#365 day movie challenge 2017 | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

redglassesgirl-maruma · 3 years

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Hello Everyone!

A day like today 20 years ago the first novel of our beloved series was published in November 2000. This is an incredible anniversary and that’s why we’ll celebrate the whole month with events!

I hope you can join this special occasion and contribute a little bit by sharing your posts and art here in tumblr.

This is not the first event run by this blog, if you want to see what we did in previous years you can visit my tags MA Event, MA Event 2017 and MA Event 2018.

The dynamic of the events is to have some deliver themes and inspiration divided in different sections. This event will run weekly, except for the last week of the month when we’ll have daily content shared to inspire you even more.

Please save the date around the last weekend of November for our Live Chat! I’ll post more information about the exact date and time along the next weekly posts.

Update: Live Chat Sunday 29 at 1am Buenos Aires timezone GTM-3 You can check online comparing with your time zone here. We’ll meet and chat, share opinions, and play some games or draw together!

20th Anniversary MA Event - First Week Activity Share your MAlove, share your MArt! From November 1 to November 8

This week we’ll draw fanarts, write fanfics or make any other kind of media to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the series. We have list of 365 prompts in case you need a little bit of extra inspiration, please check under the cut and try to mix anything you pick with a festive mood to make it really special ;D

Remember to tag your posts with #MAnniversary 2020 and #MA Event

Links to the weekly event’s posts:

Prompts:

01. Introduction

02. Love

03. Light

04. Dark

05. Seeking Solace

06. Break Away

07. Heaven

08. Innocence

09. Drive

10. Breathe Again

11. Memory

12. Insanity

13. Misfortune

14. Smile

15. Silence

16. Questioning

17. Blood

18. Rainbow

19. Gray

20. Fortitude

21. Vacation

22. Mother Nature

23. Cat

24. No Time

25. Trouble Lurking

26. Tears

27. Foreign

28. Sorrow

29. Happiness

30. Under the Rain

31. Flowers

32. Night

33. Expectations

34. Stars

35. Hold my Hand

36. Precious Treasure

37. Eyes

38. Abandoned

39. Dreams

40. Rated

41. Teamwork

42. Standing Still

43. Dying

44. Two Roads

45. Illusion

46. Family

47. Creation

48. Childhood

49. Stripes

50. Breaking the Rules

51. Fanart

52. Deep in Thought

53. Keeping a Secret

54. Tower

55. Waiting

56. Danger Ahead

57. Sacrifice

58. Kick in the Head

59. No Way Out

60. Rejection

61. Fairy Tale

62. Magic

63. Do Not Disturb

64. Multitasking

65. Horror

66. Traps

67. Playing the Melody

68. Hero

69. Annoyance

70. 67%

71. Obsession

72. Mischief Managed

73. I Can’t

74. Are You Challenging Me?

75. Mirror

76. Broken Pieces

77. Test

78. Drink

79. Starvation

80. Words

81. Pen and Paper

82. Can You Hear Me?

83. Heal

84. Out Cold

85. Spiral

86. Seeing Red

87. Food

88. Pain

89. Through the Fire

90. Triangle

91. Drowning

92. All That I Have

93. Give Up

94. Last Hope

95. Advertisement

96. In the Storm

97. Safety First

98. Puzzle

99. Solitude

100. Relaxation

101. Hello World

102. Fear

103. Anger

104. Regret

105. Happiness

106. Love

107. Family

108. Friendship

109. Home

110. Childhood

111. Adulthood

112. Birth

113. Death

114. Me

115. You

116. Thoughts

117. Emotion

118. Sun

119. Rain

120. Thunder

121. Noon

122. Midnight

123. Twilight

124. Rooms

125. Window to the Soul

126. Games

127. Halo

128. Serenity

129. Firefly

130. Phone

131. Movie

132. Television

133. Plants

134. Freedom

135. Forgetfulness

136. Remembrance

137. Memorial

138. War

139. Fight

140. Loss

141. Winning

142. Losing

143. Nature

144. Hurricane

145. Storms are brewing

146. Lightning

147. Colors

148. Bravo

149. Punishment

150. Picture

151. Another Wolfs

153. The Life You Dream Of

154. Dreams

155. Tears

157. Smiling

158. Laughing

159. Crying

160. Looking in the Mirror

161. Steam

162. Candy

163. Cats

164. Dogs

165. Glasses

166. Orbit

167. Satellite

168. Stars

169. Jade

170. Emerald

171. Gems

172. Dreaming Out Loud

173. Insomnia

174. Rabbits

175. Snake

176. Borders

177. The Year

178. This Time

179. Last Time

180. Forever and a Day

181. Sometimes

182. Always

183. Power

184. Weakness

185. Green

186. Purple

187. Blue

188. Sight

189. Blindness

190. Hurtful

191. Stages of grief

192. Arguments

193. Country

194. Frog

195. Forest

196. River

197. Flying

198. Mountains

199. Snow

200. Goodbye

201. Heart of Glass

202. My Life

203. Me In a Nutshell

204. Forever Yours

205. True Colors

206. My best friend’s girl

207. Impossible Love

208. Forgiveness

209. Fibers of Our Lives

210. Challenging Dream

211. Living My Dream

212. Forgetting Myself

213. Saving Grace

214. Lonely

215. Unbalanced

216. See-saw

217. Math

218. Match Making

219. Beyond Good and Evil

220. Second Sight

221. Double Take

223. Upon Review

224. Losing You

225. Baseball

226. Shouting

227. Farmland

228. Heartland

229. Brick Wall

230. Glass Houses

231. Eyes

231. Ring

233. Circle

234. Square

235. Boxes

236. Moving

237. Well Being

238. Insanity

239. Repetition

240. Learning

241. Class

242. Flowers

243. Special

244. Snowflakes

245. The Man They Call Jayne

246. Malicious

247. Pretty on the Outside

248. The Outside

249. Thankful

250. Neglect

251. Remorse

252. Embracement

253. Reflecting on My Life

254. Space

255. Constellation

256. Collection

257. Magic

258. Thrill

259. Attack

260. 20 Seconds to Mars

261. Unable

262. Foolish

263. Science

264. Sign of Life

265. Motto

266. Me

267. Balloon

268. Self Esteem

269. Narcissism

270. Ideology

271. Pageantry

272. Keeping Up With the Jones’s

273. Crack in Your Armor

274. Spilling Your Guts

275. Lean on Me

276. Crippling Emotion

277. Biggest Fear

278. Prejudices

279. Fresh

280. Corn

281. Sugar

282. Ice Cream

283. Accents

284. Speech

285. Writing

286. Doom

287. Shape

288. The Real You

289. My Name Is ____

290. Who are You on the Inside

291. Hidden Hatred

292. Hanging

293. Jacket

294. Jail

295. Stepping Up to the Plate

296. Star Player

297. My Hero

298. Castle

299. Losing Yourself

300. Finding Hope

301. Pirates

302. Fallen Angel

303. Drowning Lessons

304. Ghosts in the snow

305. Rawr.

306. Pidgeons… Birdy

307. Broken Hearts Parade

308. Paranoid

309. Vampires

310. Betrayal

311. Emmi&Rumura

312. The three friends

313. Horror

314. Mirror

315. Candlelight

316. Spider moneky

317. Devil

318. Flowers

319. Teddy Bear

320. Mist

321. Kingdom Hearts

322. Ferret

323. Vanilla

324. Thunder

325. Pinto Pony

326. M&Ms

327. Killer

328. Grass

329. Peace

330. Chibi

331. Mr. Klaw, polite Lion

332. Eternal

333. Star girl

334. Hats

335. Calvin & Hobbes

336. Misery (A cup full of something… unknown )

337. Hot chocolate

338. My Chemical Romance

339. Light in the darkness

340. Laughter

341. Nightmares

342. Necklace

343. Fire

344. Clorotaint and Treegirl

345. Swirls

346. Pokemon

347. Friends

348. Double Trouble

349. Do not cross

350. Unknowing

351. Chocolate

352. Time

353. A phone

354. Little kids on a playground

355. Darkness

356. A purple lady

357. Writer’s block

358. The dark corner in my room that I go to cry at (and a unicorn)

359. Sunglasses

360. The sun relaxing by an air conditioner

361. A girl fleeing from her nightmares

362. A girl staring at a blank canvas

363. A visual representation of poetry

364. Trolls

365. A hat

#kkm #kyou kara maou #kyo kara maoh #maruma #ma event #MAnniversary 2020

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chihiroito365daysartproject · 4 years

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About This Project

Concept

This is 365 days art project of Chihiro ITO(Artist from Tokyo).I will share my paintings in every week for my friends and person who watch this project. I would like to you feel something and enjoy for it, and stay healthy.

I hope when will this project end, corona virus nothing already.

Chihiro Ito Profile (HP: chihiroito.tumblr.com)

Chihiro ITO was born in Japan. At age 0, he started painting with his parents who were sculptors using a paper and paints on the dark wooden floor of their tiny kitchen and bedroom in Tokyo. His entire childhood and teenage years were totally focused on his dreams to become an Artist and a boxer. While he never fulfilled the later, after years of toil he cultivated his own unique style of painting and proudly graduated from Musashino Art University in 2004. That same year, Ito’s first solo exhibition was held in Tokyo. Since then, his art has been exhibited at least 10 times a year. In 2012, he was the only Japanese painter invited to the European Capital of Culture in Portugal for his art activity include exhibitions and performances.These experiences were very challenging due to complex sociopolitics but they were also wonderful global experiences for him. In the same year, he was invited to Serbia for a solo exhibition and painting performances. Since 2014, he had contributed to Tokyo, Asagaya Art Streets as artist and the art director. He was involved with Japanese poets such as Shuntaro Tanikawa,Gozo Yoshimasu, Shoichi Nejime, and representative artists of Japanese experimental theater in the 1970s such as Ryoichi Enomoto and Sakumi Hagiwara. In 2017, he was invited to perform a painting performance in the buffer zone of the Republic of Cyprus where the European Capital of Culture was held.

In 2018, Chihiro Ito traveled to New York with a grant from the Japanese government. There, he encountered Jonas Mekas and began to focus more on video and poetry production. His films have been honored with more than 30 film awards. He also held a solo exhibition at Haco Gallery and read poetry at an event at the Queens Museum. Ito has been strongly influenced by Fluxus, the avant-garde art movement that originated in New York in the 1960s. At times when he felt lost in his artistic activities in spite of his many exhibitions, Fluxus art helped Ito to regain his purpose. Ito continues to research Fluxus in New York.

