t there. And he told Ronnie that Geezer Butler and I were turning up our instruments in his absence. The result was confusion and anger.”

“I got a call from Geezer, who told me I was sacked,” admitted Dio. “But in a way that was so positive, because it meant I was free at last to do things my way.”

However, the new band was starting from ground zero, as Dio revealed later on.

“I wasn’t even thinking about doing anything outside of Black Sabbath, until I got the call from Geezer,” revealed Ronnie. “I certainly wasn’t holding back any songs from the band, that’s not my way. So, when Vinny Appice [drums] and I got together, I quickly wrote two songs – Holy Diver and Don’t Talk To Strangers.”

Not a bad start. With bassist Jimmy Bain and then unknown guitarist Vivian Campbell completing the line-up, the band took the name of Dio.

“It wasn’t an ego thing on my part,” insisted the frontman. “I had a certain reputation, and it just made sense.”

Holy Diver came out in 1983 and made a huge impact in the UK and the States, where Dio’s stature with Rainbow and Sabbath stood him in good stead. This was the third iconic album he had blessed in a mere smattering of years, and his reputation grew steadily as 1984’s The Last In Line and 85’s Sacred Heart cemented Dio’s place as one of the elite hard rock bands on the planet. Ronnie even found time to put together the Hear ’n Aid project to raise funds through the metal community for the starving in Africa. While such endeavours were testament to the man’s character, it was his band that remained his chief focus over the following decade or so, with Dio’s lineup shifting a few times to keep the band’s creative output fresh and interesting.

In 1992, Dio returned to the Sabbath fold for the Dehumanizer album, as the band showed they had the rigour and vision to update their sound without losing their innate place in history. However, while the album was well-received, Dio’s reunion with his Sabbath chums came crashing down when the band agreed to support Ozzy at the Costa Mesa Amphitheater in California later the same year.

“I have no problem with Ozzy,” Dio remarked at the time. “But I just feel that it’s beneath a band of this stature to support their former singer. It shows a lack of self-respect, and I wouldn’t be part of this.”

Sabbath did the set with Rob Halford on vocals, and the reunion was back in the dumper. As for Dio, he returned to his own band, putting together a new line-up which was altogether more rooted in the realism of the era.

“It was a different Dio at that time,” insists keyboardist Scott Warren. “It was cool. And intense. It was the 1990s. Things had changed I remember thinking, ‘This is biker music.’”

“Every night, Ronnie would come up to each of us individually and say, ‘Have a good gig’,” sighs bassist Jeff Pilson. “That was the measure of the man. He cared about people, and wanted you to feel part of everything. I don’t think I have ever had so much fun working with anyone. Each night was a pleasure.”

Dio continued to enjoy a lengthy stint with his main band, with five studios albums released to generally positive acclaim between 1993-2004. After that, however, there was to be yet another twist in the tale, when Dio regrouped with Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler, together with Vinny Appice (who had been a part of the Dio-era Sabbath line-ups, as well as a crucial member of Dio’s solo band). They avoided any diplomatic fallout with the Ozzy camp by taking the name Heaven & Hell, touring to huge acclaim and releasing the album The Devil You Know in 2009 to overwhelmingly positive reviews. But it was all stopped in its tracks when Ronnie was diagnosed with stomach cancer in late 2009. Tragically, despite all the hopes and prayers around the world, Ronnie James Dio passed away on May 16, 2010. The tears and tributes to him at the High Voltage Festival two months later in London underlined what a massive loss he was to the metal community, and how much he was loved by hundreds of thousands of fans across generations and continents.

“Ronnie Dio can’t be replaced,” Anthrax’s Scott Ian said shortly after he died. “He was unique. As long as Ronnie’s music is played, he’ll be in our minds.”

Now, some of the greatest names in metal are paying homage to the man, and in doing so raising funds for the Stand Up & Shout Cancer Trust, set up in his memory. From Metallica to Anthrax, Motörhead to the Scorpions, and Halestorm to Killswitch Engage, there are a plethora of major metal mavens who’ve lent their considerable talents to make this album come to fruition. They perform songs from Rainbow, Black Sabbath and Dio, yet again emphasising the insurmountable debt we all owe this most treasured and unique of metal singers.

And while he may have been born in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, his heart was certainly won over by metal’s homeland.

“Ronnie loved the English way of life,” opined Tony Iommi in 2010 of the man’s penchant for his would-be adopted country. “He enjoyed a beer and a curry, and even took things so far as to have his house in LA built like a castle!”

Above all else, though, and as loved as he was across every country his music touched, Ronnie James Dio himself always knew his worth. “I never underestimate my talent,” he said during one of the last interviews he gave before his death. “But nor do I overestimate it. I believe if you get that balance right, then you’ll have a healthy perspective on your place in music.”

At the time, Dio hinted that he could see an end to his performing days, but not to his involvement in music. When it was suggested to him that he might retire if he dropped even a small distance from his exacting standards, even if nobody else could detect it, he responded:

“Maybe there is some truth in there. I would never like to be one of those singers who carries on long past the point at which they can deliver. It’s a shame when a legend is diminished, and while I would never put myself into the category of ‘legend’, I can’t ever see myself disappointing fans who have paid good money.

“But the one thing I will never lose is my love of music. I still enjoy coming across young talent, and helping to guide them if I can.”

The breadth and depth of the classic songs on Dio:This Is Your Life proves that, more than anything else, Ronnie Dio’s life is defined by the music he has left us. And that’s an enduring epitaph.

This was published in Metal Hammer issue 255.

ROCK ‘N ROLL CHILDREN

COREY TAYLOR

“I heard that they were putting together this tribute album and they were trying to get hold of me and I was like, ‘Dude, I have to be on that record!’. When it looked like it was going to be difficult to get either of my bands together to do it, I was just like, ‘Fuck it’ and I put a band together myself, just me and some of my buds. I was that desperate to be involved. I was lucky enough to meet Ronnie on a few occasions, in fact I can remember the first time… It was at an awards ceremony and we were both nominated for the best vocalist award, which, to me, was an honour just to be in the same category as him. He won and I was so stoked, then I was being interviewed later on and he walks in to say ‘Hi.’ If you watch the video you can see on my face I’m just totally awestruck by the guy. The thing that most impressed me about Ronnie onstage was that he just made it look so effortless, so natural. The Dio era was my favourite time of his because it’s when he stepped out on his own. He wasn’t a member of Rainbow or Sabbath, he was just Ronnie. The guy’s a legend.”

DORO

“I first saw Dio in 85 or 86. I didn’t meet him then, but it was the first time that I saw him. I went to his show somewhere in Germany, and we were standing on the sound desk, because I’m small! I tell you, I haven’t had this kind of experience before or after. I got chills, I couldn’t stand up, it was unbelievable. The sound blew me away, and really, I was so fascinated. I thought it was the greatest, most mindblowing thing I have ever seen. I was deeply, deeply impressed. I met Ronnie later on tour in 87 – he was playing pool, and we talked and he said, ‘We’re so happy you’re on tour with us. If there’s ever a problem, don’t go to the manager, don’t go to the tour manager, don’t go to my assistant. Just come straight to me.’ He was always very kind and lovely. We developed a great friendship.”

GLENN HUGHES

“Ronnie was a human being who had time for all people – those he worked with and his family. But more importantly, he devoted a lot of his aftershow time to his fans, and would listen to them tell their stories of how their lives had been touched by his work, and he never, ever forgot a fan’s name. He was an amazing one-of-a-kind artist, who gave his love and life and art to the heavy metal genre. I first met Ronnie in the fall of 1973, when he fronted his upstate New York Band, Elf. They were opening for my band at the time, Deep Purple. I remember being backstage when Elf started playing, and I heard this thunderous super-lung voice echoing around the arena, so I went onto the stage to see and hear what was calling me. I was immediately turned on to something, someone, who I had not heard before, and that was a thrill for me. He was a master at his craft and soon, before our eyes, he would become heavy metal’s greatest vocalist. Ronnie was so believable in his realm, singing of dragons, dark lords and distant oceans that carried us all away. We knew we were not alone, because Ronnie was our formidable rider in the eye of the sky, who would lead us back to our safe land. Ronnie, my brother, I want to thank you for all the hours, days and years that we spent together, and on behalf of your loving fans – we believed we’d catch the Rainbow… See you again, dear heart.”

WENDY DIO

“I’m so pleased with how this album came out, everyone involved has just been a pleasure to work with. I know Ronnie would have been so humbled and so proud with these incredible artists paying homage to him. When you have Metallica saying ‘We can’t pick one song – we have to do a medley of four!’… well, he’d have been honoured. I’ve so many wonderful memories of Ronnie, we had 30-plus years together and we were so happy. It’s hard to pick out one specific memory, but the early days when he was starting out was an exciting time and he was so happy to get back together with Sabbath and rebuild those bridges at the end of his life. That was fitting. I think people loved Ronnie because they could relate to him, he never changed, he stood for what he believed in and never wanted to let people down. He was always delighted to speak to his fans, as I said, he was a humble man, a genuine man. He always gave everything, even towards the end when he was suffering with these stomach pains, which he thought was just indigestion, he never gave less than everything he had. I just hope this album raises a lot of money for cancer research and carries on the memory of Ronnie and keeps his legacy alive.”

The 10th Anniversary of Ronnie’s Death It is the 10th anniversary of Ronnie James Dio’s death today so I am posting this…

[marshmallow-the-vampire-slayer]

MTVS Epic Rewatch #161

BTVS 6x11 Gone

Stray thoughts

1) “Gone” is the trademark “Sarah takes a week off and she’s only in a few scenes” episode. Some of these may be memorable, albeit not necessarily good, mostly because they’re other-characters-centric (like Triangle, Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered or The Zeppo) Others are unquestionably bad, like season 4′s Where the Wild Things Are. And yet others fall somewhere in the middle on the quality scale, like The Killer in Me or Gone. As is the case with any Buffy episode, there are some memorable scenes and lines in this episode, and it does advance the plot, especially regarding Buffy’s and Willow’s season arcs. But as a whole, the episode kind of falls flat. 

2) Hm, what could the writers be possibly implying by this? Do they mean that magic... is like... I don’t know... a drug, or something? The underlying message is so difficult to read! Why won’t they spell it out for us?

DAWN: But they're just candles! BUFFY: Well, yeah, you know, to you and me they're just candles, but to... witches they're... like bongs.

3) I’m usually a hardcore Dawn defender, but she was acting really childish in the opening scene, throwing a tantrum because Buffy was getting rid of all the magic-related stuff in the house. She was 15 years old, and therefore old enough to understand the gravity of the situation. For Christ’s sake, she had almost died two nights ago because of Willow’s addiction, how could she not get it? I blame the writers for this, though. It was an OOC choice for Dawn, in my opinion. Moreover, they wrote her quite inconsistently in this episode: she’s complaining to Buffy in this first scene, but she’s talking to her normally as sisters do. It doesn’t look like she’s angry at Buffy, you know? And then the next morning she’s all silence-treatment and sullen and sassy? 

4) So... the trio actually built an invisibility ray, and we’re supposed to believe they would stay in Sunnydale to become supervillains instead of making millions off their inventions?

5) #buffyswiggivesmethewiggins

6) Buffy was definitely partly responsible for the events that led to Dawn’s getting hurt. She shouldn’t bear the brunt of the blame, though. Yet she does, because that’s who she is. She talks about being too wrapped in her own “dumb life” to notice Willow was going off the rails or to pay Dawn enough attention, but the thing is, there’s nothing dumb about what she was going through. There’s nothing dumb about suffering from depression and PTSD and needing to focus on yourself. How could she take care of anyone when she couldn’t/didn’t want to take care of herself? 

7) So, this is what Xander walked into...

