#(a reading list as wide as the pacific)

[anamelessfool]

I imagine after Primo puts young Copia to bed Nihil wanders in and wakes him up. Sits on the edge of the bed, wide eyed and excited.

"I was reading just now... Did you know that the Blue Whale, the largest animal to ever live on this planet, emits a sound so deep that it is mostly unheard but can travel across the entire Pacific Ocean?"

Copia blinks, bleary eyed but polite.

Nihil continues, his Infernal Eye bright and illuminated in the dark. "And humpback whales--you know humpback whales don't you, boy-- have family songs. Over centuries they teach their family the song, can you believe it? That's just...that's just far out, isn't it?"

Copia glances quickly at his quilt, debating if he should just flop over and ignore the old man.

"These family songs can be linked all the way back to the ancestral portals of Atlantis, code across the centuries, the Akashic records! The Atlanean intrrdimensional knowledge, my boy---"

"Nihil, what are you doing?" Primo is at the open door now, a practiced frown across his face. "You can't just...wake a kid up. We've been over this. They need their sleep."

"Terzo enjoyed it," Nihil says back defensively.

"Actually, he--" Primo catches himself and displays a thin smile. "You know what Dad, I want to hear about whales. Come on, I'll put on a fire and we can talk about the Atlanteans all you want."

my fic list

#ghost fandom #ao3 author #ghost scenes from the void #the band ghost #ghost band fic #ghost band headcanons #anamelessfool writes #papa nihil #papa emeritus i #cardinal copia #copia my beloved #i am never not writing flashbacks

[reasonsforhope]

Is it true some parts will be under water in 2025? I'm kinda of worried cause someone told me about it bc it was on the news

Eh, not really. Like, technically, but that's a very dramatic way to put it.

What that person told you about was probably this prediction, which says that some roads on some of the Florida Keys might be underwater by 2025.

Does that suck? Yes. But it's also pretty limited in scope.

(And by the way, that's probably not "underwater all the time." There will probably be a number of years of "the roads will be underwater at high tide specifically." I can't currently find a source on this, but that's how tides work, and the Florida Keys article does specifically mention them as a main problem.)

The areas in danger first are pretty universally small, very low islands. Actually, a dozen or so small islands have already gone underwater in the Pacific Ocean, but very importantly, none of those islands were inhabited.

They were mostly small reef islands (that is, the entire island is exposed coral reef detritus) and other uninhabited shoals. Mostly, they were so small scientists had to check old satellite images to even figure out that they disappeared. Literally, we're talking about chunks of land that are just 100 square meters/300 square feet. Again, not great, but still very limited in scope.

As this Live Science article thankfully explains, it's pretty unlikely that any countries at all will disappear before 2100.

Also, just because land is below sea level doesn't mean it will be underwater, and there are very real steps we can take to defend a lot of endangered cities/islands.

For example:

Much of the Netherlands is already below sea level, but the country isn't disappearing, because the Dutch have put a lot of work into building and maintaining coastal defenses.

Multiple surveys (including the one that found the missing islands in Micronesia) also found that not all low-lying islands are vulnerable to erosion and flooding. This is because many islands are protected by mangrove forests, lagoons, or both

Mangrove reforestation in particular is genuinely a super effective anti-flooding strategy that is being deployed pretty widely, and is expected to increase a lot in the coming years. Mangroves are effective at not only preventing short-term flooding, but also mitigating sea-level increases (in part by preventing erosion)

Some islands, esp Pacific Islands, have actually grown during the past couple decades, not shrunk. It really depends on what the island is made up of. Not all land is automatically doomed

You can read more about how sinking countries are fighting back here, and the lessons we can learn from them:

-via Time, June 13, 2019

And finally, and this is good news for reasons I'll explain in a second:

Some of the largest and wealthiest cities in the world are at the top of the danger list. (Note: the predictions at that link are based on some fairly severe warming predictions. They do NOT necessarily reflect what's going to happen or when.)

The cities that are going to be in danger the soonest (still away btw) include New York, London, San Francisco, Tokyo, and Dubai. Lots of very rich people in those cities! Who would really like to not have to move (any of their ten different homes lol)

So, flooding aside, we're going to (by necessity) get a lot better at figuring out the quickest, cheapest, most scalable, and most effective types of coastal defenses real fast.

Are rich countries going to be way more able to get strong coastal defense systems up quickly? Yes. Does that suck? Sure fucking does!! But these solutions don't all require a lot of money or tech to implement, even at a large scale, especially when it's local communities driving the effort.

And, importantly, when rich countries pour a ton of money into figuring this out, that will hugely expand our understanding of what techniques work best, why, and how best to deploy them in different situations. Unlike physical structures, that's valuable knowledge that can be shared very, very widely.

And any technology that comes out of this is going to work like solar panels and other green energy: as more people use it, it will get cheaper and cheaper. Probably really quickly.

So, all told, no one's going to be swallowed up in the next few years. We have time to work on this and a lot of people are already doing so.

Mostly, experts predict that the first wave of large-scale issues will be happening around 2050.

Three decades doesn't sound like enough time, in the face of something like this. But you know what? Responses to climate change are speeding up exponentially, and different types of responses are multiplying and magnifying each other.

We went from inventing flight to landing on the moon in just 66 years.

I wouldn't count us out of the climate change fight yet.

(...I wouldn't count on retiring to Florida either, though)

#Anonymous #sea level rise #ocean #micronesia #pacific islander #mangrove #flood #flood mitigation #ask #me #hope #it does suck but I also really do think there is hope #this post was supposed to be like 2-3 paragraphs how did it turn into an entire essay #I have too many words disease #too much nuance #hope yall appreciate the extra context lol

[techs-ass]

Shark Sundays: Epaulette Shark

Hello, hello! Welcome to my Shark Sundays post where every week I let people pick a shark that I then just kind of info dump about on Sundays. This week's shark winner is the Epaulette shark!

Now, please remain seated for the whole ride and try not to throw popcorn at the narrator, they're very sensitive.

Conservation Status: Least Concerned

This adorable little sea pup is the Epaulette shark or Hemiscyllium ocellatum! Their base body color is a creamy or slightly brownish hue and marked with widely spaced dark brown spots. The Epaulette shark gets its name from the very large, white-margined black spot behind each pectoral fin, which kinda looks like decorative military epaulettes. These little guys are one of the smaller species of sharks growing at a maximum of 27 to 35 inches long (70-90 cm) and living for around 20 to 25 years. They can be found in shallow tropical water at around the depth of 131 ft. (40 m) in the western Pacific Ocean usually near New Guinea and Australia.

The Epaulette shark feeds at low tide and is most active during dusk and dawn. They hunt for food by pushing their snout into the sand and shuffling around, once the prey is located they will thrash their body around to catch it. The way they chew their food is actually kinda cute as they'll chew it with little bits sticking out of their mouth. Speaking of prey and eating, these guys eat things that are somehow tinier than they are, mostly feeding on crustaceans, small fish, and polychaete worms. The adults will usually eat shrimp and crabs while the juveniles will mostly eat worms and fish. Though both of them use suction feeding!

Now because these little cuties are usually found in warm, shallow waters they regularly interact with humans. If you happen to see one in the water, don't panic! The most these guys might do is nip at your toes if you wiggle 'em too much but otherwise, they're completely harmless and have no recorded attacks on humans.

Fun Fact: Some Epaulettes are actually kept as pets. They thrive pretty well in smaller environments and are relatively docile besides the occasional little bite to their caretakers.

Now that we've gotten past the basics now I can tell you about the most fascinating thing about Epaulettes. Are you ready? Cause you gotta be ready for this fact. It's a really cool fact. Are you sitting down? Not drinking anything? Ok, ok here it is:

Epaulette sharks can walk on dry land for up to 98 ft. (30 m) and survive hypoxia - a deficiency of oxygen- for two. whole. hours.

Yeah, you read that correctly. The Epaulette SHARK can walk!!! on land!!! Look at this gif and tell me it's not the coolest shit you've ever seen.

Look at him go!! AHH!! *shakes you aggressively* WE ARE LITERALLY WATCHING A MARINE ANIMAL GO THROUGH THE EVOLUTION OF LEARNING TO WALK ON LAND!!! IT COULD POSSIBLY EVOLVE TO BE A FULL LAND ANIMAL WITHIN 30 TO 40 YEARS!!!!

*ahem* Now you may be asking, "But Mal, why are they walking on land?" Well, there are multiple answers to this question. The main one is that they do this to get from tide pool to tide pool allowing them to access new pools to forage for food, or tidepools with better-oxygenated water. They also use this little talent to evade predators! As y'know, other sharks and large fish can't walk on land like this absolute Chad. Scientists believe that with the effects of climate change, this ability will help them to survive drastic changes to their environments.

Speaking of survival, let's talk about the Epaulette's conservation status. Thankfully for these little guys, the IUCN Red List has them as a species under "least concern" This means that there's nothing that really poses any major risk to their species and they're relatively abundant. They do, of course, have natural predators but because it has no value as a commercial food fish and is not considered a sport fish, the Epaulette isn't really targeted by humans except for the aquarium trade. So if you're favorite shark is the Epaulette then you've got pretty much nothing to worry about as the Epaulette's are happy and thriving!

This doesn't mean that humans pose no threat to the Epaulette. Our actions still have a huge impact on their lives! From overfishing to reef destruction, and how toxic the exotic trade can be, we still have to be careful. It's important that we recognize our actions have consequences and not just on us. It's our job to spread awareness and hold each other accountable (especially big corporations who cause most of the damage.)

