#CEG Writing by Me

[lieutenant-amuel]

Inspired by our convo but are there any Crazy EXGF songs that remind you of Avatar: Last Airbender characters? Or if its tough cuz those songs are so hilariously inappropriate and atla is more serious, how do you think the Avatar characters would interact with Eoa characters and maybe your ocs?

Yayyy, thank you for the ask! I’ll try to answer both of these questions.

CEG Songs and ATLA Characters:

I’m The Villain In My Own Story - Katara, because it’s me with blood bending again, yeah

After Everything I’ve Done For You (That You Didn’t Ask For) - Azula, I don’t know it just reminds me of that last scene between her and Ozai XD

You Go First - Katara and Toph in the Runaway XD

Get Your Ass Out Of My House - Ozai to Zuko

I Hate Everything But You - Zuko to Mai

Man Nap - Aang sort of? When the guys tried to put him to sleep before the battle with the Fire Nation

Face Your Fears - Iroh to Zuko

What’ll It Be - Zuko

You Stupid Bitch - also Zuko, I think?

Dream Ghost - the previous avatars to Aang XD

Friendtopia - the Gaang? (oh, or Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee)

Remember That We Suffered - Hama to Katara

This Session Is Gonna Be Different - Iroh to Zuko, specifically in season 2 when Iroh opened the tea shop (not “session” obviously but I think it fits them in the sense that Iroh hopes Zuko will finally find the right way)

And I’m A Good Person, of course, for redeemed Azula as you said XD

Those are the only ones I can think about now, but I’d love to hear your ideas if you have any 👀

The ATLA & EoA Characters:

Alright, this question is harder actually XD

The first thing I’ll say is that Gabe and Sokka are 100% besties, I want my boys to be friends. To be more serious, though, they do have some things in common, so I think they’d actually get along, not because I’m biased :’) They’re both warriors who want to protect their loved ones and prove their worth, so they’ll find the common ground for sure.

I think Mateo and Aang would have an interesting dynamic, too, given the fact all wizards have been banished from Avalor during Shuriki’s reign and Mateo was basically the only wizard in his kingdom, plus he’s self-taught, whereas Aang is the last airbender (just imagine Mateo going to the astral to communicate with the Maruvian wizards like Aang can communicate with the avatars (well, Mateo can summon spirit guides from the spirit world, but okay, this is not really the same thing))

Zuko and Esteban are quite similar, but I don’t think they’d get along very well, rather be annoyed with each other, because they’ve both got a temper XD But Francisco and Iroh would definitely become friends, I tell you.

I still haven’t said anything about Elena, but I think she’d have a nice relationship with Katara, given how caring and people-oriented they both are. Plus, Katara is a self-taught waterbender, whereas Elena gets a hang of using her scepter (mostly in season 1, but yeah) and they both have forgiveness issues akjsndkfk

The ATLA Characters & My OCs :3 (thank you for putting them in your ask <3)

I can write the whole novel about Valerio now XD At first, Valerio would get along with Iroh. Both are wise, understanding, supportive and Valerio loves tea. But once he meets his nephew, he realizes that he sees himself in Zuko in many ways and wants to guide him in the right direction, which also helps him to look at his own path from a different perspective.

Valerio is interesting (pfffffft) because on the surface he does seem like a grounded person (in the sense he seems to have everything under control and not really have any personal life problems), but he’s damaged deep inside and has many unresolved issues that gnaw at him and don’t let him live the life the way he’d like to, so I think he would make a good company for Iroh and Zuko.

As for my other characters, Frida would get along with Katara for sure and Ángel with Sokka and surprisingly Ty Lee (after “redemption”) because they’re actually quite similar.

Matías also needs a friend but I can’t think of anyone aljsndkfk

I’ll stop here, but if I get more ideas, I’ll share them with you! And again, I’m really excited to know whether you got anything 👀

Thank you again!

#Ask me anything #My OCs

[matan4il]

Saw your old post on Jewish rep. Curious as to your thoughts on crazy ex girlfriend?

Hi lovely Nonnie!

Oh wow. First off, thank you for reading my thoughts on Jewish representation! As for Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, I actually didn't know it had a Jewish angle? Which I feel says something about Tumblr. I have seen A LOT of CEG gifsets on my dash at one point and they were ALL about the bisexual man singing and dancing and having a cute younger bf. I guess, the whole thing about Tumblr is we're all in our own little fandom bubble, and then suddenly something blows up (presumably because it's SO outstanding) to a degree that it makes it into the bubble. And apparently if CEG had good Jewish rep, that was not seen as outstanding enough to blow up and cross into different bubbles.

I'm not saying anything for sure, maybe the Jewish rep on that show really didn’t deserve to blow up, and one thing is def not enough to form a bigger conclusion, but it’s not just one thing. I'm sometimes very frustrated by my Tumblr experience, precisely because this is supposedly a much more open, tolerant and accepting space than other social media sites. Yet, the first ask I ever got? Was from a Holocaust denier. May of 2021? Was hell for a lot of Jewish blogs on this site, I saw way too many getting bullied, some of them to the point where they had to delete completely. I see some blogs reblogging a post with an antisemitic libel one day and the next they reblog a "Happy Hanukkah!" post. Maybe they don’t even understand they’re helping to spread antisemitism, or maybe they’re using the congratulatory post to avoid accusations of being antisemitic, either way it’s a reminder that just because a blog shares one seemingly Jew-friendly post doesn’t actually make that blog a Jew-safe space. I see people going out of their way to love and hold up minority characters, and then leave out the Jewish ones. Posts about all kinds of global crises that affect minorities go viral regularly, but I will never forget the silence on Tumblr as the hostage situation in Texas was going on for 11 hours, and Jews were blogging about it, and some incredible non-Jews were amplifying our voices by reblogging those posts (including some amazing followers of mine), but not a single of these posts went viral, not a single one that I’ve seen made it to even 300 notes, let alone the tens and even hundreds of thousands of notes I’ve seen on other similar posts. It just tells me that something about the way western society educates on the subject of Jews as a minority and of antisemitism has failed. And I don't think it's exclusively about the inadequacies of most Jewish representation, but it's probably linked to (both shaping and being influenced by) it.

