#winder theme

[the-enchanted-mistakes]

(Recycling pumpkins c: ))

[literary-illuminati]

2024 Book Review #21 – Danubia by Simon Winder

I picked this up because I’ve been trying to read one history book a month, and I happened to scroll past a viral tumblr post with a quote from its introduction as I was figuring out which book that would be for April. Helpfully, there was no one ahead of me waiting for it in the library. A one-paragraph quotation and the book’s cover aside, I went it basically entirely blind. The book took a bit of adjusting to.

The book is a history of Central Europe through the lens of the Habsburg Dynasty, and it is a history of the Habsburg Dynasty through Winder’s extensive travelogue visiting every historical city and museum exhibit in the Danube basin. A roughly chronological sequence of events is followed (common and sometimes extensive tangents and diversions notwithstanding), but nearly every new section is introduced with an anecdote of visiting some town, castle or church that was relevant to the events about to be discussed, and a contemplation of its aesthetic significance to the modern traveller.

Meandering aside, the book does a good job of covering the broad sweep of a millennium of history and hits all the high points you expect it to (Charles V, Rudolph’s Prague, the 30 Years War, 1848, 1866, 1914, etc). The basic dynastic and political history is broken up and intermixed with a surprising amount of time dedicated to the cultural products of each era, which one does very much get the sense are what really fascinates Winder. The painters, composers and architects features get space that’s determined less by their general modern fame or contemporary significance and more because they happened to capture the author’s interest. I certainly came out of this with far more opinions about Vienna’s classical music output across the ages than I expected.

Winder’s voice is strong to the point of overpowering throughout. Which is quite deliberate I’m sure – this is a breezy read full of cute trivia, not a monograph – but even still, it sometimes gets a bit much. Instead of an academic lecture the effect is similar to listening to a guy whose perhaps not quite as insightful or interesting as he thinks he is hold forth over drinks in what only barely qualifies as a conversation. The effect is usually quite charming! But it does wear on you. It also makes getting particularly caught up on the precise accuracy of every bit of trivia feel kind of beside the point.

Winder is also a middle-class guy from southern England, which I might feel bad about saying ‘and you can tell’ if he didn’t bring it up himself quite so much. Anyway, knowing this makes the whole pitch of the book as ‘a walk through the age and region where all the slaving and massacres and depopulation and brutality we associate with Over There happened in Europe too” make so incredibly more sense. Even if it perhaps still shows an ever-so-slightly naive view of what preodern history also looked like in Western Europe.

Still, a significant portion of the book is dedicated to the sheer brutality of early modern religious warfare, both between the Ottomans and various Christian princes and coalitions, and between different sects of Christians. Winder thankfully has no taste at all for grand battles or heroic violence, and devotes as little wordcount to the various epoch-defining wars as he can get away with. He’s more interested in the consequences of them, the brutal and brutalizing violence that led to the depopulation and resettlement of what became the Hapsburg empire several times over across its history.

Which leads into the book’s other main theme. Winder is very much not a fan of nationalism, especially of the kind that made the region’s 20th century such an apocalypse. The book views it as an absurd horror in general, and even moreso in a region where every city and ‘national homeland’ was hopelessly intermixed, and every land continually resettled. The last chapters make the point that the ‘nationality’ of much of the population was, if not arbitrary, then certainly contingent, with massive amounts of assimiliation across national and ethnic lines happening quite late into the 19th century (and before that, historical nationality being more happenstance of language and religion that any primordial cultural essence). It is only as the Habsburg’s legitimizing mythology fell apart that nationalism became the only vital organizing force in the empire, and the grounds on which battle lines were drawn and spoils competed over.

The book does portray the whole latter 19th century as a dialectic between increasingly absurd and ineffectual but (and so) increasingly benign Hapsburg rule to the rising and inevitably exclusionary and vicious nationalisms that would tear it apart. The closest thing to the political left that makes a sustained appearance is Napoleon. Which is somewhat excusable in terms of what the post-Habsburg political situation did end up looking like, I suppose, but given the size and significance of the SDAPO it’s a bit of a gap. One more way the author shines through, I suppose.

The tragic epilogue is of course that Europe now is full of (more-or-less, if you squint) neat and semi-homogenus nation-states. Not because of any peaceful triumph of liberal nationalism and self-determination, but rather one outburst after another of apocalyptic violence, of emptied cities and gore-soaked fields. The book was written before both the current invasion of Ukraine and the most recent war in Gaza, but had either been ongoing they probably would have gotten referenced as further examples of the bloody logic of nation-building (Winder have basically categorized Zionism as the Jewish iteration of the general outburst of homeland-conquering nationalisms in later Austria-Hungary, with the Palestinians in the same unfortunate position as the inconveniently-non-Romanian Magyars in Transylvania.)

Anyway, overall a fairly charming read, and Winder’s steadfast belief that the only real justification for the Habsburg Dynasty is all the weird art they paid for is very endearing. But more entertaining than enlightening, I suppose? And if I hadn’t read it in small daily chunks Winder’s voice would have worn on me until I wanted to reach through the pages and pour a drink on him halfway through the second tangent about his family vacation in Paris.

[ahlulbaytnetworks]

VERSES 1 - 5

About what do they ask one another? [1] About the great news, [2] that over which they are in disagreement. [3] Not at all! They shall soon come to know. [4] Again, not at all! They shall soon come to know. [5]

1.5.1 The chapter begins with commenting in winder about why such a thing was being questioned or talked about in the first place. This is meant to intrigue the addressee.