Aaaand this concludes this week, Shark Sundays! I do hope you enjoyed reading about this cute shark and I hope you learned something new! Thank you so much for stopping by <3 If you want to be put on the tag list for Shark Sundays (including the polls to vote for which shark you want to read about next!) then just let me know in the comments or reblogs!

Tgalist:

#sharks #shark facts #shark conservation #epaulette shark #shark sundays #sea puppies with very sharp teeth #marine life #marine biology #sea life #sharks are just neat little guys #science #conservation

[rosemaeridream]

mercs have mommy issues. || aespa - uar

uchinaga aeri x reader (drabble)

warnings: guns, mentions of murder, reader is kinda insane but not so threatening, aeri just wants to live, reader’s got mommy issues (aeri give them a hug pls), aeri's weirdly calm?, stay away if u have a peanut allergy

A/N: i wrote this at like 2 am while i was delirious and had too many ideas for dialogue so enjoy xoxo also just realised there isn’t much romance it’s more aeri & reader — unless y’all want a second part which i would consider cause i enjoyed writing merc!reader and straightman!aeri (in the comedy sense - aeri’s not actually a straight man … ) anyway, just read and you'll understand what i mean.

Synopsis: Aeri just wants to have a happy and healthy life. So why can’t she get this stupid mercenary of her back. And why on earth do they keep calling her princess???

word count: 3.7k

(this is longer than a drabble but it’s my train of incoherent thoughts so it’s not worth putting in my actual works)

You scramble for the gun that’s placed on the table. It takes you a moment to get there, and by the time your favourite pistol is safely back in your hands, there’s a scream from the other side of the room and a vase is flying straight towards your face.

Dodging it with practised ease, you point your weapon at the new arrival who has just entered the apartment. The girl stands there with her eyes wide, long dark hair falling to rest messily over her shoulders after her overhand throw. She opens her mouth to let out a shriek. 

You physically cringe at the pitchy sound. “Oh my god, stop screaming-”

Clearly your words don’t work because a chair is flung in your direction along with another yell. Sidestepping the chair with a huff, you give her an exasperated glare, returning your gun to its position aimed at her. “I’m not trying to kill you! Jesus Christ-” You twist your wrist so the gun is on its side, a show of pacifism. “Stop throwing things at me.”

The girl pauses to catch her breath, glaring at you suspiciously. Her voice is shaky when she starts to speak. “What are you doing with that gun then?”

You sigh, still pointing it at her. “Okay fine, you’re kinda sort of slightly on my hit list.” Your eyes roll as if this is the kind of thing you deal with on a daily basis. 

She freezes, looking at you with her eyes wide. It’s not exactly a fearful expression, more surprised or astonished. “I’m on your what now?”

“Hit list?” She returns a blank stare.

“Uh… like a group of people to kill.” You explain, slightly confused. Who doesn’t know what a hit list is? Your empty hand goes to your combat jacket, slipping out a piece of paper. “See - hit list.” It has a couple names written underneath each other; the top few are ominously crossed out. 

“And your name!” You point to the scrawl with the gun, a little ‘Aeri <3’ written. Flashing a gleaming smile at her, like the tiny paper is your pride and joy. “I added a heart here because you’re the only one close to my age, and I thought you might appreciate it more than the others.”

“Uh-huh?” She steps backwards slowly, edging towards the door and you’re too caught up in explaining how the hit list works, and who your favourite targets were to notice. “Why am I on your list?” She squeaks out, picking up speed.

You shrug, pulled from examining your list. “I don’t ask questions, it’s not really my list.”

“Who’s is it then? And why am I on it?” She takes another two shaky steps, gaining ground quickly. 

You notice immediately this time, no longer looking at the piece of paper. Firing a warning shot at the door, she flinches and stumbles back in fright, putting distance between her and the door, where there is now a smoking bullet hole. Your trusty silencer makes sure that the shot isn’t too loud, but a gunshot is a gunshot and the firing pin still creates a metallic crack. Returning your gun to aim at her, your eyes light up in excitement. “Don’t move, princess.”

Aeri grimaces, clearly unimpressed with her new nickname. “princess? Don’t call me that, and don’t shoot at the door!” She scans around her apartment and you assume it's to look for other exits. Or maybe that’s just your brain working overtime and she’s just trying to figure out how much of a mess you’ve created in her home.

Feeling slightly guilty about the newly made peephole. “I’m sorry. It’s a lovely door. I’ll make sure the landlord adds in a fisheye lens for the next tennant.” Your words are said with utmost sincerity, clearly the door means a lot to her or so you assume. “Also, I think princess suits you! You’re definitely pretty enough.” You absentmindedly scratch your head with the gun.

Aeri rolls her eyes, as if being called princess was the very last thing in the large pool of nicknames she could have been given. “Whatever, I guess.” Your eyes get caught on the way she bites her lip, perhaps in thought. “Is there any way I can get off the list?”

You hum in thought. “You know, no one’s ever asked me that.” You move your gun down and think about it for a moment. 

“Probably because I’m usually quicker than this.” The words hang in the air between the two of you, just a casual comment for one, almost a threat to the other.

The beat of silence is disturbed by a frustrated sigh. “If you’re gonna kill me, I guess just get it over with, no reason to drag this out any longer.” There’s a flash of thick dark hair as the girl walks past you, slumps down on one of the kitchen stools with a huff, and rests her head on the benchtop, closing her eyes.

You blink, sort of puzzled. No one’s done that before either. Furrowing your brows, you sit down next to your target. The urge to comfort her comes before your trigger happy nature. “Woah, cheer up, princess, this whole accepting death thing is a bit depressing.”

“Well, what do I have left to live for? I’ve never met or seen you before, but if you’re here to kill me then someone clearly wants me dead. There’s no point living like this.” The words come out almost lighthearted but there’s an undertone of fear and sadness. Aeri glances at you from the corner of her eye. “What’s your name anyways?”

Usually you wouldn’t tell anyone your name, but thinking about it, it doesn’t matter anyway. Squinting in decision, you ultimately come up with a compromise. “That’s classified, but you can choose a nickname if you wish.”

Instantly, she throws you a look that screams ‘Seriously, what is wrong with you??’. “Yeah, no thanks.” And yet, Aeri still sits up properly on the stool and the tiniest of smiles forms on her lips. “So… is killing me like… your job? Or a hobby?”

“My Job.” You fiddle with the safety catch on your firearm. “You rack up a pretty price. Nearly 5,000,000,000KRW.”

A couple seconds tick by before Aeri reacts, she doesn’t really seem to register the amount. “Oh wow…” Her eyes move to the benchtop and she seems to deflate a little, if there was a sad sort of squeaky noise she’d 1:1 replicate a balloon. “Why are you still talking to me then? Shouldn’t you be killing me or something?”

“I don’t know.” You respond after a beat, confused by your own actions. Although she looks like the human equivalent of a slinky toy failing to get to the bottom step, you appreciate that she still looks stunning in her last moments. Her hair shiny and clean, jeans hugging her legs nicely and her top feminine but not extensively. “No one’s ever thrown a vase at me before. Or a chair for that matter.” 

Aeri tilts her head and considers you for a moment before she bursts out laughing. “Wait, so you’ve never met someone brave enough to fight back before? What about the other people on your list? Did they all just sit there and accept their fate?”

Your hand waves in the air like what she’s asked is silly. “Everyone else is dead within the first couple minutes. Or like, they beg and cry.” You look around her kitchen, eyes getting caught on the plate with a peanut butter sandwich you were making before Aeri came home. “I got a bit distracted tonight.” You push up from your stool, leaning across the bench with a small ‘sorry’ to pick up the sandwich, then you pull half your mask down to eat.

She stares at you like you're crazy. Maybe you are. “You’re not concerned about me seeing your face?”

“I mean, you’re about to die, sooo…” You bite half of the sandwich slowly. It’s been cut diagonally into triangles just how you like. “Besides, it’s only my mouth. How are you going to identify me from that?”

“I- yeah… I guess so…” Aeri trails off, seemingly lost in thought. Her body relaxes, like there's no trace of fear left, just pure confusion.

“You’re calmer than I thought. Usually people cry a bit. One guy pissed his pants.” Another bite of the sandwich. This time you make a little moan of appreciation. “God, what peanut butter do you use? This is so good.” 

Surprisingly, she smiles at you. “Oh, it’s Skippy. I know, pretty basic but it kinda slaps, right?”

You mull over her words. Skippy wasn’t your usual choice, but maybe you should start buying it. Taking another bite of your peanut butter goodness, crumbs fly as you speak. “You’re sorta cool. I’m starting to feel bad about killing you.”

Aeri sends you a sceptical look, raising her eyebrows. “I don’t doubt you’re going to kill me eventually.” She shifts a bit in on the kitchen stool, her leg bouncing. Whether it be with nervousness or adrenaline, you can’t decide. “So why did you choose not to shoot me the second you saw me?”

“Well, you threw a vase at me. And a chair. It’s hard to aim while you’re dancing around flying objects.” You point out, finishing up one half of the sandwich then moving onto the other. “Do you have jam?”

Eyeing you, she slides off the stool and walks to her fridge, rooting around, then sits back on the stool with a jar of jam. “Don’t eat the whole thing. My mum gave it to me.”