Statement (English/Japanese) : http://chihiroito.tumblr.com/post/4498620653

ステイトメント(日本語／英語) : http://chihiroito.tumblr.com/post/4498620653

Profile (English) : http://chihiroito.tumblr.com/post/2709084274/profile-english

プロフィール (日本語) : http://chihiroito.tumblr.com/post/2709499424/profile-japanese

(Instagram)

https://www.instagram.com/chihiro_ito_365

(Twitter)

https://twitter.com/chihiro_ito_365

This mail address is contact form. Thank you.

作品に関するお問い合わせ、御要望は以下のメールアドレスにお送りくださいませ。

Mail:[email protected]

Support:

KEEP GOING TOGETHER

※本ウェブサイトの作品��像や動画は（個人的に楽しむ事をのぞき、）の商用に無断に使用を行う事を禁じます。

I has Forbids Unauthorized Duplication for Commercial to Pictures and Movies of This Web Site (Personal Use only).

#keepgoingtogether #chihiroito #365days #art #project #onlineproject #eujapanfest #painting #experimental #アート

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irondadfanfics · 5 years

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by CyberWolfWrites

Decided to challenge myself on doing a full year of one-shots of Irondad and Spiderson. And maybe some Avengers.

Words: 23965, Chapters: 18/365, Language: English

Fandoms: Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types

Rating: Not Rated

Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence

Categories: Gen

Characters: Peter Parker, Tony Stark, Pepper Potts, Steve Rogers, Natasha Romanov (Marvel), Natasha Romanoff, Natasha Romanov, Clint Barton, James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Sam Wilson (Marvel), Wanda Maximoff, Aunt May

Relationships: Peter Parker & Tony Stark, Pepper Potts/Tony Stark

Additional Tags: Peter Parker is Tony Stark's Biological Child, Kidnapping, Kidnapped Peter Parker, Nightmares, This is a 365 day thing, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Endgame doesn't exist, Fix-It, Irondad, spiderson, Sensory Overload, Peter Parker Meets the Avengers, Peter Meets the Team, peter meets the avengers, Italian, Protective Tony Stark, Torture, Waterboarding

#IFTTT #ao3feed #fanfic #Tony Stark #Peter Parker #Irondad #Spiderson #Marvel Cinimatic Universe #MCU

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putschki1969 · 6 years

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Winter Special Q&A FictionJunction Newsletter #35

Note: Maybe not the best of times for a winter Q&A but who cares? XD Enjoy!

Q1: Please tell us about an anecdote or Christmas present from your childhood days, something that left a big impression!

Keiko: When I was still in kindergarten, my father gave me a magical Micky Mouse wand which he apparently bought in Disneyland. For me this memory is actually quite devastating because some time later during my elementary school days that wand somehow got lost, my sister and I searched through the entire house to find it *laughs*. We were never able to find it but I just couldn’t give up hope so I continued to look for it all by myself in secret *laughs*. I can’t remember ever having to pretend not to know what my present was when I opened my packages, my father was always amazing at surprising me. Also, all those sweets which were put into the huge Christmas stocking next to my bed every year! Even after I became an adult, I would still receive lots of sweets from my father. I have a sweet tooth and whenever my father sees me get all excited about candy he will tell me, “you really haven’t changed at all!” *laughs*

Wakana: I can still remember I was super happy we received a fancy meal which was completely different to our usual lunch at my nursery’s Christmas party. Our lunch room was decorated beautifully; all the teachers were dressed up as Santa and reindeers. There was also a special cake and warm drink (probably Milo), it was so much fun! And then when I was in elementary school I remember that my father came home and as soon as he opened the door he shouted, “look! Santa Clause is outside!” My brother and I jumped up and ran outside, we searched everywhere but couldn’t find him. Then our father said, “look. There are his reindeers. He is flying off into the distance!” But when I looked in the direction he was pointing at there was nothing to be seen… Disappointed my brother and I returned back inside and then all of a sudden there were presents spread out all across the living room floor, I was so surprised. Thinking back on it, our parents really put a lot of effort into creating that amazing surprise. ♪

Hikaru: Even up to this day I will spend every Christmas together with my family. Sitting next to the Christmas tree we will exchange Christmas presents and eat cake.

Q2: At the start of 2017 in Vol. 32 of this magazine we asked all of you to state your goals for this year, if you had to put a score to how you spent this year, how high would you rate it (with 100 points being the highest score)?

Keiko: I think it was my goal to have more courage jumping into new environments…wasn’t it? This year I learned a lot about my body by doing kickboxing and pilates. Then I studied some Chinese for our Taiwan live…We also heavily increased our Kalafina activities. It really was a year where I was able to face-forward in a positive manner, work on my environment and increase my knowledge. I thought it would be really nice to do all these things for “someone” but also for “myself”, I had a lot of fun and felt like I was leading a fulfilling life. If I had to decide on a score….I’d maybe give this year 50 points…It’s because all these new environments forced me to make certain choices that led to a less than ideal continuation of the year…It would be nice if next year I was able to find a new environment in which I can live on and continue properly.

Wakana: It cannot be measured by a score but it was a truly a fun year! I didn’t really read as much as I had hoped to but I watched movies and dramas 365 days of the year (I think I was watching too many movies so I didn’t really get the chance to read any books). I was only able to visit a museum once (Ueno’s Deep Sea Exhibtion). But I went to a lot of aquariums *laughs*! Next year I will continue to pursue my goals which remain unchanging; reading, art appreciation, movie appreciation, shark appreciation.

Hikaru: I was determined to reach my goals and always gave 100% but it’s really difficult to rate something like this. I think I more or less achieved what I talked about in my New Year’s greeting.

Q3: And now with 2018 a new year is about to start, if it were already the start of 2018 and you had to write your first word of the year, which word would it be?

Keiko: “Challenge” With this resolution in mind I will walk through 2018.

Wakana: “Smile” I think it would be amazing if I got to enjoy music while singing with a smile on my face.

Hikaru: “Road”

Q4: How do you plan to spend New Year’s Day in 2018?

Keiko: For several years now I have been in charge of preparing Zōni so this year I will also prepare it. It gives me peace of mind when my grandmother says, “oh Kei-chan, you have gotten really good at making Zōni ～ so delicious～I am happy!” As a child I was eating the Zōni that was prepared by my grandmother but now I have become able to make it for her so I really want to treasure that time. New Year’s with small joys like this is perfection. And of course I will play with my beloved princess (my niece)! I want to be at her beck and call! I also want check out some New Year’s sales! My new year is full of action starting from the very first day! [* I wonder if this is the grandmother that passed away in autumn. This is the winter issue but I am sure they did all the interviews in advance so maybe at that point her grandmother hadn’t passed away yet]

Wakana: I will relax at home with my family. Starting from New Year’s Eve my mother will prepare roast beef and all the typical food which is served during the holiday, we will eat Zōni, we will watch some New Year’s special on TV, we will do some aimless New Year’s shopping. Since it is the only opportunity in the year where I can spend a lot of time together with my family I will stick close to my mother and behave like a spoiled child. Sorry, I am that kind of daughter *laughs*

Hikaru: I am just lazy so I will relax together with my family…*laughs*

Q5: Speaking of winter, the first thing that comes to mind is “nabe”. What’s your favourite nabe? Are there any rules you stick by when preparing one, if so, please tell us about it!

Keiko: Nabe!! That sounds really nice right now! Just thinking about it makes me happy…I often go to chankonabe places! I really love the type of chanko that sumo wrestlers are eating. It’s extremely voluminous! I love meatballs in my nabe! There definitely has to be more meat than vegetables! Recently I have been really into chicken meat, I never really liked it in the past *laughs* I also like hot pot, shabu shabu and sukiyaki! I can never choose!! My very own nabe has lots of mushrooms and I love to add green onions that taste sweet and soft. I am getting all excited when onions and meat come together in nabe pot *laughs*

Wakana: Whenever I go back home at the end of the year I always request sukiyaki. One time my father and I tried to make “Rosanjin Style Sukiyaki” from “Oishinbo” but we had so much trouble with it, it was very difficult *laughs*For example, the length of the green onions or the plum in the dipping sauce…We just couldn’t make the sukiyaki that was eaten by Yūzan Kaibar. At any rate, I really like Kansai style sukiyaki where they add a bit of sugar. I also can’t resist how Kansai style is more about simmering than roasting. I love to eat a lot of meat and chrysanthemums!

Hikaru: Miso nabe ♪ Daikon, Chinese cabbage and other delicious vegetables that will add flavor, and chicken dumplings! And I also like to add white fish.

#kalafina #my translations #fictionjunction newsletter #winter special q&a #kei's and wa's replies are always so elaborate while hi's are super short :P

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lifejustgotawkward · 6 years

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365 Day Movie Challenge (2017) - #390: The Decoy Bride (2011) - dir. Sheree Folkson (52 Films by Women 2017: #30)

I am often wary of romantic comedies that seem too cutesy from the outset. The Decoy Bride surprised me, however, by presenting an update of the classic Powell & Pressburger romance “I Know Where I’m Going!” (1945), in which a young British woman journeys to a Scottish island to get married, the fates intervene by preventing her fiancé from arriving and the woman falls in love with a quirky Highlander instead. The Decoy Bride offers a gender-swapped version of that tale: pretentious English novelist James Arber (David Tennant) and world-famous actress Lara Tyler (Alice Eve) travel to the isle of Hegg to get married away from the spotlight, but the press finds the couple even in that remote location so Lara’s agent (Michael Urie) hires a local, Katie (Kelly Macdonald), to stand in as a “decoy bride” for the cameras. The only trouble, of course, is that the ceremony is for real, putting Katie and James (not to mention Lara) in a highly frustrating situation.

We learn early on that Katie has had a bad run of relationships with guys who didn’t care about her half as much as she did about them. The last thing she expects is to get married to a complete stranger - same for James, who didn’t quite realize that the woman hidden under ten pounds of bridal veils and speaking in a muffled American accent was not his beloved - so it’s understandable, and fun, to watch the accidental husband and wife squabble over how to resolve their little problem. Naturally, since this is a rom-com, the two fall for each other anyway. Lara’s portion of the story includes her own interesting escapades too, involving a lovelorn paparazzo (Federico Castelluccio) and Katie’s terminally ill mother, Iseabail (Maureen Beattie), who approaches conflicts with humor despite her condition.

I appreciate how sensitive The Decoy Bride is in exploring the Katie character; her personality is so clearly developed and her backstory explained so extensively that we feel she has more than earned her new shot at happiness. A lot of this is thanks to Kelly Macdonald’s delightful performance, although I think that the impact also comes from The Decoy Bride being created by women; the film was directed by Sheree Folkson, co-written by Sally Phillips (with Neil Jaworski) and photographed by Nanu Segal, to name just a few talented ladies from behind the scenes. The other actors in the film do fine work as well, especially the always lovely David Tennant, but it truly is Kelly Macdonald’s film the whole way through.

