#And then just the last couple redraws to get back into the swing of things ♪ I can't decide which one I like better!

[south-park-meta]

Brontide – The low rumbling of distant thunder. stanman

Kind of one-sided Stanman (or at least Stan being nervous about Cartman's intentions) and Style.

General psych horror warning I guess in that I find Cartman to be physically/psychologically/sexually abusive and it causes fear but he doesn't do anything he hasn't done in canon.

[Stan saw once on those court shows, like Judge Judy or something, that a guy ended up winning possession of part of his neighbor's property because he put in a new fence three feet left of the old one, and the neighbor let it go for too many years before complaining that it was on his land. He's letting Cartman redraw his property lines, giving himself up three feet at a time. "Just go to sleep," he says to Cartman in the dark. They're sharing a blanket and he thinks of ripping it off of Cartman and rolling up in it, just to stake a claim in what's his.

He doesn't.]

Cartman does this thing, pushing boundaries. He pokes and prods at them. He figures out which ones are fences made of steel and which are those paper ropes; ceremonial and easily snipped with scissors. He started inviting himself over at ten when things started going sideways in their group. He invited himself over to Kyle's, too. Cartman kept them apart, enjoyed their time all to himself, all while saying how important it was to keep the group together. How terrible it is that the broship is splitting up, Cartman would lament, shoving Cheesy Poofs into his mouth, before telling Stan how much fun he and Kyle had playing a game on their new X-Boxes.

Divide and conquer.

After the four of them tied themselves back together, Cartman started doing it again. He got better at it, cornering them each alone. He's good at it now at sixteen years old. It's strange, knowing so well what Cartman's doing this time around, but it's still somehow hard to stop it. Cartman forced a place for himself in their lives once and it's easier for him to find that place now because of it; he walked the path so many times that his feet can find it even in the dark.

It's just lucky that Stan and Kyle have gotten better at navigating, too. They aren't tripped up so often anymore.

Cartman realized when the Jeffersons were their neighbors for a couple weeks that sleepiness is a weakness to be exploited. He crawls in through Stan's bedroom window in the middle of the night and right in bed beside him. Stan wakes up and startles.

"Dude, get the fuck out of my bed," Stan says. "You're wet."

That's the reason he gives. Not that Cartman came in without asking, that he broke into the house in the middle of the night, that Stan doesn't want him there at all. The thunder rolls outside. He's making the bed cold, uncomfortable.

They look at each other in the dark. Lightning cracks close outside the window and brights the room, and Stan's breath catches. He gets the idea, that half-second of being able to see Cartman's eyes clear as day, that Cartman will suggest taking his clothes off and laying together, dry.

"Forget it," Stan says quickly, before Cartman can say anything. Just in case, so he knows Cartman will be keeping the clothes even if he's giving up the bed. He turns over, turns away. He knows he shouldn't. Not because the actual act of turning his back on Cartman is letting himself be weak, though it is; being stabbed in the back is more of a betrayal because you can't see it coming. He's aware of the vulnerability but not exactly afraid to give it. Cartman's never hurt him before. He sort of thinks Cartman won't ever try to because he's him and Cartman's Cartman and something about those two facts prevents it, and he sort of thinks he just hasn't ever given Cartman a good enough opening to take.

It's because turning over, letting this stand, is saying it's allowable. Still allowable. He let Cartman get away with sneaking into his house as kids plenty of times despite never wanting him there.

Stan saw once on those court shows, like Judge Judy or something, that a guy ended up winning possession of part of his neighbor's property because he put in a new fence three feet left of the old one, and the neighbor let it go for too many years before complaining that it was on his land. He's letting Cartman redraw his property lines, giving himself up three feet at a time. "Just go to sleep," he says to Cartman in the dark. They're sharing a blanket and he thinks of ripping it off of Cartman and rolling up in it, just to stake a claim in what's his.

He doesn't.

He doesn't shut his eyes right away. He stares at the wall and listens to the thunder. He feels the house quiver with it. He's waiting for something, but he's not sure what that something is. There's a creeping fear, but he's not sure what he has to be afraid of. Other people have reason to be scared of Cartman, because he's actually done something to them somehow. From other people, Cartman has fed off of their humiliation, over dominating them or belittling them. All Cartman's ever taken from Stan before, really, is a physical presence.

Closer and closer.

Here's the lion, knocking at your legs, trying to cut you off from your herd. Better keep up.

Don't be divided, don't be conquered.

Stan rolls back over. He has to because Cartman's in the way of his night stand. Cartman hasn't closed his eyes, either, and they stare at each other up close and personal. Stan lifts himself onto his elbow and leans over Cartman to grab his phone.

Cartman grabs his wrist and says, "Using your phone in bed is bad for your eyes," with a funny kind of smirk. Stan got his first pair of glasses this month. They look at each other for a moment longer, and then Cartman lets him go.

Can I come over? he texts Kyle, I miss you

If they were still neighbors he wouldn't have asked, but it's not a two-minute walk anymore. It's something he needs to drive to now, in the cold and rain and dark. He holds his breath. They've changed notifications and turn them on high at night, so they can wake each other if they need to. But it's no guarantee.

A few beats.

You saw me all day.

He can read the tone. It's not putting him off; it's teasing him, and he makes himself not-smile so Cartman can't catch this weakness. He and Kyle have been shifting their boundaries, too. It's nothing yet, undefinable but different than it had been before.

So? I miss you anyway

Yeah. Come over.

He has to swing over Cartman to get up. Cartman doesn't do anything with that fact besides quirk his eyebrows. No funny comment, no stopping him, no....whatever. He doesn't try anything in those last moments where he could, at the time that would be the worst. It's not that Stan wishes he would, but it's easier to draw hard boundaries with Cartman when he does something really awful. those moments that are 'Enough is Enough' moments, the ones that could do him real harm. There's been a few of those moments through the years, where he can see that what Cartman's going to do might really, irrecoverably hurt him and he clamps down on it hard to stop it. He ends their friendship clean and fast.

And then he lets it creep back up on him, because he's never been hurt by Cartman, not really. Maybe it'd be better if Cartman does hurt him, for real, just once. So he has the pain for reference and knows why he doesn't want to do it all again. So he has the reality instead of the possibility.

