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bonefall · 5 months

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Don’t know if this is the right place to ask, but could you talk more about zoos? I’ve seen many people say that zoos are inherently exploitative and that we should instead focus on advocating for wildlife preserves, etc., but I’m not sure what to think of that. You seem to know a lot about wildlife protection, so what’s your opinion on this?

There are folks faaaar better than myself to talk about the issues of zoos specifically and I'll try to toss in some sources so you can go and learn more, but let me try and explain my mindset here.

Summary of my opinion on this: BOTH of these things can be poorly managed, and I broadly support both. They should exist in tandem. I am pro-accredited zoo and am extremely sensitive towards misinformation. I also do think the best place for animals to be is in their natural environment, but nature "preserves" aren't inherently perfect. They can also be prone to the capitalist (and colonialist) pressures that less informed people believe they're somehow immune to.

Because of the goal of my project being to make the setting of WC accurate to Northwestern England, my research is based on UK laws, ecology, and conservation programs.

On Zoos

On Nature Reserves

An Aside on Fortress Conservation

On Zoos

The legal definition of a Zoo in the UK (because that is what BB's ecological education is based around), as defined by the Zoo Licensing Act of 1981 (ZLA), is a "place where wild animals are kept for exhibition to the public," excluding circuses and pet shops (which are covered by different laws.)

This applies equally to private, for-profit zoos, as well as zoos run by wildlife charities and conservation organizations. Profit does not define a zoo. If there's a place trying to tell you it's not a zoo but a "sanctuary" or a "wildlife park," but you can still go visit and see captive wild animals, even if it's totally free, it's a marketing trick. Legally that is still a zoo in the UK.

(for fellow Americans; OUR definition is broader, more patchwork because we are 50 little countries in a trenchcoat, and can include collections of animals not displayed to the public.)

That said, there's a HUGE difference between Chester Zoo, run by the North of England Zoological Society, which personally holds the studbooks for maintaining the genetic diversity of 10 endangered species, has 134 captive breeding projects, cultivates 265 threatened plant species, and sends its members as consultants to United Nations conferences on climate change, and Sam Tiddles' Personal Zebra Pit.

Sam Tiddles' Personal Zebra Pit ONLY has to worry about the UK government. There's another standard zoos can hold themselves to if they want to get serious about conservation like Chester Zoo; Accreditation. There are two major zoo organizations in the UK, BIAZA and EAZA.

(Americans may wonder about AZA; that's ours. AZA, EAZA, and BIAZA are all members of the World Association of Aquariums and Zoos, or WAZA, but they are all individual organizations.)

A zoo going for EAZA's "accreditation" has to undergo an entire year of evaluation to make sure they fit the strict standards, and renewal is ongoing. You don't just earn it once. You have to keep your animal welfare up-to-date and in compliance or you will lose it.

The benefit of joining with an accredited org is that it puts the zoo into a huge network of other organizations. They work together for various conservation efforts.

There are DOZENS of species that were prevented from going extinct, and are being reintroduced back to their habitats, because of the work done by zoos. The scimitar-horned oryx, takhi, California condor, the Galapagos tortoise, etc. Some of these WERE extinct in the wild and wouldn't BE here if it hadn't been for zoos!

The San Diego zoo is preventing the last remaining hawaiian crows from embracing oblivion right now, a species for which SO LITTLE of its wild behavior is known they had to write the book on caring for them, and Chester zoo worked in tandem with the Uganda Wildlife Authority to provide tech and funding towards breakthroughs in surveying wild pangolins.

Don't get me wrong;

MOST zoos are not accredited,

nor is accreditation is REQUIRED to make a good zoo,

nor does it automatically PROVE nothing bad has happened in the zoo,

There are a lot more Sam Tiddles' Personal Zebra Pits than there are Chester Zoos.

That's worth talking about! We SHOULD be having conversations on things like,

Is it appropriate to keep and breed difficult, social megafauna, like elephants or cetaceans? What does the data say? Are there any circumstances where that would be okay, IF the data does confirm we can never provide enough space or stimulation to perfectly meet those species' needs?

How can we improve animal welfare for private zoos? Should we tighten up regulations on who can start or run one (yes)? Are there enough inspectors (no)?

Do those smaller zoos meaningfully contribute to better conservation? How do we know if they are properly educating their visitors? Can we prove this one way or the other?

Who watches the watchmen? Accreditation societies hold themselves accountable. Do these organizations truly have enough transparency?

(I don't agree with Born Free's ultimate conclusion that we should "phase out" zoos, but you should always understand the opposing arguments)

But bottom line of my opinion is; Good zoos are deeply important, and they have a tangible benefit to wildlife conservation. Anyone who tries to tell you that "zoos are inherently unethical" either knows very little about zoos or real conservation work, or... is hiding some deeper, more batshit take, like "having wild animals in any kind of captivity is unlawful imprisonment."

(you'll also get a lot more work done in regulating the exotic animal trade in the UK if you go after private owners, btw. zoos have nothing to do with how lax those laws are.)

Anyway I'm a funny cat blog about battle kitties, and the stuff I do for BB is to educate about the ecosystem of Northern England. If you want to know more about zoos, debunking misconceptions, and critiques from someone with more personal experience, go talk to @why-animals-do-the-thing!

Keep in mind though, again, they talk about American zoos, where this post was written with the UK in mind.

(and even then, England specifically. ALL UK members and also the Isle of Man have differences in their laws.)

(If anyone has other zoo education tumblr blogs in mind, especially if they are European, lmk and I'll edit this post)

On Nature Reserves

Remember how broad the legal definition of a zoo actually was? Same thing over here. A "nature reserve" in the UK is a broad, unofficial generic term for several things. It doesn't inherently involve statutory protection, either, meaning there's some situations where there's no laws to hold anyone accountable for damage

These are the "nature reserve" types relevant to my project; (NOTE: Ramsar sites, SACs, and SPAs are EU-related and honestly, I do not know how Brexit has effected them, if at all, so I won't be explaining something I don't understand.)

Local Wildlife Site (LWS) Selected via scientific survey and managed locally, connecting wildlife habitats together and keeping nature close to home. VERY important... and yet, incredibly prone to destruction because there aren't good reporting processes in place. Whenever a report comes out every few years, the Wildlife Trust says it often only gets data for 15% of all their registered sites, and 12% get destroyed in that timeframe.

Local Nature Reserve (LNR) A site that can be declared by a district or county council, if proven to have geographic, educational, biodiversity, or recreational value. The local authority manages this, BUT, the landowner can remain in control of the property and "lease" it out (and boy oh boy, landowners do some RIDICULOUS things)

National Nature Reserve (NNR) This is probably closest to what you think of when someone says "nature reserve." Designated by Natural England to protect significant habitat ranges and geographic formations, but still usually operates in tandem with private land owners who must get consent if they want to do something potentially damaging to the NNR.

Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) (pronounced Triple S-I) A conservation designation for a particular place, assessed and defined by Natural England for its biological or geographic significance. SSSIs are protected areas, and often become the basis for NNRs, LNRs, Ramsar sites, SACs, SPAs, etc.

So you probably noticed that 3/4 of those needed to have the private ownership problem mentioned right in the summary, and it doesn't end there. Even fully government-managed NNRs and SSSIs work with the private sectors of forestry, tourism, and recreation.

We live under Capitalism; EVERYTHING has a profit motive, not just zoos.

I brushed over some of those factors in my Moorland Research Notes and DESPERATELY tried to stay succinct with them, but it was hard. The things that can happen to skirt around the UK's laws protecting wildlife could make an entire season of Monty Python sketches.

Protestors can angrily oppose felling silver birch (a "weed" in this context which can change the ecosystem) because it made a hike less 'pretty' and they don't understand heath management.

Management can be reluctant to ban dogs and horses for fear of backlash, even as they turn heath to sward before our eyes.

Reserves can be owned by Count Bloodsnurt who thinks crashing through the forest with a pack of dogs to exhaust an animal to death is a profitable traditional British passtime.

Or you can literally just pretend that you accidentally chased a deer for several hours and then killed it while innocently sending your baying hounds down a trail. (NOTE: I am pro-hunting, but not pro-animal cruelty.)

The Forestry Commission can slobber enthusiastically while replacing endangered wildlife habitats with non-native, invasive sitka spruce plantations, pretending most trees are equal while conveniently prioritizing profitable timber species.

I have STORIES to tell about the absolute Looney Tunes bullshit that's going on between conservationists and rich assholes who want to sell grouse hunting access, but I'll leave it at this fascinating tidbit about air guns and mannequins which are "totally, absolutely there for no nefarious reason at all, certainly not to prevent marsh harriers from nesting in an area where they also keep winding up mysteriously killed in illegal snares, no no no"

BUT. Since Nature Reserve isn't a hard defined legal concept, and any organization could get involved in local conservation in the UK, and just about anyone or anything could own one... IT'S CHESTER ZOO WITH THE STEEL CHAIR!!

They received a grant in 2021 to restore habitat to a stretch of 10 miles extending outside of their borders, working with TONS of other entities such as local government and conservation charities in the process. There's now 6,000 square meters of restored meadow, an orchard, new ponds, and maintained reedbeds, because of them.

It isn't just Chester Zoo, either. It's all over the UK. Durrel Wildlife, which runs Jersey Zoo, just acquired 18,500 acres to rewild in Perthshire. Citizen Zoo is working with the Beaver Trust to bring beavers back to London and is always looking for volunteers to help with their river projects, and the Edinburgh Zoo is equipped with gene labs being used to monitor and analyze the remaining populations of non-hybrid Scottish Wildcats.

The point being,

Nature preserves have problems too. They are not magical fairy kingdoms that you put up a fence around and then declare you Saved Nature Hooray! They need to be protected. They need to be continuously assessed. They are prone to capitalist pressures just like everything else on this hell planet. Go talk to my boy Karl he'll give you a hug about it.

"Nature Preserves" are NOT an "alternative" to zoos and vice versa. They do not do the same thing. A zoo is a center of education and wildlife research which displays exotic animals. A nature preserve is a parcel of native ecosystem. We need LOTS of nature preserves and we need them well-managed ASAP.

We could never just "replace" zoos with nature preserves, and we're nowhere near the amount of protected ecosystem space to start thinking of scaling back animals in captivity. Until King Arthur comes out of hibernation to save Britain, that's the world we live in.

An Aside

My project and my research is based on the isle of Great Britain. The more I learn about the ecosystems that are naturally found there, the more venomously I reject the old lie, "humans are a blight."

YOU are an animal. You're a big one, too. You know what the role of big animals in an ecosystem are? Change. Elephants knock over trees, wolves alter the course of rivers, bison fertilize the plains from coast-to-coast. In Great Britain, that's what hominids have done for 900,000 years, their populations ebbing and flowing with every ice age.

Early farming created the moors and grazing sheep and cattle maintain it, hosting hundreds of specialist species. Every old-growth forest has signs of ancient coppicing and pollarding, which create havens for wildlife when well-managed. Corn cockle evolved as a mimic of wheat seeds, so farmers would plant it over and over within their fields.

This garbage idea that humans are somehow "separate" from or "above" nature is poison. It's not true ANYWHERE.

It contributes to an idea that our very presence is somehow damaging to natural spaces, and to "protect" it, we have to completely leave it alone. NO! Absolutely NOT! There are places where we have to limit harvesting and foot traffic, but humans ALWAYS lived in nature.

Even the ecosystems that this mindset comes from rejects it, but this shit doesn't JUST get applied to British people who become alienated and disconnected from their surroundings to the point where they don't know what silver birch does.

It's DEADLY for the indigenous people who protect 80% of our most important ecosystems.

It's a weapon against the Maasai people, stopped from hunting or growing crops on their own land. It's violence for 9 San hunters shot at by a helicopter with a "kill poachers on-sight" policy, as one of the world's LARGEST diamond mines operates in the same motherfucking park. The Havasupai people are kept out of the Grand Canyon that they managed for generations because they might "collect too many nuts" and starve squirrels, Dukha reindeer herders suddenly get banned from chopping wood or fishing, and watch wolves decimate their animals in the absence of their herding dogs.