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pope-john-peel · 6 years

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Day 20: A Song You Know the Choreography For And how!

#rhps #rocky horror picture show #70s movies #cult classic #time warp #365 day song challenge #365 day song challenge 2017-2018

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lamodecode · 6 years

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MAY 2018

EDITOR'S PAUSE

THE DREAMERS

A WELCOME NOTE

Last week, I joined the party and decided to accompany a girlfriend to see The Greatest Showman. The trailer was kind - trapezing wonders soaring effortlessly through the air, satin ballet blocks fresh out of the box, and top hats and canes stamping their mark on a grand stage of sweat, smoke, and song. The film’s lyricists had already Golden-Globe delivered.

Cue the music. It was showtime.

Before we continue, I am not about serving up spoilers and half-baked reviews. But I am all for a piece of art sending you home with a message and a mandatory mic. Pull back my curtain of thought on this blockbuster and you’ll find me centre-stage, barking out my best rendition of Pasek & Paul’s ‘This Is Me’ into my hairbrush, while taking life by a circus rope and swinging ‘er around (until I tank, fall flat on my face, break a tooth and get back up again). Excuse the sad analogy, but, yep, this is me and, even with my questionable trapeze attempt at life, this is the takeaway from an awe-inspiring film. No matter who you are, what you do, or what others think of you, dream big, stand proud, and boldly serenade the world with your story. Unapologetic tooth loss and all.

Somewhere deep in the core of the audience, there will be another dreamer watching like a hawk and hanging on this movie’s every move and every word. As a woman, from Trump to Harvey Weinstein’s deplorable antics, this world we live in is biting harshly these days, where life is marred with inequality or dreams are shelved before you can even sing, ‘Boo!’. My song is quite simple. I have always dreamed of launching an online fashion and interiors publication - blog, website, or otherwise - where I can fly the flag for two art forms that are forever crossing codes. If you know me but at all, you will know this passion project has laid unnourished and dormant in my diary of to-do’s for years, resubmitted to the first page of every new 365-day journal I purchase annually with the grandest intent, but whose empty pages I leave to wilt on a Kikki.K-laden office desk until the next 365 ring the bell. Why?

After leaving my UK life behind, following my now husband to Sydney, Australia, and briefly pausing my career to accommodate visa limitations, I had let my life’s sacrifices and other people’s views of my family choices dictate my worth. Time had run a mile. There was no confidence left in the dressing room. Self-esteem, vivacity, and determination had all exited stage left. My pen was ready to write but there was no ink in sight.

Yet here I am. It took a hell of a lot of judgment to make me realise my bottom line until I challenged myself to rise above the noise. In a world full of grim blows and #timesup tickers, you must dare to dream. Success is not born of dull flames and not one person has the right to cool your fire or steal your shine. No matter how much you love them.

So, to cut the ribbon on this thing here’s to the dreamers. To the magical moments and sublime people whose art has washed the dust off the years gone by. Fashion had no intention of echoing the political trials of 2017, and instead, went through a razzle-dazzle filter of glitz, glitter, and glam. See Spring Summer 18 for the ultimate case in point. From Yves Saint Laurent to Tom Ford, there is no body of work that has fought a fraught mood with such luminescence and lustre. And then there is Anna Robertson who is the irrepressible, kick-ass founder and designer-in-chief of YEVU - an ethical clothing and homewares line created in Ghana - that is changing the script of independent Australian design one colour-clad sustainable print at a time. If that’s not a dream come true, I don’t know what is.

There truly is a phenomenal power and confidence that percolates to the surface of good design. Not just born from the originality of thought and exceptional quality shining like a diamond on a balance sheet, but for the way it makes you feel. It’s a bit like life. With a rock solid graft, you can strive for the best. Or, perhaps, when you eliminate all reason to settle for anything less.

Happy reading. Happy dreaming.

#editorsletter #thenotes #double_size

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sapphirethesexyone · 6 years

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2017 came in like a bitch and went out like a champ. It’s been a hell of a year. My whole life changed.

I know this to be true because I went back exactly one year and read My end of the year blog post from 2016. It starts like this

“I’m living a double life (or maybe triple lol) but I’m definitely living more than one. I appear online through My photos to be a vixen, a woman of the world who can make men fall to her feet. That’s a part of Me but not one I let out regularly. I play vixen. Those who only see My words and never My pics would think I’m a nerd. Outside of My modeling, I am a paid blogger who writes 3 days a week for an urban blog. I am a magazine columnist for a monthly mag and on staff for another urban magazine, which I write for bi-monthly. Additionally, I work on My own writing projects and am completing My first book of erotic stories. I also run a talent promotion and resource website. I build websites. I love to help people reach their dreams as I’ve been lucky enough to do a few times. I love knowing I’m on the cover of a book and magazines. I love that My xxx business led me to the top. I fucked the man himself, Ron Jeremy in 2012. I am ecstatic that My talent promotion business is opening a whole different set of doors for Me. I can’t wait to add published author to the list.

Outside of My work, I spend most of My time on the couch honestly. I love to spend a day lost in documentaries, a good book, or raunchy cartoon. I’m a pothead. I’m generally quiet because I find that the people I send time around are not as intelligent as I and we can’t communicate on a level I feel peaceful on. I hate arguing with an idiot or trying to explain something to someone whose mind is closed. I rather tell them just do your own damn research and shut up. I LOVE to agree to disagree. It keeps the peace.

I don’t date. I tried. I quit. Men suck, no seriously. They look at Me and form and idea of what I am, what they want from Me and they run with it. They don’t give a fuck that I don’t want the same. I’m tired of saying no more than once, tired of fighting men off Me, tired of men hanging around Me thinking I’m going to be the fantasy they’ve concocted in their heads. I’m not, I’m just plain ol’ Me. I don’t date.” Read the rest of this blog post http://sapphirethesexyone.tumblr.com/post/154933706857/2017-sapphirewho-is-this-chameleon-now

Just reading those 5 paragraphs, I have no choice but to acknowledge how far I’ve come in 12 short months. A year is 365 days and this year, they flew by so fast, it felt like we had only half of that. My whole life is different. When I look back at the words I wrote last year, I am so proud of myself.

Not even taking my individual accomplishments into account, I am extremely proud of the mindset shift that I’ve had in 2017, which led to a life I would have never anticipated 365 days ago.

This time last year, I hated Myself and life. I felt lost. For the first time in My adulthood, I felt that I had no choice but to stand on My own two feet. I didn’t think I was ready. Since the age of 20 I have had a guardian angel, a man I called My best friend, he was so much more. He was My everything. He was My father figure, My best friend, the man who loved Me most in the world, My spiritual guide and My role model. I was mourning him this time last year, in a way, I have all year still.

In April on 2017, we went out for a typical day out, lunch, movie and a long walk around the harbor talking. It was the last time we spent real time together, the next day I was at the hospital as he was rushed in for emergency surgery. His appendix had erupted and at the age of 73, he had other complications. He never woke up. His extremely religious family wouldn’t let him go. It’s been a year and a half, he’s still in a vegetative state I hear, he may have had a leg amputated.

It was My best friend that I always spent holidays with because I’m not close to My family. I hadn’t had him for the holiday season, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years’ Eve…..without him, I was miserable. Instead of My closest friend, I was spending the holidays with the person who had stepped up to fill his spot. The problem there, was that we weren’t getting along. After three years, we were still having a hard time finding balance in our relationship, like most men I encountered, we met through something sexual. We weren’t sexual, but he met Me as a cam girl.

Because of how we met, as our friendship evolved, I had a hard time understanding if he was looking at Me as a friend or as a woman who turned him on. Some of his actions and gifts felt more like manipulation. He had recently helped Me get My dentures, which cost 6K. After helping Me, he started to say things that were borderline “you owe me” and I couldn’t deal. We were fighting constantly. On New Year’s Eve, we had a huge blowout. I was inspired to create a yearly goal for 2017, to strive for total independence because to Me, independence meant freedom.

I live on My own, but I’m legally disabled. I work in the ways I can when I can but normal day to day activities and schedules don’t work for Me. I pay My bills with My disability check and whatever money I make is a supplement, it helps but I haven’t gotten to a point yet where I even make steady money to pay My own bills. This time last year I was in a much worse situation. I was barely making any money from My side business. Every month I needed help. My friend was paying My phone and cable every month and I still would be struggling.

January 2017 was like every other January for Me, I was broke, miserable and trapped in the house for the most part. In the winter, My fibromyalgia flares up so badly that I am pretty much incapacitated in pain. February found Me hopeful, I was going to work towards independence and freedom. I just wanted to be happy, but getting there would be an adventure.

February found Me hopeful of a new start, I didn’t realize just how different it would be. For Valentine’s Day in 2017, I decided to give Myself the best gift that I cold, freedom. I had been sexually chained to men whom I felt had no real use for Me beyond sex. If they had any other use for Me, they hadn’t made it known in so long, I had forgotten. Truthfully, I had little use for each but craved a friendship at least with the men I was sleeping with. All we had was sex. I told them all for Valentine’s Day that it was time to end it. This included men I had been sleeping with for 10 years down to men I had been sleeping with for 10 months.

Life hit Me with another curveball right after that, another loss. I had been working intensively with My therapist for 7.5 years at least 1 to 3 days a week for over 7 years. I walked into my therapist’s office one day and she floored Me. After 7.5 years of weekly interaction, she told Me she couldn’t see Me any longer. Since I had started seeing her, she’d returned to school and obtained more degrees. At this point, she no longer could accept My state sponsored insurance.

I went into a deep depression, I stayed in bed for about two weeks, crying and trying to figure out how I would go forth. Eventually, I dragged Myself out of bed.

In late February, early March, I attended a workshop that changed My life. I thought I was going to learn how to publish a book in 30 days, I didn’t what I was attending was a sales seminar. The facilitator wanted to sell us her program, not give us her knowledge. I could respect that, but because of where I was in My life, business and writing career, I was able to take the knowledge she did give and figure out how to publish a book.

I mapped out a plan of action and was ready to take the leap….as soon as My tax returns came in. After preparing My taxes, I realized I would only be receiving $300 back and that was nowhere near the $2000 I was expecting. I was discouraged. Realizing I didn’t really need that much to get started, I started thinking about how I could publish My book. I told a fan/customer My dilemma. They offered Me money, no strings attached. He started with $1.,000 Canadian money which turned out to be a little over $750 U.S. I took that and published My first book, SapphirErotica, bought a few domains names, built a few sites and purchased a bunch of marketing materials. I also paid to be a apart of a women’s empowerment tour that was popular at the moment.