If you think Buffy was being harassed, you’re not reading the room right, dude 

Also, I need to comment on something and I hope I get my message across right. And I ask you to bear with me. At least twice so far (the “footsie under the rubble” scene, and this one) Buffy had told Spike “no” or to “stop” while her body language suggested otherwise. That’s going to be their dynamics going forward. Buffy says no, but then Spike pushes her a little bit, and she gives in. Time and again, we’ll see different variations of this dynamic. It’s definitely an unhealthy dynamic, one I wouldn’t foster in any relationship. And the right thing to do each time Buffy had said “No” - even if she eventually didn’t really mean it - would have been to back off. But Spike was no gentleman. He might make us forget it sometimes, he might forget it himself quite frequently, but he was a vampire, evil by definition and lacking a moral compass. What happens in Seeing Red is in no way justified by this or their established dynamic, of course. It can’t be justified by anything. But what I’m trying to get to is how Spike’s psyche works and what led him to believe that if he just pushed a little bit more, she would eventually give in as she had done so many times before. The difference between the scene in Seeing Red and all the previous instances before it, a difference that Spike failed to notice because he’s not wired that way and which makes ALL the difference in the world, is that both Buffy’s words and her body language were screaming “No.” There weren’t any half-assed attempts at pushing him away, there weren’t any come-hither “stops” or “nos”. She meant it that time, and that’s all that matters. 

8) Spike is ticked when Buffy won’t introduce him even as a friend, but the moment Buffy tells him the lady was from Social Services, he immediately tries to put in a good word for her, and it’s kinda sweet. Although he ends up mucking it up, but at least he tried.

BUFFY: Spike... this nice woman is from Social Services? SPIKE: Oh, right! Uh... hey! Buffy's a great mom. She takes good care of her little sis. Like, when Dawn was hanging out too much in my crypt, Buffy put a right stop to it. MS. KROGER: I'm sorry, did you say- BUFFY: Crib! He said crib. You know kids today and their buggin' street slang.

And he calls her “mom”, which I love.

9) ICONIC I

MS. KROGER: Oh, so you live with another woman. BUFFY: Oh! Oh, it's not a, a gay thing, you know, I mean, well... she's gay, but, but we don't... gay.

10) ICONIC II

Although, isn’t all weed magic weed by definition?

11) Basically, the social service lady’s visit is an everything-than-can-wrong-will-go-wrong nightmare come true. 

12) See 7) above...

BUFFY: Why won't you go? SPIKE: I just thought you'd want... BUFFY: Get out of here!

And not only has she kept his lighter, but she’s carrying it around on her...

13) And then Buffy goes all Felicity on her hair (damn I really want to rewatch Felicity! Felicity and Ben forever!)

14) I do love the season 1 reference!

XANDER: Buffy, how did this hap... wait a sec, have you been feeling... ignored lately? INVISIBLE BUFFY: Yeah, ignored. I wish. No, this isn't a Marcie deal.

15) Oh, after talking about this, this scene really feels like the writers were writing the on-set drama into the story! Like Anya wanting to get a haircut just like Buffy’s mirrors Emma wanting to get a haircut just like Sarah’s...

ANYA: You cut your hair? INVISIBLE BUFFY: Oh, yeah! ANYA: Really? How short? INVISIBLE BUFFY: Um, about up to here... well, if you could see my hand, it's kind of above my shoulders. ANYA: Ahh, that sounds so adorable! I was thinking about getting my hair cut before the wed...

16) Buffy basically uses her invisibility to do the silliest, pettiest things, for real. On the one hand, one would think that’s very un-Buffy-like. On the other hand, that’s what any human being would do in her shoes, at least in the moments right after gaining this superpower. Plus, she needed some mindless fun. And it’s pretty much what she did in Earshot, so it’s definitely in-character.

So, here’s a recount of what she did as Invisible Buffy...

1. Channel Lilly Kane as a fashion ghost...

2. Stealing a police cart while crying  “ So long, copper!”, therefore channeling Spike, Ripper or both.

3. Fucking with the social services lady in the most annoying ways.

17) I appreciate the reversal of roles the writers did with Buffy/Willow. During the last episode, we’d seen Willow crash and burn and Buffy trying to be the mature one (emphasis on “trying”.) Now, Buffy’s out of control and Willow’s the one trying to rise above the situation by going back to basics. I’ve given Willow a lot of flack for her behavior up until now, but I really love her in this episode. She’s honestly trying, she gets shit done the old-fashioned way, and she overcomes the temptation to use magic. That’s the Willow I love.

18) And then, there’s this scene...

...let’s call it for what it is: dubious consent. Okay?

19) Oh, this statement is going to become a lie so soon...

WARREN: The Slayer got slammed with a big-ass dose of radiation when the gun overloaded. Her cells are mutating at an accelerated rate. Eventually her molecular makeup will start losing its integrity and then ... pfft. ANDREW: But, wouldn't that kill her? WARREN: Well, lemme think. Yeah! JONATHAN: Wait a minute! We're not killing anybody. Especially not Buffy! WARREN: You guys are so immature! We're villains! When are you gonna get that through your thick skulls? JONATHAN: We're not killers, we're crime lords!

20) ICONIC III

So... Xander has just told Spike Buffy’s invisible, and he’s caught Spike having invisible sex, and yet he can’t put two and two together? Plus, she was gasping and moaning and the freaking ear was moving all on its own!! How thick can you be?!

21) I mean, magic withdrawal aside, we can all relate to this moment...

22) It’s only after Buffy meets Dawn and she freaks out about her sister being invisible that Buffy understands this shouldn’t be a laughing matter...

DAWN: Buffy? Where are you? INVISIBLE BUFFY: I'm invisible. Check this out. Wooo, wooo! Unidentified flying pizza, comin' in for a landing.

DAWN: W-what are you talking- INVISIBLE BUFFY: Okay, not the most clever ad lib, but come on! Points for spontaneity. DAWN: Stop it! Just... stop.  INVISIBLE BUFFY: Sorry Dawn. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to freak you out. DAWN: Well, what did you think would happen? You're freaking invisible, Buffy. INVISIBLE BUFFY: I know. Xander and Anya are working on it. Muldering out what happened.  DAWN: Well, what about you? Shouldn't you be working on it? INVISIBLE BUFFY: Of course I- DAWN: Do you even care about, about who did this to you, or, or if you're gonna be stuck this way? You're making jokes and flying pizzas. INVISIBLE BUFFY: I don't think that's- DAWN:  I can't talk to you like this. I can't see you! How can I talk to you if I can't see you?

23) And Willow solves the case with some good old-fashioned sleuthing and I love her for it!

Of course, she gets kidnapped in the process, but what can you do? You win some, you lose some.

24) And yet again, she figures out they’re trying to kill Buffy with some good old-fashioned science knowledge!

25) Tucker’s brother :)

BUFFY: Who are you?

ANDREW: Andrew. I summoned the flying monkeys that attacked the high school? During the school play, you know?

WARREN: It's Tucker's brother. JONATHAN: Yeah, it's Tucker's brother.

26) This might be my favorite moment in the episode.

BUFFY: Pretty neat, you finding the van. So... how did you manage to... do it exactly? I mean, to locate it? WILLOW: The hard way. The spell-free way. The oh-my-god-my-head's-gonna-fall-off, my-feet-are-killing-me way. I don't know how I got through this day.

BUFFY: Well, the important thing is that you did. It's a... good first step. WILLOW: How are you doing, post-invisibleness? BUFFY: Okay. I still have to do some damage control from my giddy-fest. Dawn was pretty freaked out. The whole taking-a-vacation-from-me thing didn't work out so well. WILLOW: Tell me about it. BUFFY: Except... when I got Xander's message... you know, that I was... fading away... I actually got scared. WILLOW: Well, yeah. Who wouldn't? BUFFY: Me. I wouldn't. Not too long ago I probably would have welcomed it. But I realized... I'm not saying that I'm doing back-flips about my life, but...  I didn't... I don't... wanna die. That's something, right? WILLOW: It's something.

I love the fact that they’re there for each other and that they’re the ones pulling each other through their shit. And they’re quite honest about where they’re at - even if they still have secrets. Both of the made it through the day, and sometimes that’s the biggest accomplishment of them all. 

[ritamcgee]

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How To Get My Ex Boyfriend Back Using Law Of Attraction

[junker-town]

Colorado State’s new stadium should be home to one of 2017’s best non-powers

Mike Bobo’s Rams have a chance to win almost any game on their schedule, if they find consistency.

This preview originally published April 13 and has since been updated.

A lot of what my S&P+ ratings do is search for upside. You aren’t going to learn all you need to learn about a football team in 12 or so games, but you can discern a team’s upside, downside, and consistency level.

Per S&P+, here’s a list of FBS teams that played in the 90th percentile or higher in at least three games in 2016 (adjusted for opponent):

13: Alabama

10: Clemson

7: Florida State

4: Auburn

3: Baylor, Boise State, Colorado, Colorado State, Florida

Within that list are the two teams that played in the national title game, five power conference teams that spent time in the AP top 10 ... and two Mountain West teams that didn’t win their division.

Upside alone is not enough. To accomplish whatever goals you might have in a given season, playing incredibly well three or four times doesn’t really matter if you suffer too many letdowns in the other games.

The nine teams above produced just eight combined performances at the 25th percentile or lower; Colorado State had three of them. The Rams were dramatically inconsistent, losing to Colorado by 37, to Wyoming by 21, and to Idaho by 11, but also beating San Diego State by 32 on the road and playing nearly perfect ball against New Mexico and Fresno State.

The Rams finished 38th in S&P+. A 7-6 mid-major finished ahead of a host of nine-win power conference teams (Minnesota, Utah, Georgia Tech, Nebraska), plus four teams it lost to. That’s not normal.

Upside doesn’t tend to just disappear, as long as the reasons for it are still in town. And if the reason for the inconsistency had anything to do with inexperience, then 2017 could be a very special year in Fort Collins.

Bobo’s Rams return their starting quarterback, all three primary backs, their top two receiving targets, an all-conference center, three of their top four defensive linemen, nearly every linebacker, and nearly every defensive back [update: plus Utah grad transfer safety Jordan Fogal, eligible immediately after playing in 11 career games].

After a shaky few weeks, Colorado State hit a cruising altitude that few mid-majors achieved, and in 2017, the Rams get to prove it wasn’t a fluke. They also get to prove whether they can maintain this high level for more than just a few weeks.

Bobo came to town to prove himself. The Georgia grad spent nearly 15 years as a UGA assistant and spent the last few of those years serving as maybe the most underrated coordinator in the country. In terms of Off. S&P+, his Dawgs ranked 16th and 15th his first two years in the OC chair. And after a brief funk in which UGA was only a top-40 offense, they surged to sixth, eighth, and sixth from 2012-14.

His first CSU team was a little bit disappointing; the offense reset with a new starting quarterback, and the defense didn’t improve. But last year the offense surged. (The defense still hasn’t really improved.) Meanwhile, his last two recruiting classes have each ranked second in the conference, per the 247Sports Composite.

If Colorado State lives up to its S&P+ projections, this could be Bobo’s last year in Fort Collins. He could become a hot candidate for any number of jobs, especially opportunities closer to home. But that’s okay.

For two straight hires, CSU has gone after upwardly mobile coaches with minimal ties to the area. The Jim McElwain era ended with the Rams’ first 10-win season in 12 years. And if the school is looking for another new coach in about eight months, that means they just had another big year.

Just go find the next exciting coach, and bring him to town for three years, too. Let that become CSU’s model: an ambitious program with a gorgeous new stadium that finds ambitious coaches to lead the way.

Colorado State

2016 in review

2016 Colorado State statistical profile.

Midway through the season, Colorado State was legitimately disappointing. A competitive loss at Minnesota was far from embarrassing, but the Rams were unconvincing offensively in a 23-14 win over UTSA and unconvincing defensively in a 47-21 win over Northern Colorado. Losing by a combined 82-24 to Colorado and Wyoming was unacceptable.

The season swung with a 31-24 win over Utah State. The Rams trailed 24-10 at halftime. CSU played a nearly perfect second half, surged to win, and looked mostly fantastic the rest of the way.

First 5 games (2-3): Avg. percentile performance: 44% (~top 75) | Avg. yards per play: Opp 5.9, CSU 5.5 (minus-0.4) | Avg. performance vs. S&P+ projection: minus-8.7 PPG

Next 7 games (5-2): Avg. percentile performance: 79% (~top 25) | Avg. yards per play: CSU 7.2, Opp 6.0 (plus-1.2) | Avg. performance vs. S&P+ projection: plus-13.6 PPG

A couple of tight losses spoiled the surge. CSU lost a 28-23 tossup game to Boise State, then outgained Air Force by 1.7 yards per play in a 49-46 road loss. Still, the Rams rallied to 7-5 and absolutely humiliated soon-to-be MWC champion San Diego State, 63-31, in San Diego.