Now back to CEG... as you can gather, I have not watched it, but I will thanks to you. IDK when I'll start or how long it will take me, especially since I also just learned the other day that Hunters' s2 is going to air soon and I would like to try and express something about the Jewish representation there before this new (and final) season, which might include doing a quick binge-watch of s1. IDK if you'd like me to write about it when I do watch CEG? If so, just please be patient with me! Thank you in advance for your understanding.

Hope you have a great day and if you celebrate, have a very Happy Hanukkah! As always, here's my ask tag. xoxox

#jewish representation #jewish stuff #jumblr #jewish rep #jewish #jew #jews #judaism #frumblr #jewish tv #jewish things #jewish tumblr #jewish thought #antisemitism #ask #anon ask #jewish cinema #crazy ex girlfriend #hunters #jr

[notbang]

wip title game

tagged by @ghostmaggie

THE RULES: Post the names of all the files in your WIP folder,  regardless of how non-descriptive or ridiculous. Anyone can send me an  ask afterwards (or a comment in this post) with a title that most  intrigues/interests you, and I’ll post a little snippet of it or tell  you something about it!

I’m not that great at this game because I tend to start writing snippets of things in one giant document and only put them in their own document when I’m mostly committed to writing them, and I usually leave titles until towards the end, but here we go:

- last christmas

- barcelona bits

- rn trivia

- if we make it or we don’t

- puppy!

- extra bits ceg

Tagging @anthropologicalhands @akisazame and @heartbash

#I'm here come talk to me about dumb stuff #my fic

[theeverlastingshade]

Empty Country II- Empty Country

Bands break up all the time, but it's rare for new projects to emerge from their ashes that rival or even best the work that came before it. In the case of singer-songwriter Joseph D’Agostino, who fronted the beloved and cruelly short lived indie rock band Cymbals Eat Guitars, the break up of CEG came about as a result of a disillusionment of, and exhaustion from, touring coupled with their bassist Mike Whipple's decision to go back to school, but it didn't signal the end of D'Agostino's aspirations to make music. He returned with a new project in early 2020 called Empty Country, and released the project's follow-up LP, fittingly titled Empty Country II, this past month. While the ingredients of EC will ring familiar for any fans of CEG (sour indie rock melodies, dynamic guitar-based arrangements, a sharp eye that pens poignant, poetic details, and a sweeping sense of urgency propelling it all) the music of EC is grander, and infused with a more pronounced heartland rock/country influence despite remaining unabashedly in the realm of classic indie rock. EC was a strong return that proved that D'Agostino was still capable of writing music as stirring and multifaceted as anyone else working today, but it's ECII that really showcases his idiosyncrasies as a songwriter. And it's imbued with the same sort of scrappy, off the cuff charm that reminds me exactly why I fell so hard for indie rock in the first place.

ECII consists of 9 songs in 54 minutes, which is a result of D'Agostino's wise choice to allow these songs to really sprawl and take their time developing. The shortest songs on here (which are the single "Erlking" and the mid-album heat check "Syd", respectively) are succinct bursts of intensity that impressively distill a landscape of feeling into compact, 3 and a half minutes or so frameworks, but they're (along with the nearly 13 minute closing epic, "Cool S") the outliers in that respect. Most of these songs patiently build from simple guitar arrangements into these soaring cathartic singalongs that belie their dark undercurrents with an infectious go for broke sensibility. It continues to impress me the way that D'Agostino manages to wring such potent results out of what's more or less the same stylistic toolbox that he's been working with his whole career without ever really lapsing into diminishing returns. For the most part, album highlight "Dustine" sounds like it could have slotted nicely on either of the last two CEG records, but it's imbued with a heightened melodic pathos and some poignantly rendered soloing that really showcase how much he's developed as a songwriter since the days of CEG. The same goes for his restraint and the foreboding sense of atmosphere that he cultivates so masterfully on "FLA". It's the little details that emerge after a few close listens that really elevates ECII beyond the bounds of great indie rock.

The writing throughout ECII congeals into vivid and harrowing vignettes drawn predominantly from a fictional story that depicts the sort of darkness that lurks within the margins of small town America. Opener "Pearl" sets the stage with substance abuse as a coping method for the narrator's family curse of precognition and ends with lines applicable to any form of trauma "Any day/We'll escape from our heads/From the chain of consequences/And recall everything forgotten". The aforementioned "Erlking" which is named after a monster from European folklore, begins by mourning the victims of Sandy Hook before weaving in lines about American political divisions, Calvanists traveling to America, men casually brushing off sexual assault allegations, and much more within its tight frame. The early breather "David" pays tribute to D'Agostino's mentor, the late and great David Berman "I finally wrote this song from you/But I don't know who id show it to/I'm scared to die/But I'm not scared of death" while "Lamb" takes inspiration from a James Salter short story in its depiction of someone reflecting on their life as they slowly die alone in the woods from some unknown accident "Light is leaving/And there's no pain/The moments they have a way of/Annihilating what you pictured". The scope of the lyricism can overwhelm at times, but the ambition and attention to detail are impressive at every turn. The brilliance of ECII isn't as immediately apparent as most of the great records I've heard from this year, but its songs are just as rewarding.

Essentials: “Dustine”, “FLA”, “Pearl”

[llycaons]

something really annoying ceg will do is not zoom in on its props. someone looks at a photograph and I WANT TO SEE WHO IT IS!! someone grabs something important out of a dresser and tells me what it is then I WANT TO LOOK. someone writes a letter I want to be able to PRETEND it's legible. like this isn't improv! you have a budget! just show us the fucking socks!