Once I published that book I felt like I had accomplished My main goal and it was time to move forward. I had 20 books in Me, I knew it. I immediately published a second book, then a 3rd and fourth. I started to publish anthologies, which I hadn’t anticipated doing from the beginning. Learning what I did in that workshop, I knew it was the way to go to gain real attention as a writer and make money as a writer at the same time.

I had no clue the attention My new business and movement would start to attract. I told people I was stronger than my struggles. I had been fighting to be stronger than the things that had been trying to break me for a long time. I already had started to share My story via My Youtube series, The Sexy Sapphire Chronicles and Sapphire Says and had been blogging about My life for 10 years on and off. I had been wanting to connect with more women because I knew that My story and determination would resonate with Me. Because of My past in the sex industry, I had a hard time connecting with women. I had no female friends and though I was putting My story out, I wasn’t connecting with women like I wanted to.

I’m shy and quieter than people would expect as I quoted from My post last year. In May, I decided that I would challenge Myself for the month of June to do 30 days of Facebook live. I had been wanting to do live videos but had been avoiding them because I was terrified about who I am and how it would display itself on camera. I’m unpredictable and prone to saying whatever, My mouth is reckless. I didn’t know how I would be received or how it would appeal to women. I didn’t want to sell, I wanted to connect, I wanted to be real.

When I started my Facebook live challenge in June, I had only published two books and was working on My third. I started telling people about My aspirations, how I really wanted to move into office space or start earning enough money that I could easily rent space for the events that I wanted to have, including a free weekly writing workshop. I went in depth about how I wanted to be an asset to survivors and my community both/ I also talked about support and love. I was still beefing with My male friend who had been doing so much for Me, now I wanted and needed someone I could talk to who held no resentments, wanted nothing from Me and who would hear Me out. I had already cut off all My lovers and this point, not only did I feel friendless, but alone.

Through My almost daily Facebook live videos, I found Myself opening up in a way I hadn’t in years. I’d get on cam and talk sometimes for three hours straight and people would turn in from start to finish. It was then I realized that I wasn’t alone. I just didn’t have the conventional support that I had been seeking. These strangers via Facebook started to become a part of My life in a way, they were My support, My family. I couldn’t wait to log in and share My day.

By the end of June, I had amazing news to share. In My boldness and happiness from feeling so free and accepted I had filled out an application to move into the Impact Hub. I had first found out about the place a little over a year prior to My joining. I had been attending free monthly networking meetings there and had attend a few other events in the space. The building was beautiful, and the vibe was familial. I had checked out the costs of membership a few times and hated life because it was out of reach for someone like Myself, on a fixed income. Something drew Me back in June, the same voice that said that it was time to go live.

When I went to the website, there was a link that had not previously been visible. It said scholarship. I filled out the form, hopeful but not thinking they would pay Me much mind. I bared My soul, telling them how I used to be a former whore and that I was working to now run legit businesses and I wanted a creative space to belong and rejoin the community.

Within a week I had received a message that they wanted to meet Me, once I arrived, I was told that I was in. I immediately leapt into action on putting My workshops into play.

I wanted to get acclimated at the new office, but I had to wait until July 5th for My member ship to start, after the holiday. I had recently started spending time with a woman I had met in a writing workshop a few years back, one day she suggested we go to lunch. I had recently discovered HoneyGro and took her there to eat and then to the museum to enjoy the sculpture garden. I had the bright idea that I’d show her the building where I would be having My new office, we stopped past the Impact Hub.

As we left to head back to our respective homes, it started to rain and instead of our normal bus, we hopped the first one that came, a free purple route circulator. The moment we stepped on the bus, My eyes were immediately drawn to the back of the bus. There in the back, in the center seat, sat the most perfect chocolate man I had seen in years. He was Black, dark, locs cascading down his back. He looked up and smiled, his smile was gold, literally. He had fronts but his smile was still beautiful. He was on his phone and I was on the prowl.

My girlfriend and I sat across from each other on either side of him and I started to engage her in convo that I hoped would get his attention, it did. He spent the rest of the bus ride engaging us both but focusing on Me. When she got off the bus earlier than us both, we weren’t complaining. Turns out he worked near My house and was headed to work. I could have enjoyed some time with him on the rest of the 40-minute ride, but I had to make a post office run in the rain. We parted, he immediately text Me. We’ve been seeing each other since, in 2 days it will be 6 months.

He’s far from perfect, in fact, he’s stronger than his struggles and that is why I have fallen for him. On our first visit and time spent alone, I was overwhelmed by the chemistry between us two. I felt like a snack and could tell he was hungry. I told him day one that I had herpes and had been infected for 19 years. He held Me while I cried, kissed Me and then told Me it was okay. We made love. He also came clean about himself that day, he was a former street dude, a thug in a lot of ways, a criminal in others, he had been to jail and for a 10-year period or so, he was an addicted deadbeat. He had fallen into this culture of pill popping and lean sipping and went years without a proper job, he had been homeless, he has 8 children.

He was honest that at the time, he was living in a transitional housing situation. Technically, still homeless. However, his personality was so refreshing, so humbling and his spirit so beautiful, that none of this mattered to Me. In fact, for two months or so, we were happily moving along until he told Me who one of his two baby mothers was. It devastated Me, she and I used to be like best friends in high school and he has 4 kids with her. I immediately cried and stressed, loving him felt wrong but I wasn’t willing to walk away either. I asked him to tell him, it’s been 4 more months, he hasn’t yet. But we had a good convo about it yesterday because he’s ready for Me to start meeting his kids I think. He started talking about it and I told him I have no problem, after she is aware of who he is dating. She can only hear it from one of us, I would hate for her to find out any other way, though we sure don’t hide in public.

I couldn’t believe how My summer was going. By August 1st, I had gotten comfortable at the Impact hub, published a third book, was head over heels for the guy I had met and had facilitated My first two workshops. I was on top of the world. My year had started tumultuous, but I noticed that since I started making determinations and plans in February, My life had changed. It was as if I took control.

From August forth, I was unstoppable. There were workshops and speaking engagements. I saw Myself on a skyscraper billboard. I published 3 more books and made plans to launch a publishing company. My blogging had led to such great assignments as being paid to interview r&b legend Kenny Lattimore. My curiosity led Me to attend networking events that would have before scared Me in size and nature. I learned to walk into room that I once would have felt uncomfortable in, with My head held high. I met celebrities, heard media and business icons speak live in person. I even met a Ghanaian Queen.

In October I launched My coaching programs. I had been doing coaching sessions, which are almost like therapy here and there but was unhappy with the way I could monitor the progress of the people who were paying Me for help. Launching My signature program gave My coaching structure and allowed Me to help them in a better way and also to keep track of their progress.

I was shocked when a woman whom I had met in August at one of My workshops signed up for coaching. In August, she had driven from Connecticut to attend My book publishing workshop and have a one on one meeting with Me. We really got along well, but truthfully, I was a little intimidated by her. She was tall, beautiful, outgoing and had the letters PhD, behind her name. I’m glad I took her one as a client, Over the last few months, she’s taught Me more than she knows and has helped Me grow in more ways than one.

She’ll be publishing her book this month and I can’t wait. She approached Me in the last week twice with statements that made My day. Once she asked about investing My business, the next time she came back and told Me she wanted to write a book with Me. I was amazed, not only do we make a great team and work well together, but I can’t get over the thought of seeing My name on the cover of a book next to that of a doctor. I’m here for it though, you hear?

A woman I met in the summer has become My closest friend, My business bestie if you will. I had been doing local radio spots and promo to advertise My book in June or July. After a few appearances on a particular show, the host told Me about another show he thought I’d be a good fit for as co-host. Once I met the main host of the show, it was obvious that she had checked out. I could see her passion beneath the surface for another project she had That was her baby and where he energy flowed. I told her I’d come out and support her event. I did the following month.

I went in shy, not sure what to expect and by My 3rd month there, I felt like family. I found Myself anticipating the day of the month that we could go fellowship. The woman was so nice and open that I felt comfortable enough to ask her to support My writing workshop, she obliged. Back and forth it seems we would trade favors or compliments until I looked up to and realized that I trusted her. We had become friends. I haven’t had female friends in so long. The bonus? Her wife is just as cool and down to earth. I made one friend and got two.

2017 was a year of progress and growth with just a sprinkle of real life bullshit thrown in. My ex has continued to weave his way in and out of My life, getting my hopes all up that he’ll change. He won’t’ and in 2018, I won’t even allow Myself to be fooled into thinking he will. We spent Christmas night together. I think I will look at that as closure. My son has determined that he will be a lost cause and there is nothing I can do to stop him. My step mother has joined his cause. I’m literally so tired of her undermining My authority as a parent that though I know she has been allowing My son to run the streets of Baltimore at all times of night when I have not approved of it, I’ve said nothing. Instead I’ve checked out and went back to basics. The government said food, clothing and shelter, I provide those, leave Me alone for the rest.

Giving up on your kid is hard but condoning who he is becoming is not an option and trying to change someone else is fruitless. He has to decide eh is tire do f living the way he is. Sadly, in less than a year, he will be 18. I’m not the cut you off at 18 type parent, IF you’re doing what you’re supposed to as a young adult. He has no hope. I don’t see him getting it together til about twenty. I’ll be here then.

The biggest obstacles I faced all year were trying to make My son care about his future, figuring out who I am love and relationship wise, (am I monogamous or poly?) missing the two people who had been the most influential parts of My life, My therapist and best friend and the constant battle for respect with the guy who stepped into the role of best friend when Mine no longer could fill the role.

The biggest wins I had in 2017 were

· Becoming a published author and releasing 6 of the 9 books I finished

· Moving into a co-working space

· Launching My Stronger Than My Struggles

· Becoming more a part of the local arts community

· Falling in love

· Being taken seriously as a coach

· Being booked to speak in front of so many people

· Getting closer to My goal of financial independence. I now pay My own bills every month.

· Cut off the men who were using Me sexually

· Found out that I was indeed capable of being successful without My shrink

· Learned so much about entrepreneurship

· Being named honorary BADD Girl of the year by BADD Magazine

· Interviewing Kenny Lattimore

· Made female friends

And there were so many more wins. 2017 was great. For the first time I even beat the holiday blues season. I didn’t get depressed, hate life and avoid everyone after thanksgiving. Thanksgiving was a little hard on Me, it was the second without My best friend who was really My everything. I was better afterwards though and Through Christmas and the new year, the holiday blues never took hold of Me. For once, I looked at engagement pictures and happy family photos on social media and said, “they deserve that”, instead of why not Me. I have come a long way.

