#being jewish is crazy cause my brain will really just | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

drwilfredwaterson · 6 months

Text

This is a Story of Perpetual Slavery, Fighting For Freedom, Endings, Rebirth, the Eternal Cycle(s) of Perpetual Change, Being Devalued, and Being Redeemed…

Taylor Swift - Eras Tour - SoFi 8/8/2023: “What do I say to you after that?” Swift said in response to the applause, as captured in videos from the night. “That was so deeply abnormal and beautiful. I don’t know what to do or say.” “I think it’s safe to say that I, like all people, will experience a certain amount of emotional downward spirals throughout the course of the rest of my life and in those moments, you can rest assured I’m gonna think about what you just did,” she continued, getting slightly emotional. “And I’m gonna feel better. So thank you. That was insane. It was crazy.” “I’m going to spend several decades trying to figure out words for how that just made me feel,” Swift added after the night five standing “O.” “I’m trying to get it together. I’ve completely lost control over my brain, and that’s your fault. I’m just gonna float through the rest of the show, so thanks for that.” https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/taylor-swift-standing-ovation-eras-tour-show-reaction-1235388168/

In some Christian numerology, the number 888 represents Jesus, or sometimes more specifically Christ the Redeemer. (Wikipedia)

Taylor Swift - "seven" Please picture me In the trees I hit my peak at seven feet In the swing Over the creek I was too scared to jump in But I, I was high in the sky With Pennsylvania under me Are there still beautiful things? Sweet tea in the summer Cross your heart, won't tell no other And though I can't recall your face I still got love for you

Earth's Sun: I C 7 https://suntoday.lmsal.com/sdomedia/SunInTime/2023/08/08/l0193.jpg

Taylor Swift Era's Tour (Los Angeles, CA, 8-9-23) 1989 Announcement & "New Romantics"

August 9, 2023 (221st day) Duration: 7:33 (453 seconds) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gd71N_ONpcU Gd71N_ONpcU (71) GdN_ONpcU cdgnnopu 3+4+7+40+40+50+60+200=404. 404+71=475. 475+453=928. 928+221=1149.

Strong's Concordance #1149 benas: to be enraged, to be angry, indignant, A miracle. Original Word: בְּנַס

Earth's Sun: 7 https://suntoday.lmsal.com/sdomedia/SunInTime/2023/08/09/l0193.jpg

TANAKH (Jewish Publication Society, Hebrew-English) Page 914: Isaiah 30:26 And the light of the moon shall become like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall become sevenfold, like the light of the seven days, when the Lord binds up His people's wounds and heals the injuries it has suffered.

Taylor Swift - Sweet Tea and God’s Graces (from her 2004/2005 demo CD) Tire swings, summer dreams, honeysuckle on the breeze Wilson County creek Laying in the green grass, I was watching clouds pass Baby, you were watching me Cold barns, truck beds, everything you said Slowly educating me I never had a lesson so sweet You can get high on a first kiss You can get by with sweet tea and God's graces You can love like a sinner and lose like a winner Nothing's shatterproof You can crash and burn and come back someone new And that's what I learned from you Autumn rain, window pane, looking how the leaves change Just like the two of us Still got your laugh, your ghost, your jacket Guess I loved you way too much But I'm a little smarter, my heart's a little harder But it's still soft enough to cry Cause I remember those times I remember Saw you just the other day All that I could think to say was "Hey, how have you been?" You caught me with that old smile Said, "It's really been a while And I still think about back when" We used to get high on the first kiss We could get by with sweet tea and Jesus And you can love like a sinner and lose like a winner Nothing's shatterproof You can crash and burn and now I'm someone new And that's what I learned from you

Blood Moon: November 7-8, 2022. Monday, 7 November 2022 = 13th of Cheshvan, 5783 Parashat Vayera י״ג בְּחֶשְׁוָן תשפ״ג Parashat Vayera is the 4th weekly Torah portion in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading. Torah Portion: Genesis 18:1-22:24 Vayera (“He Appeared”) opens as guests inform Abraham that Sarah will give birth. Despite Abraham’s attempts to convince God otherwise, God destroys the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Sarah gives birth to Isaac, and Abraham sends away Hagar and Ishmael. At God’s command, Abraham prepares to sacrifice Isaac, but an angel of God tells Abraham to offer a ram instead.

Bleachers - Chinatown (Official Video) ft. Bruce Springsteen

youtube

Published: November 16, 2020 (321st day) Duration: 4:42 (282 seconds) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4uA85iWsIg E4uA85iWsIg (4, 85) EuAiWsIg aegiisuw 1+5+7+9+9+90+200+900=1221. 1221+4+85=1310. 1310+282=1592. 1592+321=1913.

Strong's Concordance #1913 Hadoram: a son of Joktan and his descendents, also son of the king of Hamath, perhaps also an official of Rehoboam, a bedroom, dorm, dormitory Original Word: הֲדוֹרָם

"Black tears on your cheek I want them in my bed I'll take you out of the city Honey, right into the shadow Because I wanna find tomorrow Yeah, I wanna find tomorrow Crying out the crazy I'll take you out of the city Honey, right into the shadow Because I wanna find tomorrow Yeah, I wanna find tomorrow with you, baby Gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme that big red light And take the sadness out of Saturday night 'Cause that's just good to have what was missing We don't have to break every dream we've ever known"

TANAKH (Jewish Publication Society, Hebrew-English) Page 1519: Psalm 85:4 You will withdraw all Your anger, turn away from Your rage.

Taylor Swift Eras Tour Concert Experience Movie Premiere: October 13, 2023.

Magdala (Aramaic: מגדלא, romanized: Magdalā, meaning "tower"; Hebrew: מגדל, romanized: Migdál; Arabic: المجدل, romanized: al-Majdal) was an ancient Jewish city on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, 5 km (3 miles) north of Tiberias. In the Babylonian Talmud it is known as Magdala Nunayya (Aramaic: מגדלא נוניה, meaning "Tower of the Fishes"), and which some historical geographers think may refer to Tarichaea, literally the place of processing fish. It is believed to be the birthplace of Mary Magdalene. (Wikipedia)

Eugene Fitzherbert (better known as Flynn Rider) is the deuteragonist of Disney's 2010 animated feature film Tangled. A swashbuckler known for his charm and quick-wit, Flynn made a name for himself as a notorious thief. In a turn of events following years of travel and plunder, however, he experienced a change of heart upon falling in love with Rapunzel, the lost princess of Corona. Eugene Fitzherbert was born to King Edmund and his wife as Horace. During Eugene's infancy, the kingdom was corrupted by a powerful opal that threatened to destroy the land. King Edmund ordered for a kingdom-wide evacuation to protect his subjects from the opal's destructive power—including Eugene, who was escorted out of the kingdom by a servant woman and later placed in an orphanage. Eugene never knew the truth of his lineage. He grew up believing that his parents were fearless adventurers traveling the world to make names for themselves. Eugene remained hopeful that once they did, they would return to the orphanage and take him back. In the meantime, Eugene spent all his days with his fellow orphans. (Fandom.com)

Seventh-day Sabbath "Ring of Fire" Solar Eclipse: October 14, 2023 In the U.S., the annular solar eclipse began in Eugene, Oregon at 9:13 a.m. PDT/12:13 p.m. EDT and ended in Texas at 12:03 p.m. CDT. (NASA.gov) Shabbat, October 14, 2023 29 Tishrei, 5784 Parashat Bereshit / פָּרָשַׁת בְּרֵאשִׁית Parashat Bereshit is the 1st weekly Torah portion in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading. Next read on 14 October 2023 / 29 Tishrei 5784. Torah Portion: Genesis 1:1-6:8 Bereishit (“In the Beginning”), the first parashah in the annual Torah reading cycle, begins with God’s creation of the world. The first people, Adam and Eve, eat from the Tree of Knowledge and are banished from the Garden of Eden. Their elder son, Cain, kills their younger son, Abel, and Cain is destined to a life of wandering. (HebCal.com)

Passover Sabbath: Baptism of Blood, Sabbath Ring of Fire Luke 12:49 “I have come to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! Luke 12:50 But I have a baptism to undergo, and what constraint I am under until it is completed! Luke 12:51 Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division.

TANAKH (Jewish Publication Society, Hebrew-English) Page 1796: Esther 7:7 The king, in his fury, left the wine feast for the palace garden, while Haman remained to plead with Queen Esther for his life; for he saw that the king had resolved to destroy him. Esther 7:8 When the king returned fromn the palace garden to the banquet room, Haman was lying prostrate on the couch on which Esther reclined. "Does he mean," cried the king, "to ravish the queen in my own palace?" No sooner did these words leave the king's lips than Haman's face was covered.

Acts 7:7 But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves,’ God said, ‘and afterward they will come out of that country and worship me in this place.’

Taylor Swift Arm Lyrics - Speak Now World Tour: Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri - August 13, 2011: “I got a good heart, I just can’t catch a break.” – Ryan Adams, Two.

Taylor Swift Arm Lyrics - Speak Now World Tour: Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky - October 29, 2011: “Cause happiness throws a shower of sparks” – The Fray, Happiness.

Earthquake: 10:29:28 Jerusalem, Israel, 2023-10-27 23:29:28 AKDT Local Time (approximately 22 minutes, 28 (7x4) seconds (1348 seconds) after the "Music Therapy 1989 TV post" at 07:07:00 UTC)

Strong's Concordance #22 Abiel: From 'ab and 'el; father (i.e. Possessor) of God; "El/the God of Israel is my Father," an Israelite name Original Word: אֲבִיאֵל

48= (8+8+8) + (8+8+8)

1989: Album #5: 5/5/2022… Taylor Swift - This Love (Taylor's Version)

youtube

Published: May 5, 2022 (125th day) Duration: 4:08 (248 seconds) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvxQYPR4lmU mvxQYPR4lmU (4) mvxQYPRlmU lmmpqruvxy 20+30+30+60+70+80+200+700+300+400=1890. 1890+4=1894. 1894+248=2142. 2142+125=2267.

Strong's Concordance #2267 cheber: From chabar; friend, a society; company, organization, association, wide, charmer, charming, enchantment, spell. Original Word: חֶבֶר

Taylor Swift - Frederick, Maryland - Summers Farm

Luke 17:26 “Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man. Luke 17:27 People were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all. Luke 17:30 “It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed. Luke 17:33 Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life will preserve it. Luke 17:36 Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.

John 5:20For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does. Yes, and he will show him even greater works than these, so that you will be amazed.

The search for a fisherman lost at sea was called off. 2 days later, he was found alive and adrift in a life raft after spending 13 days at sea. Erin Snodgrass Fri, October 27, 2023 at 5:20 PM PDT/17:20 PDT One of two fishermen that went missing in mid-October was found alive and drifting in a life vessel off the coast of Washington on Thursday — two days after the Coast Guard suspended its search. Two men traveling on the 43-foot vessel left Westport in Grays Harbor County on October 12, according to local outlet King 5 News. The fishing boat and its two inhabitants were supposed to return three days later on October 15 but never did, the Coast Guard said in an update earlier this week. Ten days after the boat was supposed to return to shore, the Coast Guard announced it was calling off its search for the missing vessel, saying its crews searched over 14,000 square miles for more than eight hours. "Our sincerest condolences go out to the family of the missing people during this difficult time," the agency tweeted earlier this week. But on Thursday, October 26th, a group of "good Samaritans" spotted one of the missing men adrift in a life raft about 70 miles from Cape Flattery in the northwest corner of Washington, according to a Coast Guard update. "I saw what looked like a life raft in the distance and ran inside and put the binoculars on him and then he shot off a flare," Ryan Planes, one of the rescuers, told King 5. "We pulled him on board. He gave me a big hug and it was emotional," Planes' uncle, John, told the outlet. The rescuers said the missing fisherman told them he had been alone on the raft for 13 days and eventually ran out of food and water. He was able to survive, he told the men, by catching a salmon to eat. "We made him breakfast. He drank three bottles of water. He was pretty hungry, poor guy," John told King 5. https://news.yahoo.com/search-fisherman-lost-sea-called-002024067.html

Area code 202 is assigned for use in Washington, DC.

Strong's Concordance #202 on: in the sense of effort, but successful; ability, power, (figuratively) wealth -- force, goods, might, vigor, strength, substance, potency. Original Word: אוֹן

Strong's Concordance #40 Abimelek: From 'ab and melek; Father of (the) king; "My Father is King," a Philistine name, also an Israelite name Original Word: אֲבִימֶלֶךְ

Strong's Concordance #67 Abel Mitsrayim: From 'abel and Mitsrayim; meadow of Egypt; a place East of the Jordan Original Word: אָבֵל מִצְרַיִם

And my Father is a pain to the Egyptians: אוֹ ןאֲ בִי מֶ לֶ ךְאָבֵ למִ צְרַיִם

TANAKH (Jewish Publication Society, Hebrew-English) Page 1927: 1 Chronicles 17:20 O Lord, there is none like You, and there is no other God but You, as we have always heard.

Luke 17:20 Once, on being asked by the Pharisees when the Kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The coming of the Kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, Luke 17:21 nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the Kingdom of God is in your midst.”

Matthew 17:20 He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

“People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.” ― A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh

TANAKH (Jewish Publication Society, Hebrew-English) Page 134: Exodus 10:28 Pharaoh said to him, "Be gone from me! Take care not to see me again, for the moment you look upon my face you shall die." Exodus 10:29 And Moses replied, "You have spoken rightly. I shall not see your face again!"

John 10:29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand.