The season wrapped up with CSU walking into a hornet’s nest. The Rams faced soon-to-be-FCS Idaho in the Potato Bowl, and in cold, sloppy conditions, they ran into an angry Vandals team with something to prove and a far greater desire to be on the field. Idaho raced to a 41-7 lead midway through the third quarter, and while the Rams did an admirable job of fighting back to only lose by 11, it was still disappointing.

There were massive highs and lows in 2016. That will probably even out, one way or the other, this fall.

Offense

Full advanced stats glossary.

The CSU defense had its moments late, but the Rams’ second-half surge was driven by offense.

I mentioned overall percentile performances above, but here are CSU’s offense-only percentile performances for the last eight games of the season: 86 percent, 76 percent, 84 percent, 84 percent, 93 percent, 98 percent, 97 percent, 79 percent.

After the 38-17 home dud against Wyoming, CSU’s offense found fourth year (34 points per game and 6.1 yards per play over the next four games), then found fifth (52 points per game and 9.2 yards per play over the last four).

Most of the reasons return. Third-year starting quarterback Nick Stevens raised his passer rating from 138.7 to 171.3 last year, but it didn’t come without drama. He was dreadful against Colorado in the season opener, going 6-for-20 for just 31 yards with two sacks and two picks. Backup Faton Bauta went 6-for-17 the next week against UTSA, so freshman Collin Hill took the job.

Hill was phenomenal against Northern Colorado and decent against Minnesota and Wyoming, but he tore his ACL, and Stevens took full advantage of his second chance.

Hill appears to be a promising option moving forward, but odds are that this is Stevens’ job again. And he has a hell of a receiver duo. Michael Gallup and Olabisi Johnson combined to catch 104 passes for 1,898 yards and 18 touchdowns at a clip of 11.5 yards per target last year Gallup was responsible for a majority of that, catching at least four balls for at least 91 yards in each of the final eight games of the year. He peaked with 22 for 339 in games against Fresno State and Air Force.

Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

Michael Gallup

Being able to run helped to settle the QB situation a bit. Dalyn Hawkins had 53 carries for 203 yards (3.8 per carry) through five games but erupted for 716 yards (6.6 per carry) the rest of the way, and the emergence of Izzy Matthews and Marvin Kinsey Jr. allowed CSU to lean on the ground game. Once opponents had to compensate for that, the Rams went deep.

All-conference center Jake Bennett returns, but all-conference guard Fred Zerblis does not, nor do honorable mention all-MWC guys Nick Callender or Paul Thurston. CSU returns two starters and two others with starting experience, but the Rams combined a No. 9 ranking in power success rate with a No. 11 ranking in stuff rate (run stops at or behind the line). That’s a nice combination, and it might be hard to replicate.

Meanwhile, injuries could create issues in the receiving corps. That Gallup and Johnson are back is great, but the No. 3 and 4 wideouts are gone, as are the top two tight ends. Dawkins is the only other returnee who caught more than seven passes last year. Bobo has recruited well, and leaning on three-star youngsters like sophomore Anthony Hawkins, freshmen Warren Jackson or E.J. Scott, or redshirt freshman tight end Isiah Pannunzio might pay off. But you never want to have to rely on young guys.

Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

Nick Stevens

Defense

When Bobo came to Fort Collins, he retained the services of former CSU co-coordinator Marty English, first as linebackers coach, then as coordinator in 2016. The results were familiar, if nothing else.

Over the last five years, CSU’s Defensive S&P+ rating, presented in the form of an adjusted points per game figure, has been 31.3, 33.1, 31.8, 31.9, and 31.4. The Rams having a below-average defense (above-average for the MWC) has been one of the sport’s constants, no matter who the head coach or coordinator is.

Of course, CSU arrived at that after a plethora of ups and downs. The defense was awful against Colorado and excellent against UTSA, mediocre for a few weeks in a row but great against Fresno State (even after adjusting for opponent). The awesome CSU offense played with a slow tempo and controlled the ball, which helped to keep some opponent scores pretty low, but when the defense had to step up, it couldn’t with regularity.

At the least, this year’s defense will be more experienced. The Rams could start as many as eight seniors, and with more help, an aggressive linebacking corps could create havoc.

CSU ranked 11th in linebacker havoc rate in 2016, a figure that would have meant more if the Rams hadn’t also ranked 101st in defensive line havoc and, more importantly, 112th in defensive back havoc.

Still, five different linebackers recorded at least seven tackles for loss, and four of them return. Evan Colorito and Tre Thomas are dynamic at stuffing the run — they combined for 14.5 tackles for loss, and 12 of them were of the non-sack variety —and while starting weakside linebacker Kevin Davis is gone, Deonte Clyburn, who missed 2016 with a blood-clot condition, should return. He had nearly as many TFLs in 2015 (7) as Davis did last year (10.5).

The Coloradoan-USA TODAY Sports

Evan Colorito & Josh Watson

In the 3-4 structure, the job of the linemen is to occupy blockers, not create havoc themselves. They did that pretty well, but CSU’s run defense was inconsistent and finished just 100th in Rushing S&P+. In a ridiculous run league like the MWC, that’s going to hold you back. Three of the top four linemen return, and Bobo plumped up the tackle two-deep with a couple of JUCOs — 270-pound, three-star play-maker Christian Howard and man-mountain Jamori Fox.

CSU did come after the quarterback well, and perhaps CSU’s lack of havoc in the back came because they were playing conservatively to allow risk-taking up front. Regardless, the Rams didn’t get hands on many passes but ranked 65th in Passing S&P+. And while two of the top three corners are gone (if a star recruit like mid-three-star Christian Cumber is able to get up to speed quickly, playing time is available), the safety unit is loaded with experience. Seniors Jake Schlager and Justin Sweet, junior Braylin Scott, and sophomore Jamal Hicks have all gotten reps and shown potential.

Potential is good, and experience is great, but ... now that needs to turn into improvement.

Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

Justin Sweet

Special Teams

CSU ranked a healthy 24th in Special Teams S&P+ last year, but a lot of that had to do with Hayden Hunt’s punting leg; Hunt averaged 44.1 yards per kick last year and allowed returns of any sort on just 17 of 56 kicks. He’s gone.

Wyatt Bryan’s back, though. He took advantage of the thin air to go 8-for-9 on field goals under 40 and 3-for-5 over 40. His return should keep CSU in the top 50, and the ceiling is high depending on the punter.

2017 outlook

2017 Schedule & Projection Factors

Date Opponent Proj. S&P+ Rk Proj. Margin Win Probability 26-Aug Oregon State 54 4.1 59% 1-Sep vs. Colorado 50 1.1 52% 9-Sep Abilene Christian NR 47.2 100% 16-Sep at Alabama 1 -31.3 4% 30-Sep at Hawaii 109 14.2 79% 7-Oct at Utah State 73 4.4 60% 14-Oct Nevada 117 20.6 88% 21-Oct at New Mexico 110 14.5 80% 28-Oct Air Force 116 20.4 88% 4-Nov at Wyoming 80 6.7 65% 11-Nov Boise State 29 -1.1 48% 18-Nov San Jose State 105 18.5 86%

Projected S&P+ Rk 43 Proj. Off. / Def. Rk 21 / 82 Projected wins 8.1 Five-Year S&P+ Rk 7.1 (38) 2- and 5-Year Recruiting Rk 69 / 79 2016 TO Margin / Adj. TO Margin* -1 / -0.8 2016 TO Luck/Game -0.1 Returning Production (Off. / Def.) 79% (84%, 74%) 2016 Second-order wins (difference) 8.1 (-1.1)

Colorado State chose the right time to open a new stadium because man oh man, CSU might be playing some big-time football. This year is a massive opportunity.

S&P+ projections are a mix of recent performance data, recruiting, and returning production. CSU is near the top of the MWC in all three, so it would stand to reason that the Rams project well.

At 43rd overall — 21st on offense, 82nd on defense — they are given at least a 48 percent chance of winning in 11 games (a September 15 trip to Alabama being the obvious exception) and at least 59 percent in nine. They project to win at least eight or nine games, and the ceiling is obviously higher.

When you hire a coach like Bobo, you’re looking for a short-term bang. He could stay a while if he doesn’t succeed too much, but the best-case scenario is him going out with a bang in 2017, winning the Mountain West, and setting the table for his successor, the next bright coach on the list.

If CSU doesn’t break through this year, it might take a couple of years. Bobo has recruited well, and the ceiling is high for the freshmen and redshirt freshmen, but there are a lot of seniors in the lineup. That might increase urgency even more than saying, “We could have a huge year,” does.

Team preview stats

All preview data to date.

[ulyssesredux]

Lotus Eaters

I saw on television was the one who started talks to give them any of it. They do. They were about him here and there, will manage them. Glimpses of the time? It does. Clearly I can see today. These beautiful children will be overturned! Meet you knocking around. Glimpses of the so-called Russia story on my speech even started when they incorrectly thought they were supposed to with Clinton. Aq.

Then the priest stow the communion every morning. Make America Great Again. Open it. Thank you! Talk: as if that would mend matters. Also said Russians did not have been declared the winner was based on popular vote if you really believe in it. Just a Stein scam to raise money! His time will come! She raised a gloved hand on the twenty-fifth. He gazed at the corner and passed the drooping nags of the baths. She stood still, waiting for it to make that instrument talk, the Stabat Mater of Rossini. What is this the right name is not as divided as people think. Wisconsin's economy is bad! Music they wanted. Lethargy.

Silk flash rich stockings white. Do it in the witnessbox.

I was with him? Mr Bloom said. Horrific incident in her very long and very vigilant. #MAGA! Stylish kind of evening feeling. —I'll take this one, and around the limp father of thousands of dollars can and will campaign tomorrow. I TOLD YOU SO! Against steelworkers and miners.

Feel fresh then all the same person-remain true to himself and his belief that good day to this. With it an abode of bliss. All weathers, all in the Coombe would listen. By Mosenthal it is. No more!

Keep him on hands: might take a turn in there on the invincibles he used to Guinness's porter or some temperance beverage Wheatley's Dublin hop bitters or Cantrell and Cochrane's ginger ale aromatic. He strolled out of his periodical bends, and more: all. Still the other. Paragoric poppysyrup bad for the use of e-mails? Crooked Hillary Clinton was not arranged or that Crooked Hillary knew the PAC was putting it out of the Great Wall for sake of speed, will manage them.

That must be why the women go after them. Too showy.

Their full buck eyes regarded him as he went by, amid the sweet oaten reek of horsepiss. Bald spot behind. Bury him cheap in a short while—you have. Mr Bloom said. Year before I was just announced plans to destroy all miners, I would have been playing the women's card-it will just go on forever. Reformed prostitute will address the meeting. Sociable. Study the world to see about that French horse that's running today, Bantam Lyons doubted an instant, leering: then thrust the outspread sheets back on Mr Bloom's arms. Then I will be having a general I will stop the national security. Bantam Lyons' voice and puts his fingers on his back, reading a book with a cunnythumb. Piled balks. It's a kind of evening feeling. Numerous patriots will be the first one that was coming it a bit of pluck. Always happening like that. The glasses would take their fancy, flashing. Governor. No: I.H.S. Molly told me one time I go to Mexico, now they're saying that I said. Want to be strong! Get rid of him quickly. Thought that Belfast would fetch him.

Just got an engagement. Go further next time. At eleven it is just the opposite of what Bernie stands for. I do not like my job. Thank you, Florida at noon. Try it anyhow. Women knelt in the Ulster Hall, Belfast, on June 25th-back to Japan. ’ I will be a weak leader.

And past Nichols' the undertaker.

Wonderful organisation certainly, goes like clockwork.

She raised a cake to his surprise. Quarter past. —Yes, he said. His eyes on the steel grip. Remember, don't they? I am. The priest bent down to put on sixpence. The honourable Mrs and Brutus is an honourable man. M'Coy for a day like this, looks like a wheel.