Yesterday was New Year’s Eve and I didn’t make any significant plans. Thanksgiving I had chosen to spend alone. Christmas eve into Christmas morning I spent with My ex, getting the closure that a woman deserves after almost 3 years of nonsense. Christmas Day, I spent with the friend who had taken My best friend’s place. I already knew the guy that I’ve been seeing had to work, besides, he has eight kids, there was little hope of spending time with him. Though I hadn’t planned on seeing him, I found Myself bothered by his lack of communication over the holiday. I was ready to call it off.

I snapped at him and told him I felt insignificant and I don’t allow that. He apologized and said he wanted to do better and that he loved Me. It was the first time he had said it and it caught Me off guard. He surprised Me on New Year Eve and wanted to spend the day together before work. I was ecstatic, I understood not only did he want to see Me, but he wanted Me to not be mad, he wanted Me to know I matter. I already had plans to hang out with a friend but cut them short with the swiftness. I made us some dinner, cleaned up and prepared to feel loved on. He didn’t disappoint.

When he walked in My door looking like God in human form I was reminded of the day we met and how this attraction has been instant from moment one. We spent the day in bed, laughing and talking, cuddling and figuring out our future. We discussed what we wanted from each other and where we were both at mentally in the relationship. It was so different and needed. I was able to confess to him that I was glad he wasn’t ready for commitment because I was afraid I wasn’t ready either and the idea of Me fucking up and losing him totally scared Me all the time. He mentioned Me meeting his kids finally, I told him how My son could benefit from hearing his story.

All day, we did what we do best, comfort each other, listen to each other and watch cartoons. Before it was time for him to prep for work, I got up and made him a plate then kept him company while he ate. After he left, there were still 3 hours before midnight, I called a long-time associate and told them come bring in the new year with Me. We got stupid high and watched the new Dave Chappelle stand ups on Netflix until I finally passed out near 2 a.m.

I woke up at quarter to five this morning, on the couch, hung over from weed and smiling. I sat up and started to finish typing this on the brand new 2018 laptop I received for Christmas. My new best friend still does things for Me, but the dynamics of our friendship has changed. He does them now understanding that it gives him no leverage at all. With or without him I will have the things I need and want and I won’t tolerate any bullshit being sent My way. We’ve found balance.

I had spent the prior day with 3 men but had only been intimate with one. For those who know about My sex ocd, that was a big step, right? I am secure in the fact that while I currently don’t want anyone but the guy I am seeing, that if I slip up and exchange physical energy with someone else, it won’t ruin what I have, I just have to be safe unlike when I fucked My ex unprotected. I took control of My life in 2017. I called all the shots and visualized the things I wanted before getting them.

In 2018 I will continue to move forth with the same purpose and passion. I have things in store for Myself and My business that I can’t wait to embark on.

Yet, the most important milestone of 2018 will be October 11th, the day My son turns 18. I have tried for years to get My son back on track and it has been disastrous. As a parent, for the last year, I’ve wanted to check out. The law doesn’t allow that however, and I’m fully responsible for My son, no matter how fucked up he decides he will be. That changes on October 11, 2018. I will always be his mother, but no longer will I be his scape goat or the one they call when he fucks up. This kid has 10 months left to blame Me for why his life is shit and then I get to say oh well. I’ve been looking forward to it and I can’t wait.

2017 I set myself up for a life of financial freedom, in 2018 I will claim it and My son will no longer be My responsibility, just My son.

2018 here I come. You ready?

Check out My books on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Melony-Hill/e/B071NF1ZCL/

Check out My website and other blog at http://www.strongerthanmystruggles.com

Add Me on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100011090133858

Follow Me on Instagram http://www.instagram.com/strongerthanmystruggles

#new year #blogs #transformation #Life Changes #sexysapphire #melony hill

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wellesleyunderground · 6 years

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A New Years Self-Love Re[v]olution

The start of a new year is often a time in which people reflect on the previous year but also make resolutions for the 365 days that lie ahead. Here WU editors and contributors reflect on where they are in terms of their own self-esteem and self care and state their personal intentions for 2018.

At this juncture, how do you feel about yourself (honestly)?

Proud. When I look back on 2017, I finally worked up the courage to do a lot of things I had been putting off for my entire life. None of it was easy and 2018 looks to be even harder, but still. I gave this year all I had. - Shloka Ananthanarayanan ‘08

Unhappy. I feel like there’s a lot of choices I wish I did or did not make and it’s for some reason easier to continue to examine those choices as the source of all that’s wrong and as a result beat myself as opposed to making a solid plan to course correct. Further, I’m at a point where those around me are settling down and while I am not looking to be coupled/married anytime soon (or perhaps ever), it’s hard not to feel lonely or that I am lacking. Not having a person who is consistently there for me to rely on, even a family member, makes me feel adrift which in turn makes me question my self-worth. -Anon ‘09

Finally feeling like I have direction. When I finished my MFA in 2014, I wasn’t sure how to go about structuring my life around my writing. I’ve had a bunch of different jobs the past three years, from nannying to teaching high school English full-time, and finally this fall I feel like I figured out what jobs allow me the most time/headspace to write. I also finally feel like I know exactly what steps I need to take next to complete my book project… now it’s just a matter of actually doing them in 2018. - E.B. Bartels ‘10

Frustrated. I’ve discovered some of my limits this year and have been trying to streamline my life and commit to less. But I feel professionally and personally frustrated. And it’s difficult to be okay with my life as it is because I experience extreme isolation and am not progressing professionally as I would like. The more I try different things and don’t give up trying to feel better, the more frustrated I feel. And it’s particularly exasperating because I can imagine other people looking at my life and judging how privileged and fortunate I am, which I realize is true at some level but doesn’t help in the daily struggle. -Anon ‘98

Hard to say one word, so I’m going with “Work in progress”. I’m happy with where I am with my work (both paid and unpaid) and feel like I am in a field that matches my passions and challenges me. But I’ve definitely hit a wall this year in terms of my capacity and it’s been hard figuring out how to set up systems to scale back without totally disengaging with my work, communities, and friends. - Fei ‘10

Overall, really good. I feel really thankful for many things that happened in 2017: I met a lot of really amazing, wonderful people; I traveled to many new countries (and even rode a camel!); I tried new foods… I also learned a lot about myself and grew as a person, which is especially important to me. I started a journey I’ve been thinking about for a long time—the journey to become a doctor—and while it’s a hard one, it makes me happy to know that, whatever comes ahead, I will try my hardest to be kind to myself throughout the process. -May Sifuentes ‘09

Unsure. I came into 2017 feeling like I knew what I wanted, what I stood for and where I was going. I feel none of those things anymore. Professionally, I felt like I had to learn to be more guarded, less compassionate, and less empathetic just to survive the environment I was in. But now that I left that place...I always wonder ‘am I just an asshole now?’ 2017 was a big financial adulting year and as I moved into the world from graduate school, I found myself pleasantly surprised that I too could figure things out (be it finding an apartment, building furniture, figuring out how the heck credit cards work, or international travel to somewhere I don’t speak the language). On paper, where I am currently is not bad by any stretch of the imagination-and for now, it’s comfy. But it’s also not where I want my final destination to be and I don’t want to get complacent and stuck. Figuring out how to get where I want to go is daunting. -Anon ‘15

What self-care related commitments did you keep in the last year that you feel particularly good about?

Talking to my friends and going out (even when I didn’t feel like it). My friends were the most important thing about 2017. They gave me great advice, a shoulder to cry on, and helped to celebrate my successes and brush aside my failures. Also, I stayed in more than I went out, and read hundreds of books and watched hundreds of movies and TV shows. And that was pretty damn great too. - Shloka Ananthanarayanan ‘08

Doing more dancing and practice of an art I’ve always wanted to commit more to. -Anon ‘98

I set up a tally system for myself for saying “no” to events/commitments (and rewarded myself when I finally got a whole weekend day without anything scheduled!) and found accountability buddies to keep on track. Making time for rest was hard, but I made sure to get at least one night at home a week. - Fei ‘10

Learning a new skill I wanted to learn for awhile. Also, giving value to my time because it makes it easier for me to prioritize what I really should be doing instead of doing things because I have to. -Anon ‘15

I have gotten better at saying no to things. For so long, I would always say yes to everything everyone asked of me, even if it was something I didn’t really want to do. I’ve gotten better at protecting my time, because I realized that if I don’t make time for my own writing/reading/alone time, I will never recharge and will always feel low-grade lousy about myself and my choices. - E.B. Bartels ‘10

I committed to exercising regularly for my physical and mental health. I started walking several times a week at lunch and going to Pilates classes two times a week. I love it, and it makes me feel so good! Carving out that time is hard with two young kids, but my husband has been really supportive. -Yael D Sherman ‘00

In an effort to avoid burnout in any one thing, I decided last January that I would feel successful if I had done at least one artistic, athletic, or adult thing each day. So I made a Google spreadsheet for each month, and it wound up being a little bullet journal of sorts. Sometimes at 11:30 I would notice I hadn’t done anything that day, so I would hurriedly write a thank-you note or crank out ten push-ups. But hey, all 365 days have at least something! -Jessica Sirizzotti ‘10

I feel especially good about never passing on an opportunity to try new foods, especially tacos, whenever there is a chance. I’m very glad my friends like food as much as I do. -May Sifuentes ‘09

What plans do you have to feel better about or treat yourself better in 2018?

Keep repeating to myself “one day at a time.” I spent all of 2017 stressing about the future (my future, the country’s future, the entire universe’s future). In 2018, I’m going to take each day as it comes and try to remember that things constantly change and evolve, so there’s no sense in pretending I can prepare for every eventuality. - Shloka Ananthanarayanan ‘08

Stop beating myself up so much, to try less hard and just accept myself. To focus more on my needs and my immediate family’s needs instead of depleting my limited resources by putting everyone else first. And to throw all the bad juju in the ocean. -Anon ‘98

I’ve been thinking a lot about self worth and internalizing that I am worthy of love. I don’t know how that will look just yet, but it will probably involve a lot of rereading Brene Brown. - Fei ‘10

“Follow the happy”- do things and be with people that make me happy and (try to) cut the rest out. My foray into adulthood has felt like spending lots of time doing things I don’t want to do around people I don’t actually want to be around. And from 9-5, I can’t really change things, that’s true. But outside of that, I do still have choices about what to do. -Anon ‘15

I want to say yes only to things that I really want to do, stop beating myself up for and feeling guilty about things that no one remembers or thinks about except for me, and try to make more realistic goals for myself. I often set myself up for failure by telling myself I am going to accomplish an unrealistic number of things on my daily to do list, and then, even if I get a bunch of stuff done, I still feel like a failure because I didn’t do everything on my list. I need to stop doing that. - E.B. Bartels ‘10

Let go of my “family peacekeeper” role, especially in non-family dynamics like work. Not everyone has to be friends, and I definitely don’t need to make everyone friends. Also, checklists to help manage ADD “oh no I’m forgetting something” panic. - Jessica Sirizzotti ‘10

I lobbied my mom to gift me a membership to Healthworks in Boston, so I’m super excited about working out as much as I can in 2018. I’ve always wondered if it’s physically possible for me to get a six-pack—because, while I love to work out and playing sports, I also love food, so I guess 2018 is the year we’ll find out. -May Sifuentes ‘09

Have personal goals for 2018 that you’d like to share? Send them to us at [email protected].