['Amma (about what)] is truncated from an mã.

(Yatas lun (they ask one another) is a reference to the fact that the disbelievers constantly questioned and discussed a particular issue with the Prophet (S), with the Muslims, and mostly, amongst themselves.

1-5.2 Asking questions to seek knowledge has been encouraged in the Qur'an. Q16:43 states:

.. So ask those whom We granted inspiration if you do not know.

However, sometimes questions are asked with the intent to ridicule. The tone of the verse suggests that the polytheists were querying something obvious, or doing so out of mockery rather than for seeking the truth.

1-5.3 The question asked by God is immediately answered by Him in the second verse. They are asking each other about the great news (al-naba' al-azim).

[al-Naba' (the news)] is a term used to signify the transmission of important and beneficial news. From it is derived the term Nabi which means a Prophet (a) who brings news of the unseen, like the Hereafter, to the people.

Naba' is different from khabar, which also means news. Khabar is the report of actions and events,' while naba' denotes news that requires action.

In this verse, the adjective azim (great) is for further emphasis.

1-5.4 As is made clear from the rest of the chapter, this great news was the news of the Hereafter, a world that awaited after death, and a Day when the dead would be resurrected to account for their actions and receive their just recompense. This is a recurring theme in the Makkan surahs, and about which the disbelievers spoke to each other incredulously and mockingly."

Some exegetes have stated that the great news refers to the revelation of the Qur'an, or to the Prophet (s) himself, or to the fundamentals of faith. However, the context of the chapter suggests that it is referring to the events of the Hereafter.

1-5.5 There are many reports that speak of the ta’wil (interpretation) of the term al-naba' al-azim as a reference to the wilayah (guardianship) of Ali b. Abi Talib (a), about which there was a dispute amongst the people. Two reports are cited below as examples:

Shía source: A tradition from Imam al-Sadiq (a) states: Al-naba al-azim refers to the wilayah [of Ali (a)].

Sunni source: A tradition from the Prophet (s) states: It refers to the wilayah of Ali (a) which they will be questioned about in their graves. Not a single dead person, in the east or the west, on land or at sea, will remain except that [the angels] Munkar and Nakir will ask him about the authority of the Commander of the Faithful. They will be asked, "Who is you Lord? What is your religion? Who is your Prophet? And who is your Imam?"

The exegesis (tafsir) of the great news being the Day of Judgement does not exclude other interpretations and applications (ta' wil) of its meaning at later times as long as they are narrated by the Prophet (s) or the Imams (a). Indeed, there are many hidden layers of meaning to each verse.

The merits of Imam Ali (a) and his prominent role on the Day of Judgement are many. As examples we will quote only three:

1) A tradition from the Prophet (s) states: The first person from this nation who will arrive at the side of its Prophet (s) on the Day of Judgement will be the one who accepted Islam first (and that is) Ali b. Abi Talib

2) Another tradition from the Prophet (s) states: ...I will be given the Standard of Praise (Liwa' al-Hamd) and I will give it to Ali to bear, and I shall seek his assistance in attending to the intercession of the sinners...

3) A tradition from Imam Ali (a) states: I am God's standard for Paradise and Hell; no one enters them except by my criterion.

15.6 That over which they are in disagreement: This disagree could have been between the polytheists themselves, or between them and the Prophet (s), Or between them and the Muslims, Sone polytheists were inclined to believe in a sort of life after death what others were doubtful.' Q27:66 states:

Nay, they have no knowledge of the Hereafter. Nay, they are in doubt about it. Nay, they are quite blind to it!

Some polytheists accepted that the soul might persist after death, but they were openly sceptical about the idea of a bodily resurrection. Some went as far as insulting the Prophet (s) for informing them of it. Q34:7,8 state:

But those who disbelieve say: Shall we point out to you a mai who will tell you that when you are completely disintegrated [in the earth], you will then be created anew? He has invented a lie about God or there is madness in him...

1-5.7 Not at all! They shall soon come to know. Again, not at all! They shall soon come to know. : These two verses make it clear that God was warning those who denied the Day of Judgement that there was no point in their vain talk and the reality was not as they assumed; in fact, they would come to know the magnitude of their error as soon as they left this world behind.

1-5.8 The use of sa indicates that they would know in the near future. Indeed, the Hereafter is near, and compared to it, the life of this world will be less than the blink of an eye.

1-5.9 Some exegetes have said that the repetition of the verses is for emphasis, while others believe that the first mention is the realization gained at death, while the second refers to the realization gained on the Day of Judgement.

Q39:56 mentions the intense regret of the disbelievers and wrongdoers at that time:

... Woe to me for what I neglected in regard to God, and that I was amongst the mockers!

They would vainly plead to return to the world to put things right. Q42:44 states:

...And you will see the wrongdoers (al-zalimin) when they behold the punishment, saying, "Is there any way to return [to the former world]?"

SUMMARY OF THE VERSE

In these verses, God summarizes the mockery of the polytheists about the Day of Judgement and their disagreement with the Prophet (s), the Muslims, and each other, about its advent. Thereafter, He warns them that it would not be long before they would come to realise the truth of it.

REFLECTIVE LEARNING

The polytheists were asking questions, not to learn the truth, but already having made up their minds about the matter.

Let me reflect on my attitude when I question matters. Is it with an open mind and with an intention of gaining clarity, or is it to seek validation for something that I have already decided about?

[mizts-magic-blog]

THE DEEP END

What lies in the depths below?