#ceg lb

[roshroslin]

At the start of the pandemic, as the world went into lockdown, I started creating instructional content online. As I saw colleagues get pulled from tour, gigs get cancelled and the world imploding, I felt an obligation to help my musician friends. Maybe it was just a way to stave off the fear, to keep my mind busy so my senses wouldn’t be inundated with a world filled with bad news upon more bad news. Somehow, some of my content got into the right hands. Then, I rolled the dice and dumped a bunch of money into building a studio. Instructional videos funneled clients towards me. Many colleagues found value in many of my writing posted online about leverage and scaling a business. I was just throwing ideas into the ether and trying to sharpen my thinking with feedback from the internet. Now I find myself here, a client service business owner built on top of code, media, digital assets and location independence. Some have found me through YouTube. Others have found me through a thinkpiece excerpted from my journal that went viral. Or maybe from a recommendation from people that still remain in my corner. I’m still figuring it out. I’m not very special. Maybe I’m just really lucky. I don’t have any aspirations or grand desire to be a zillionaire. I just like making stuff that helps people. I like to learn how to get better at things: coding software, editing digital assets and building things once that I can sell twice. If you’ve hired me in any way the last couple years I’m still forever grateful. I’m taking some more chances this year and I couldn’t have done any of it without you. ❤️ If you think it can’t be done, think again. I’m living proof. Stay tuned. ❤️ Fm9basics.com AxeFxBasics.com Fm3basics.com https://www.instagram.com/p/Ceg-awaPKJ1/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[splashes-of-joy]

MY REVIEW OF THIS SWEET READ! The Sweet Life by Suzanne Woods Fisher is about Dawn and her mom. Dawn’s dad is gone and her fiancé dumps her so she is now one her groomless honeymoon with her mom. A mom who purchases an Ice Cream Shop on Cape Cod. An Ice Cream Shop that is filthy and needs lots of work. Dawn has promised to stay for a while in Cape Cod to help her mom. This book reminds me of my mom. She ate ice cream every night before bedtime. I hope your freezer is full of ice cream now. The Sweet Life is full of ice cream, Marnie and Dawn, and a host of secondary characters who make this story fun and exciting, and at the same time, unbelievable, stressful with a whole lot of work to be done to pull this Ice Cream Shop opening on time. Suzanne Woods Fisher does a fantastic job with her phenomenal writing skills in writing The Sweet Life. I thoroughly enjoyed this sweet book and if you love good, clean contemporary Christian fiction, you will love it too! I gladly give this one Five Stars! Go check it out! A special thanks to the author/publisher for a copy of this book. I am not required to write a positive review, the opinions here are mine alone. I am disclosing this with my review in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255. #contemporaryfiction #Christian #christianromanceauthors #christianfiction #cleanreads #booksofinstagram https://www.instagram.com/p/CeG-M_1rvNq/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#contemporaryfiction #christian #christianromanceauthors #christianfiction #cleanreads #booksofinstagram

[quarterfromcanon]

Huzzah!

for @imunbreakabledude

Thank you for the wonderful idea generators you listed in your request; every single one served to spark some element of this piece and I had such a great time putting it together. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it! <3 Happy Valentine’s Day!

Word count: 3,820

Rating/content warnings: G. Mild swearing. No violence and nothing really sexual. Unless you count #archeryarms. They are quite powerful.

Relationships: Mostly general Gurl Group and co. in nature, but there may or may not be a little Rethaniel kernel planted here somewhere... ;)

Summary: Our beloved residents of West Covina take a trip north to engage in some Renaissance merriment.

Rebecca stood before the wall-length mirror and ran her fingers along the feather tucked above the brim of her hat. She adjusted the small tambourine tied to her waist and planted both hands on her hips. 

"Well, fair ladies... or, should I say, RenFaire ladies, are we ready?"

A row of restroom stall latches slid aside and their doors swung wide to reveal the rest of the Gurl Group, all clad in their carefully selected costumes for the day. Rebecca bounced in place and clasped her hands under her chin.

A net beaded snood held all of Paula's beautiful red hair. An ornamental ruby brooch was fastened to the bodice of her ornate raspberry gown. She smoothed the fabric and held her head high, striking a pose.

Valencia repurposed the faux leather portion of her Bride of the Pirate King costume and fashioned it to be part of her falconer garb, complete with a Velcro wrist attachment featuring a tiny plush merlin fitted with a hood. A simple plait kept her field of vision clear with the added bonus of helping combat overheating. She twisted sideways and nodded approval at her reflection, pleased with the silhouette.

Heather had happily seized the opportunity to go as an archer, a set of garments she'd been assembling piece by piece ever since she started her continuing education class. Her hair was braided and bound together to reduce the risk of distracting strays. Many of her beloved camo greens were present in this ensemble, albeit separated into individual components of her attire. She moved to tuck her hands into her pockets, remembered that there weren't any, and instead hooked both thumbs through the belt.

The bridge of Rebecca's nose scrunched as she grinned. "Crushin' it. Fresno, here we come." 

"Play us out, Cookie," Paula urged.

Rebecca scooped her lute - easily the most expensive item for her look since she had been adamant about carrying a functional instrument rather than a prop - off the countertop and strummed. Her gaze turned skyward as she left the rest stop bathroom attempting to generate lyrics on the spot. 

"The countess doth my song request, I go at her courtly behest, and now I introduce four: there were none quite so resplendent, connected yet independent, trust me I'm the troubadour..."

Scott and Tommy were already waiting outside dressed as an earl and a squire, respectively. Tommy gave them all an appreciative thumbs up and Scott applauded. The latter strode over to Paula when she emerged. Scott bowed and then held out his hand. "My lady?" He gestured in the direction of their waiting minivan in an unspoken offer to escort her.

Paula smiled and accepted his outstretched palm. "Milord."

While they walked, Scott called over his shoulder. "I like the new ditty, Rebecca. Lotta info in a little time. Nice and snappy."

Rebecca waved an 'oh, stop' gesture, but she was unable to hide her delight in receiving positive feedback. "Thank you. I couldn't resist a little Danny Kaye tribute. I think it could work better if I ramp up the speed of my delivery, now that I've worked out the words."

Valencia flanked Paula on her other side and leaned in close to whisper, "What musical was she talking about?"

"No idea. It must've been before my time."

They loaded back into the vehicle, though with considerably greater difficulty given the added layers of their new outfits. Paula now had to sit in the middle with Rebecca to have room for her voluminous skirts. Scott took the driver seat in her stead, and Tommy sat beside him. Valencia detached the falcon from its perch and buckled it into the rear middle seat to keep it from sliding around on the drive. Heather observed this with quiet amusement. She patted the fake bird on the head. "Safety first." 