TANAKH (Jewish Publication Society, Hebrew-English) Page 1069: Jeremiah 23:29 Behold, My word is like fire--declares the Lord--and like a hammer that shatters rock! Jeremiah 23:30 Assuredly, I am going to deal with the prophets--declares the Lord--who steal My words from one another. Jeremiah 23:31 I am going to deal with the prophets--declares the Lord--who wag their tongues and make oracular utterances.

TANAKH (Jewish Publication Society, Hebrew-English) Page 1639: Proverbs 23:29 Who cries, "Woe!" who, "Alas!"; Who has quarrels, who complaints; Who has wounds without cause; Who has bleary eyes?

Taylor Swift - Bad Blood (Taylor's Version) (Lyric Video)

youtube

Published: October 27, 2023 (300th day) Duration: 3:37 (217 seconds) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lUvBk4owRNU lUvBk4owRNU (4) lUvBkowRNU bklnoruuvw 2+10+20+40+50+80+200+200+700+900=2202. 2202+4=2206. 2206+217=2423. 2423+300=2723.

Strong's Concordance #2723 chorbah: ruin, drought, i.e. (by implication) a desolation -- decayed place, desolate (place, -tion), destruction, (laid) waste (place). Original Word: חָרְבָּה

Taylor Swift - Shake It Off (Taylor's Version) (Lyric Video)

youtube

Published: October 27, 2023 (300th day) Duration: 3:45 (225 seconds) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvVBuG4IOW4 mvVBuG4IOW4 (4, 4) mvVBuGIOW bgimouvvw 2+7+9+30+50+200+700+700+900=2598. 2598+4+4=2606. 2606+225=2831. 2831+300=3131.

Strong's Concordance #3131 Yosiphyah: "Yah/Jah/the God of Israel adds/is adding," an Israelite, Josephia Original Word: יוֹסִפְיָה

It was definitely a little too close... Taylor Swift accidentally swallowed a bug during her Eras Tour concert performance in Chicago on June 4th, 2023:

“Is there any chance that none of you saw that?”

It is unknown if Bug Swift got his name from eating bugs all day, or she thought he was just "cute as a bug" when he was a little puppy. Bug Swift appears in Taylor's "Hey Stephen" (Taylor's Version) lyric video. (Taylor Swift Wiki)

The Matrix: Resurrections (2021) While Keanu Reeves plays Neo for the majority of The Matrix Resurrections, the other actor who plays Neo is Steven Roy. In real life, Roy is the husband of Carrie-Anne Moss, who has played Trinity in all of The Matrix films. The couple married in 1999 and have three children together. Bugs is an ally of Neo. Bugs is a secondary protagonist and a "true believer" in the legend of Neo: she commands a rag-tag group of human Resistance members who never stopped believing he was still alive somewhere, even after everyone else gave up hope years ago. Other members of her crew include Lexy and Berg, and their Operator Sequoia. Bugs is the captain of the hovership Mnemosyne. Bugs was born in the Matrix, a self-described "Coppertop" unaware she was living in a simulation. She worked as a window-cleaner on sky-rise buildings. Some years ago, "Thomas Anderson" had a mental breakdown at a rooftop party to celebrate the release of his new (Matrix-inspired) video game - in truth, he was getting flashes of his old memories back. Falling into a haze of half-remembered details of his life, Thomas/Neo tried to walk off the roof of the building. Because none of the party guests could react in time to stop him, the Machines had no choice but to "freeze" the simulation, leaving him impossibly hanging in mid-air. All of the party-guests' memories were then altered to believe that he'd been rescued at the last second - but the Machines neglected to wipe the memory of the window-washer who happened to see the event from several floors below. Bugs saw Neo hovering in mid-air, and even saw his RSI slip back into its original form for a brief moment, and this led her to question the nature of her reality, ultimately setting her on a path to encounter members of the human resistance who eventually freed her from the Matrix, particularly Niobe. Even though most people in the real world thought Neo died years ago, Bugs' brief glimpse of Neo convinced her that the Machines were hiding him somewhere in the Matrix, driving her to assemble a like-minded crew determined to find him. (The Matrix Wiki)

TANAKH (Jewish Publication Society, Hebrew-English) Page 2005: 2 Chronicles 29:28 All the congregation prostrated themselves, the song was sung and the trumpets were blown--all this until the end of the burnt offering.

That's How You Get Taylor Swift's 1989 Album on October 27th…

youtube

Published: July 5, 2015 (186th day) Duration: 0:33 (33 seconds) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uT3F8_ioamo uT3F8_ioamo uTF_ioamo afimootu 1+6+9+30+50+50+100+200=446. 446+3+8=457. 457+33=490. 490+186=676.

33 AD: The love, salvation, and redemption of Jesus Christ's Passover sacrifice and resurrection.

Strong's Concordance #676 etsba: a finger Original Word: אֶצְבַּע

TANAKH (Jewish Publication Society, Hebrew-English) Page 1419: Psalm 8:1 For the leader; on the gittith. A psalm of David. Psalm 8:2 O Lord, our Lord, How majestic is Your name throughout the earth, You who have covered the heavens with Your splendor! Psalm 8:3 From the mouths of infants and sucklings You have founded strength on account of Your foes, to put an end to enemy and avenger. Psalm 8:4 When I behold Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and stars that You set in place, Psalm 8:5 what is man that You have been mindful of him, mortal man that You have taken note of him, Psalm 8:6 that You have made him little less than divine, and adorned him with glory and majesty; Psalm 8:7 You have made himn master over Your handiwork, laying the world at his feet, Psalm 8:8 sheep and oxen, all of them, and wild beasts, too: Psalm 8:9 the birds of the heavens, the fish of the sea, whatever travels the paths of the seas.

Taylor Swift - 1989 Secret Sessions, Behind The Scenes!

youtube

Published: October 16, 2014 (289th day) Duration: 4:34 (274 seconds) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKnl7STzSMU EKnl7STzSMU (7) EKnlSTzSMU eklmnsstuz 5+10+20+30+40+90+90+100+200+500=1085. 1085+7=1092. 1092+274=1366. 1366+289=1655.

Strong's Concordance #1655 geshem: the body, the idea of a hard rain Original Word: גֶּשֶׁם

Luke 22:25 Jesus said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors. Luke 22:26 But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves. Luke 22:27 For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves. Luke 22:28 You are those who have stood by me in my trials.

Strong's Concordance #2228 Zerachyah: From zerach and Yahh; "Yah/Jah/the God of Israel has risen/come forth/shined (as the sun)," two Israelites Original Word: זְרַחְיָה

Strong's Concordance #1348 geuth: excellent things, lifting up, majesty, pride, proudly, raging. Original Word: גֵּאוּת

Hebrews 10:19 Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, Hebrews 10:20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, Hebrews 10:21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, Hebrews 10:22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Hebrews 10:23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. Hebrews 10:24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, Hebrews 10:25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching. Hebrews 10:26 If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, Hebrews 10:27 but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.

The Avengers (2012): Bruce Banner Channels Swifties and Taylor Swift's "Owned by Taylor Swift Versions" "Devaluing" Scott Borchetta's "Taylor's NOT My Boss/My Hustled Taylor's Music Still Has Value Versions"

youtube

May 4, 2012 (May the Fourth Be With You) (125th day) Duration: 1:17 (77 seconds) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OSbc1vn6O6I OSbc1vn6O6I (1, 6, 6) OSbcvnOI bcinoosv 2+3+9+40+50+50+90+700=944. 944+1+6+6=957. 957+77=1034. 1034+125=1159.

Strong's Concordance #1159 bau: a petition, a request, came, arrived, entered, reached Original Word: בָּעוּ

1 Samuel 6:6 Why do you harden your hearts as the Egyptians and Pharaoh did? When Israel’s god dealt harshly with them, did they not send the Israelites out so they could go on their way?

The earliest uses of the phrase “May the 4th Be With You” that we have evidence for date from 1978, one year after the release of Star Wars: A New Hope. By then, Star Wars was firmly established within American popular culture and became “like a handshake,” as Professor Leo Braudy would later comment in the documentary, Empire of Dreams. That summer of ’78, clever newspaper writers used the phrase as a gimmick to mark Independence Day celebrations on the Fourth of July. “May the Force be with you,” as heard in A New Hope, had been appearing on licensed (and unlicensed) buttons, posters, and various items for months, enough to convince those writers that the joke would be well-received by their readers. In 2011, Lucasfilm began to take a more active role in the unofficial holiday, helping sponsor and promote events and sharing resources for free use. We started to see “May the 4th Be With You” on local television news, at the grocery store, coffee house, bookstore, or sports game. Each time the holiday came back around, it felt like Star Wars was re-emerging in the mainstream, perhaps not unlike how it had become that “handshake” back in the late 1970s. Lucasfilm’s acquisition in 2012 and the subsequent announcement of new films going into production came like lightning from a clear sky for a lot of us fans. Star Wars was center stage again, and everywhere we saw T-shirts and bumper stickers and advertisements. The new films, series, books, comics, and games have done a great deal in fueling this surge of relevancy, but I can’t help but feel that the grassroots rise of Star Wars Day indicated that it was going to happen in some form anyway. The timeless appeal of Star Wars matched with the passion of its fans is a guarantee. https://www.starwars.com/news/may-the-4th-be-with-you-cultural-history

Earthquake: M 2.1 - 54.2 km (33.7 mi) SSW of Covenant Life, Alaska

2023-10-28 07:29:28 (UTC) 58.960°N 136.359°W 0.0 km depth

On Plateau Glacier by Bruce Hills, near Minnesota Ridge, between Sentinel Peak and Red Mountain.

58.960°N

Strong's Concordance #58 abel: "meadow," part of a place name, but Original Word: אָבֵל

Strong's Concordance #960 bazoh or bezoh: scorned, to despise, plunder Original Word: בָּזֹה

This is the Father of the heart: אָבֵ לבָּ זֹ ה

136.359°W

Strong's Concordance #136 Adonay: the Lord (used as a proper name of God only) -- (my) Lord, sir. Original Word: אֲדֹנָי

Strong's Concordance #359 Eloth: "grove of lofty trees," trees or a grove (i.e. Palms); Eloth or Elath, a place on the Red Sea -- Elath, Eloth, Eilot. Original Word: אֵילוֹת

Lord G-d: אֲדֹנָ יאֵ ילוֹ ת

The Father of this heart is the Lord G-d: אָבֵ לבָּ זֹ ה אֲדֹנָ י אֵי ל וֹ ת

Taylor Swift - "Slut!" (Taylor's Version) (From The Vault) (Lyric Video)

youtube

Published: October 27, 2023 (300th day) Duration: 3:06 (186 seconds) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qrxsceexTBw qrxsceexTBw qrxsceexTBw bceeqrstwxx 2+3+5+5+70+80+90+100+900+300+300=1855. 1855+186=2041. 2041+300=2341.

Strong's Concordance #2341 Chavilah: from chuwl; circular; Chavilah, the name of two or three eastern regions; also perhaps of two men -- Havilah, a son of Cush, also a son of Joktan; sick Original Word: חֲוִילָה

Taylor Swift - Say Don't Go (Taylor's Version) (From The Vault) (Lyric Video)

youtube

Published: October 27, 2023 (300th day) Duration: 4:46 (286 seconds) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-z-IckrQK8 C-z-IckrQK8 (8) C-z-IckrQK ccikkqrz 3+3+9+10+10+70+80+500=685. 685+8=693. 693+286=979. 979+300=1279.

Strong's Concordance #1279 biryah: food, meat, breeding (Hebrew), creation (Yiddish) Original Word: בִּרְיָה

Matthew 2:1 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem Matthew 2:2 and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”

TANAKH (Jewish Publication Society, Hebrew-English) Pages 972 and 973: Isaiah 54:1 Shout, O barren one, You who bore no child! Shout aloud for joy, You who did not travail! For the children of the wife forlorn Shall outnumber those of the espoused--said the Lord. Isaiah 54:2 Enlarge the site of your tent, Extend the size of our dwelling, Do not stint! Lengthen the ropes, and drive the pegs firm. Isaiah 54:3 For you shall spread out to the right and the left; Your offspring shall dispossess nations And shall people the desolate towns. Isaiah 54:4 Fear not, you shall not be shamed; Do not cringe, you shall not be disgraced. For you shall forget The reproach of your youth, And remember no more The shame of your widowhood. Isaiah 54:5 For He who made you will espouse you--His name is "Lord of Hosts." The Holy One of Israel will redeem you--He is called "God of all the Earth." Isaiah 54:6 The Lord has called you back As a wife forlorn and forsaken. Can one cast off the wife of his youth?--said your God. Isaiah 54:7 For a little while I forsook you, But with vast love I will bring you back. Isaiah 54:8 In slight anger, for a moment, I hid My face from you; But with kindness everlasting I will take you back in love--said the Lord your Redeemer. Isaiah 54:9 For this to Me is like the waters of Noah: As I swore that the waters of Noah Nevermore would flood the earth, So I swear that I will not be angry with you or rebuke you. Isaiah 54:10 For the mountains may move And the hills be shaken, But my loyalty shall never move from you, Nor My covenant of friendship be shaken--said the Lord, who takes you back in love.

TANAKH (Jewish Publication Society, Hebrew-English) Page 1476: Psalm 54:1 For the leader; with instrumental music. A maskil of David, Psalm 54:2 when the Ziphites came and told Saul, "Know, David is in hiding among us." Psalm 54:3 O God, deliver me by Your name; by Your power vindicate me.

TANAKH (Jewish Publication Society, Hebrew-English) Page 1095: Jeremiah 33:7 And I will restore the fortunes of Judah and Israel, and I will rebuild them as of old.