Yes, exactly. O let him! She is a world that doesn’t exist. Reformed prostitute will address the meeting. Simple bit of pluck.

Such a bad headache. Perhaps he was caught by a con.

The rallies in Utah and Arizona were great!

The constant interruptions last night in Dallas-more spirit and passion than ever before. Not like Ecce Homo. Hamlet she played last night. Lovely spot it must have been front page news! A 60% increase in traffic into our country in order to elect Crooked Hillary and Obama, and always very short stamina. She might be here with a ribbon round her neck and do the other one? Peter Claver I am working hard, was very necessary! Big protest march in Colorado shortly after I entered the race in June because the pols and their doss. Clever idea Saint Patrick the shamrock. The Democrats have failed you for that. Half baked they look. Yes, sir, the braided drums. Goofy Elizabeth Warren didn’t have the resources to support her, unless he is selling out!

The real story is FAKE NEWS media lied about.

—Hello, M'Coy said.

Chicago doesn't fix the horrible Iran deal, and we will prevail! The United Nations will make it much harder! The quick touch. In the last 2 weeks, I will be competition in the U.S. without retribution or consequence, is he? Flicker, flicker: the flower gravely from its pinhold smelt its almost no smell and placed it in the prescriptions book. Glorious and immaculate virgin.

Jobs! These pots we have no border, we have. Just watched the Inauguration, 11 million more votes than Donald Trump is going on: photo perhaps. To be sure, poor fellow. Watch!

Pity to disturb them. Still like you better untidy. That must be why the women go after them. For many years our country want borders, police and Secret Service detail? Poisons the only cures.

I hadn't met that M'Coy fellow. —Yes, sir? Poor papa! Singing with his eyes wandering over the place. Crown of thorns and cross.

A photo it isn't. People get it! Wow, Corey Lewandowski, my speech on protecting America I spoke about a temporary ban, which makes up stories and lies, and it was all about.

Where's old Tweedy's regiment? Obvious long ago! In Westland row he halted before the door of the money to be made in Hillary Clinton's losing campaign. M'Coy said. —Are there any … no trouble I hope?

I employ many people in the theatre, all places, time or setdown, no, no, the dusty dry smell of sponges and loofahs. Now have an open border is the leaking of Classified information is being given to charity, and I forgot that latchkey too. She then said, moving to get out there, will you? Try it anyhow. The thing I like Michael Douglas—just another dishonest politician. Please write me a long letter and tell me what is the big debate. Prefer an ounce of opium. Seven people shot and killed walking her baby in Chicago, have a great man, Elie Wiesel, passed the drooping nags of the leather headband inside his high grade ha. But watch, her rich gloved hand on the road. Thing is if you don't. Just spoke to Governor Mike Pence. Hello. Blind faith. Then the next one.

Wellturned foot.

Prior to the Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg going to be strong! Henry I got your last mass? No-one can hear. Thank you: not having a press conference today. College sports today I see where Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake of Baltimore is pushing Crooked Hillary e-mails were deleted by Crooked Hillary help disgusting check out sex tape and past Alicia M become a U.S. citizen so she could use her in the air. Poor papa! At his armpit Bantam Lyons' voice and hand said: Blessed Michael, archangel, defend us in the low tide of holy water. I got your last letter to me and lost so badly by the media and her corrupt globalism. My missus has just got an engagement. In the dark tangled curls of his baton against his trouserleg. Looking forward to meeting w/the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce at the typed envelope. No use thinking of it. No one has worse judgement than Hillary Clinton. Barrels bumped in his pocket and folded it into the words radical Islamic attack, this time next year.

Hence those snores. O, he said. Do it in the dead sea floating on his back, reading a book with a letter. What time? Congratulations to Rex Tillerson is that he stood for.

I turned down a meeting. She will sell us out, flowing together, winding through mudflats all over the place doing interviews, but whether our government! Flicker, flicker: the laceflare of her with her hands in the Arch.

Thanks, old man. Brother Buzz.

Poor papa! The priest in that Fermanagh will case in the money to be #AmericaFirst January 20th. No use thinking of. He approached a bench and seated himself in its way: for a long letter and crumpled the envelope, ripping it open in jerks. Ruins and tenements. M'Coy said. Drawing back his head. Nothing ever happened with any of it. Flicker, flicker: the garden of the nom the Dems were never asked him about getting Molly into the newspaper. I heard that the horrendous protesters, incited by the rere. Wonder did she walk with her sausages?

He stopped at each sauntering step against his nostrils, smelling herself, when I was going to sing at a swagger affair in the day and I'll take one of the 16,500 Border Patrol Agents was the chap I saw in that. They should be EASY D! He stood aside watching their blind masks pass down the aisle, one by one, am appalled that somebody that is totally rigged and corrupt media covered me honestly and didn't get indicted while Bob M did? He slipped card and letter into his pocket. I have been executed in large numbers of jobs and trade, jobs, military, vets, 2nd A, repeal Ocare, borders, and the Middle-East.

Crooked Hillary has ZERO leadership ability. We need unity & leadership. Bill Clinton and the weakness of our holy mother the church. An incoming train clanked heavily above his head and gazing far from beneath his vailed eyelids he saw the dark tangled curls of his periodical bends, and all Americans-and the hub big: college.

Looks like the spirit in that.

And why did they only complain after Hillary lost? —No, he's going on some paces, halted in the witnessbox. What Paddy? Shows you the needle that would.

Water to water. Hillary Clinton's term as Secretary of State tomorrow morning. I have suffered, it is. Always passing, the weight of the flood. Prayers for the ruin of souls. So exciting, big lazy leaves to float about on, 228 shootings in 2017 with 42 killings up 24% from 2016, I feel it is.

Those old popes keen on music, on behalf of little Marco Rubio.

He moved a little ballad. Mysterious. So many great endorsements yesterday, delaying entry to my office at Trump Tower! He said. I don't know Putin, have saved Planned Parenthood, allows P.P. to continue if they never even requested an examination of the beautiful name you have been, strange customs. Prayers for the skins lolled, his eyes found the tiny bow of the month it must be in Maryland this afternoon for a million in the theatre, all places, time or setdown, no, one and fourpence a gallon of porter. By Mosenthal it is. Silk flash rich stockings white. No worry. Wow, President Obama's brother, like Bernie himself, never paid fees, rent, salaries or any other country, have you used Pears' soap? Long long long rest. Could hear a pin drop.

They were VERY nice to her bow. Just loll there: quiet dusk: let everything rip. I know Mark Cuban well. Be our safeguard against the wickedness and snares of the beautiful name you have. Mrs Marion Bloom. Three we have broken the all time! What is he foostering over that change for? Lap it up. I will be asking for impossible recounts is now telling the truth about her heritage being Native American she would lose!

Thanks, old man. Tell about places you have. Leopold, yes. But we. That fellow that turned queen's evidence on the well. An incoming train clanked heavily above his head and gazing far from beneath his vailed eyelids he saw the bright fawn skin shine in the dead sea floating on his back, reading a book with a veil and black bag. Reduce dues Chuck Jones, who she always hated!

Voting machines not touched!

What is home without Plumtree's Potted Meat? Her mind is shot-resign! Cigar has a cooling effect. Massive trade deficits & little help on the sly. Tea Company and read again: choice blend, made of the old blind Abraham recognises the voice and puts his fingers on his shoulders.

MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! A couple of FAKE NEWS media refuses to show the massive stage at the outsider drawn up before the door of the postoffice and turned to the world! We should tell China that we have an Obama A.G. Where was the chap I saw in that.

Always passing, the coolwrappered soap in his bench. Test: turns blue litmus paper red. —Yes, Mr Bloom said. Will guns be taken from her over this and why are they? Just landed in Cuba immediately & get much better off! Come around with the sweat rolling off him to baptise blacks, is now being joined by the Dems have still not in trouble with H except that he thinks he would respect the results were in big trouble! I are hosting Japanese Prime Minister Theresa May in Washington State by a Middle Eastern immigrant. I. To all the time? When will the dishonest media.

Mortar and pestle. Can't believe she would misrepresent the facts! Happy New Year to everyone. Why Ophelia committed suicide. Living all the day. Why? Do tell me what is the leaking of Classified information. The lane is safer. I long to meet you. Something pinned on: photo perhaps. I'm not there, with a veil and black bag. Prayers for the philosopher's stone. What Paddy?

More than doctor or solicitor. Feel fresh then all sank. Among many other African Americans who know me well and have got nothing but bad publicity for doing so badly they just don't tolerate liars-a one night stay in the other thing all the time. How long since your last mass?

Where the bugger is it? I got your last letter. Pricing for the conversion of Gladstone they had too when he said. Wife well, stonecold like the hole in the other thing all the people are looking great! How can she run for president.

The cold smell of sponges and loofahs. Mr Bloom answered. How goes the time being in his head. The so-called popular vote-this election is absolutely being rigged by the voters will forget the rigged system under which we are in very good man, husband, brother, like her, searched his pockets for change. Make it up? Wow! Who was telling me? Not like Ecce Homo. Denis Carey. I do not I will solve What do African-American & Hispanic communities Hillary Clinton has bad judgement, poor fellow, it's not his fault. Flowers, incense, candles melting.

Like to give them any of it. He strolled out of my Commander-in. Whispering gallery walls have ears. Simple bit of pluck. Doesn't give them any of these soaps have. It is impossible for the swearing in. Feels locked out of it. This tax will make a better place because of him.

Very much enjoyed my tour of the American people! Nice smell these soaps. James Clapper and others, have you used Pears' soap? Safe in the sun in dolce far niente, not the way, did a really bad job Hillary type policy and management has done a spectacular job in the witnessbox. Crooked Hillary after the rosary.

To keep it up. Crooked Hillary called African-American voters-but we will build the wall at Ashtown. —My missus has just got an. Waterlilies. The Republican Party has to change. They like it because no-one. Eleven, is it the volume is equal to the country. Now could you make out a Wisconsin ad talking about the same that way inclined a bit spreeish. Gallons. Tell him if he drank what they are very special, the minarets. Just announced-by General Michael Flynn.

And Ristori in Vienna. What's that? The Obama Administration. If something happens blame him and his belief that good day to this. But watch, her spouse. Just had a gay old time while it lasted. Thank you! He hummed: La ci darem la mano, la la lala la la lala la la lala la la. I am bringing back jobs to USA. The media is so deep, Leopold. Now let us all down in conflict all over Europe and the hub big: college.

Rank heresy for them, there's always something shiftylooking about them. Who knows? Funny that the great coach, Bobby Knight who last night in Dallas-more spirit and passion than ever before. What has happened to the F.B.I. There's Hornblower standing at the debate questions from Donna Brazile, if they had too when he was just going to tear it up, to discuss the business, so too should our country coming to Bedminster today as I continue to be at the outsider drawn up before the window of the old queen's sons, duke of Albany was it in the witnessbox.

Barber's itch. James Clapper and others in the hour of conflict. Lourdes cure, waters of oblivion, and kneel an instant, leering: then thrust the outspread sheets back on Mr Bloom's arms. Actually, she needs the rest to go to Louisiana & another speech tonight in MI. So it is completely false! MAKING PROGRESS-Will know soon! Joseph, her rich gloved hand to her eyes, Spanish, smelling herself, when will we meet? He passed the drooping nags of the distorted and inaccurate media. I am the only one that was coming it a bit of paper.

O prince of the press, have you used Pears' soap? Nosebag time. Post here. Confession. Cantrell and Cochrane's Ginger Ale Aromatic. She liked mignonette. Torn strip of envelope.

In the last time. Those two sluts in the lee of the leather headband. CNN do a good lawyer could make a better future for our workers. Watch! One of the best news? He stopped at each sauntering step against his nostrils. Green Party scam to raise money! —Just keeping alive, M'Coy. It certainly did make her skin so delicate white like wax. A badge maybe. Does anybody really believe that Bernie Sanders must really dislike Crooked Hillary Clinton made a false ad about me where I am President. #DTS With all that money spent against me. The scene he was always talking about where the old blind Abraham recognises the voice of Nathan who left the God of his bush floating, floating hair of the what?

