#Didn't plan on posting so early in the day but we got snow and the power wants to go out real badly right now

[falloutjuli]

Time to post some Johnny content, since that man has been my brainrot for the past few days since I finished SBR. Its also my first time posting anything for JJBA so Im hella excited to share (ɔ◔‿◔)ɔ ♥

I hope you too get a kick out of this, I wanted it to be winter themed for the occasion. I apologize for any spelling or grammar erros, english isnt my first language, but I do try my best. 

Without further ado, Johnny x Reader - Warm me up

Johnny and you share your sleeping bag to stay warm together

__________________________________________________

"Holy shit it's cold." You moaned, as you were sure your fingers were frozen by now despite the gloves.

"Agreed. We better soon make a fire and take a break." Gyro agreed and went to look for a nice place to set their camp up. Johnny trotted besides him, looking equally cold. "Would ya mind gathering some firewood?" Gyro asked you, and you agreed, just wanting to get off of your beloved horse and take a break. 

You slid of the saddle, lading with a "oomph" sound in the thick snow. "I see a little cave up there, we set up camp there, yeah?" Gyro said and began making his way. Johnny smiled at you before following his friend.

  Walking was a nice change after having been on horseback all day but after a while, that sucked too, so you were happy once you found a last good piece of wood to use and made your way to the little cave. It wasn't deep at all, it gave just enough cover from the snow and wind. 

Johnny and Gyro had already unpacked their sleeping bags and were seated on them, discussing their plans for the route tomorrow. When the Italian spotted you with the wood under your arms, he smiled. 

"Finally! We're freezing over here!" "You could have helped, then I would have been faster." You rolled your eyes and Gyro laughed and got up to start the fire once you dumped the wood on the floor. Then you unhooked your own bag from h/n and set it up next to Johnny. 

Finally you were able to rest. Your limps sprawled out and a deep sigh escaped your lips. "You alright there?" Johnny inquired, leaning over to you. "Now I am. Finally some rest ya know." You answered, opening your eyes to look at him. You were surprised that his face was so close to yours as his eyes scanned your face for every little detail. Heat crept up in your face. 

"True, the break is welcomed." With that he withdrew from your personal space. You continued to watch him from the corner of your eye as he pulled out his little nite pad and pen to write something. 

"Hey Gyro!" He called out to your friend who just got the fire started. "Why didn't your teddy eat dessert?" "Tell me Johnny." "He was stuffed." Gyro laughed wholeheartedly, while Johnny chuckled.

 "Holy shit, you two are so unfunny." You groaned and hid your face with your hands. "You just can't appreciate true genius." Gyro retorted and began humming his Pizza song while making his sleeping place more comfortable. His teddy of course finding place too. Whole traveling with the two guys you had heard so many stupid jokes, songs and conversations, but that's also why you liked them so much. 

And while you held both dear in your heart, your heart had the habit of occasionally skipping a beat whenever you and Johnny got close. It was a little crush you had developed over the time, but who could blame you, he was a kind and beautiful young man who had captured your heart and thoughts by storm. Sometimes you wondered if he looked at you with the same admiration and love you held form him. 

"We better get some sleep in tonight, I wanna leave early in the morning ladies!" Gyro declared, earning an eye roll from his companions. "You overslept last time!" Johnny retorted. "I couldn't sleep, because you two kept talking and giggling like little girls the whole night!" Not wanting to use the little energy you had left for arguing with Gyro of all people, you just rolled on your side, pulling the blanket of the sleepingbag up to your nose and shut your eyes shut. "G'dnight guys." You just mumbled and began drifting off, only hearing Gyro and Johnny faintly in the distance.

You awoke hours later, freezing. With sleepy eyes you looked around, spotting the died down fire that only had ember left. Gyro was snoring peacefully, Johnnys back was turned to your but you could savely assume that we was sleeping too. The wind must have picked up again some time ago as it was significantly colder than earlier. 

"Fuckin' shit." You mumbled and climbed out of the bag to drag it a bit further inside, hoping to escape the cold. Just when you had finished moving the bag, you got almost scared to death when a sleepy Johnny asked what you were doing. "Don't scare my like that!" You whisper yelled at him as you sat back down. 

"I moved a bit because I'm freezing over there. The wind picked up." You explained. Johnny also moved out of his bag to your surprise, and went to move next to you again. "It is infact too cold. Can't wait until we get into warmer territory again." He mumbled, as he went back In. You copied what he did and also got comfortable in the bag again. 

Silence lingered in the air as time passed you kept shivering, turning from time to time. "Still too cold?" Johnny asked next to you. "Yeah. I'm not made for this weather." "Me neither." He chuckled. A moment of silence passed before he spoke up again. "You know we... We could share."

"What?" You question, wondering if you had heard and interpreted correctly. Johnny hesitated for a moment before elaborating. "Share a bag, ya know. It'd probably be warmer then..." You blinked a couple of times, wondering if that was a smart idea being that close to Johnny. "Y/N?" 

"Eh sure. I mean, everything is better than freezing my ass off." You tried to overplay your nervousness. "Then make space for me." He said and scooted over to you, waiting for you to let him in. Thanks to the limited space in there, you were pressed up against Johnny once he got all settled in with your help. A nervous laugh escaped your lips as he wrapped his arms around your figure, pressing you face further into his chest. You couldn't see it but Johnny did have a blush on his face just as you did. But it was warm. Very much so even. If it was thanks to cuddling with Johnny or being flustered and embarrassed thanks to cuddling with Johnny you didn't know.

"If you get uncomfortable, do say darlin'." You blinked. How dare he make you even more flustered by calling you that? How rude of him. "No no, I'm all fine." You mumbled against his shirt, unsure where to put you arms. Eventually you too put your arm around him, just above his waist. "Are ya warm enough?" You nodded. "And are you comfortable?" You questioned back. "Yeah, with you I am." Then it was silent again. 

Neither of you knew what to say or do so you just remained in that position until you did feel a little uncomfortable. You moved a little upwards, leveling your faces now, so you didn't have to constantly breath against his shirt. In the dark you could still make out his features thanks to remains of the fire a few feet away and the spare moonlight. Johnny looked pretty, with the slight smile that adored his lips and his tired eyes that looked right back at you. 

"Johnny?" "Yeah?" "Thank you for keeping me warm." "No problem at all, darlin'." And again your heart skipped a beat at the nickname. Your hand began to slowly travel from his waist, over his side and shoulders up to this face where it then rested as you pressed your lips onto his in a hasty kiss. Much to your surprise, after the initial hesitation due to surprise, he did kiss back, moving his hand from your back away, much to your dismay. You however didn't mind it anymore when he used his upper body strength, to flip you onto your back with him on top of you. 

Your kiss grew more passionate, with tongues meeting and dancing around one another, hands roaming the others body. After what felt like an eternity, he slowly pulled away, resting his forehead against yours. The sapphire blue eyes you adored so much were closed as he breathed heavily against your lips. 

"Where did that come from?" Johnny whispered, his hands coming up to cup your face. "I don't know. You just got me wrapped around your finger like that." "I do?" He inquired and you nodded. Your fingers went to to entangle themselves into his blond hair, pushing his hat off. 

"Look at you! Pretty face, beautiful eyes, soft hair, your strong arms, you're just perfect... You're the best price I could have scored in this race." Johnnys heart threatened to burst out of his chest, all thanks to your softly murmured words of praise. Instead of replying with words, he simply pressed his lips against yours again, this time slower and softer. "I always thought about you the same way." He then finally confessed against your lips. You couldn't help but smile at his words, finally having the confirmation, that he did feel the same way about you. 

"You have no idea how glad that makes me." Johnny chuckled and pressed a kiss against your forehead. "As much as I would love to show you just how much I adore you, if we don't sleep we will have Gyro complain all day tomorrow that we're tired. But i promise I will make it up to you sweetheart." The way the nicknames rolled of his tongue with his southern accent just had you weak. Just when you thought you couldn't love him more, he showed you there was still plenty of room. "You better."

Morning came way too fast. Of course it was still pleasant, waking up in Johnny's arms holding you close to him made it already the best morning you ever experienced so far, but knowing you'd probably be all day on horseback again, with little to no breaks had you feel dread already. 

You carefully wiggled yourself out of Johnny's grip to sneak out of the sleeping bag and get yourself some water and a snack from your provisions bag. Just as you had finished a piece of your favorite snack, you heard shuffling behind you. "Morning Y/N." Gyro said, as he was already beginning to gather and pack up his stuff to store it on Valkyrie later. "Mornin'." You replied, watching him a bit.

 "What's Johnny doing in your sleeping bag?" He eventually questions and just by the smile on his lips you knew he already had a story himself as to why. "We were both cold and so we shared to stay warm. Nothing special." You commented offhand, trying to seem nonchalant. "Uh huh." A moment passed before he spoke again.

  "So you just shared for the warmth yeah? Were your lips cold to or why you got Johnny's blue all over them?"

And just then you knew this ride today just got ten times worse because there was no way in hell Gyro wouldn't bring it up at least fifty times.

#johnny joestar #johnny x reader #jjba #steel ball run #johnny joestar x reader #jjba gyro #jjba johnny #x reader

[magalidragon]

lady of the night | a smutty Jonerys Hollywood Drabble 💫 📸

For @youwerenevermine and her eternal love of manwhore Jon, who I love too but always with a twist 😂 And it is over the drabble word count (3100) so I’ll post on AO3 soon.

"Jon! Jon! Over here!"

"Jon, we love you!"

"Lord Commander! Look this way!"

The sounds of people screaming his name as he left the awards show afterparty were annoying buzzes in his ear, especially after several whiskeys-- and maybe a hit of something else, he wasn't sure what he'd taken-- although it didn't make it less loud. If anything the buzzes seemed magnified tonight. Jon blinked against the camera flashes, a horde of paparazzi on the street, just beside the roped off crowd of fangirls and professional autograph chasers.

Normally he'd just wave, maybe even smile-- most likely not now because he was so buzzed-- carrying on with his plan to get from the club to the waiting black SUV which would whisk him back to his suite at The Sunspear, which was the toniest and fanciest of the hotels in Sunspear, Dorne. He only showed up in Dorne when he was meeting with executives, filming if necessary, or forced to attend these events, whether they be networking or awards shows.

He was in town for the Golden Kingdom awards, putting in his contractual appearance as one of the "ensemble" of The Steel Throne cable fantasy series. He was nominated this time around, for the final season, and he had no idea why. His role had been reduced to nothing more than window dressing and he had only a handful of lines he mostly delivered in a flat wooden voice because he really couldn't be bothered to put in anything else. It really was his last bit of "fuck you" to the writers and producers who had destroyed a character he'd come to consider a part of himself.

And somehow he got a nomination for an award. He was crossing his fingers that he'd lose and thank the gods he did. He wasn't even at hsi table when they called his category, he needed a smoke break.

As always happened when he left clubs and his publicist-- shitty little cretin Tyrion Lannister-- called ahead for photographers and tipped off Instagram celebrity spotting pages, he was swarmed. He paused as the SUV pulled up to take him away, lighting a cigarette. He glanced out of the corner of his eye and took pity on several of the people calling his name, because they looked young and naive enough to think he deserved to be famous.

Plus they didn't have the look of girls who wanted to come home with him, which was nice. He ignored Tyrion, who was tugging on his arm to drag him back, and waved at his "date" to the awards and the parties, his beastly friend Tormund who was leering at some of the poor girls, and approached the line.