TANAKH (Jewish Publication Society, Hebrew-English) Page 1230: Ezekiel 33:7 Now, O mortal, I have appointed you a watchman for the House of Israel; and whenever you hear a message from My mouth, you must transmit My warning to them. Ezekiel 33:8 When I say to the wicked, "Wicked man, you shall die," but you have not spoken to warn the wicked man against his way, he, that wicked man, shall die for his sins, but I will demand a reckoning for his blood from you. Ezekiel 33:9 But if you have warned the wicked man to turn back from his way, and he has not turned from his way, he shall die for his own sins, but you will have swaved your life.

TANAKH (Jewish Publication Society, Hebrew-English) Page 1448: Psalm 33:7 He heaps up the ocean waters like a mound, stores the deep in vaults.

“Freedom is not a state; it is an act. It is not some enchanted garden perched high on a distant plateau where we can finally sit down and rest. Freedom is the continuous action we all must take, and each generation must do its part to create an even more fair, more just society. The work of love, peace, and justice will always be necessary, until their realism and their imperative takes hold of our imagination, crowds out any dream of hatred or revenge, and fills up our existence with their power.” ― John Lewis, Across That Bridge: Life Lessons and a Vision for Change

“There can be moments, when the rope we hold to, becomes a strand of thread, where we feel that we are barely hanging on but when the thread feels as though it's about to break; just know that God will never let us fall but rather, He will be there to catch us and when He does, He will carry us away, on wings of love, to a higher plateau, where evil cannot touch us.” ― Diane K Chamberlain

The name Bruce has been interpreted in various ways over time. Some believe it means ‘the willowlands’ while others believe it means ‘the thick brush’. The name’s symbolism is also significant, with the willow representing strength and resilience, and the brush representing adaptability and resourcefulness. One interesting fact about the name Bruce is that it has Scottish origins. It was originally a surname, derived from the French word ‘de Brus’, which means ‘from Brix’. The first recorded use of the name was by Robert de Brus, a Norman nobleman who settled in Scotland in the 11th century. Another interpretation of the name Bruce is that it means ‘the bear’. This interpretation is based on the Old English word ‘brycg’, which means ‘bridge’, and was used as a nickname for someone who was strong and powerful like a bear. This interpretation is also supported by the fact that the Bruce family crest features a bear. :https://letslearnslang.com/etymology-of-the-name-bruce/

“Write thank-you notes,” Frank said. “Thank-you notes are the grease on society’s bearings.” ― J. Ryan Stradal, The Lager Queen of Minnesota

“Her mother told her once that the nicest thing you can do for someone is be happy to see them,” ― J. Ryan Stradal, The Lager Queen of Minnesota

“It is true, as Jeanne Coyne of Minnesota’s Supreme Court famously said: at the end of the day, a wise old man and a wise old woman will reach the same decision.” ― Ruth Bader Ginsburg, My Own Words

"1989 TV" officially debuts with 177,502,825 unfiltered streams. (The Swift Society)

Strong's Concordance #177 Uw'el: From 'ow and 'el; wish of God/the one only and true God of Israel; Uel Original Word: אוּאֵל

Strong's Concordance #5028 Nebat: From nabat; to scan, i.e. Look intently at; by implication, to regard with pleasure, favor or care -- (cause to) behold, consider, look (down), regard, have respect, see; father of Jeroboam, germ Original Word: נְבָט

Strong's Concordance #25 Abi Gibon: From 'ab and Gib'own; father (i.e. Founder) of Gibon Original Word: אֲבִי גִבְעוֹן

Oh God, the Lord of the heavens (Yiddish): אוּ אֵל נְבָטאֲ בִיגִ בְ עוֹ ן To whom we have grown big in a storm (Hebrew): אוּ אֵל נְבָטאֲ בִיגִ בְ עוֹ ן

"I hope you remind yourself of what you are, and what you are not. You are not damaged goods. You are not your mistakes. You’re not a result of the things you thought you could have done better, or times you felt you chose the wrong path, instead of the right one. You’re not somebody else’s opinion of you. You are wiser because you’ve made those mistakes. You are someone who’s brave enough to take chances. You are someone who was rained on over and over again, and kept on putting one foot in front of the other. I think that’s so much better than never having made a mistake, never having messed up or having failed. I think that the pain we go through when we make mistakes makes us stronger. And I think that being rained on over and over and over again can actually make us clean." - Taylor Swift - 1989 World Tour - Clean Speech - Tokyo Dome

This Story of Perpetual Slavery, Fighting For Freedom, Endings, Rebirth, the Eternal Cycle(s) of Perpetual Change, Being Devalued, and Being Redeemed was posted to Tumblr on October 29th, 2023 at 12:13:00 UTC. 1989 Taylor's Version is Out Now! Yay!

0 notes

idiotlittleme · 2 years

Text

I can't sleep so I'm gonna do a long post about Israel's entry to eurovision and other thoughts I have because I live here and why the fuck not

tbh I feel extremely lucky cause two years in a row the candidate I wanted sent

Michael, very much like Eden, is an absulote sweetheart

But more than that - I cannot think about anyone better to deliver the message of self acceptness and self love

The guy honestly worked in a supermarket until he entered the show

He always talks about how he loves his mom & his brothers that he didn't even know that was gonna support him (they did and it was extremly touching)

He is an openly gay person in Israel. I know it seems to some of you not a big deal because you see all the pride tourism in Tel Aviv and such but it's really not like that

A. most of the time

B. outside Tel Aviv

If you want a fine example check out Shira Banki who was murdered in a pride parade in Jerusalem (where I Iive)

The definition of our country is Jewish and democratic. So a lot of religion people can decide how to shape the public space and guess what? They don't really like LGBTQ+ people. I know. Shoking.

Plus there's still buttload of stigma attached to it.

So everytime there's a screentime to LGBTQ+ people on TV here, especially if they are Israeli representative of something, I love it. It fucks up their brain. (I also really likes it when it's someone from one of the lots of deprived ethnic groups living here - like Eden last year who was ethuopian - because apperantly religion people tend to be a bit racist too. Who knew right?)

Add that he was actually was bullied for being extrovert and you get why this message suit him best.

Also he's sassy as fuck and dances like crazy which is always fun (plus has amazing vocal)

I know that marrionette of Inbal was also a very strong option but I felt that it was some what repeatative of Toy (I'm not your toy -> not just a marrionette)

Oh and speaking of Netta, she was his mentor for real. Unlike most of the judges, she was a proper mantor with her group and she seriously worked with him a lot and their bond is super cute.

Fyi - I totally get people who don't wanna vote Israel because of the occupation. I live just near east jerualem, my father is from Marroco, most of the people I talk to in uni are Palestinian, trust me, I get it. I'm just really exited for Michael because honestly it's not his fault that his country is shit.

But please, if you do that don't support countries that their leaders support colonialism/actively trying to take over the middle east like the UK or Russia. (Also the US but they're not on our eurovision so it doesn't matter much)

Fyi2 - I know I said nasty things about religion people. Notice I didn't talk about religious people, that's cause I hate the ones with power (that are also abuses it). Judaism is not against gay people. There are lots of religious + gay people in Israel. Religion is not against people. People are against people. Don't belive people who tell you otherwise.

9 notes · View notes

kenzie-ann27 · 4 years

Text

Number One

This post has been a long time coming- as has this specific Stranger Things theory- and I am finally so glad to be able to talk about it now that I have all of my research and all of my evidence in order. Plus, you know, it is always an absolute pleasure to talk about my favorite character, Mr. Murray Bauman. I- like most people- understand that there is undoubtedly more to Murray than meets the eye, but went down the rabbit hole to listen to and analyze each line, each look, and each detail when it comes to this character, and my final conclusion is something that I believe has to be the answer to who this character really is, as I have a hard time believing he is just an old crazy guy living out in the middle of the woods for no reason other than he just is oddly suspicious of the government (in a country he claims to love). Either way, I would suggest to clear your schedules, grab a snack, and buckle up, because this is gonna be one crazy post.

First things first, it might be easier to simply state my working theory and work from there to prove it with my piles of research and evidence that I am eager to be seen proven when season four rolls out. It feels very strange to actually write it in words for other people to read, but strange little Murray Bauman is- pausing for dramatic effect- none other than the very first child in a long line of strange, superpowered children that once called Hawkins Lab home. Yes, yes, yes, Murray is Number One.

Now, of course, here comes the fun part- trying to prove that theory. To make things simple, let’s take a step back and think about Murray as a character; we don’t know how old he is, where he’s from, what his family is like, nothing. But in this theory, I think I am able to piece together some form of a story for him that is most likely wrong, but that’s not what I am proving here. Murray was born sometime around 1939 in the United States (making him 46 in season three), most likely in Illinois as that is where is currently lives (not entirely sure about this one); as we only know his mother is still alive, another working theory is that his father was maybe a soldier in WWII, or, considering how Bauman is a German/Jewish last name, maybe something considerably worse became of his father. This would also lead to explain his love of the United States, as a young immigrant mother who was able to make her way to the United States during WWII would probably have her son grow up deeply appreciating the country that took them in in a time where they would have been killed for who they were. Making my way past this to the wonderful Cold War, the US government set up a strange set of experiments during the 1950s, the oh-so-fun Project MKUltra that was mentioned way back in season one. Being 16 in 1956 (Hawkins Lab started doing these experiments in 1953), and a young kid knowing he was different than the others with thoughts in his head that wouldn’t stop and weren’t his, Murray took the trip to Hawkins as a way to get some money to help out with his single mother and to figure out what exactly was with those thoughts of his. My problem, of course, is I’m not sure what happened in those 30 years between then; my guess is it wasn’t pretty, considering he lives out in the middle of the woods and is beyond suspicious of the government. He’s hateful of those that amplified the problem he desperately wanted dispelled, those that caused him to live a life where no one would believe a word he said, knowing full well that “your priest, your postman, your teacher, the world at large; they won't believe any of this.”

This brings me back to my more potent evidence, starting with the fact that caused me to think about this theory in the first place: not once do we see Murray’s left wrist. Whether it’s covered up by a sleeve or his watch, we never see the part of the body that would confirm Murray’s part in these experiments, as he would have that 001 tattoo hiding right there. A tattoo that, if my previous paragraph stands, would make an excellent parallel to the tattoos that were given in concentration camps; a tattoo, a number, that is meant to put a person in their place, to show the world they are nothing more than just a statistic. Like himself, Murray hides the tattoo, knowing the things people would think of him if they knew. He would know those things, of course, because that’s what his powers are: he’s an empath, he can read minds.

That shouldn’t come as much of a shock, of course, as we see Murray demonstrate those powers with Nancy and Jonathan in season two and then again with Joyce and Hopper in season three; he hears thoughts constantly, and it was driving him insane to hear them think those things about each other when the solution, to him, was to just get together and get it over with, and not to bother him with their- in his own words- “mind-numbing and frankly boorish mating ritual.” It’s why he lives in the middle of nowhere, it’s why he was so happy to hear the lab being shut down that he drove roughly four hours (just a guess, as Murray lives in Sesser, IL, and I’m using Indianapolis, IN, as a reference for Hawkins) to watch it for himself, it’s why he made such a good journalist and investigator, it’s why he screams desperately for people to stop talking (not with their mouths, of course, but with their heads). Other people’s thoughts, constantly screaming, yelling, annoying the shit out of him. And it is exactly the reason why he drinks so much, why he listens to jazz music oh-so-coincidentally from 1956 (on another note, he seemed to have an affinity for Woody Woodpecker, and the Woody Woodpecker Show aired in 1957, though the character had been around since 1940)- he uses those things to drown out people’s thoughts so he can think for himself. He said himself the music “helps” him, he said himself the vodka helps him think because “it’s a central nervous system depressant,” which is strange in itself because CNS depressants actually slow down brain activity. Why would alcohol help you think clearly if its purpose was to do the exact opposite, unless your brain activity was already unusually high?

This is my latest nail in the coffin, as I just only realized it today, but Project MKUltra was designed specifically to target the Russians during the Cold War- if you have this insanely powerful kid that can read minds, and you’re working against the Russians, it might be useful for this kid to learn how to speak Russian. Which- gasp- is something that Murray just so happens to do that no one ever really takes the time to question.

Of course, these are just my strange thoughts that I’ve taken way too much time to organize, though it was quite fun to think about my favorite character and hope for a minute that he would be one of the most important people in the story of this show. Murray is weird, he’s eclectic, he’s off-putting and nothing short of a hermit, but that’s what makes him so interesting. In a show full of odd characters, to me, he takes the cake; which is why I hope he is much more than what he seems to be. And, when it comes time to sit down and watch season four, I’ll be glad to see him and all of the empathy and telepathy that one antisocial and awkward guy can handle (though I am 90% sure that I will be right, of course).

TL;DR - Murray Bauman, guys:

#stranger things #murray bauman #thank you for coming to my ted talk #stranger things spoilers #gonna tag it as spoilers cause it will be #smh #stranger things theory #thank you

21 notes · View notes

mrsalwayswrite · 4 years

Text

Christmas Morning (Alfie Solomons x Reader one-shot)

This piece is dedicated to the always lovely @evelynshelby. Merry Christmas, my dear.

And to everyone else, Merry Christmas, happy Hanukkah, I suddenly can't remember anything else (I’m so sorry). This is just a short one-shot of pure fluff because who doesn’t want a domestic, fluffy Alfie to celebrate Christmas? I don't normally write one-shots or straight up fluff so if this is terrible...I’m sorry. *shrugs*

Warnings: Swearing, some mild sexual content, pure fluff.

Word count: 2k

~Christmas Morning~

“Daddy! Daddy Daddyyyyyy!”