It's nightmare after nightmare of human displacement in the name of "conservation."

That all ties back to that mindset. This idea that nature is pure, "pristine," and should be totally untouched. There are some starting to call it Fortress Conservation.

You can't begin to understand the criticisms of modern conservation without acknowledging that we are still living under the influence of capitalism and colonialism. Those who fixate on speaking for "animals/nature/trees who don't have a voice" often seem to have no interest in the indigenous people who do.

Listen. There's no simple answer; and the solution will vary for each region.

Again, my project is within the UK, one of the most ecologically devastated areas in the world. There are bad zoos that the law allows a pass. There are incredible zoos that are vital to conservation, in and outside of the country. There's not enough nature preserves. The best ones that exist are often exploited for profit.

I hope that my silly little blog sparks an interest in a handful of people to understand more about their own local ecosystems, and teaches folks about the unique beauty even within a place as "boring" as England.

But, my straightforward statement is that I have no patience for nonconstructive, broad zoo slander that lumps together ALL of them, and open contempt for anyone who tries to sell nature preserves like a perfect, morally superior "alternative." We need them BOTH right now, and we need to acknowledge that zoos AND preserves have legal and ethical issues that aren't openly talked about.

#ALSO THAT GUIDE IVE BEEN WORKING ON IS DONE #Im just waiting for the input of the sensitivity readers bc I made a whole section on--#How ableis m might express in the different clans #And part of it became a thunder-callout post lmaooooo #Also this zoo doc has been sitting competed in my drafts for a while #All this to say that uh. I hope the strange place they visit in the upcoming se is not a zoo :J #I will hit it with a golf club if it is <3 #Leaning heavily towards the 'oh no two DEMIGODS ended up in a zoo' idea #Which is objectively funnier #And you know what else is objectively funny. When these posts break orbit and then ppl are surprised that i am a kitty cat blog #Hal. It's about Cats.#Bone Babble

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honourablejester · 1 year

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Thoughts on Druids in Urban Environments

“Purple lichens grow on the bare, blasted rocks of frozen tundras. Fish swim in lightless depths that have never seen the sun. Life grows, and should be encouraged to grow, everywhere. This manufactured landscape is no different.”

“Do you think we have no place here? We are the rats in your walls and the starlings in your eaves and the rain in your gutters. Did you think you could just build a wall and keep nature itself out?”

“Beavers build dams, dragons build lairs, and mortals build cities. It is the way of things. To every creature their dwelling. But all dwellings are fragile, all dwell at the mercy of the forces that surround them. The cities, no less than any other habitat, require guidance and sheltering. And, occasionally, clearing.”

So I’ve been noodling around these sorts of thoughts previously with my homebrew urban druid subclass and thoughts on a green dragon trying to greenify a city. I just really enjoy urban fantasy, in the literal sense of fantasy in urban environments, as well as the noir-influenced genre sense. You can see this in stories like Cityside Fairytale, the idea of nature spirits interacting with the city. I grew up in a river town, you don’t get to avoid nature just because you live in an urban environment.

So. I like the idea of D&D druids being integrated even in the more urban areas of their worlds. Not even as specialist urban druids, but just in general. Quite a few of a baseline druid’s abilities and spells fit very well into a city environment, and some of them have very interesting worldbuilding implications if you tease them out the right way. Heh.

I’m going to be talking about this mostly from a worldbuilding, DM, NPC sort of direction, but there’s maybe inspiration here for player characters as well. Just. Some thoughts, character concepts, worldbuilding ideas:

Spymaster

Well. Spymasters, spies, city watch, urban infiltrators. Because three things. Wildshape. Speak with Animals. Pass Without Trace. This is a city. Every rat, sparrow, rook and crow are now your eyes and ears. Or you. You can go almost anywhere. You can see almost anything. Magics like nondetection that protect against divination don’t do shit against the 2 million beady eyes watching people come and go. A druid spymaster in a city milieu would nearly be terrifying. Small wildlife is everywhere. And, yes, a druid can only take one shape at a time, and only talk to so many creatures. But the paranoia fuel is exceptional, just from the idea. A druid that’s strategic about it, that has creatures they regularly talk to watching particular hotspots, could cover a lot of a city. A network of druids, a whole spy network, could cover … a lot.

Just. Picture a city, in your world, where the rats are always watching. Sorry. The Pied Piper of Hamelin is one of my favourite fairytales. The rats and the city, and the magic figure at the heart of it. A druid spymaster, a small, grubby figure behind the throne, their eyes and ears spread chittering out across the city. In the gutters, in the streets. Behind the skirting boards. Under your bed. In your eaves, eavesdropping. There are ten rats for every person in the city, and they can talk to all of them. The bats, the starlings, the sparrows too.

And on a smaller scale, this does work for things like investigators, spies, criminal gangs. You’re a city watchman and almost none of your informants are humanoid. You’re a thief who can climb up any drainpipe, hide behind the skirting boards, pull a cloak of shadows around yourself and blend into the brickwork. Why a druid? Because the rats taught you. The shadows hide you. You’re one with the world around you, this habitat build by animals who think they’re smarter than maybe they really are. Dirt, nature, gets everywhere. You thought it was a good lesson to learn.

Beggar Lord/Street Gang/Urchin Leader

Again, inspired mostly by a single spell. Goodberry. Imagine Goodberry in an urban slum. Imagine the implications of being able to feed someone for a day on one berry.

Imagine trading favours on it.

Swing it for good or ill. Feeding the hungry, or extorting them. But a druid has a lot to offer in densely packed, poverty stricken areas. Food and water from the area. Purifying water. Healing. Granted, a cleric has a lot of the same merits. But Goodberry. Goodberry in particular. As I mentioned with Ylin Dos, my villainous druid, it’s such a fascinating spell for implications. You can give a street kid a berry that’ll feed them for a day. What do you charge them for it? (Might link back up to spymaster, above, there).

It can be villainous, extortion. But there’s also room for camaraderie. Support. Beggar networks. If they want to starve us out, we’ll bloom to spite them. If they want to deny us everything, we’ll just make it. Druids have such a theme of growth and survival, and that’s interesting in a city. Weeds growing where they’re not wanted, not supposed to be, and thriving despite anyone’s best efforts. There’s a sort of a theme of urban anarchy and urban support there. You can’t keep nature out. You can’t decide what you want to grow where. Weeds get in. Weeds are supposed to get in. The only thing ‘weed’ means is a plant where you don’t want it to be, but you’re not the only one who gets to decide that. Put some urban druids down at the bottom of urban society, in the cracks in the pavement. People are starving, but nature provides. Even when it isn’t wanted to.

(Seriously, on a worldbuilding level, druids have so many spells that are interesting in urban environments. Purify food and drink. Create or destroy water. Protection from Poison. Lesser Restoration. Detect poison and disease. Think about things like cholera epidemics. Sewage. River water. If you’re in a highly urbanised fantasy world, an extremely developed magical society, city health inspectors. Your entire health department could be druids. Huge chunks of your civic planning departments. Magical CDC. There’s so many options …)

Harbour Master/Dock Master/River Master

This does go back to Carla James in Cityside Fairytale for me, but the epitome of a high-ranking civic position for a druid in a city is Harbour Master, River Master, something similar. Because cities run on rivers, harbours, water, trade. Access to water is a primary consideration for a city, and usually one of the defining factors that determine where they locate and grow. How many of our worlds cities are defined by their relationship to their waterways? And the river giveth, but the river also taketh away. It gives trade, water, access, control, and it costs lives, damage, a steady force eating at the base of everything you build. Water moves, water flows, water floods, water erodes. Cities sink slowly into their lagoons, silt clogs the harbours, waves flood the levees and drown districts whole. Whoever controls the water, in some very real ways, controls the city.

And what class, in D&D, controls the water more?

If you want to give a druid an office in a city. If you want them to be a fundamental, powerful city figure, an overt power in their own right. Harbour Master. River Master. A high ranking, powerful magic user. And, underneath them, whole departments, organisations. (Circles). They protect the city from floods, from waves, from erosion. They direct the currents that guide trade. They defend the harbour from foreign ships. Your ship tries to sneak in or out? Control Water is bringing it right back. They patrol the harbour, the docks. Your water police, your city watch, your river patrol. Some of them can walk on water. Some of them can pretend to be seagulls. Some of them can pick your whole damn smuggler ship up and sit it on the dock next to the Harbour Master’s office.

And, to go back up to the previous point, do consider sewage. Sewers. Cholera epidemics. Flood defenses. Sea defenses. Buried rivers. Storm drains. Consider harbour dredging. Large scale water purification (perhaps even water purification festivals). Cisterns and water storage. Aqueducts, aquifers. Enough drinking water to support the population of a city, where is it brought from, how is it brought, how is stored, how is it accessed? Cities are built around water. As well as, often, in defiance of it. Which can create a certain tension.

Consider the relationship between the river, the city, and the sea. And, thus, between the druids and the government. Cities are fragile, especially when set against raw elemental might. How much power does this River Master hold, and how happy are people about it? How happy are they about it? How they view the city, how does the city view them?

Honestly, you see all these fantasy cities with powerful wizards, because intellect and magic and construction, but you could do so much with a city druid. A city official, in their brown-and-silver robes, their gull-shaped badge of office fixed to their shoulder. Several of them, even. The Harbour Master, the River Master, the Sewer Master. The River Patrol, the City Health Department. And, yes, the Spymaster. Druids are considered the antithesis of the city, the forces of the wilderness in stark contrast to the artifice and civilisation of the city, but honestly druids could run a city. They could keep it alive, keep it afloat. A habitat as delicate as any other, a challenge as harsh as any other.

Nature doesn’t stop at the wall, no matter how much we like to pretend. Maybe druids shouldn’t either. I don’t know, I just really like the idea of urban druids. I like the worldbuilding potential of so many of a druid’s abilities and spells. I like how they meld and contrast with an urban environment. In some ways, a city only gives a druid advantages. Narrow streets and alleyways, for a class that excel at area of effect. A fragile, artificial environment, in the hands of a class that wields raw elemental wrath. A city full of eyes and ears, packed solid with bodies, for a class that can change shape, and that deals with poison and healing in equal measure.

And there’s thematic push and pull too. Weeds in the cracks. Power and protection. Stealth and solidarity. How much is the habitat worth protecting at the cost of everything around it? Did you think you could keep us out? The river giveth and the river taketh away.

I like it. I like the ideas of it. If you have nature magic in a world, it will exist everywhere, not just the most obviously thematically appropriate places. If people exist who can speak to animals, who can control water, who can cast Spike Growth in the middle of urban warfare and decimate an enemy gang unfortunately crammed into the same alley … Well. Then chances are someone will think to do just those things. Some druid somewhere will walk into a city, to see what it’s like if nothing else. Some urchin somewhere will make a connection to the rats, or the water under the stone, or the scrubby weeds that stubbornly push through the cracks and refuse to die, just like them. So. Why shouldn’t a city have as many druids as anywhere else?

The weeds get everywhere. And the water wears away the stone.

#d&d #druids #worldbuilding #cities #cityscapes #urban druids #long post

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lonely-lost-soul · 3 years

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Of Immortality and Nymphs

(Philza Minecraft x Reader)

Request 2: Just c!philza simping over reader!!