He stuck his lit cigarette in his mouth when he got to the line, randomly scribbling his name on shirtless pictures of him from his modeling days or promo shots of him as Lord Commander Cregan Snow. He would have preferred it if someone had brought up the cartoon character of the same name. He was gunning to voice that dude in the animated movie he'd heard was in production, but seemed his agent Davos wasn't keen on him attaching his name to a children's fantasy series.

“You don't have the greatest of reputations, son."

It was all a matter of perception, he thought, and somehow he'd fooled even Davos.

As he scribbled his name on one last photo of his shirtless, oiled up body from a blockbuster he’d done in his early acting days, turning his face briefly to blow smoke away from the crowd, he caught sight of a woman with curly dark pink hair.

Pink. That was a new color, one he hadn’t seen before. He ignored the screams of the girls; at least two shoved their numbers into his hand, which was still outstretched for another photo to sign. He scribbled something akin to his name on this one and waved, stepping backwards from the throng of fans. He sucked on the cigarette a moment, his gray eyes sweeping the crowd again, until he spotted her again.

The pink haired woman blinked at him, cocking her head and coyly pointed her finger at herself. She smiled, long and slow, and he noted that her eyes were a curious coloring. She had one green eye and one blue. He had never seen that before either. He blew out more smoke, licking his lips and flicked ash off his cigarette, his gaze never wavering from her.

She had on a deep pink halter top with a pair of barely there black shorts she’d put on over black tights, a pair of heavy platform black boots, and a black leather jacket. The shirt was cut, jagged, giving a glimpse of her taut midriff. The dark hair with pink streaks was wavy around her face and scattered with tiny braids.

He didn’t blink and pointed at her, before gesturing towards the car. She giggled and pointed to herself, mouthing “Me?”

“You,” he mouthed back. He turned, not waiting, and went to the waiting car. Davos was standing there, already on his phone. “She’s with me,” he said, before Davos could stop security from keeping the woman from going to the SUV.

Davos sighed and said nothing. He shoved his phone in his jacket pocket and turned without a word, going off to his car.

Jon climbed into the SUV after the woman, ignoring the sobs of his name from the dejected crowd. He slammed the door shut and turned to her, taking her in again, this time face-to-face. She had pale skin, her cheeks flushed pink, and there was a tattoo creeping out from the top of her shorts. “Wow,” she giggled. “This is really insane! Jon Snow!”

“That’s me.”

“Sooooo dreamy,” she giggled, leaning against him. She licked her lips and her tongue wagged, a pink stone in the center of it. He twitched in place, already growing hard at the prospects of what that little tongue and stone could do when placed in certain areas. She dragged a pink fingernail on his collarbone, dragging it over his exposed chest. “You’re shorter in real life.”

He smirked. “Not the best way to start off a convo, babe.”

“Babe?” She wrinkled her pert nose. “Not a fan of that.”

“Sweetie?”

“Ew.”

He reached behind her head and tangled his fingers in her hair, pulling her against his chest and rubbing his lips over hers. “How about your name?”

“It’s…” She trailed off and shrugged. “Whatever you want it to be.”

He laughed. That was new too. “You’re usually better prepared. Pink, huh?”

“THought I’d try something new.” She straddled his hips, pushing his shoulders into the buttery leather seat behind him. Her hips swiveled against his and he groaned, unable to stop his hands from finding her hips,pulling her closer. She pressed a kiss to his mouth, hot and open, before jerking back and gagging. “Disgusting.” She swatted his chest. “No fucking smoking!”

He rolled his eyes. “It’s a stress reliever!”

“I thought I was your stress reliever.”

“You tend to give me more stress.”

She pulled a mint out of her pocket, popping it into his mouth. He crunched hard on it and swallowed quickly, eager to get back to her, but they were already at the hotel. Fuck, he thought, glancing between them at the heavy bulge in the front of his pants. She smirked again, tapping his nose. “Ill walk in front of you.”

“Much obliged.”

They exited the SUV, thankfully only a couple of photogs across the street who snapped some what he knew would be blurry unidentifiable photos— he’d gotten good at this in the last decade— of the two of them hurrying into the hotel.

He selected this hotel because it was discreet, which was very needed given his ah… <I>proclivities.</i> Or what the world thought were his proclivities. He jabbed the elevator button, his nose in line with the top of her pink hair. He inhaled deeply, sighing out the exhale. “You smell like peaches.”

“It’s the shampoo.”

“I like it.”

The doors dinged open and they stumbled in, barely waiting for them to close before he had her pressed up against the back, her surprised gasp caught in his mouth as he kissed her. He noted that she even tasted like peaches. Or he could have been making that up between the booze making it’s way through his system.

She hiked her leg around his hip and he dove his fingers down to unzip her shorts, finding that her tights were actually stockings, the garter hidden. “Oh seven hells,” he groaned, feeling her desire already seeping against his fingers, hot and slippery. She was starkers too, which caused his cock to twitch in his pants. “You’re all ready.”

She choked out a throaty laugh. “You know what I like.”

“Gods, I can’t wait…” He turned to hit the stop button but it was too late, the doors already opened onto the penthouse floor. He fumbled in his pocket for his key card, tripping out and down the hall to his room.

She was behind him, sucking on his earlobe while he tried to swipe the key. Her hands were in his pants, fast and warm, the first touch of her fingers around his cock almost causing him to explode right there. He growled. “Fuck!”

The door burst open and they fell into the room. He tripped on his pants, already at his knees courtesy of her stealthy moves. He ripped off her jacket and yanked at the halter, the fabric falling forward and exposing her perfect breasts to his hungry eyes. And mouth.

He eagerly kissed her, hands grasping the soft globes, squeezing and flicking at her nipples, furling them into tight pink buds against his fingertips. “You’re gorgeous,” he mumbled, pressing her to the wall near the suite’s bedroom. They were definitely not going to make it there.

“Full of compliments, aren’t you?” She gasped, his lips folding over one nipple, his fingers tweaking the other. One of her hands tangled in his hair and the other was between them, pumping his cock. “Seven hells Jon. Fuck me.”

He didn’t need to be told twice.

With one fast drop to his knees to swipe his tongue on her slit, teasing at her little clit and dipping his fingers in to test her readiness, he was satisfied. Her nails dug into his shoulders, tearing at his jacket and dress shirt. He struggled to get them off, buttons flying in all directions when they finally gave up and just tore the damn thing.

The designer would have to understand. It was a life or death situation at this point. She scattered kisses along his collarbone while he shoved his briefs down and kicked them off, her legs up over his elbows, her abs flexing as he pressed her harder against the wall, searching for her lips.

He had no idea at what point she’d taken off her shorts, but they were gone, only her stockings and garters on. He slid against her, the head of his cock bumping her clit. “Oh fuck,” she groaned, hitting her head against the wall. “So good…who knew?”

Jon tangled his tongue with hers, tilting her hips so he could line up and a second later, punch his hips up, cock sliding into her plush, molton heat. His eyes rolled back in his head, her body squeezing around him, pulsing and tight. “Shit,” he mumbled, forehead touching hers. He let go of one leg, his hand cupping hee face, rough fingertips scratching against her soft cheek. “I think we can give up the act.”

She laughed, her tongue barbell tapping his lower lip. “Not yet. Show me your talents Jon Snow. I’ve always wanted to know.” She gasped, eyes slamming shut when he thrust back, almost pulling out before he bottomed out into her in a hard, powerful thrust.

They said no more, just curses and shouts of Valyrian from her and gasping grunts from him as he fucked her hard against the wall. Her nails ripped at his hair with one hand and held her leg up with the other as he pressed his thumb between them against her clit, just when he knew she was about the topple over the cliff.

She screamed, coming so hard around him she triggered his release, his heart stopping as he shuddered around her, clutching her limp body to keep from dropping her. He came and came, seeing stars as he emptied himself into her. “Fuck,” she sighed, after he finally finished, his breath ragged gasps into her throat.

They slid down the wall onto the cool floor, a heap of clothes, sweaty limbs, and sex. He kept his eyes shut a moment, trying to return to his body. She kissed him and patted his cheek. “I’ll show myself out.”

He weakly reached for her, but she was gone in a flash, clothing on and door shut after her. “Fuck,” he mumbled, scrubbing his face. He stood slowly, his mind foggy. He blinked a few times to right himself and went to the bathroom to clean up.

A piss and hot shower later, he was walking out of the bathroom to collapse into bed, when he heard the TV going in the bedroom. He chuckled, scrubbing a towel through his hair, another tied around his waist. Jon padded into the bedroom, in time to see his ex-wife shrieking at something.

It was on the television but still made his balls shrivel up inside of him. “What the fuck is this?” he demanded, tossing the towel aside.

His girlfriend of almost a year, Weateros’s Sweetheart and all around good girl Daenerys Targaryen, who no one would ever have pinned as his one and only, the love of his life, and the only woman he had been with in at least two years since he divorced said ex-wife, was curled on the massive bed in a t-shirt with his character’s face on it, slurping an ice cream sundae.

She smiled innocently around her spoon. “I can’t help it, I like watching shitty television.”

“Can we not watch her show? It’s horrible.”

“I like it! It’s good bad tv.” She tucked a faded pink strand of hair behind her ear, patting the space beside her. “Come on, let’s have a game. Whenever she makes a constipated face or that guy shows up naked, we’ll drink.”

“We will be drunk in ten seconds.” He climbed into the bed anyway, dragging her over to him and allowed her to feed him bites of ice cream before he could stand no more of his ex’s face. “This is too much I’m changing the channel!”

Dany whined, trying to grab the remote. “Oh come on!”

Jon flicked the channel in time to see her face take up the screen. He grinned. “Ah, now it’s your stuff.”

She stuck her tongue out and then shook her head. “No, it’s not my movie, it’s a post awards show gossip fest.”

They watched for a few minutes— she had been declared one of the best dressed for her red plunging neckline dress which they all declared was Daenerys “stepping out of her good girl shell.”

“If only they knew you dressed up as different women and pretend to be a fan girl,” he mused. It was a kink they’d discovered on accident, but one they loved to indulge in, especially Dany. It worked for them both. She could exercise her inner bad girl and he got to look like the whorish bad boy that had made him famous.

Too bad no one knew he’d rather spend his nights in bed eating ice cream with her watching bad TV. He was the opposite of a whore, but hey, it made him famous. He was just sick of it. “What are you thinking about,” she mused, tapping the frown between his brows. “What’s this here?”

He shrugged. “Guess I’m tired of being Man Whore Jon.”

“Jack.”

“Huh?”

“Online they call you Jack. It’s your whore alter ego.” She nipped his bottom lip and reached for her phone, bringing up a blog. “See?”

“Get off the internet Dany it will ruin your brain.”

“Oh shit.”

“Huh?” He was looking at his phone now, Davos sending a few messages they had to talk about revamping his image.

She shoved her phone under his nose. It was a gossip Instagram, Lantaissa. People dropped celebrity sightings there and send in blinds. He peered at it, squinting since he’d taken out his contacts in the shower. “What’s it say?”

“Anon please! I have MAJOR NEWS. I JUST saw Lord Commander Jon Snow and goodie two shoes Daenerys Targaryen at the Sunspear Tower. She had pink hair but it was DEF her and they were getting in the elevator together and were super handsy!”

Dany groaned. “Ugh this is NOT how I wanted us to get out!” It could work though, he thought. They’d have to figure it out with the PR teams but it could work. He took the phone from her and tapped on the submit button. “What are you doing?” she demanded. She leaned over his shoulder, chuckling after a moment. “Oh Jon Snow, you crafty little wolf.”

Using a fake email he’d had set up for exactly these PR purposes, because Davos made him, he submitted the “anon please” and then using his phone, texted Davos his image control would be handled.