Alfie braced himself as much as he could before being bombarded with small, energetic bodies intent on destroying what he had left of vitality. He had been sleeping deeply, enjoying the extra sleep that he normally lost due to either his hip bothering him or the creatures he called children demanding his attention.

“Oi! Wot ya buggers want, eh?” He grumbled as at least two children raced into the bedroom, slamming the door violently open and jumped enthusiastically on the bed and another child poked him repeatedly in the ribs.

“It’s Christmas!”

“Kissmas!”

“Mum says ya gotta up now.”

“We’re Jewish. Don’t celebrate that none. Go back to bed.” He rolled onto his back, knowing whatever hopes of more blissful sleep to be had was gone. Peeking his eyes open, the faces of his four children greeted him in varying positions on the bed and expressions of excitement on their little faces.

“Presents!” They chorused, the two middle ones jumping gleefully on the bed, making the toddler bounce precariously on the edge.

“Who said ‘em presents are for ya? Mmm? They s’for me…full of socks and knickers they are.”

“No, Daddy.” His beautiful four year old girl cupped his cheeks, her earnest blue eyes staring fondly at him. “One has me name on it. I drew youse a picture downstairs. Mum said I gotta wait to gives it to ya.”

“I bet it’s beautiful, love.” He kissed her nose making her giggle. However much he wished he could continue to rest…these little, joyful faces were worth getting up for. His heart swelled with love as he watched his children play on the bed, fighting for his attention or pulling on him to get out of the bed.

“Alright kids, daddy is up.” You say from leaning against the doorframe. Four kids, only one a girl, most of the time your home felt like occasionally controlled chaos…but it was the chaos you made with the man who had held your heart from your first date. You would not trade any of it for the world. “Why don’t you go wait for Grandpa and Grandma by the window? They should be here any minute.”

“Yay!” Ellie slid off the bed, taking off running in competition with her five year old brother, James- the biggest trouble makers of the house. Their hurried feet sounded like a stampede down the hardwood floor and down the stairs to the main floor.

“Jacob, take Little Sam with you please. When I come down, you can take Cyril outside, alright?” You say, picking your toddler off the bed.

“Yes, mum. C’mon Sam…” Jacob, your eldest at seven, grabbed his youngest brother’s hand and walked slowly with him out of the room telling him about all the presents they were going to get from their Christian grandparents.

Once the children were gone, Alfie flung himself back onto the bed with a groan. “I’m gettin’ too old for this. Me bones are creakin’ like wood.”

“Uh huh, sure.” You moved to stand by his side of your shared bed, gazing down at him. “Don’t forget, you were the one who wanted a houseful of children. Might need to start keepin’ your hands off me if that’s the case. I’m pretty sure you just wink at me and I’m suddenly pregnant.”

Alfie opened his eyes, smirking that devilish grin of his that could still make you weak in the knees even after almost a decade of being with him. “I’m fairly sure that s’impossible, love. Not me fault I can’t keep me hands to meself, you just too fuckin’ beautiful.”

“Sweet-talker.” You leaned over him and gave him a quick peck on this lips before straightening. “You do need to get up. My parents will be here soon.”

“Ughhhh….fuckin’ bloody ‘ell and all them…”

“I know, I know. You just loooove when my mum comes over. Remember this is for the kids.”

He snorted, slowly pushing himself up and swung his legs over the side of the bed. Honestly, he could not stand your mother. He only tolerated her because of the family relation now and even with that, he found himself drinking whiskey, rum or whatever was in easy reach a bit more on days where she was around. Not that she was all that endearing to him herself. Part of him thought she still held a grudge towards Alfie for taking away her beloved daughter and somehow putting a love spell on her. Since what logical, sweet, devoted girl would fall in love with an old, cranky gangster with blood on his hands. Luckily the old hag had become more tolerable once grandchildren came into the picture.

“And how s’the little one?” He gently placed his hands on your stomach, feeling the slight bulge there where his newest child was growing. “I didn’t ‘ear ya up in the night at all. No sickness?”

Unable to help yourself, you ran your hands through Alfie’s hair. He would need a haircut soon but you absolutely adored playing with it in the meantime. “Slept great. I think the nausea has finally passed, about time really. The other kids never kept me sick for this long. Although, I’m confident my breasts got bigger overnight.”

“Mmm…” His roving hands slowly traveled upward over the bathroom robe you wore until he cupped your breasts. “It’s hard to tell, yeah, in this. Might need to undress ya to double check.”

“Alfie…Alfie, no!” You protested, trying to push his hands away but your giggling counteracted your supposed stern demeanor. “My parents…”

“Fuck.” He groaned and dropped his head onto your stomach, the thought of playing with your fuller breasts had him at half-mast already.

“If you promise to be good today, I’ll give you a sneak peek of your present right now.”

That caught his attention. “Present, ya say?”

“Best behavior, Alfie. All day. No threatening to castrate my brother again this year…or teaching the kids curses in Yiddish so my mother can’t understand what you’re saying.”

“You drive a hard bargain, woman. Me present better be somethin’ special.”

“Promise?”

“Yeah, yeah, I promise.”

“Good.” A coy smile grew on your lips as you took a step back, maintaining eye contact with your husband. Slowly, you pulled on the tie, keeping the robe together around your body. Just to torment him further, you ran your tongue over your lower lip then bit it, knowing that action drove him crazy. Sure enough, you could see his pupils expand as he greedily watched you. The tie came off and you dropped it to the floor, keeping your movements slow and purposeful. Then you let the robe ease off your shoulders and slowly opened it up to reveal what was underneath.

Alfie’s jaw dropped slightly, his eyes widen at the sight before him. There stood his gorgeous wife in a silky lingerie piece that teased more than it actually covered. All that bare skin, breasts offered up like a present and just the faintest hint of fabric covering your womanhood to tempt him to delve into your depths and make you scream his name in ecstasy. His brain ceased all function. His cock fully erect and demanding attention. Since having children, you rarely wore lingerie and it had been years since you bought a new piece to surprise him. He reached out, wanting to touch you and make sure you were not a dream come to life. “Y/n…”

Abruptly you wrapped yourself back up and picked up the tie to keep your robe together and conceal what lay beneath. That coy smile still graced your lips, but you could feel the sudden dampness between your legs at the hungry look in Alfie’s eyes as he stared at you. Playing it off, you brushed your hair back over your shoulder and winked. “Best behavior…then I’ll let you touch it later.”

“Love…you can’t do that to a man. Teasin’ him like that. Just ain’t right.”

“It’s your incentive. I plan on wearing this all day since only my parents are coming over today. Now you know what is waiting for you later…as long as you’re good.” As you spoke, you slowly walked towards the door, fully intent on heading back downstairs to check on your children. Who knows what they were getting up too? Each one seemed born with Alfie’s knack for finding trouble.

Suddenly Alfie leapt up out and raced around the bed to where you now stood. Roughly he pushed you against the nearby wall and pressed himself against you. Keeping his knee between your legs, one hand cupped a breast over the robe while the other pulled on your thigh until one of your bare legs wrapped around his hip. His mouth ghosted over your neck, his hot breath causing goosebumps to appear on your skin. “I’ll be good, so good…then when we’re alone, I’m gonna get ya back, you temptress, for this. So many wicked, naughty things I have in mind for ya, yeah? You won’t be able to walk tomorrow.”

“Promises, promises, Captain Solomons.” You purred lazily, knowing how much your husband loved when you called him by his military title while making love. Anyone else would receive a “fuck off” and a good whack with his cane. Something about how you said it in the moment, he had confessed years ago that it turned him on. Not that you complained, it certainly did things to you too. The current haze of lust growing from his strokes and kisses made you close your eyes and moan wantonly as he trailed kisses along your neck and onto your chest.

As if a challenge was issued, he redoubled his efforts. His lips and tongue worked over your skin while his hands touched and caressed all the spots that he knew make you wet for him. Soon you were both panting, tugging on each other’s clothes and grinding against one another seeking friction like horny teenagers.

“Dad! Mum! Sam is eatin’ Cyril’s food ‘gain!” Jacob called up the stairs.

And with that, reality set back in.

“Fuckin’ hell.” Alfie muttered, dropping his head onto your shoulder. After a couple ragged breaths, he yelled back down. “Comin’! Put Cyril’s food bowl on the counter, yeah?”

“Ok! Ellie spilled her milk all over the table too!”

“Did not! S’James did it!”

“Golems. The lot of ‘em. Not a moment’s peace, I swear.” Alfie mumbled, begrudgingly stepping back from you, attempting to control his cock that certainly had other plans than dealing with the unruly children it helped create.

“You love it.” After adjusting your robe so it covered everything, you moved to head out of the room. “Don’t take too long, Captain. Your soldiers are waiting for you. Just think of my mother and that should help calm you down.” With that final parting thought, you whisked out of the room smiling to yourself.

Well that thought certainly helped somewhat. Alfie walked over to the chair against the far wall and picked up his own bath robe, tying it around himself. Ten years ago he never would have imagined himself here. Yet you were right, like usual. He did love it. Each one of his children seemed to expand his blackened heart until he thought it would burst with love and joy. You were his shining light and love of his life. Family…his own. That was something he never would have guessed for himself ten years ago.

Alfie made a quick reminder to call Ollie once he made it downstairs. The bakery was still running smoothly, for the most part. Ollie had finally grown a set of balls and managed most of the day to day stuff when Alfie was not around. A truce had been made with the Shelbys that was mutually beneficial, plus Tommy had his sights set higher than London so he paid no attention to Alfie and his doings. The Italians had lost their standing years ago, and no longer were a threat in any form. Yes, life was perfect right now…something he never would have foreseen for himself. And it was all thanks to you. For accidently spilling your drink all over him at a club then offering to clean him up…with your tongue. The following conversation had been most entertaining and although no tongue action happened…it was not too many weeks later when Alfie first kissed you and knew right then, you would change his life.

Now if only he could figure out what to do with your mum…

#peaky blinders fiction #Peaky Blinders #peaky blinder fanfic #Alfie Solomons #alfie x reader #christmas #hot daddy #mother reader #reader insert #mzwrites

225 notes · View notes

calliecat93 · 3 years

Text

Star Trek Episodes 42-46

A Piece of the Action: I love how this started with Kirk needing to beam down, Spock and McCoy just happen to enter the bridge, and Kirk just goes ‘yep, I’m dragging you two with me’ and they don’t even try to dispute it. That’s when you know that a formula has been nailed! Anyways, gangster planet... weird but since we had Jack the Ripper posessing the Enterprise not that long ago, I ain’t surprised anymore. Plus I’m not complaining cause this episode was just plain fun. Kirk was a riot with the fizzbin scene, being a terrible driver, and just going into full-on gangster mode cause why not? It’s a pretty ridiculous episode, but that’s not out of the norm at this point and again, it’s a fun one that just takes what it has and rolls with it. The cast, Shatner especially, were clealry having fun and when the cast is enjoying things, the audience tends to as well. Think my only complaint is how Shatner and Nimoy got snazzy suits, but Kelley didn’t... then again I can easily believe McCoy nope-ing out of this part, but still. Ah well! Enjoyable watch all in all. 4/5.

The Immunity Syndrome: We have a situation with a deadly phenomena that outright destroyed a solar system and a Vulcan vessel that poor Spock outright sensed. The conflict comes in when everything starts dying and someone needs to be willing to go into the danger zone, and the choice as to who is between Spock and McCoy. It’s a tense situation where everything is hanging by a thread with everything pushed to it’s limits and whoever goes out is likely going to die take the thing down for good. Then comes which one of the two gets sent with the final decision coming down to Kirk. McCoy has the scientific knowledge suited to look into it, but Spock is more capable fo ha dling the mental toll and has a personal reason due to the Vulcans. In the end, Kirk picks Spock. It’s a very good episode where the ship is possibly in it’s greatest danger yet and everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, is being pushed. Then when Kirk makes his choice, we have McCoy bitter and not wishing Spock luck until it’s too late, which when it looks like Spock indeed died... yeah, Kelley nailed the guilt through body language alone. Then when Spock and Kirk begin recording what may be their final words if everything fails... they all know that they could very well die in this situation. Strong stuff, to say the least. Now of course everything works out with and the scene where McCoy tells Spock to shut up about them leaving him behind and that they are going to save him was a great moment, including Spock’s snarky quip in response. It’s very much a tense episode where with so much being pushed you’re worried about how they’re gonna get out of it. I think that the trio especially were great here, especially Spock and McCoy with their usual banter feeling a lot more... tense here than usual. Great episode! 5/5.

A Private Little War: Well that’s the second episode in a row where Spock nearly died, only now Kirk gets to join in. Anyways, we have some kind of hunting/tribal planet that Kirk and McCoy are stuck on and Kirk ends up poisoned, then essentially put under a love spell when healed. We also have this village trying to get their hands on superior weapons to win a war, which is apparently meant to parallel the Korean/Vietnam Wars. Anyways, it was fine. I can see the parallels to the wars and it was nice that Kirk chose McCoy because he feels that he can trust him and his advice equally to Spock’s, who has to sit out of most of the episode cause even Vulcans aren’t immune to bullets. Which seeing Jim and Bones argue over essentially setting off a never-ending war was pretty intense since I don’t recall them EVER getting into an argument, but in the end Kirk’s decision is pretty much the only one that they have and it’ll mean sentencing one of his friends on the planet to death. In the end Nona used the spell to take Kirk’s phaser to give the enemy, and it resulted in her death and Tyrse abandoning his pacifism to get vengeance with Kirk unable to do anything about it as it’s the only option, A pretty dark ending which makes the war parallels all the stronger, but very much still relevant in today’s world. A pretty good episode overall. Not as much as the first two, but again still relevant. 3.5/5.