A beat of silence follows as Aeri watches you slather one side of the remaining sandwich in jam. Then she speaks again. “I know I’m not dead yet, but I'm guessing if I were to convince you not to kill me then you’d just go home and find another target, right?”

“Yeah. I actually have another one tonight, but I think I may have missed my window.” You think over your schedule as you spread the jam thickly before closing up the sandwich and taking a bite. “Strawberry… Can I keep your mum?”

Her lips quirk up and she rolls her eyes, almost playfully.

Then there’s a pregnant silence.

After a moment or two of Aeri watching you eat, she tilts her head over to the tap. “So… Do you think you would let me get some water?”

“Are you going to throw the glass at me?” You move the sandwich from your mouth right before you take another bite.

She sighs, rolling her eyes again, this time less playfully. “No, no I won’t throw the glass at you. I promise.” Her arms cross and she leans on the counter. She looks depleted, like there’s no hope. You suppose there isn’t.

Studying her with a sturdy gaze, you decide that even if she does throw the glass at you, it’d be easy to dodge. “Sure then.” But just in case, you put your gun down on the counter close to the jam.

Another round of silence takes over as Aeri fills a glass of water and gradually drinks it. Well, at least until she breaks the silence again. “Are you working alone?” Her body twists so that the question could be addressed directly to you.

“Hm? Like, am I alone here killing you or what?” Your tongue runs over your teeth, poking at little bits of bread caught then you take another rather large bite of the pb and j.

“Yeah, are you alone in this whole assassination thing? Like, do you have a partner or a boss that you report the mission results to?” Aeri moves back across the kitchen and leans close to you. You can feel her watching your every move.

“Nope! All anonymous. I’m really just a goon, I suppose.” Your words are muffled by the amount of bread and peanut butter and jam in your gob. Patting your combat jacket, you pull out a little tube. You can tell she’s about to ask what it is, so you just shake the contents onto your sandwich. Rainbow sprinkles come out. “The blue ones taste the best.”

She blinks twice before muttering something along the lines of ‘Don’t they all taste the same?’ but you’re too happy munching on your sandwich to really hear. 

“So… you’re literally just a mercenary getting orders on a random assassination from a client?” Her eyes light up for a moment. “I could literally just pay you more to not kill me, couldn’t I?”

You scratch your neck, slightly saddened that you’re about to burst her bubble. “You could. But where are you going to get 5 billion won? That’s like 3 mil USD. 5 mil CAD. Maybe… 500 mil Japanese yen?” Squinting you try to convert in your mind.

While you distract yourself with conversion rates, Aeri begins to freak out. “Wait, woah 5 BILLION??!” She steps back in shock. “That’s the reward?” Her hand flies out to grip the counter, trying to contain her panic. “What the fuck have I done to deserve such a high price??”

You shrug, not surprised by her reaction. This was closer to the type of thing all your other targets did. “Don’t ask me, princess. I just get the orders.” Your legs swing back and forth as the sandwich diminishes to a couple bites. 

Aeri glares at you. Assuming it’s about the nickname and not the fact that you’re here to kill her in general, you give her a polite smile. “Well… the money and the orders. I get paid half when I accept.” 

Her eyes widen and she takes a shaky breath. “So you’re getting 500 MILLION for walking into my apartment and having a chat with me?” She processes the information rather well, you think. “I could give you half of what you’ve already got and you can just call it a day, right?”

“Well, I mean, I get the other 500 mil after you’re dead.” You point out. “That would only be 750 mil. I’d be 250 short.” You go to bite your sandwich again and find that there’s nothing left.

“What if I give you the other half then? 500 million?” She takes a couple steps messily in a circle, her hands flailing. “My life is more than just 500 million fucking won, right?”

“I personally believe that lives cost $0 but you do you, princess.” You say nonchalantly, picking up your pistol again.

“Oh my god, why are you calling me princess all the time?” Aeri snaps at you. Then her eyes flick to the gun in your hand and she smiles nervously. “So you’re not accepting my offer? What if I make it better? Half the money, and get you a lifetime supply of Skippy peanut butter?”

Your eyebrows furrow. “You’re pretty like a princess. And you have those Disney eyes.” 

Standing up to stretch, your back crackles. Then your hand moves to slide your mask back down over your lower face, covering your identifiable features up again. 

Aeri watches you do so, almost glaring at you. “Ok, let’s put your attraction to me aside for a second and think about what I’m offering. You take the offer and you can have 500 million in cash, plus a lifetime supply of Skippy peanut butter. I’ll even throw in some of my mum’s Strawberry Jam.”

Your eyes light up when you hear her offer the jam, but then you remember your contract. “Mmm I don’t know. I already accepted the offer, and turning back would be a slight on the higher ups.”

“A slight? So they’d be upset if you let me go?” Aeri steps towards you again “Oh my god, I swear on my life I won't tell anyone you were here, I’d just prefer not to die.” Her voice is laced with fear, her eyes pleading. This is when you started to hate your job. Bargaining was always the worst part. “Couldn’t you just tell someone I ran away or something?”

“Not plausible. When people run I just make a mad dash after.” You pretend to run for a moment, then turn back to Aeri looking proud of yourself. “It always ends up with the target dead.”

That final sentence seems to get to her and her skin is a sickly pale sort of tint. Weary that she might throw up, you take a wide step back. “Are you actually gonna kill me?” Her face pales further and now she steps back, eyes wide open. The brown almost shimmering with tears. “Please don’t do this, I just wanna live happily and healthily.” Her voice cracks, and the tears start to fall. “I don’t want my mum to be sad.”

As she starts to make her final speech, you prepare your firearm. It’s beloved, having added your favourite silencer. LIfting it up to aim where it would hurt the least, you are a little sympathetic to your targets, your finger brushes against the trigger. 

But something about her last sentence makes you pause. It echoes around your mind. Bouncing into the depths and then running you over like a bullet train. “Your… mum?” The words aren’t meant to be said out loud but they come out anyway.

Aeri watches tearily as you freeze and her voice catches in her throat. “Mum, yeah.” She looks at the floor, trying to hold back her tears. But it’s always hard to stop crying once you’ve started. “She’s my whole world. Always telling me how proud she is. When I’m down I think about how much she’d miss me if I were gone.” She looks back up at you, and you have to look away, avoiding her ‘Disney princess eyes’. 

“She’s been through so much… having to deal with losing people. I promised her I’d stay safe.”

You grunt, your jaw clenched so hard you could feel the enamel scratching off your teeth. Then finally you lower your gun with a huff. “This is why I don’t talk to my targets.” You mutter to yourself before you flick the safety back on.

Your now ex-target rubs her eyes when she sees you lowering your gun. “Hey wait, you’re not gonna kill me?” She looks at you, her tear-streaked face staring earnestly into your eyes. You hold back a huff. “But what about the client? Your bosses? Will there be consequences for sparing me?” 

“Yeah, probably.” You move around the room, grabbing the bugs you had placed around her apartment a couple days prior.

Aeri watches you and something switches in her. “And what exactly are you going to tell whoever ordered the hit?” She takes a step towards you, for the first time since she entered her apartment. “What if they send someone else to do the job?”

“Oh, they’ll send someone else.” You nod to yourself before strapping your things to your combat jacket. “I’d say lock your doors, but I don’t think that’ll help much.” Humming, you make an advance back to the window you came from.

“Then what the fuck was the point in sparing me if you know they’re gonna come after me again? You saved me, what, like a week at most?” She crosses her arms and glares at you, her eyebrows furrowing in disapproval. “Why go through this whole charade? I could’ve just died and it would’ve all been over with.”

You pause, thinking over her words. They circle in your mind, turning into scenarios that lead to the loss of your job. Then you grunt exasperatedly. “Oh my god, princess. You’re not my responsibility.” You twirl in a circle, frustrated, before walking back over to her and giving her a childlike squint.

She rolls her eyes, clearly still not a fan of your nickname. “Then why even let me live at all? Why not just shoot me? Why go to all of this effort just to spare my life and prolong the inevitable?” Aeri points a finger, like a gun to her head, then moves it to the floor. “This, right here. You sparring my life was so unnecessary.”

You groan, moving your head in a circle. “It’s your fault for bringing up your mum, I can’t deal with old people being sad.” 

“She’s not even old!” Her voice raises a level. “And what about me feeling sad? What about YOU making my loved ones sad?” She moves her finger to your face now, clearly frustrated. It’s getting to the point that you’d be intimidated by her, except for the way her finger trembles. Now that the threat of dying seems to be over, she seems to realise how absolutely ridiculous this entire situation is. “Your clients are just going to send another assassin after me, so saving me was the most pointless, time-wasting choice you could’ve ever made.”

“Fine! Oh my god, Jesus Christ. I’ll make sure they don’t send another hitman.” You groan, then huff, then grumble to yourself as you check your pockets.

“And how the hell are you going to ensure that?” Aeri asks. “They paid you so much money to do this, do you think they’re going to just give up and be like ‘Aw okay, we’ll look for someone else.’? I honestly don’t think their next choice is going to be any nicer than you.”

You give her a glare behind your mask, annoyed that she can’t see the fullness of your frustration. “I’ll just kill the next one, jeez.”

Her jaw drops open as she stares at you, completely stunned. “You’re gonna kill them? Really? Even if it goes against the original orders?” Her eyebrows raise in shock, her head tilts and she crosses her arms. She’s clearly angry. “Why on earth would you do that?”

“I don’t know.” You sound meek.