After a few minutes, he frowned again and looked up at her. She was staring at the TV, her blue and green contacts out. He flicked one of the pink curls. “You sure you want to tie yourself to me?” he wondered. “I don’t have the best rep.”

“Jon I love you, I don’t care.” She kissed him softly, smiling and arched a brow. “I just open us being a public thing soon enough won’t upset our little rendezvous.”

He laughed. They’d snuck around like this for this long. “You might have to upgrade to some elaborate wigs instead of hair coloring.”

“I have a whole closet full.”

“Also you didn’t have a name picked out tonight, threw me off guard.”

“I was in a hurry to get out of that loaned awards dress and into my costume.”

He smiled, pulling her down for a quick kiss. He sighed. “I love you Dany.”

“Your lady of the night,” she teased. “Is that what they call the girls lucky enough to fuck Jon Snow?“

“You tell me, you’re the only one lucky enough for that.”

She giggled and pulled him up over her, sighing happily as he kissed down her neck. “Hmm, yes, lucky me.”

THE END

#jonerys #jonerys au #my fics #my moodboards #jonerys fanfic #smutty drabbles #for Erika lol

[eriellesudario]

Review: The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes showcases a post-war Panem, but also has some flaws

Rating: 3.5 / 5 stars

Thanks to Australian Timezones, I got to watch The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes really early. As someone who watched the original films and have read to books (exept the Prequel due to reasons, but I have read the first few chapters of it), I have some thoughts.

Note: spoilers ahead. But here is a TLDR version via Letterboxd

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes really pays homage to the original films and their source material. While it was set many years in the past, we got to witness a different side of Panem's capital city - The Capitol, from a glimpse of what it was like during The Dark Days to its progress of it being restored.

Tom Blyth and Rachel Zegler did an amazing job playing Coriolanus Snow and Lucy Gray Baird. This District 12 Tribute has more personality compared to Katniss and is more manipulative in my opinion. She surely did swoon the hearts of the capitol, especially Snow. As expected, her fate remains a mystery and everything about her feels like the basic foundation of what Katniss ends up being.

Snow, meanwhile, is a young and innocent boy, but we get to watch him change during his time in The Hunger Games and his time at District 12 as a Peacekeeper. Also, we are introduced to his remaining family - Tigris and his Grandma'am and how these two family members view the Capitol and Panem based on their interactions with Snow.

I would also like to give praise to Viola Davis and Peter Dinklage, who played Dr Gaul and Casca Highbottom, respectively. Seeing these renowned actors play these compelling characters in this YA Dystopian is amazing and based on what I've read so far and heard about these characters, I wouldn't have it any other way.

What's cool about this film are the easter eggs. Unlike other films, where references to its predecessor are just there to pull off that one Spongebob or Leonardo DiCaprio meme of them pointing to the screen, the references somewhat play a role in Snow's development as a character, why he holds so much resentment on certain things, etc, etc. You wouldn't believe my shock when the word "Katniss" was uttered, but it was referencing the plant, not the person. Although, it also meant that, for what, 50+ years, President Snow held a grudge against a tribute he helped mentor and win The Hunger Games.

However, there were some issues I had about this latest Lionsgate picture that, it's not really a huge issue but I do question these choices.

For starters, the film was divided into three parts. It's one whole movie, but contains three chapters, something that I wasn't expecting. NGL, it felt like I was watching Part 2 of Part 2 of The Final Season of Attack on Titan. While I have heard rumours that this film was originally planned to be split into multiple parts, I'm glad that wasn't the case. While some thought the film felt rushed, I didn't think that was the case. Although, I did wish we got to see adult President Snow as a cameo. All we got was that one line that was uttered during Mockingjay: Part 1 on a blank screen.

Also, there was so much singing in this film to the point where I was like "Is this a musical?" I get it's because Lucy Gray Baird is part of the Covey (a nomadic singing group), but throughout the film, there are at least 2 songs in each "Part" or "Chapter."

If there is one thing that I like about Ballads of Songbirds and Snakes, it's that it opened doors to showcase the world of Panem through a different lens. In the original films, we saw it as a country under dictatorship and how everyone was fighting for democracy and ending the games. In the prequel, we see it as a nation rebuilding itself and figuring out how to punish the districts. This just means that later stories about different Hunger Games eras (if there will be one) could showcase more of the world of Panem. And while I kinda understand why Coriolanus Snow's backstory isn't something that many fans ask for, it is a launch pad for different possibilities.

I want a sequel where we get to see Snow's development under Gaul and how Mags won her games, which led to the success that we see in the main film. I want Lionsgate to take inspiration from the existing fan videos and give a full adaptation of Haymitch's games as a way to give more context to the Quarter Quell. I want to see a film about Finnick or Johanna's victories and how it focuses on how the Capitol treats its victors after the victory, how they're exploited due to their looks, and how one went through with it, and the other rejected it, which led to punishment.

However, I also hope that this doesn't open doors for The Hunger Games franchise to be milked to the point where it's terrible (looking at you Harry Potter).

Overall, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes gave an interesting view of Panem, what the country was like during its restoration period, and how the games were yet to be a spectacle. We got to witness what the people in the Capitol are like and their prejudices against the districts stem from such a young age. At the same time, it opens doors for future possibilities in telling Panem's story.

Now if you excuse me, time to finally give the book version a proper read.

#the hunger games #the ballad of songbirds and snakes #2023 #reviews #review #film review

[pbandjesse]

I am sitting in the bathtub at me and James's new house writing my post. I am wearing off of my clothes. I am just watching James finish the tiles on the bathroom floor. We have had another really productive night. And today was a pretty good day.

I just learned that today was the foggiest day in American history. And I am not surprised because it was in fact crazy foggy. It was spooky and I liked that.

I slept okay last night. I continue to have worked dreams. But it wasn't the worst sleep. James woke me up to let me know they were leaving a little early to try and beat the rain. But the rain would still get them. And then they got a flat tired and had to walk the rest of the way. I felt so bad. But they said they were okay and to not worry about them. But all I do is worry about them because I love them so much.

I would struggle this morning too though. I got up and I had an extreme pain in my eye. To the point I couldn't put any makeup on. I just did eye drops and blush. And thankfully the pain would pass halfway to work but Jesus it was not fun.

It was spooky out with the fog and that made the drive interesting. People were going very slow. Which is fair. I still made it to work just about 8.

It was not a very cold day. But all the snow was melting hardcore and so everything was wet and muddy. I had wanted to go for a walk but it was just a little to gross out.

So I worked on some drawing. And I worked on my schedules. And I worked on my programing. And it was just a really good and productive morning.

Everyone else would come in and I got to talk about Disney a bit. I had brought in all of the pins that me and Jess didn't care for and are planning on trading. I tried to find some of them on the forums and found some of them are from Tokyo Disney and Hong Kong. I offered my coworkers some because I have more then I'll ever need and everyone picked one. Including Joe, who put it directly on his jacket. It was a nice day.

I had my lunch but I was still hungry. And apparently I wasn't the only one because by the after noon Elizabeth and Sarah decided to order fancy pizza. So we had fancy pizza in the afternoon and it was honestly really great. We talked about documentaries we liked and true crime and it was just s really nice way to spend the day at work.

I also had a meeting with Alexi about the summer. I don't really feel like I said what I wanted to say. We mostly talked about issues I felt like were present and issues with how arts and crafts and the Early American program were handled. Staffing issues. But it was something and I always enjoy talking to Alexi so it was still nice.

And then it was basically the end of the day. I had had two deliveries and was very excited to meet James at the house to start building things.

The drive out was fine. I listened to music and got a little nostalgic. And pretty soon I was at our new house.

James would be behind me by 10 minutes. But by then I had already said hello to Victoria and Daisy and brought both boxes inside. Including the very heavy box with my new desk in it.

I even was able to end over and roll it and get it upstairs to the bedroom.

James came in right after I got it upstairs. And they were very surprised. I was so happy to see them. They have a little cough but were in good spirits. And would pretty quickly head back to the apartment to get some boxes.

While they were gone I just built and built. I was finishing up the desk as they texted me to let me know they accidently locked themselves out of the apartment. Ugh oh. But thankfully someone was able to let them in and they were back on track. And would be back to me very soon. And by the time they got back here I had finishes the desk! Amazing! I was so proud of myself.

It's a little taller then I thought so someday I may chop the legs down. But it's a beautiful color and I'm excited to have it all set up.

When James got back they muscled everything into the house. And while they were making their trips we were able to meet our neighbor on the other side. George! Seems like a lovely man. A little older then us. But seems friendly. Welcomed us to the neighborhood. I'm glad we have nice people around us.

While James got eveything inside I moved things to their proper rooms. James would trip on the stairs inside but they did not get hurt thankfully.

We would continue to have a productive evening. James would finish installing the kitchen floor. And I would help move the fridge so they could do the underneath part and it honestly looks amazing. We are going to get some floor edging like toy have in a doorway to make the ends look more finished but I think it was such a good choice and James did such a good job.

I would work on putting the brass knobs on the cabinets. I need some different bolts for 3 of them but all the others are replaced now and I love them. And we would get both medicine cabinets installed. With drywall anchors and everything. I'm very proud of all the work we are going even if it's a little exhausting.

James is finishing up with the bathroom tiles now. But we need another box. I accidently only bought 1 when I meant to get two. So we will have that tomorrow.

We will go home soon and get some rest. Tomorrow is another day at work. And then my vacation starts! I am very excited for Disney. I hope it's a really fun trip.

I hope you all have a great night and I hope you sleep well. Take care of yourselves. Goodnight!

[e17omm]

You mentioning writing Salt Snow arc in Snippets makes me wonder what Seele’s up to. For once that she had an arc hahaha. Since she got home kind of early it’d be nice to see how she integrated in St Freya? How she feels about everyone

Could easily set up some stuff for Salt Snow arc since you already changed things actually. No Misteln to kidnap her but maybe she can go to the Sea willingly to tie up some old loose ends

I do need to touch more on Seele at St. Freya. The problem I'm having is that, I'm not sure how to write her. Like the game doesnt show how she is when she meets Kiana and co. Yeah we see that they get along, but that's several chapters later and after a lot of off-screen time. And I dont really plan on changing that. (I still really should at least write Seele's first day at St. Freya High or smth)

OH MY GOD WHILE REREADING BEFORE POSTING I REALISED I HAVE FORGOTTEN ABOUT ROZA AND LILIYA. Okay, fuck. So they're with World Serpent because they got extracted with Cocolia I guess. I need to do something with that... Hey, is anyone up to see Sirin go apeshit on another organization doing child experimentation :D? (Actually that might work really well to antagonize World Serpent even more for Sirin...)

(back to the ask answer)

As for part 1.5. The current plans are: they go to investigate it [Sea of Quanta] because they have the Herrscher of the Void and Seele and the Second Divine Key. Like, why the heck wouldn't they try to understand more about the Sea of Quanta? I've already dropped hints of much bigger threats like (very subtly) Aeons and the imaginary being Mei encountered (which was a backup antagonist incase Sa disappointed me, which she didn't). Of course SS and AE would want to secure their inter-dimensional flanks! Just look at where the Sky People came from!

So that's the intro changed. Not sure if I'll keep the Gray Serpent/Nagazora part if I'm honest? I like it but it doesnt really fit in with the other changes I have to do due to no Misteln.

As for the rest, I dont feel like I have to change much. Maybe change Senti since she's more tied to Fu Hua in Snippets, and of course include Sirin. But Vita and Sa? I don't feel like I need to do any changes.