Return to Tomorrow: Ho boy, body hijacking! Fun! So we have Kirk, Spock, and Lady of the Week let some alien mind... whatever in spheres take over their bodies while they get put into the spheres... well at least it’s not McCoy geting his brain screwed up this time. He’s only ones who stands by how stupid an idea this is, but even he can’t fight the power of Kirk’s Monologing... which tbf WAS a pretty good one about taking the risk for scientific discovery... I still standby that it was stupid though. I could do without the echo effect that they add to the voices to emphasize the posession because it’s far too distracting, but it does give the actors a chance to go outside the norm. Nimoy especially gets to go full-on expressive/villain mode as while the other teo are only using the bodies until artificial ones can be made, the third decides that it likes having a Vulcan body so... yeah. It’s a fine episode, nothing great but a good watch. I think I just liked watching Nimoy go all villain and he’s clealry enjoying the freedom, haha! I feel sympathetic to Sargon and his wife since they aren’t evil and just wanted to feel human again and were perfectly willing to be androids/help humanity, unlike their companion and their final fate is a sad one... well the wife goes crazy for a bit but still. I also love how they outwitted the villain at the end, it really had me there for a bit XD A fine episode all in all. 4/5.

Patterns of Force: So in this episode we have The Enterprise vs a planet of Nazis! Boy is THIS gonna be fun! I imagine it had to be awkward since Shatner and Nimoy are Jewish and had to dress as Nazis, but hey it is about Nazism/fascism being bad and they’re undercover so I guess for a good cause... and they get to take them down so ah well! It gets it’s point across in showing how inhumane the Nazis are and how bringing it upon another planet for ANY reason was a horrible idea. Also love how it took McCoy like... a full minute to realize that he and the others were dressed as Nazis, himself included, cause he was too grumpy trying to get his boot on. I can see why he became my favorite, haha! There’s nothing too notable about the episode, it’s just our heroes helping a rebellion to defeat the Nazis, and we never complain about seeing Nazis getting their asses kicked. It’s not the best piece of media to address these things, they’re essentially taking down a man who took the infastructure and corrupted it more, but it still ends with the man responsible dying for not learning form history and using that infastructure to begin with. Just feels like they got off easy, but ah well, hopefully things became better in that world. 3/5.

So we got gangsters, Spock/McCoy feels (take that under whatever preference you choose), love spells, posession, war, and Nazis. Fun times, right? Well folks, only five more for S2 to go. Will they keep the entertainment train rolling? We’ll see soom enough.

#st watchthrough #star trek tos

2 notes · View notes

beepbeeprichiellc · 5 years

Note

Hey! If you could write anymore of the best friend’s brother au with Stan and Eddie as brothers I would love to read it!!!

Yes I can. Part One.

Richie had never seen someone so pissed off in his life.

Sure there was that one time he had stolen Wentworth’s keys to take Betty Ripson to make out point, which ended with the loss of his virginity but even then there was a glimmer of knowing amusement in his father’s eyes when amidst the scorning. Now though-he knew that what honest and true annoyance looked like as Stan shot him the dirtiest look ever known to man. Mrs. Uris was cooing about having someone other than Mike over, practically fawning over the fact that Stan had more than one friend-not that the woman knew that Mike wasn’t exactly Stan’s ‘friend’-and asking him all about himself. Richie was in love with this, giving him something other than Stan’s annoyance to keep his attention.

Not that Eddie was giving Mrs. Uris a run for her money.

All he was doing was sitting there, in a school hodie and the same pair of sweats that had nearly given Richie an aneurysm earlier. Looking closer Richie realized that Eddie was an angel in disguise, his features soft and tangible, his voice like bells and every time he looked in Richie’s direction the air in the trashmouths lungs vanished. This was probably apparent to everyone except the parents, giving that Stan constantly growled out his answers and Eddie smirked when he did so.

“Yeah, my dad is a dentist and my mom stays at home. Although she has become quite a master of needle point here lately.”

“A dentist, that’s pretty neat.” Mrs. Uris replied, apparently fascinated with every word Richie spoke. “That must be why you are so polite, dentists always have polite kids.”

“How many dentist kids do you know there Andrea?” Mr. Uris asked, chuckling to himself. “Do you go around grading childrens politeness based on their parents occupation?”

Eddie snorted, nearly choking on his food in the process. “Sorry,” He sputtered out. “Went down the wrong tube.”

“Right,” Stan nipped, “And I’m Johnny Depp.”

“I didn’t know the Depp man was Jewish.” Richie playfully pointed out, earning a small chuckle from Eddie, causing the trashmouth’s heart to skip a beat. “You’d think they’d advertise that.”

“Anyways,” Mrs. Uris ushered, trying to keep her son form jumping from his chair and strangling Richie. “What are your hobbies Richie? Do you play any sports?”

“Oh god no.” He chuckled, earning an unimpressed look from Eddie. “I mean no offense but I’m not the most graceful person in the world.”

“I don’t know, have you ever seen Stan play any sport? It’s like watching a newborn calf walk.” Eddie laughed at his own joke, forcing Stan to toss his roll right into his chest. “Hey now, the truth hurts Stanley.”

“Now boys.” Mr. Uris warned, making both children halt their actions and mutter an apology under their breath. “Eddie her is on the track team at Saint Ann’s, they are expecting him to take state.” It was a brag, no doubt about it making Mr. Uris’s chest puff out and his wife smile. “Stan is set for an academic scholarship so both of the boys are looking at only the best colleges. A good extra curricular activity is good for you Richie, you should look into taking up something even if it’s like the chess team.”

“Richie is in the drama club.” Stan blurted, making Richie’s ears burn. “The president even, I think.”

“Wow.” Eddie whistled, coming to Richie’s defense. “That’s about as cool as Stan’s bird club.”

“Alright you know what Kasbrak?” Stan shot back, pointing his fork right at his brother. “If you wanna go there we can go there, remember that I have pictures of you with that stupid fanny pack on. Want me to bring those bad boys out?”

“You wouldn’t dare.” Eddie hissed, narrowing his eyes.

Stan licked his lips. “Try me big boy.”

“Kasbrak?” Richie asked, the name sparking a memory in his brain. “Wait, are you related to Crazy Kaspbrak that lives down on 2nd?” The entire room went tense, making Richie realize his mistake immediately. The Uris’s became fascinated by their plates as Stan shoved his fork into Richie’s thigh. “Oh shit, I didn’t mean to-”

“I didn’t know Sonia had a nickname.” Eddie chuckled, his face twisting into an unreadable emotion. “Why didn't’ you tell me Stan?”

“It wasn’t something I thought you would be impressed with.” Stan quipped, staring down an already shrinking Richie. “It’s just a dumb name some kids gave her Eddie, no one thinks-”

“It’s fine.” Eddie cut, shaking his head. When his brother tried to speak again, he would have none of it. “Stan, it’s fine, really.” Looking at Richie he continued, “Sonia is my mother, although she’s nothing more than a birther to me.”

“Eddie…” Mr. Uris whispered softly, reaching out to his adoptive son but faltering when the phone began to ring from the kitchen. For a moment it looked like he was going to ignore it, but politeness won over as he pulled from the table and disappeared from the room. His voice still carried, the moment the person on the other line spoke, all politeness vanished. “I told you not to call here again.” Pause, “No, he doesn’t want to-”

Eddie sighed, rolling his eyes and excusing himself to go to Mr. Uris aid. His voice was much louder, much sharper and borderline pissy. “I told you not to call here again Sonia.” The name like venom to the dinner table. Stan looked sympathetic to Richie for the first time since his arrival, biting his lip and closing his eyes. “I don’t care what your therapist says, stop trying to contact me. You know what the judge said, I don’t have to put up with this bullshit anymore.” A very long pause, followed by. “Call here again and I’ll call the cops.” The slam of the phone caused everyone to flinch, their eyes advertising Eddie as he walked into the room. Eddie cleared his throat, making the parents look up. “Can I please be excused from dinner? I’ve lost my appetite.”

“Eddie, are you okay?” Mrs. Uris soothed, her eyes soft and inviting.

“I’m fine.” He assured, “Just tired.”

“Alright.” She replied, obviously unconvinced. “Goodnight son.”

“Goodnight.” His eyes lifted once more to meet Richie’s and a shiver ran down the trasmouths spine, settling down at the pace of his hip making him buzz. Once gone conversation lagged until it was over, and Richie was relieved when he and Stan could go back to their homework, although Richie’s mind kept wandering to the room next to Stan’s, ACDC blaring form it’s walls.

It was well past midnight before Richie realized Stan had actually passed out sitting upright. His mouth hung open, a deep breath coming from his lips. It wasn’t that Richie wasn’t impressed-because he was-it was that he knew how pissed he was going to be when he woke so to make sure he didn’t kink up his neck too bad, Richie literally tucked him. Once that was done he picked up the books and paper, careful not to disturb other things that Stan himself had organized. With a need for a cigarette making him itch.

Knowing that he had to be sneay, Richie chose the backyard for his secret smoke, careful not to make a single creek aas he snuck out. It was a relief, feeling the nicotine touch his lungs and he thanked every deity for whoever invented the damn cancer sticks. It was calm out here, Derry was fast asleep as well as it’s residences. A sweet release that only a cool night could bring and an easy feeling that a good breath provided. Richie was at peace.

“You know those things kill right?”

Richie nearly jumped out of his skin, obviously not expecting the sudden voice. It was Eddie, sitting on the porch swing, silently swaying to and fro. How in the hell Richie hadn’t noticed him was beyond him but there he was, in all his angelic glory. “Fuck, I didn’t know anyone was awake. I’m not-uh-this isn’t-”

“Calm down, I don’t care that you smoke.” Eddie reassured, waving away Richie’s fear of being outed. “Did mean to scare you, sorry about that.” He didn’t sound one bit sorry, his smirk an indication of his amusement. “What are you doing up? Isn’t Stan’s bedtime like nine o’clock?”

Richie chuckled, “Yeah, he straight up passed out while writing. Not a night owl is he?”

“Never has been.” Eddie nodded, “Does have a tendency of waking up early though. It’s super annoying.”

“Hmm.” He hummed in response, taking in the last drag before flicking the bud onto the ground and stomping on it. “And what about you? What are you doing awake this late?”

“I don’t sleep much.” Eddie shrugged, crossing his legs. “Come out for fresh air when I’ve got a got alot on my my mind.”

“What what do you have on your pretty little mind Eds?” The nickname just slipped out, tumbling down his front before falling between them with no grace whatsoever. He thought about taking it back but it stuck with him, Eds. His Eds.

“That’s not my name.” Eddie corrected, rolling his eyes. “Eddie already is a nickname dumbass.”

“I like it.” He admitted. “And that’s not really an answer.”

Eddie sat there for a moment, squinting his eyes and pursing his lips. “I’ll tell you what,” He sange, standing from the swing and strolling towards where Richie stood. “I’ll tell you what’s on my mind if you take a walk with me.”

“A walk?” He repeated, raising an eyebrow. “It’s the middle of the night.”

“Hmm.” Eddie passed by him, turning so that he was walking towards the gate backwards, his sparkling eyes inviting the trashmouth to join in the sins that the night held. “So it is.”

“Wait, what are you-”

“Come on Richie, where is your sense of fun?” Eddie playfully jested, licing his lips and pushing open the exit with his hip.

Richie knew Stan’s rule.

Knew what he had promised.

But those eyes, that smirk, it called to him in a way that couldn’t be ignored. It was an invitation, a sudden need to fulfill any of Eddie’s request that made Richie want to run head first through that gate. Somewhere deep down he knew that it would only cause his best friend to scold him in the morning but that was hours away, which right at that moment felt like a century. There was no use in arguing, which is why Richie followed, his heart leading him out into the streets and into the unknown.

Eddie fucking Kaspbrak, Richie thought, you are going to be the death of me.

#it #it au #requested #reddie #richie tozier #eddie kasbrak #best friend stan #best friends sibling au

147 notes · View notes

westcoastbroadway1443 · 5 years

Text

Welcome to Falsetto Notes

aka my thoughts on Falsettos as I actually finally listen to/watch the whole thing for the first time. I love what I’ve heard of of the show but, like with a lot of shows, I haven’t had the time to actually just sit and absorb the whole thing. Probably nobody is gonna read this, but like what the hell, it’ll be fun to do. So here I go..

"Four Jews in a Room Bitching" – I don’t know what’s happening but I’m loving the beards and the shimmying. Also dig the set, I’m a sucker for a simple set.

"A Tight-Knit Family" – Hearing a lot of bitching but not a lot of funny there, Marv

"Love is Blind" – It’s nice to see the couples set up right at the top here. Mendel and Trina, Whizzer and Marvin, Jason and a chess board. Also where I begin to fall in love with Mendel, love the way he says “alibi” and “I admit I admire you”. Also Andrew’s face during “Hepatitis”, and having Marv and Whizzer just like low key making out in the background. Good job y’all. And praise to Stephanie J Block for having to rattle off super fast lyrics, my brain cannot. I’m starting to realize William Finn doesn’t fuck around here.

"Thrill of First Love" – The second song I ever heard from the musical because...well my two fav broadway guys are flirting, I looked it up. I am so very very gay, and Andrew Rannells is so pretty he sometimes makes me forget I’m not into men. This song somehow manages to make me feel “yipes, maybe you guys shouldn’t be together” and “marvin/whizzer 4eva” at the same time? Their chemistry is pretty fantastic and this is a hard relationship to portray. You see Trina so vulnerable in the last song and already feel bad for her and kind of hate Marvin and don’t know what the hell to feel about Whizzer.