#self-care series #self care #self love #wellesley underground

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evigevak · 7 years

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Interview with Tarjei on radio P3 morgen June 7th 2017

Interviewer: You have been on top of my dream guest list for half a year Tarjei Sandvik Moe. Tarjei: So nice. I: Welcome to P3 Morgen. T: Thank you. I: Ok, there’s a lot of stuff to celebrate in your life lately. Two Gullruten awards, that’s cool. TV moment of the year and Publikumsprisen. The two awards the audience could influence, you and Henrik Holm won. A TV season that affected a whole world during fall last year. Here at home you’ve become 18, congratulations on your birthday.

T: Thank you. I’m alive. I: How did you celebrate? T: I… It was a Wednesday so I woke up and went to buy beer. I: In the morning? T: Yes, yes I think so. I: Was is a good feeling to finally be able to buy beer. Did they ask for an ID? T: Yes. I: Congratulations. Because I remember my 20th birthday. I went to the Wine Monopoly to finally buy legally, and they didn’t ask for an ID. T: Right. I: But did the person behind the disk notice that it was your birthday? T: No, I had to tell them. I: You did that. T: I tend to brag a lot about myself so I said: “Hi, this is the first time I’m buying alcohol. Look at my ID. It’s 24.05. today. You can’t stop me now. I: What did the shop person say? T: “That’s huge. I remember my own time. I’m going to remember your face. But I don’t do that anymore.” It was a nice intention though. I: What did you receive from your parents on your 18th birthday? T: They will pay for my driver’s licence. Traffic courses and stuff like that. I: That’s a pretty good present. Huge. T: Yeah, it’s a lot of money. But I’m very scared of traffic. So that’s.. crash. I: Traffic in general? T: Traffic is scary in general. I: Why? T: I have weird experiences with it. The traffic is like “Fuck you Tarjei”. So… I’m serious. I: What has the traffic done to you? T: When I’m going home, I take the 21 bus from Frogner. Once, I sat on the 21 bus and then the 19 tram came and “bam”, and I just “woah”. I: Did you collide with the tram while you were on the bus? T: Yes, I didn’t get any physical… I: But you experienced it, wow. T: Yes. I: That’s impressive, but it ruined your experience. Is that the reason why you’re not getting a driver’s licence Tarjei? T: Partly, and that I once went on in Grünerløkka and was looking down on my phone, listening to music, and the tram went by right behind me. I nearly felt it in my back. I: I’m thinking Tarjei. You should not become a tram driver. T: No. I have bad experiences with trams. I: Perhaps project the aggression to the tram, or think positively about the traffic. Are you an inattentive person? T: Yes. That’s it. I’m all over the place and I can’t really keep track of what’s happening in my surroundings. I feel like that’s a bad starting point for a driver. I: At least you’re aware of it. T: Yes. I: Then you can do something about it. I: There are a lot of bad drivers out there. But for now, you’ve put the driver’s licence on pause. T: Yes. I’m doing the basic traffic course (trafikalt grunnkurs) next week. I: Then you are already on your way. T: Yes, I’ve started. I: Because you need more challenges, more things to spend time on in your life. We’ll talk about all the other stuff you do shortly. *Song starts playing* I: Me and Silje are visited by the person who has conquered the whole world, Tarjei Sandvik Moe. T: Hello. I: What a huge success season 3 of Skam is. What’s it like when there are people outside your school waiting for you all day, from another country? What’s that like? T: I feel responsible for taking a picture with them at least. “We have taking plane 13 hours.” Then I say “I can take 2 minutes of my time to take a picture.” I: How many minutes do you spend on a regular Wednesday, taking pictures with people? T: A regular Wednesday? Perhaps 15-20 minutes. It varies a lot. Suddenly they want to stop and talk. You have to have a conversation and stuff like that, so a lot of time. 20 times 365 is a lot of minutes. I: It’s fascinating how this fandom works. Because we announced on air a few hours ago, that you were coming. And right before 8 o’clock we received an email from Brazil, from Felipe Lima. I don’t understand how this works. Somehow, the fact that you’re here has reached Brazil, and now he has sent us an email. T: What’s Felipe saying? I: He wants.. He loves you. T: That’s nice. I: He loves Skam and Tarjei’s, your work, and he wants you to say “Hi Felipe” now. T: Hello Felipe. This is the T-man. I love that you love me. I: Say I love Brazil. T: I love Brazil. I’ve been there. I: You’ve been to Brazil, it’s not a lie? T: Of course. I was in Brazil when the world championship was held there. I watched a few football matches. I: Apparently it’s Instagram that does these things. I don’t know. It’s a universe of its own. Where you’re one of the main characters. T: Except I’m not in it myself. I: Exactly. Do you get a bit stressed thinking about it all the stuff that’s going on there? Stuff you’re not able to see? T: I think I’d be more stressed if I see it. It’s liberating to know that they have their own little playground where they can toy around with my face, and I can just stroll around in Oslo on my own, and not think about it. I: You do notice it right? Because you receive gifts in the mail. T: Yes. I: What’s the weirdest thing you’ve received? T: People send stuff to Nissen because they don’t know where I live. I: That’s good. T: There are a lot of messages from the office like “Tarjei, come to the office”. And I’m like thinking I’m going to get scolded and thrown out of school. Then I arrive and they’re like “Hey, someone has sent you a tie.” I: That’s nice. T: From China. I: What’s the weirdest thing you’ve received? T: I’ve received a stuffed animal that is supposed to be me. They’ve made a professional stuffed animal. It’s big and it’s me. Like… It’s me. I: Are you for real? T: Yes. I: You’ve received your own action figure in a way. T: Yes. I: Just that it’s a stuffed animal. T: It’s a big stuffed animal. I: That’s wild Tarjei. T: It’s too accurate. It’s Isak but it’s got the correct snapback tag on it. It’s wild. I: Who made it? T: It was from China Kosegruppe. I: Where do you put.. Is your house filled with figurines of youself? T: I just push them down into a box and try not to think too much about it. I: Why not? T: Because then you become self-obsessed. I: Okay. Before the summer you said on Skavlan that you think it’s awkward to talk to your parents about your character in Skam, about the Skam phenomena. What’s that been like after a fall where the whole world took the Isak figure into their heart? T: I gave up a bit. I talked to them about it now. I: It’s going well at home? T: Yes. They tell me “Tarjei you’re doing a good job”. I: Would’ve been weird if they said anything else. T: They tell me if I get a 3 in maths “It’s good that you’re not failing. You’re were good in that TV show Tarjei.” I: You’re playing in Grease this fall. T: Grease. I: On with the leather jacket and slick. From Skam-Isak to Grease. That’s quite a change. What will that be like? T: It’s still high school and… I: Those summer nights. You’ve seen the original? T: Of course. It’s a beautiful movie. I: What’s your relationship with the Grease universe? T: I think that universe is weird. People are weird, but it’s a musical. Teenager musicals are especially.. There are stereotypes. It’s a lot of fun. I: Are you going to be a cool car mechanic guy? T: No, I’m not. I’m one of the dorky guys in the group. I: I see. We’re going to test if you’re good at singing. You’re in high school Tarjei. You’re going through our school diary. Song starts playing I: We’re visited by Tarjei Sandvik Moe, also known as Isak from Skam. That adventure is over soon. Will that be weird? T: Yes. It’ll be weird. I: You’re moving on to playing in Grease. T: Yes, exactly. I: Still working, and in school, last year at high school. That will be awesome. Right now you’re going to fill out a page in our school diary. Yes. Age? You’re 18. We’ve already established that. T: Yes. I: Now on to the important questions. Favourite food? Don’t freak out. T: Balkan kebab. I: Balkan kebab. I’ll write that down. T: Pilestredet. I: What do you order? T: I order a kebab roll with extra sauce. I: Extra sauce? T: Extra sauce. I: Hotness level? T: Medium. I: Always medium. T: It’s a safe westside order. I: What’s your favourite subject in school? Because you’re still in school? T: Yes, I do drama so I’ll go with theatre. I: Yes. Theatre. What was it like with your character this Christmas. People came from China to say hi all the time. Did you get straight A’s in drama? T: I was on a 5, so I had to struggle my way up. I: So you’re not good enough Tarjei. That Skam stuff isn’t that good. T: My teacher doesn’t watch Skam. I: Of course not. T: What counts is your effort and if you can make theatre plays. I: If you had to choose between the general subjects? T: Norwegian. I: Okay. What’s your favourite TV show? T: Fargo on HBO. I: What do you enjoy about it? T: It’s a fascinating universe where everything works together. The characters are really interesting and you want to keep watching like all the time without an extremely structured Hollywood dramaturgy. I: They trick you with cliff hangers, but you still want to keep watching right? T: Correct. I: Sounds nice. Favourite type of music? T: Favourite music? I’m a huge deLillos fan. deLillos is my band. I: So nice/cozy. T: Latest music… I think Sigrid is awesome. I: Sigrid is awesome. T: That voice is like “what?!” I: Have you watched her live? T: No I haven’t. I just turned 18, there’s like 18 years old age restrictions. I hope she comes to Oslo. I: She’s coming to Øyafestivalen. T: She’s going there? I: Yes. T: I have to get a hold of a Øya-ticket. I: Good luck, I think it’s sold out. Not the one day tickets, just the week tickets. T: Then I’ll have to get a one day ticket. I: Go on. Then you’ll get to hear Sigrid. That’s good. Who’s your greatest idol? T: My greatest idol? Daniel Braaten. I: A football player? Why? T: I love the way he plays football. I: How is it? T: He seems like a laid-back guy who just enjoys playing football and doesn’t care about what the coach’s saying. And he’s really good. And he’s originally a Skeid-boy. I love Skeid, they make a of talents. Daniel Braaten is my idol. I: Were you a football talent once? T: I wouldn’t say talent, but I’m a previous Lyn player. I: That’s good. Let’s go straight to “this is the celebrity I’d want to hook up with”. T: Uhm… I: We ask this question to everyone. T: I’d have to say Sigrid then since she’s so good at singing. I: Yes. And that’s an answer that is realistic as well. Age-wise and location in Norway. Tarjei, hold tight. You will be song interviewed my Markus Neby soon. T: Woah. I: What’s your thoughts on that? T: Uhm, a bit excited. I: That’s how it should be. Song starts playing and the news I: We’re visited by Tarjei Sandvik Moe. He has charmed the whole world as Isak in Skam. Markus Neby is in the studio. He’s going to interview Tarjei by using music. Markus: Tarjei Sandvik Moe, you’re at an age where women are important, how’s it going now? T: I’m very very fine. M: How many are we talking? Do you have a girlfriend? T: No I don’t. M: How many women do you hook up with weekly? T: At least 5. M: Nice, nice, nice. You went on Jodel, to say that you’re single. T: That’s very embarrassing. I’m not proud of that. M: But it happened anyways. What are you looking for in a woman? T: That she’s kind to me. M: How do you want her to treat you as a good boy? What’s the nicest thing a woman can do to you? T: Give me coffee and tell me I’m pretty. M: Give you coffee and say that you’re pretty. How’s puberty going? T: I think I’m soon finished with that. M: The penis isn’t fully grown until you’re 20. T: Exciting. M: Nice to know. Nice to know if you have bad self-esteem. How’s your self-esteem? T: I try to keep it down. M: You try to keep it down. Isn’t it difficult? T: Yes it’s really difficult. I’d wish it was lower. M: You’re a cutiepie. You manage to be a humble humble cutiepie. What do girls think is your best trait? The ones that know you? T: They tell me that my hair is nice. M: Nice nice curls. Do they call you curly Tarjei? Do they call you that? T: No, but I’d wish that. M: You’d wish that. T&M: I’d wish that. M: I’d wish that. Call him curly Tarjei. T: Curly Tarjei. M: Curly Tarjei. (repeats) M: What do they call you? T: They call me Tarjei. M: Just Tarjei. T: Or TJ-Moe. M: TJ-Moe. Do people call you TJ-Moe? T: There are some people that call me that. Mostly because I tell them to do it. M: Call me TJ-Moe. I’m called curly Tarjei. I’m called TJ-Moe. T&M: Call me TJ-Moe. Call me curly Tarjei. (repeats). M: Good luck with that. I hope people will answer. Now we’ve gotten to know you better. This was nice. T: It was a bit scary, but it went alright. M: You were good curly Tarjei. Very good, curly Tarjei. T: Thank you, curly Markus. M: I’ve got really straight hair. T: I know. We should try to make some curls in it. M: Perhaps in the future. Thanks for now. Good luck with Grease. You’ve always been a naughty boy. A naughty naughty naughty boy. Let’s stop there. T: I didn’t hear the end. M: You didn’t hear the end? T: I didn’t hear the synth. Nothing. M: The monitors are a bit difficult here in the studio. I: This was beautiful nonetheless. And a very current genre. M: I agree. I: Calm R&B scenery. M: I suggest this could be the pause act in Grease. I: Great idea. M: Tarjei’s new nickname. I: People are gonna call you curly Tarjei from now on. Thank you for coming. Good luck with the final stage of Skam. Good luck with Grease. And not least, good luck with the russ celebration in your last year at high school. T: Thank you.