But maybe that's why Cartman's never really hurt him, and maybe he never really will.

He walks out, leaving Cartman alone in his room. It feels like a loss, because he's not sure at all what Cartman wanted, and he let Cartman have free rein over all of his things. But he wakes up with Kyle's arms around his waist and face pressed between his shoulder blades, and that feels like a victory.

#not tagging this because ik my stanman takes are tailored for literally JUST me #if you want a romantic cartman ship i'm not the one for it sorry #queue #not meta

[everlarkchristmasgifts]

Something Suspiciously Like Hope

Written for Day 2 - Secret Santa Exchanges.

Unbeta’d. Rated T for language. Enjoy :)

Peeta takes the slip of paper from his pocket and stares at the name, written in her small, careful cursive. Again. As if the writing changed from the last time he read it.

Katniss Everdeen.

The gods of Random Name Drawing have a sick sense of humour, that’s for sure.

God, what if she drew his name, too? Then what would he do? He fights back a shudder — what are the odds of that happening? — and tosses the paper in a nearby bin. It’s not like he’s ever going to forget it, anyway.

He takes stock of his very limited options as he mixes up another batch of dough for the bakery’s famous Christmas shortbreads. He can’t get her anything too impersonal. That just seems… rude. Not to mention, a gigantic lie. They’ve never been friends — hell, the slip of paper with her name on it is about the entirety of their exchanges over the years — but they’ve been in the same classes since kindergarten, so that should count for something, shouldn’t it?

But on the other hand, he can’t get her anything too… not impersonal, either. Nothing that could out the feelings he’s carried around like a backpack full of bricks for over a decade. That would be… not a gigantic lie. But also, his absolute worst nightmare come true.

He should have asked to redraw his Secret Santa when he had the chance. Knowing Ms. Trinket, though, she never would have allowed it.

There’s a tiny sliver of grey area that he can work with here. What’s the happy middle between a five-dollar café gift-card and a dozen long-stemmed red roses? Is baking her a cake from scratch too heartfelt, or just the right amount of caring and not-caring?

I put together this cake just for you, but I also work in a bakery and make literally thousands of cakes just like this one in a week, so don’t feel too special.

“Why does this have to be so hard?” he mutters to himself.

“Surely not the dough, son? You could make those cookies blindfolded by now.”

Peeta jumps maybe three feet in the air. He’d almost forgotten his father was still in here, too.

“Not the dough,” he says, shaking his head.

“What, then?” his father prods.

Peeta sighs, but there’s never been any point lying. His crush on Katniss Everdeen has been his worst-kept secret since he was five and saw her for the first time, after which he declared to everyone in earshot that he would marry her someday. If Katniss ever heard, she’s been too polite to say anything.

“A Secret Santa exchange at school. I drew Katniss.”

His father goes quiet for a minute, then asks, “Why’s that so hard?”

“What do you mean, why’s that so hard?” Peeta exclaims. “What am I supposed to do?”

His father shrugs. “I guess that depends on the sort of impression you want to make.” He dusts off his flour-covered hands and crosses his arms. “Do you really want to go about your last year at school without ever having been honest with her? Could you live with that?”

“I think I could live with it,” Peeta whispers without hesitation. “But I think I’d regret it every day, too.”

His father smiles. “Then I guess that’s your answer.”

“So, what do I give her?”

The smile spreads into a grin. “Something unforgettable.”

Peeta says nothing. Just furrows his brows and turns back to his dough, rolls it out into a thin sheet.

He has an idea. More like a sapling of an idea, really. A weedy little sapling struggling to break up into the light. It’s a ridiculous idea given that they only have until the end of the week to exchange their gifts, but he thinks he can do it. He’s got everything he needs back home, so the twenty-dollar price limit isn’t going to be an issue (or does that just make him look cheap?) and what’s more… if he plays his cards right, it will be unforgettable.

Peeta finishes his shift with a smile on his face.

XXX

The canvas barely fits inside his beat-up Corolla.

Never mind ‘unforgettable’. She’ll be lucky to ever forget him after this. The guy who made her carry a massive canvas all through the halls with her. Less of a ‘something to remember me by’, and more of a gigantic ‘screw you.’

He parks in his usual spot at school and collapses against the steering wheel. He’s gotten a collective ten hours of sleep this past week working on the damn thing, recreating the woods which border District 12 in wrenching, painstaking detail, but it’s worth it. It has to be.

A fist raps against his window. Peeta jumps high enough to hit his head on the car’s felt ceiling.

“Hey! Is that it?”

Without waiting for a reply, Finnick swings to the other side and settles himself in the passenger seat. He twists towards the back and lets out a low whistle.

“Dude. It’s huge.”

“I couldn’t do it with anything smaller,” Peeta mutters.

“Sure isn’t going to be a secret now.”

Peeta shakes his head and gets out of the car. “I never said it was going to be.”

“So… you’re going for it?” Finnick jumps out and slams the door shut. “You’re actually gonna do it?”

Peeta sucks in a deep, sharply cold breath. “I think I… maybe?”

“Peeta!” Finnick punches his shoulder. “Seriously, man? That’s awesome.”

Peeta snorts. “Yeah. Two guesses how it’ll end, though.”

“You still reckon she’ll say no?”

“I just don’t see why she’d say yes.”

“You know, Annie says she’s real nice.”

“So? I’m not after a pity date, Finn. I just… I know she’ll like this. That’s all.”

“Yeah, she will. You wanna know what I got my Secret Santa? A box of sugar cubes.”

He almost laughs. “Seriously? Why?”

“Well under the twenty-buck limit, and ‘cause Clove Andersen could stand to be a whole lot sweeter, don’t you think?”

Peeta snorts. “When she decks you, and she absolutely will, don’t expect me to step in and save the day.”

“All you’d have to do is flash that smile and she’d be off me and all over you.”

“Yeah, not really the image I’m going for right now.” Peeta pulls in another deep breath, sets a hand on the car’s roof, and nods to himself. “So, you going to help me bring this thing in or what?”