Except making Sa not be defeated like that. But this remains to be seen based on what part 2 does with Vita. But these are my ideas for part 1.5 of Snippets so far.

Do keep in mind that I am going to finish part 1 before starting part 1.5, so it is still quite far away.

#asks #snippets of sirin schariacs life

[archersxartxblog]

Chapter one Chapter two Chapter three

Bam Chapter four out and done.

Ingo brings the twins up to the Coronet highlands to meet Lady Sneasler and help them get settled in, but Sneasler isn't the only one the two run into in the highlands.

next stop Jubilife Village.

(gonna draw some stuff tomorrow)

----

Stretching his back as he sat up from where he had been laying, Ingo listened to the sharp cracks and pops his spin made; sighing at the relief they provided before looking up towards the mountain they had yet to climb.

It had been a long hike from the pearl clan settlement, and he’d been slightly surprised that the twins had been able to keep pace with him on the journey. He’d made sure they had taken plenty of stops along the way, for both refueling as well as moments of rest so as not to risk the two overdoing it. It had added time to the trek but in the end it was better to travel the tracks safely rather than with haste.

The only time he had insisted on them pushing forward had been when night threatened to fall on the Icelands, at the time there had been no sign of shelter. It had been risky but it would have been riskier to set up camp out in the open, exposed to snow and freezing temperatures with passengers in the final stages of recovery and wild pokemon.

So he drew them both under his coat and continued on until they reached the board to the highlands. Only then did they stop and set up camp, young Ingo’s little Litwick providing them a fire for the night.

Ingo checked the position of the sun, determining that they had all slept well past morning, as it was starting to look like noon was quickly approaching. 

Normally sleeping in this late wouldn't be good but the Warden was willing to let it go seeing how they had traveled well into the night.

A yawn drew his attention back to the twins, and already he knew it was Emmet; the youngest proving to be the early riser of the two. Sometimes he almost expected the boy to be awake before him.

"Good morning." He greeted the boy, as he got up to retrieve the basket of provisions he had brought with them, checking to make sure that wild Pokémon hadn't gotten into it during the night; before fishing out some breakfast for himself and the boys. They would be able to feed their pokemon once they got to his posting.

"Morning Dad." Emmet greeted, rubbing the sleep from his eyes and going through the motions of working out the kinks that sleeping on the ground often left in the body.

Dad, Ingo still wasn't used to the new title as it still didn't feel…correct. But he could help but feel pride swell in his chest when the two had suddenly switched from calling him Warden to Dad. The fact that the twins were willing to call him such was a show of respect and trust that they had for him that it blew the title of Warden out of the water.

"Wake your brother so we can eat." Ingo smiled at the boy, nodding towards his still slumbering twin. 

While Emmet was more of a morning person, true to form, Young Ingo was more of a night owl and could be rather stubborn when it came to waking up. The Warden could relate a bit but it had been something Hisui had somewhat worked out of him in between his bouts of insomnia.

"We still have a mountain to climb before we reach our destination." He continued, turning his attention back to the basket, listening closely as Emmet started making his way over towards his brother.

The plan was to make their way through Wayward cave, following a similar path he and Akari had taken a few days prior to get to his camp and Lady Sneasler's den. With any luck Melli will have left the torches will still be in place.

"Emmet, don't jump on your brother!" Ingo called out, glancing over his shoulder and watching his youngest slide to a stop as he was caught in the act. 

The Warden smiled and shook his head as the boy gave him an innocent grin as if he'd 'never' think of doing something like that; giving wake to a faint recollection of he and his own brother getting up to similar hijinks.

He remembers he had a brother.

“I asked you to wake him, not hurt him.” Ingo chuckled, turning away from his task and heading towards his eldest, jerking his thumb towards the basket as he looked at Emmet. “Change of tracks, you pick out the fuel and I’ll wake your brother.” the boy nodded, settling instead for getting the first pick of the fresh berries inside the basket.

While he was sure without a doubt that Emmet would never intentionally bring harm to his brother, Ingo also knew the boy tended to not quite think things through completely. So rather than letting Cain instinct accidentally break a rib, he figured it was best to step in. at least until he knew for sure that their previous injuries were healed.

Carefully he knelt down next to the boy, giving his shoulders a slight shake. “Ingo, time to get up.” he tried to keep his voice to a manageable level, so as not to completely startle the boy or alert any nearby pokemon. It was still odd saying his own name when addressing someone else, but he found he was slowly growing used to it.

Slowly silver eyes started to open and Young Ingo grunted as he pushed himself up. “I’m up, I’m up.” the older twin repeated as he rubbed tiredly at his eyes, his voice sounding a bit more breathy then Ingo would have liked; he’d have to watch that with the thin mountain air. Slowly his eldest got up, lacking in the same energy Emmet seemed to have; and joined his brother.

There he goes again. His eldest, his youngest, his twins, his kids. This train of thought seemed to gain more and more speed as time went by. despite the title of father still feeling wrong, those doubts grew less and less in his mind, soon it’s tracks would run out.

Breakfast went by fairly quickly, though by the time they were done gathering up their things noon was upon them.

“One of my jobs as Warden here in the highlands, apart from taking care of Lady Sneasler and her kin, is making sure the highlands are fairly safe for passengers of all kinds.” Ingo spoke as he led the two boys towards Wayward cave. “While I can’t just chase off wild pokemon from land as this is very much their home as well, I do what I can to maintain curtain paths to make travel safer. One such as the one we will be taking.”

The cave's opening came into view, and Ingo found his frown deeping slightly as he noticed just how dark the mouth of the cave was. He hoped, no! prayed to Almighty Sinnoh that the wind simply put out the few torches near the front.

—

The Warden grinned as he made his way back towards the cave entrance, humming a pleasant tune as his precious little Skunky hopped alongside him.

He was making his rounds once more, being sure that all was well in his Lord Electrodes domain and for the past few days. all had been more than well as the caves had remained completely dark; allow the pokemon in them that preferred the darkness to roam them freely. Melli guessed that the foolish Pearl Clan Warden had finally given up on his fruitless venture to keep the path through the cave lit.

Poor Ingo. The man had put up a tough fight in the end but as usual the Great Warden Melli came out on top.

Maybe if the Pearl clan hadn’t tainted the man’s clearly blank mind with their false image of Sinnoh then maybe he might have stood a chance.

Maybe he would stop by the man’s camp later and let him know there were no hard feelings…and to gloat.

He couldn’t help but smile when he saw the mouth of the cave was still dark.

But his grin fell away, when he saw a very faint purple glow coming from within.

“What in the name of Sinnoh is that?”

Slowly, Melli drew himself closer to the cave and carefully stepped through the threshold as he made his way closer to the soft purple glow, trying his best not to curse the darkness of the cave as he tripped over a loose stone.

The closer he got the brighter the glow started to get and he started to notice shadows along the walls. 

He was not alone.

Perhaps he was catching the old man in the act.

Quickly Melli turned the next corner, expecting to see Ingo relighting the torches he had worked so hard to extinguish. Letting out a sharp “HA!” as he hoped to take the other Warden by surprise.

But where he expected one, he saw two.

They were children, that much Melli was sure, just standing in the tunnels with their hands linked together with their backs facing him. A candle with a soft purple flame sitting in front of them illuminating the pink of their pearl clan uniform.

Suddenly their heads snapped towards him in unison, it was such a quick motion that Melli almost jumped out of his skin as two silver eyes suddenly locked on him.

“Are you traveling to the other side as well?” one of the children spoke up, his face pulled into a solemn frown, devoid of any other expression.

“The way is verrrry Dark. You should wait here with us.” the other smiled, but his voice was dead of emotion. “Would not want to get lost. Nope.”

“Please join us, we would not mind the company.” The first one continued.

Melli felt himself shiver at the implications of what was being said, he’d heard stories passed around the diamond clan about lost children being spirited away by Ghost pokemon, lost forever; but he never put much weight on those stories until now.

“Littttwick!” 

Melli looked down, his eyes drawn to the source of the sound and saw the candle slowly turn to look at him with a small little smile on its waxy body.

Suddenly the frowning child opened their mouth and let out a loud ghastly wail.

The Warden quickly withdrew from the haunting scene with his Skunky following quickly on his heels, before the two spirits could drag him to the afterlife.

Maybe there was a reason Ingo put those torches up after all.

—

“Rude.” Emmet muttered as he watched the long haired man run out of the cave, screaming like Reshiram had called him the king of all liars. To think they offered to let him stand in Litwick’s light and wait with them so he wouldn’t have to wander around in the dark.

Then again he had been creeping on them, so what more could be expected. 

Emmet looked back to his brother as Ingo brought a hand up to try and cover his yawn. Ingo could be a verrrrry loud yawner sometimes, but it was nothing to freak out over. He was very lucky his brother didn’t notice him freaking out, otherwise Emmet might have had to do something about that.

Only Emmet was allowed to tease Ingo about stuff like that.

“Huh? Where’d that guy go?” Ingo asked, blinding tiredly as he glanced around for the stranger that was no longer there. 

Emmet just shrugged his shoulders slightly, and swung their arms back and forth in an effort to keep his brother from falling asleep on his feet. He could tell Ingo hadn’t slept very well the night before, his eyes looked more tired than normal.

Hopefully they would be nearing a proper station soon.

“Weird.” His brother just sighed, clearly still too tired to question it any further and the sound of footsteps coming there stole his attention further as their father came carrying the missing torches, placing them back in their proper places as he walked.

“Apologies for the delay boys.” Their Father called out as he came to a stop in front of them, placing the last torch down. “It would seem that my fellow Warden here in the Highlands saw fit to hide these quite well, I almost gave up my search.” Once the torch was back in place, their dad turned to face them once more; that slight smile back on his face. “Ingo, if you would?”

There was a beat of quiet where nothing happened and Emmet quickly gave his brother’s a slight tug, snapping him out of his tired daze and back into reality. 

It was the whole reason Litwick was out of her Pokeball.

“Oh right!” Ingo snapped to attention and thrust his arm forward, dragging his brother’s arm around for the ride as their hands had still been coupled together. “Litwick, light up those torches with Will-o-wisp!”

Emmet watched with a smile as the little candle summoned forth little ghostly flames that shot out towards neatly placed torches lighting up the tunnels around them. He was looking forward to seeing those flames in battle once next to his Tynamo.

“Bravo! Very good.” their father clapped, and Ingo looked down in embarrassment.

He was never very good at taking compliments. 

The cave now lit, their dad turned back towards the tunnels, looking over his shoulder with that same smile of his. “Now come along you two, do not become uncoupled from me. We Still have a bit more to go before our last stop of the day. And there is someone I’d like you both to meet!”

—

“No! I am Emmet! I am not a Sneasel!” The Emmet Kit giggled and squirmed as Lady Sneasler held him down against her chest as she tried to groom his fur despite his protests. She was tempted to hold him with both claws but she needed the other to keep his sleepy twin from falling forward.

“Oh she knows, but she’s accepted you as part of the family.” Her warden spoke up as he tended to her clutch of eggs as she tended to his Kits. “It will be less painful, the quicker you accept that you have been adopted, Emmet.”

She still couldn’t believe it, her Warden had brought her Human Kits.

His Human Kits.

She hadn’t even known he had Kits, and yet here they were. She wondered if they were new. Maybe that was where he had been the past few days, she would have helped him if he had let her know.

But she was pretty sure she would have noticed if her Warden had an Egg, besides these two looked to be too old to be freshly hatched.

“But her tongue is verrrry rough!” the squirmy Kit laughed as she ran her tongue once more through his silvery fur. His grin was so much wider than anything her Warden could manage. He smelled faintly like thunder and electricity, a contrast to the faint smell of fire his brother smelled like. 