“What a stupid answer.” Aeri rolls her eyes, looking at you with utter disbelief. “So, let me get this straight. You’re going to kill another assassin and probably get your loyalty card revoked and get into a bunch of trouble just because you feel bad for me because I talked about my mommy?” She shakes her head, looking completely flabbergasted at your responses. “Does the job matter that little to you? Wouldn’t you rather just ‘BANG’ and get paid?” She puts her finger back to her head and mimes the hammer striking.

“Mothers are important, okay?” You practically whine, taking a couple steps forward to remove her hand from her head.

Aeri takes another breath to continue her tirade, but your words and touch make her pause. Her entire expression dissolves into joint confusion and concern. “Huh? Are you like… mum-less?” You can tell her words are trying to be harsh but they just come out sort of flat.

“That’s classified.” 

She raises an eyebrow like she knows that you’re lying, and that’s when you decide it’s time to jump ship.

Moving away to her window again, this time you make it to the frame. Lifting the lower pane with ease, you wave your hand behind you in an aloof manner.  “Try not to die, princess.”

She looks at you, her mouth slightly ajar again. “Oh, ok.” She looks up at the ceiling as she tries to process what just happened. The more she thinks about it, the more ridiculous it seems. “Okay, I’ll try not to die,” Her voice is laced with sarcasm and she can’t believe she’s saying these words right now. “Thank you so much for sparing my life, Merc. The world is a much better place with you around.”

You flip her off as you vault through her window and into the night. 

A/N: my search history is full of peanut butter brands now (this is the dumbest thing i’ve written in my entire life)

#!! dreamy’s pieces #aespa #giselle x reader #giselle #uchinaga aeri x reader #kpop imagines #kpop oneshots #idol x reader #aespa imagines #kpop x reader #aespa x reader

[rebirthgarments]

Hi friends! We have a couple of updates to share. 

Firstly, Seraj needs more than $3,300 to pull off his final Ramadan project before Eid. He wants to distribute it on the last day of Ramadan, which is in 3 days, so we need to get to $20k ASAP! 

contribute at bit.ly/serajfund

The financial situation in Rah Fah continues to decline, with intermediaries taking a 15-17% cut when people get cash out. He is so hopeful that this project will work out! Helping others and bringing smiles to faces–especially those of children–is clearly one of Seraj’s passions. 

Here are the project details, all thought up by Seraj himself. He has amazing ideas! 125-130 cash envelopes containing either 50 or 100 shekels each. Seraj will distribute them based on how large each family is. Seraj will also make 40 envelopes for kids, each containing 20 shekels. 

Currently, Seraj’s plan is to distribute his envelopes on the last day of Ramadan, before Eid al-Fitr. Last time he tried to print something, the printer had no electricity. He has a plan this time for checking in early to make sure he has a chance to print. 

Working with Seraj on his mutual aid projects has been such a tangible reminder that we reject the notion of charity (which is very rooted in the white savior complex and pity of Black and Brown folx), and even allyship (not enough action)  instead are partners and collaborators with Seraj self directing, leading us, and constantly motivating us to to get to the next goal so he can achieve his vision! 

 Because Seraj and his family have managed to survive, he’s been able to give back. No NGOs or governments, just a 21-year-old young man helping as many of his neighbors as he can. In his words, “This is my duty, sisters, as long as I can help! Why don't I do that!”

Seraj is genuinely a superstar to everyone on our team. His generosity is humbling to us. We have so much to learn from Pale-eh -steinians. 

Secondly, we have a date for our upcoming virtual dance party! Mark your calendars for Monday, April 29th in the evening (Pacific time). Sky is hosting this event to hype up our virtual auction for Seraj. Follow Sky on Instagram for more details @rebirthgarments or @radicalvisibilitycollective

If you’d still like to contribute items to the auction, go to bit.ly/fundraiserforseraj ! Seraj’s Support Soirée would like to offer an item or service for every budget. And we encourage a wide variety of dough-nation types! While many of them will be creative objects, they do not have to be.

Some examples:

a book you love or wrote

a framed photograph

a massage (local area bidders only)

a meditation session

a piñata

a tarot reading

a t-shirt you love or designed

stickers

a virtual lesson on social media marketing

visual art

a virtual dance lesson

Your items will be listed this week on Give Butter! (stay tuned for details!) 

Our support soiree dance party will hype up the auction featuring selections from the archives of Rebirth Garments fashion performances while you can dance with Sky!

Thank you so much for being here for Seraj. He and his family are so deeply grateful for all of the ways folks have supported them and partnered with them to help others. And our team is so thankful for how you all have stepped up. Please share and contribute! 

-Written by my team member Bex with additions by me!

[image Description: a flyer featuring a photo by Seraj of a small little kid with a blue plastic bag full of fresh fruits and vegetables. The kiddo has a heart emoji over their face and is smiling really big. They are wearing a red shirt that says “sleep time” with a sleeping bear on it. They are standing on a sandy ground in front of a tent. Text to the right of the photo on a red background reads: Gaza Sky Seraj’s mutual aid project for Ramadan in Rah-fah For part 2 of Seraj’s Ramadan project, he gave out 32 food parcels for 32 families around him in the displacement camps. Send support to his family + others! bit.ly/serajfund “ Underneath is a QR code with the link. ]

#gaza strip #gaza genocide #gaza #free gaza #radicallyvisible #queerfashion #mutual aid #go fund me #fundraising #free palestine #gazaunderattack #palestine #stand with gaza #vetted #I personally vetted this fundraiser

[sweaterkittensahoy]

For anyone wanting an idea of what the Band of Brothers, The Pacific, or the Masters of the Air lads may have read during the war, this is a list of books put out as Armed Services Editions.

They were specially printed copies of books of meant to fit into a fatigue pocket and be easy to swap around. When Books Went to War goes into the deep details of how the program came to be. The basic idea was that the troops were fucking bored, and so many, many books were printed as quickly and cheaply as possible to send them over.

Several books we now consider classics of the American story were brought into that level thanks to the ASEs. The Great Gatsby wasn't a hit until it was an ASE. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn was very well-liked when it came out, but soldiers DEVOURED it and sent Betty Smith scads of fan mail about how much they loved it, and it was there love of it that's made it into the titan it is.

In fact, if you haven't noticed before, there's a copy of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn that seems to be making the rounds in Easy Company on Band of Brothers. It shows up a few times. That's accurate to the book being very popular and getting passed around. It wasn't uncommon for the book to get passed around in pieces. You'd slice off the part you'd read and give it to a buddy so he had something new to read while you were reading the next bit.

Of note, Rosie reading Native Son is accurate to the time and his own background. It's also important it's a hard back. Soldiers on bases had an easier time getting books in regular format because they were in one place. Publishers sent tons of books to service men, so it makes sense Native Son (published in 1940) was available on base or from a bookstore nearby. Paperbacks as an option weren't a wide-ranging option until the ASE books led to civilians going, "Wait, we can get paperbacks???"

Anyway, this is just a piece of the war I find extra-interesting (especially the parts where the US government said "We must give books to our men to show how we are not censoring thought like the Germans and then they also went "Oh, wait, not those books that tell truths about America but we don't wanna admit to."). So, I hope this is interesting for you.

#hbowar #world war ii #armed services editions #masters of the air #band of brothers #the pacific

[pnwnativeplants]

Corruption in PNW Conservation: Holly Farmer on Weed Control Board Prevents Board From Protecting Forests from Invasive Holly

Original article by Becky Chaney, WNPS Conservation Committee Chair (Full original article can be read here)

In November, the Washington State Noxious Weed Control Board (hereafter referred to as the Board) considered the Whatcom County Noxious Weed Board proposal to list English holly (Ilex aquifolium) as a Class C noxious weed, as requested by Thomas and Tricia Morrel, owners of a designated Stewardship Forest in Whatcom County. The effects of holly on western Washington public and private lands, documented by numerous studies and mapping from multiple agencies and scientists, was presented to the Board during the November 1 public hearing. The information included statements regarding the negative impacts of holly, including its detrimental crowding out of under-story vegetation and the increased forest fire risk resulting from this relatively recent addition of a non-native ladder fuel. The information presented was quantitative and backed by scientific research from numerous studies. Eleven speakers, included botanists and land managers from a wide variety of agencies and environmental groups, spoke in favor of the state listing. Two speakers, owner of Holly Hill Orchards and his son, spoke in opposition. Expressing concern that the listing would destroy their family business, a holly farm purchased in 2011. They are convinced the habitat risks are over-stated and find the dollars spent on control ($90,000 from 2007-2009 at just a SINGLE Seattle site) inconceivable.

The Board considered the potential impacts to the holly farms and the floral industry. To ensure no harm to these small family businesses, a concurrent addition, developed with input from Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson, was proposed and approved before taking a vote on listing holly. A new definition—feral—was added to Washington’s noxious weed laws. The definition reads: “Feral means where a plant species has escaped a managed landscape or is growing without human management or design. ‘Feral’ does not include any plants grown for agricultural or commercial purposes” (WAC 16-750-003). The proposed Class C listing of feral holly only applies to escaped holly—holly existing outside of gardens and cultivated lands such as holly farms. It would allow wildland managers to fund control of invasive holly where it is negatively impacting forestland and for educational programs addressing why and where feral holly is a problem. Nothing in the listing would restrict farming holly, or selling it, either live or cut, within or outside of the state. A class C listing as feral holly would not require its removal from ornamental gardens or farms, or restrict its commercial uses. This consideration wasn’t enough to ease the concerns of the Washington holly growers. The holly farmers argued that the image of holly would be tarnished, and that holly farming would no longer be economically feasible. No economic data was provided to back up their claim. Board Education Specialist Anne Schuster did provide information noting that Pacific Northwest holly growers supply 90% of English holly sold in the United States, export it to countries such as Japan, and that it has grown here for over 90 years.