The wardrobe-swapping pit stop in Tulare was only about forty minutes away from their final destination, a span of time which seemed to fly by after the previous three hours on the road. Eagerness for the festivities ahead reached a renewed high as the park finally came into view. Scott pulled up to the waiting staff member and exchanged pleasantries. He passed the young worker a bag of canned goods they'd brought to contribute to the faire's donation drive and then fished out his wallet to pay the parking and admission fee. 

As soon as they exited the van, all the sights and sounds swept them into the action. There were myriad tents on either side of the path that wove through the trees. Bakers, potters, and weavers sold their wares; blacksmiths hammered hot metal atop anvils, and a cheerful tune drifted from a shelter housing a trio of professional musicians. The food court beckoned with the scent of cakes, pies, meats, and sandwiches. Their first quarter of an hour passed simply drifting from one table of offerings to the next, admiring everything and strategizing how they would spend their money later. 

Once they'd gotten a general sense of the lay of the land, Rebecca began walking backward to face the group at large and clapped her hands together. "Okay, time to get the party started. Where to first? Birthday girls' choice. Heather? Paula?"

Heather pulled a face. "That's not gonna be how you introduce us all day, is it? You're gonna confuse everybody since it's not, like, actually either of our birthdays. Not even close."

"Okay, true," Rebecca conceded, "but 'a November day that happens to fall almost squarely in the middle between the two and on a weekend we could all ask off work' is a mouthful to explain to strangers."

"Or we could just try, y'know, not sharing any details of our personal life with the RenFaire performers?" Heather suggested with a sarcastic shrug.

"But then none of them will sing you a period-appropriate song or raise a celebratory cheer." Rebecca pouted. 

Heather nodded with satisfaction. "Exactly."

"Verily, thou art a most obstinate addle-plot," Rebecca remarked with a sigh.

"Oooh, are we doing the olde timey talk now?" Paula brightened. "I've been practicing for this."

"Aye, good lady," Rebecca confirmed and linked their arms. "I believe the hour is upon us!"

Just like that, all lighthearted squabbling was forgotten. Rebecca and Paula joyfully riffed off one another using every medieval and Renaissance vocab word they could recall. They even dusted off their questionable English accents for an added layer of "authenticity." Tommy and Heather exchanged glances at some of the inventive word choices, having acquired a passing familiarity with the correct terms on their individual visits to similar faires, but they let the giggling duo indulge in their antics.

A short while later, they stumbled upon another tent of interest, which appeared to be dedicated to wood carving. There were wall hangings, placards, canes, birdhouses, and countless other novelty handcrafted objects. One rather simple looking cube with hinges on the corner of a table caught Rebecca's attention. She plucked it up for closer inspection. A small smile tugged at the corner of her lips when she saw the lion rampant carved into the surface of the lid. She pried the box open with her thumb and gasped. 

"Aww, there's a little compass inside! I wonder how much this would cost to send to Na--" Rebecca dragged out the first syllable of the name, realizing too late that she'd spoken the thought aloud. "--antucket. I've got a cousin out there who might enjoy it for... scout hikes."

She nodded perhaps a little too emphatically at the end of this improvised statement. Her eyes flicked from one companion's face to the next to see if they bought the cover story. The reactions were unanimously not in her favor. 

"You were about to say Nathaniel." Paula gave Rebecca a reassuring nudge. "Sweetheart, you don't have to hide it from us. We've known for weeks that you two have been writing back and forth to each other. I accidentally used one of his envelopes as a coaster when you invited me over to hear a few works in progress."

"Yeah, and you stowed another letter behind Estrella's tank," Heather added. "Which is literally transparent so..."

"Having a pen pal is actually kind of perfect for you," Valencia said. "You're the only person I've ever known who bought stationery as a souvenir."

"It has been nice, keeping in touch," Rebecca admitted. "We're in different countries, both staying introspective and working on ourselves, but I think we've gotten to a place where we can check in on each other without undoing all the positive growth." She turned the compass over between her fingers and then held it out for the other women to inspect. "Do you think he'd like it?"

Heather's head tilted to the side. "Exclusive product ... a little pretentious but still practical... prominently features an animal you could find in a zoo... Sounds like a match from what I remember about him." 

"Plus, it's kinda symbolic, y'know? Like he can use it because he's surrounded by wilderness but he's also finding his way," Rebecca explained. "This could be a memento to commemorate that."  

She removed the wad of bills from the change purse on her belt and separated the necessary amount listed on the sticker. Once the compass was officially in her possession, Rebecca swung the bag back and forth, considering what a nuisance it would be to have that hanging from her wrist for the rest of the day. She nonchalantly turned a sharp corner as they left the tent. There, she discretely tucked the remaining dollars into her bra and stashed Nathaniel's gift in her former cash pouch.

The others were gathered around the pamphlet guide now open in Paula's hands when she returned.

"Looks like a lot of the big events are in the afternoon," Heather noticed.

"Count me in for the show where the guy swallows fire." Tommy tapped the corresponding spot on the park map.

"And we're getting funnel cake later, right?" Rebecca pointed to Paula and then back at herself. 

"Oh, of course," Paula readily agreed. "It's quintessential fairground food." 

"Don't forget the giant turkey legs!" Scott added, already scanning the large painted menus in the distance so he could make a beeline to that station once they were ready to eat. 

Valencia looked ill at the mention and returned her attention to the accessory booth she'd drifted toward while the others spoke. She held up two pieces she might purchase and frowned thoughtfully. Heather plucked a small standing mirror off the display table and held it for her while she considered each necklace in the sunlight.

A faint buzz sounded from Valencia's satchel. She angled her body so the jewelry could rest against her chest without sliding off and then rummaged for her phone. "Ah, crap." 

"Who is it?" Heather prompted. 

"Darryl with the five thousandth Pinterest idea for his Blended Family Unity Ceremony. I thought the point was to do something simple and sentimental, once they decided they didn't want all the hassle and planning of another wedding in their lifetime. April seemed in favor of that. But Darryl's gone down an Internet-ing rabbit hole and can't be stopped. I thought the ceremony itself might clock in at twenty minutes at most, when they first brought it to me."