XXX

His own Secret Santa gift — from Madge, mercifully, a pair of thick, silly, reindeer-print socks — had been front and centre at the top of the pile in Ms. Trinket’s room. At the end of class, he grabbed it and bolted, the tips of his ears burning as he caught Katniss out the corner of his eye, approaching her massive gift, propped up at the back and taking up damn near half the wall, with a frown on her face. He considered for all of a nanosecond staying and waiting for her to unwrap it, just to see her face when she saw it. But that same crippling self-doubt that always seemed to afflict him around Katniss squeezed at his chest and he just… couldn’t.

God, he’s such a loser.

He plops down on a damp bench right on the far edge of the school, far enough away that the chatter and laughter from everyone else is little more than a distant echo. The cold air dusting past his face brings his thoughts into more clarity. He should have seen this coming a mile off. It happens every single time. He’s never been able to string more than five words together in Katniss’ presence; why would today be any different? Combine that with a giant, what-the-fuck of a gift, and it’s a damn wonder he was able to walk through the school gates at all this morning.

The phone in his pocket vibrates with texts he’s not sure he wants to see. Probably just Finn asking how it all went. Maybe one from his dad, too. Peeta groans and fists his hair. His own damn fault for telling everybody.

“Peeta?” a soft, smoky voice whispers behind him.

He jumps about ten feet in the air and spins to face his assailant. Katniss Everdeen, her hands tucked into the pockets of her patchy coat, staring at him with eyes as grey as the storm clouds above. An omen or not, he’s not sure.

“Katniss,” he breathes.

She smiles, the barest quirk of her lips. “I wasn’t sure you knew my name. I guess… I guess that was wrong.”

His cheeks flush as he sets himself back down on the bench. “I’ve always known who you are.”

“I’m starting to get that, yeah.” She perches herself on the bench beside him, even though there’s not a whole lot of room for them to share. Even through his thick coat, the warmth Katniss radiates is enough to make him feel like his blood is boiling.

“It’s incredible,” she blurts out before he can say anything. “I mean, I knew you were good — I think you’ve got paintings hanging in every corridor in there — but that painting is… amazing, Peeta. Really.”

“I’m glad you like it,” he murmurs.

She sets a warm hand on his forearm. The contact is like lightning beneath his skin, but it anchors him, too; this moment is real. He’s not dreaming it. And it’s fucking amazing.

“I love it,” she tells him, low and deliberate. “Thank you, Peeta.”

He clears his throat. “You’re welcome.”

She lets her arm fall from his, and he misses the warmth all at once. “I kinda feel bad about what I got my Secret Santa now, though.”

“Who’d you have?” he asks.

“Delly.”

He barks out a laugh. “What did you get her?”

“A fluffy pom-pom keychain shaped like an owl. Prim picked it out. I had no idea what to get her.”

“I can tell you with absolute certainty that Delly loved it.”

She smirks. “Oh, I know she did. She jumped me right in the hallway as we were leaving and hugged me.”

Peeta smiles. “That sounds about right.”

A couple from the year below them walk by, hand-in-hand. As if by some unspoken agreement, Peeta and Katniss stay silent, their gazes trained on the ground, until the pair pass by.

When he looks up again, their faces are much closer together than they were before — or maybe they were always this close? Katniss’ cheeks are a bright, glowing pink, and she’s looking everywhere but his face.

“We should… uh, meet up, maybe?” she says, all fractured, and he thinks it fractures something in his head, too, because she cannot possibly be saying what he thinks she might be saying. “Some day during the break? I could, um… maybe show you the woods when it’s snowing, and you could paint or something? If that’s even something you wanted to see, I don’t even know if you —”

He cuts her off before she can ramble anymore, because even though it’s completely, utterly adorable, he’ll be damned if he lets her talk herself out of this now. “I’d love to come to the woods with you, Katniss,” he says, leaving no room for anything else.

“Good!” she says, a little too loudly, but Peeta’s not sure anything could beat the pounding of his heart for volume right now. She clears her throat and says, “That’s… good.”

“Yeah… good.” Damn, he’s eloquent.

“How’s Boxing Day for you?”

“Yeah… good,” he says again. Katniss lets out a tiny chuckle, one that he swears makes his heart skip a beat.

A bell goes off somewhere… the school, maybe? He’s got no way of knowing, or caring. All he gives a shit about right now is Katniss Everdeen, right in front of him, so close he could maybe kiss her if he didn’t think that would be kind of weird. Before he can move, Katniss is shouldering her bag and making her way back towards the building.

“Merry Christmas, Peeta,” she whispers, a real smile, however tiny, tipping her lips now as she walks away.

He grins what he’s sure is the dopiest, happiest grin the entire world and calls back, “Merry Christmas, Katniss.” For the first time in forever, the self-doubt doesn’t even enter his head.

In its place now is something suspiciously like hope.

#everlark #everlarkchristmasgifts #day two: secret santa exchanges #by ally147writes #fan fic #2018 #submission

[duckball]

Episode XIV: Let the Game Finally Begin?

Okay so update from last weeks personal ramblings CBS is safe for now though CW got the boot which sucks but hey at least I'm here for the duration of the summer to view 'the Tiffany network's' summer reality escapism

Love Island Update from out BB Alumni Winston was ousted in the last coupling which sucks if the rumors that Brett will be coming to the island are in fact true (though with only nine episodes who knows how many more twists will occur)

Speaking of twists who saw that the Unsinkable Cliff Hogg would not only won the Camp Comeback Battle Back but also the HOH ... NOT Me....and now Jack and Bella are up for the first REAL eviction of the season.... things are hopefully about to heat up...it only took 37 days....

After a brief recap we join the guests at the Veto meeting where Bella was put on the block...

If anyone was up against Jack on the block his best case siniaro is that he's up against Bella as Nick and Sam are her only 'friends' while Nick thinks Cliff made a dumb mistake putting Bella up and not a member of Six Shooters as after all it was them who blindsided Nick, Sam and Bella last week by voting Cliff out over Nicole...at least if he had to put Bella up it would of been by the use of Christie's power....

Bella tells herself each week she's never safe and she guesses this week it finally rang true...