#skam cast #tarjei sandvik moe #interview #translated #srs

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swimintothesound · 6 years

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Swim Into The Sound’s 2017 Un-Awards

Welcome to Swim Into The Sound’s first annual Un-Awards! In this direct (and more negative) companion piece to our Diamond Platters, we take a moment to reflect on some of the worst moments in music over the past year. From bad lyrics to tasteless cover art, this is a quick-hit version of the lowest points that 2017 had to offer.

In a year where we keep thinking “well, at least things can’t get any worse” 2017 always managed to surprise us. From politics and celebrities all the way down to movies and music, this was a year of general-purpose deplorable behavior and reprehensible choices. While there were plenty of good moments over the past 365 days, you will find that none of that light reaches these depths. This post is a place of darkness, a hell devoted solely to the most soul-crushing and life-questioning music of the year.

I’d also like to throw out a disclaimer that I don’t particularly like being pessimistic, especially when it comes to art that people have (presumably) worked hard on. Aside from that, negativity stands in direct opposition to the ideals that this website was founded on in the first place. What I’ve found is that it’s hard to talk about the good without also thinking of the bad, especially for a year like 2017. As I mentioned before, the previous post is the exact inverse of this one, and the next article going up will cover our favorite albums of the year, so if you are searching for affirmation, this is not the place to find it. Just think of this as the lone negative meat in a positivity sandwich.

Truth be told, aside from a few visibly-frothy entries, most of these awards are positive spins on negative experiences: moments that surprised me, music I’m embarrassed to enjoy, or weird synchronicities that I noticed throughout the year. I could have gone out of my way to shit on Katy Perry, The Chainsmokers, Imagine Dragons, or any number of middling radio-ready albums that were released this year, but at a certain point that all just feels redundant and hack. I prefer to be original in my distaste. So without any further adieu, I’m proud to present Swim Into The Sound’s list of the most spine-chillingly-regrettable music of 2017.

Biggest Disappointment

Winner: Queens of the Stone Age - Villains

Being a fan is a mixed blessing. The upside is that you get to enjoy the rollercoaster of hype that is an album rollout and you get the sweet experience of listening to a highly-anticipated album for the first time when it releases. On the flip side, that fandom can easily backfire if your expectations have been built up too high. While I love Queens of the Stone Age, in 2017 I fear that I may be outgrowing them. The group’s 2004 release Songs for the Deaf is literally my favorite album of all time, and there’s no higher praise than that. Each record since then has been good to great until 2013’s ...Like Clockwork which just didn’t sit right with me outside of a select few songs.

This year, the group’s seventh LP represents a new artistic low. Featuring limp “dancy” grooves, irritatingly-clean instruments, and some of the most laughable lyrics I’ve ever heard, the band we see on Villains bears little resemblance the one that I fell in love with years ago. I recognize that wanting a band to stay the same is a shitty thing for a fan to ask, but I just can’t understand, enjoy, or tolerate the direction that the group is headed. I’m a lifelong fan, but that makes these recent records hurt all the more. When you love a band, you devour each release that they put out. Even if the last few records haven’t hit as hard, you stick with them because you want them to be better. The excitement of something new is impossible to stay away from, but now after months of listening, all I want is for Villains to stay away from me.

Runner-up: Portugal. The Man - Woodstock

While I wrote glowingly about Portugal. The Man’s entire discography last month, Woodstock (while not bad) is not an album that I particularly wanted. It’s not the band’s worst, but it’s the most sterile, safe, and poppy album that the group has ever created. Outside of a handful of adrenaline-pumping car-ready songs, Woodstock takes no risks. The album breaks no new ground, asks nothing of its audience, and seems entirely too content to settle. While those qualities are the exact opposite of what I expect from the trailblazing Portlanders, I’ll hold my reservations until I hear what comes next.

Album I Feel Like I Will Adore In A Few Years

Winner: Fleet Foxes - Crack-up

Until earlier this year I never particularly liked Fleet Foxes. In preparation for their 2017 release, I found myself endlessly replaying the group’s self-titled LP alongside Helplessness Blues while doing other things. Somewhere along the line “inoffensive background music” turned into brilliant folk epics, and I finally understood what made the band so unique. However, in a Bon Iver-esque pivot, Fleet Foxes’ third LP Crack-up represents an experimental shift in sounds, and unfortunately, it’s a change that doesn’t sit particularly well with me. There are some awe-inspiring moments scattered throughout this record, but as a whole, it’s not a release that stuck with me in the slightest, let alone one that can hold a candle to the band’s earlier work. I recognize that there’s something special going on in Crack-up, but I feel like it will just take some time for me to properly excavate it, just as I did with the group’s first two records.

Runner-up: Sun Kil Moon - Common As Light and Love Are Red Valleys of Blood

Sun Kil Moon is another artist that I’d never listened to until 2017. After hearing this year’s mouthful of an album Common As Light and Love Are Red Valleys of Blood, I came away pleasantly surprised. Featuring solemn, looping instrumentation and long podcast-like narration by Mark Kozelek, I listened to all two hours and ten minutes in complete fascination. I dipped back into his previous work like Benji and loved it just as much, but for whatever reason, I never ventured back into Valleys after that first listen. Maybe it was the album’s lengthy running time or the idea that the narration would prove too distracting for a casual listen, but Valleys always felt too daunting to dive back into. I feel like one day when I’m a middle-aged dad with a couple of kids I’ll finally have the time to revisit this album and it will speak to me on an entirely new level. The songs and stories here feel like something that I will find solace in when I’m older, but I just don’t have the 2+ hours right now.

WTF Moment of the Year

Winner: Bhad Bhabie

Of all the memes to emerge from 2017, few have been as successful as 14-year-old Danielle Bregoli. She first gained traction in January thanks to a Dr. Phil clip in which Mrs. Bregoli challenged an audience member to “cash her outside.” The teen’s delivery of the phrase caught fire and became a meme/infinitely-renewable social media caption for a hot minute. One of the more perplexing news stories of 2017 (and that’s saying something) was Danielle’s announcement of her music career as “Bhad Bhabi” complete with a deal on Atlantic Records. Preceded by an appearance in a Kodak Black video, this announcement blindsided the music world and spawned a million think pieces. However when Bregoli released her first song in August the unthinkable happened: It wasn’t that bad.

The video for “These Heaux” was the first part of a one-two punch alongside “Hi Bich” that set social media ablaze in September. As everyone collectively remembered the months-old meme from what seemed like a lifetime ago, most people took this as an opportunity to laugh at her once again. Meanwhile, I watched the same videos as everyone, and recognized it as bad music, but found myself embarrassingly enjoying both songs. “Heaux” and “Hi Bich” are both competent and well-produced Rae Sremmurd-esque bangers that, yes, are propped up by production, but still enjoyable. The truth is, they’re musical fast food. It’s not nutritious, healthy, or even filling, but sometimes you just need to bask in the utter trashiness that is Bhad Bhabie.

Runner-up: Lil Pump

Earlier this year I wrote a 3,000-word post in which I attempted to reconcile my newfound love of trap with my extreme dislike of the current crop of SoundCloud rappers. While that write-up was primarily inspired by the reprehensible human being that is xxxtentacion, I now regret lumping Lil Pump into the same category. While his brand of blown-out hyped-up trap is of the same school as xxx, Lil Pump isn’t nearly as bad on a personal or musical level as Onfroy. More surprisingly, I actually found myself liking his breakout single “Gucci Gang” more than I am comfortable admitting. Featuring a worryingly-mindless chorus and the same laundry list of flexes as most trap hits, “Gucci Gang” manages to be an infectious banger that has also propelled Pump to the forefront of both the charts and popular culture.