Requested by: Anonymous

(Okay maybe I got a little carried away with this one...)

~~~

He met her for the first time when he was a young man, who barely understood the world around him. Messing with things he shouldn’t was his specialty so when he heard there used to be Nymphs in the nearby forests, he just had to find out if they were extinct or not. Phil flipped through his worn journal and tapped his quill on the paper, he wanted to document his journey to finding the supposedly mythical creature. After all, this was one of his first real adventures all by himself he wouldn’t accept any form of defeat. He popped the cork off the invisibility potion he had and downed it with one swig. Phil, now hidden, wandered into the forest of the last known location, of the last recorded Nymph. Not being visible to the creatures in the forest allowed Phil to take in the beauty of nature around him, he could get close to the animals and see them in their natural habitat. The forest was beautiful, sunlight peeking in through the leaves of the trees, it was magical. He placed his hand on the trees running his hand over the bark with a smile, Phil heard a soft twinkling in his ear, and his head shot up. Always trigger happy he put his hand on his sword, in the middle of a nearby clearing stood a beautiful woman with gorgeous (h/c) hair. Flowers and leaves seemed to be interwoven within the strands, her ears were elf-like in appearance adorned with gold piercings. Her dress flowed in the wind, it was a soft almost translucent green decorated with leaves, in her hand was a baby chick. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, it was clear she was the Nymph that the old stories were talking about, thank god for the invisibility potion.

Pulling out his journal once more he began to sketch a picture of the elegant woman, he didn’t want to forget her face. The man looked up once more to finish up the sketch and the Nymph was gone, he frowned sadly, he did hope he could get to talk to her.

“What’re you drawing?” Phil snapped his notebook shut letting out a startled yelp, he turned to look at the figure beside him. The potion must’ve worn off when he wasn’t looking, however beside him was said Nymph. His jaw almost dropped open, did she have no self-preservation? “Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you!” She stepped a few steps back and he held out his arm to stop her.

“No! No, you’re alright!” He put his hand to his heart, “I’m Phil. and you are?”

“(Y/n). Are you human?”

“Tragically,” Phil gave her a little smile as she tilted her head curiously. “Are you a Nymph?” You looked a little hesitant, he watched as your ears twitched in an undeniably cute way. He felt himself melt a little as you gave a nod,

“A Meliae if you want to get specific,” you smiled fondly giving him a teasing wink. Opening his notebook again he scribbled that down next to the figure drawing of you, you sat down in front of him watching in awe, “Is that your language’s written system?” Looking back up at her curious expression Phil once again felt his heartbeat speed up in his chest.

“It is. You’re very clever,” He hummed and was delighted in the way you flushed up to the tips of your ears. You waved him off,

“I’m not that clever. When you’ve been around as long as I have you pick up on certain things,” He watched you carefully as you sat down beside him resting on your knees. Curiously Phil tilted his head,

“How long have you been around?”

“Don’t you know it’s rude to ask a woman her age?” She shot back a grin on her features, oh Phil was in love. Nymphs did tend to have that effect on people, people fall hard and fast for them, but Phil didn’t care.

“My apologies, that was rude of me huh?”

“Very.” She teased with a snicker, “I’ve honestly lost count at this point.”

“You’ve lost track? So you’re immortal then?” Phil’s entire face lit up the excitement prevalent on his features, “Tell me everything.” He pleaded, with a soft laugh you began to share your tale with the man in front of you. Phil was enamored she had lived more lifetimes than he could begin to comprehend, what he wouldn’t do to have that gift. The duo talked long into the evening and well into the next morning, Phil knew he had to head home soon. Not that he had anyone waiting for him back home, but he couldn’t stay with her forever as much as he wanted to. “When can I see you again?” He whispered taking your hands within his own, he couldn’t help but notice how soft they were for someone living in a forest. You hesitantly pressed your finger to his earring,

“They’ll start to glow whenever I’m near. So you can always find me,” You whispered cupping his cheek in your hand, he felt himself lean into it. “I’ll see you soon Phil,” You leaned forward pressing a tender kiss to his lips before disappearing in a flurry of flowers and leaves. Phil let out a shaky breath bringing his fingers to his lips a wild smile appearing across them. He opened his journal one last time adding ‘great kissers’ to his list of things about the Nymph of the forest.

They met many more times after that, and with each meeting, Phil only fell more and more in love with her. He wanted to protect you and keep you safe especially after telling him that Nymphs were hunted for their tears that give immortality but now without the expense of the Nymph. Yet even with his pleading, you wouldn’t leave the forest you called home. You told him maybe one day you could, but you were the only Nymph protecting the forest and you had to stay to protect your home. Ever the gentleman Phil would drop the conversation and steer it into another direction said direction ended with a lot of kissing.

As the years flew by Phil found himself growing older and you remaining the same and as beautiful as ever, he wanted to be immortal with you. He never wanted to lose you, so he made a deal with the God of undying, sacrificing his three lives for one immortal life so he could remain by your side forever. He’d also have to give up part of his humanity, he was bestowed giant black crow-like wings. But he’d do anything so long as he got to be by your side for the rest of eternity. Phil didn’t want to tell you at first, afraid you’d be mad but it was hard to hide giant black wings and the man could never stay far away from you. When he finally saw you again you knew what went down practically immediately. Surprisingly you took it much better than he originally thought, you seemed to flattered beyond belief but also pissed as hell. Desperately you tried to explain to him that immortality wasn’t a gift but a curse, seeing the world change around you while you stay young forever wasn’t as fun as it sounded. The man scoffed, shooting back a comment of his own about how he didn’t want to imagine a world without you by his side. You didn’t deserve to lose someone you loved just because they were mortal and he stood by that.

He watched your face scrunch up, cheeks turning pink at his sentiment. Mostly because you were melting around his words and he knew it too by the smirk evident on his features. Phil locked eyes with you and smiled endearingly,

“I love you.”

“I’m pregnant.”

“Fucking what-” He choked on his spit any argument that started before fizzled out the minute you had told you said those two words to him. He felt his features morphed in surprise before wrapping you in a tight suffocating hug. That only solidified his choices, he made the right decision, he needed to stay by you and your child’s side so long as the universe allowed him to.

However, things weren’t all peaches and rainbows as the world changed to a dark and dismal place once more. Forests were being burned and destroyed and humans once again discovered the existence of Nymphs and wanted to hunt them down for sport. Things were dangerous, way too dangerous for you and the newborn son you shared with Phil. Reluctantly you and Phil came to a decision, to protect your baby you needed to leave, it was the only way to keep them safe. You held the baby close to your chest, tears swelling in your eyes as Phil kissed your cheeks trying to shush you softly. “It’s alright…” His voice was gentle, his big hand caressing the boy’s chocolate brown curls.

“It’s not alright. Phil...I don’t wanna leave you or Wilbur.” Your voice quivered and Phil’s heart shattered in pieces, “But his safety comes first.” You brought the baby up to your lips and kissed his forehead, he giggled sweetly trying to squish his mother’s cheeks. You laughed as he did so, “My sweet, lovely boy. I’ll have to leave you for a while, I don’t want to but you need to be kept safe. I…” Phil frowned watching as you choked up once more, “I’m not safe.” Even through your tears, Phil thought you were beautiful, “You can’t tell him about me…”

“(Y/n) I can’t- That’s just not fair-” You shushed him with a kiss to his lips, passing Wilbur off to him.

“If he’s anything like his father he’ll lose his mind searching for his mother. He needs to live his life.” You reached up holding Phil’s chin on your pointer finger, “He has to live life to its fullest, Nothing can hold him back. It has to stay this way until I can come back. Which I will...hopefully it won’t be too long.” You smiled up at him and Phil took in a shaky breath,

“What if I ruin him.” His voice was painfully tight holding his grip on Wilbur tightening as well, it made the baby squirm. You shushed him softly, pressing a kiss to his lips, his scruff tickling your chin. To him the kisses always felt electric, never devoid of passion and adoration, he leaned forward to chase those addicting lips as you pulled away.

“You won’t ruin him, you’re the most gentle and kind man I’ve ever met. You took care of me all these years, you’ll be amazing for Wilby.” Phil watched as you kissed Wilbur one last time before stepping away with a shaky breath. “Just be as good to him as you are to me,” You both heard the crunch of leaves, it caused you to jump a little looking around the forest frantically.

“Go. We’ll be fine. Just stay safe and come back to us okay?” You could only nod at him before disappearing in a gust of leaves and flowers. Phil felt his heartache and he jolted as Wilbur began to cry seemingly already missing the presence of his mother. “Oh Wilbur hush, hush for me please,” His father pleaded as he began to rock him gently this was going to be a lot harder than he would ever anticipate, but to keep you safe he’d give up the entire world.

~~~

Decades went by, Phil had not only Wilbur to watch over but three more idiotic kids, others adopted of course. Wilbur had grown up into a strapping young man, got married, and had a son, you would be so proud of him. You’d spoil Fundy rotten, he just knew you would, he was sure you’d also spoil Tommy and Tubbo. Not to mention you’d force your motherly affection all over Technoblade and he wouldn’t have a choice but to open up to you.

However, none of them even knew you existed, lies were told about who Wilbur’s mother was when any of them asked and it killed him on the inside to lie about you. Eventually, Wilbur just stopped asking, most likely assuming something bad happened that Phil never wanted to discuss with him. Something far too painful to even tell his son about,

Which was half right he supposed.

It started like any other day, Tommy and Wilbur were messing around with Dream, something about discs and war that Phil didn’t particularly care about. Wilbur had come over once again to plead with Phil for aid in the war, but once again he refused him. This time he even brought Fundy along thinking that seeing his grandson might change the older man’s mind. However, he still refused knowing it wasn’t going to end well in the long run even if Wilbur did win. Sometimes kids had to make their own mistakes to learn about the future. It’s not like he hadn’t told Wil it wouldn’t end well, he did multiple times, but the kid was just as stubborn as he was and wasn’t going to back down.

“Dad, please. If you’d just join in we’d slay Dream and his team, all the fighting will come to an end. The nation I’m trying to create would finally be free and safe. Just help me.” Wilbur pleaded, a small whine slipping into his voice as he followed Phil and his son into the forest, “We can establish our new nation and be free from tyranny. No more war, isn’t that what you keep advocating for?” Wilbur continued to rant, not helping at all with his chores, his voice grew soft suddenly, and Fundy grabbed onto the sleeve of his jacket.

“What is it, kid?”

“Your earring’s glowing pops.” Fundy pointed to his ear and Phil froze in place the wood that he collected falling out of his hands, scattering all over the forest floor.

“Dad?” Wilbur repeated his voice growing louder in concern, Phil looked around the clearing frantically before bolting in a random direction.

“Grandpa!?” Fundy yelled chasing off after him, his tail puffing up anxiously,

“Fundy don’t just run off!”

Phil didn’t stick around to hear them, you were around here somewhere the question was where. His heart was beating erratically in his chest, please, please god let him find you. He didn’t have to wait long, he’d recognize you anywhere you still looked the same. Standing in the middle of a flower field you looked over your shoulder, “(Y/n)! Darling!” He called out choking a little on his words, your (e/c) eyes blew wide and he heard you laugh. You ran up to him flowers growing in your wake, you launched himself at the man and he lifted you in his arms. He spun you around laughing in disbelief, using his wings you both floated in the air, he cradled the back of your head with his hand, “I can’t believe you’re here.” Phil whispered, pulling away to cup your cheeks with your hands, “you’re real.”

“Of course I’m here silly goose. I told you I’d come back didn’t I?” You laughed fondly as he began to pepper your face in kisses, “Even if it is way later than I intended…” You trailed off with a small wince,

“Who cares. You’re here now and you’re safe.” He landed a kiss on your lips as you kissed him back. You tasted just as he remembered like fresh air and oranges, he wanted to swallow you whole. He never wanted to let you go again, and he never would if he had a say in the matter.

“Dad? What the fuck?” Wilbur blurted as Fundy and he came upon the clearing, you pulled away from Phil. Tears filling your eyes, your hands coming up to cover your mouth, Phil rested a hand on the small of your back.

“Wilby…” She whispered, stumbling towards the man reaching out towards him, he raised an eyebrow and flinched away from your touch. You pulled your hand back taking a little breath,

“I’m sorry. How do you know my name?” From behind you, Phil flinched; he knew that’s what you wanted, for him not to remember you. But, fuck he felt guilty about it, he was about to feel even more guilty in a minute.