"Marvin at the Psychiatrist (A Three-Part Mini-Opera)" – See this is why family members shouldn’t see the same therapist unless it’s family therapy. Also if I ever had a therapist do weird hypno-hands at me there’s like 70% chance I would not go back. Part 3 is probably my fav.

"Everyone Tells Jason to See a Psychiatrist" – Because of the bad quality of the video I can’t tell if Jason’s shirt is Saturn with a bunch of starts behind it or all of that plus a weird space wizard in the corner. Kids in musicals tend to annoy me, but I like Jason. He’s a little shit, but in a believable way. I wish we got more of him and Whizzer’s relationship to know why he’d want to talk to him, I mean maybe we do and I just haven’t heard it. And Whizzer’s nervous little wave to Trina is everything.

"This Had Better Come to a Stop" – Yes! Drag him! I would conservatively watch like 3 hours of just Trina and Whizzer drinking wine and shitting on Marvin. Songs like this make think of the fact that this was one of Christian Borle’s dream roles and he’s doing great, but I’m curious what drew him to it, I mean I only know him from funnier roles.

"I'm Breaking Down" – Somebody give Trina a hug please, and give Stephanie awards.

"Jason's Therapy" – This role is pretty demanding for a kid since you have to be on stage constantly and I think he does a good job. CONFIRM: There is a space wizard on that shirt. I also wish therapy was as easy as somebody snapping you into a trance, doing air sax, and telling you to feel alright. And Jason encourage Mendel is the cutest.

"A Marriage Proposal" – And I complete the process of falling in love with Mendel, and Brandon Uranowitz. For real this song is adorable and will probably be stuck in my head for awhile.

"A Tight-Knit Family (Reprise)" - NOBODY ASKED YOU, MARVIN!

"Trina's Song" – Trina, darling, go chill with the act 2 lesbians. Fuck these guys.

"March of the Falsettos" – ...ok

"Trina's Song" (Reprise) – Trina rockin a new outfit and new outlook. Rock on, girl

"The Chess Game" – I’ve heard William Finn being praised by Broadway peeps I like and I can see why, I love the way this song is just this verbal dance that keeps building. Also Whizzer’s face during the second chorus is perfect. As much as yeah, Marvin ain’t exactly mr popular in any viewers mind right now, you do see how both their frustrations lead to this point.

"Making a Home" – This is pretty and everyone in this song deserves good things

"The Games I Play" – I feel like Act 1 Whizzer is kind of hard to pinpoint as a character, what he’s feeling and what he wants, but this song was beautiful. I feel like I only ever hear Andrew doing like those big belting songs but this quieter and lower one is just fantastic. Have all the range, young man.

"Marvin Goes Crazy" or "Marvin Hits Trina" – Jason’s face through this song breaks my heart. Mendel, kick that man out your house and change the locks. But I also like that he just holds Trina and Jason, he’s focused on his fam. And Trina’s reaction makes me feel like it had happened at least once before, and Whizzer’s face made me thing with him it had happened a LOT before.

"I Never Wanted to Love You" – MARVIN, YOU LEFT! You’re in demand? Bitch, calm down

"Father to Son" – Jason things about boobies for the first time, and Marvin tries to say oopsie I love you after smacking his mom in the face. Ok, but I do like this song. And I do think this is Marvin trying to change and not be such trash. You get some points for effort.

"Welcome to Falsettoland" – This song is weird and all over the place but I kinda love it. And surprise lesbians! Always welcome!!

"The Year of the Child" – lol I grew up in a very Jewish neighborhood and this is just giving me middle school flashbacks. “The whole things voodoo and I know more than you do” - Mendel (my current fav). Jason’s wee prayer dance, that is all. Also I think I want to befriend my new neighbors just so I can dance into their apartment announcing myself as “the lesbian from next door”.

"Miracle of Judaism" – Hey bro, what happened to chess?

"The Baseball Game" – I had heard this song before and it made me cackle. My poor parents watching me play soccer as a small. And Mendel being the hardest cheerleader! Also how often to Jason and Whizzer talk? What do they talk about? I want these answers. And Marvin quit your flirting, you almost look cute.

"A Day in Falsettoland" – The first song I ever heard, cause Tony’s. Love everything of this song. No notes. Y’all keep being great

"The Fight" / "Everyone Hates His Parents" – I love how over it Mendel gets. His relationship with Jason is one of my fav things in this. “I’m a psychiatrist! Get lost!”

"What More Can I Say" – Who knew? If you’re sweet and not controlling things are nicer in your relationships.

"Something Bad Is Happening/More Racquetball " – DAMN YOU ACT 2 CURSE! WHY YOU ALWAYS GOTTA BE SAD! And hey, Tracie Thoms in a musical that actually shows some of the fucked up that was the AIDS crisis? First time for everything! (Ok that’ll be my only knock on Rent) And fuck you for reprising welcome to falsettoland, I wasn’t ready to get teary yet. Whizzer’s little “I’m sorry”

"Holding to the Ground" – One of the things I like about this show is it doesn’t make anything easy and it lets its characters be real people. Trina is in a fucked up position when it comes to Whizzer, but she still feels some concern and I like that there’s a whole song for how off everything still feels for her.

"Days Like This" – Songs this bittersweet shouldn’t be allowed to be this pleasant sounding. Everyone is just so kind in this song I don’t know what to do with it but I’m gonna keep staying in this sort of state of almost crying.

"Cancelling the Bar Mitzvah" – Ugh Trina and Mendel are trying so hard.

"Unlikely Lovers" – And then Whizzer got better and they all moved in together to be fantastic gay housemates. Yep. That’s what happened. Seriously how’d we get from Thrill of First Love to here?

"Another Miracle of Judaism" – God: the big psychiatrists in the sky

"Something Bad is Happening (Reprise)" - Look when I was mad at Marvin last act I didn’t actually want him to die..

"You Gotta Die Sometime" – Again not the kind of song I’ve heard Rannells do before and I love it. I think that’s what messes with me about this musical, it stars two people I’ve mostly only seen do comedy and now they’re fucking with me and making me cry, it’s rude.

"Jason's Bar Mitzvah" – Oh fuck you Jason. Not really, you’re a doll I just don’t like crying in my room alone at like 4 am. Son of Trina, son of Marvin, son of Whizzer, son of Mendel.

"What Would I Do?" – I was ok until Whizzer started singing too. Then I was less ok.

"Falsettoland (Reprise)" - Marvin finally falling apart was hard, and was he crying because he lost Whizzer or because he knows Jason is going to lose him soon too?

I really enjoyed this, I’m glad I finally listened to/watched it all. As somebody who used to really not enjoy musicals besides Phantom of the Opera in middle school, I always like finding more songs to love. If for some reason you scanned through this and want me to force myself to do it again with another musical, toss a title at me.

#musical #broadway #musical review #Falsettos

19 notes · View notes

docholligay · 5 years

Text

paksenarrion-reader replied to your post “Don’t rb but”

I think that, in the end, is what caused me to get into Overfic so fully and with such abandon -- that the characters are so open to any interpretation we overlay on them, that we can do what we want and very little of it will be wrong. Widow is just a very vivid example of what I do with them all.

I’ve read this from a few people and I agree--it’s such a strength of the universe where there’s just enough to hook you, and then you can create it all.

Pak wrote an essay and I responded with an essay so it’s behind a cut ahaha

paksenarrion-reader

replied to your post

“Don’t rb but”

resident "I'm Always A Slut For Sniping" main here, I have many faves for many different reasons and I am about to talk about some of them but divided in two main groups for the reason why I got so attached to them, why I ended up so invested in them.

first group started out as: Blizz tells me who they are. I play them a little -- get a feel for them, listen to their voice, learn how to move them. I sit up over my fic notebooks, legs crossed, hands laced, I look Blizz in the face, and politely say, "No." this half involves Widowmaker obviously, since my approach to her is literally *throws canon over shoulder* "I'm going to let you make sense", but most notably also Symmetra. maybe it's because I'm a writer myself, but these two (and many others I care less about) even as the sketch! are wasted potential! bad writing! they could be so much better! and by fuck I am going to let them no matter what canon says!

Oh my god, Yes, Blizz’ approach to Windowmaker’s backstory is one entire “ahahahaha NO.” for me. Cannot. Sexy brainwashed is not a thing I can handle, and it removes all of the interest and complexity that I think she could have. i’d rather have her be a person with motivations that suck, or are hypocritical, or that she herself sometimes doesn’t understand, and REFUSES to understand.

I think that many/most characters aren’t really done a ton of favors by the canon by virtue of its sketchiness and also some HMM INTERESTING choices. I never got into Symm, but I know so many people that have, and something about her speaks to them, so I don’t doubt that I’m just missing some peice that allows a person to fundamentally connect with a character. Which I think is another strength of Overwatch: There are so many characters that represent so many facets of humanity that there’s a lot of room to see yourself.

paksenarrion-reader

replied to your post

“Don’t rb but”

what got me to the point of caring about them enough to pluck them out of canon's hands is a mixture of the sketch space they occupy, of the feel they give through small and delicious details like what they speak, how they speak, how they move, of their gameplay since I enjoy characters with mid-to-high skill floor and high skill ceiling (see: I'm always a slut for sniping), and of the prism of my thoughts and experiences that I view them through

It’s always so interesting to me when a character’s gameplay inspires love for the character themselves, because, not being a gamer, I really can’t relate. It’s something I hadn’t considered when posing this question because it’s so far out of my wheelhouse, but of course a character you enjoy playing is likely going to find ways to be appealing to you otherwise.

paksenarrion-reader

replied to your post

“Don’t rb but”

the second half are characters that other fans got me invested in. I didn't connect to some characters At All, in the beginning, but as I exist in fandom spaces I see people who did talk about the hows and whys of how they did, and I set my prism down to borrow someone else's lens, so to speak. that can of course go two ways, it can be either "that is a terrible take and I'm going to do better" like what dragged me to caring about Reaper or to loving to hate Moira. Or it can be "that's amazing, I'll take fifteen, three of them gift-wrapped" like when trans players/fans talked about trans Hana, or you talked about Jewish Mercy, or fans of colour talked about dweeby, loving, soft Fareeha

I think this is where fandom can be such an interesting and fun thing--my great goal in life is of course to make everyone realize Tracer is compelling and not a naive idiot, and I TRY VERY HARD TO ACHIEVE THAT--but sometimes what makes me take a second look at a character is reading other people’s ideas and thoughts, seeing what they could be if you decided to turn your head just slightly to the left. It’s often interesting to me even if I can’t “get there” myself.

paksenarrion-reader

replied to your post

“Don’t rb but”

Widow in particular ended up as my main girl for a wide mixture of small reasons -- I still remember, when I played her for the first time in a few consecutive matches almost two years ago, that her calmly vicious manner and how she very quietly singsongs "come oooooout~" at her targets and how she makes EVERYTHING personal, left me sitting there a little distraught and thinking "somebody hold her hand" she has a very strong feel, even as the roughly-drawn sketch of a character canon left her as, a feel that she despises everything and everyone and she will make everyone suffer and it will never be enough to make her feel better.

I also, it will come as no surprise to you, enjoy thinking about Widowmaker as a person who does bad things and makes bad choices and can be petty and mean and she’s not even sure she wants to be, but here she is, DOING THAT. Inertia is a hell of a thing. And the more you make the same choice, the easier it is to keep making that choice.

that feel was enough for me to latch onto and throw "brainwashed and crazy" over my shoulder and replace it with "traumatized and too proud to admit she needs help and too used to despair to be able to afford any sort of hope anymore" and start building. I made her into a horrible person by virtue of horrible circumstances and choices to be made between bad and worse, into someone who lies and is steadfast and remorseless and honourable and tool and taskmaster, and I enjoy letting myself explore who she could have been before and what must have happened to have her back away into the safety of becoming this, and I enjoy writing scenes where I let her heal and it doesn't mean erasing anything of what I had put her through

You’re much kinder to Amelie’s general nature than I am--I think she probably had some bad things happen to her, but I also think a lot of her choices were her own fault--but yes, it’s really important to me that she’s choosing Talon, that this is the way she sees herself as interacting with the world and she’s not really compelled toward change. I see her as not unlike Ana in this sense. She makes shitty choices and sometimes is like “wow that was shitty” but either can’t or won’t or likely both do anything to change that. But what I think is interesting about Widow, in what’s I’ve read, is no two people seem to read her the same way, and I think that’s what interests me most about her.

paksenarrion-reader

replied to your post

“Don’t rb but”

I made the character of Widowmaker into something that appeals to me personally, instead of leaving the empty husk of a character that Blizz handed us, in my hands she's wrong and complicated and INTERESTING, and some of her is myself exorcising my demons through creative work and some of her is myself exercising empathy and imagination

I think this is what so many of us who get into Overwatch really do and feel with our faves--Mercy (and Yael) is the written experience of hours of Jewish handwringing every time I think about something for too long, or when I reflect on the reasons we’re still here despite the fact that we should have been wiped out several times over. Tracer is my experience of being an impulsive and quick little ADHD shit, and what would it feel like to know that the way I was and my brain worked was pretty roundly considered to be a part of my personality and loved versus constantly being seen as a problem to be solved? Pharah is the experience of seeing something that’s been tinted, and going, “no, they can’t have that. i’m going to make it into what it always should have been.” And so on. I know a lot of us who write, write about things and ideas and experiences that we need to give voice to but can’t when it’s US, and I think that’s pretty clear in a lot of OW stuff.