Nick is upset at Cliff and that he didn't blindside Christie but in Cliff's mind if he didn't agree with Christie to put Bella up she would of used her power and Bella would of been up anyway and hey he has 'Christie's' word that he's safe the next two weeks...Nick also knows there is no way Bella is going to win the eviction and doesn't know what he'll do without her in the house (well....I mean if he gets out pre jury we won't have this issue)

Bella is crying and wants to stay for Nick...she deserves to be here and wants to fight

Michie is glad that Cliff kept their word with Christie and he tells him and Jack that he'd be into working with them to pick off the others he is a comp beast after all and nobody would suspect he was their silent partner

We finally get confirmation that while Kat and Holly didn't know one another personally pre Big Brother they were both in the pagent circut and have crossed paths in the past and we get a montage of them making a final two on the sly

Sam, Nick and Bella play pool and Nick gets hit i his balls with his pool balls

Cliff tells Bella that Jack was his target and but Bella up before Christie's power could and that if she can get 5 votes to make it a tie then he would vote Jack in a heartbeat

Bella is reminding the outliers that Jack is a comp beast and needs to be taken out now while he's on the block as here might not be another chance....she also needs to mend fences with Jessica and Nicole....Both girls think that while Bella did them dirty she has valid points that they definitely will take into consideration

Now we get the first family clip package of the season as we meet the Hogg's and during that montage we saw some clips from the Moon Landing 50th anniversary party they did over the weekend in the house

AND WE ARE LIVE.....but first the nominees get a final plea....

Bella wants you to consider who is a bigger threat Jack who has won almost everything vs her who hasn't won a thing yet and calls out that if Jack wins then Nick, Sam, Kat, Jess, and Cliff will loose a number cause Jack will be with his majority alliance...also if she stays she will still be a target which means the minority will be safe so vote whats best

Jack hates speeches...he's thankful to of met everyone...he's a team player and just wants to have fun...he respects the choices that are made as he knows it's best for the game

Nominees can't vote Cliff is a tie breaker

Christie votes to evict Bella Analyse votes to evict Bella Michie votes to evict Bella Nick votes to evict Jack

the vote so far is 3-1 favoring Bella to be out at the break

Sam votes to evict Jack (but under his breath says goodbye to Bella) Nicole votes to evict Bella Kat votes to evict Michie...lol she means Bella Jessica votes to evict Bella

it's official Bella will be out but lets see how the others vote

Holly votes to evict Bella Tommy votes to evict Bella

By a vote of 8-2 Bella is evicted from the Big Brother House

since Camp Comeback is over we get an eviction interview as well as Goodbye messages.... I'm glad that Nicole accepted Bella's apology but Jack's message was just WOW....

We now get the start of this weeks HOH competition Cliff as outgoing HOH can't play in what is called Pose in Ivy in this competition the players are suspended in the air between two ropes the last person swinging will get HOH HOWEVER each player much draw a punishment chip with two players getting a special punishment....

Next Week on Sunday we will see this competition play out (well unless you watch in real time on the feeds) as well as nominations, Wednesday will be Veto and Thursday not only will we see a live eviction but America will be voting to send three houseguests on a field trip that could put someones game at risk

-- Now is time for Fantasy....some footnotes before we start:

1) since Have Nots were announced on the episode I deducted a point per player (I will only count Have Nots going forward if they are mentioned on the CBS show)

2) I decided to give points to both sets of POV picks not just the redraw set (that benefited Brandon who got double points at Veto Draw on Sam this week)

3) I'm not deducting a point for Jessica in this tally for being the first to fall during HOH (I will however add it when I watch on Sunday as well as bonus punishment point deductions where applicable)

That said

1st: Heather with 12 2nd: Brandon with 5 3rd: Patrick with -14 4th: Kat with -21

until next week

#big brother #big brother 21 #bb21

[srj-art]

Finally, an update on that Laura Croft drawing! Please ignore the crap guns, crap hands, and crap face. Those are placeholders and I wasn’t using references. 😛 (Check out the second image for my under scribbles!) I managed to redraw the whole damn thing and this is where I’ve picked out my strongest lines for a better composition and tighter anatomy. If I don’t hate it tomorrow, I might be able to transfer her to clean paper. Also. This week sucked. Anxiety spaz out on Monday kind of turned into full blown depression. I’ll be ok. These swings don’t last as long or as intensely as they used to. But I end up hiding from my social media because I have no energy and also I’m sometimes an asshole to be around when I get like this. So this is me forcing myself to post a thing today, because in spite of feeling like I’m underwater and someone is tightening a vice on my chest, I managed to accomplish a creative thing (after 5 failed attempts, which my patrons get to see when I have the energy to post them) and this might be pulling me out of the darkness. Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn’t. The important thing is, I know I’ll be back to my creative focused snarky self soon. If you too are going through a rough spot, hang in there. You’re not alone. If you know someone who is going through a rough spot, or even just suspect that they might be, check in with them. They aren’t going to ask you for help. I didn’t. I didn’t even think I needed any until a couple friends checked up on me. #drawing #sketching #pencildrawing #lauracroft #tombraider #badassbabe #workinprgress #artistsonpatreon #artistsoninstagram #samantha_johnson_art

[animatedaf]

2020 was utter hot stinking garbage for everyone, but on the bright side for me all that lockdown time led to this becoming one of my most productive years for art, animation and livestreams in ages! Let’s deep dive into what I got up to this year! (All the bold text will link you to what I’m talking about)

January

I was pretty lax in the art department for the last few months of 2019 so late into Jan I focused on getting back into the swing of things with pretty simple illustrations of my OCs ViVi and BomOink and some pretty speedy game fan arts. I also did two livestreams on Lucky Hit.

It’s always nice when a fan art is seen and loved by the characters creators!

February

To keep my arty farty juices flowing I had a go at a couple of re-draws of old art which came out rather nice! I managed to keep the momentum going with fan art of Marza’s ghostly mascots which did rather well on Twitter when they shared it! I did CherryT a Valentines card and this toonme thing, but no livestreams this month.

March

My illustrating ramped up as soon as the UK lockdown hit including a re-draw of art from my childhood, a Twinbee fan art that was shared by the creator of the characters, some 80′s yogurt nostalgia and a DTIYS reminding everyone to Wash their drills hands! I also did 4 livestreams on Lucky Hit.