“She’s your mom Wilbur.”

“Fucking WHAT.” Wilbur sputtered taking a few steps back from the woman, “You told me my mom was a fridge!”

“You told him what.” You turned towards Phil, eyes blazing with annoyance, he held his hands up in surrender. “Why would you tell him his mother was a fridge! I know I told you to lie but a fridge! Phil that’s not even physically possible!” You scolded the man crossing your arms over your chest, his face flushed a bright red. He even missed you yelling and scolding him, he was down bad.

“(Y/n) I panicked-” Phil started to explain and you cut him off with an eye roll. “I’m sorry okay, I love you.”

Meanwhile, Wilbur and Fundy looked in between the two adults rapidly as they talked. Both equally shocked and at a loss for words, Wilbur took a step forward and grabbed your wrist.

“Please continue your explanation,” He commanded softly, “If you are my mom why did you leave? Why haven’t you been here?” Wilbur frowned as he watched you look away from him,

“How much do you know about Nymphs Wilbur?” Wilbur turned bright red and the color reached up onto the tips of his ears, “What?”

“My mom’s a Nymph.” Fundy spoke up in place of Wilbur, “her name’s Sally. I...I’m Wilbur’s son.” He watched your face melt and mouth a broken ‘son?’, Phil noticed and walked up to squeeze your hand. You had missed so much, you hoped you didn’t blame yourself, you and Phil lived too long to live with that many regrets.

“What happened to her?” You asked tenderly,

“Killed.” Wilbur said bluntly, “by hunters. Don’t worry, I made sure to dispose of them.”

“I-I’m so sorry.” You spoke and Wilbur couldn’t help but feel compelled into your arms. Something about you just made him want to melt into your body, he knew Phil was right in the end. You were his mother through and through, I mean the shared pointed ears said enough.

“Is that why you left?” Fundy asked walking over to stand beside Wilbur, Fundy’s ears pressing against his head. They both watched you nod and Phil tightened his grip on your arm, you took in another deep breath. His hand moved to wrap securely around your waist, he was here for you. He’d always be here for you.

“When you were born, the hunters were far worse, there were much more of them. Greater numbers and they sniffed out Nymphs like hunting dogs to a rabbit. I couldn’t keep a newborn baby safe, especially one that was half Nymph...Which probably explains why Fundy’s part fox, he has more Nymph in him.” The fox hybrid seemed to light up at even the inclination that he was special in any way, shape, or form. “It was safer for me to be as far away from the both of you as possible, and I was right considering you grew up into a handsome young man with a family of his own.” You chuckled fondly leaning into Phil’s touch. “But I can understand if you don’t trust me or want to get to know me,” You smiled sadly at the man Fundy spoke up before Wilbur could.

“No! We want to get to know you grandma!” He blurted taking your hands in his own, you melted at the adorable way his eyes lit up. You glanced up at Wilbur who Phil totally wasn’t threatening with his eyes,

“I…” The man looked hesitant, but as he stared into your warm eyes once more he felt encapsulated within them. His longing for a motherly figure in his lips came back at full force and washed over him like a tidal wave. He had a mother and she was safe and here and willing to come back into his life if he was ready.

Was he ready? Why did he feel ready?

“Fuck that hesitance she’s grandma,” You let out a delighted laugh ruffling up Fundy’s hair, his tail wagging elatedly behind him.

“Don’t spoil him, love.”

“Fuck you, I’m spoiling the hell out of my grandson. Gotta make it up to him somehow.” Fundy’s tail only wagged harder as he wrapped you in a tight hug, you hugged him back just as tightly.

“Hey, Hey move over champion. I get to hug my mom now.” Wilbur snapped defensively, as Fundy snickered only looking up at him mischievously hugging you tighter. You laughed in delight seeing Wilbur huff, Phil melted against you in relief. Wilbur’s face was scrunching up the exact way you do when you’re pissed, he smiled against the side of your head. Wilbur pushed his son to the side gently and wrapped his arms around you in a hug, he towered over you but couldn’t help but bury his face in your neck. You cooed softly and ran your fingers through his hair, he was gone the moment you did so, melting in your arms completely.