This weeks randomly selected commander is: Runo Stromkirk//Kruthoss, Lord of the Deep! A little more complex than the last commander, but he still cares about massive creatures! Instead of wurms this time around, Runo likes big sea creatures. Octopi, krakens, leviathans, and serpents all get benefits once he’s flipped! In order to flip him, you have to have a 6+ MV card at upkeep, so this deck is chock full of them, with ways to manipulate your graveyard and library, so you can have them EXACTLY where you want them when you want them there.

FULL DECKLIST

GENERAL GAMEPLAN

Compared to last week’s Baru, Runo has a few more options when it comes to winning. Traditional beatdown via massive creatures to face still works, especially with the size of these sea creatures. You can make them hard to block a number of different ways, whether its tapping opponents pieces with cards like Junk Winder, Elder Deep-Fiend, or Shipbreaker Kraken, you can try bouncing those pieces instead, utilizing Hullbreaker Horror, Brinelin the Moon Kraken or Scourge of Fleets, or even true unblockable with Archetype of Imagination, Thassa, God of the Sea and Serpent of Yawning Depths. If that fails, you can always just mill your opponents out by using Krothuss’ copy on Nemesis of Reason or Fleet Swallower. 

RAMP AND REDUCTION

The creatures in this deck are NOT cheap, and so ramp becomes an important part of getting your gameplan going. The usual artifacts can be found in the deck, splashing in the dimir ones as well. I left out some of the usual black reducers/producers, since the deck is primarily blue cards, but they wouldn’t be too difficult to slot back in in case of any unexpected (and unfound) issues. Another notable ramp piece is Kozileks Unsealing, which gives you two sacrificable mana dorks on a chunk of the deck, while drawing you a large number of cards for several others. High Tide also serves as a one turn ramp, doubling your island output for a single big trick.

DECK MANIPULATION

Since the commander flips on specific cards on the top of the library, this deck has a number of ways to manipulate it. Vesuvan Drifter acts as a nice piece, allowing you to see if you want to try and draw/mill yourself into a better topdeck, while copying creatures off of it in a pinch.  Insatiable Avarice puts exactly what you want directly on top of your library, albeit only at sorcery speed. (I would use Vampiric Tutor as well, but i'm on a budget and its almost 40 bucks for its cheapest print. I would suggest  you use it if you aren’t on a budget like me). A number of Scry/Surveil + draw cards are in here as well, in order to stack the deck in your favor, such as Strategic Planning, Preordain, Otherworldy Gaze, and Opt. Plenty of other card draw is in here, with  Stormsurge Kraken drawing you two cards on block, Military Intelligence drawing you for your attacks, and Ominous Seas giving you some serious bodies after enough card draw.

REMOVAL

With high cost cards like these, the early game can leave you quite vulnerable, especially if you have bad luck with your ramp and draws. Murder, Fell, and similar effects remove key creatures from your opponents fields, while Whelming Wave, Engulf the Shore and similar cards act as mass bounce/removal that acts in your favor. 

SELF MILL/RECURSION

In order to cast your big guys for cheaper, and also maybe thin the deck a little, this list has a minor self-mill/recursion theme. Gyruda, Doom of Depths and Extract from Darkness fill everyone's graveyard, while allowing you a choice pick from any one of them. Persist, Coiling Rebirth, and Victimize can also be used to snag a nice creature (or two) from the yard directly to the field, for various additional costs, and if you need to fill the yard faster, Hostile Negotiations, Buried Alive, and any surveil effects can be used to try and hit ideal pieces.

OTHER CARDS OF NOTE

Hullbreaker Horror, Sol Ring, and Everflowing Chalice combine for infinite mana that can be used, most notably, on the chalice itself, Pull from Tomorrow (for infinite card draw, esp if you want to go for more self mill version of the deck) or Black Sun’s Twilight (for major spot removal + recursion).  Waker of Waves serves two purposes, filling your graveyard for the incidental mill/recursion while also putting cards in your hand. Quest for Ula’s Temple lets you play a creature for FREE once per turn, once her counters are up (which shouldn't be too hard to do, really). The Key to the Vault combines well with the numerous unblockable effects to pop down a big bad for free once per turn as well. Benthic Anomaly is a nice hit, with it providing up to three (potentially) MASSIVE bodies, giving you some nice choices of your opponents creatures while giving them a power and toughness boost. Nadir Kraken, if played early enough, can provide some crucial blockers while growing itself ever larger. Wrexial, the Risen Deep is already hard to block, and casts choice instants and sorceries from your opponents graveyards when it connects.

FINAL NOTES AND CONSIDERED CARDS:

Runo Stromkirk//Kruthoss, Lord of the Deep was selected at random using a complicated method (wheel spins and random number generators. This deck is built using primarily my own knowledge of cards + my raw scryfall ability. Combining these factors with the attempted $150 budget, there are likely a number of cards not in here that should be, due to budget concerns, my own incompetence, or my failure to understand a mechanic/interaction. I ask that you give me some grace, as I learn more about magic and how to better build decks.  I’ll be honest, I’m not confident about this decks mana base. I’m not convinced i have the desired blue to black ratio, but it seems to have worked in my tests. I feel the removal/interaction could also be more plentiful, but again, the deck seems to have performed well enough. I believe that if you do need more removal, the self mill cards should be able to be pulled out to make room for them. Regardless, I like the deck. Some of the most immediate changes I would suggest for a non budget version would be probably more dual lands, especially the dimir shock and surveil lands. Thassa's Oracle would be slotted in if not for the 30 price tag. Other cards worth considering would be Roaming Throne, for extra triggers off of Runo/Krothuss, Titan of Littjara should provide lots of card draw as well. Other than that, the changes would probably just be switching out sea creatures as you deem fit.