#paksenarrion-reader

8 notes · View notes

siriuslymoon · 6 years

Text

Christmas Party - An Alfie Solomon’s Imagine

Requested: yes

Pairings: Alfie Solomon’s x reader

Warnings: naked Alfie, kinda heated at the end ? But not really cause I can’t write that

{festive prompt 13- “do all your Christmas parties include nudity? Or is this just a special treat” Alfie Solomon’s}

(Gif from @kinghardy)

I was going to make y/n the nude partier but for some reason my brain went a different route, I have no idea what this is. And If anyone wants an alternative fic where y/n is the nude partier then Just let me know.

~ Enjoy x 💕

No one was more shocked than you, to find out that the big, bad, scary, and not to mention Jewish- Alfie Solomon’s, hosted annual Christmas parties.

And it wasn’t a small gathering either. Part of you thinks he uses them mainly for business, what with inviting clients and rivals alike, but another part thinks that Alfie really does enjoy it. He likes the flashy lights and fancy drinks, he likes the smart clothes and happy guests. Even if he does keep his involvement fairly minimal.

It’s a whole other side of Alfie, and it’s one that you enjoyed seeing.

And one that you were currently being held up from seeing.

While you helped out with Alfie’s business predominantly, you still liked to have a small normal job, so you worked a few days a week in an actual bakery.

At first you took the job just to mess with Alfie, but you liked cooking new treats and dealing with money and meeting customers, so you kept it.

What you didn’t enjoy was your grumpy boss holding you back from Alfie’s Christmas party.

“Sir, I’ve already been here for two hours longer than I’m supposed to. My boyfriend is holding his Christmas party tonight “ You explained, slowly starting to pack up your things.

“I thought your boyfriend was Jewish” he pointed out, eyes squinted as though he was catching you out on some massive lie.

“He is, its just more of a seasonal business thing I guess” you smiled before pausing “...although that is a very good point sir, maybe I’ll ask him about it later. Hey! You’re Jewish right? Do you never have Christmas parties? I mean you have us selling Christmas treats so maybe-“

“Y/n” he sighed, already shutting off he lights.

“Just go be with your boyfriend.... and I hope for his sake he’s already drunk”

You didn’t have time to be offended, you quickly ran to Alfie’s house to get changed before calling Ollie for a car.

Even after months of being together, Alfie still had your safety as his top priority. In fact the longer you’re together, the worse he gets.

But you didn’t mind too much, not when it was small things like him insisted you are driven to gatherings once it gets late.

Soon enough you were brought to a building you didn’t even know existed and were met by Ollie who was stood by the door.

“Hey Ollie!” You wrapped him in a hug, crinkling your nose and the present scent of alcohol.

He chuckled, noticing your expression.

“Yeah about that, you should see Alfie”

He headed up the steps towards the entrance, you hiked up your dress skirts and ran after him, careful not to break your neck in the process.

“What do you mean?” You asked, stepping with him inside.

You were greeted by the overwhelming scent of sweet and bitter alcohol mixing in the air, sped up by the breaths of smoke.

It didn’t look too Christmas themed, there were a few gently glowing lights around the room but for the most part It was simply a big mingling.

You wondered if that was because of Alfie’s religion, not that you ever judged or resented him for being slightly wary when it came to celebrating Christmas.

Your eyes scanned the room, seeing a few familiar faces and a lot of strangers.

You got a couple nods, and fewer waves and you could hear the whispered introductions of people announcing you as ‘Alfie’s girl’ not that you minded that title.

But as you looked over the sea of people, you couldn’t help but notice one major absence.

“Um Ollie?” You were still stood by the door, the slight draft If was emitting causing your hair to stand on end, your hands running over your arms.

“Yes miss y/l/n?”

“Where is Alfie?”

He nodded for you to follow him, so you did.

“The party actually started a few hours earlier this year, meaning it’s been in full swing for quite some time and- well he’s a little bit pissed y/n” he told you as you made your way through the hall and disappeared down a corridor.

“Drunk? I thought he uses this as business? You know gets clients and rivals all drunk and festive so they blabber “ you remembered some of what Alfie had told you and some of what you and worked out yourself.

“Exactly, but he was feeling particularly jolly today and so he has shut himself away until you arrived to ensure it isn’t he who ends up blabbing about business”

Ollie stopped in front of a door, raising a hand to indicate that this was the very one your boyfriend was behind.

“You aren’t coming in?”

Ollie paled.

“Just get him dressed and bring him out”

With that he was gone, turning and walking down the dimly lit corridor.

You nodded before freezing.

“Wait what? Ollie why would I dress him!”

When no answer came you realised the only way to find out is to go in.

By the looks of the building it used to be a house, meaning this was most likely some kind of study, your suspicious were proven correct as you cracked opened the door slightly and peered inside to see a grand desk and a deep velvet sofa and-

“Hey! You, pervert!”

You heard Alfie yell, heavy but soft footsteps approaching the door.

And then you were met with Alfie, his eyes softening as they looked upon you.

Your own eyes trailing down his bare broad shoulders, to his smooth chest, his rather pronounced hip bones, the curve of his-

“Alright love, eyes up ‘ere though Yeah “

He smirked, turning and walking back into the room.

You of course watched him walk away, his toned back and muscular shoulders grabbing your attention, the gently sway of his hips as he walked was captivating.

“So,” You shut the door behind you

“Do all your Christmas parties include nudity? Or is this just a special treat” you smirked when he shrugged, head leaning over to a pile of clothes.

“Spilt stuff over ‘em didn’t I” he shook his head himself.

“Tell you what, sobers You Right up that does” he chuckled

“Standing fucking bare in some strange house “ he laughed at himself, the sound making you feel more festive than any cake or Christmas light could.

“Did you at least lock the door?” You asked him, your hand finding his as you stared at the lock on the door.

He looked at your linked hands, then back up at the door.

“Fuck me love, I didn’t even know it ‘ad one. Genius you are” He walked over, locking the door before he returned, naked figure looming over you.

“Alf, why did you lock it? I thought we were going out to the party?” You asked, voice catching in your throat when Alfie pulled you up, his lips attaching themselves to your neck hungrily.

“You look so beautiful you do love “ he mumbled against the skin, in between bites.

You flushed, bringing your hand to the back of his head, scratching your nails against his scalp in a way you knew drove him crazy before pulling his head up to meet yours, lips joining.

He was quick to part your lips and slip his tongue between them, the kiss turning sweet from the lingering alcohol.

He pushed you back til you fell against the sofa, his body immediately covering yours, so close you doubted there was any air left between you.

His hands traveled down your chest, and torso until they arrived at your waist, and he started bunching the material of your dress up.

“Didn’t realise this was a naked Christmas party” you smirked at him, looking up at him with your flushed cheeks and swollen lips, in a way which had him hot and dizzy.

“Got to get you with the programme love, ain’t we” he grinned back, pecking your lips before returning to hiking up your dress skirts.

“I sure do hope this didn’t happen every year“ you told him sternly, the implication of him with other girls, even when coming from you, made your blood boil and your eyes burn.

“No, you’re just too beautiful love, can’t hrlp myself can I” he grunted hating the thought of any girl who wasn’t you.

You smiled, bringing him back in for a kiss, this one sweeter than the rest, slow and un-rushed.. meaningful.

“It better happen from now on though” you grinned at his noise of agreement, before going back to kissing him.

#peaky blinders #peaky blinders imagine #alfie Solomon #alfie solomon's #Alfie Solomon’s Imagine #alfie solomons imagine #Alfie Solomon’s x reader #tommy shelby #Arthur Shelby #john shelby #Finn Shelby #Polly gray #Michael gray #Christmas prompts #blinderblood

280 notes · View notes

resonanteye · 4 years

Photo

via http://resonanteye.net/the-new-american-death-cult-part-3-my-sister-didnt-even-like-trump/

The New American Death Cult, part 3: my sister didn't even LIKE trump

We all know someone who’s seemed normal but who’s somehow gotten involved in reposted propaganda and nonsense about this stuff.

I am talking about someone who isn’t a Limbaugh listener. A yoga teacher, a coffee roaster, an office worker. Someone who isn’t even all that political really, but who is nevertheless posting heavily photoshopped images about “saving children” with random celebrities hovering like demons in the background. How did these people get sucked into a strange cult? How did regular people end up believing an antisemitic trope about “baby brains”? Why is Nevaeh even aware this shit exists?

IF ONE, THEN ALL

It starts with that tag. “save * children”.

Most people are really glad to feel like they’re doing something useful to battle against child abuse. We all hate seeing people get away with abuse, assault, or molestation just because they’re rich. Even people who understand that trump fits this category, agree that anyone who hurts a child should be stopped. It’s universal. It’s a common point of agreement.

Yes, they have written entire guides about how to involve people in the Death Cult. This one is relatively easy to find, but there are entire discord and app chats full of ideas on this. They’re constantly discussing how best to brainwash and argue people into the cult.

So this common, universal point of agreement is the entry into it all. It’s a small step to next start picking out random celebrities who actually HAVE hurt someone- Polanski, Woody Allen, Weinstein, and then extend it to another celebrity. There’s an inexorable drag towards the wilder side of things, but they’ll go slowly, pulling people in bit by bit. I hate to use the “frog in boiling water” analogy but it’s what they are doing.

ALWAYS BE CLOSING

They’re pretty much following core cult recruiting tactics.

Another route of entry is anti-vaccine beliefs. Admittedly, people who are fully against any vaccines are usually always convinced of further weirdness that slots nicely into the Death Cult:

they think modern medicine is a lie

they think “big pharma” wants to kill kids

they are terrified of their own kids being hurt or defective

they don’t care about 3rd world children who still die from polio

often they already believe conspiracy theories about Bill Gates, random politicians and celebrities

Once they’ve gotten on board with the idea that the elite are hurting kids, their fears are pretty easy to redirect.

Now, the red flags here aren’t that they think powerful or rich people hurt kids or assault women. They do. We can look directly at the cases that have come to light and see that there is a grain of truth. Epstein did in fact traffick and rape kids. He did have friends in high places, and they were involved- trump, prince Andrew, Acosta, Dershowitz.

Thinking there’s conspiracy to hide this is also true. ICE has “lost” thousands of children from their facilities. Many were trafficked and yes, have been found. ICE officials have been arrested, and convicted of both trafficking and covering it up. Acosta brokered a deal to keep Epstein’s clients from being charged with sex crimes against children, in 2007 when Epstein was first charged. This could be called a cover-up. Hell, Weinstein had an army of lawyers to help him get away with it. Trump has hundreds of settlements he’s paid. Sure, this is a thing that happens.

These things do happen. And so, you’ve taken that first small step. Each step along this path gets harder to believe, but is only a small step from the last.

Let’s follow the logic.

1. children are being trafficked (ok, true)

2. by powerful people who are protected (sometimes, sure)

3. they’re celebrities and democrats (at this point, people will start to argue about if trump is included. they’ll admit to Roy Moore, or a random Congressional staffer- but not to trump. they will not want to hear about ICE or cartels or anything but white, American kids)

4. Depending on how gullible they think their target is, they’ll either go step by step through a list of people they think are involved, or they’ll jump right to Hillary Clinton. (pizzagate). they’ll spend as much time as necessary inventing “proof” of pizzagate.

5. this is where the baby brains will get mentioned.

6. sometimes, they’ll go a step further into “lizard people”, aliens, The Cabal, etc.

By the time people have been to, and accepted, step 4, it’s too late to get them out of it. They’re indoctrinated. They’re cult members. They may be only tenuously involved but cults are incredibly hard to leave once inside.

You can use any common agreement to get from the start to step one. “Bill Gates is hurting kids with vaccines” works just as well. step 2 becomes “vaccines are made out of aborted fetuses” (not true, but some believe it). etc

The anti-Semitism of all this doesn’t seem obvious unless you’ve read about the history of medicine, and specifically about previous plagues. Since the plague of Justinian, “blood libel” has been a way of accusing Jewish people of causing plagues.

It was this accusation that fueled the flagellants in 1349, too- another cult that was massive, and that took hold during a plague. I feel that the modern Death Cult is related to the flagellants in a lot of ways. These are very old, very common thoughts for a lot of right wing or christian people. Anti-semitism is still very active, a very real force in the world, just like racism or sexism.

It is not about Israel. It’s about Jewish people themselves, and is a threat to them. Usually this kind of talk is coded.

“Lizard people”, “Soros”, “Rothschild”, and the claims of blood libel all are examples.

This is where your regular, everyday receptionist ends up. After simply wanting to do something to “help kids”, they follow the train of crazy deep into the cult, and end up thinking lizard people are eating baby brains. By the time they’re this deep, they also tend to believe trump is some kind of undercover hero, not a serial abuser at all. They will lie or avoid proof from outside the cult- anything not sanctioned by the cult is “fake” or “part of it”.

They’ll be using thought-stopping phrases, whenever they feel doubt about what they’re doing they will repeat these. They seem like they’re directed at you, but they’re not. These phrases are self directed and are repeated almost a mantra, to quash any feelings of doubt or discomfort with cognitive dissonance they’re having. “Wake up”, “Do your research”, “You’ll see”, “Watch and wait”, “Trust the plan”.

These are said in order to stop themselves from thinking about the cult AS a cult. They’re not directed at you.