Most Un-sexy Sex Song

Winner: Alt-J “Hit Me Like That Snare”

In an interview with Q Magazine, Alt-J’s lead singer Joe Newman described “Hit Me Like That Snare” as an “atypically filthy psychedelic grind.” Wow, guys. Wow. If you want to avoid listening to the song, I don’t blame you. All you need to know about this track is that the band rhymes “slithering” with “scissoring” (yes, that kind), and the lead singer describes the song as “spicy.” Whew.

Runner-up: DJ Khaled “Wild Thoughts”

While I thought “Wild Thoughts” was exceedingly-sensual on first listen, the song now has too many things working against it for me to find any titillation here. From Rihanna’s baby talk to memories of dancing hot dogs, I just can’t listen to this song without picturing Santana’s face, or DJ Khaled screaming. The single achieved a level of cultural-pervasiveness so quickly that it became saturated beyond its original artistic vision. God knows I have no problem with DJ Khaled, but this track now contains too many distractions to remain pure. The music video is still unspeakably steamy, but as a whole, “Wild Thoughts” has lost what little sexy luster it initially had.

Am I The Only One Seeing This Shit?

Winner: Rappers Counting

I’ll admit that this category was created with the sole purpose of repurposing already-written articles, but that doesn’t make the observations contained within them any less valid. The first of these two hyper-specific happenings of 2017 can be found in this article where I outline three examples of rappers using numbers as lyrics. Not like clever wordplay involving numbers, but counting upwards sequentially one numeral at a time. It’s a weird thing to have happened multiple times in one year and feels like such a lazy cop-out of songwriting, but at the same time, each artist in the list manages to make it work for one reason or another.

Runner-up: 21 Savage’s Food Lyrics

Another weirdly-specific phenomenon of 2017 is something that I noticed while listening to 21 Savage’s debut Issa Album over the summer. Despite his tough gangster exterior and dark, moody beats, 21 also managed to fit an alarming number of food references into his first retail outing. While not particularly jarring, these references provide a weird contrast to the rest of the Mr. Savage’s “murder music” and end up sticking out like (multiple) sore thumbs throughout the record. It happened just consistently enough that I began laughing every time they poked up, and I felt the cosmic need to compile them somewhere, so I did.

Most Insensitive and Heavy-handed Song about Suicide

Winner: Arcade Fire “Creature Comfort”

On this second single off Arcade Fire’s Everything Now, we hear Win Butler clumsily address the topics of suicide and self-harm. The song’s first verse explains “Some boys hate themselves / Spend their lives resenting their fathers / Some girls hate their bodies / Stand in the mirror and wait for the feedback.” Taken on their own, these lines aren’t particularly offensive, but it’s the second verse where things get truly tactless: “Assisted suicide / She dreams about dying all the time / She told me she came so close / Filled up the bathtub and put on our first record.” I mean, what a pretentious and shitty way to insert yourself into someone else’s misery. It’s such a bizarre form of narcissism and masturbating to your own past, this line truly is one of the grossest sentiments that I’ve heard put to music over the past year.

Runner-up: Brand New “Same Logic / Teeth”

While it’s true that suicide isn’t exactly a groundbreaking topic for an emo band, Brand New somehow manages to stumble over it fantastically one of the few times that they tackle the subject. Surrounded by excellent songs of diverse sounds, styles, and topics, “Same Logic / Teeth” sticks out as Science Fiction’s most significant blunder. With questionable lyrics, bizarre vocal choices, and overwrought sentiments, it’s easy to see why most bands would prefer not write songs about killing yourself because the only time I have ever wanted to end my life is when I’m hearing Jesse Lacey sing about how fish won’t judge me by my faults.

WTF Moment of the Year 2: Weird Boogaloo

Winner: Vulfpeck “Captain Hook”

Venturing back to the “WTF Well” for two more entries, another of 2017’s biggest surprises came at the end of Vulfpeck’s Mr. Finish Line. The band’s third full-length studio album is a stone-cold chiller, but after half an hour of unspeakably funky tracks, “Captain Hook,” the record’s final song threw me (and every other listener) for a massive loop. Teased as a collaboration with Bootsy Collins, most fans expected a brainwave-shifting epic of an album closer, a modern “I’d Rather Be With You” but with even tighter instrumentation. What we got was a goofy comedy track featuring two of Vulfpeck’s members affecting the voices of an infant and an old Jewish man. Bootsy’s contributions are noticeable but minimal, and as a whole, the track is just a fantastically-bizarre experiment. “Captain Hook” is a weird child-like song featuring a trio of the three most disparate voices you could ever imagine, however (now that I know what to expect), I absolutely adore the song. It’s such a weird marriage of voices that, when combined with Vulf’s approach to music, circles back from annoying to endearing. It’s one final cherry of weirdness on top of the funk sundae that is Mr. Finish Line.

Runner-up: Taylor Swift “Look What You Made Me Do”

Preceded by snake imagery and a dark rebranding, “Look What You Made Me Do” marked Taylor Swift’s long-awaited return to the forefront of pop. After 2015’s 1989, numerous turbulent relationships, a public unmasking via Kardashian, and a complicated legal battle, the song represents Swift’s full embrace of the dark side. As the first single released off Reputation, “Look What You Made Me Do” was met with waves of confusion when it dropped this fall. From the Right Said Fred sample to the thinly-veiled jabs at her detractors, nearly everything about this song was poked and prodded through upon it’s August 25th release. There’s a strange schadenfreude to watching the biggest pop star flail to spectacularly, but at the end of the day she’ll still make a million dollars, sold-out rock stadiums, and be more successful than the richest DC supervillain, so as much as I want her to succeed, I guess it’s also okay to laugh. I definitely haven’t “come around” to the song, and I doubt I ever will, but the air of “what the fuck” was palpable the night that this song was released.

Weirdest Flex

Winner: Lil Pump “Gucci Gang”

After a brief intro and meme-ready chorus on “Gucci Gang,” Lil Pump surveys his surroundings and begins to describe them in the song’s sole verse. “My lean cost more than your rent” he boasts, “Your momma still live in a tent” he continues, “Still slangin' dope in the 'jects / Me and my grandma take meds.” These lines are so outlandish and bizarre that I can’t help but love them. First, we get the worrying comparison between the upkeep of his own opiate addiction to monthly rent, then the (uncalled for) implication that the listener’s mother is homeless, and the final cherry on top: the fact that Pump spends quality time popping pills with his grandmother.

It’s actually one of Pump’s numerous references to the elderly on his scant number of released songs, leading me to think that this is either A) a genuine lyric, or B) a worrying cry for help. At least he’s spending some quality time with his elders before they pass. Even if it’s a drug-fueled haze, I hope that both parties treasure their remaining time together.

Runner-up: Drake “Gyalchester”

On one of More Life’s most hard-hitting tracks, “Gyalchester” finds Drake braggadociously displaying his opulence in rapid lyrical flashes. Halfway through the first verse, the song’s beat cuts out just long enough for Drake to exclaim “I don't take naps / Me and the money are way too attached to go and do that.” While the sentiment of money over everything is hardly new for the rap game, using naps as a framing device to explain how fond of currency you are is such a “Drake way” to go about it. At this point, Drake is far beyond the memes of his earlier career, but lines like this one are how he got that reputation in the first place. All this said, I’m not gonna begrudge anyone their beauty sleep or lack thereof, everyone has their own unique schedule... Plus the song bangs, so cornball lyrics are easier to overlook.

Most Abhorrent Cover Art

Winner: The Darkness - Pinewood Smile

I honestly don’t want to write too much because I just want to stop looking at this. The facial hair. The teeth. The nose ring. The Photoshopped band members. I’m sorry I had to subject you guys to this, but this abortion of a cover is too bad to not share.

Runner-up: Maroon 5 - Red Pill Blues

*Adam Levine walks into the studio*

“Hey, have you guys heard of Snapchat?”

Most Undeservedly Shit Upon

Winner: Arcade Fire - Everything Now

For the sake of ending on a somewhat positive note, I’m going to wrap up by talking about two albums that were widely disliked, but I managed to appreciate. First off we have Arcade Fire’s fifth LP Everything Now. While I did just spend a paragraph dunking on the album’s suicide track, I actually thoroughly enjoyed this record. I’ll start this off by saying I have no reverence for this band, I don’t care for their older work, and they’ve always struck me as a painfully average indie group. Perhaps thanks to this lowered expectation, I emerged from my first listen of Everything Now with a smile on my face. It was goofy and cheesy, and about as far from subtle as you can get, but I still enjoyed it for what it was. Since the album is in this “shit upon” category, I guess it goes without saying that I was largely alone in this sentiment.

Maybe people were turned off by the unrelenting social media campaign, or just expected more based on the group’s previous work, but either way, it seemed like indieheads the world over were sick to their stomachs after hearing this record. I personally think the album has a wonderful Abba-esque charm to it. There’s a tremendous melodic through-line with the titular “Everything Now,” there are memorable choruses on “Creature Comfort,” and even a gloriously chunky riff on “Chemistry.”

At the end of the day, I think I enjoy Everything Now for the same reason that I enjoyed M83’s Junk. I went into both albums with low expectations and ended up loving the cheesy throwback vibe that they embraced. I can totally understand why that pivot would turn off long-time fans, but apparently, this sound is right up my alley. It’s not going to be on my end of the year list or anything, all I’m saying is Everything Now is good for what it is. You know what? It’s great for what it is. If fans could take their blinders off, remove their feelings on the album’s lead-up, and take this as a standalone adventure, they would probably enjoy Everything Now for the goofy romp that it is.

Runner-up: Foo Fighters - Concrete and Gold

Even before Concrete and Gold was released, I saw about a half dozen articles about how the Foo Fighters have nowhere else to go and are the embodiment of “New Dad Rock.” While it’s true that the band is unchallenging to listen to and don’t exactly think outside of the box, the criticism is a double-edged sword. Aside from being a thinly-veiled put-down, the dad rock label means that Foo Fighters won’t ever release a “bad” record, but they’re also never going to release another “classic” like Colour and Shape. While I agree the group is in a weird spot career-wise, I resent the idea that they won’t ever release something impactful as Colour and Shape simply because they’re older. Apart from the fact that 2011’s Wasting Light was one of the band’s best, on Concrete and Gold we see a band that’s still incredibly hungry.

Eschewing the conceptual framing devices of their past couple releases, Foo Fighters set out to make a straight-up rock record, and they succeeded. The band still go through their usual motions, oscillating from biting punky tracks to slow moody epics, but as a whole Concrete is a record that’s well-paced, well-produced, and solid from front to back. Just because it’s played on the radio doesn't mean it’s an inherently “okay” album, and just because the band is growing old doesn’t mean they’re settling. Concrete and Gold is concrete proof of that.

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