They also smelled of distorted time and space, a similar scent that their father had when she first found him. 

Ah so that’s where they came from. Almighty Sinnoh must have scooped them up to bring them back to her Warden. But they were also hurt, hence why she needed to keep the other kit from falling over and irritating the still healing ribs that caused his breathing to stutter. Sinnoh must have saved them from being attacked, like it did her Warden.

That was fine, because they were with her Warden now, and even better, they were with her now. Nothing will happen to these little Kits on her watch.

“It’ll bother you less if you don’t struggle.” He warden chuckled as he covered up eggs once more and came over to her with the basket of berries, waking his oldest with a slight shake of his shoulders so he could eat with them.

The Ingo Kit let out a slight yawn, but got up to join his father, and Sneasler reluctantly allowed Emmet to join them if only so she could see the three of them together. 

Truly she was proud of her Warden. His Kits were strong if a little banged up at the moment. She honestly couldn’t wait to show them around the highlands, and teach them rock climb and watch them play with her own Kits. 

More importantly she couldn’t wait for them to get settled in with their father, so she could snatch them up and show off her Warden’s creations to the other nobles across Hisui. It would give her warden a day without his kits to worry about.

Electrode would be so jealous, she couldn’t wait to see his face.

#warden's twins #submas #subway bosses as kids #warden ingo #pokemon au #subway masters #subway master ingo #subway master emmet #subway bosses #subway boss emmet #subway boss ingo #ingo and emmet #pokemon ledgends arceus #AU #pokemon fanfiction #fan fic #fan fic writing #lady sneasler

[mpalkoblog]

Touring the American West

This post outlines our recent visit (May 2023) to the American West. There are dozens of ways to enjoy your time there. This is what we did, and it worked out GREAT. We started planning almost a year in advance. Vacancies at places to stay and tour slots fill up quickly, so consider that when planning.

TIME OF YEAR We visited May 6-13. There are pros and cons to going in early Spring.

Cons

Not all of the roads in both Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Park will be open. One main road in Yellowstone is maintained year-round. The others eventually become snow-covered and impassable. During our visit the Upper Loop and Lower Loop in that park weren't fully open, but we were able to see all of the main attractions. The National Park Service website has the schedule for road openings (and closures). Some of the roads were closed as snow removal was being finalized, others closed because of an increase in bear activity. As bears come out of hibernation and find the carcasses of bison and elk that didn't survive the winter, they become more aggressive and a bigger threat to visitors.

It's still somewhat cold and in some places the ground was still snow-covered. Lows were 30-35 degrees, highs 50-60. Dressing in layers is the way to go.

In some places, particularly in ID, many restaurants were seasonal and grocery stores closed at 5PM.

Pros

No crowds! At the height of Summer, it can take up to 90 minutes to get through Yellowstone's west entrance. Roads can become clogged, particularly when wildlife are on the roadway. We visited Yellowstone on three different days, and each day we rolled right up to the gate and moved about freely on all open roads. We were also able to easily pull into any of the cutouts, if we saw wildlife in the distance. I sincerely think the time in the park would have been less enjoyable if we had to deal with crowds.

Babies! Early Spring means new births. We saw young bison, elk and sheep.

TRAVEL & ACCOMODATIONS

We planned to visit the Grand Tetons National Park (Jackson, WY), Yellow Stone National Park (WY, MT & ID) and Bozeman, MT. There are two major airports that serve those areas: Bozeman Yellowstone International (Belgrade, MT) and Jackson Hole (Jackson, WY). There were more choices for flights into Bozeman, and the cost was less than Jackson Hole.

We flew into Bozeman and drove to Teton Village (~4.5 hours) on the date of our arrival. This was so we didn't have to drive 4.5 hours to the airport on the day of our departure. The first day was tiring, but that was a good decision.

We stayed at 3 different AirBnBs. One in Teton Village, WY (2 nights), one in Island Park, ID (3 nights), ~30 minutes from the West Entrance of Yellowstone and one in Belgrade, MT (2 nights). Since you'll need to book months in advance, pay attention to cancellation rules and related fees.

We rented a car and travelled almost 1,000 miles over the course of the week. If going with a group, pay attention to not only how many the vehicle seats, but also how the luggage room is reduced when seating the maximum. We, fortunately, were able to upgrade on the spot for $10/day. Upgrade fees are MUCH higher during the peak season and larger vehicles may not be available.

TOURS

While we explored much of the area on our own, we did take two formal tours. Like with the AirBnBs, pay attention to cancellation rules and fees.

While in Teton Village, we used Brush Buck Tours. We took a public tour and were fortunate enough to be the only ones in the van. They picked us up at our residence, and the guides were exceptional.

Also while there we took our own (free) tour of the National Elk Refuge in Jackson, WY, and got to see long horn sheep.

There was still a significant amount of snow on the ground in Island Park, ID, but roads were clear.

While there, we used Yellowstone Vacation Tours. This full-day tour was at capacity, so there were ~25 people on the bus. That number didn't decrease our enjoyment and, again, the guide was outstanding. For this tour, we had to meet them at their office.

We also visited the Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center in West Yellowstone. You can get an up-close, but not too personal, experience with those creatures.

On the way out of Island Park, ID, we drove through Yellowstone National Park again and exited through the north entrance. While in Bozeman, MT, we did some hiking near Montana State University and visited the Museum of the Rockies.

MISCELLANEOUS

If you're going to visit either of the National Parks on your own (i.e. without a tour guide), it's most cost-effective to buy an annual pass. Here's why: If you enter a park in a non-commercial vehicle, that pass covers the driver and all passengers in your vehicle. If you enter in a commercial vehicle (i.e. part of a guided tour) that annual pass covers 4 members of your party. Additional members of your party would then have to purchase an individual pass, good for 1 week. The annual pass covers EVERY National park, but the individual pass covers only the park for which it was purchased.

Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. The altitude and dryness of the air can take a toll on your body and skin. Be sure to bring moisturizers and lip balm. Stock up on hydration powders (e.g. Propel, Liquid IV, etc.) to add to your water.

Bring snacks. While one of the tours provided drinks and snacks, the other didn't. If exploring on your own, consider buying a cheap Styrofoam cooler to keep in your vehicle and fill it with water, granola bars, protein bars, etc. Not all of the park amenities were open and food options were limited. One tour offered the option to purchase a box lunch, but we opted to get one at Ernie's Bakery & Deli in West Yellowstone ahead of the tour. Order early enough the day before, and they'll have them ready when they open at 7AM.

Bear spray. Since we did not do any hiking on trails because most were not yet open, if we had I would have carried bear spray. (It's basically pepper spray shot through a small fire extinguisher). You can purchase it there, but TSA prohibits it in both carry on and checked bags. You can rent bear spray by the day, too.

Invest in a quality set of binoculars. One of the tours provided each participant with a set to use during the tour, the other didn't. Having our own set was beneficial both on the tour and when we were exploring the area without a guide.

If a visit to that area is on your bucket list, go. If it's not, go. It was the most beautiful, breath-taking, awe-inspiring place I've ever been. It's also the most wild, harsh and unforgiving place, too. It's Nature doing its thing. When the mountain men who first went to that area returned to cities and towns with stories of the landscape and "upside down waterfalls" (geysers), locals did not believe them and thought they'd gone mad. It's a place you have to see for yourself.

[sys128]

Lucky Blackout

Sorry for not posting in a while. But I really wanted to talk about today. Today was a very interesting day at school because lots of things happened that were different from what would usually happen at school. I actually didn't want to go there very much this morning as I got ready to go to school 10 minutes later than usual. But I did manage to get there on time, and the first hour or so was going as usual. Actually, it was normal until fourth period. The main reason why we didn't want to go to school today was because of the weather outside. It was all snowy and stuff, and it even hailed on our way to school. Somehow, this did not mean a snow day. Up here, we have very high standards on what we call a snow day for some reason.

Many of us, myself included, questioned whether school should have taken place today or not, but we pushed forward anyway. (We didn't want to get in trouble after all.) The next best thing we wanted was a blackout, because sometimes that would mean something like an early release for example. But that would be a stretch because this happened very rarely. For reference, the last time we had an early release during a blackout was within the last 20 years. So imagine our delight when we found that the lights were turning off! Cheering was spread throughout the hallways as we then scrambled to find out what we were going to do next. From here, we're hoping for an early release or something. The teachers were trying to find out how to handle the situation as well. As far as we knew at that time, lesson plans were off the table now.

The blackout persisted into lunch as well. Getting to the lunch room was actually not as hard as we thought it would be because a generator was keeping some of the lights going. Around the beginning of lunch, we found out that we were, in fact, having an early release! A whole 95 minutes earlier than usual! The busing plans have been changed and everything! This made a lot of us students very happy! Though there was some disappointment when the lights came back on, as evidenced by the groaning that ensued throughout the entire lunchroom. This means we really only had fifth period and we were out of here. Luckily, fifth period was a gym class, which was interestingly being taught by a substitute teacher today! What is good about this substitute teacher was that he is very laid back and basically lets us do whatever we want as long as it's in line with what needed to be done that day! He usually teaches an English class, which he is just as laid back in. Essentially, we talked the entire time and shot some hoops here and there.

This has got to be one of the better days of my senior year so far. I think it's going to be decently difficult to top; well, it might happen towards the end of the year, because that's going to be my graduation period. Fun day that was!

#text block #status update

[yelyahnaloj]

Blog 45

General: I haven't updated this since the end of last year. Two days ago was Valentine's day.

Yesterday was a power outage that took most of the day until 4pm, because of a "snow storm" which resulted in falling trees and branches the night before. I didn't notice it at first until I left the room and noticed all the lights were off, which explained why I couldn't connect to wifi.

On Valentine's day I went to the dentist for a cleaning because I have periodontitis. I also had lost my debit card recently and had to get a new one. I brought my brother with me because I might as well because the bank was on the same side of town that he always likes to go to anyway. We got breakfast and coffee and I got him a couple books.

Particulars:

(Yesterday)

I have a friend from a class last year that I sit with at lunch or breakfast about every day. It is routine. Yesterday was a snowy day. It was slippery. We walked over to see if the library was open. It wasn't. We walked to the housing community center. He was concerned about slipping and falling, so wanted to hold my hand for stability. He is 20, about the age of my youngest sibling, so I kind of treat him like a sibling at times. I shake the end of my coat to cover my hand and allow him to grab onto my sleeve. It was still awkward and I was relieved when we got close enough to the destination where he could let go.

That morning, as usual, I sat at the long counter with tall stools, next to my friend. But the question that morning was which side of my friend? I noticed that a classmate from my algebra class last quarter was sitting one seat away from my friend. She seemed nice, perhaps I could sit by her. On the other hand, I don't interact with her much, so perhaps I should sit away from her to give her space. I ended up choosing that as the safest option. Though, I reflected that from the other perspective, I had deliberately avoided someone. Which would make sense that I come off unfriendly if my first instinct to any social ambiguity is to avoid people all together.

At some point my previous classmate joined in to the conversation I was having with my friend, probably about the power outage and the surprise that the cafeteria was still open for breakfast. My friend introduced himself and me to the other person, not knowing that we already knew each other. He told her about how he has autism and ADHD, I got up to get more coffee as I already knew all that. As I was walking away, I heard her say that she also has autism and ADHD. They compared advisors. I reflected on the coincidence and how that coincidence seems to happen to me a lot. but at the same time there are a lot of people who are autistic and/or have ADHD here at my college, and also the bar stools tend to be where people who don't have a friend group sit. I found out that she had initially planned out being an astrophysicist, but the math was too stressful so she is still trying to find her college focus. She also is the head of the astronomy club. I offered to let her borrow an astronomy textbook that I have, which she briefly considered but told me she better not because she doesn't tend to finish things so it would just sit with her stuff.