[comingyourlugubriousness]

Mario au! Riddle shouldn't be able to be so adorbs like that omg-

Also I just loove the design in general? Like?!? Idia is just so fine-

Thanks! I'm glad you enjoy them! I had a lot of fun with Riddle! I love the idea of him being a Bomb omb! A ticking time bomb who LITERALLY BLOWS UP when he gets angry.

Riddle voice: "THEY ARE NOT LIFTS!" His crown is where the fuse is hidden and he has a winder in the back that spins when he starts getting angry. The timer on his chest is also functional! I wanted to keep elements of the Queen of Hearts design. So I kept the black white and red motif but made it look more like armor.

His scepter originally had a bomb on it but i liked the idea of it being a literal match to light his fuse when he got angry. (Also me and @bunnwich laugh at the idea that when he blows up he flies out of his boots and leaves behind a small crater.)

I wanted to make Idia look like a pretty prince but he is secretly a big bad villain in disguise (not that we don't love our villains in twst). I wanted to keep with the ghostly boo theme that King Boo has! In my au the crown he dawns is what helps focus and amplify his ghostly powers that his family is known for.

Heres some sketchy concept designs!

His boo form is really cute to me too! I was torn about with or without bangs but ultimately decided i liked the lil tuff of hair.

I had a blast imitating the paper mario style!

[diabolus1exmachina]

Renault 5 Diamond (Paris Hilton has already ordered hers!)

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Renault 5, the french marque has teamed up with designer Pierre Gonalons to create the Renault 5 Diamant - an interior design-inspired electric showcar.t was only a matter of time until the restomod wave hit the Renault 5, after all, the little hatchback is not only one of the brand’s most successful cars in history, it’s also a bonafide style icon. Now Renault and Pierre Gonalons have combined forces to create possibly the most outlandish show-car of the century, the jewel-like Renault 5 Diamant. Personal design highlights have to begin with the spec - a surprisingly effective combination of two-tone satin pink and gold, offset beautifully with some Renault 5 Alpine wheels. Every inch of the car seems to have been redesigned, including the free-floating headlights, which sit proud of the front bumper, and the gem-like taillights which continue the jewellery theme round the back of the car. nside, Gonalons really went to town, removing as much as possible while retaining only the essential elements such as the door handles, the window winders and the shift lever, which have all been redesigned in the form of spheres. Which brings us to the steering… pretzel. Constructed of fine Grand Antique d'Aubert marble on carbon, Renault claim that despite it’s unconventional shape, it’s “characterized by its great user-friendliness”. We’re assuming this doesn’t apply to any form of collision involving the car. While the design is as well-executed as some of the interior elements are experimental, above all the focus with the Renault 5 Diamant was on the materials. The seat covers were produced by the textile specialists Métaphores and the horsehair fabric over the instrument panel by Le Crin, a centuries-old company that weaves exclusively by hand. The mohair wool rug comes from Pinton, one of the last tapestry craftsmen in France, while the gilding, including the monogram on the bonnet, was carried out by the renowned Parisian Atelier Bertin-Aubert. All in all, we’re obsessed with this outlandish little showcar. It possesses the fashion-forward approach and disregard for passenger safety that defined the concept cars of the latter half of the 20th century, and we’re here for it.

[sammywolfgirl]

Hey you’ll never guess what I found!

So context: in my au the tbd has a cover as a themed train station since the time travel thing is a secret. In this station they have a gift shop.

And since the tbd (or maybe timekeeper) likes being cheeky about the whole secret time travel thing, they got plushies themed after various jobs!

And I found the list!

They’re inspired by the jelly sets and one wave is just my own making, maybe one day I’ll doodle these bears

Wave 1

Time winder jelly- gear plush

Tbd employee jelly- croissant inspired bear

Burnt tbd employee jelly- pink runner bear

Frozen tbd worker jelly- blue conductor bear

Tbd Director jelly- Timekeepr bear

Tbd employee of the year jelly- purple pilot bear (Angel cake)

Wave 2

Basic jelly- clock plush

Bear jelly- chestnut steward bear

Pink bear jelly- pink mender bear

Frozen bear jelly- blue researcher bear

Giant jelly- yellow office clerk bear (not as big as Director)

Rainbow jelly- purple tbd doctor bear

Wave 3

Basic jelly - bulb plush

Bear jelly - disposal uniform bear

Pink bear jelly - tbd lawyer bear

Frozen bear jelly - TID detective bear

Giant bear jelly - green and gold baguette bear

Rainbow jelly - purple coffee candy bear

[ghostbusterspolycule]

about

welcome to our ghostbusters sideblog!

we have seen the 1980s movies, the 2016 movie, and afterlife

favs are literally all 4 of ogs. don’t make us choose lol. egon is just our blog theme bc the meme was great

gestures to the url <3 polybusters superiority

most active headmates on this blog:

ziggy — ray introject, he/him

tex — peter introject, he/him

elric — egon introject, he/him

winder — winston introject, he/him

[poealexholloway]

Steampunk and solar ships

Here we have three examples of ships that have solar sails as a means of propulsion pairs with engines two from treasure planet and one from no man's sky. The additional ship is a steampunk styled ship from the youtube channel Dust.