"Oh, my sweet summer child." Rebecca shook her head as she tuned in to the conversation.

Valencia’s shoulders sagged and she grimaced. "I know. Joke's on me. At this point, I'd recommend the guests just clear their schedule for the whole day. This latest concept involved a giant canvas and finger painting so... wear something you don't care about."

A collective groan rippled through the group. It was confessed, however, that they all expected at least one genuinely tear-jerking moment, given Darryl's fierce and unwavering attachment to each person who would be in attendance. 

The six of them then followed the map to briefly observe a staged sword fight and a live joust. Paula and Rebecca reminisced over A Knight's Tale and lamented the fact that more stories depicting the era did not include extended dance and/or musical numbers. 

"With the obvious exception of The Court Jester, of course," Rebecca said.

Paula gave a vague nod, smile locked in place but eyes blinking rapidly. "Right. Sure bet it does." 

"You've never seen it, have you?" 

"I'm not even sure if it's a play or a movie." Paula offered an apologetic wince. "You're sorta my primary go-to when I need to understand these kinds of references. I don't have the head space for it."

"I mean, a first watch is definitely something we need to remedy on a weekend soon but, given that I have three decades of passionate devotion to the art form, I get what you mean." Rebecca patted her lute fondly.

They stopped by the wooden ship stationed on the grass where actors dressed as pirates interacted with the crowd and set off small cannons. Then the group advanced toward the last thing on their list of pre-meal activities, which was to watch one of the live shows. The uproarious energy there sparked a sudden idea. Rebecca took extensive notes on her phone, deciding to flesh out her earlier improvised song into a full number to capture the vibe of the faire.

Afterward, they all left the seating in front of the stage and headed toward the food court. The sound of drums diverted their attention along the way and they searched for its source. A small gathering of belly dancers circled on a stretch of open lawn. Rebecca began nodding her head in time with the drum beat, but the motion stilled as she studied the trained and toned muscles undulating beneath the nearest dancer's skin. The woman stood out among her peers as not only being adept at the style but possessing a kind of theatrical charisma. She noticed her new audience and winked. 

Rebecca tugged off her troubadour's hat and fanned herself. "Damn, that level of confidence is sexy."

Eventually, watching half a dozen stomachs reminded them of their rumbling own. With some reluctance, they finally moved along. At last, it was time for their much-anticipated lunch. Scott immediately purchased his coveted turkey leg and ale, both of which he enjoyed while the others mulled over their dining options. As they scanned the stands, the girls spied a large kiln not far away and recognized a familiar dish in the shadows. 

Rebecca pressed a hand to her middle. "Okay, I know it's not the kind of thing you can only get at the faire, but I need that pizza in me."

"Seconded." Tommy joined his honorary sister in staring at the melting cheese.

Once everyone had a plate, they found a place to sit at one of the wooden tables. Paula dusted some of the powdered sugar from the funnel cake off her fingers with a napkin and leaned toward Heather, who was stationed diagonally across from her.

"So, I haven't seen you much since fall break ended. How's grad school going?"

"The marine biology coursework combined with the kind of work that gives me money is kicking my ass but, like, in a good way. Especially since so much of it involves trips to the beach."

"I really admire you for going back, and for finding an area of study that would let you take so many fun field trips," Paula praised. 

Valencia caught Heather's eye and beamed. "Well-played, professor."

While everyone ate, they unfolded the map again atop their table. They scanned the times for where each person wanted to go between noon and dusk when the event would close. A second-half schedule was established and they prepared to seek out the first stop. Before doing so, however, Paula opened her phone's camera for a picture. Rebecca rounded everyone else up for the photo. 

"Prithee, gather ye round the magic picture box. Lady Proctor wouldst appreciate the opportunity to capture our likeness and preserve the memory."

They wrapped their arms around each other and leaned into frame, looking respectably at home before a backdrop of other costumed faire-goers. Paula showed them all the end result before turning it back to herself and grinning at the image. "Perfect."

First on the listed activities was the archery contest. Heather rarely had an occasion to utilize her champion level skills as a bowman, so this chance was too good to skip. The competitors formed a line before their targets.

"Make ye ready!" the announcer cried. "Draw! Aim! Loose!"

Heather's shot found its mark and embedded in the bullseye. Her companions clapped and whooped. 

Rebecca watched her nock the following arrow and line it up for release. "She's got a whole Keira Knightley in Princess of Thieves look going for her today."

The second arrowhead pierced a hair's breadth from the first.

"I think it's kinda doing it for me."

Valencia nodded. Her eyelids crinkled at the corners while she regarded Rebecca with curiosity. "Are you having some sort of Renaissance awakening?" 

"TBD. Check back in with me later. Kinsey scale rating may need an update."

Heather’s final arrow was dead center. The announcer declared her the winner and the visitors from West Covina alarmed everyone nearby with the shouts that erupted from them. They surged forward to embrace and congratulate her. Heather awkwardly allowed herself to be jostled by her circle of friends. She exuded discomfort but, when they all formed a group hug, she did not squirm away. 

After that landslide victory, next up was a demonstration with a trebuchet. The impressively tall apparatus cut through the air and launched pumpkins at a makeshift castle wall. Tommy was ecstatic. He fished out his phone to record a video. "Brendan would love this. I've gotta send it to him."

At the mention of her eldest son, Paula's lower lip protruded sympathetically. "Do you miss your big brother knight, squire?"

Tommy tried to feign indifference, but the shift of his shoulders couldn't hide the expression that flickered across his face. "A little, I guess."

"Aww, pumpkin," Paula cooed. She hooked him toward her with one arm and pressed a kiss to his forehead. "Me, too."

"Hey, careful with the mom smooches," Tommy cautioned. "Girls might not talk to me if they see I've already got a lipstick mark on my face."

Paula licked her finger and wiped off the traces. The boy allowed the assistance with resignation. "Okay, yeah, I did sorta set myself up for that one," Tommy muttered. 

Somewhere in the crowd, a recognizable voice caught their attention. 

"Just a minute, Amari. It's Agila's turn. Baba can't hold both of you on his shoulders at the same time. Somebody might fall... most likely me."