Lucky Hit was the most active it has EVER been this year!

April

With lockdown in full force we decided to finally do Lucky Hit Podcasts via discord which was such a fun way to keep in contact with each other we did one almost every week of the rest of the year! I also started some new livestream shows on there including eShop Car Booty and Spelunky: To Hell with it!

Artwork slowed down a bit, mainly joining in on the #SixFanArts trend with two sets of characters, a birthday card for CherryT, a quick vector job for Dreamcastic channel and I started working on a Spelunky sprite of myself for the livestreams.

May

Another slew of illustrations this month including one for Mermay, another childhood redraw, taking part is a very popular DTIYS, and the first of many touch ups of older art. May was also our busiest month on Lucky Hit ever with new shows like Make It Double! 

June

June kicked off with two illustration commissions in a row, followed by ViVi for an art style challenge, some more fan art and a couple more touch ups of old art. There was also plenty more livestreams and podcasts.

I think it was this tweet that caught the attention of a certain community manager!

July

This month was mostly spent on two animation projects: one freelance for a client and the other a shot for Frontier Psychiatrist Reanimated! Outside of yet more livestreams and podcasts, I also got an email about what would become my biggest illustration commission ever...

August

...a massive 11-character group pic for SEGA Forever! This was what I was working on most of this month, along with finishing off the animations I started in July. I returned to work after the lockdown but also continued with weekly podcasts and livestreams including a new series focused on Amiga games. 

September

Mostly spent still beavering away on the SEGA illustration between work. I also put out a re-draw of some art from my teen years and kept the livestream train chugging along including one for the Sonic Fan Game Expo.

October

I re-designed my logo from what was always just a head and hands to a full bodied character called Gaga Kun followed by a short animated loop of him for the credits sequence of FP reanimated, which was steamed on my newly opened Twitch channel!

November

I finally finished a ViVi in another art style piece, did two more commissions and started another freelance animation. Frontier Psychiatrist Reanimated launched on my Birthday! Oh and Mr.Chips.

December

Non stop month! The first half of this month was spent finishing off a Christmas animation for a client, followed by Birthday art for my friend Murry Curry, an OC Illustration for a Newgrounds Secret Santa and a ViVi Christmas artwork. I also hit affiliate on Twitch, did a Lucky Hit podcast that aired on Radio Sega and the Sega Forever commission finally released! A redraw of some Puyo Tetris art also did super well on Twitter!

Previous years: 2019 - 2018 - 2017 - 2016

#summary of creativity

[foxjevilwild]

Someone asked me this on another platform after I posted the RBG news and I’m not an expert but I’m posting it here because it might be useful to others:

The court will consist of 6 conservative justices, and 3 liberal justices, if Trump nominates and confirms a replacement. The appointments are not supposed to be partisan, but in practice they are often so, and Trump's short list is nothing but partisans like Tom Cotton and Ted Cruz.

So, there are short term and long term consequences.

In the short term, if they appoint a justice before the election - things like the election interference cases being put forth to Federal Judges about Dejoy and the mail can be fast-tracked to the new Supreme Court and swept away or legitimized. The Tax-Returns case can be ruled in his favor. The lawsuits against the Hysterecto-Nazi at the migrant camps can be waived away... 

If the election itself is contested, as it was in 2000, a 6-3 court will likely favor the party over the actual law and legitimize a win, even if it isn't actually legitimate. 

If Trump actually loses with all of this chicanery now possible, or if he even decides to nominate someone after the election (using the seat as bait to drive turnout from Republicans) - a lot of what he does or is currently being litigated can be swept away during his lame duck period. 6-3 or even 5-4 can legitimize anything the party wants to push through - it'd require 2 dissenters in the 'ranks' to actually stop their agenda every time assuming whatever case opposes it even gets to the Supreme Court.

If Trump loses in that second hypothetical and is - optimistically, I admit - brought to trial for the many laws he’s broken both as a private citizen and as the President -- if he gets it before the court he’s chosen 1/3rd of, there’s nothing in the structure of American government or the Constitution that says we can ignore their ruling because he got to put them in the seats - so they can easily rule in his favor for whatever manufactured justification appears to them to allow Trump off without giving Biden a precedent to use in office...especially if it means their own impeachments are less likely to pass the hurdle they create in the future of the Biden administration.

In the long term, a 6-3 court means that votes will sway partisan on wedge issues, like abortion - 4th amendment cases regarding civil forfeiture - any law that the republican party does not agree with can be litigated and put before the court to be declared unconstitutional, creating a sort of anti-liberal hatchet they can use to chop off laws that don't agree with their agendas and this will be the status quo for around 30 years. It's going to effect 2 generations of case law.

You can argue that 3 of the six conservative justices aren't as partisan as other appointees - but with a need for 2 to always compromise for a liberal stance to actually win in a ruling...even if they swing or dissent the majority of the agenda will pass 6-3 or 5-4 now, and has the potential for rapid dismantling of liberal laws and protections: those pesky things like voting rights, abortion, freedom of protest, etc. in a worst case scenario.

Coupled with a Republican Senate and a compromised Justice Department, it's also basically a potential if not already enacted coup.

In the hyperbolic, but possible (and in my belief happening): Trump could cancel (or more likely cheat as he’s already doing) the election, justify it with a legal ruling he has Barr hand down as a memo from the justice department or some form of executive order, then when he's rightly sued by some of the states pull it before the court and get them to legitimize Barr's memo or the XO and create precedent. With a 'legal' ruling it makes the lines a lot more muddy for those who would oppose something more obvious or blatant - the veneer of legitimacy means even something like the military rejecting him for being unelected becomes less likely - if other institutions back him then it starts to feel like they should too...

You have a situation where the President already controls or at least exerts extreme influence over the Executive (including the Justice Dept., the DHS and HHS - every regulatory body like the CDC, FDA, FCC, the USPS, etc. which they've been installing cronies at for the last 3.5 years most of which are in ‘Acting’ roles bypassing even Senate confirmations), the Senate itself, and now the Supreme Court - the latter two with majorities that will almost always be locked into partisan votes.