To start we have the RLS legacy. The name was originally for Robert Lewis Stevenson, who wrote treasure island, but was layer changed to royal light ship for the game that acted as a sequel. The ship itself tapers towards the bowspirt quite significantly near the front of the ship, likely leading to the side profile having a very thin bow. The rigging vaguely resembles a carack as it has lanteen sails on the mizzen mast, an alternative for square sails on the others and may be able to have one on the bowsprit, like earlier ships before they were removed around the 1600s. Being a space ship it also obviously has no rudder.the sails are an interesting shape, the are semi circles and remind me of clay shells. The lines along the sails also link to the junk sails found in the east.

In the univers this is refered to as a solar sail. It is clearly the alternative to winder surfing, but with solar power, and flying with an engine. The sail shape, again, appears to take inspiration from the junk sails with spines separating the sections of sail. It also appears to have a hexagonal pattern, which I think is a common theme for sci fi lattices, I do want to know how they get to the other side of the sail though.

The last solar powered ship is the pirate frigate from no man's sky. Unlike the other two, this ship is not designed with a tall ship theme, but does still have solar sails. Here they are seen on the lower aft sections of the ship and are quite small in comparison to the sails on other ships. This likely means that the solar aspect of this ship is a secondary power source and is used to supplement more conventional fuels. This is likely due to the fact that, being pirates, fuel is harder to purchase and raiding small ships uses fuel to get and larger fuel depots are too dangerous to be worth the risk.

This is the last ship which comes from the youtube channel dust in a short film with no dialogue. The sails are terrible for sails but I do like the shape, if they were lower and smaller I think they could be a good shape for awnings. This is very steampunk themed. It has steam engines at the back which provide primary thrust and have junk styles sails at the back, likely to assist with turning. They also resemble lanteen sails in mast shape.. I think the steampunk is emphasised by the large amount of brass but I think the curves also help some how.

[ellasccdblog]

Exhibitions to visit:

The buildings notice me - Adam Art Gallery

Notes on each work:

1. The Round - John Harris & Steven Junil Park

This work is immediately entrancing from all angles, a circular curtain containing wooden half cylinder benches, and a structure comprised of a pile of led lights surrounded by a spinning metal fence, allowing light to pass through the gaps filling the whole room with rotating columns of light, connected to a wooden and plastic base, large needles scrape against the plastic producing a low mechanical sounding whirr.

2. Uku-Paka - Doreen Blumhardt & Students

A three dimensional mosaic sculpture representing a student’s journey.

3. To learn, by leaning into the wind - Megan Brady

Two adjacent staircase like wooden beams, supporting large sheets of hanging cloth with threads selectively removed to create a grid like pattern. One half of the cloth is light gray, the other is dark gray. There is a small rock placed on the end of each beam.

This work also has an additional section in another room of the gallery, in addition to a poem written by the artist.

4. Tūrangahakoa - Brook Konia

A wall sculpture comprised of twelve ascending chevrons made of wooden planks, with a zig zag gap left in the centre. The circular joinery is also visible along the centre.

5. Machine song: Gesture 2 - Jim Murphy

Fours pairs of metal rods sat above each other, slowly rising and falling at one end due to a rotating mechanism. On each pair, rests a silver ball, which rolls along the rods with the rise and fall, making a small clang when it hits the end. This piece feels like watching a tv screen saver and waiting for it to hit the corner.

6. Machine Song: Gesture 3 - Jim Murphy

A three by three grid of metal boxes, in the centre of each is a slowly rotating saw blade shaped disc, with a metal piece touching the top, striking the disc as it passes each blade, making a metallic dinging noise.

7. Architectural photographs - Duncan Winder

A series of black and white photographs displayed in six cases made of white wood and glass, each case containing photographs of a different theme/location in nz, with a photograph on the wall above each case. There is also a large photograph printed on the wall at the ends of the room, depicting an oddly shaped building and a tree with no leaves.

8. Te Whare Pora - Mataaho Collective

A large textile work stitched together from twenty black faux mink blankets into a zig zag like pattern, big enough to fill an entire room.

[fighting-these-demons]

Continued Liveblogging Ep 14 and 15

The race between Manami and Naruko is precious. 💖

AUGH THIS OP IS RANK!!!! 😫🤮

At least it's completely inaccurate. That one kid on Kyoto Fushimi is already entirely out of the race.

God I hope Narusuji isn't popular in Japan. 😞😣

Then again I guess it must have been or it wouldn't have been in an OP. Uhg.

NARUKOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!! 💖💖💖💖💖😭😭😭😭😭

WOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉

HE MADE IT BACK TO THEM!!!!!!!!

Idk how they're gonna stretch 7 km over 10 episodes but like. 🤷‍♀️

I just hope they get to cross together! 😫😭💖

PLEASE DDONT LET NARUKO DROP OUT PLEASE!!!! 😭😭😭😭😫😫😫😫

I wonder if there's gonna be some long flashback episodes or something?

The new ED is pretty great imo! Fairly inoffensive stuff! Nice song!

I winder if everyone's position in the final shot is their finishing position in the race?

Would love for Midousuji to place 6th honestly.

The OP song is great. It feels more like an ending theme than an opening theme though.

Naruko Nooooooooo!!!!!! 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

Aw! Kaburagi and Aoyagi and Doubashi!

Idk why Doubashi and Kaburagi are there though. It didn't seem like the fell?

How did they get injured?

Teshima and Aoyagi make sense but Doubashi and Kaburagi don't.

Onoda get ahold of yourself and face forward please. 😣

NARUKO NOOOOO

NARUKO NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

😫😭💔

NOT AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!!!

Why can't they let him finish the damn Inter High?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

AUGH!!!!!!!