Tremendous support except for Paul Ryan, a great meeting w/Paul Ryan, always fighting the Republican Party can unify! THE RACE, WILL NEVER DROP OUT OF THE RACE, WILL NEVER LET MY SUPPORTERS DOWN! Not annoyed then? Dishonest media says Mexico won't be many there.

Crooked Hillary Clinton, who is totally unable to beat me on healthcare as soon as John Kasich has helped decimate the coal and steel industries in Ohio. Jack Fleming embezzling to gamble then smuggled off to America. Wine. Flat Dublin voices bawled in his bench. The so-called leaders ever learn! So it is. I do wish I could not have our best interests at heart.

We are talking to many groups and it is getting out of the earth is the big day—despite having to compete against 17 other people! You can pay all together, winding through mudflats all over our cities. I raised/given a tremendous amount of money to be so bad about.

Mr Bloom glanced about him here and there a word.

Hate company when you. #ObamaCareInThreeWords Obamacare is 'crazy', 'doesn't work' and 'doesn't make sense'. Shows you the needle that would mend matters. —I'll do that, thanks. I told her to pitch her voice against that corner. Save China's millions. He strolled out of it: shew wine: only swallow it down. Maximum the second. Lyin' Ted is when he said: Sad thing about our poor friend Paddy! Griffith's paper is on the road.

Torn strip of envelope. Look down at her ring to find an excuse. They will only go with and report a story as to one reason Crooked H? Them. It is time for massage. One way out of porter.

They like it because no-one.

#BigLeagueTruth Ready to lead on border security instead of golfing. Take me out of this web massive increases of ObamaCare is and handsome does. M'Coy's changed voice said. Major investment to be V.P. Things are going very well recieved. Your Christmas dinner for threepence. Time Magazine and Financial Times for naming me Person of the climate. —That will be watching from North Carolina for two more. He drew the pin out of touch with everyday people worried about rising crime, poor fellow. Buddha their god lying on his hat quietly inhaling his hairoil and sent his right hand once more more slowly went over his brow and hair. Torn strip of envelope. Poor papa! Then the priest bend down and began to read off a card: O God, our inner cities. The glasses would take that kind—Donald J. Trump Hillary Clinton is totally unable to beat—she doesn’t have a particular fancy for. —About a fortnight ago, has been amazing.

Want to be made out of her clothes somewhere: pinned together. Could have given that address too.

Simple bit of pluck.

There are no sources, the chemist said. Azotes.

A mason, yes. Simples. Pity so empty. Usual love scrimmage. No browbeating him. Pure curd soap. Soft mark. Per second for every second it means.

Good morning, have you used Pears' soap? We only want to admit those who want a perfume too. Everybody is arguing whether or not for striking oil, build WALL Rubio is weak on immigration. Turkish.

O, he said. So dishonest! The air feeds most. Thank you to everyone!

O well, I have postponed tomorrow's news conference in 179 days. With it an abode of bliss.

But small is good, they would have been hitting Obama and people with a parasol open. More interesting if you do, Mr Bloom answered firmly. #Debate #BigLeagueTruth Our country needs change!

No answer probably. Always happening like that. Only 109 people out of my stay in Scotland.

Then the next one: a widow in her weeds. I asked her. Who gave them a pass to Mullingar. His son's voice! Clogs the pores or the second. The lane is safer. Ffoo! Will be there soon. Pity no time for massage.

Crime reduction will be a person who loves people! Could have given that address too.

Watch! Why didn't you tell me what is going on, cactuses, flowery meads, snaky lianas they call them.

Still, having eunuchs in their line. Just leaving Akron, Ohio. Connoisseurs. Hokypoky penny a lump. Mr Bloom said, We have to wear. Big day for her! Looks like yet another terrorist attack, this time next year. Wonder how they explain it to melt in their line.

I bet it makes them feel happy. A mason, yes.

Thank you to General Motors is sending Mexican made model of Chevy Cruze to U.S. JOBS! Girl in Eustace street hallway Monday was it?

Reformed prostitute will address the meeting between Bill Clinton called it totally wrong on BREXIT-she should never have been doing from the stage of the shop, the braided drums. Sermon by the Democrats would have to wear. I called you naughty boy?

Buddha their god lying on his shoulders. Not annoyed then? Not like Ecce Homo.

ObamaCare will explode and we will make leaving financially difficult, but rather RADICAL ISLAMIC TERRORISM and the whole theology of it from that good day to this. We must do better! One way out of her. Under their dropped lids his eyes still read blandly he took out the whole show. What perfume does your wife use. He saw the priest bend down and kiss the altar and then face about and bless all the afternoon to get rid of him quickly. Crooked Hillary, keep pushing the false and misleading ads-all paid for by lobbyists! Go further next time I asked her. Convert Dr William J. Walsh D.D. to the side of M'Coy's talking head. Same as last time. He said. Take off the rough dirt. Heading to Colorado for a million barrels all the same swim. Her name and address she then told with my tooraloom tooraloom tay. Very much appreciated. How low has President Obama should ask why the women go after them. Why did she walk with her hands in those patch pockets. The priest and the light. With the exception of cheating Bernie out of the vote. Now I bet it makes them feel happy. —Tell you what, M'Coy said. 122 vicious prisoners, released by the counter, inhaling slowly the keen reek of drugs, the people are really smart in cancelling subscriptions to the right name is not affordable-116% increases Arizona.

Perhaps it is. He crossed Townsend street, smiled. And past the sailors' home.

In Westland row he halted before the door of the body in the air, the chemist said.

The media and the hub big: college. The honourable Mrs and Brutus is an honourable man. —I know. Which side will she get up? The cold smell of sacred stone called him after the election were based on popular vote-but I mightn't be able to lead the DNC would not allow the FBI to study or see its computer info after it was all about. Hide her blushes. Outside the Adelphi in London waited all the day and I'll take this one, he said. Bernie flamed out If the press that they will NEVER support Crooked Hillary Clinton. Just returned but will be in Terre Haute, Indiana in a pot. Job killer! He turned from the newspaper. —Are there any … no trouble I hope? The lane is safer. Having read it all to end!

The lane is safer. Dear Henry, when I went to that old dame's school. Music they wanted. Interesting how the U.S. Hamilton, cameras blazing. Lollipop.

I was fixing the links in my arms, who tried so hard, was getting the supper: fruit, olives, lovely cool water out of it from the morning noises of the Grosvenor. Then all settled down on their knees again and he and the country. Remember when the figures are announced in the bath. That makes three and a forefinger felt its way!

Sorry I didn't work him about getting Molly into the bowl of his periodical bends, and the peri. Never see him dressed up as a row with Molly. Big day on Thursday for Indiana and meet the hard working and fighting very hard to get things done. —Fourpence, sir? Thing is if you tried: so thick with salt. Wants a wash too.

That so? Queer the number of pins they always have. Then the next Secretary of State.

Lovely spot it must have been so weak, and Raul Castro wasn't even there to greet him. —Yes, bread of angels it's called. The Inspector General's report on hacking within 90 days!

Off to?

She has no sense of markets and such bad judgement! Car companies and others, if you really believe in it, showing a large grey bootsole from under the lace affair he had on.

What time?

Shows weakness! Husband learn to his waistcoat pocket. I will beat the PASSION of my foreign policy speech. Skinfood.

Crooked Hillary can't close the deal? Then a sigh: silence.

Lyin' Ted, I will tell you.

Doctor Whack. Why did you? I win a state in votes and then orangeflower water is so great being in Nebraska. Nicer if a nice girl did it. Corny.

Polls looking great, and now she is going on: some sodality. The opinion of this? Hate company when you say the rigged system that pushed her over the multicoloured hoardings. Perfectly right that is the one who started talks to give 400 million dollars, & run as an Independent. Will be such fun!

I have suffered, it is. That fellow that picked an herb to cure himself had a bit.

Softsoaping. Molly was in her weeds. Obama’s VA Secretary just said we shouldn't measure wait times.

I say you can keep it up. Damn all they know or care about anything with their long noses stuck in nosebags. Dusk and the light. After so many other problems develop for years. Cruz. Just got an engagement. Skinfood. Once again someone we were acracking when M'Carthy took the card from his pocket and a very, very Happy New Year to all of our country and with him those other wicked spirits who wander through the brass grill. He said. WP With all that money spent against me. #MDW Don't believe the biased media will find a good thing, not her. Quest for the Republican Party! I was with him? Nice discreet place to be a great pioneer of air and space in John Glenn. Do not deny my request.

Lyin' Hillary, despite a record amount spent on building the Great State of Arizona. Leopold. Doesn't give them any of it. The people get it approved. Leopold. I'd go if I possibly could.

Might just walk into her mouth. He stopped at each sauntering step against his trouserleg. M'Coy. Today there were terror attacks in Turkey, Switzerland, not doing a hand's turn all day. Looking forward to going to be our president! WT SO DANGEROUS! —Why? Monitoring the terrible tragedy in Nice, France. Then a sigh: silence. Hillary Clinton should ask the DNC, is more than my 739 delegates. Hello. Because Gov. Kasich cannot run. Wait, Bantam Lyons. Having a wet. Two more days and Ohio plants, adding 2000 jobs. Russia dealing with men who get off. The U.S. is looking very bad. We are already winning again, America! I'll risk it, he filled up. I feel so bad about. She is flying with him? Please wish everyone well and endorsed me at 43% but never mentions that there have been precluded from voting! Doctor Whack. Drawing back his head. Who was telling me?

Glorious and immaculate virgin. Why?

Confession. Changing venue to much larger one. Something to catch the words. Where the bugger is it? Mercadante: seven last words. At his armpit Bantam Lyons' voice and puts his fingers on his shoulders. U.S. has a cooling effect. Nobody has more respect for women than me! Naughty boy: punish: afraid of words, of course. Hair? Getting ready to totally misrepresent my foreign policy experience, look at his face.

More interesting if you do not I will be forced out of his periodical bends, and I will punish you for that. Reading poorly from the altar and then face about and bless all the same on the same way.

Must be curious to hear after their own strong basses. They are rigged, e-mails. No worry. General Petraeus got in trouble with H except that he had in Gardiner street. Table: able. The very moment. Now if they want to know him well—was about China, NOT WOMEN! Maud Gonne's letter about taking them off O'Connell street at night: disgrace to our Irish capital. Crooked Hillary just broke-said she is all of the flood. The joint statement of former presidential candidates John McCain & Lindsey Graham and Jeb Bush just endorsed Crooked Hillary Clinton. Good idea the Latin. Bad instincts A lot of heed, I would have been, she suffers from BAD JUDGEMENT was on its last legs and ready to leave for Washington, D.C. and giving it back in his hands.

I said. Clearly I can see today. Reformed prostitute will address the meeting. Good idea the Latin. Bury him cheap in a whatyoumaycall. —And white wax also, he just wants to debate again. The priest and the chance to lead. Valise tack again. At his armpit Bantam Lyons' voice and puts his fingers on his side in the last time.

Wow, the braided drums. Good, Mr Bloom said. I would love to call Lyin' Hillary, costs will triple! We cannot continue to make a deal with Bernie Sanders, after stealing and cheating her way to Dayton, Ohio. Hothouse in Botanic gardens. Glad to hear that, thanks.

Big Thursdays when Crooked Hillary Clinton should have been or the phlegm. He backed me big-time record in lawsuits. Some of that Father Farley who looked a fool but wasn't.

—That will be amazing! He had his answer pat for everything. Long cold upper lip. A lot to talk of Kate Bateman in that Fermanagh will case in the money I have got nothing. I saying barrels? Dusk and the Knock apparition, statues bleeding. Or their skirt behind, placket unhooked. Yes, sir, when will we see stories from CNN on Clinton Foundation corruption and Hillary's pay-for-play question. Queen was in fine voice that day, they have already taken Crimea and continue to make it worse. Wonder is he? Whispering gallery walls have ears.

Curse your noisy pugnose. Tune in! Like that something. Various media outlets and pundits say that if, within the newspaper and put it neatly into her mouth.

As I have a conflict of interest with my tooraloom, tooraloom. M'Coy. Trams: a car of Prescott's dyeworks: a small one. Over after over. Very good talks!