Without you noticing Phil took a step away from the group just to admire the moment from an outsider’s perspective. For what felt like the hundredth time that hour Phil felt light, he felt like the weight of the world was off his shoulders. Everything was right in the universe again, you were finally holding your not-so-little boy in your arms again after all these years. Even if you did have a fox hanging off you as well, Phil let out a soft chuckle looking at the three with adoration. A long time ago he gave up his mortality and humanity for you, after you left he had pleaded to the gods once more, he swore he would give up anything for just one more day with you by his side. They had ignored his wishes, they knew without a doubt you’d be back in his arms again, and this time he wouldn’t have to give up a single thing.

~~~

Okay but actually I had so much fun writing this??? Maybe even a Pt. II?

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shift-shaping · 3 years

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Top 5 birds

this is an extremely difficult question i hope you know this

First, let's define what a bird is. This probably seems like a pretty easy question, but ask any paleontologist and you'll get like four different answers. From the same person.

Because phylogenetically, it's extremely difficult to say, definitely, what makes a bird a bird. For a drunk, slightly-outdated explanation of why paleontologists don't know what birds are, check out the following video:

youtube

It's not my video to be clear, I just really like it for all the confusion it illustrates. One of my favorite ways to piss off my colleagues is to call Triceratops a bird, which nobody likes to hear because it's stupid as fuck, but if feathers make something a bird then, well...

ANYWAY. For the sake of this ask, I'm going to use Avialae as my cutoff for Bird because it sounds pretty and (probably) includes Archaeopteryx but not Dromaeosaurus. Unfortunately this does not include Microraptor, which is very sad because Microraptor is a good little friend. This does, however, probably include the Scansoriopterygids, the real-life wyverns that I wrote a post about here.

Above left: Archaeopteryx, from Nat Geo Kids. Above right: Dromaeosaurus, from Gabriel N.U.

So here are my birds below the cut:

5. Secretary bird (Sagittarius serpentarius)

First off, nice genus name, though I think she's a gemini. This is a gorgeous bird of prey from Subsaharan Africa that looks kind of like a vulture in flight but a bitch on the ground. They kick snakes to death because of course they do. They are the only member of their family, Sagittariidae, which is within Accipitriformes and therefore places them closer to hawks and eagles rather than falcons.

4. Hoatzin (Opisthocomus hoazin)

SKUNK BIRD SKUNK BIRD THESE GUYS ARE FART MONSTERS. They are the only living members of their entire order! Their babies still have claws on their wings! Hoatzin are herbivorous birds from the Amazon that like leaves and fruit and have a weird digestive system convergent on mammalian ruminants. Food ferments in their strange gut which gives them a bad stink and a bad taste. Despite being fairly large, poor fliers, they smell and taste so bad that people don't eat them. In addition, their preferred habitat (swampy marshlands rather than true rainforest) is disappearing slower than the rainforest proper, so these stinky idiots are IUCN Least Concern.

3. Turkey vulture (Cathartes aura)

If you live in the United States and see a fairly large black bird circling above you and trying its damnedest not to flap its wings, it's probably a turkey vulture. They are lazy and have few natural predators. These guys sometimes get a bad rap because their cousins, the black vultures, are not terribly well-behaved and will sometimes attack newborn cattle. Turkey vultures do not kill. They are too lazy. I love them because they refuse to expend effort, even on flying, and that's an entire mood. They're also pretty chill. I met one named Lurch at ZooMontana who was a bro that had been raised as a pet and thought he was a human. Other vultures perplexed him.

2. Confuciusornis

Above is a stunning specimen of Confuciusornis sanctus currently residing at the Natural History Museum of Vienna. It's actually a really common creature in the Early Cretaceous Yixian Formation in Northern China. It's small, about the size of a pigeon, and those double tail feathers are not present in every specimen --possibly indicating sexual dimorphism. There's debate over how good these little dudes were at flying, but the most recent evidence I could find suggests they could perform powered flight in short bursts.

There is a persistent myth that paleontologists cannot know what color an extinct animal was. We actually can discern color for particularly well-preserved specimens, though this is an emerging concept with lots of ongoing research. The presence of fossilized melanosomes (organelles visible under a microscope that carry color information for soft tissue) possibly indicates they were a rusty brown color, but other researchers think they may have been closer to gold and white.

Above left from DK Find Out

1. Black-billed magpie (Pica hudsonia)

I love these horrible bastards!!!!!! They're so trashy and loud!!!! They are easily one of my favorite animals ever, full stop. They are notorious for eating songbird eggs and chicks, but they actually don't do that terribly often. They prefer ~your garbage~ or, truthfully, nuts and seeds and lots and lots of bugs. Like crows and ravens, magpies (which are also Corvids) follow wolves and other predators to scavenge from their kills. Also like crows and ravens, magpies are highly intelligent. They were the first non-mammal to pass the mirror test, indicating that magpies can very likely recognize themselves in a mirror. Magpies hold funerals (or post-mortems...) for their dead and can be taught human speech.

They are stunningly beautiful animals, but Western culture refuses to understand them and chooses prejudice and ignorance over curiosity and compassion. Let me be clear: if you hate magpies (or really any animal; they're just doing their thing) I do not like you. That sounds harsh, but it is unfathomable to me that a person would actually hate an animal for living its life. They are not gentle, they are not sweet (usually, tw animal death in video: a baby magpie is rescued after its possible siblings were found shot), but they are vibrantly beautiful survivalists that have found a way to thrive among creatures that villainize them. You don't have to love or even like them, but every animal deserves respect. Magpies just deserve a little more. ;)

I can do Eir's favorite birds in another post with more detail, but Tumblr is trying to keep me from spreading the good news by enforcing an image limit so for now, a list of Eir's favorite birbs:

5. Red-tailed hawk. They're fairly large survivalists that live fucking everywhere in the US. She would definitely relate to their hardiness and determination. Also, they're the ones that make the hawk noise (at 0:31).

4. Little blue penguin. I maintain that if Thedas is in the Southern Hemisphere, it should have penguins. Eirwen is not always one to freak out over cute things, but her cold hard heart would absolutely melt for a little blue penguin.

3. These fucking things. Just because they're hilarious.

2. Pigeons. In some life or another, she is a crazy pigeon lady. There's a fun AU! She would love having so many small, chubby, cooing friends to feed and care for. I could see her devoting her retirement to a flock of stupid round bird children because that's just who she is.

1. Carrion crow. Because of course.

#LONG POST LONG POST #ANON YOU HAVE AWAKENED ME #EVERYBODY SHUT THE FUCK UP AND LISTEN TO ME TALK ABOUT BIRDS #BIRDS #crow #magpie #paleontology #vulture #hawk #but not with an 'e'#hawke's favorite bird is a dragon #eir's list is at the end btw #i also really love stellers jays but i limited myself to one corvid

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peacehopeandrats · 2 years

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Social Saturday

I will save you all by not sending out questions on this Saturday. Instead, I’ll hand out some random information.

I’ve been working on two different fics, as some of you know. One is Monster In The Storm, the fic where Gideon beats up his father for sleeping with his mother and the Gold family as a whole become heroes. The other isn’t titled yet and isn’t anywhere near completion. I know I said I wanted to finish fics for Camp NaNo, but here’s what happened: I listened to a writing podcast and was struck with inspiration. So you now get to watch me try and balance the two. Not going too badly, really. You’ll see that on Wednesday, with the forest I share.

While I’ve been working, I’ve been listening to this playlist on spotify to help me get into the mood for what is to come. I didn’t create this one, but I thought I’d share since I’m enjoying it so much.

Other things you won’t necessarily know about me: I live on multiple acres of woodland and my yard is registered as a natural animal habitat. Easy enough to do around here, you simply need to provide food, water, and shelter for animals. Well in one of those shelters we have a bluebird’s nest and it seems we are going to have five new members of our wild family soon...

Mother has been happy enough to let me check on the nest and usually allows me to come quite close before flying away. Now, before anyone gets all tied up in knots about this, bluebirds are very tolerant of humans and most of the birds around us (of every species) are so comfortable with our being near them that they will all but land on us when we are trying to fill up their feeders. Of the many species we have here, the hummingbirds are the only ones who won’t come close. They will stay far in the distance and scream at us until we are out of their way. Unfortunately that usually means no socializing on the porch in the summer.

We have what we believe is a wren in the other bird box, but that reasoning is based only on the fact that the nest is ball-like and domed rather than open at the top like this one. No visible evidence of mother or chicks is easily noticed inside, so we won’t really know unless we are super careful watching. The wrens aren’t as happy to have humans around as the bluebirds.

Usually around this time of the year the hawks are hatching as well, but I haven’t heard them, so either the chicks are later coming out or the parents have chosen another location to make their nest.

Regardless of what birds we have in our nesting houses or the trees around us, we have added nesting feed to our blends on offer in the above mentioned feeders. Hopefully that will help with the health of parents and children alike.

Here’s a list of our local neighbors, for the curious:

Northern Cardinal

Carolina Wren

Carolina Chickadee

Tufted Titmouse

American Crow

Mourning Dove

Red-bellied Woodpecker

Blue Jay

Eastern Bluebird

American Robin

Downy Woodpecker

American Goldfinch

House Finch

Barred Owl

White-breasted Nuthatch

White-throated Sparrow

Dark-eyed Junco

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Red Tailed Hawk

Pileated Woodpecker

There are more than these, I know, but they’re the most frequent at our feeders. Yes, you can get Pileated Woodpeckers, doves, and crows at your feeders. No, we don’t get the hawks and owls at the feeders as much as we get them hunting the small animals that come for the seeds beneath them.

Anyway, shall update with nest news when there is more to be known.

As always, if you have anything you’d like to ask me personally, today’s the day to do it. Asks for characters and about fics are also welcome.

#social saturday #phandr's saturday posts

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chaseatinydream · 4 years

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pirate king (54) || atz

The night is utterly quiet.

It’s silent, almost eerily so. You’re seated on the rigging of the mizzenmast (Wooyoung’s favoured one, you remember glumly), rocking back and forth gloomily with your feet dangling in empty air, lost in your thoughts. Far beneath you, the glow of a few lanterns ripple faintly across the surface of the sea, moonlight fading in and out behind the clouds like a phantom in the night.

You follow the trail that the moonbeams leave behind, eyes glancing up towards the sky. It’s dark out, the faintest sliver of white peeking out behind dark, roiling clouds – storm clouds. It’s as if they’re heralding the coming of something ominous, something grim… you’re not quite sure if you should feel worried.

Something tugs at the edge of your consciousness.

You frown, eyes casually scanning the decks beneath you but your breath remains locked in the cavity of your lungs, your fingers absentmindedly edging towards the blade at your hip. It’s no surprise that you’re tentative, on the edge, almost, with how vulnerable the Treasure is and the natural wariness that comes with the night, but before your gaze can wander too far from the ship something near the forecastle deck catches your eye.

It’s Yunho.

He’s leaning against the railings of the forecastle deck, looking wistfully at the dark outline of the island before him, a solitary figure in the lonely night. You wish you could go to him, comfort him in some way, tell him it’s going to be alright, but he’s stinging with raw hurt and betrayal right now. It might not be the best time.

After all, you were the one who had knocked him out with a wooden mug.

You can see the weary sag of his shoulders, the way his fingers are clenching and unclenching around the railings of the gunwales. If you were closer, you’d swear that his knuckles have turned stark white, bloodless, but it’s too high up atop the mizzenmast and it’s nearly dark out.

You’re filled with worry for Yunho. The older of the two battlemasters is still suffering from the effects of the poison, rendered helpless as he watches the crew literally go on their way to kill the brother he loves so much. Gunho might have betrayed him, but you know Yunho. Not very well, but enough, at least.

He’s too kind for his own good.

Sighing, you grip the handle of your cutlass tightly, tracing the well worn leather grip with a finger. In this case, you have to be selfish, you think. You pray that they find the antidote, and if necessary, that they’ll be able to kill Gunho or Captain Kang to get it. As much as you’d hate to see Yunho suffer from the second loss of his younger brother, Yunho’s life is more important to you.

“Chin Hae!”

Nearly startling in shock, you glance around wildly for the source of the voice, frissons of panic running through you. To your relief, it’s only your captain, standing on the deck and waving up at you, seeming to be a tiny ant to you from above. “Can I come up?”

You frown a little in concern, remembering how awful you were at scaling the mast for the first time even with Yunho beneath you, waiting for you in case you fell. You’ve never seen your captain climb the rigging before, so you lean over and peer down at him worriedly. “Yeah, but do you need some he-”

Your words trail off into nothingness as you watch your captain leap to the ropes, scaling the rigging gracefully like it’s been his natural habitat all along and you fight the urge to smack yourself across the face. Of course your captain is capable of climbing the mast by himself, in addition to double wielding cutlasses in a battle, captaining a crew, and steering a ship. Why did you ever think there was something your captain couldn’t do?

“I actually feel so stupid right now.” You mumble to yourself glumly as Hongjoong heaves himself over the yardarm, settling himself next to you with his legs dangling over empty air. Your captain glances at you curiously.

“Why do you feel stupid?”

You wave him off in self-exasperation. “Oh, no matter… I was just wondering how you’re so good at so many ship related things. You’re just really amazing, captain.”

A pink tint touches your captain’s cheeks at your words and he presses his palms over them to hide his blush, a small, shy smile breaking out on his face. He’s clearly embarrassed by your unexpected praise and you smile. “That came out of nowhere.” He comments lightly in an attempt to take your focus off him and you laugh joyfully.

“I was just thinking that you’re really capable, captain. You must have a lot of natural affinity for this kind of thing.” You tell him honestly and Hongjoong sighs, shaking his head as he looks out across the waters.

“I’ve been learning how to do ‘these kind of things’ since young.” He says softly and your eyes widen in surprise as you turn to him. You remember that Mingi had told you about Hongjoong’s story when he was younger, your captain himself had told you how he had been left for dead as a child by his own father, but you don’t really know your captain’s story before he came to be on the high seas.

So you look at him beseechingly with wide eyes, wordlessly pleading with him to tell you and he laughs, humouring your silent request with a nostalgic, tight smile.