Onoda you better get on board fast because hes about to collapse.

[interactivemediaahh]

Clay mould for plaster cast

in the first week of the course I started making a mould for a plaster cast that is themed around a Victorian feel. my brain being how it is decided that I needed all of the ideas at once resulting in none of them being filtered nicely. after very briefly going through some of those ideas It was suggested that I go with a pocket watch, which I then draw with roman numbering, which on the drawing was the wrong way round on numbers 4-8 along with some ideas to go with the design.

Due to personal issues the clay was not completed at the time. The clay I was initially given had some issues in the lines as someone else had added some to help me progress with it. unfortunately there were a few too many lines too far apart for a pocket watch. this paired with the fact that the clay was drying meant it was easier to start again, though the process for making the mould was quite quick.

A compass was used for the outer and inner line for the frame and then stamps for the roman numerals were used. all of the larger x stamps had been nicked. I was than told that without the winder so to add the winder I used a T and a C stamp to make the shape. I then used a gouge to remove the clay around the watch, a process that I had started doing in the picture. unfortunately I had forgotten take photos documenting the rest of the process so they will not be included. once I was happy with the look I had to add walls in order to pour the plaster into the mould and seal the points where the different clay sections meet so that the plaster does not leak. I then mixed the plaster by adding in the material in bits and then slowly pushing the powder into the liquid so that it becomes a solution. It was then poured into the mould and left to set. Additionally the inability to change to British spelling is irritating, resulting in mould all being flagged as incorrectly spelt. There will be an additional post of when I see the result.

[lavena]

Adding my list here because I cannot get enough of this boy, there is alot, I have a problem

Frozen peas by RoseGanymede95

Sandberg movie billy dealing with what happens in the foster system and realizing that the Vasquezs are actually good. It surprises him. (Amazing billy and Victor moments and just aughh he gets a dad perfect)

Learning to Live by ChaoticallyFluffy @chaoticallyfluffy

Where the League thinks cap is just a creation type thing and never got to live which yknow they're not wring about, but this poor homeless boy lis just a little confused

I'm Still Here by Always_tortu

2nd book, so read the 1st one, it's super short. Pretty much billy was hurt pretty bad, is now mute, loving with the batfam who don't know he's cap. Meanwhile the League finds that cap is missing, and the animals of the world, the weather, and foreign governments are all angry that the champion is missing.

The Champion of Magic and His Silver Tongue by Kinglvffy

Billy is placed in a meta fighting ring, kicks but and finds out batman is his dad. (Features uncle Constantine which batman in jelly of and auntie and uncle Rulers of the underworld)

Young Is The Age, But Old Is The Mind by That_one_demonic_entity

The usual shenanigans of deaged cap but really just billy. Need more of these stat

I didn't lie! You just assumed! By boing

Deaged shenanigans again but this time everyone thinks he is an ancient Greek. Also need more of this asap

Play Pretend by Electricdazeworld

More deaged shenanigans, quality and tawky tawney makes an appearance

Billy Bat Son by Maru101

I think you can figure it out. Really funny

Weep, Little Lion Man by Shleapord

From a tumbler prompt of billy throwing a brick at a cop car and confusing the jl

Of Gods and Bats by Splitmeadow

Amazing billy adopted by the batfam

Preteen Parenting: The Marvelous misadventures of the worlds weirdest found family by ImNotBuyingItEither (hmm winder why that names looks familiar, I'll give you 3 guesses as to why)

Billy does a good job parenting the technically baby, teenage superboy

Lightning In A Bottle by WingsOfTheDamned

Cannot stress enough how good the oneshots are like, you have to read all of them and then follow their next book of the same type and make sure you have notifs on cause I swear when I get the emails that they update I will drop everything, including but not limited to sleep, math exams, people talking to me, and probably an emergency should one arise, just to read everything they post.

5 Times The Justice League Met Members Of The Shazamily (And The One Time They Realised Why They Hadn't Been Introduced) by Amanita_Cynth

Shazamily meets jl need I say more

Marvelous Traditions by Oka_Hills1232

Holiday themed eldritch horror and elsewise cap. Love it ×100000

we have nothing to fear except ourselves by suzukiblu @suzukiblu

The one in which cap doesn't understand why superman can't take superboy, and once given the means to, he adopts the boy himself. And he is doing so good. ( this is the first book, that's just him deciding to do it the others have more story so read the whole series)

Billy Batson: The Patron Saint of Child Heros by Billy_and_Friends

The highest of quality billy looking out of the other kids emotionally. Amazing have reread so many times, including last night

Billy Batson is Tiny by Billy_and_Friends

The rest of their fics with billy in them

In which Billy Adopt a Clone by Achilliesikea123

If superboy had been rescued sooner. Featuring billy singing a lullaby and being the only rational being in the jl

A Marvelous Hero by Reyra98

An absolutely amazing must read istg

I told you I have a problem, we aren't even halfway done with my bookmark list. I'll be back to edit this more as I have more time.

I have to go do math :(( I hate calc

hi hi very politely requesting Billy Batson fic recs

Well I can’t not instantly answer that question in saying Wolfsbanesparks and Starkvenger have a lot of my go to and favorite fics for the little guy, just off the top of my head.

“Man’s best friend” is a Starkvenger fic I really liked, among the many others they have.

Kenandelzia has some hilarious fics based off the art they make.