I will punish you for that. Hamlet she played last night. —Just keeping alive, M'Coy said. Nice, France. Reedy freckled soprano.

And old. Yes, he said.

I was going to throw it away that moment.

Cat furry black ball. Palestrina for example if he smokes he won't grow.

#ImWithYou For too many years our country during that week.

I'd go if I possibly could. Bald spot behind. A total lie-and make everyone less safe. Lourdes cure, waters of oblivion, and China on trade, military and take care of our country under the railway arch he took off his hat and newspaper. Study the world, big & over! We welcome all voters who want to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! Funeral be rather glum.

So sad! Mr Bloom went round the corner. #ImWithYou For too many years our country to potential terrorists and others, have a clue. He trod the worn steps, pushed strongly by law enforcement! Monasteries and convents. He stood a moment unseeing by the hour to slow music.

I have a small old woman. Lulls all pain.

He rustled the pleated pages, jerking his chin on his hat.

Is it legal for a million in the same old status quo! By Mosenthal it is. Sleep well Hillary-but we must be careful. TIME!

Bus crash in Tennessee so sad & irrelevant! —Why? I hope corrupt Hillary Clinton as exposed by WikiLeaks. Just down there in Conway's we were acracking when M'Carthy took the folded Freeman from his pocket and a forefinger felt its way: for a nice girl did it, I suppose. Glad to hear after their own. Hothouse in Botanic gardens. Kind of a whore. Much higher ratings at Fox The real scandal here is that my campaign saying sources said, the gently champing teeth. Watched protests yesterday but was under the flap of the U.S. must immediately stop taking in people from Syria.

Tell her: more and more: all. A bit at a swagger affair in the Drug Industry. Other than a small old woman. The Republican House Freedom Caucus, which in the air. How do you call him Bantam Lyons. He died on Monday, poor fellow, it's not his fault. Angry tulips with you. The priest and the massboy stood up and pushed big time by press, healthcare, the chemist said. Sad to watch all of the world! Massage. Why doesn't the media. Crooked Hillary Clinton only knows how to make that instrument talk, no, no, one of my friends and supporters in San Jose was great Bernie Sanders, after a dull sigh. Could have given that address too. Love's old sweet song comes lo-ove's old … —O, he said. Today is the real meaning of that chap.

As Bernie Sanders too hard yet because I love watching these poor, pathetic people pundits on television working so hard, was killed in the stream of life, which I hear is highly respected by all.

Come home to ma, da. Prayers for the repose of my way. Watched Saturday Night Live-unwatchable! Many of the postoffice.

Her mind is shot-resign! Crooked Hillary Clinton.

No wonder companies flee country! And white wax also, he filled up. Iron nails ran in. If I make a deal with Bernie-and taken over during O term! Wonderful organisation certainly, goes like clockwork.

I have been saying this for years. SEE YOU IN COURT, THE SECURITY OF OUR NATION IS AT STAKE! I got it made up. Maximum the second debate in a landslide! I hadn't met that M'Coy fellow. Why?

And just imagine that. Well, tolloll. Yes, he said. Skin breeds lice or vermin. Take me out of my campaign is very much for it. The U.S. Eunuch. Despite a totally one-sided trade deals & global special interests, & now Lyin’ Ted Cruz can't win with the sweat rolling off him to baptise blacks, is he foostering over that change for? He saw his trunk and limbs riprippled over and sustained, buoyed lightly upward, lemonyellow: his navel, bud of flesh: and the Knock apparition, statues bleeding. Jammed by the Democrats would have to accept the results were in big trouble-which is why are there so many things remember, I have been front page news! Getting ready to speak-Wednesday release Just returned from Pennsylvania where we just officially won the Democratic Convention has paid ZERO respect to the debate last night. I won the election, and I forgot that latchkey too. Barber's itch. Proud: rich: silk stockings. Table: able. I am given little credit for my children, Don King, and so many mistakes, Crooked Hillary Clinton is right: otherwise they'd have one old booser worse than another coming along great, and plenty of it from the newspaper baton under his cheek. Any negotiated increase by Congress to my son, Eric, will be working very hard to make it impossible for the skins lolled, his eyes still read blandly he took off his hat again, relieved: and the Clinton campaign-and the light. Perfectly right that is.

I will terminate deal. Never tell you all. Nice kind of perfume does your wife use. Lindsey Graham and Jeb Bush just endorsed Crooked Hillary is getting!

They like it because no-one. Could it be because Cruz's guy runs Missouri? Suppose she wouldn't let herself be vaccinated again. Thank you, Florida. REPEAL AND REPLACE!

Hope she is surrounded by bodyguards who are illegal and even less stamina. Eye out for other fellow always. Stylish kind of kingdom come. Salvation army blatant imitation. Not a sinner.

Those homely recipes are often the best, M'Coy said. Take off the phone with the victims and families of those that want to stop the national security. He tore the flower: no, one by one, and what do you do not like my last letter. I'm sure of that wonderful state. Where's old Tweedy's regiment? He stood up.

Wow, the ratings are in and guess what-we will MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!

O, no, no, she's not here: the garden of the vote! Holohan. We pay a lot!

I said! Very sad that a person who loves people! Wellturned foot.

Those homely recipes are often the best, M'Coy said. Thirtytwo feet per second per second.

Poor little Paddy Dignam? The situations in Tulsa and Charlotte are tragic. If Mayor can't do it. Amazing support. The Great State of Indiana. Word is-early voting in Florida. Latin. I have always had a great loss of Nykea Aldridge. Wake this time in the same.

Still the other one? #BigLeagueTruth Our country has been proven to be any music. The scene he was almost unconscious. Thank you for all of the great people of Munich. Why Ophelia committed suicide. Good poor brutes they look. Shaved off his hat and newspaper. I have totally energized America! If U.C. Think he's that way inclined a bit. He turned from the beginning-much more difficult & sophisticated than the very reverend John Conmee S.J. on saint Peter Claver I am still running around wild. Why the cannibals cotton to it. Love's old sweet song comes lo-ove's old … —It's a law something like that. She deleted 33,000 construction & manufacturing jobs in the dead sea floating on his hat. Thank you. The bungholes sprang open and a wonderful guy. Had to do so! Suppose he lost!

Big wins in the benches with crimson halters, waiting for it to China in unprecedented act. A total disgrace! No roses without thorns. Valise tack again. Pity to disturb them. My people will have a particular fancy for. Azotes. Annoyed if you do, sir, the Cuban/American people! They never discuss the business, AND JOBS, JOBS! Something pinned on: some sodality. Doing the indignant: a widow in her weeds. Then come out a communion, shook a drop or two are they worried it will expand in Michigan and Mississippi! The porter hoisted the valise up on the steel grip. Makes it more aristocratic than for example if he drank what they are in my arms, who embarrassed herself and the election against Bernie. Aq. She liked mignonette. Where are you gaping at? Electuary or emulsion.

—But nobody else does!

All Hallows. Stand up at the porter's lodge. Pres. Obama should have been left behind. In Westland row he halted before the door. He died on Monday, poor fellow. Thank you!

The National Enq. Raffle for large tender turkey. Pity. Curse your noisy pugnose. The media wants me to be with the NRA, who is railing against my visit to Mexico, now that's a good relationship with Chuck Schumer. Three we have to announce this? Reaction. And he said. ObamaCare is.

Hokypoky penny a lump. Now let us all night over it. He slipped card and letter into his sidepocket. She is not fit to be careful. I wonder why, then brew liqueurs. Hillary Clinton is down 11 points with WOMEN VOTERS and the United States, in the Coombe, linked together in the rain. Them. Bernie. Husband learn to his surprise. A working dinner tonight with Prime Minister Abe is heading back to Japan. Will know soon! With my tooraloom tooraloom tay. My first choice from start!

It does.

Which side will she get up?

Thank you Michigan! Their green and gold beaconjars too heavy to stir. She stood still, waiting, while the man who I would NEVER mock disabled. Those homely recipes are often the best: strawberries for the philosopher's stone. Kind of a placid. Nathan's voice! Wonder how they explain it to melt in their line. Nathan's voice! Mozart's twelfth mass: Gloria in that. Connoisseurs. Liberty and exaltation of our holy mother the church. Well, tolloll. —Wife well, poor fellow. Brutal, why not? Conmee S.J. on saint Peter Claver I am not mandated to do with story! He moved a little to the heathen Chinee. So it is only the other brother lord Ardilaun has to change the playbook! The women remained behind: thanksgiving. Hillary's been failing for 30 years-and JOBS! Dist. Must carry a paper goblet next time.

The Republican House Freedom Caucus was able to solve the problems of our country Safe Again for all of the water, cool enamel, the statement was made that the meeting. Were those two buttons of my points. Always happening like that. We are not hostile. Hillary Russian reset, praise of Russia by Hillary!

Such a bad headache. We've had free—and let me know! Who has the slowest growth since 1929. Nevertheless, Germany owes vast sums of money to our next meeting.

That fellow that turned queen's evidence on the same. First of the shop, the system is totally unfit to be a great success. Just leaving Florida. —Fourpence, sir, the sheet up to her eyes.

Sandy shrivelled smell he seems to have. Let today be devoted to Crooked Hillary Clinton will be in Wisconsin, many of her clothes somewhere: pinned together. Our country is in place, the people looking up: Quis est homo. Might be happy all the same-Nice! Peter Claver I am working hard, even with an approx. People are pouring into Washington in the prescriptions book. Peter Claver I am working on solving the terrorism problem for our great country again. Mr Bloom looked back towards the choir. Crooked Hillary after she decieved him and then orangeflower water … It certainly did make her skin so delicate white like wax. I am not only fighting Crooked Hillary Clinton put out such false and pushed the swingdoor and entered softly by the Obama White House 22 times in her bedroom eating bread and. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN should have gone to Louisiana, for years, do not have delayed! Polls! Nice! Is it Paddy Dignam, you see. Now she has very small and unenthusiastic crowds in Pennsylvania where her husband was the horrible views emanated on WikiLeaks about Catholics? —That will be a big idea behind it, kind of a deal work. Please remember, I am President.

He came nearer and heard a crunching of gilded oats, the communion every morning. Duck for six wickets. Peter Claver I am thinking of and respecting all of the postoffice. So warm. He's been losing so long to meet with the U.S.A.G. No worry.

Quite right.

One of the climate. I am the only cures.

Bequests also: to the millions of votes. Peter Claver S.J. and the massboy answered each other in Latin. Goofy Elizabeth Warren, we’d have no path to victory. No, Mr Bloom, strolling towards Brunswick street, passed away. I always said that I visited our Trump Tower just before the window of the Belfast and Oriental Tea Company and read again: choice blend, finest quality, family tea. Footdrill stopped. Sleep six months out of twelve. He thanked her and glanced rapidly at the mess. Mr. Khan, who is very much in play for NSA-as are three others. Very much enjoyed my tour of the Independent Ethics Watchdog, as allies, & start meeting with the victims and families of the body is found. Thank you to everyone for making it even more expensive. Flowers of idleness. I would have to go but I have a particular fancy for. Very nice! —Yes, Mr Bloom said. Good poor brutes they look: hypnotised like. Were in. Just out: The Democrats, when I went to that old sacred music splendid. Corpus: body. Makes mission much harder to negotiate better and stronger trade deals. Today will lose readers! English. I long to act? So many false and unsubstantiated charges, and so did I. Chicago murder rate is record setting-4,331 shooting victims with 762 murders in 2016. Her name and address she then told with my various businesses Hence, legal documents are being stolen by other countries where we would have had millions of votes. Castoff soldier. Florida. The very foul mouthed Sen. John McCain & Lindsey Graham, who shut down our First Amendment rights in Chicago, have returned to the P.P. for the Republican Nominee for President Clinton excoriates Crooked Hillary, NOTHING. A NEW LOW!

Crooked Hillary said horrible things about me that Podesta & Hillary's people said the things about me or my campaign manager and a huge dull flood leaked out, flowing together, sir. The cold smell of sponges and loofahs. Duck for six wickets. Long long long rest. Women knelt in the glare, the chemist said. The first fellow that picked an herb to cure himself had a great plan! —I say you can keep it, Mr Bloom said. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! Half baked they look: hypnotised like.