“My father taught me all of it.”

You can’t help the little gasp that escapes your mouth. He’s talking about his father? The same father that had abandoned him on a deserted island? The one that shot him in the eye and left him for dead?

His father?

Hongjoong must see the expression of utter disbelief on your face because he simply smiles sadly, turning away from you to stare at the moon half hidden behind the clouds.

“When I was young, my father used to bring me sailing with him every single day.” Your captain swings his legs back and forth absentmindedly, eyes lost in the past as he reminisces his younger days. “He used to be the captain of a ship called the Maelstrom before I was born, but it got caught in the midst of a massive storm one day… the ship and its entire crew were killed.”

You feel something sinking in your chest, a strange emotion that seems out of place. Your hand rises to grip the material of the shirt above your chest with a frown.

Is that… guilt?

Before you wonder exactly what you have to feel guilty for, Hongjoong continues, softer this time. “My father was the only one who survived that shipwreck. So from the time I was a toddler, he brought me onto ships, teaching me everything I’d need to know to survive. I really think… I think he really loved me then, you know?”

You don’t know whether he’s trying to convince you… or himself.

“He used to tell me that I was the most important thing in the world to him… the key to finding his treasure.” Hongjoong’s fingers tighten around his eyepatch with a bitter smile. “He said that when I grew up, I was going to go on the biggest adventure of my life… that I would fulfill the sole destiny I had been born into this world for.”

Something uneasy roils in your gut and you freeze, goosebumps trailing across your skin.

It’s as if someone is walking over your grave.

You search the black seas about you urgently, feeling tension building up in the pit of your stomach, tuning your captain’s words out. Something about this isn’t right, you feel – no, you know – that something is wrong, wrong, wrong-

“Perhaps my father was a little delusional after the shipwreck, because he told me that he was going to find the sea g-”

“Shh!”

Hongjoong almost flinches in shock when you hush him but immediately picks up on the mood, frowning as he mimics your actions, eyes searching the seas about you for a sign of what could have made you so uneasy. You don’t know exactly what it was, but something turns and twists in you like a massive coiling serpent, that simple, inexplicable feeling that something just isn’t right.

You can feel it in your very bones.

“What’s wrong?” Your captain whispers but you ignore him, leaning forward at the mast to stare at a tiny cove just at the side of the Cayman Islands. You don’t know why and you don’t know how, but there’s a near tangible force that pulls your eyes towards it, your fingers turning white around the rigging as you squint, trying to make out something in the inky blackness.

You don’t know how your mind makes this connection but it simply does, every alarm bell screaming in your head for you to just get it. You try to listen to your mind, try to connect the dots, but it seems utterly hopeless for a moment.

Then it hits you.

“The Crow.”

Oh no.

“Chin Hae?” Hongjoong glances at you, concerned, shaking you lightly by the arm. “Chin Hae, what is it?”

You turn to stare at him with panic stricken, horrified eyes.

“Where is the Black Crow?”

It takes a second for the words to sink in, but you can see the second that the implication of what you’ve just said dawning upon him. It seems so obvious, now that you’ve finally put the pieces of this seemingly simple plan together. They knew of and took advantage of the crew’s desperation to save Yunho.

It had been a trap all along.

“Chin Hae, fire the retreat flare!” Hongjoong shouts as he leaps down the mast, sliding down the rigging as fast as he can. His words blur around you like streaks of white noise, but you smack yourself out of your panic induced daze and fumble around in your pocket for the chemical concoction that Yeosang had been working on a few days ago, pulling out your flint and steel with shaking fingers.

Beneath you, the sound of a warning bell shatters the peaceful silence of the night.

You hear chaos happening on the main decks but you have no time to worry about it, frantically working to set up the flare. Just as you’re about to strike the flint, something else catches your eye.

Your breath catches in your throat and your mouth falls open in horror.

It’s a jet black ship, the shadows that had once cloaked it falling away as it leaves the darkness of the cove you had been staring at previously. Against the black sails you see the emblem of a crimson rose there, and even though you’ve seen the ship before, in the darkness of the night it truly looks like death itself has come for you.

The ship curves away from you and your heart drops in your chest, panic screaming in you as you can’t feel your fingers.

They’re numb with fear.

You don’t know how long you stay frozen there, but by the time you catch yourself, the Black Crow is pulling up beside the ship, a looming monster in the night. It’s the sight of the broadside cannons being wheeled out that snaps you back into action.

No. You can’t panic now of all times. You need to help, your captain has entrusted you with this task and you need to fulfil it before all of you die at the hands of the Royal Navy.

Biting down hard on your lip till the taste of copper and iron fills your mouth, you overwhelm your thoughts with pain instead, focusing at the task at hand. Your heart races a million nautical miles an hour and your hands are still shaking, but you manage to get a spark going right before the sound of cannon shot knocks you off your feet.

A scream nearly rips itself from your throat as you fall, wind whistling as you plunge towards the deck, suspended in air for an infinite second. Your hands flail about, reaching for something, anything, and by sheer dumb luck, you manage to cling onto the rigging with your fingers.

When you do manage to recover from your near death experience, gasping and heaving for air, you look up only to be greeted with the worst sight of your entire life.

Because standing at the bow of the Black Crow, sword drawn and head held high, is Yunho’s younger brother.

Jeong Gunho.

#ateez #ateez fanfic #ateez fanfiction #hongjoong #seonghwa #yunho #yeosang #san #mingi #wooyoung #jongho #ateez pirate king #w; ot8 #w; pirate king #w; fanfiction

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revlyncox · 3 years

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Trees (2021)

A talk abut growth, hope, and paying attention to history

Revised and expanded for the Washington Ethical Society by Lyn Cox

February 7, 2021

In this place halfway between the beginning of winter and the beginning of spring, we draw on imagination and memory, caution and optimism, hope for the future and learning from the past. Many of these things are contained in stories.

I don’t know if the story happened exactly this way, but I believe it’s true. A sage, a wise person, was walking along the road and saw someone planting a carob tree. The sage asks, "How long will it take for this tree to bear fruit?" "Seventy years," replies the gardener. The sage then asks: "Are you so healthy a person that you expect to live that length of time and eat its fruit?" The gardener answers: "I found a fruitful world, because my ancestors planted it for me. Likewise I am planting for my children." I will tell you where this story is from because I want to give credit, but I also want to notice that this story has a universality to it, a truth that the beginnings of things we set in motion can have an impact long past the horizons of our own lives. This story is from the Talmud, a collection of rabbinic conversations on ethics and customs. (Talmud Ta'anit 23a)

We drink from wells we did not dig and eat from trees we did not plant (Deut. 6:11). Our physical, intellectual, and religious lives depend on those who have gone before. Following their example will lead us to plant literal and figurative trees for the world of the future.

I believe caring for ourselves AND others will help us sustain a shared life of meaning and compassion for a long time.

My first semester studying for my M.Div. degree in California, I worked at one college in the south bay area, and went to school in the east bay area. I enjoyed the fragrance of eucalyptus trees around both campuses. The dry leaves rustled in the breeze, leaves rubbing together like the wings of singing crickets. Some people were distracted by the sound and allergic to the smell, but I liked them. The eucalyptus trees were tall and graceful. One might imagine that they had always been there. There’s a story about those trees. I don’t know if it happened exactly this way.

The American West in the late 1800’s was heavily influenced by dreams of getting rich quick. Non-native eucalyptus trees were brought from Australia because they grew quickly. It was imagined that the lumber and oil would become quickly replaceable commodities for those who farmed them. They were promoted as ornamental trees for rich landowners new to the area and not used to treeless landscapes. Eucalyptus trees were all over California by the 1900’s, and were tested for use as railroad ties. They didn’t work out. Eucalyptus from Australian virgin forests, seasoned and treated properly, behaves differently than eucalyptus grown from seeds in California, hastily treated, and set down in the Nevada sand. Some of the railroad ties were so cracked they couldn’t hold spikes. Some decayed within four years.

The trees themselves grew like weeds. They did what non-native species are famous for doing: thriving in the new environment, edging out diverse native plants that provide food and habitat, with consequences for the entire food chain. An attempt at a quick profit turned out to have unintended consequences. Recently, there has been more discussion in that region about restoring native trees, but it’s complicated. To say that it will take time to mitigate the damage of an invasive species is an understatement. Then again, compare that to the 2,000-year growth of some living redwood trees. May we learn patience and commitment from slow-growing trees.

We strive to be among those people who have the hope and imagination it takes to envision a world of justice and compassion, a world of liberation and self-determination, a world of peace where people sit calmly in the shade of slow-growing trees. In our neck of the woods, we might imagine a world where every person lives in safety and abundance, with access to the shade of a Witch Hazel, Hackberry, or Redbud tree; the three logically native trees our Earth Ethics Action Team recently arranged to have planted on the WES property. In folk music and wisdom tales, slow-growing trees symbolize enough time for a generation to grow without being uprooted by hunger or violence.

The California eucalyptus story reminds us that some of the environmental mistakes we humans have made were decisions made by a few but using the resources and the risk pool of many. Another time, we can unpack the harm that white American westward expansion had on indigenous land rights and communities, and on the horrors of labor exploitation involved in the transcontinental railroad, and on the energy and resources that were available for white colonization but not reparations for formerly enslaved people after the Civil War. Understanding the wrong choices that have been made in the past may help us turn toward making better choices as a society going forward. We can play an active role in the governments, corporations, and organizations to which we belong and who act on our behalf. Let us embody these relationships for repair and renewal.

Contrast the rushed, climate-disrupting story of the eucalyptus trees with the story of George Washington Carver. I had to catch up on some of his story this week, when my kids noticed discrepancies between what was said about Dr. Carver in the elementary school reader on our bookshelf and what they had read elsewhere. Some of us learned in school that the most important contribution Dr. Carver made as a scientist was discovering and promoting new uses for peanuts, but this version of his story is grossly oversimplified and obscures the way his research and activism supported Black self-determination as well as environmental repair.

After he graduated from the Iowa State Agricultural College in 1896, Dr. Carver accepted a position at the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama. Riding on the train to his new home, he noticed immediately that growing nothing but cotton was causing soil erosion and depletion. He had scientific solutions to that. What took longer was figuring out how to empower Black farmers -- especially those who were being exploited as sharecroppers -- to feed their families, improve their chances for subsequent years, and still make enough money to try to get out of debt. Smithsonian Magazine quotes biographer Mark Hersey about the way Dr. Carver understood the problem:

“What Carver comes to see,” Hersey says, was that “altering [black sharecroppers’] interactions with the natural world could undermine the very pillars of Jim Crow.” Hersey argues that black Southerners viewed their lives under Jim Crow through an environmental lens. “If we want to understand their day to day lives, it’s not separate drinking fountains, it’s ‘How do I make a living on this soil, under these circumstances, where I’m not protected’“ by the institutions that are supposed to protect its citizens? Carver encouraged farmers to look to the land for what they needed, rather than going into debt buying fertilizer (and paint, and soap, and other necessities—and food). Instead of buying the fertilizer that “scientific agriculture” told them to buy, farmers should compost. In lieu of buying paint, they should make it themselves from clay and soybeans.

So ends the excerpt. Dr. Carver understood way before what we think of as the modern environmental justice movement that liberation and conservation are entwined projects. The decisions we make for our families, for our communities, and for the planet all go together, and they all benefit from remembering interdependence and the long years of generations to come. Honoring the very beginnings of things, continuing to work on hopes that are barely tangible, believing in the distant future, allows us to live into Beloved Community. White Supremacy depends on the hurry-up-and-profit mindset that brought cracked eucalyptus logs to the Nevada desert. Beloved Community invites us to consider what may come from a seed.

Strong trees grow slowly. Strong communities learn and grow and make connections to other communities little by little over decades. Healing takes time. Repair takes time. And for all of these, we can’t always tell that it is happening. In most cases, we don’t see the seed unfolding under the soil. Our senses are not adjusted to notice the growth of trees right in front of us. Sometimes resilience is about knowing in your heart that change is possible, even when the evidence is not yet obvious.

The nearly imperceptible beginnings of change are also a theme in the earth-honoring holiday of Imbolc. The Celtic calendar where this holiday comes from is rooted in the seasons of light and dark of the northern hemisphere and the agricultural cycles of western Europe. At approximately the same time of year in the British Isles and here in the mid-Atlantic, the middle of winter means that we can start to perceive the time of sunrise and sunset edging toward spring, just a little more daylight each day.

February into March is the time of year when lambs start to be born, vulnerable and full of promise for the coming spring. It’s still cold outside! One theory for where the word Imbolc comes from is that it’s related to the word for sheep milk. The lambs need a lot of help to stay warm and to survive. Yet their arrival shows the persistence of life. Sometimes resilience is about remembering that life is possible.

This is also the time of year when people who grow vegetables in climates like ours make a plan for the next six months, gathering seeds, starting a few indoors, and figuring out how to make the most of the soil and sun that will be available later. Making plans at this in-between time of year takes courage.

For earth-honoring folks in Celtic traditions, the goddess Bridget (and, in her later form, St. Bridget of Kildare) is associated with this early February holiday. In the legends, Bridget protects access to clean, healing water. She is also a figure of light and flame. When you put fire and water together, you can make entirely new things out of what you had before. You can forge iron, cook food, sculpt clay and fire it into ceramics. Maybe this transformative potential is why Bridget is also associated with childbirth, poetry, healing, song, and art.