Paula stood on tiptoe and waved. "Sunil! Sunil, over here!"

Rebecca heard the name and slumped. "Great. This guy."

Sunil wove his way toward them, holding one of his daughters’ hands on each side. "Why, hello! Fancy meeting you here!"

He drew up short when he spotted Rebecca. "Bunch."

Rebecca arched her eyebrows. "Odhav."

"So, how are you liking the RenFaire so far?" Paula asked, interrupting the showdown.

"We're having a blast. The girls rode the giant unicorn. They said it would've been better if it were a pegasus but, hey, next best thing, right? We've caught three shows already. Really resurrects the old acting bug. And I'm still on a shopper's hunt for a crystal chalice with a palace. As we all know, it 'holds the brew that is true,' and I could really use the pick-me-up after four hours of bickering toddlers." Sunil chuckled at his own humor. Paula weakly attempted to do the same, lost.

Rebecca snapped to attention at the reference. Unable to help herself, she interjected, "Yeah, those can be pretty fragile. You might be better off getting a vessel with a pestle."

Surprised, but pleasantly so, Sunil's expression warmed. "You've seen The Court Jester."

"Oh my gosh, yes!" Rebecca's eyes went comically wide with fervor. "I've been talking about it all day. I must've watched that at least twenty times as a kid."

"How could you not? It's a classic."

Sunil gleefully launched into another quote. "'What are you loo-loo-looing about?’”

Rebecca was ready with the rejoinder. "'Oh, I'm not loo-loo-looing, sire, I'm willow-willow-wailing.'"

Sunil responded with a kingly wave of dismissal. "'All right, all right. Willow away, willow away.'"

They cackled.  

"Dear God," Paula murmured, but she was visibly grateful her usually adversarial friends were getting along.

"There are two of them," Valencia joked affectionately.

Sunil rubbed his hands together. "Listen, we were about to track down that lesson on how to do a courtly dance. Would all of you like to join us?"

This proposal was met with general agreement (although Heather required a little additional convincing to accept the prospect of participation). They reached the designated area just as instructions began. Most of the dance took part in a large group but, for the small section where those involved were expected to break off into pairs, they planned ahead for who would dance with whom. The combinations ultimately turned out to be Paula and Scott, Heather and Valencia, Tommy with both Amari and Agila, and - in a truce that would've been inconceivable prior to that instant - Rebecca and Sunil. 

As all the gathered dancers moved in a great circle, Rebecca took the opportunity to look at each of her loved ones in turn. The chances to enjoy hours with everyone like this sometimes proved rare and difficult to orchestrate, but shared moments of laughter and fun such as these made it infinitely worth the effort.

She turned to Heather on her left and gave the other woman's hand a teasing squeeze. "Having a good time after all?"

"I'll live," Heather answered simply, but Rebecca knew her well enough to detect the truth beneath her nonchalance. "What about you? You've been sending us a pre-trip countdown for, like, a full month leading up to this. Is it holding up to the hype?"

"Hundo P," Rebecca replied. "Ugh, it works when Maya says it but I think there might be too much of a generational divide for me to pull that off. In other news, I might be bi?"

Heather's laugh huffed out on an exhale. "Congrats on figuring that out. Welcome to the club. Darryl will make you a t-shirt."

"Thanks. I'm gonna need your out-and-proud advice later to sift through this brand new information, but it feels like I'm onto something."

"Anytime." 

"So, calendar date notwithstanding, has this been a good birthday?" Rebecca asked hopefully.  

Heather's lips twitched. "I'd let you talk me into it again."

In time with the music, Rebecca twirled in a circle and her friends all blurred together in her vision. A soft smile spread across her face. She thought she could safely declare this day a win.

#CEG Writing By Me #crazyexvalentineexchange #imunbreakabledude

[quinnmorgendorffer]

Of my 27 fanfics on ao3 literally only two of them (three of you squint) are canon compliant to a certain point.

And NONE of them are glee ones lmao

#ceg one is canon through getting over jeff #and I wrote a cinco fic for ad #the if you squint was my first ad fic which was just like not like completely au but also not canon ya feel me? #it was smut who needs canon #someone called me the au queen to my face and like wow yeah I really give zero fucks about canon #(it’s because I can’t write people IC sksjdjdj)

[bunchsanity]

❝ God, I’m an I D I O T. What am I even doing here?                I got caught up in BUNCHSANITY again. I’m a MORON! ❞

                              || crazy ex girlfriend multimuse , penned by lane ||

#crazy ex girlfriend rp #crazy ex girlfriend roleplay #ceg rp #cxg rp #cxg roleplay #( self promo. ) #( plz write with me i'm so excited about this )

[witchofeindor]

Santino’s pronunciation of ‘shit’ in ‘It Was A Shit Show’ cracks me up EVERY FUCKING TIME.

Like, they probs needed him to lengthen the word so they could bleep it in the broadcast version, and well, the only thing to lengthen in ʃɪt is well, the vowel. But the thing is - ɪ is a -ATR vowel, which means, it’s never long (its counterpart, the +ATR i, always is), but here they needed him to double it for censorship reasons, which creates this irregularly long ɪ that’s just hilarious to my ears.

#I'm sorry this is probably the MOST niche post I have EVER posted on here #since I'm pretty sure I'm the only linguist I know on here who also watches cxg #also writing a post analysing a prononciation of a word in a song from a TV show is like #the most leah thing ever I've ever done lmfao #I'm sorry this makes probs no sense to anyone on here but I needed to get it off my chest #sorry it's just hilarious to me #and I know Santino studied the IPA #so I wonder whether he remembered that -ATR vowels are short #idk this is just funny to my nerd linguist ass ok #ceg thoughts tag #I guess

[anthropologicalhands]

tagged by @notbang!

Your most popular fic

By hits and kudos, vigil of the loved continues to dominate. Not totally surprising, given that it was a post-canon oneshot posted right when the Naruto manga ended and before the fandom was regularly posting on Ao3. But I'm still pleasantly surprised, given that it's a very quiet gen piece.