I went back to the cafeteria for lunch, but it was only open for half an hour before it closed down because they didn't have water. The cooks shouted for the customers to get whatever the rest of the food was there so it didn't get thrown out, and that the place was closing. My friend kept telling me that the place was going to close. I felt pressured to get up and leave even though I had just got settled with my plate. I think I was in the middle of making a tumblr post as well, so it was disrupting my focus. We got a to-go container and piled food in it. My friend, my brother and I walked back to the community center. My friend let a passerby know that the cafeteria closed early and that we didn't have water. She seemed to freak out a bit, which stressed me out a bit too. When we went to the community center, it was more crowded with people and we didn't have places to sit, so we set out food containers on the floor by a pole. For a moment I was going to cry because I was overwhelmed by being around people. My brother and I went into the convenience store which was also inside the building and he tried to get coffee but it barely filled half the cup, which was annoying because he also barely got coffee at the cafeteria because that ran out, too. He did get it for free, though.

I wanted to go home because I didn't care too much about the power outage, but I didn't like being around the people. People had the stuff spread out on the floor as they charged their phone and laptops in the community center, which was being run by a generator. My room, which doesn't have a working heater anyway, felt about the same as it normally does. At least I could be in my bed. I decided to try to read Winnie the Pooh, but then tried calling my mom instead. The signal kept cutting out worse than usual so I had to wait until enough bars came back. When I got a hold of mom, she vented about being cold and struggling to get the wood stove fire going. She was running out of paper to start the fire, and felt guilty using printer paper. She also felt very isolated as her cousin who also lives and works on her farm is the only in-person individual that she talks to. She didn't have much to say otherwise, and silence would lapse. She told me she wished I was there in person so we didn't have to come up with things to talk about in order to enjoy each other's presence. A bit of melancholy filled the air. I filled the silence by reading Winnie the Pooh to her, until my voice and my eyes got tired and it got harder to say words in the right order. We both felt a bit better and ended the call.

#college life #power outage #snow #blog 45 #valentine's day

[storytimewithnova]

First snow in November

Hey hey hey author chan here before we start i am posting this a day early so i know have done it other wise i will forget kuroo’s birthday isn’t till the 17th

Anyway bit about the story this was inspired because as you may know i share my birthday with kuroo and when i was born it snowed and it was the first snow fall in november so i kind if wanted a call back to that and just wanted a heartfelt story Anyway that said shall we begin

X X X X X X X Our story takes place on November 17th where a certain couple are preparing for a birthday and anniversary yes today is Kuroo’s birthday and sho wanted ro do something romantic it is also their anniversary Now here was the down side what she originally had planned she canceled because it started to snow the first snow in November in japan but then she thought she could use this to her advantage as well How so well  she noticed they started putting the Christmas decorations up So why not look at the Christmas disply get some ideas and some hot chocolate as well then have a cosy night by the fire watching movies in matching pj's you know couple stuff so she got to work

Kuroo:hey Kitten... 

Sho was deep in thought planning their day

Kuroo;Kitten?

Sho:huh? Sorry love you say something

Kuroo:are you okay? You were miles away i was going to ask you what you want to do today now i want to know what is going through that beautiful mind of yours

Sho:well i had plans for our anniversary and your birthday but it's snowing so i was thinking about changing my plan

Kuroo:well my cute Kitty what do you have in mine

Sho:well we can take advantage of the snow it's also the first snow in November so i am thinking going to see the Christmas disply get some ideas some hot cocoa then cozy by the fire wstching movies in matching PJ with maybe a takeway and cake of course

Kuroo:you are so adorable *boops sho's nose*  and so is that idea romantic birthday/anniversary Love it

Sho:😊

Kuroo's pov

She is such an angel what did i do to deserve her, Her cuteness kills me all the time  i knew from the day i started to date her to the day i married her i was done for god sho i love you so much  Let's be honest though it took akaashi ages to accept that i wasn't going to hurt or use her but he is her big brother so can't blame him for being over protective she has been hurt before Bloody snake never forgiving him and people wonder why we ain't friends

Meanwhile sho was calling kuroo

Sho:Tetsu?

Kuroo: .......

Sho:Tetsuro

Kuroo: ....

Sho pats his shoulders and says

Sho:Kuroo Tetsuro!!!

Sho said while throwing a snow ball at him This made him freeze and shudder hearing his full name apparently he didn’t register the snow ball

Kuroo:sorry kitten I didn't mean it 😅

Sho:huh? Mean what I just wanted to know what had you space out for almost 30 minutes

Kuroo:oh don't worry Kitten shall we go to disply

they walked through the snow so sho tried again and put some snow down her husband neck then ran off giggle

Kuroo:oh so my naughty Kitten wants to play like that

Kuroo got an arm full of snow and dumped it on her

Sho:KUROO TETSURO HOW WAS THAT FAIR I ONLY DID A HAND FULL ON YOU NECK

Sho stormed off

K

uroo:Kitten I'm sorry i will buy the hot coca and your favourites

Sho:fine

She gave him a kiss before shivering

Kuroo:okay I went alittle to far lets get you into the warm and the hot cocoa

Sho:A A Achoo damn it i am ruining things 😔

Kuroo:hey hey look at me no you're not kitten we can still finish our day  you are not ruining anything I just got carried away do you want to look at the disply and get some ideas then go home and get you out of those wet clothes and by the fire.

Sho:Hai

Sho still feels bad she may have ruined their anniversary and Kuroo’s birthday getting sick But she wanted to make it as fun as possible for Kuroo they also got a new Christmas tree this made her exited for Christmas but she is currently upset with herself

Kuroo:kitten are you okay? You look down

Sho:sorry love i just feel like i ruined everything getting sick 😔

Kuroo:you haven't kitten this is the best day ever minus me getting you sick

Kuroo moved closer to sho and pulled her closer to his side and while they were watching home alone  they hand not long finished their takeway Sho sneezed again and kuroo wrapped more of the blanket around her and fetched her a hot water bottle he got back in his seat pulled her back to his side started running his fingers through her hair while she balled herself up tight and started to drift of to sleep Kuroo seeing this stopped the movie and carried her to bed tucking her in before getting in beside her kissing her goodnight with his usual Love you kitten thank you for the best day ever With Sho giving a little

Sho:mhm

Kuroo chuckled and pulled her close she curled up to him and he also fell asleep pretty quickly the events of the day draining the couple kuroo slept with a smile on his face and love in his heart the love he only shares with his Kitten his sunshine his  beloved wife Shona

[puppyvonwolfenstein]

February 19, 2023

Many years later, I find myself dwelling back in between my demon, Anxiety and my second demon, Hatred. I logged back into my gem, my secret treasure, the forum I had created and that had become my safe space... My home.

It'll be twenty years old in 2026. That's... Scary. Sad. My poor forum sits, waiting idly for it's two main users to return; my partner long MIA. My internet friend and 'mom' Sky long departed from my forum and life, gone in the wind and left me wondering what ever happened to her?

My first ever role playing partner, Jay, reminding me of how he made this poor socially awkward girl blush in a different forum when he asked if he could romantically pursue my character, Snow. He too, disappeared. I wonder what he's up to? He was such a nice guy. PK, a friend I made... Also disappeared and I've lost contact.

And that leaves you. The person how made all my years growing up, worthwhile despite how cringy I was. You saw something in me, potential maybe? I don't know. The worst part is that you're still there. In my contacts. And I can't reach you.

I once told you my truth, that I had a crush on you because well... Both our ships had set sail. Did that scare you off? I regret that. For someone who has a hard time keeping connections but who makes connections and never lets go... It hurts. So much. But that's a me problem, right? My poor forum though... Sure it's an inanimate object, but to me it's like my precious baby, a little gem that I created and that you helped nurture. If my forum had thoughts, would they mourn your departure too?

I've come to terms with my demons. They exist. They've existed for so long. My severe anxiety, my growing hatred of myself as a being. Always putting everyone before me, because I am worth less. Scared of offending everyone, scared of making the wrong impression, the wrong statement, making misunderstandings. Not being what they expected. Not achieving their expectations.

This severely stopped me from growing. Stopped me making better decisions. Stopped me from denying a man who wasn't up to my standard, and then lowering myself to meet his demands. I kneeled attention and affection. Yielded myself from flying in the sky. Stopped myself from floating like the feather I wanted to be.

I lost myself slowly, entirely to a man who wasn't worth more than three months of my life. I lost my prime days to him. Years of my life, wasted and forgotten now. I literally can't remember my early twenties, besides booze, tears and games.

That's why you're special. Nothing romantic of course, I'm now married to a lovely man who's worthy of me and who helps me cope and grow. Rebuilding the shattered pieces into a new me. No, you mean a lot in the sense that I feel you were my best friend. You, after all, were the one who got me to come to my senses and dump that pitiful excuse of a 'boyfriend' I had.

I return to my gem, my forum and see your absence. It's... Empty. Hollow. Gutted. I read my cringy posts, and scream "Why am I so CRINGE!!!" To myself. I exit. I breathe. Then I go back and read. I see you. I stop. I breathe. I calm down and read. It's a rollercoaster.

It's still a rollercoaster. My life I mean. I was gutted. I had decided to devote my life to money, send money home after moving to Canada, and live out the rest of my days drinking myself into a stupor. Alex had been everything to me. I was unworthy of love, unworthy of humanity I had told myself.

I met a man in college just as my plans had gone into action. He was in the darkness too. We found ourselves in a spark of human connection, where our feelings and thoughts just... Clicked. We understood. He made me an ultimatum, just as I had decided to enjoy the moment while trucking on towards my ending and I paused. What should I do? Get hurt again?

You came to mind. You were gone by now, in my contacts list of people I could message but didn't have the courage to.

I took a chance and in the darkness we became a brighter light, two little embers of fire dwindling and coming together and roaring back to life.

We married and we'll mark our fifth year of marriage this April. Suck on that, Alex. I did find someone better than you.

Even so, it was like you all over again. Me and my husband, all alone, together in our little world. But it's time to expand. I'm scared. I'm learning new things about me.

I have concluded that I have ADHD , and have all along. Go figure. My anxiety and depression have been nailing me since childhood. My anxiety as an adult is disgusting to say the least.

I had my high school reunion recently. It was nice. I reconnected with people who truly still remember me... Fondly? Truly? I didn't think I'd be remembered...

And now, I contemplate my book. My series. I have new ideas now. My beta reader, Ileana... She passed away a few years back. I was gutted. I had no one I wanted to read my works because I'm so self conscious.

I need to do this. Exit my shell. Face my demons head on. Had I done this in the past, I might have been thriving! Still.. I wouldn't change it if it meant I wouldn't meet my dear husband.

As for you... I fear the day I approach you through a message, because I fear you'll reject me and our time, our gem. Fear that you'll toss it aside like a rag.

But I'll do it. I'll make something worth your while since you're a busy man now (always such an important, busy man, you silly devil) and you'll maybe read it and converse with me for a moment before continuing on your life. And that's fine for me. It'll hurt a little, but that's fine. You were once the most important person in my life, so it's fine. I can't ever hate you. My connection with you is for life, even if it's one sided.

Being loyal was never meant to be easy. Being the person that I am, has never been easy. I'll remember special people when they've forgotten me, abandoned me, used me.