Sadly (from my perspective), the listing of English holly as a Washington State class C noxious weed received only a 3-3 vote from the Board members present; passage of the listing needed a majority. There are nine voting positions on the Board, but the Northeast Tier is currently vacant. Two members, Randy Johnson and Brad White, did not attend the meeting, so only six members voted. The listing was supported by board members William (Bill) Agosta, Janet Spingath, and Allen Evanston. In opposition were members Jerry Hendrickson, Carey Caruso, and Ken Bajema. Bajema, in addition to being on the Board, is owner of Columbia Gorge Holly Farms, a multi-generational family farm growing holly since 1959. He is a long- term, vocal opponent of listing holly as a state noxious weed. Again, from my perspective, I can’t help wondering how conflict of interest (a thorny issue) may have affected the vote. At least one respondent to a 2022 survey provided to the Board ahead of the hearing expressed concern that the Board had a conflict-of-interest problem. As far as I know, this was not publicly addressed by the Board or staff ahead of the vote. After the vote, the question over conflict of interest was raised during public comment. The Chair responded “Obviously, there is a conflict of interest if you are talking about...a member of the Board being a holly grower, but there’s no law against that...he is a member of the Board and he is a holly grower and that’s perfectly legitimate. Yes, that creates at least one person with a conflict of interest but I’m afraid... there’s no law against that. We have no rules about recusal and so there’s no basis for requiring a person with a conflict of interest to recuse himself in this circumstance.” Staff indicated that it was important to have Board members who feel the impacts of these decisions and expressed the opinion that it is “rightfully so that Ken has a vote.” I agree that the boards are supposed to include representation from various affected interest groups and are mandated to consider and mitigate impacts on business. However, I believe elevating special interests above the Board’s legal mission is wrong. A Capital Press article written in 2010, then updated in 2018, states that “Dee and Ken Bajema scoff at claims that English holly is invasive.” It states that the Bajemas (say) it’s difficult to remain positive about the fate of the requested “noxious” listing. Ken Bajema says nothing to correct this public record. He does not acknowledge that holly is invasive, is environmentally detrimental, or that it is a multi-county problem. Survey comments verify that holly is a concern in at least ten Washington counties. More than half of the survey respondents who note that holly impacts their county also stated that holly’s unlisted status (negatively) impacts their ability to control it.

#english holly #invasive plants #conservation #corruption #Ilex aquifolium

[historia-vitae-magistras]

i really really like your stuff from even just a small glance and want to keep looking but also as a jewish person i have historically given anything remotely hetalia based an extremely wide berth so i need to ask like. is it safe for me to be here (in the sense of "am i going to encounter considerable amounts of World War II Stuff whilst browsing this blog"). this sounds very accusatory and i truly dont mean it to im sorry. ive gotten all good vibes from your blog thus far im just asking to cover all my bases

With everything in me, I hope you feel safe here. There shouldn't be to my knowledge anything anti-semitic or triggering on this blog as it currently exists, and I think I can say that with some confidence.

There is WW2 on this blog, but it is the Western Front, The Pacific Theater, or scattered references to Greece and the Mediterranean. The Eastern Front of World War One might pop up, but the Eastern Front of the Second World War isn't covered in detail. I have a few hard lines in what I do and do not depict, and on-screen portrayals of genocide and sexual assault of any kind are at the top of the no, never list. If it's reassuring to you, I do have multiple friends and regular readers of Jewish background who peruse around here and have yet to alert me of problems. I hope that is because there have been none and not because they think I would be unreceptive.

so I very very hope you feel safe enjoying any time you spend here and anything you care to read. Please let me know if you come across anything you find objectionable, and if you do, I will be deeply apologetic in advance.

Thanks for giving my work a shot!

#the ask box || probis pateo

[ya-world-challenge]

YA Pacific WW2 Books

Today marks the 78th anniversary of the bombing of Nagasaki, 3 days after the bombing of Hiroshima.

I've had a list of WW2 books in a file for a while. I noticed the Pacific side of the war is much less represented in fiction, but there are still many promising-looking books out there. These range from stories in Japan-occupied territories, to Jews in Shanghai, bombs in Australia, and stories of the atomic bombs in Japan and internment of Japanese-Americans.

Let me know if you've read any of these!

When My Name Was Keoko by Linda Sue Park (Korea) The Hundred Choices Department Store by Ginger Park (Korea) The Songbird and the Rambutan Tree by Lucille Abendanon (Indonesia) [releases in 2024] Anya's War by Andrea Alban Gosline (China) Little Paradise by Gabrielle Wang (Australia - China) The Forgotten Pearl by Belinda Murrell (Australia) The Sky We Shared by Shirley Reva Vernick (Japan - United States) Barefoot Gen by Keiji Nakazawa (Japan) [manga] The Girl with the White Flag Tomiko Higa, Dorothy Britton (Japan) The Last Cherry Blossom by Kathleen Burkinshaw (Japan) Hunt for the Bamboo Rat by Graham Salisbury (United States - Philippines) [more in the series] Beneath the Wide Silk Sky by Emily Inouye Huey (Japanese-American) They Called Us Enemy by George Takei (Japanese-American) [graphic novel] Weedflower by Cynthia Kadohata (Japanese-American) We Are Not Free - Traci Chee (Japanese-American) Climbing the Stairs by Padma Venkatraman (India)

🕊️🕊️ Prayers for peace. 🕊️🕊️

#book list #ww2 #historical fiction #booklr #japanese american #japan #korea #indonesia #china #australia #philippines #india #war #historical 20th century

[irradiate-space]

Tuesday Typings

I came back from the North American Science Fiction Convention with so many books. Notes on costume stuff, one giant costume todo list, and recent reads/watches as well.

Books acquired recently

The Archive Undying, Emma Mieko Candon, 2023, bought

This is How You Lose the Time War, Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone, 2020, bought — finished and enjoyed

The Sng of Achilles, Madeline Miller, 2012, bought

Translation State,, Ann Leckie, 2023, bought

Francis: The People's Pope, Ted Rall, allegedly autographed, 2018, bought

The Stars Like Dust, Isaac Asimov, 1996 paperback printing, gifted

The Courier, Gerald Brandt, 2016, free pile

Alliance Rising, C. J. Cherryh and Jane S. Fancher, 2019, free pile

Foundryside, Robert Jackson Bennett, 2019 Broadway promo printing, free pile

Mica, fille de Transyl, Michèle Laframboise, 2012, free pile — I do not read the French; this is going on a gift pile for a Francophone friend

To Climb a Flat Mountain, G. David Nordley, 2009?, bought after the author gave me an answer to a worldbuilding problem

Burning Days, Glenn Grant, 2011, free

This Virtual Night, C.S. Friedman, 2021, free

To Each This World, Julie Czerneda, 2022, free and signed

The Complete Smoke Trilogy, Tanya Huff, 2019, free

She Who Became The Sun, Shelley Parker-Chan, 2021, free

All of the free books are from Pemmi-Con; half are from DAW Publishers who were really, really generous.

Recent Reading and Watching

This is How You Lose the Time War surprised me with the identity of the Seeker; mid-book I thought there might be another operative tailing them, or a Purple child, or a third side to this war. That last prediction was quite close!

Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn - Bande Dessinee Episode: 0 wasn't particularly thrilling, but I value it because it fills out the characters of Full Frontal and Angelo Sauper, and how the Zeonist public sees things before the initiation of the Third Neo Zeon War, aka The Laplace Incident.

Star Wars: The Clone Wars has been good through season 7; I ned to track down season 8 to see if they later appearance of Ashoka in Star Wars Rebels makes any sense.

Legend of Galactic Heroes: I have finally finished this. RIP to a legend, but we all knew that the death flag for the last person to die was waved at the end of the third season. Rubinsky's end was also fitting: reflecting of how he was no longer part of the plot, he was also no longer part of politics. His last gasp felt irrelevant, and really was.

Pacific Rim: The Black is a 3dcg film that's reminiscent of RWBY and Dragon Prince in style, but with the same Ramin Djiwadi soundtrack, and some neat twists that really delve into the fridge horror of the setting. But this is a kids' show, so there's little blood, the decapitations happen out of frame, and the heads don't roll too far. Episode 7 has a nice "it's dangerous to go alone; take this" moment.

Computing

A 2.1A powerbank is not enough to stably power a Pi 1 B+ with a 4.0" square Hyperpixel Touch display and a wireless keyboard. Big Sad. Next question is if a PiSugar 3 battery controller will work with a Pi 1 B+ or if I should splurge $75 on a Pi 4 for this device.

I'd like to have a mobile compute terminal that's smaller than a 13" laptop, but still has USB ports. Scrollwheel and a button to toggle the OSK would also be nice.

Primary nonwork laptop's keyboard continues to degrade; It's becoming a desk item. Its degradation is the primary driver of the new palmtop development.

Actually, wait, I have a spare CM4 from a StereoPi 2 device. I could use that, with a compatible breakout board maybe. Or I could test the Hyperpixel screen on the Stereopi board directly. Then I'd have a 4" touchscreen mated to a … 5" wide board? Well, it'll at least let me test some things, like whether the CM4 works for this use case. Bonus dual cameras is a questionable bonus.