 Only Congress remains and without support from the other branches, beyond the limited power of the purse, they are toothless - they can't pass legislation or create new laws without the Senate and the Senate can simply decide not to even vote on bills that they don't want to be seen opposing like the Coronavirus Stimulus.

This isn’t even taking into consideration the propaganda networks - the ‘legitimate’ ones like Fox News and OANN, or the vast botnet controlled by Russians, US Intel Agencies, and Corporations sewing chaotic falsehoods to drown the truth in bullshit while they spin the actions of the President as acceptable or even righteous even as the death-toll mounts after he purposefully withheld PPE from states or intercepted shipments to stockpile and sell back to his Russian friends and the Chinese companies that funnel money to his election campaign.

An Executive to enact his policy via memo or executive order or just directly like the faceless feds in Portland, a Senate to strike down opposing motions and laws from the democratic congress (or simply not vote on them), and a Court to legitimize any action they decide to take that gets contested by the states or other parties who have to push it through a long, protracted court battle to be taken before the highest court, which can then be expected to rule in favor of the President's party - even in the cases a lone conservative Justice decides the constitution means more than the party. A vast network of lies and misinformation to create public sentiment and justify every injustice they enact and soothe the moderates while they work-up the selfish and sociopathic base that loves them. They get to rule like fascists with the illusion of institutional, democratic supports - it's basically Russia.

In a few years when more Congressional seats are up for election, they can finish the synch they’ll set in motion this year: they’ll gerrymander the 2020 census that's already ongoing (who's going to actually enact oversight of the redrawing of districts or the count itself? if it's contested the 6-3 court will throw it to the Republican's favor) and rig or simply throw elections for their party and legitimize them to take Congress too and start passing laws - even unconstitutional ones. If the laws start to come before the court, say by liberal states or by other parties contesting their constitutionality, the court gets to rubber stamp them as legitimate and proper and constitutional, likely in a 5-4 ruling where one conservative justice just had to write the dissenting opinion and ‘keep his legacy intact'...

It will just ramp up in speed from there, but will maintain this smoke-screen that it's the same Congress, the same Court, the same White House, even when he wins an illegal 3rd term, a 4th term, when they appoint his son without an election, etc. Soon to appoint the next Justice, a 7-2 court. An 8-1 court. a 9-0 court another proud Conservative...eventually consolidating power in a unitary executive, keeping the other branches as ornamental drooping, vestigial limbs on the corpse of the American Experiment - and the evil Democratic opposition party that exists only in name and will never hold a majority again.

The only way out would be for states to stop recognizing the federal government, a total collapse of the system...

This is a potential end-state for American democracy. I'm fucking terrified.

#long

[davidpires578]

On the Eave of Construction

Judging a fair curve can be a refined skill, and some seem better at it than others. I think most of us can spot, especially if it is pointed out, a curved line of surface which is not fair. I mean ‘fair’ in the boatbuilder’s sense of the term, that is,

A “fair curve” or line is one that is as smooth as it can be as it follows the path it must take around the hull of a boat. A fair line is free of extraneous bumps or hollows, and an unfair line needs to be faired, or smoothed out.

So, in this case the curves I want to compare and analyze are not those of a boat hull, but of the fascia elements which comprise the eave-edge build up of timbers characteristic of a Japanese curved roof.

The driving element is the lowest one, riding along the top of the rafters at the edge of the eave, termed the kaya-oi. This term literally means to “bear the weight of the straw”, a reference to it’s past use on thatched roof buildings.

In this rather large and complicated build-up, the kaya-oi is the piece at the bottom at the bottom of the stack, running along the tops of the rafters:

The kaya-oi, like the members which are placed atop it, not only curves up but as it moves along towards the hip it swells in thickness too. The swelling counteracts a visual foreshortening effect, similar to railway tracks, that happens with parts the move away from an observer’s line of sight.

The shape of the curve is a matter of aesthetic preference, or so it seems, and reflects changes that Japanese carpenters made to the temple architecture imported from China and Korea. Chinese temples employ strong curves in their fascia, even to the extent of the fascia approaching a vertical orientation towards their termination point, and it is typical also that the front face of the kaya-oi in such cases also twists as it rises.

In Japanese work, a preference for much gentler roof curves and methods of curving the roof which did not require surfaces on the kaya-oi to twist. Japanese carpentry texts show a variety of methods for producing the curve in the kaya-oi and other parts of the fascia, and these methods are described as producing a variety of curve types.

Togashi mentions three types of kaya-oi curve:

曲線を腰反り　Kyokusen wo Koshizori

曲線を先反り　Kyokusen wo Sakizori

曲線を中反り　Kyokusen wo Nakazori

Type 1, as I call it, is a curve that rises quickly and has less of a sag/belly to it. Type 2 is a curve that rises slowly and has a more pronounced belly. Type 3 is a midway position between the first two.

Various methods are then shown in the texts for drawing the curves, and comments might be made in those texts as to the characteristics of that curve, such as whether the curve rises quickly or slowly, flattens out or accelerates, etc. The methods for producing the curves typically involve swinging an arc with a radius which is in a particular multiple of the rise of the curve, then then subdividing this arc into portions, either radially or vertically. The intersections of the division lines to the radius produce a series of hight points, which are then projected across a series of divisions laid out along the total portion of the fascia which is to be curved.

Quite a few years ago I made a study of this issue using a 2D drafting program, and was able to at least confirm the general comments about the shape characteristics of curves produced by different methods. The curves can be drawn by each of the respective methods, then copied to the side and overlaid in the drawing so as to compare them directly. Still, I felt there was more to do in terms of analyzing the curves to see if there might be a most ideal solution among the choices, or perhaps another better solution altogether, but for the time being shelved that work and got on with other things.

With my recent plunge into Rhino however, new avenues have opening up so I decided to reinvestigate this problem. Also, I had obtained in the past couple of years a layout text on hip rafter layout, written by a fellow named Mochida Takeo, which depicted a different method of producing the kaya-oi curve. I wanted to see how that method might compare to the others with which I was already familiar.

Going to a new CAD program has made possible both the drawing of mathematically accurate curves, and their analysis. Rhino has both a native ability to produce all kinds of curves, but it has a curve analysis tool and a curve fairing tool as well that have been most helpful in making sense of things.