“PowerPoints, property damage, and child soldiers …among other things” makes me laugh

“A total cat-astrophe” by Fluffypanda

“Stripes” by CheeseSnack is a sweet fic

“The Fawcett Underground” by blue_bees is a really sweet fic with Billy and Plastic man, which is a friendship I find myself really liking especially with the homeless Billy fics

“No one is going to believe you” by Oka_Hills1232 is a funny identity reveal fic

“A day in the life of Batman” by TaxiCabToSlowtown is the one shot that inadvertently inspired Bat-Swap for me, and ironically Bruce and Billy aren’t the ones body swapped

“Charred” by AzuraJae also an inspiration and angsty

Not exactly Billy but I’d be remiss if I didn’t recommend “Marvelous assumptions” by Jedi_Olympian. I really liked it and think it’s cute

“I am not a prince” by Oka_Hills1232 is delicious and I cannot get enough of it. Black Adam steps up and does the “is no one going to take care of this small child?” And didn’t wait for the answer

“Conspiracies, friendships, and superheroes—oh my!” Is funny

“Statute of limitations” by Oka_Hills1232 is another funny reveal fic

I’ve got others, I don’t keep track well and just use my browsers “add to reading list” to save and store fics

[time-of-objects]

Dear Internet and How to... Lean Too performed at Hair Antics Micro-cinema

I preformed Dear Internet for the first time in Canberra early in 2023 at Hair Antics micro-cinema. It seems a little ironic to write this up for consumption of the internet but in a commitment to writing up my practice for Time of Objects. I place it here.

Affordance of development

 Early development of the work began with paying attention to my fatigue in living a digital life. This feeling bubbled up in bits of scribbled writing on paper, in my personal smart phone notes and in typed word documents. Some of the writing I remembered doing could not be found.  Collating this in a single document and trying to visualise what it might be, the idea got complicated. After seeing the Teaching and Learning Cinema perform the Mc Grice work at Hair Antics I became convinced the work needed to be simplified. Simplification came when I took the idea from theory to practice and started piecing it together with 16mm materials and the apparatus which was not only central to the theme but necessary as a design feature to help create and mould the work. It was the affordance of making it real that helped me make something concrete at all.

I attempted to document the process by filming it sometimes with a head worn action camera or with a digital camera rolling on a tripod. This I new made me more self conscious but perhaps also made me pay attention to the performance side of what was to become Dear Internet. It made me conscious of the body interacting with the apparatus and how I might put this on show and into the audiences mind when they watch it.

The affordance of working with the 16mm apparatus showed its hand when my minds eyes moved from page to the physical materials and objects. The materials allowed for creative decisions to be made because they provided boundaries to be traversed or avoided in the physical world. I also consciously took a stance of openness and attention to allow thoughts and responses to occur. Instead of focusing on a finished product my approach was to see what would happen by doing. 

The process roughly took shape by:

1. Writing, reflecting and re-writing

2. Recording and editing the soundtrack digitally. I often check my grammar by using speech to text. When I heard the computer reading the text I decided this was better than my voice which I initially thought I would use.

3. Organising and breaking down the footage on the winding bench in searching and assessing mode

4. Assembling 16mm found footage and original shot material on the Steenbeck while playing it against the edited sound track. Experimenting with different speeds and direction.

5. Testing screen sizes and different screen material to project onto

6. Gathering objects at home to construct a portable winding platform with a screen that would feature as a kind of performance object.

Significant parts of the performance came from mistakes and failures which then become features and positive agents of affordance. For example I shot the opening title sequence upside down by mistake. This then led me to considering back projection, keeping this title reel separate, hanging it to were the audience could see it, and using the winders in both directions. All things that became significant features of the performance.

Before the show

Driving down to Canberra on a 30 degree day with cumbersome gear I really wondered if it was at all worth the expense and time. I was nervous not knowing if it would connect with an audience. I wondered if the combination of ideas I put together might have no meaning for other people or that I have muddied the water too much. 

My judgment of the work was that is was a ‘work-in-progress’. That it was not complete. I expected that the work might change after the screening. That learning from this first performance would reduce or expand it. That technical problems might need to be incorporated or adapted. The three risks I saw where:

1. The globe might fail I had no back up as the projector viewer is not a common device.

2. The image be too dim for an audience to see. 

3. My performance nerves might reduce my ability to adapt or fix the shutter effect that can turn the image into a blur and make it not easy to see.

I have heard Richard Touhy speak of priming an audience for expanded works. That how the audience enter the performance space is part of this priming. I thought a short introduction for the work would also help it to land. I planned to tell the audience Dear Internet is about digital fatigue of our times, beyond a frustration of password management, it is about how the materials we live with change our perception to our environment and change our behaviour and attitudes. It is a critic of technology that explores process through action. How what we do with our bodies changes our we are in our environment. I also wanted to incorporate that early projectionist hand wound the projector and that this art form changed with the automation of projection that came with sync sound.

An article (see below) about ChatGPT days before I screened Dear Internet made me feel I was expressing an ever growing concern for where technology was heading and the need to keep it in check. A reminder to be attuned to how technology corals our experience and how we are in the world. I made a note that GPT stands for Generative Pre-trained Transformer. What a strange name and something for future exploration. 

Setting up

The three of us, Louise Curham. Carolyn Huf and I arranged to meet for half an hour or so the night before to be in the space and work out, where things where to go and in what order. I was a lot to do in a short time. I was fascinated that Lou hadn’t quite settled on what she would show. She seemingly comfortable, on the forward edge of creating to performing. I wanted to be as prepared as possible. I tested the strength of the globe on the winder for Dear Internet. I tested my projector and lens on which I would screen a contract work print I had made of How to…Lean Too. My short throw lens produced a bigger picture than fitted on the wall. I decided I would change lens during the film as an extension of preforming projection. 