Your best fic

oh man...agreed with everyone who says this totally depends on what metrics you choose.

silent but not unsaid - I just think it feels right, and hits the right note balancing the sadness of Fugaku's death with Sasuke's understanding of his father and his family's reactions.

soulmark au - I'm so happy with where I placed everyone's soulmarks, and I think I really got a good chance to dig in and explore the concept in all its manifestations in the CEG verse.

a frozen pond alight with torches - Yu Yu Hakusho has a very specific tone, and even though this story is about characters who are essentially blank slates, I think I managed to fit it pretty well.

Your favorite fic you wrote

the caring and keeping - I love the rhythm of this piece, and I also love how I got to dig deep into Sakura's emotions about Sasuke.

Mukuro's Favor - So this might be a result of getting older, but I was annoyed that I couldn't find many fics that have Mukuro and Kurama interacting one on one. I ended up being really happy with how I wrote Mukuro as a character, and thinking through how she would interact with Kurama.

life's not painless, but he's not brainless (josh chan will be all right) - I worked hard on getting Josh Chan's voice right, and you know what? I think it got there! And I love writing Valencia & Josh scenes.

Your least favorite fic you wrote

The real answer is that there's a lot of stuff posted on ffn that makes me want to dig a hole and hide. But! We're not going there.

So, probably green fairy for Mass Effect Andromeda. Mostly because it's pretty surface level; I'm disappointed that I didn't go more into Rider's relationship with Sloane Kelly, who is one of my favorite characters from the game (and the decision in her mission is the most compelling, tbh, even if the deck is stacked). Ah well, one day.

tagging @uchihasass and @redbelles, if y'all are up for it.

#fic meme reply #reply

[petersthree]

Okay so I’ve seen a lot of conflicting responses to Buddie this episode, from it being clear to people that they’re getting together, to thinking the writers have unintentionally messed things up to thinking it’s purely queerbait.

And I get the different responses, I do - tbh I’m somehow in two camps, where I simultaneously believe it’s a slowburn but I also think it’s bait. And those are two very different opinions to have and it got me thinking about why we have these different responses as fans to the possibility of a queer ship (namely two men who would presumably be bi/pan) being canon. 

While people talk about how it’s just people wanting two characters to kiss or entitled fans - sure, that’s existent in every fandom, but I think there’s also a very real fear from queer fans who don’t want to get their hopes up and I d on’t love how the conversation has shifted to calling queer fans stupid for having hope, so I kind of wanted to break it down into 3 aspects that I’ve noticed: 

How writers portray bi characters and why that makes fans hesitant to have hope

What queerbait actually means as a concept

How much “slowburn” has changed in procedurals

1. How writers portray bi characters

Something I’ve thought about a lot are the bi characters I’ve seen on TV - Darryl (CEG), Sara Lance (Arrow), Lucifer (Lucifer), just to name a few. These are great characters imo and I think you’d have a fun time watching but a thing to note is that all these characters were established as bi within the first season of their respective shows and they all fairly quickly fell into a clear romantic ship as well (with the exception of Sara as she spanned multiple shows). It may have taken time for them to say the word bisexual, but it was still clear these characters were queer fairly quickly on. You could maybe argue that Lucifer was a slowburn, but then (while it does not take away from him being bi/pan so do not use this as an excuse to be shitty about him) it’s a m/f ship which is still not the point of my post, to find a m/m or f/f ship that has that same treatment.

Some writers have done it - like for Valencia in CEG, or Petra in JTV - when they saw that fans read them this way, but trying to find those characters were few and far between, and when I looked at popular queerbait ships (whether or not they actually are queerbait) it’s usually ships where the characters are largely viewed as bisexual. A lot of times this also comes with pushback from both straight and to be frank, other queer fans as well. Straight fans don’t always see the signs that queer fans do, so to them a queer character who hasn’t been explicitly clear from the start comes out of nowhere. And what I’ve seen from certain queer fans are concerns that people aren’t appreciating the canon queer characters in a show - and I think there is a conversation to be had about that, but I don’t think the response should also be about then demanding less representation for people either. 

If we go back to 911, people talk a lot about how it has canon queer characters, which it definitely does - Michael, Hen, Josh, Karen, and David are all canonically gay/lesbian and that’s awesome, and we absolutely should talk about fans (white fans in particular) ignoring these characters. It also does not change the fact that none of these characters are bisexual and that is the representation people are looking for. Both of these things are true - these characters are often under appreciated in canon AND people deserve bisexual representation. They don’t contradict each other and to act like one negates the other does a huge disservice.

And even if a character was made bisexual in the canon text we don’t get that slowburn. This may be true for things like Leverage, or LOK, but there’s also a real fact of censorship that affected these shows and the fact that general audiences may not understand the queer text tjat the writers intended. It doesn’t make the writing any less wonderful or the ships any less poignant or beautiful or important, and there’s ofc shows like She Ra that made this more obvious (or the.....mess that was Supernatural that made it. Half true?) but these are still real things that should be acknowledged on why people are so hesitant to call it slowburn - because it’s something most queer fans haven’t SEEN DONE, because m/f ships will get that care for slowburn when it’s done but it’s not done for m/m or f/f ships in that same capacity.

2. What queerbait is

This one’s fun because I don’t think many people understand what it is, but queerbait is very dependent on the intentions of the writers/creators/etc. - which tbh can be hard to gauge, because a genuine intention that ended up not happening or someone baiting fans or someone trying to support all ships and not be rude all have very different intentions but to a fan who only sees bits and pieces of this person on social media, it can be hard to gauge.

Honestly with how much the 4th wall gets broken because of social media now I’d personally say we’ve probably moved into a different definition of queerbait - unintentional vs intentional - because we’re at a point where a show knows what ships are popular and at what level of excitement fans are for it - but that being said, there’s still a clear spectrum of intent. And imo? I don’t think 911 has that intent of queerbait - whether it’s a slowburn or they have a different vision for buddie that I (probably) won’t agree with remains to be seen, but this show usually treats its storylines with care. Are they perfect at it? No, definitely not, I definitely think that they’ve dropped the ball a few times (especially with just how many characters they have lmao), but they also clearly do their storylines with earnest and with genuine care for these characters.