I'll remember people who have died, years later, still returning to their graves to speak to them. I'll message someone who can't physically read my messages because they're dead, and it hurts, but it's fine. My loyalty can be one sided, and hurt, but it's fine. I love them all, nonetheless.

And you...

I'll cherish the days I spent with you.

#Spotify

[preppernewstoday]

Every Prepper should set goals and create short-term and long-term plans to be ready for any eventuality. The SurvivalBlog editors will be sharing their weekly prep activities and plans for the next week. These include gear purchases and healthcare, as well as gardening, bug out bags fine-tuning and food storage. This is similar to the Retreat Owner Profiles but written in increments and in details throughout the year. We welcome your success stories and wisdom to be shared in e-mails. Many of these - or excerpts thereof - are posted in this column, the Odds ‘n Sods Column and the Snippets Column. Let's get busy and be prepared! Jim Reports: My sprained ankle is mostly healed, and I am now able to return to ranch duties. This week I worked on the renovation of the workshop. I set up winter stock tank heaters. To keep the hoses from being preyed upon by our snowplow blade, I also drained and rolled them up. I've accidentally cut two hoses over the years so I now keep them coiled away from where I plough! All of our slash piles were also burned. Let's now move on to Lily’s news: Avalanche Lilily Reports: Dear Readers The weather this week in Redoubt was mostly cold in the 40s and rainy in the valley. However, it was snowy high up in the mountains. All week, snow has fallen on the mountains higher than four thousand feet. It is clear that we are in for an early winter. It's not November yet... We usually get snow towards the end of November before it starts accumulating in December. This week was a busy one. The most exciting thing for me was that we got the part from the fix-it men, for the wood cookerstove. This happened while I was out running errands. Miss Violet didn't tell us that the fixer installed it while we were away and I only noticed it on the stove the next day. It was there when I first saw it and I asked Miss Violet about it. It had been installed the previous day by the fix-it man, she confirmed. Jim was then able to see that the part had been fixed and was ready to go. He also asked if there were any other things we needed before we could start it up. It wasn't. You can be sure that I was excited. I lit a fire in the firebox, and then opened all the windows to let the chemicals out of the house. After calculating how much wood it would require and realizing that smaller, thinner pieces were better for hot stoves, I ventured outside to split several large quantities of wood. Miss Eloise was returning home that evening for dinner. So I made her a meal of baked delicata squash, roast red potatoes, an apple crisp and stir-fried lamb. The oven temperature reached 375 degrees Fahrenheit when I turned on the stove for the first time. The temperature dropped to 265 when I tried to crisp up the squash potatoes. After baking the three items for about an hour, I tried to raise the temperature to 350. I was unsuccessful. I finally got it to 300. By the time the items were almost done, it was getting late so I used the propane oven to finish them. The stove top was extremely hot, and the lamb stir fry cooked perfectly. It was delicious. You might be curious as to how I prepared this meal. I rolled the potatoes with Eextra virgin olive oils and added rosemary, thyme and oregano to them. Salt, onion, garlic and cumin were used to season the lamb. I sometimes add lemon juice to my lamb, but this time I didn't. Butter or coconut butter was used to eat the Delicata squash. Salt was added. The salad was made from Winter lettuce, Swiss Chard, and spinach. It was all made with tomatoes that were in my greenhouse, and also some store-bought European Cucumbers. Miss Violet provided her favorite store-bought dressing to those who requested it. It was delicious. Since then, I've made one more stir-fry dish in a frypan on the stovetop. From now on, I will continue to cook with it. Wood splitting is a new task that I have added to my daily routine. Our kitchen is being reorganized for wood storage and functionality.

I currently use one of my large, black planter pots for holding the wood near the stove. A black dish pan is used for kindling small items and pine cones. A canvas wood carrier was just purchased by us. We have a special door that leads to the house from the wood shed. However, I would prefer to keep the large wood for the wood heating stove in there and the smaller wood cookstove wood closer to the stove. I prefer to carry the wood through the regular door rather than the small wood passthrough. As you can see, I'm excited to be able cook off-grid in my house using wood. These past few mornings, I have gotten up earlier than usual and gone to the kitchen to fire up the wood stove. After making mint tea, I sat down on the kitchen table chair in front of my wood cookstove's glass door. I sipped the mint tea and contemplated God, his word, and the plans of the day while sipping it. It's so comfortable. To make them look a little more professional and prevent the holes from growing, I repaired some of my old cashmere sweaters. Miss H., our young female dog, caused some of the holes when she jumped up to greet me. She loves me, and I don’t have the heart discipline her overt display of affection. It is something I try to discourage. I gently discourage her from jumping up on me and not others in greetings The Hen House was cleaned twice. They are rapidly growing. They are "a poopy bunch, they are"! I split wood several times. A case of red peppers was sent to us. I cut a few and frozen the rest. Miss Violet helped me chop the rest. I then dehydrated those. They were able to dehydrate down to one quart and one pint. I received orders for salmon chub, ground chicken, and ground lamb. I also ordered cut and dried rose hips. They look great and I can't wait to make tea with them. Jim and I moved more food to the root cellar. I went through my armoire, took out many clothes that I had bought for the future, my favorite jeans, t-shirts and/or are not currently wearing, labeled and boxed them, and then put them in storage. The armoire is now more functional. We moved several bags of sewing material, kitchen towels, washcloths, and extra bathroom towels out of our bedroom. It's so convenient to have another place for all the things we have collected over the years. It is very important to know the difference between hoarding, stocking up and having more. This week, we all went to the dentist for a check-up and cleaning. This week, we made a quick trip to the post office. Jim was struggling to walk and I was there to help him tend to the fires. He had to return to editing the blog. My rant: Tulsi Gabbard's views are not for Christian conservatives. She is a Hindu: Tulsi Gabbard's Untold Truth She is still a Democrat, don't misunderstand! Leopards don't change their spots. She is also associated to the World Economic Forum (WEF). Trump didn't change his spots when he switched parties. It's all about charades, theatrics. While they may give you some carrots to make your day more pleasant, the real reason behind it all is that they are working for our downfall. Our political system does not have a Republican or Democrat Right or Left. It is one coin. Both parties share the same goals and were co-opted by Masonic/Kabbalistic orders. This is Satan's Order. God told us to not turn to the left or the right. These are the three scriptures you should read: Proverbs 4:27 Do not turn to the right or to the left; remove your foot from the evil. Joshua 1:7 Be strong and courageous so that you may follow all the law Moses, my servant, commanded to you: do not turn from it to either the right or the left. That way, thou cant fail wherever thou goest. oshua 23:6 Therefore, be ye very courageous to keep and do all that is written by Moses in the book of Moses. That you don't turn aside from it to the right or to the left. Quite frankly, I think that this also refers to politics. It's amazing

to see how the Kabbalists ignored God when they created political designations to the right and left against God's explicit instructions to not do so. ? Christ is your home and you are not of the world. This is not our home. We look forward to the Heavenly Kingdom to come. Co-opting the voting and honest counting has occurred, and most of the candidates are liars or deceivers. I will not take sides or play political games with them any longer. Take a look at the words of the man of God to Joshua about the coming battle and choosing sides. Joshua 5:13-15 Joshua saw a man with a drawn sword standing in front him as he was near Jericho. Joshua approached him and asked "Are we for you or for our enemies?" He replied, "Neither," but as commander of The Army of the LORD, I have now come." Joshua then fell to the ground in reverence and asked, "What message does My Lord[fn] have?" Joshua responded to the commander of the LORD’s army, "Take off all your sandals, for this place is holy." Finally, please read Hebrews 12:18-199. Listen to this song from Paul Wilbur's . (Please crank up the volume and praise God!) You must not refuse to listen to him who speaks. Because if they could not escape from the one who spoke on earth, we cannot escape if we refuse to hear from Heaven. We wish you all a blessed and safe week. - Avalanche Lily, Rawles o o o Please share your successes and wisdom with us by sending e-mails. We will publish them in the "Snippets” column next week. We would love to hear from your.

[sleights-of-hand]

🎲 CHAPTER ♢  ARCHIVE

#FNV #comic #fallout comic #And we're back >:) #cws for those new to the comic who may read from the beginning: #cw head injury #cw blood #cw gore #Didn't plan on posting so early in the day but we got snow and the power wants to go out real badly right now #SoH-Comic

[wiypt-writes]

25 Days Of CHRIS-mas

Day 8 : These Are A Few Of My Favourite Things

Summary: A visit to a bar leaves you connecting with someone you used to know…

Pairing: Harvard Hottie (The Nanny Diaries) x Reader

Warnings: Bad Language, smut (NSFW, 18+)

W/C: 1.5k

Disclaimer: This is a pure work of fiction, any likeness to any persons or events in real life are purely co-incidental. I do not own any characters contained herein bar the reader and/or any original characters. I do not give consent for my work to be copied and posted/translated onto any other sites. If you see this fiction anywhere other than Tumblr, it has been taken without permission. By reading beyond this point you understand and accept the terms of this disclaimer and ALL warnings posted here.

25 Days Of Chris-mas Masterlist / Main Masterlist

Day 7: James Mace (Sunshine)

There was a light dusting of snow on the sidewalk as Hayden weaved his way through the teeming masses of people.

It was the week before Christmas, a busy time in Manhattan for tourists, workers and shoppers alike. Every corner housed a bell ringing Santa with a red coin bucket, people bumped into with packages, boxes and bags. Yet, he found himself rather Grinchy, despite the cheerful holiday season.

He was looking forward to heading home to see his family, taking a few well-earned days off. But other than that, well, meh. All his friends were partnered off. Either married or engaged. Yet he… well, there was no one special like that in his life. Hadn’t been for a while.

Wall Street kept him busy enough, or was it an excuse to not play the dating pool, he didn't know, nor did he particularly care.

He had finished his day, late and nerving, heading for a bar he frequented often, one from his early days in New York after graduating from Harvard.

Pulling the door open, he strode gladly onto the warmth, pulling off his woollen hat and scarf, his fingers undoing the buttons on his designer woollen jacket.

"Hayden, been a long time," Bill the bartender joked and started to pour him a lager from the tap.

"Scotch chaser, Bill." Hayden sighed and took a seat on the stool.

“Hard stuff already?” Bill looked at him, his brow raised slightly.

"Long day," he chuckled. "Longer season."

“Well, soon be Christmas.” Bill slid the beer over before he grabbed a glass for the chaser, “you got plans?”

Hayden tossed a neck of his scotch back and sighed, smacking his lips, "yeah, going back to Boston. Just closing up some accounts before the first."

“Be nice to see the family eh?” Bill smiled, his eyes flicking over Hayden’s shoulder as the door opened again.

Shivering a little, cursing the fact you had left your beanie at the office, you brushed the snow off your hair and strode to the bar. You took up a free seat, a few down from the occupied one and nodded to the bartender.

“Scotch, please. Make it a double, Bill.”

“You as well, huh?” Bill chuckled, “no problem Y/N.”

You undid your coat, shrugging it down your arms and leaving it pressed to the back of the stool. You groaned, “fucking Christmas, man. I swear it turns everyone into lunatics. You know I had a guy come into the bank today demanding to withdraw five grand. I wouldn’t mind, he only had two in the damned account.”

Bill chuckled, "'tis the season for Scrooges and Grinches."

"Try dicks and asses," you snorted.

At that, the man a few stools down from you snorted and Bill shook his head, laughing as he slid your drink over to you. “Well you’re in good company, hasn’t been his day either.” He jerked his head towards Mr Snorter. Without looking at him, you raised your glass in his direction, before downing it in one, wincing.