This is why your somewhat normal friend is now a rabid trump supporter involved in antimask parades. Sorry. …

#death cult #deep dive #new death cult #q #trump #911 #deep thoughts #politics #wtc 9/11 einstruzende neubauten artistic poetic terrori

0 notes

weirdbynorthwest · 7 years

Text

Notes on Northern Exposure, S01E02: “Brains, Know-How and Native Intelligence”

We begin the episode with Chris Stevens delivering his first ever “Chris in the Morning” address on the show, in Cicely’s local radio station, KBHR, or “K-Bear”. Why “K-Bear”? Well, firstly, it’s customary for radio stations to be given easily pronounceable names inspired by their initials, for the sake of marketing. But there’s an additional fun fact regarding this particular station’s origins: both KBHR and its nick-name belong to a real-life local radio station in Big Bear City, California. Surrounded by the Alaskan wilderness, Cicely undoubtedly has more than its fair share of bears, so the nickname remains appropriate.

The subject of Chris’s speech, and a significant chunk of the episode, is the 19th century poet Walt Whitman, an American literary giant and one of Chris’s leading artistic inspirations. But not everyone approves of Whitman. Chris recalls being “blindsided by the raging fist of [his] incarcerator,” at the juvenile detention home where he spent his juvenile delinquent days. This stern authority figure told Chris, in no uncertain terms, “that Walt Whitman's homoerotic, unnatural, pornographic sentiments were unacceptable and would not be allowed in an institution dedicated to reforming the ill-formed.” Whitman’s sexuality has been the subject of endless debate, but it’s generally accepted that he was either homo- or bisexual. That Whitman, “that great bear of a man, enjoyed the pleasures of other men came as a great surprise” to Chris, leading him to “reconsider the queers [he] had previously kicked around.” Yes, Chris wasn’t always the open-minded liberal we otherwise see him as. He was, in his youth, capable of homophobic violence. This makes me, a confirmed homosexual (or “homo-romantic grey-sexual,” if we’re being particular), rather sad. It also makes me more inclined to be wary and critical of Chris in this episode.

Chris reads Whitman’s “When Lilacs in the Dooryard Bloom’d” (1865), a poem written following the end of the American Civil War (1861-1865), during a period of national mourning over the then recent assassination of former president Abraham Lincoln. The poem doesn’t explicitly identify Lincoln, but it’s generally thought that that’s who the poem was about. However, the final line of the first stanza – “And thought of him I love” – may have been presented in this scene in order to underline the topic of Whitman’s sexuality. For Whitman’s clearest expression of homosexual love in verse, one should really examine the “Calamus” sequence of poems written in or before 1859, included in the third edition of Leaves of Grass, originally published in 1855. (I nearly read some to an ex-boyfriend on his birthday once. I regret not doing that. But they were aware of the thought, and I got a lot of love for it, so it balanced out.)

We catch a glimpse of Maurice fishing whilst listening to Chris’s show. He clearly isn’t impressed by all this talk of Whitman enjoying “the pleasures of other men.” Maurice was established as being, at the very least, a sexist and racist bigot in the previous episode, so any homophobia on his part wouldn’t come as a surprise. This still doesn’t prepare the viewer for what Maurice will do next.

Meanwhile, in this week’s instalment of “Will They? Won’t They?’ Joel and Maggie are in the Brick, having a go at each other over plumbing. This argument at least feels as if it springs from a natural cause, compared to last week’s glaringly-contrived-in-order-to-establish-the-formula bickering. Joel is talking to Maggie as his landlord, about a faulty toilet. Maggie teases Joel over his lack of self-reliance: why not try fixing it himself, or go out and fertilise the scenery? She winds up calling him a “helplessness junkie”, an odd turn of phrase he’ll spend half the episode grumbling about and later delight in throwing back at her, when she visits him in his surgery over a self-inflicted knee injury.

Joel’s chauvinism is out in full force again, as he offers to treat any puncture wounds Rick may have received from Maggie walking all over him in her heels. Yecch. And then he comes on to her in a way that fictional characters in a “Will They? Won’t They?” comedy set-up routinely get away with, when he says “you’re clearly attracted to me.” Of course, the show will routinely remind us she is. But in real life, if you said something like that to someone, it would be widely and rightly considered inappropriate. Unlike the utterly irredeemable and thoroughly loathsome Ross Geller in Friends (NBC, 1994-2004), Joel is a genuinely likeable character under all the sexist asshattery the writers insist upon having him say. I hope the situation improves, and soon.

Joel remarks that he’s “not the Grizzly Adams type.” This is a reference to John “Grizzly” Adams, a nineteenth-century mountain man who hunted and trained wild animals (including, you guessed it, “grizzly” bears) for use in zoos, menageries and circuses, from New England to California. An outdoorsman and a showman (he partnered up at one point with another American icon, that jack-of-all-trades P.T. Barnum), “Grizzly” Adams became, in the popular cultural consciousness, an iteration of an American frontiersman archetype, akin to Davy Crockett. Joel does not resemble that archetype at all – but Brick proprietor Holling Vincoeur, according to Joel, does. We’ll see how that comparison bears out in the episodes and seasons to come.

Meanwhile, over at K-Bear, the “raging fist” of Maurice Minnifield comes raining down on Chris Stevens like the fist of that faceless authoritarian in Chris’s juvenile detention home. I find the violence Maurice inflicts on Chris in this episode jarring. We later learn from Joel that Maurice threw Chris through a plate-glass window. We see bruises and band-aids on Chris’s face, and his arm in a plaster cast. We learn, towards the end of the episode, that Chris snuck in a decent left-hook – but that still, to my mind, doesn’t make up for what might be one of the single most unpleasant things Maurice has done on the show.

And while we’re on the subject of violence, what about Ed’s response to Joel describing his current spat with Maggie? He asks “Did you hit her?” Where did that come from? A more uncharacteristic thing for Ed to say – even just two episodes into the show – is hard to imagine. Is it meant to suggest that Ed grew up in an environment where domestic violence was the norm? Or that Cicely’s foremost cinephile learnt everything he knows about human interaction from the movies? I don’t know. I just know that it’s a weird, discomfiting line.

Ed introduces the episode’s secondary plot, which is about Ed’s uncle Anku (Frank Sotonoma “Grey Wolf” Salsedo). Ed tells Joel that his uncle is a “witch doctor,” which briefly leads them into a variation on the famous “Who’s on First?” comedy routine.

Ed’s uncle is seriously unwell – as in, there’s blood in his urine. And blood in your urine is nothing to be sniffed at. 11 years ago I had a urinary tract infection thanks to the onset of type-one diabetes. The pain was unreal. Imagine passing red hot needles instead of water. TMI? Ah, DMY. My point is, it’s not something you can comfortably ignore. And as a doctor, Joel knows it’s not something you can afford to ignore. And so, at Ed’s behest, Joel spends a significant chunk of the episode befriending Anku and trying his best to persuade him to seek medical attention. But, unbeknownst to Anku’s family, Anku has already sought medical attention and learnt that he has prostate cancer. He just needs Joel to pressure him into swallowing his pride as a medicine man before seeking further treatment.

Joel will, in dealing with Anku, realise in an on-screen “eureka!” of an epiphany that pride is the theme binding all the episode’s narrative threads together. Anku’s pride, his own pride, Maggie’s pride, Maurice’s pride, are all wrapped up in a neat little package. Is it too neat, too tidy? Maybe, but I like it. It’s a reassuring sign that Joel’s character won’t remain static, that he’ll gain new insight into the town and its characters, learn new things and continue to develop over the course of the series.

“Keeping it in the family”: Mrs. Anku is played by Armenia Miles, the mother of Elaine Miles, who plays Joel’s secretary, Marilyn Whirlwind. In future episodes, she’ll play Marilyn’s mother.

Anku asks Joel if he’s ever seen the film Little Big Man (dir. Arthur Penn, 1970), in which Dustin Hoffman plays a man who, as a white child, was rescued and raised by a Cheyenne tribe. Is Anku drawing a connection between the Jewish actor and Jewish doctor, to whom he imparts some of his own “native intelligence”?

Joel, after explaining that he can’t keep chasing after Anku, pleads with Ed not to “do this northern brooding thing, I can’t stand Bergman films.” Is Joel intentionally using sophisticated cinema references he knows Ed will get? Because if so, that’s kinda cute. Couple that with Ed watching Joel as he sleeps, and I wonder if anyone, anywhere, at any time, has thought to ship these two characters?

As Maurice takes full control of radio K-Bear we learn he’s a huge fan of musical theatre, something that’s often been depicted as a stereotypical trait of gay men (less so these days, but very much so in the nineties). Is the episode replaying the old, unhelpful cliché that “all homophobes are repressed homosexuals”? I don’t think so. It certainly doesn’t underline or lean into that idea. As much as Maurice’s showtunes are driving the residents of Cicely crazy, he’s never mocked for the fact that he enjoys showtunes.

At a town meeting, angry Cicelians call for the reinstatement of Chris Stevens as radio presenter. Maurice isn’t having it. “One of our own, Chris Stevens, made a mistake,” he “did a bad thing” and “he had to pay for it.” What was that mistake? We get an answer, of sorts, when Maurice returns to the airwaves the next day and attempts to explain his recent behaviour. It’s a speech that causes the entire town to stop in its tracks, suggesting we should stop in our tracks too and take what Maurice is saying seriously.

Maurice recalls his devastation upon discovering, as a child, that his hero John Wayne didn’t do his own stunts. The gist of it is, Maurice doesn’t want his heroes to be humanized, to have their weaknesses exposed. “Sure, we’re all human,” but do we have to be reminded that our heroes are human too? Maurice is an advocate of the “Great Man” theory of history, the idea that the greatest achievements in human history were brought about by great men (and with his ego, he no doubt fancies himself one). Maurice wants his heroes to remain on their marble pedestals as untainted paragons of manly virtue. “We need our heroes. We need men we can look up to. Believe in. Men who walk tall.” Of course it doesn’t occur to Maurice, just as it doesn’t occur to most advocates of the “Great Man” conception of history, that those heroes could include women or minorities.

Maurice considers Walt Whitman a hero. Though “Walt Whitman was a pervert,” in Maurice’s bigoted view, “he was the best poet that America ever produced.” Maurice concedes that Whitman was, most likely, a homosexual. He’d just rather not know or be reminded of that. Because Maurice is a homophobic bigot who believes that homosexuality is a weakness, a character flaw that should be hidden from view, never to be acknowledged. But just because Maurice believes that “there are damn few of us who deserve to be called heroes” and that, despite his own bigotry, Whitman deserves the title of hero, doesn’t make Maurice less wrong or less of a bigot.

And yet, as the speech prompts Chris to go and apologise to Maurice, the episode seems to come down firmly on Maurice’s side of the argument. Not that there’s actually been an argument. No one in town has attempted to argue the opposite of Maurice’s position – that a knowledge of Whitman’s probable homosexuality does nothing to diminish him or his work. The implicit and unfortunate assumption in this episode is that it does diminish Whitman. That’s why we have Chris apologising to Maurice, saying that he also doesn’t want people reading Walt Whitman for “the wrong reasons.” What reasons are those, Chris? The only reason suggested in the episode comes from Ruth-Anne, when she tells Joel that all the Whitman has been taken out of the library as there’s “nothing like an interesting sex-life to get people reading.”

So, is Chris suggesting that he doesn’t want people reading Whitman because of his sexuality? Why not? Whitman’s “Calamus” poems meant a lot to me when I was younger, and I would never have discovered them had I not heard about Whitman’s sexuality and the poems’ reputation. I see in them a beautiful expression of the romantic feelings I then had for my ex-boyfriend, and I can’t read them now without getting misty-eyed. Like a lot of great poetry, the poems powerfully describe feelings of romantic/erotic longing, the distinction being that they clearly describe feelings of romantic/erotic longing between men. It isn’t “subtext.” You don’t have to “read between the lines.” It’s there, in the words on the page. Whitman’s sexuality informs his writing, even if his writing isn’t explicitly sexual.

Unfortunately, in the nineties there persisted this idea that homosexuality was something to be guarded against, lest it corrupt our children or our own imaginations when engaged in the intellectual enjoyment of nineteenth-century verse. Depending on where you are in the world, it’s an attitude that still persists or even prevails. And this episode of Northern Exposure appears to embody it.

For me, Whitman’s “Calamus” poems are a powerful reminder of a time in my life when I was young and happy and in love. But Chris appears to be suggesting that I’m reading Whitman wrong. Well… Fuck you Chris. There’s nothing wrong with highlighting the fact that Walt Whitman was likely gay or bi, or that a significant number of his poems appear to have been informed by his own homoerotic desire. It can do a lot of people – gay or bisexual people, for example – a lot of good to know that people who felt the way they do existed in the 19th century, and that they wrote beautiful verse you could share with a loved one.

It should be clear by now that, unlike Maurice, I don’t believe it’s a mistake to humanize our heroes. Knowing Mark Twain loves cats humanizes him. In no way does it diminish my love of Mark Twain (but then I’m a cat person, so I’m biased). Other than the very worst literary critics, who really wants to see the likes of Twain and Whitman reduced to cold, lifeless marble statues in the Pantheon of the American Literary Canon? It does us no harm, either, to learn the personal and political beliefs of our heroes, especially if we don’t want people thinking we share certain of those beliefs. Hero worship is problematic in general, but it’s impossible for us not to admire people, to have our own personal heroes. But as we grow and change over the course of our lives, we shouldn’t be afraid to update that list.

In the course of its run, Northern Exposure introduced a gay male couple; confirmed that its founders, Cicely and Roslyn, were a lesbian couple; and was the second US TV show to feature a gay wedding (the first being Roc [Fox, 1994-1994]). Northern Exposure was not only on the right side of history, it was consistently ahead of its time. If I’ve been especially hard on this episode, it’s because I know how far it falls short of the show’s future accomplishments.

2 notes · View notes