Is 911 getting them together? I want to say yes. I don’t think this was always the plan, just something that they decided along the way, but I also don’t think that changes anything about the ship. A lot of people point to Tim Minear being vague about the ship, or the actors and their interpretations, but 1. We have no idea what they’ve been told about Buddie moving forward and 2. No show runner is going to spoil their show that much. 911 may be keeping quiet because they have a different plan for buddie, sure, but also maybe because they’re still figuring out how exactly they want to do this and/or they want to make this slowburn and don’t want to give it away.

3. Slowburn in procedurals

I feel like this is something that procedurals have started shying away from, but slowburns used to be very common - Bones, Castle, their ships didn’t get together for literal years, but that’s just not something that many shows do nowadays, even for m/f ships. Even things like Deckerstar will have the characters get together after ~3 seasons and explore the relationship onwards, whereas a few years ago, y ou’d pr obably be watching a sh ow and it’d take them 7 seasons to get together. My assumption for this is that shows are afraid  of getting canceled, but there’s been a pretty big shift in getting a couple together after say, 6 seasons to now getting them together about halfway through the show. I don’t think either one is bad or good - in good writers’ hands, either can be amazing - but that shift has made it so that a lot of younger fans in particular, I think, don’t fully recognize slowburn when they see it.

911 as a show tends to run pretty fast - it kind of has to with its depth of characters they have - but when they do have slower running storylines they really do make use of that as well. Bobby’s addiction is something that’s always going to be present in his character, May’s suicide attempt was brought up again front and center after 3 seasons, even Chim’s dynamic with the Lees was brought up again and it was reinforced again that they’re his family. There are certain storylines that have to be continuous and aren’t a one and done type of thing, and that includes Buck and Eddie, especially if you want to establish them as queer to a general audience who doesn’t think about these things.

And honestly, despite my fears, I think they are laying groundwork there. We have Buck learning to be more confident in his relationships, we have Eddie ready to date and learning to follow his own heart, we have Buck and Eddie both establishing that Buck is family and will always be there for Christopher. These are pretty big steps to do for a ship and we’ll obviously have to see how the show goes forward but they’ve already insinuated Eddie and Ana are breaking up, I’m sure Taylor and Buck may last a season and be over, but we do have to see what this next season brings. Do I think they’d say this? No, definitely not.

tl;dr: 

911 is a show with good viewership, but there’s always a possibility they can’t continue with their season and then their promises would feel like a lie. Or they may still be hammering out the details as this season hasn’t been written. Or they may just simply not want to spoil their show,  or they don’t want people criticizing a story before it’s finished, all of these could be reasons. The showrunners, writers, actors, ultimately they owe nothing to us as a fandom to potentially spoil their series, or do something, change it or their schedule for it, and get accused of bait. 

But it also doesn’t change why fans are wary of this storyline either, and I wish people would have more nuance and compassion for fans who are worried about queerbait (whether they think it’s not queerbait and dislike people worrying about it or if they do and are calling people idiots for believing it). There’s a lot of reasons why fans are wary and don’t want to have hope, and it’s not necessarily about 911 specifically as it is a pattern of writing seen in other pieces that have fans worried. These things can all coexist and I wish we as fandom in general could acknowledge that, because pretending that they don’t and criticizing each other/people’s intentions or knowledge when they have certain expectations also doesn’t do much to help.

#warning this is long so if you read this bless you #but also i wrote this forever so maybe give a read? #it gets into buddie more specifically at the end so bear with me lmao #buddie #911 fox #fandom #queerbait #janie overthinks media #buddie meta #911 on fox

[whitestopper]

Chuuseul dynamics

Rebecca and Greg from CEG

“...and you’re ignoring me so you’re obviously my type.” “I’m sorry, what were you saying?” “Perfect.” Tell me this isn’t how Heart Attack’s epilogue went. I’ll listen to you but I’ll still think this.

People A and B accidentally have a mix-up with items and spend time trying to find each other

I don’t how to explain this, it’s just the vibe I get. Maybe Chuu lost a locket and Haseul lost her slingshot or something.

Joe and Georgia from G&G

I hesitate to pair Joe with anyone in that show let alone Georgia because he is my favourite character there.... which is easy when you’re the only likable character but it’s fine because likability doesn’t always equal good writing but I digress. Anyway, Chuu is arguably less complex but more likable than Georgia so maybe she and Haseul deserve each other a bit more lol

Hitchhiker x Person With A Car

Okay, admittedly it’s a bit unconventional for the hitchhiker to have come from a crashed plane but it’s the thought that counts

Royalty/Peasantry

The Little Prince x The Little Match Girl. Nuff said.

#it mine #loona #haseul #chuu #chuuseul #*scanning over these* okay so one of them is barely functional and the other can go off the rails at any moment..... *makes notes* #once again: this is about the characters not the real actual people

[lesbianvelmakelly]

for some reason i’m so fixated on the line “i’m the who in the whodunnit, when i go to hell i’ll run it” like hmmmmmmm i think i love rachel bloom

#i wasn't expecting to like ceg/cxg/however yall say it but i love it? #also it's so much darker than i thought it was gonna be like the ending of season two was just A Lot #personal #text #crazy ex girlfriend #also before anyone tells me she doesn't write the songs alone lol i know i'm still in love with her #m

[phoneybeatlemania]

Oh and also, The Only Song

unrelated bonus question: what are your fave Crazy Ex-Girlfriend songs?

ur taste is immaculate and u know it </3

but omg off of the top of my head - my favourite crazy ex girlfriend songs are:

Settle for me (gotta say, its a personal anthem)

It was a shit show

Maybe she's not such a heinous bitch after all

I could if I wanted to (another personal anthem)

Lets generalise about men

Don't be a lawyer (everyone knows this one, but cmon, it is a slap lmao) (also for the list of CEG/Beatles comparisons, this ones John Eastman (Lee’s son) putting up with Kleins BS)

Greg's drinking song (shane macgowan wishes he wrote it 😤) (ALSO nice of the writers to write a song about 90% of my family)

Im just a girl in love

#those are the ones i listen to pretty consistently #but ik that there are others lol #waiting for the ronnettes to cover maybe shes not just a heinous bitch after all #@idontwanttospoiltheparty #song talks #meta #crazy ex gf