By the end of the study I had worked through a bunch of different arrangements using the standard methods of which I was aware:

We’ll zoom in a bit more on individual examples shortly to see what they reveal. At top left of the overview we have two parabolic curves, the last ones that were drawn, as part of a hunch I had to check out. At the left lower portion and part of the middle row are seen the use of certain slope angles to produce divisions – a method shown by Mochida. At top middle are two uses of vertical divisions, and to the right are various types of radial arc divisions used to project points, which is generally what you see Togashi using in his own drawings, so I imagine it is what he prefers.

Around the upper middle portion of the sketch is a cluster of some of the different type of curves produced, overlaid. Here’s a closer look at that:

There are 7 lines overlaid in the same spot, each subtly different than the other. But stepping back, one can see that in fact they really aren’t all that varied from one another in overall form. That’s the point of the picture – the lines from the fastest climbing to the slowest, most flattened out and most curved, are really in a fairly narrow range.

This is slightly misleading though. The cumulative effect of several tiers of similarly-produced lines will present eave build-ups which do look more significantly different from one another than the lines alone might suggest. This is because the layers which sit atop the kaya-oi end up, due to the cumulative effect of the swelling of the parts, climbing up higher and further out than the kaya-oi, which, is after all on the lowest level. Many of the methods used to produce the slightly different shaped curves in fact have a more pronounced effect the further out along the curve you go, so this will manifest in those upper layers of eave build up. In particular, the method of dividing the arc by vertical lines will produce a big surge of acceleration in the curve as you move out beyond the tip of the kaya-oi.

But, that set to one side, the various methods do not appear to produce significantly different curves, though we must also recognize, that regardless of the size of one’s computer monitor screen, we cannot see and assess the curves quite as well as we might if we had full size pieces cut to the various curves and could sight along them. Then perhaps we could get a better sense of it, but at a cost of a lot of wood and fabrication time. Otherwise we’re just left with a bunch of curves which are pretty close to one another, and maybe one is not appreciably different than the next? Is there any other way to assess how smoothly continuous a curve might be?

Rhino has a tool for analyzing tools which I had seen described in a video about working on the curves for a boat hull. Immediately coming to my mind was the problem of assessing kaya-oi curves, so now I was excited to find that I had a new avenue along which to investigate.

How this tool works is to provide you with a division of your curve line in question to any number of segments, and then each segment is correlated to a section of circle of the same radius. Whether the radius is smaller or larger is manifested by the visual of tangential projection lines – the further out from the line that the tangents project, the tighter the curve. This simple sketch gives a visual which I hope helps show how this curve graphing function works:

The line in blue is the curve being analyzed, and the red curve and projections are the analyzer. You can see on analyzer where the curve being analyzed turns the tightest, at the right side, as the graph in that location grows largest. You can also see how the curve accelerates and decelerates in slope by looking at the graph line rising and falling.

So let’s apply this analysis to various types of curves for the kaya-oi and see what can be learned from it.

The first curve I took a look at is the one Togashi favors using, and that is an arc with a radius twice as great as the amount of total rise, and then division of that arc radially:

The swung arc is divided into the number of rafter spaces, and divided into the same number of ‘pie wedges’ as there are spaces. In this method, the reference points are on the rafter centerlines, except for the last interval to the right, which is half a rafter thickness less in length. This difference in length relates to a Japanese convention in the spacing location for a rafter at the end of the run, which due to the termination of the kaya-oi run at the hip would be too short to use. So that last apparent rafter is only a place marker, but it does mean in the above case that the last spacing is inconsistent as well, crowding in at the very end.

Turning on the analyzer shows the flow of this curve:

As you can see, the curve climbs unevenly, flattening out at the second rafter centerline, then abruptly accelerating to the next, only to ease off toward the end.

I’ve often wondered if the technique used above, where the last interval is shortened by half a rafter, might lead to an uneven curve, and it seems to be the case.

So, I reconfigured the drawing, keeping the same rise but bringing the lateral intersection points back so that all of them are at the side of the rafter instead of the centerline. This is a method used by some other folks.

Here’s the redraw of the curve, shown in the upper portion of the following sketch, using the adjusted intersection points and with the analyzer turned on, and the preceding curve left on at bottom for the sake of comparison:

#woodworking #wood #working #miter #saws #Woodworking

[repwincostl4m0a2]

Anger At Donald Trump Could Break The Democrats' Midterm Curse

WASHINGTON ― Running for Congress under even the best circumstances is a grind: Up early for breakfast meetings, on the trail all day and finish with an evening event. The time between your head hitting the pillow and your alarm going off gets squeezed until there’s little of it left. Then you get up and do it again.

Doing all that to win is one thing. Doing it just to get wiped out at the polls requires a level of dedication bordering on bonkers.

That means that one of the first questions top potential candidates ask party handlers before making the decision is a simple one: “Can I win? If so, show me the numbers.”

But a funny thing is happening this time around: Democratic prospects, in conversations with party elders, are skipping that question. Meredith Kelly, a spokeswoman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said that the question of how winnable a race is is often among the top concerns. This year, the energy among Democratic activists has persuaded potential candidates that anything is possible.

“So far, this cycle is very different,” she said. “People are coming to us in a way that’s new and exciting, and it’s clear that we will have strong candidates across an expanded battlefield in 2018.”

Finding good candidates has been even easier this year than it was in 2016, bucking a years-long trend.

“Despite the fact that presidential cycles tend to benefit Democrats in terms of turnout, recruitment was not easy last cycle,” Kelly said. “Our political department ultimately recruited a number of strong, successful candidates, but it was only after camping out in districts and going person to person, sometimes for months, until they found someone qualified and interested in running.”

It started with the Women’s March events in January, when around 4 million people took to the streets around the country, for the largest single-day rally in American history. It continued with surging turnout in special elections from Minnesota to Iowa to Virginia, Connecticut and Delaware. It has flowed down to Georgia, where a 30-year-old Democrat, Jon Ossoff, is attempting to take Republican Tom Price’s House seat. Ossoff is breaking fundraising records thanks to a burst of small-dollar support from around the country. And now in Montana, Rob Quist, a bluegrass legend, has jumped into the race for the Democrats to fill the seat vacated by Ryan Zinke, who, like Price, joined President Donald Trump’s cabinet. 