The man cocked his head, popped a shoulder and downed the rest of his scotch.

 With a thought of mischief, you picked up your glass and moved down a few stools.

“So, shall we play the ‘two miserable and strangers bond in a bar over common annoyance’ game?” You smirked and the man chuckled as he turned to face you and you blinked as you recognised the face looking back at you.

"Hayden?" You chuckled. "Oh my God, Harvard Hayden."

Hayden raised a brow. “Erm, yeah…” he looked at you for a moment before his mouth dropped open and he clicked his fingers, pointing at you. “Oh my God, you were in my Financial Economics class!”

"Y/N, yeah," you replied.

“Wow!” He chuckled, “what are the chances?”

“I’m surprised you remember me.” You smirked and at that he chuckled. 

“Kinda hard to forget someone who called the tutor a, and I quote, ‘ageing dinosaur with the charisma of a mosquito’.”

You popped a shoulder and innocently smirked. "What good is a tutor if I know more than him?"

At that Hayden laughed, before he gestured to the bar, “can I get you another?”

You smirked, "please."

Bill poured and the three of you toasted, "Merry Christmas."

After that you slowed, moving onto beer as you and Hayden chatted, telling each other about your lives since graduation. Before you knew it, Bill was mopping floors and flipping stools.

"Can I call you a cab? Split one?" Hayden offered.

“Erm, where you headed?”

"5th and Park."

You laughed, “Jesus, I’m literally a block away. How on Earth have we not bumped into each other over the last two years?”

"New York's a big place, with a helluva lot of people."

“Yeah, but still…” you shook your head.

“Of all the gin joints in all the world.” Hayden chuckled as you both shrugged on your coats.

You chuckled, "Let's split one."

"Great, I'll close us out." He smiled.

"No you don't have..."

Hayden held up a hand. "I insist."

Hayden left two one hundred notes on the bar for Bill and waved goodbye, before walking out with you. Snow was falling in big flakes as the two of you looked for an available cab.

“Erm, look this might seem forward but, how about we head back to mine? I got a good single malt and a fairly decent movie selection?” You blurted out before you could stop yourself, “I mean, just for company that is… if you want…”

Hayden pondered it for just a moment, "sure. I could use the company."

He flagged down an available cab and opened the door, letting you in first. With a deep breath and a smile, he climbed in and settled besides you.

 ***12 months later***

“Hey, Hayden!” Bill smiled as Hayden wandered into the bar, whistling, “you’re full of festive cheer!”

“Well, it’s snowing, it’s almost Christmas and I got a big, fat bonus!” He grinned, sitting down.

"Sounds like a great year," Bill chuckled. "First drink, on me."

“It has been,” Hayden smiled, his eyes straying to the very stool you’d sat on twelve months prior.

That night back at yours had seen the pair of you drunkenly making out on your couch, dry humping like a couple of horny teenagers. And then you’d fucked like a couple of horny teenagers too. 

The next morning had been a little awkward, but just before he left he had asked for your phone number. This had led to a few dates, which had led to the pair of you going steady and moving in together at the start of fall.

It had been wild, passionate, still was, and with a smirk he recalled the events of that morning… a joint shower, which had left the pair of you making a mad dash for the subway…

“We’re gonna be late,” you chuckled as his hands dropped to your hips, spinning you round and pressing you into the cool tiles of the shower cubicle.

"Don't care." He nipped at your neck. "Nope, don't care."

“My boss will care,” your protest completely undermined by the soft sigh you gave, your head tipping to the side as his kissed up to the hinge of your jaw.

"No he won't," he panted in your ear, his hands running along the apex of your thighs. His foot kicked yours apart, widening your stance.

"Hayden...."

“I’ll be quick, baby.”

"Okay, yes...."

“Thassmagirl,” his words slurred as his lips brushed over your chin to your mouth.

A free hand found his shaft and with memory knew exactly where to slide into you. One hand gripped the back of your knee, hooking it over his hip, opening you up wider to him.

"Oh Jesus," you whimpered. "Right there. Fuck, that's good."

“Worth being late for?” He groaned, his hips pulling back and forth.

"Oh yeah," you moaned.

Soon, he had your legs round his waist, pressing you into the wall as he picked up his pace, his teeth nipping at your chest.

"Hayden, harder, please."

With a growl, his hips sped up, mouth slanting over yours, tongues gliding together. His fingertips pressed into the back of your thighs and you felt his hips begin to falter, he was close but you were closer.

“Hay, please… I’m so close…”

A nip to your skin, where your neck glides into your collarbone had you wailing and shaking in his hands, your insides tightening around him.

“Fuck, I love you…” he groaned, his voice cracking as he came, his hips giving a few more sloppy thrusts before he stopped, his chest heaving…

“Earth to Hayden!” Bills voice wrenched him back to the here and now and he shook his head a little.

“Sorry, buddy I was miles away. What did you say?”

Bill laughed as he slid the beer over to him. “I asked if you were gonna do something nice with your bonus.”

Hayden picked up his beer with his right hand, his left curling round the small box in his pocket, within which sat a shiny diamond ring. “Something like that.” He took a sip of his drink, “Merry Christmas, pal.”

🎄🎄🎄🎄

Day 9: Paul Diskant (Street Kings)

#wiypt25daysofchrismas #harvard hottie #harvard hottie x reader #reader insert #the nanny diaries #chris evans characters

[moon-chlld]

life update

henlo, I just wanted a place where I can post my thoughts and feelings where it doesn't necessarily reach anyone in particular. If it does that's great! But I kind of just need to look busy at work right now lmao and I have a lot of emotions I'd like to write out.

Right now, I have a great job honestly. I still have trouble with motivation and seeing the point in sitting at a desk all day, but at least I get paid decently and it's in the field in I studied in! I really can't complain about my work, I'm super lucky to have it. Which...is why I've been guilty and disappointed in myself this week. I let my old habits get the best of me and I didn't go to work on Tuesday. My boss was on vacation at the time so I thought I could play a little hooky. Unfortunately, it didn't work out that way and I got in trouble. It's so dumb that I even thought it would be okay to do that, but I did it anyway and severely regret it. I hope I never do it again and honestly, I think I'm getting better at sucking it up and going to work, I just let my laziness get the best of me that day and it sucks.

Another reason it sucks is because this week was supposed to be perfect and fun, and I ruined it by own actions. I'm still trying to get past the bad vibes from that day but it's so hard and I'm so tired lol. I also wish I had New Year's Eve off, buuut I think I'll get off an hour early so that's a plus. I just have to think positively I guess ughhh lol!

Now I can talk about the fun stuff I suppose! I recently got into my first relationship in August, and it's just been amazing and so magical. I really can't believe I found someone who loves me as much as I love them and are so accepting of me and all my flaws. I really never thought I'd be able to find someone like that for me. Funny enough, it was through a dating app! My life has changed so drastically since August. I started my full-time job and a committed relationship basically at the same exact time.

I'm also making friends again, I think. My partner has one close friend here in ABQ (he's from CA) that I love, she is so funny and cool! I hope she considers me a friend too, haha! I also love my coworkers, they're really nice, funny, mature, and super helpful (they're both older than me by at least 10 years).

Next year (literally next month) my best friend is having her bachelorette party and I'm sooo happy and excited for her! We're just spending a few days up in a cabin to chill, smoke, drink, and play in the snow. Magical! Her wedding is in March and I'm a bridesmaid!

My partner and I may be calling each other fiancés, by the way, lol! He sort of proposed to me during a beautiful night while we were watching the stars and city lights. I took him to the foothills and made the trunk of my CRV super comfy with fairy lights and everything because he was having a really hard time that week with family and mental illness. He did make a point that because he didn't have a ring that it wasn't the official proposal he will be doing later lol!

Anyway, the reason THIS week is exciting for me is because my family is out of state! They left to visit family in CA but I had to stay for work (and because I didn't really want to go). So, I basically have the house to myself this whole week and it's been so nice (besides the stress from work lol). My mom doesn't approve of me spending the night with my partner because we're not married lmao so that's why this week is special because we get to spend all the time we want together outside of work! We're also planning on spending New Year's Eve together with our friend, we're going to do make your own pizzas, board games, video games, movies, snacks, annnd yea! I got a cold sore right before Christmas so we haven't been able to kiss in a hot minute and we're saving it for midnight this Friday! It's kind of torture but also super sweet that he wants to even do that lol!

I think that's all, we're also planning on moving in together next year which my mom also doesn't approve of buuut I'm doing it anyway ahhh. My mom's very religious and pro-purity culture so it's...very toxic and I can't wait to move out ughhh. I've been wanting to live on my own since I can remember! Alright, I'm done, happy new year!

#personal

[rynnaaurelius]

Getting To Know You Meme!

Thanks for the tag, @buthappysoverrated <3

Rules: tag a few people you want to know better; make a new post, don't reblog!

Favorite Color:

Hmmm. . .a dark grass green, probably. I associate it with some happy memories.

Currently Reading:

I've embarked on my annual re-read of The Once and Future King so that I can cry over Wart. I also just finished Iron Widow, which ruled so fucking much.

Last Song:

When We Were Young - Adele

(This is because writing, I swear)

Last Movie:

Pirated Spider-Man: No Way Home the other day. Would give it a solid 3/5, most of which is earned by Andrew Garfield and the MCU remembering that Rule #1 of writing Spider-Man is that Peter Parker Must Suffer.

Last Series:

I just finished binging Our Flag Means Death—which means I'm probably about to finally watch Black Sails.

Sweet, Savory, or Spicy:

Sweet!

Coffee or Tea:

Tea, with enough milk and sugar to barely qualify.

Three Ships:

1. Jim Kirk/Spock, because those sixties housewives were onto something with that particular slowburn.

2. Nandor the Relentless/Guillermo de la Cruz from WWDITS, because I think vampire having a midlife crisis/unhinged vampire slayer is peak romance.

3. Enjolras/Grantaire from Les Miserables, because I will never emotionally be the same after Permets-tu?

First Ever Ship:

Kirk/Spock, TOS flavor. I didn't think the end of The Tholian Incident was gay enough, I stumbled onto fanfiction, and the rest was history.

Currently Working On:

Drafting the next installment in the Magician!Percy Jackson 'verse, while trying really, really hard not to get distracted by other budding PJO/HoO AUs (I need them to go away. I am begging them to go away and wait their turn).

Favorite Piece of Clothing:

I got a green and white rugby shirt for my birthday that induces gender euphoria like no one's business.

Comfort Food:

Pesto. Add in extra garlic and I'll eat a gallon of the stuff.

Favorite Time Of Year:

Early spring, when the snow hasn't entirely melted yet, but the sunlight feels warm again and you can see the tiny crocuses begin to bud. First snowfall in autumn is 1A.

Fave Fanfic:

Okay. Uh. Fuck. I have read so much fic (I have nearly a thousand AO3 bookmarks), so we're gonna pick my current Riordanverse fave, the series the grace of the gods is a grace that comes by violence is an insanely good trilogy of character study works, including a post-TOA Apollo and role-swapped gods (and demigods).

Also, the K/S brainrot is eternal, so I also gotta rec another I read semi-recently, Somebody To Die For. This one's incomplete, fair warning, but it's still a really good take on the AOS!Mirrorverse and how that twists the characters, pretty Kirk-and-Spock-centric, only with roughly two hundred percent more murder and planned regicide.

No-pressure tagging: @evergardenwall , @fractal-baby , @thein273 , @foxyatlas , and anyone else who sees this, feel free to join in!

#ask games #personal stuff #thanks for the tag! #pjo #star trek #fic recs #wwdits #les miserables