To borrow the Arthur Cantril term, Event Packages takes into account equally the event and the package. The event is a time based thing, that occurs with a kind of underling of a moment. Package, suggest themes but also the environment. How will people be welcomed, what does the space suggest? The three of us decided to select our own material with little consultation. Interesting links can emerge on their own. In deciding what work to show I settled on How To… Lean too to accompany Dear Internet not because they are similar in theme but because they have a similar approach. They both have a soundtrack with text that holds the shape of the overall effect. The text is a collage of material on the same subject. Their is a subtle shape to the structure of the text which creates a beginning, middle and end. Another approach to curation is I could have shown work such as Window which has no text to create a contrast. 

Performing Dear Internet and How to… Lean too.

While performing the piece I felt the quite attention of the audience. It was special to share this moment with the room of 20 or more people. It felt worth it. I also felt a wave of emotion, something like grief, that underpinned making the work for me. A loss of connection to nature and our environment. A loss of choice in how one interacts with the world through the things we live our daily life with. Film making for me is a cathartic experience and I felt lucky to share that with a room of people that must bring so many different perspectives and stories to what they where observing. 

Changing lens and speed during the projection of How to… Lean Too didn’t quite go to plan. The contact print I have made is quite dark in places, also when I changed speeds the brightness noticeably changed which impacted the readability of the image. I may have over complicated the screening of it but trying speed changes and lens changes. It was an experiment in context and performance. Perviously I have showed the work on a loop in a gallery setting wear audience members wear headphone and watch it on a small monitor. An intimate context. With the micro-cinema experience, it was to be shown larger than life and in a group setting. My partner who had seen it on a small screen before suggested that she missed the intimacy of the smaller screen. I want to make a better print of it and try it again.

Reflections after the event

Louise Curham and I discussed the event the next day. Of Dear Internet and How to …Lean Too she commented that both pieces have strong sound track but that I might get them mixed so the volumes and equalisation is better. A technical note I would like to improve. She also said that she was interested in it as the work said something. It appeared to present a position. To have an opinion. In contrast she said many experimental works from the history of the canon appear mute or seem reluctant to take a position. When comparing structure films against narrative films they can appear mute however there is a reflexiveness quality to structural films that in focusing on the  material qualities of film. My approach of structural or formal design when incorporating the apparatus is to explore how things work. To bring the audience in to the process so they can be aware of all these things at play. It is like the rabbit and the duck image. I am attempting to have them see both at the same time. To look through the material and have its magic work on you and to step out of it and look at it from an discerning and critical point of view which questions the magic too. It is in engaging with story this way that spectators bring themselves to the work. It is the unknown part of what I am doing and the part that makes me feel most uncertain. This to me feels like the dangerous part when I attempt to see how far I can take an idea before it falls over. 

We also discussed our mistake in not doing an acknowledgment of country. This was a big learning and a failure in rushing the set up and not discussing how we would introduce the show. Louise did the introduction. I was politely waiting to a moment to speak. In retrospect I should have politely interrupted.  The good side of this mistake is we entered into a broader discussion about working with Indigenous people. Indigenous poet she recently interview suggested these goal posts:

1. Remember the history 

2. Starts with one

3. Be consistent 

4. Make it visible

5. Show people are welcome

6. Hold an event that is specific

I think the words ‘be consistent’ is really helpful here. Some of my thoughts about not interrupting Louise are really excuses for not being consistent. Being consistent will now be my guide because it helps navigate, nerves and uncertainty. 

References:

[katelyndennis]

it’s all about perception⭐️⭐️ . . . . . #bloggerstyle #aesthetic #lifestyleblogger #fashionblogger #blogger #theme #lifestyle #fashion #atl #ga #atlanta #winter #winder (at Winder, Georgia) https://www.instagram.com/p/BsBMz5zh-z_/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1glwoiu8bzj09

[sometipsygnostalgic]

This might sound odd but I wish we had more fics of Entrapta getting mad. Like actually angry at someone

My favourite one of these is one where she went off at Perfuma. It was some sort of christmas themed fic where the characters all get snowed in at Brightmoon and they had to go solve some puzzles to stop the winder apocalypse or whatever it was.

These two were paired together and Perfuma asked Entrapta what she'd been doing, and Entrapta said that she and Hordak had got a hospital running, and Perfuma said "im glad youre doing good" and entrapta said "well yeah im perfectly healthy" and Perfuma said "no, i mean im glad youre doing Morally Good Things"

at which entrapta went "oh", got back to work, then a minute later said "why do you talk to me like that"

and proceeded to vent, not loudly or shoutily, but like a steady stream, of how patronising perfuma was and how she kept making these moral judgements of entrapta or talking to her like a child when she'd never actually understood what drove her to the Horde to begin with

and then they both calmed down and "started over". "hi im perfuma and sometimes i judge people before i know them". "hi im entrapta and sometimes i have really bad timing". 

what i liked about that one is, well, i always see perfuma as a character with a capacity for learning better. she's certainly TRYING to be a good friend but i dont think she knows how, she has an idea of what you have to be, but it's not in her nature, her nature is to be angry and judgemental and she is constantly fighting it to have this timid love be with thou presentation. i think that gives her a lot in common with catra of all people, at the end.  so i think if entrapta explained to her how she felt alienated by her, perfuma would understand immediately that she fucked up, and they could sort out that relationship.