Quist has a long history of public service and charitable work and is wildly popular in Montana, but he has never run for office. Trump has changed things. Groups that have exploded since the election, like Swing Left, Flippable and the Sister District Project, are funneling money and volunteer resources from blue districts to where it’s needed more.

Democrats have been bad at getting out their base in recent midterm elections ― although history is on their side this time around, since the party in control of the White House traditionally suffers losses in these off-year elections. But with midterm turnout low, the best candidates often take a pass at making a bid. Without good candidates, turnout falls lower, accelerating a vicious cycle.

The Democratic Party is face an uphill climb in the Senate in general, but particularly this year: Democrats are defending 25 of the 34 seats up for grabs. Winning the 218 seats needed to take back the House of Representatives is a daunting task as well, no matter how much energy is in the streets, because Republicans have used their power at the state level to redraw districts to favor them. The fact that Democrats tend to cluster in major cities also plays a role in sorting voters in a way that allows Republicans to claim 55 percent of the seats, even though more people voted for Democrats for Congress.

But Republicans can’t gerrymander a state ― and 36 states have governors races in 2018. Those elections will be critical in helping to un-gerrymander the damage that was done after the 2010 census. Nine of those are in currently Republican-governed states that Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton won in 2016, and at least another half dozen are well within reach. Another nine are currently held by Democrats.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has already had more than 175 serious conversations or meetings with potential recruits in more than 55 districts ― far more than in past cycles. The group said it’s seeing more interest from veterans, who are concerned about Trump’s views on national security and see running for office as a second call to duty.

There’s also been a surge of interest from people who have never run for office and now want to at least explore stepping up to the plate. This trend is happening even in GOP bastions like Utah and South Carolina. When the state party opened up registration for a March candidate training, officials sold out of their 50 tickets in the first day. A week later, the party expanded it to 200 spots ― and again immediately sold out.

In a wave election, districts that are evenly split swing toward the party that is surging ― Democrats in 2006 and 2008, then Republicans in 2010 ― and districts that lean toward the majority party become winnable. In a district which went for Trump by 10 points, it’s not hard to see how that becomes a tight race under the right circumstances.

Mark Fraley, chairman of the Monroe County, Indiana Democratic Party, said that Democrats on the ground are fired up, and Republicans are checking out. Stephanie Hansen, who won a Delaware special election in February, saw the same thing, moving what was a two point race to an 18 point blowout.

“If our people are mobilized and Trump supporters are demoralized, then yes, some of these races that have nine-point Republican advantages start looking close,” Fraley said. “A lot of Trump’s core supporters aren’t going anywhere, but you start seeing demoralization among working people ― they voted for Obama twice, then Trump. If we’re not seeing the changes they hoped to see you’ll be able to see disengagement on that part.”

There are, meanwhile, eight districts that could be easier picking for Democrats. These seats ― one each in Arizona, New Jersey and Kansas, two in Texas and three in California ― are all congressional districts that voted for the GOP presidential candidate in both 2008 and then 2012 ― and then went for Hillary Clinton this past cycle. They’re also all still represented by GOP House members. It won’t be easy, of course. Texas’s 7th district hasn’t elected a Democrat to Congress since 1967.

One of those seats is currently held by veteran congressman Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.), an eccentric libertarian-leaning Republican who’s been in office nearly 30 years. He faced his toughest challenge in 2008, but still won by some 10 points and hasn’t faced a true challenge since. That changed this year, thanks in large part to the endless demonstrations local Democrats have held against Rohrabacher.

The Women’s March, coupled with the activist movement here ... was the biggest motivation that now is the time for all of us to get involved and be the change we want to see. Californian Democratic candidate Harley Rouda

Local businessman Harley Rouda, seeing the energy in the streets, decided to jump in and challenge Rohrabacher.

“The energy is what motivated me to get in the race, hands down,” he said. “The Women’s March, coupled with the activist movement here ... was the biggest motivation that now is the time for all of us to get involved and be the change we want to see.”

It mattered to Rouda that, with the uptick in anti-Trump energy, the race seems winnable.

“I’ll be straight with you,” he said. “The fact that midterms don’t typically draw voters out ... is tempered by the populist movement we’ve got going here. Now is the time to tap into that crowd who really want to get engaged and committed to making that difference.”

In some rare cases, there may even be too much engagement. California has a top-two primary system, meaning the top two finishers, regardless of party, go on to compete in the general election, even if both are from the same party.

Christy Smith, a progressive school board president in the Los Angeles region, had her eye on California’s 25th congressional district, a seat held tenuously by Republican Stephen Knight, but one carried in 2016 by Clinton. The DCCC in 2014 had backed Bryan Caforio, who raised a lot of money but never connected with voters and lost by six points. With the energy coursing through the district, a campaign began to draft Smithto jump in the race. He’s popular with both supporters of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and those who backed Clinton. Smith gave it a lot of thought, and when first interviewed by The Huffington Post this month, she was undecided. “I was riding two horses with one ass,” she joked a week later, having finally made up her mind to run for state assembly rather than Congress.

Her reasoning, she said, was two-fold.

“California is on the leading edge of what’s possible with effective government,” she said. “To be able to be a part of that could be tremendous and allow me a lot of latitude to really get things done for people in my district and bring resources back.”

Strategically, though, it was also the smarter move. “With all of this newfound energy, there’s not a lot of understanding of strategy with those folks, because they’re new to the game,” she said. “There’s a broad ‘y’all come’ attitude, with people coming out of the woodwork.”

That’s great when it comes to turnout, but California has a top-two system, meaning that the top two finishers in the primary, regardless of party, go on to the general election. If a big batch of Democrats run, then Republicans tend to run only two candidates. That can allow those two candidates to finish one and two, while Democrats split the remainder among themselves. That puts two Republicans on the general election ballot.

“We need to be smart if we’re going to flip this district,” she said.

HuffPost Survey: Should Democrats in Congress resist Trump across the word, or work with him where there is common ground?

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