There is one thing that newborn lambs, vegetable seeds, soup ingredients, raw iron, and future poetry all have in common: They don’t look at the beginning the way they are going to look at the end. You have to have some hope and imagination to believe in the transformation that is coming. You have to keep doing what you are doing, when the evidence for success has not yet appeared. We need to hold on through the long term, through step-by-step processes, through the discomfort of growth and change. And so another thing we learn at Bridget’s holiday is the need for commitment.

If we’re paying attention to a legendary figure of generosity, art, and transformation, it’s a good idea to listen to the voices of poets who figured out how to sustain themselves and their families and communities through difficult times. During Black History Month, we are reminded of many examples of poets and artists who showed and inspired perseverance as they provided hope and imagination about a better world that was not yet fully manifest.

Back in October, on Vote Love Day, we heard about the story of Frances Ellen Watkins Harper. She was born in Maryland in 1825 to free parents, was educated at her uncle’s school, and had published a book of poetry by the age of twenty. She became a full-time lecturer and writer, and she was an activist for abolition and for economic self-determination in the Black community. One verse of her 1895 poem, “Songs for the People,” [more on that poem here] reads:

Our world, so worn and weary,

Needs music, pure and strong,

To hush the jangle and discords

Of sorrow, pain, and wrong.

Harper was well aware of the injustice, economic inequality, and violence that still plagued the cities and towns where she toured. She didn’t fail to address any part of that system in her other writing. Yet she still saw a place for music and art. For Harper, poetry was not a distraction from building the Beloved Community, but one of the technologies that can help bring it into being. Out of intangible words and ideas are woven a network of visions that lift up possibilities for liberation.

Good things grow from beginnings that are not yet obvious. The forces that will become spring are already at work under the snow in the middle of winter.

On the Jewish calendar, we’ve recently passed the holiday of Tu B’Shevat, the new year of trees. This is a minor holiday. It’s been around for hundreds of years, yet more people seem to be noticing it as we learn to connect spirituality with care for the earth. Sometimes people in Jewish homes and communities gather to eat different kinds of fruit and nuts, to give thanks for ways of growing, and recommit to stewardship of the planet. In regions where it makes sense, Tu B’Shevat is a time to plant trees.

Clearly, looking out the window today, it is not the right time to plant a tree where we live. Nevertheless, in our gratitude for trees, we are reminded of the growth and the fruition of work that exist because of what has come before. The forces that create and uphold life and our ancestors who cooperated with them knew that growth and resilience don’t always look that way from the outside. They knew that growth can start with something tough or plain. They knew the importance of allowing time and of giving thanks.

We drink from wells we did not dig and eat from trees we did not plant. As a community, part of our task is to muster the hope and imagination it takes to consider growth and resilience over time. We think long-term. We honor beginnings of change, even when they are hidden or barely perceptible. Let us be mindful of the impact of our choices, now and in the generations to come.

May it be so.

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dansnaturepictures · 4 years

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23/09/2020-Part 1: Sculthorpe Moor 10 different pictures to those tweeted

Today I firstly was dropped off at Sculthorpe Moor a stone’s throw from where we are staying for a solo walk one I had heard of before but never been. With the heaviest showers until the evening moved on in hindsight I had a great walk around this reserve. I got the sweet almost nostalgic impression that this is a great local reserve, the boardwalk takes you through a great selection of habitats mostly woodland, reedbeds, fields and water it was great whilst in Norfolk to see some true fens habitat. Even though thighs still looked uncertain in terms of restrictions at that point my appetite for Norfolk was well and truly wetted by watching BBC’s ‘A Wild Year’ programme in July an eloquent episode looking at the whole fens throughout the year. It had made me really long to see all of the East Anglia habitat this week so it was nice to be at the fens today. I took the first four and sixth pictures in this photoset of views here today.

I then have to express what a brilliant job the team at the Hawk and Owl Trust’s Sculthorpe Moor did to allow visitors safely back to this reserve. The board walk was adapted so well, cleverly turning bits of the boardwalk into a one way system and the other bits the signs etc made it quite clear to respect social distancing. The instructions on entering, exiting, walking about and wearing masks in hides with windows and doors left open for ventilation and only one person per window in the hides and visitor centre were very clear and sensible. I felt very safe here today, and the big thing it marked was that this is the first time I have been in a hide since early March. That was largely due to the timing of the pandemic hitting the UK because over the summer when the restrictions lifted in stages we spend more time watching and looking for butterflies in any year which doesn’t usually involve hides. We go into hides at Rutland Water during the Bird Fair in late August but obviously that was cancelled this year. Titchfield Haven and Blashford Lakes (which was the last place I went into a hide at) are the two main local reserves for me that have hides Titchfield you can see a lot of the reserve/area from the canal path/front so I haven’t been into the hides recently and Blashford are yet to reopen their hides. It’s been a mixed picture in Norfolk so far before today of us not really reaching hides on the walks, them being closed or the area being viewable from outside the hide. So it was rather down to opportunity that I came in a hide at this completely new place for me before anywhere else. But it was a massive confidence boost I am someone very socially awkward anyway so going into hides with no pandemic alone isn’t always something find easy anyway but it’s so good for me to see wildlife going in them so I was very glad I did it today.

And I was rewarded with great wildlife seen from the hides today. I loved seeing Pheasants at the Frank Jarvis (Woodland) hide and the Whitley (fen hide) getting very close to them as I tweeted photos of male and female, as well as see a Great Spotted Woodpecker at the top of a bare tree at the latter. I then saw a being mobbed Buzzard from the boardwalk as well as a Red Kite at the end by the centre before I was picked up so it really showed it was a reserve with birds of prey in mind. I spotted some nice mushrooms in the lovely woods on the floor and trees like the one in the fifth picture in this photoset and some on the trees from the hide. Greenfinches among other birds including a Bullfinch showed well from the feeding points all over the reserve always a great bird to see as they do struggle number wise.

I got some very intimate moments with woodland feeding birds which stood out today right in front of the hide window at the volunteer hide. It was wonderful to see lots of birds so up close I really enjoyed seeing them and getting valuable chances to photograph birds with my DSLR and big lens very close. The bird species I saw up close and personal were a nice range headlined by Treecreeper in the trees just in front, Nuthatch as shown in the ninth of my pictures in this photoset today and Long-tailed Tit and including Great and Blue Tit (seventh picture I took in this photoset), Chaffinch (eighth picture in this photoset) and Robin.

When I walked along the riverside walk and got to the far hides overlooking the scrape the day was brightening up a little and I was thrilled when I walked into the hide to see a Kingfisher land on the sticks in the water about half way across the water. I rushed with my big lens on my DSLR to get a picture but I was too slow as it flew away. It did come back about ten minutes later and my bridge camera given the slight distance ready this time I was thrilled to get the chances to photograph this bird. It stayed long enough for me to get pictures I took the tenth picture in this photoset of the Kingfisher among others as it was nice to hear it chirp and see it bob up and down a bit. I snapped away knowing that with my bridge camera zoom I could get pretty close. I thought to myself real close up Kingfisher shots don’t come every day for me so I wanted to take as many as possible. I think this was one of my best ever chances for a closeup picture adding to a growing group of them I have now so I was glad I waited. This was a sensational moment with one of my favourite birds and early member of my list of favourites too. I was thrilled and in my element watching it. A real gripping and pure joyful moment of nature watching and photography I was over the moon seeing it one of my best of loads of moments with some of my favourite birds this holiday. I left with a strong admiration of this reserve a great few hours spent here truly. It was nice to meet some great people at a safe social distance too something that really stood out.

Wildlife Sightings Summary: Four of my favourite birds the Kingfisher, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Buzzard and Red Kite, Carrion Crow, Woodpigeon, Pheasant, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Coal Tit, Chaffinch, Bullfinch, Greenfinch, Nuthatch, Treecreeper, Robin and Migrant Hawker dragonfly.

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needyounow-love · 4 years

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Hi! Could I ask you a match? I'm 5'2, but I like being short, I'm thankful that I'm not more tall! I have short dark brown hair, hazel eyes and pale skin (and I don't like to be tanned, I don't see myself in it). I'm slim, maybe too much, for this reason I'm not curvy, at all. I'm gemini, if this can help somehow ._.' I'm a person who has some difficulties to trust other people, if I trust a person it means that they did something that made them gain my respect and trust. If the person that I trust betrays me, I don't know if I can trust them anymore.

I love my family, even if I have a bad relationship with them. I think it's because of my rage: I'm easily irritable if something go wrong, because I'm always afraid to do something wrong, but this don't leave the problem. But only I can interact in a so-so way with my family, not anyone can hurt them. I don't have any problem to hurt badly any person who hurt my family with things that I can't write here because of the guidelines. It’s the same with my friends.

I don't have a lot friends, but for me it’s better like that, because I have a few trusted friends.

I'm kind of overprotective person, and I'm always afraid that people won’t accept me when I act in that way. I have some anxiety. When I hang out with my friends I can't stay too long in crowded places, 'cause I don't feel comfortable. I don't know how to explain it. When I get home I probably try to relax if I want to sleep, or I will be insomnious. I stay in silence for the whole time, my father always say to me "be silent and watch all over you".

I like to be observant, to understand. But if someone ask me something, I'm that tipe of friend that if I think something isn’t good for you, I will say it.

I hate lies, corruption... I can't stand a person who lies without a reason that oblige them to lie. Or people who corrupt to have all the things they want.

Even if I'm a lazy person, If I want something and I have to work to get it, I won't corrupt anyone, I will work for it.

I love cuddles, sometimes I act cold about it, but if you know how to make me feel confortable I will love your cuddles. In a relationship, I don't like to kiss or be intimate in public. I like it more when we're alone, not on the streets in some dark place, I prefer to show my affection when we are alone in the house. I have this opinion of privacy. And I prefer a person with experience and someone who really know what are doing, who use their brain. I don't like impulsive people.

I will wear his clothes, beacause that will make me feel better, somehow. I always try to help if I can. And I feel really sad if someone that know me don't trust me, that makes me feel like I did something wrong to make them act like that, so if they don't trust me, and I will do anything to fix that.

I love to listen to music. I believe that the music you listen can describe a part of you. I don't like a particular genre: I listen Metal, Rock, Classic music... I don't like trap. I hate it. I love the way music can make you sad or happy without stressing you. I don't like being stressed.

I'm a weird person, and I like being described like that. I play piano, and even if I don't take lessons anymore, I want to continue by myself in my free time (my last teacher was a little stressful). Some times my sister help me with it, and she is really well at it because she has a lot of experience with music!

I stay a lot of my time in silence in my room or with music on my headphones (I don't hang out of my house without them).

Drawing is my passion, even if I'm really bad at it, but I can become more confident with it if I continue to exercise! I pass my time by day dreaming, I watch a drawing, then start with some music and then I create a story about it.

Sometimes I write, but when I posted it I then deleted it because I didn’t feel confident about it. Maybe I will post some of my writing in the future.

Sometimes I like to sing, but my voice isn't that good, but I'm exercise for that.

I always try to be a good person, try to control my wrath, because I have a little problem with it, but only in really bad things. If I really care about a person, well, it's difficult for me to stay angry for a long time. I don't want to be a bad with them. I'm always angry with myself.

I love coffee and tea, both without sugar! Yeah, you can give me a lot of sweet things, but not coffee or tea with sugar. I need someone who can easily calm me down, who can know me really well, and who don't disrespect me for my protective attitude. A person who can accept my company, I'll be silent, promise! I can be a really cold and acid person if I lose my trust in you, or if you hurt someone that I care. And sometimes I'm jealous...

I'm also stubborn. Sometimes this make me bad, however I have to say that this part of me has helped me. The circumstances change the choices. I'm a creative person. Even if I'm a little lazy, sometimes I draw what comes to my mind, or play the piano without any point to start, I just play some notes. If I'm really interested in something I will look foward to learn it, and I like to also teach it. I like to read, but I'm not a big reader. I can read some good books that relax me (I prefer thrillers, but I read all the generes).

I like manga and anime. And I like to watch film.

I like to wear oversize clothes, but at the same time a like some elegant dresses (don't misunderstand me, I don't like the types of clothes that are too tight or too like disney princesses). And I have a really stange tastes in shoes.

I have a lot of other oversize hoodie and, yes, I wear a lot of chokers, I like them :).

I don't make to much differences to wear male or female clothes, I don't mind it. But I wear a lot of ì sportive shoes, they’re comfy :). And I like cute things. My favourite color is black, red and white.

I really like crows, cats, wolves and lynxes. I love animals, and I prefer if they stay in their natural habitat, even if they stay with humans. Sorry for the long message! I hope I didn't bother you, if it is, I'm really sorry! ._.' Sorry for my mistakes in the text, I'm trying to learn always more in English. Thank you for you're time! Hope you a nice day!

---

This is the last match up because the requests are now closed!

Plus, I have seen the images of the clothes that you sent me, but I’m not going to add them to the post because they’re too many lolol <3

@r0r4y

I match you with Lucifer.

Lucifer would be attracted by you because, just like you, he would protect his brothers and the people he cares about with his whole life, even if they annoy him constantly and if he hangs his brothers upside down it doesn’t mean that he will let someone else do that.

He would also trust you a lot because you seem a reliable person and he will expect you to trust him back.

Luci would admire you for being careful, hardworking and for only trusting people who can gain your trusts because he's like that too.

He doesn’t particularly appreciate loud people (*cough* Mammom *cough*) and prefers calm and quiet people, so he wouldn’t feel stressed around you.