Crafting

KInda burnt out on crafting, tbh. Last two weeks were full of crunch before Pemmi-Con/NASFiC, which netted me a "Judge's Choice in Novice Class" award and "Best Use of Modern Tech" in the Masquerade competition.

Next up, over @glowingskull, I plan to post rundowns of the stuff I made, and maybe some shapefiles, but there's a lot of work left in this costume and I plan to redo large parts of the headgear.

Because, let's be honest, the post-con todo list for that costume is basically:

Better photographs?

Write up the project

Print off a holder for these parts, because I'm retiring them to mount on the wall

Redesign snout, again, to remove grilles and double-thicken all the parts

Resculpt temples and ears of skull

Put a visor in the eye holes

Eye-lights in visor?

Enclose head: back of skull, ventilation, neck sock

Redo the flame staff's camera monopod mount attachment point for durability (may require welding?)

Sculpt a model for the chestpiece, so it's plastic instead of foam

Sculpt a model for arm bracers

And then on top of that I also want to:

Document the Servicer outfit

Sew on a Masonic patch for the Servicer outfit

Build some DIY NVGs for use in costume projects like this one

Write up the Baba Yaga's Hut costume which won Best In Show

I think my next costume goal, after the revised Turaga Vakama, will be an Earth Federation Space Forces officer uniform, so I can give the planned "WTF is Zeon" lectures in character.

The next head goal will be a Deinonychus head with articulated jaw, which requires advancements in augmented reality. Need to get the StereoPi working, or ditch/sell it and switch to paired NVG monocles.

Music

I think it's time for Pacific Rim soundtracks. Pacific Rim: The Black sounds somewhere between the Pacific Rim movies' soundtracks and the tense violin work from the 2009 Sherlock Holmes movie with RDJ and Jude Law, soundtrack by Hans Zimmer. Not particularly Australian, unfortunately.

Lego Stuff

Gotta merge the two submarine kits, and build the Emperor's Throne Room that I won at pinball at Pemmi-Con.

#this is how you lose the time war #spoilers #pemmi con #nasfic #pacific rim: the black #legend of galactic heroes #the tuesday again no problem expanded universe and spinoffs

[homerstroystory]

professional organizations for classics

this is by no means a comprehensive list of every Classics-oriented professional society in the world, but it's a pretty sizeable list. google around and see if you can find more that suit your interests! as you can tell from this list, theres a society or organization for practically every subfield within Classics. a lot of these societies also offer scholarships and grants.

based on my experience as an american, most of these are going to be based in the US; any that are international or outside the US will be indicated in blue. each state also typically has its own state-wide association (i know california has two distinct associations for different part of the state and new york has several, with some of them specifically geared toward NYC.

General Organizations

Society for Classical Studies (SCS)- one of the biggest Classical Studies organizations in the world, a catch-all for all subfields of Classical Studies and Classical Archaeology (including but not limited to Mediterranean prehistory, late antiquity, early medievalism, Near Eastern Studies, etc.) *INTERNATIONAL*

Classical Association of the Middle West and South (CAMWS)- the largest regional North American Classical organization (31 US states and 3 Canadian territories are included, divided into smaller subregions) *US & CANADA*

Classical Association of New England (CANE)- New England region Classical Association

Classical Association of the Atlantic States (CAAS)- Atlantic states (Virginia, Maryland, etc.) region Classical Association

Classical Association of the Pacific Northwest (CAPN)- Pacific Northwestern states and Canadian provinces region Classical Association *US & CANADA*

American Classical League (ACL)- a lot like SCS but not as prominent and restricted to the USA

Eta Sigma Phi- honor society for undergraduates; you can apply for scholarships for up to 8 years after graduating from your undergrad

Digital Classics Association- an organization focused on the teaching and study of Classics through digital media

Classical Association of Canada- like SCS and ACL but specifically for Canada *CANADA*

The Classical Association- like SCS and ACL but specifically for Great Britain *GREAT BRITAIN*

Hesperides: Classics in the Luso-Hispanic World- an organization focusing on the study of Greco-Roman influence outside of the normal geographic constraints (i.e., the Americas, Caribbean, Pacific, etc.) with an emphasis on underrepresented voices in the field including Hispanic, Indigenous, and African descent; website available in English, Spanish, and Portuguese *INTERNATIONAL*

Language & Author-Specific Organizations

International Ovidian Society *INTERNATIONAL*

Vergilian Society

American Association for Neo-Latin Studies (AANLS)

American Society of Greek and Latin Epigraphy (ASGLE)

International Society for Neoplatonic Studies (ISNS)

Society for the Oral Reading of Greek and Latin Literature

Minority Identity Organizations

Classics and Social Justice- not an organization, but an extremely helpful and important resource for Classicists who are not content with the current social and political climate and want to work towards change

Women's Classical Caucus (WCC)- affiliate organization of the SCS focusing on women's and gender studies in the Ancient Mediterranean

Mountaintop Coalition- a relatively new organization focusing on the professional advancement of students and scholars of the Ancient Mediterranean and its reception who identify with an underrepresented ethnic minority

Lambda Classical Caucus (LCC)- an organization for queer Classicists and allies

Eos- a relatively new organization focusing on Africana and Africana Reception Studies

Asian and Asian American Classical Caucus (AAACC)- an organization focusing on the promotion of scholarship by Asian and Asian-American Classicists

Multiculturalism, Race, and Ethnicity in Classics Consortium (MRECC)- an organization focusing on the teaching of race and ethnicity in ancient cultures, as well as sensitivity to those subjects in modern scholarship

Archaeological Organizations

Archaeological Institute of America (AIA)- the largest archaeological organization in the US and a sister organization to SCS; not limited to Classical archaeology *significant international presence*

American Society of Papyrologists

American Friends of Herculaneum (AFoH)- an organization focusing solely on the study of the archaeological site of Herculaneum

Etruscan Foundation- an organization dedicated to the study of Etruria

Historical & Religious History Organizations

Association for Ancient Historians (AAH)

Society for Ancient Medicine and Pharmacology

Society for Late Antiquity

Society for Ancient Mediterranean Religions (SAMR)

Society for Early Modern Classical Reception (SEMCR)

MOISA: International Society for Ancient Greek & Roman Music and Its Heritage

Society for Ancient Greek Philosophy

Schools

Most European countries have their own Schools in Rome and Athens, which may offer membership and scholarship opportunities.

American Academy in Rome

American School of Classical Studies at Athens

College Year in Athens

Intercollegiate Center for Classical Studies in Rome

Padeia Institute

#isaac.txt #academia #classics #resources #archaeology

[arthurdrakoni]

The Plot Against America by Philip Roth imagines an alternate 1940s where Charles Lindbergh has been elected President of the United States. This is my review.

I have a bit of a habit about putting books that are popular or widely praised. I don't consciously avoid them, it just kind of happens that way. Still, I get around to them eventually. Occasionally they're underwhelming, but more often than not, I do genuinely enjoy them. Such is the case with The Plot Against America by Philip Roth. 

The Plot Against America begins in an alternate 1940. Celebrity aviator Charles Lindbergh has been elected President of the United States in a landslide victory over incumbent president Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Lindbergh has pledged to keep America out of the war in Europe and the Pacific. In fact, he's signed a non-aggression treaty with Germany and Japan. Still, many Americans, particularly Jewish American, worry that Lindbergh is getting a little too chummy with the Axis Powers. The story follows the turbulent years of the Lindbergh Administration through the eyes of young Philip Roth and his family.

This was one of those books that wasn't too high on my reading list until it was. I can't say what exactly prompted me to give this one a try. Maybe it was the miniseries adaption that HBO put out. I haven't watched the miniseries yet, but I do plan to. Maybe it was the various alternate history Facebook groups I take part in. Maybe it was something else entirely. Honestly, I can't really say. I will say that this book being part of the Audible Plus Catalogue was a nice bonus. Audible Plus is a new thing that Audible is doing. It's like Netflix, but with audiobooks.

Whatever the reason, I finally gave The Plot Against America a try, and I loved it. You will occasionally see literary fiction authors dip their toes into speculative fiction. However, this is the first time I've seen a literary fiction author try their hand at alternate history. Philip Roth ruffled some feathers when he made some comments that seemed to imply that he believed that he had invented the concept of alternate history. I haven't seen exactly where that went down, so I won't really comment on that.

I will say that Roth does an excellent job of combining his signature style with the alternate history setting. I took a look at some of Roth's other books in order to compare the writing style, and The Plot Against America defiantly fits the mold. There are segments of the book that almost feel weirdly nostalgic at times. Roth describes daily life in 1940s New Jersey in such loving detail, it can be easy to forget that you're reading an alternate history novel. And yes, this is a Philip Roth book, so it is pretty much required to take place in New Jersey.

One aspect I liked is that Jewish Americans are not a united front against Lindbergh. Sure, there are plenty, like the Roth family, who are weary of his policies, and actively push back against him. However, there are also Jews who are supportive of Lindbergh, or at least, believe he isn't that bad and can be reasoned with. Minorities are not a monolith, so I felt this added more realism. 

I guess this book goes to show that you can still do interesting things with World War II alternate history than just the typical Nazi Victory scenarios. 

Have you read The Plot Against America?  If so, what did you think?