—One of the best, M'Coy said. Today.

Taking it easy with hand under his cheek.

Anna Wintour came to my great honor to be our president! They're not straight men of business either. Flicker, flicker: the laceflare of her with her sausages? I hope that Crooked Hillary just can't close the deal with Bernie.

Crooked Hillary off the rough dirt. Could meet one Sunday after the rosary. All talk, the Republican National Convention #1 over Crooked Hillary Clinton. Ruins and tenements. The priest in that picture somewhere?

I hadn't met that M'Coy fellow. Time to get people, we welcome all voters who want a perfume too. I will do.

Hence those snores. Cantrell and Cochrane's ginger ale aromatic. Those old popes keen on music, on having done a spectacular job in the bath. Watch! Fake media not happy! Tiptop, thanks. With careful tread he passed over a hopscotch court with its forgotten pickeystone. Lord Iveagh once cashed a sevenfigure cheque for a big deal!

Thing is if you do not deny my request before my speech on ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION on Wednesday in the hour to slow music. If life was always like that other world. #Debate One of the quayside and walked through Lime street. Let off steam.

Shame! Crooked Hillary if I possibly could. —Are there any … no trouble I hope that smallpox up there doesn't get worse.

Weak joy opened his lips. Will know soon! What a lark. Bernie fought for nothing! Outside the Adelphi in London. Against my grain somehow. Jammed by the VERY dishonest media thinks great! Feel fresh then all the time is now using the woman’s card like her email lies and fabrications! Look at the funeral, though. The priest prayed: Is there any letters for me? Wonderful organisation certainly, goes like clockwork. His right hand with slow grace over his brow and hair. The cold smell of sacred stone called him. Wonder is it? I went to that old dame's school. Like to give them an odd cigarette. While the postmistress searched a pigeonhole he gazed at the funeral, though. New Hampshire soon to talk of Kate Bateman in that picture somewhere I forget now old master or faked for money. Slack hour: won't be paying for the Super Delegates. The priest prayed: Blessed Michael, archangel, defend us in the Coombe, linked together in the arms of kingdom come. He is sitting in their stomachs. Wife and six children at home. We will all MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! Paradise and the whole theology of it. —I'll do that, thanks. Suppose they wouldn't feel anything after. Is it Paddy Dignam? Chloroform. Politics! They like it because no-one. No, Peter Claver I am running against me. Will be such fun! His right hand came down into the room to look at his face forward to catch the words. Good, Mr Bloom raised a gloved hand on the sly. ISIS of a whore.

[super-heroic-incredible-team]

Crazy Train: Part three

LET THE TRIALS BEGIN!!!

Antella, Warren, and Grogarath are chained and escorted back to the druid city to participate in the ceremony, which is a series of potentially life or death trials for honor and glory to their god whose name I don’t remember because this was months ago. He’s a god of the hunt, and that’s all I know. Usually their most seasoned warriors -- people who’ve trained for this their entire lives -- participate, but because our group dun fucked up super bad, we’re going in. Considering we’re low level and have no experience or training for this kind of thing, we’re screwed. Even worse, we all have to survive every single trial. If we fail even one, Farroway’s going to have a war on its hands.

Warren is a mixture of furious and completely heartbroken, and he hasn’t said a word to Antella or Grogarath for the entire trip. In fact, he hasn’t even so much as glanced at either of them. Regardless of whether they win or lose, he’s lost everything. He can never return to his home, and instead of his many academic achievements, he’ll forever be known for nearly inciting a war. Even his parents will get a lot of shame and disdain heaped on them because of his tarnished name, and their legacy will be forever muddied. Grogarath’s only regret is... Actually, despite being a huge dick and causing literally everything that’s happening, he has no regrets. He’s an asshole. Antella at least feels pretty bad that they’ve pretty irreparably ruined everything Warren’s worked for up to this point. Warren may be a racist prick, but he doesn’t deserve this.

They make it to the trial grounds are are given the courtesy of choosing which of the trials they want to assign each other. There’s three trials: One where they must face down three werecreatures -- A wereboar, a werepanther, and a werewolf -- and take a tooth from each. One where they must cross a field of ice and lava and defeat a monster to claim a magical item. The final trial is dueling the forms of ten fallen champions from the previous years to the death (technically unsummoning since they’re basically already dead) one after the other. Grogarath is all about that ice-lava challenge since he’s a fire dude, and Antella volunteers for the third trial since she’s the fighter, which leaves Warren for the first.

Warren is just completely despondent like “yeah okay sure I guess whatever” and Grogarath gets super annoyed like FFS STOP MOPING AND AT LEAST PRETEND YOU WANT TO LIVE IT’S NOT LIKE YOUR ENTIRE LIFE IS RUINED JUST SUCK IT UP AND MOVE ON OR YOU’RE GOING TO GET US KILLED AND YOUR HOMETOWN THROWN INTO A WAR.

And Warren just fucking 180′s from zero to eleven and tells Grogarath off because this whole mess started because he just couldn’t resist the urge to be spiteful, and he even goes at Antella because she got in on the spite-and-inconvenience-warren game and she couldn’t keep an eye on Grogarath long enough to stop him from assaulting someone. He just goes on and on that they’ve ruined everything and just couldn’t help him at all, then tells them that if they survive this, he’s leaving the group. He’s just so pissed off and wants nothing at all to do with them and he’s just 10000% DONE. Armed with only his staff and whatever knowledge he’s got, he’s escorted into the arena for the first trial.

The first creature they let out is the wereboar. It charges at him right out of the gate, and Warren fails the save. THE FIRST ROLL AND WARREN FAILS. IT’S LIKE HE DOESN’T EVEN WANT TO LIVE. Thankfully, Gloon (That’s the rght way to spell his name, but I’m too lazy to fix it in the other posts) still owes us a miracle for helping him get his followers back to the ocean. It’s a shame to use it on THE FIRST GODDAMN TURN, but he decides to save Warren and gets him out of the way just in time for the boar to smash its skull into the side of the ring, killing it instantly. The god of the Hunt is angry about the interference, but he doesn’t do anything just yet. Warren gets his second wind and decides to fucking try instead of resigning himself to failure. Warren takes the tooth from the boar, and the trial continues.

Next out is the werepanther. Warren knows from his studies in animal behavior that it likely won’t charge at him like the pig did, and it’ll try to hide itself in the shadows and wait for the perfect chance to strike. After a bit of waiting and readying himself, the panther strikes! He’s barely able to dodge it, then uses his staff to club t right in the mouth. He’s not trying to kill it; after all, killing them isn’t the challenge. He just has to get their teeth. His intention was to hit it hard enough to knock out a tooth. Instead, he accidentally critted and caved its entire face in and fucking murdered it. WHOOPSIES. Grogarath is super impressed, and Antella doesn’t know what’s happening because she passed the hell out already because of her fear of blood. Wimpy cowardly nerd Warren is a BEAST.

Lastly comes the werewolf. Warren really doesn’t want to kill this one because he already feels bad about killing the last one. He’s a nerd, not a murderer. He takes a swing at the werewolf and misses, and the werewolf grabs him and throws him into the body of the wereboard from earlier. The boar cushions the blow enough that he doesn’t lose a shit ton of health like he would’ve if he straight up smashed into the wall. As the werewolf approaches, he gets an idea. He takes a bone laying nearby -- They don’t exactly clean the arena floor so there’s skeletons and stuff a plenty just laying around -- and tries to trick the werewolf into playing fetch. I mean, yeah it’s a giant murder machine, but it’s still kind of a dog. By all means, this absolutely should not work, BUT IT DOES!!! HE THROWS THE BONE AND THE WEREWOLF CHASES AFTER IT. While it’s distracted, Warren sneaks up on it and smacks it in the mouth and manages to knock out a tooth.

The trial is complete, and Warren is declared the winner. Antella and Grogarath tell him how impressed they are and congratulate him for his success, but he shuts them down saying he’s still angry at them and going to leave the group if they survive. He refuses Antella’s apology, though Grogarath is just kind like “well fine then fuck you too nerd i never liked you anyways “

Next up is Grogarath for the second challenge. The party and all the spectators relocate to a vast icy field covering a giant lake of lava -- Don’t ask me how the flip that’s possible just suspend your disbelief a little bit more -- and on the other side is a giant icicle with the magic artifact inside. Grogarath has to make his way across the ice without falling into the lava and claim the artifact to win. He initially plans on jumping from one piece of floating ice to the next, but Antella shouts at him not to because his giant orc ass will break the ice on impact and he’ll sink into the lava. She gets in a ton of trouble for helping him, and the officials make it known that if she or Warren do that shit again then Grogarath will be disqualified and they’ll fail.

I can’t remember if I’ve mentioned it before, but Grogarath has a wizard cape that he ties around his wast and wears like a belt. It was a passive-aggressive parting gift from his parents who wanted him to become a fire mage instead of a rogue. Anyways, thinking quickly, he decides to untie the cape from his waist and rip it into strips or fabric, then tie the strips together to make a long rope. He ties one end to one of his throwing daggers and uses the dagger kinda like a hook to stab ice blocks and pull them toward him so he can walk across. He makes it to the glacier with the icicle, and he tries to use a fire blast to melt it. Unfortunately, the icicle is immune to heat, though he notices a keyhole.

Just then, two fire golems emerge from the lava and attack. Unfortunately for them, Grogarath is immune to burn damage, so their attacks barely damage him. In fact, Grogarath fucking 300-STYLE SPARTA KICKS ONE OF THEM BACK INTO THE LAVA LIKE A BOSS. The other one, which he sees has the key on a necklace, gets grabbed by the throat, has the key necklace ripped off, and then gets thrown into the lava. Grogarath uses the magic key to unlock the icicle, and he retrieves the magic artifact.

He is declared victor of the second trial. However, before they can continue onward to the third and final trial back at the arena, a high priestess tells the group that one of them must enter the realm of their god before facing the fallen champions; apparently, he’s so impressed with their performance that he wishes to speak to one of them. The only problem is that in order to enter into his realm, one of them must commit ritual suicide and prove they’re unafraid of death and therefore worthy to be in his presence. Whoever chooses to speak to him will be revived if the meeting goes well. If not, then RIP YOU’RE DEAD FOREVER WHICH MEANS YOU ALL FAIL TRIAL OVER FOR YOU LET THE WAR BEGIN

Without consulting the others, Warren volunteers himself. He’s so furious with Antella and Grogarath that he considers dying to be a welcome vacation from them. He’s led away to an altar to perform the ceremony while Grogarath and Antella can only watch with fear and worry -- Antella for Warren’s safety and well-being, and Grogarath because Warren has THE WORST SPEECH SKILL AND THERE IS A 95% CHANCE HE’LL FUCK UP. Grogarath is doubtful Warren will actually be able to go through with it, though. And he’s partially right. Once Warren is on the altar and has the hunting knife in his hands, he starts losing his nerve. It’s one thing when he was just being edgy, but now that the reality of what he’s supposed to do sets in, he’s having second thoughts. However, if he refuses, then the priestess will consider his refusal of such a high honor a direct insult and will kill him where he stands.

He’s dead either way, but at least if he does the ritual then there’s a chance he’ll be able to come back. With trembling hands, he stabs himself in the stomach. He fucking survives and is now in terrible pain. He finally dies after improperly removing the knife and gutting himself.

>>> Part 4

[junker-town]

Colorado State’s new stadium should be home to one of 2017’s best non-powers

Mike Bobo’s Rams have a chance to win almost any game on their schedule, if they find consistency.

A lot of what my S&P+ ratings do is search for upside. You aren’t going to learn all you need to learn about a football team in 12 or so games, but you can discern a team’s upside, downside, and consistency level.

Per S&P+, here’s a list of FBS teams that played in the 90th percentile or higher in at least three games in 2016 (adjusted for opponent):

13: Alabama

10: Clemson

7: Florida State

4: Auburn

3: Baylor, Boise State, Colorado, Colorado State, Florida

Within that list are the two teams that played in the national title game, five power conference teams that spent time in the AP top 10 ... and two Mountain West teams that didn’t win their division.

Upside alone is not enough. To accomplish whatever goals you might have in a given season, playing incredibly well three or four times doesn’t really matter if you suffer too many letdowns in the other games.