Link to the full review on my blog: https://drakoniandgriffalco.blogspot.com/2021/12/book-review-plot-against-america-by.html?m=1

#alternate history #alt history #the plot against america #philip roth #book review #audiobooks #audiobook recommendations #book #books #audiobook #charles lindbergh #Jewish Americans #America #World War II #Nazi Germany #second world war #United States #USA #New Jersey #United States of America #speculative fiction #literary fiction #science fiction #science fiction books #book recommendations #review

[daisycassy]

Multifandom Fic Recs list- Dashka's favourites

Okay everyone, strap in, Newmann discord made me do this, here is my rec list, consisting of, in my humble opinion, solely of fantastic and high quality fics you should read even if it is not your fandom. Mostly longer fics, so be warned. More things may be added over time.

Pacific Rim

Inside Here (The Worst Things Come) by Orphan

" Three months, five days, and sixteen hours since the Tokyo Incident and Hermann is sitting white-knuckled in a cold, austere office, being told that, contra what he’d originally been lead to believe, the body of one Newton Geiszler is still alive."

Part 1 of Omeletteverse

This fic and the whole series is my favourite take at what happened post PRU. It is entirely told from Hermann's point of view and is so horrible, gutwrenching, tender, desperate, but also kind and hopeful. Precursor emissary Newton is fun and I love these sort of fics that talk about inevitablity of change and our sad inability to turn time back and avoid said change. Includes a wide cast of people who are all amazing.

Frankenstein, the Newt, and Vi by Orphan

“Um. Hi? My name’s Vivian Lee. I’m supposed to, um...” Vi looks down at the phone in her hands, at the email showing on the screen. “I’m newly assigned to the K-Science Lab? I was supposed to ask for Doctor Gottlieb?” The guy behind the reception desk looks up with an expression hovering somewhere between fear, pity, and disgust. “Oh, man,” he says. “Who’d you get killed to wind up posted to K-Lab?”

Part 1 of Frankenstein and the Newt

Another fic by Orphan, and trust me, there is a reson for that because they are fantastic. This one is from third person POV, Vi (who si the absolute sweetheart) a new biologist hired to K-science division. Story takes place after the first Pacific Rim movie, and you will get to find out why the fight still continues.

Warning for some body horror and people turning into Kaiju. The whole series is perfect, so fun, with great plot, and many, many feelings.

Anthology by irisbleufic

"The first thing [Newton] does when he gets to his office, smarting from the needle and high on endorphins, is email the eccentric mathematician in Cambridge, the other Cambridge a non-creature-infested ocean away, with whom he’d been corresponding for a while and whom his colleagues have begun to call Newt’s Internet Boyfriend.

Hermann, Newton types, tell me you’ve crawled out from under your rock for long enough to realize your disdain for monster movies is now scientifically invalid.

Please don’t call me that, Gottlieb writes back. I’m already working on it."

Part 1 of Anthology 'Verse

Set primarily right after the events of the first Pacific Rim movie, where we follow our favourite scientists dealing with the result of drifting with kaiju and each toher, starting their life together, and continuing after the war. Inclused flashback, as they deal with the years of angry arguing and misunderstandings.

Also Newt tattoos, they both teach at unviersity and charm everyone, this is my favourite Hermann characteriyation and I lvoe the whole ensemble cast. It will punch you in a gut but also feels like a warm fuzzy blanket. Absolute treasure of a fic.

Daredevil

Lying by Omission by deniigiq

"I know I said I was up for anything--” he told Hogarth carefully, trying to surreptitiously slide the files back onto her desk.

She slapped a hand on them and pushed them back towards him.

“Mr. Nelson, you are one of the best lawyers on staff, and I am seriously considering the pros and cons of a potential partnership here,” she told him, staring up at him without moving her face or hand. Somehow, the files continued to dig into the meat of his palm.

“--but it turns out,” he valiantly carried on, “I am actually and suddenly extremely busy with the destruction Jessica will cause in approximately twenty minutes, which will have nothing to do with me or any favors or bribes or anything like that—”

(Someone brings Team Red's (and the Punisher's) loved ones back from the dead to torture them for information on their vigilantes. Hogarth coerces Foggy to handle the resulting legal fallout and he is both the worst and best person for the job.)"

This fic includes badass as fuck Foggy, fun ensemble of characters, Team red excellence, and so many jokes, hijinks, and perfectly in love Matt and Foggy. One of my most favourite comfort fics out there.

I fully recommend anzthing written by deniigiq, because their fics are the absolute greatest at capturing what is fun about comics and the many characters you get to encounter in them, while mixing in fantastic writing, characterization, and great feelings and plots. Love all their characters and I cannot highlight how much you should read everything they have ever written.

Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy by Werelibrarian

"I should probably tell you I’m going to sniff anything you show me."

The shopkeeper’s smile actually grows.

"How interesting. Can you tell me what you’re sniffing for?"

Foggy already likes this guy, who looks to be about a hundred and ten but stands straight as a flagpole, but he's not about to admit that he's trying to make himself pretty for a blind man with four super-human senses, so he just smiles.

"Complexity."

A shorter fic than most on this list, but absolutely perfect as the rest fo them. Tells the story of Foggy seducing Matt using all his heightened senses to his advantage. Includes ton of pining and poor Matt almost combusting.

Captain America/Marvel

Known Associates by thingswithwings

"Steve Rogers isn't a self-made man.

Or, how a tough little Brooklyn fairy got turned into Captain America, and then turned back."

This is one of those fics that I wish I could make people read, that I truly wish was published as a novel we could all share and buy for our friends. It is a story about Steve Rogers as he grapples first with life as a queer man in the pre-war US, in his full socialist glory, and later as he tries to find his place in the 21st century where his image and story was coopted and turned into something completely different from him. This fic is in my opinion the best examination of the sheer horror, stress, grief, and clusterfuck of Steve Rogers' situation. Includes polyamory, genderqueerness, lots of organizing and angry socialist Steve. The author also included bibliography at the end of the fic. I name this fic every time people ask me about quality of fanworks and I wish I could make everyone read it.

Ain't No Grave (Can Keep My Body Down) by spitandvinegar

"It's six in the morning, and Steve is heading out on a run when he nearly trips over a bouquet of sunflowers on the front steps of his brownstone.

For a second paranoia takes over, and he kicks the flowers a little, waiting for them to explode. They don't. They also came with a card, which he picks up. The front of the card has a tasteful picture of the Brooklyn bridge at sunset. It's very nice and sedate, like the kind of card you would buy to give to your boss. On the inside someone has written a short message in big, shaky block letters.

I AM SORRY FOR SHOOTING YOU.

Steve sits down hard on the steps."

This fic starts after Winter Soldier, and belongs to the category of Bucky Barnes recovery fics. Bucky has many issues in this so I will warn you for mental illness, drugs, lots of trauma. But Bucky also adopts two homeless kids, loves Tupac, gets on with Tony, and he and Steve find love after eternity of pining.

I love Steve in this, his characterization, and I wish I could finally find time to paint those paintings he does in this, in oil. I love all the characters in this nad who they are and how they feel. Includes cameo from my favourite lawyers.

United States v. Barnes, 617 F. Supp. 2d 143 (D.D.C. 2015) by fallingvoices, radialarch

"The Associated Press @AP

Winter Soldier set to stand trial for Washington D.C. massacre and treason apne.ws/1og6SWE"

Putting this fic in because I love literary works that play witht heir format and this is told solely through news and social media coverage of the Winter Soldier trial. Includes Steve and Bucky being cute.

Good Omens

Demonology and the Tri-Phasic Model of Trauma: An Integrative Approach by Nnm

but also

[Podfic] Demonology and the Tri-Phasic Model of Trauma: An Integrative Approach by StarcatcherBetty

"As soon as Aubrey Thyme, psychotherapist, had opened her office door and seen her new client, Anthony J. Crowley, sitting in her waiting area, she was observing and assessing him. At first glance, she paid attention to the following:

--His clothing was expensive and stylish;

--He wore very strange but noticeable cologne;

--His relationship to the seat he occupied could only, very loosely, be described as “sitting;”

--He looked angry;

--He was wearing sunglasses.

What Aubrey Thyme, a professional, thought, upon first seeing her new client was: you’re going to be a fun one, aren’t you?"

So this fic, is another one of those that I wish I could get everyone to read. Or even better, I wish I could get everyone to listen to the absolutely perfect and amazing podfic version of it, done by StarcatcherBetty.

It is told from the point of view of Crowley's therapist, Aubrey Thyme, and once you read it, you will forever wish that this was canon. Because in my head, it absolutely is. I love Aubrey dearly and strongly, I adore both Crowley and Aziraphale, and I am so so glad they finally get some therapy. The ending to this is perfect, and I keep returning to this fic, specifically in its podfic form, again and again.

#fic recs #fic recs lis #pacific rim #newmann #newton geiszler #hermann gottlieb #good omens #Captain America #daredevil

[tripangleforvacation]

California Beach Calling! Don’t forget to look at Homes

Sunny beach vacation or the action packed city gateway, California has everything. If someone is having the extra baggage of property, the house for sale in Baja California is not to let go. Why you need a vacation in California or Panama city and why you need to say no to Airbnb for us is stated below. 

Gentle Reminder: We want best for you, that goes in your budget and makes up with your memo book. 

Read along and get to know why and how to get cheapest hotel in Panama City

Why California or Panama City?