The nine teams above produced just eight combined performances at the 25th percentile or lower; Colorado State had three of them. The Rams were dramatically inconsistent, losing to Colorado by 37, to Wyoming by 21, and to Idaho by 11, but also beating San Diego State by 32 on the road and playing nearly perfect ball against New Mexico and Fresno State.

The Rams finished 38th in S&P+. A 7-6 mid-major finished ahead of a host of nine-win power conference teams (Minnesota, Utah, Georgia Tech, Nebraska), plus four teams it lost to. That’s not normal.

Upside doesn’t tend to just disappear, as long as the reasons for it are still in town. And if the reason for the inconsistency had anything to do with inexperience, then 2017 could be a very special year in Fort Collins.

Bobo’s Rams return their starting quarterback, all three primary backs, their top two receiving targets, an all-conference center, three of their top four defensive linemen, nearly every linebacker, and nearly every defensive back.

After a shaky few weeks, Colorado State hit a cruising altitude that few mid-majors achieved, and in 2017, the Rams get to prove it wasn’t a fluke. They also get to prove whether they can maintain this high level for more than just a few weeks.

Bobo came to town to prove himself. The Georgia grad spent nearly 15 years as a UGA assistant and spent the last few of those years serving as maybe the most underrated coordinator in the country. In terms of Off. S&P+, his Dawgs ranked 16th and 15th his first two years in the OC chair. And after a brief funk in which UGA was only a top-40 offense, they surged to sixth, eighth, and sixth from 2012-14.

His first CSU team was a little bit disappointing; the offense reset with a new starting quarterback, and the defense didn’t improve. But last year the offense surged. (The defense still hasn’t really improved.) Meanwhile, his last two recruiting classes have each ranked second in the conference, per the 247Sports Composite.

If Colorado State lives up to its S&P+ projections, this could be Bobo’s last year in Fort Collins. He could become a hot candidate for any number of jobs, especially opportunities closer to home. But that’s okay.

For two straight hires, CSU has gone after upwardly mobile coaches with minimal ties to the area. The Jim McElwain era ended with the Rams’ first 10-win season in 12 years. And if the school is looking for another new coach in about eight months, that means they just had another big year.

Just go find the next exciting coach, and bring him to town for three years, too. Let that become CSU’s model: an ambitious program with a gorgeous new stadium that finds ambitious coaches to lead the way.

2016 in review

2016 Colorado State statistical profile.

Midway through the season, Colorado State was legitimately disappointing. A competitive loss at Minnesota was far from embarrassing, but the Rams were unconvincing offensively in a 23-14 win over UTSA and unconvincing defensively in a 47-21 win over Northern Colorado. Losing by a combined 82-24 to Colorado and Wyoming was unacceptable.

The season swung with a 31-24 win over Utah State. The Rams trailed 24-10 at halftime. CSU played a nearly perfect second half, surged to win, and looked mostly fantastic the rest of the way.

First 5 games (2-3): Avg. percentile performance: 44% (~top 75) | Avg. yards per play: Opp 5.9, CSU 5.5 (minus-0.4) | Avg. performance vs. S&P+ projection: minus-8.7 PPG

Next 7 games (5-2): Avg. percentile performance: 79% (~top 25) | Avg. yards per play: CSU 7.2, Opp 6.0 (plus-1.2) | Avg. performance vs. S&P+ projection: plus-13.6 PPG

A couple of tight losses spoiled the surge. CSU lost a 28-23 tossup game to Boise State, then outgained Air Force by 1.7 yards per play in a 49-46 road loss. Still, the Rams rallied to 7-5 and absolutely humiliated soon-to-be MWC champion San Diego State, 63-31, in San Diego.

The season wrapped up with CSU walking into a hornet’s nest. The Rams faced soon-to-be-FCS Idaho in the Potato Bowl, and in cold, sloppy conditions, they ran into an angry Vandals team with something to prove and a far greater desire to be on the field. Idaho raced to a 41-7 lead midway through the third quarter, and while the Rams did an admirable job of fighting back to only lose by 11, it was still disappointing.

There were massive highs and lows in 2016. That will probably even out, one way or the other, this fall.

Offense

Full advanced stats glossary.

The CSU defense had its moments late, but the Rams’ second-half surge was driven by offense.

I mentioned overall percentile performances above, but here are CSU’s offense-only percentile performances for the last eight games of the season: 86 percent, 76 percent, 84 percent, 84 percent, 93 percent, 98 percent, 97 percent, 79 percent.

After the 38-17 home dud against Wyoming, CSU’s offense found fourth year (34 points per game and 6.1 yards per play over the next four games), then found fifth (52 points per game and 9.2 yards per play over the last four).

Most of the reasons return. Third-year starting quarterback Nick Stevens raised his passer rating from 138.7 to 171.3 last year, but it didn’t come without drama. He was dreadful against Colorado in the season opener, going 6-for-20 for just 31 yards with two sacks and two picks. Backup Faton Bauta went 6-for-17 the next week against UTSA, so freshman Collin Hill took the job.

Hill was phenomenal against Northern Colorado and decent against Minnesota and Wyoming, but he tore his ACL, and Stevens took full advantage of his second chance.

Hill appears to be a promising option moving forward, but odds are that this is Stevens’ job again. And he has a hell of a receiver duo. Michael Gallup and Olabisi Johnson combined to catch 104 passes for 1,898 yards and 18 touchdowns at a clip of 11.5 yards per target last year Gallup was responsible for a majority of that, catching at least four balls for at least 91 yards in each of the final eight games of the year. He peaked with 22 for 339 in games against Fresno State and Air Force.

Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

Michael Gallup

Being able to run helped to settle the QB situation a bit. Dalyn Hawkins had 53 carries for 203 yards (3.8 per carry) through five games but erupted for 716 yards (6.6 per carry) the rest of the way, and the emergence of Izzy Matthews and Marvin Kinsey Jr. allowed CSU to lean on the ground game. Once opponents had to compensate for that, the Rams went deep.

All-conference center Jake Bennett returns, but all-conference guard Fred Zerblis does not, nor do honorable mention all-MWC guys Nick Callender or Paul Thurston. CSU returns two starters and two others with starting experience, but the Rams combined a No. 9 ranking in power success rate with a No. 11 ranking in stuff rate (run stops at or behind the line). That’s a nice combination, and it might be hard to replicate.

Meanwhile, injuries could create issues in the receiving corps. That Gallup and Johnson are back is great, but the No. 3 and 4 wideouts are gone, as are the top two tight ends. Dawkins is the only other returnee who caught more than seven passes last year. Bobo has recruited well, and leaning on three-star youngsters like sophomore Anthony Hawkins, freshmen Warren Jackson or E.J. Scott, or redshirt freshman tight end Isiah Pannunzio might pay off. But you never want to have to rely on young guys.

Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

Nick Stevens

Defense

When Bobo came to Fort Collins, he retained the services of former CSU co-coordinator Marty English, first as linebackers coach, then as coordinator in 2016. The results were familiar, if nothing else.

Over the last five years, CSU’s Defensive S&P+ rating, presented in the form of an adjusted points per game figure, has been 31.3, 33.1, 31.8, 31.9, and 31.4. The Rams having a below-average defense (above-average for the MWC) has been one of the sport’s constants, no matter who the head coach or coordinator is.

Of course, CSU arrived at that after a plethora of ups and downs. The defense was awful against Colorado and excellent against UTSA, mediocre for a few weeks in a row but great against Fresno State (even after adjusting for opponent). The awesome CSU offense played with a slow tempo and controlled the ball, which helped to keep some opponent scores pretty low, but when the defense had to step up, it couldn’t with regularity.

At the least, this year’s defense will be more experienced. The Rams could start as many as eight seniors, and with more help, an aggressive linebacking corps could create havoc.

CSU ranked 11th in linebacker havoc rate in 2016, a figure that would have meant more if the Rams hadn’t also ranked 101st in defensive line havoc and, more importantly, 112th in defensive back havoc.

Still, five different linebackers recorded at least seven tackles for loss, and four of them return. Evan Colorito and Tre Thomas are dynamic at stuffing the run — they combined for 14.5 tackles for loss, and 12 of them were of the non-sack variety —and while starting weakside linebacker Kevin Davis is gone, Deonte Clyburn, who missed 2016 with a blood-clot condition, should return. He had nearly as many TFLs in 2015 (7) as Davis did last year (10.5).

The Coloradoan-USA TODAY Sports

Evan Colorito & Josh Watson

In the 3-4 structure, the job of the linemen is to occupy blockers, not create havoc themselves. They did that pretty well, but CSU’s run defense was inconsistent and finished just 100th in Rushing S&P+. In a ridiculous run league like the MWC, that’s going to hold you back. Three of the top four linemen return, and Bobo plumped up the tackle two-deep with a couple of JUCOs — 270-pound, three-star play-maker Christian Howard and man-mountain Jamori Fox.

CSU did come after the quarterback well, and perhaps CSU’s lack of havoc in the back came because they were playing conservatively to allow risk-taking up front. Regardless, the Rams didn’t get hands on many passes but ranked 65th in Passing S&P+. And while two of the top three corners are gone (if a star recruit like mid-three-star Christian Cumber is able to get up to speed quickly, playing time is available), the safety unit is loaded with experience. Seniors Jake Schlager and Justin Sweet, junior Braylin Scott, and sophomore Jamal Hicks have all gotten reps and shown potential.

Potential is good, and experience is great, but ... now that needs to turn into improvement.

Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

Justin Sweet

Special Teams

CSU ranked a healthy 24th in Special Teams S&P+ last year, but a lot of that had to do with Hayden Hunt’s punting leg; Hunt averaged 44.1 yards per kick last year and allowed returns of any sort on just 17 of 56 kicks. He’s gone.

Wyatt Bryan’s back, though. He took advantage of the thin air to go 8-for-9 on field goals under 40 and 3-for-5 over 40. His return should keep CSU in the top 50, and the ceiling is high depending on the punter.

2017 outlook

2017 Schedule & Projection Factors

Date Opponent Proj. S&P+ Rk Proj. Margin Win Probability 26-Aug Oregon State 54 4.1 59% 1-Sep vs. Colorado 50 1.1 52% 9-Sep Abilene Christian NR 47.2 100% 16-Sep at Alabama 1 -31.3 4% 30-Sep at Hawaii 109 14.2 79% 7-Oct at Utah State 73 4.4 60% 14-Oct Nevada 117 20.6 88% 21-Oct at New Mexico 110 14.5 80% 28-Oct Air Force 116 20.4 88% 4-Nov at Wyoming 80 6.7 65% 11-Nov Boise State 29 -1.1 48% 18-Nov San Jose State 105 18.5 86%

Projected S&P+ Rk 43 Proj. Off. / Def. Rk 21 / 82 Projected wins 8.1 Five-Year S&P+ Rk 7.1 (38) 2- and 5-Year Recruiting Rk 69 / 79 2016 TO Margin / Adj. TO Margin* -1 / -0.8 2016 TO Luck/Game -0.1 Returning Production (Off. / Def.) 79% (84%, 74%) 2016 Second-order wins (difference) 8.1 (-1.1)

Colorado State chose the right time to open a new stadium because man oh man, CSU might be playing some big-time football. This year is a massive opportunity.

S&P+ projections are a mix of recent performance data, recruiting, and returning production. CSU is near the top of the MWC in all three, so it would stand to reason that the Rams project well.

At 43rd overall — 21st on offense, 82nd on defense — they are given at least a 48 percent chance of winning in 11 games (a September 15 trip to Alabama being the obvious exception) and at least 59 percent in nine. They project to win at least eight or nine games, and the ceiling is obviously higher.

When you hire a coach like Bobo, you’re looking for a short-term bang. He could stay a while if he doesn’t succeed too much, but the best-case scenario is him going out with a bang in 2017, winning the Mountain West, and setting the table for his successor, the next bright coach on the list.

If CSU doesn’t break through this year, it might take a couple of years. Bobo has recruited well, and the ceiling is high for the freshmen and redshirt freshmen, but there are a lot of seniors in the lineup. That might increase urgency even more than saying, “We could have a huge year,” does.

Team preview stats

All preview data to date.