Night Life: California has the perfect night life. Posh restaurants, the grandeur of museums, and lively bars will not let you sit. It’s just not the nights, the beach area of the city is full of fun. Water Parks near to the home, different certified water activities and sun bath surely activates our fun side. Vrbo Panama City Beach fl is one of the most visited places in the entire city because of the cheerful crowd and the home availability. California hosts the best music concerts yearly. If you get the pass or reach around that time, attending the event is pure bliss. 

Scenery: The charm before the sunset and after is dreamy. Escaping the right view sometimes gets challenging because of different locations. At Trip Angle finding a home with the perfect scenery is highly possible. We have a speciality in that. California's coastline is incredibly diverse, offering a wide range of breathtaking landscapes. You get to cover the view from iconic sandy shores of Malibu and Santa Monica to the rugged beauty of Big Sur and the redwood-lined coasts of Northern California, each beach has its own unique charm. The Pacific Ocean's sparkling blue waters, coupled with stunning sunsets, provide a picturesque backdrop for relaxation and enjoyment. The scenery will do justice with your memory book and will call you back to this place. 

Why Trip Angle for a Home in California?

Amazing filters: Through Trip Angle get the cheapest hotel in Panama city. Apply the multiple filters and check 100+ properties as per your requirement. Not just that. Now customize the filters to suit your needs and book the house right next to the beaches with less hassle. 

No Paperwork: We mentioned less hassle. With this we meant not delegating you the task of papers and booking. Just book the property from us, complete the payment process or just the half of it and you are good to go. Don’t forget to book yourself a ticket to the place and pack your passports. People forget that in excitement when they have us. 

Regional Popularity: Other platforms might be superior and extravagant in all the places. But when it comes to smaller and efficient platforms, they won heart zone wise. Whichever city you pick, if the property is listed there, the entire chance of getting the best is delivered. Trip Angles list the property when they get a positive market in the specific location. So, with this you get to pick the property in the location from the brand that has the best reputation. 

Pricing: An airbnb in florida with a private pool might cost you 1000 bucks but at Trip Angle we make sure you get the best in your budget. Pick any home from us and get the private pool with it. Not just the private pool but also the best view and the spacious place to live with your group. 

Easy: We are easy. All you gotta do is pick up the location and apply filters to get the right property. The entire procedure is very seamless as compared to other listing places. The dedicated team will take care of the entire thing right from place searching till you return back from the property. 

To Close

California covers up everything, all you need to do is find a beach that resonates with your plan. Get the cheapest hotel in Panama City with 0 hassle and 100+ benefits. 

To know more feel free to connect with our team. 

#best vacation rental sites for owners #best sites for traveling #vacation rentals best sites #vacation spots in united states #best family vacations spots in usa #houses for rent by owner san antonio #list of travel websites #best travel planning websites #best trip planner websites #home for rent by private owners

[possessivesuffix]

Polynesian Atavisms

As per some previous brainstorming on Twitter and initial further reading up: is Polynesian really just one unremarkable subgroup of the Oceanic languages, or should it be maybe considered a distinct entity from the diverse Melanesian / Micronesian groups?

One of the more unusual features in reconstructed Proto-Oceanic as it stands today are the "labialized labial" consonants, *mʷ *mbʷ *pʷ — reflected fairly widely and yielding in daughters variously just that (e.g. Tawala: /mʷ bʷ pʷ/), or velarized labials (e.g. Marshallese: /mˠ pˠ/) or labial-velars (e.g. Lewo: /ŋm kp/), or labialized velars (e.g. Kwaio: /ŋʷ gʷ kʷ xʷ), or also various other less distinct stuff. Where these have common Malayo-Polynesian etymologies (though most don't), they seem to just arise from plain *p/b, *mp/mb, *m without any single conditioning factor. This, among other things, gives many Oceanic languages relatively rich consonant inventories by Austronesian standards.

But in Polynesian there's again no systemic sign of these. Supposedly they just merge back into the labials! (I gather same also in a variety of other Oceanic languages, but the literature I have checked doesn't bother explicitly listing all known cases.) Some cases still also with *m > *mʷ > Proto-Polynesian *ŋ, but my contact linguist senses suggest that this might be loans from some *ŋʷ or *ŋm type language.

So why should we think the labialized labials ever existed in Polynesian at all? It seems to me that the rise of this kind of a highly distinctive new phonological category is unlikely to just immediately disappear again in a single step. The later Polynesian languages do show a trend towards inventory simplification, but very step-by-step. Intermediate stages towards something highly minimal like Hawai'ian can be indeed still attested in the other languages. This is not the case with the loss of the *Pʷ series as far as I can tell. And it's also not the case that Polynesian would be known to group deep into a tree of Oceanic languages, it's usually put as basically direct daughter of a primary branch (Central Pacific) together with Rotuman and Fijian. Neither of which seems to have generally kept the *Pʷ series either. (Fijian has instead unrelated labialized velars, seemingly from POc. plain velars again without much of an explanation. Ross 2011 proposes also a distinct *kʷ already into POc…)

So perhaps there instead existed a "Proto-Near-Oceanic" or the like, which was the real node innovating the *Pʷ series, and which later spread partly further across the original spread of Oceanic — leaving Polynesian now kind of insulated in the east (mostly: there are still the Polynesian outlier languages which have come back west into Micronesia and Melanesia). Maybe there could be even a series of nodes adding the labiolabials in gradually. Some languages like Western Fijian are claimed to not distinguish e.g. *p = *pʷ, but do distinguish e.g. *mʷ | *m (as ŋʷ | m). I don't know the archeology of the original spread of Oceanic in a ton of detail, but it would make sense that skilled seafarers might have formed their first substantial Far Oceanian settlements (i.e. not just trading outposts or the like) on newly found islands entirely like, say, Vanuatu, versus require at least some time to properly claim ground in places like New Britain and Bougainville that already had long-established "Papuan" populations.

(incidentally why do we call these "Papuan", when many of the families have no presence on the island of New Guinea itself? shouldn't something like "Paleo-Oceanic" be more appropriate for this gaggle of non-Austronesian languages?)

Also a second feature that could perhaps be an archaism in Polynesian is the case of the prenasalized consonants, *mb *nd *nr *nj *ŋg (also transcribed *b *d *dr *j *g). They come relatively straightforwardly from the corresponding Proto-Malayo-Polynesian clusters (with some further shuffling: *nt > *nd but *nd > *nr, and *ns > *nc > *nj), but also arise in various cases without a PMP precedent. And then they again merge back with plain stops in Polynesian. The only trace of them having existed is that "lenited *p" > *β turns instead into PP *f, while there's supposedly no "lenited *mb" (currently unsure to me if there is any reason that there should've been one). Sure enough the clusters attested in PMP suggest that Polynesian did go thru at least the usually assumed stage with secondary voiced stops *b *d *g, this is probably more common than direct loss of nasals from clusters like *mp *nt *ŋk. But the "irregular" cases of prenasalized consonants again seem to not be needed for anything in Polynesian, and maybe they could be similarly innovations in Proto-Near-Oceanic.

#historical linguistics #language classification #phonotypology #polynesian #oceanic #austronesian #historical phonology

[bodiesoflightyogaandastrology]

THE GEMINI FULL MOON SWINGS IN ON DECEMBER 7 at 8:08 pm Pacific🌟Exhibiting the Joy of the Sun in Jovial Sagittarius opposing the Gemini Moon’s Dualistic Nature, this Full Moon is not sure where it’s going, but it’s going!🌟Only an hour after the lunation, Mars RX in Gemini exactly conjuncts the Full Moon🌟Moon-Mars stuff can be edgy and uncomfortable, and that is amplified by the Full Moon🌟Plus, Mars is Out-of-Bounds which means running rogue and impulsive🌟Additionally, we have the Sun conjunct the Great Attractor and Venus conjunct the Galactic Center, so we are in a powerful Portal of Deep Space talking to us🌟This Portal is active throughout December, and with Jupiter hovering in the last most potent degrees of Pisces the Eternal One, anything is possible with visitations/visions/awakenings/activations from our Spirit Guides and Angels🌟Keep your feet on the ground though, as Neptune in Pisces widely conjunct Jupiter creates a challenging T-Square with the Sagittarius Sun opposing Moon-Mars in Gemini🌟Neptune can be inspirational, yet highly prone to delusion and illusion..have a sober driver if you’re out partying this holiday season🌟And check yourself for foot-in-mouth disease (Sagittarius) and TMI/Gossip (Gemini) throughout Sagittarius Season, but especially on this Rogue Full Moon🌟December can be an excellent time for a year end personal inventory/gratitude list for 2022’s lessons, as well as vision boarding/vision questing/card readings for 2023 which will promise multiple major planet sign shifts🌟As great change is on the horizon for 2023, let’s practice gratitude for the grace that has brought us through the recent Eclipses and the life-changing challenges of 2020-2022🌟It’s time to Let Go Big Time🌟Be done with Scarcity/Survival Mode Thinking (Gemini)and Trust/Take Calculated Risks (Sagittarius)🌟This is a most Sacred Time of Year as Darkness gives way to the Light on Winter Solstice December 21🌟Bright Blessings, Swift Healings and Multiple Miracles Upon Miracles are Unfolding🌟Sometimes Quickly, Sometimes Slowly, Faith plus Work is the Key🌟DM me for readings..Link in Bio🌟#fullmoon #astrology #geminifullmoon (at China Cove Beach) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cl0WsmiOYyd/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#fullmoon #astrology #geminifullmoon