Lucifer would be very good at encouraging you with doing things that you enjoy and praise you for each one of your achievements. He won’t absolutely see your stubbornness as a defect: he would love that you don’t give up easily.

PDA isn’t for him. Maybe he could want to hold your hand in public, but he won’t do more than that. On the other hand, he’s very affectionate behind closed doors and won’t esistate to pamper you with love when you two are alone.

He love coffee and tea, so he would try any type of them with you because you seem to like them just as much as him.

He’s pretty fond of your chockers and might buy more of them to use them during some of your specific encounters in his room *coff**coff**

Lucifer is very possessive, so he won’t mind if you’re possessive around him because he would be like that with you too. It kinda finds it cute because he likes to see that you want him as much as he wants you. However, even if enjoys to see you get all riled up he won’t really try to make you jealous on purpose.

And he will surely let you wear all his clothes, just don’t steal all of them (even if he won’t stop you from doing that) lol

#Mar's matches

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mcad-ae · 4 years

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Earth Day 2020 Visiting Artist

For Earth Day 2020, MCAD will be virtually hosting Christine Baeumler, a community-based artist focused on ecological restoration. An associate professor at the University of Minnesota in the Studio Arts department, Baeumler has worked on various green spaces within the Twin Cities and abroad, including the rooftop Tamarack Bog at MCAD! To join the Google Meet for the Visiting Artist lecture, use the following information:

Google Meet Room: Christine Baeumler Lecture

Link: https://meet.google.com/hfy-gxsp-swt

Phone, dial 601-935-4191

PIN: 220 663 421#

To lead into this talk, I asked Christine a couple of questions regarding both her work and the current global situation.

First of all, what are you currently working on?

Currently, I am focusing on the intergenerational as well as the interdisciplinary dimension of my collaborative practice. For example, in the Buzz Lab youth internship program at the Plains Art Museum and in the Backyard Phenology project, I am focused on appreciating how those projects can bring people from different backgrounds and age groups together. We all have so much to learn and gain from each other’s experiences.

You often work to improve urban green spaces. What are some examples of what you believe is a well done/designed green space? Any in the Twin Cities specifically?

I am most interested in urban green spaces that are not “designed” but intentionally create the conditions for increased habitat, biodiversity, and water quality considerations. This may mean managing plants introduced from elsewhere that thrive here to give the native plants a chance to re-establish, but also considering plants that are beneficial for pollinators and other species. These places may not appear designed to an outside observer, but a lot of labor goes into creating a thriving space. I acknowledge, however, it is not possible to fully restore our ecosystems given the damage humans have done to the land, water, and soil, at least in a short time frame.

Several places I particularly appreciate are the Quaking Bog at Theodore Wirth Park, (which inspired the Rooftop Bog at MCAD). It’s a tamarack bog with a walkway so that people can enjoy the bog but won’t disturb the delicate bog ecosystem there. The Bruce Vento Nature Sanctuary in St Paul below Iminija Ska (the White Cliffs) is an ongoing oak savanna restoration of a railroad brownfield, managed by the Parks and Recreation Department and the Lower Phalen Creek Project. If you haven’t been to either of those places I recommend a socially distanced walk (the walkway at the Quaking Bog is a bit narrow, so something to consider now).

I also appreciate the Native American Medicine Gardens on the University of Minnesota, Saint Paul Campus (across from the Bell Museum on Cleveland Avenue). The director of the Native American Medicine Garden, Cante Suta/ Francis Bettelyoun, has built up the soil (and the microbes) on the site over many years. Bettelyoun, students, and a team of volunteers care for the plants and animals there from the Indigenous perspective of Relatives. I love that among the neat rows of the experimental agricultural plots, the NAMG has an organic quality that is teeming with life--insects, birds, and mammals.

What aspects of urban living are you looking to change? How do you believe the integration of art and green spaces work to improve the living conditions within an urban environment?

As I mentioned before, in relation to the Native American Medicine Gardens, I believe that shifting our perspective as the natural world from resource to Relative, which is an Indigenous perspective, is such an important shift in awareness. I hope this shift in our consciousness can lead to different approaches about the ways we live, what we consume, as well as how we see our role as artists, designers and people with political agency.

I believe we have the opportunity to reconsider our roles as artists, and expand our notion of what is and what can be. I admire the practitioners of Maintenance Art, Mierle Laderman Ukeles and Sean Connaughty, whose artistic practice involves an everyday attention to dealing with waste (something most of us would choose to ignore).

This is another chance to think in terms of systems instead of discrete projects. We have big complex challenges, such as climate change, that need comprehensive and coordinated solutions. Individual choices matter, but we have to make systemic and political change on larger scales while keeping issues of environmental and social justice at the forefront of our consideration. Big topics, to be sure, but they require us to be attentive to ways things are interconnected. Maybe we can see how we are all connected more clearly at this time as we are all starting to feel our own vulnerability.

Artists and designers can integrate art and the urban environment by playing a variety of roles--but to me, working in interdisciplinary teams and with and in conversation with communities seems like an impactful way to collectively address environmental challenges.

As I watch environmental protections rolled back, for example, during this moment of Covid 19, I believe it is also incumbent upon us to act politically, to make our voices heard, and to vote in the fall.

We are in a time of great global change and uncertainty. How do you believe the quarantine and constantly shifting events will impact the art world, creatives, and our reactions to the world around us? Any advice for the students in quarantine?

I have so many questions instead of answers. First, how do we, as individuals and a community, consider those most deeply impacted by Covid 19? Those who do not have a home, food security or have health or economic challenges? How are we addressing more immediate needs? How do we effectively stand up to attempts to dismantle environmental protections or other moves that are destructive?

While we are reeling from the impact these changes make in our own lives, how do we stay present to what’s happening in the public sphere? I am asking these questions of myself and turning to those who have more advanced ideas and thinking about the present situation than I do.

The art world, consisting of cultural and educational institutions, organizations, community groups, funders and individuals have all been impacted in ways we are only beginning to comprehend. This may lead to a different way of organizing ourselves and our practices.

As I look out, I see a myriad of ways artists are approaching their work in this time of crises (plural because we face more than the pandemic) by creating platforms, opportunities, raising up voices, making the invisible visible, calling out injustice, creating awareness, and expressing a range of emotional responses through a variety of media --and offering work that provides solace and humor as well.

Historically, artists have always responded to crises and have been at the forefront of movements addressing injustice, violence, war, health crises, and environmental threats.

Now it is our turn, as artists, to consider how we respond. What a significant, and perhaps somewhat terrifying, opportunity. It may take us some time to collect ourselves. In fact, it seems important to take the time we need to adjust before we spring into action.

For students in quarantine.

I would encourage students to take this time to slow down, reflect, journal, meditate--whatever self reflective practices help you to be in touch with yourself--and take care of yourself. Embrace your feelings, and reach out if you need assistance. It’s ok not to be “productive” at this moment. We are in a time where people are experiencing extreme disruption and trauma--so be gentle with yourself. Connect to others in the ways you are able.. and don’t get too isolated.

Your voice, your ideas and your work are significant, and matter to the world. But being in touch with where you are in the moment may be the most important thing to honor.

Right now, many of us have the opportunity to slow down, reflect and more deeply examine our own lives and our relationship to what is important to our own well-being, our Fellow Beings and our Earth.

Any advice for how the individuals reading this can practice creativity, or any overall thoughts on the creative process in this time?

I want to offer a way to refresh our creativity. Take a break from technology. Go outside and connect with your “nature family,” the trees, the birds, the rocks, the sun, moon and stars. The weather. Using your imagination and the power of observation, quiet your mind and listen to what the world has to communicate with you. Have a conversation with a chipmunk, debate a crow, chuckle with a stone. The human world has become more quiet now, and perhaps it is our chance to engage, through our minds and our senses, with the world outside of our doors and beyond our screens.

-An Interview with Christine Baeumler, edited by Madilyn Duffy

#mcad_ae makemcad creativity stayhome2020

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ayakashiramblings · 5 years

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Summer for the Ayakashi (Dawn Faction-2)

Note: I have just finished Koga’s route and now I am currently doing Ginnojo. This post could be updated once I have read the remaining characters. (Hence why it’s Dawn Faction - 2). Some spoilers ahead and Kuya may be out of character for those who have read him (or not?). Actually, I am pretty sure all of them are out of character.

Also, as you can see, my English is awful, I have no creative bone in me but I have been dying to join this fandom... ESPECIALLY FOR KOGA!!!

Koga Kitamikado

This oni LOVES summer.

There are swarms of people flooding the Capital, exploring new connections and ventures... and he gets to be a part of them despite his Ayakashi nature.

As an entrepreneur, several businesses are booming and he can start to invest in more ideas meant to beat the heat.

LIKE RANDOM WATER FIGHTS!!!

... Even with a Mizuchi dragon and a Domeki.

Arranges for fruit-picking with Masanobu and other Capital kids... even for peaches.

This is essentially #LetsBullyKogaAgainButHeWillLoveUsStill.

He thinks eating hotpot with fellow comrades against Shizuki’s ice powers is the equivalent of having ice-cream on a kotatsu.

Kuya proceeds to give him the even-more-silent treatment for that blasphemous thought.

Shizuki would have joined the tengu’s sulking session... were it not for his Kitsune employer agreeing with Koga JUST to irk the snow spirit.

I would have suggested volleyball but let’s admit it, we all know what’s going to happen with those kind of horns.

And of course, lighting the fireworks for everyone to enjoy with his beloved MC.

Fights with her over who gets to feel the most of the explosions.

Don’t worry, they eventually just cuddle and sip on some sake despite sweating like pigs.

Eventually ends up in a group pile because the kids start resting on MC’s lap/ Koga’s shoulder.

Ginnojo

Poor boy. Have you seen bookstores in summer? I haven’t, my country is an inferno all-year-round.

Practically filled to the brim with people escaping the summer heat.

He can’t even close for lunch on time and has to make up for it by having 8 bowls of rice for breakfast instead of the usual four.

The only one who won’t break out into a sweat during the afternoon patrols.

Also can still eat his 15 servings of cutlet curry.

Breaks out all of the ancient cooling tricks he learnt from dealing with the Demon Deputy like whipping out every single windchime and pouring water onto the soil.

Makes sure to support Kuro during the Circus’ Summer Season.

Blushes when he sees MC in a yukata, or any female for that matter.

The Nagashi somen Festival has already ended honestly, but let's assume The Capital starts another round...

So picture it, pure white noodles shooting down from a long, half-pipe bamboo, the water glistening in the sun...

... Ending all in Ginnojo's plate until it is around Nachi's height

Don’t worry, he shares the gargantuan serving with the others.

He still finishes 1/2 of his catch since no one can eat that much...

Everyone loves his powers now; turning an innocent Marco Polo match into an epic water fight, suddenly being able to surf and MC even gets him to wash Nachi.

This is essentially #LetsBullyNachiAgainButHeWillLoveUsStill.

Kuya

Here, we observe the tengu in his natural habitat.

Somehow, catching just the right amount of sun (god knows how), the miracle-that-is-the-electric-fan-Koga-bought-for-himself-but-oh-well, Ginnojo’s books and writer’s stationery just... collecting dust...

He’s only moving when the fan is oscillating/MC arrives with the perfect lap for a pillow.

Only Aoi and Koga can find him. Koga because they’re bros. Aoi because he has a Slacker Radar.

It’s the season for ice-cream!!!

And so is every other season but you know...

He gets Shizuki to make his and Yura’s tea cold... before the ‘friends who do tea’ realize their iced tea... becomes tea iced.

Makes the first ever ice pillow and considers writing about it... before Yura literally cuts his mouth open with the biss-cuts.

Has to pretend to fall asleep since Yura wouldn’t disturb him then... before he actually falls asleep.

They use him to save and ‘reserve’ any seats if there is a summer crowd... because no one would disturb an angel.

Will offer to let you fly with him because god, the ground is scorching, and those sandals are going to do absolutely nothing.

Sleeps perfectly dine even when buried under the sand... but you can expect severe shade in some chapter of his latest tale or something.

Surprisingly hoards all the seashells, sea glass and all things shiny to build a sort of nest. Invites MC and even learnt how to make some jewellery out of the ‘treasure’

Makes. Sure. To. Give. A. Bird. Bath. To. Crows.

By that, I mean Koga.

#ayakashi romance reborn #koga kitamikado #ginnojo #kuya #voltage inc #headcanon #arr

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datetheplants · 6 years

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Face to face with the sky (Albert Dasilva)

Part 2 of the series However We Know

Albert easily got cold. The others always poked fun at him because of it. He would never ask for their jacket and he’ll never admit it but he found himself touched when they would bundle him up or when Tony simply snuggled up against him because ‘body heat, Albo!’. He was not a human heater like Jack or an immortal like JoJo as Crutchie always described him because he rarely gets sick. Albert sometimes just hated the cold, especially when it nipped at his skin.

That is why in the early weeks of November after finally recovering from his fever, Tony shoved what must have been at least five layers of clothing on him. Others would think that for most of the time, Tony did stupid things. No, not Albert, especially when he is constantly at the receiving end of the mothering. He glared at him as Tony tucked his ears inside his beanie.

JoJo came out of the kitchen and stopped at the sight of them.

“You’re wearing like, ten jackets,” he said to Albert.

Tony stepped back. “He’s going to die of hypothermia, Jo.”

There was a groan from Albert. “I’ll die anyway wearing this amount of clothes.”

They were going to head over to Jack’s group exhibit. It has been something that he had been stressing about since his professor had announced to the class that they would have to create two artworks that would be seen my known artists. Jack was a wreck but by the end of the month, he became a successful wreck.

The three rode a cab to the university with Albert between JoJo and Tony. He squirmed in his seat, trying to be comfortable and by the middle of the drive, he had accidentally elbowed JoJo in the face when he tried to take off his jacket. Tony was already laughing when Albert shoved his jacket in his face.

They arrived at the event where they recognized several faces from their classes. The others were mostly art students and they greeted the ones whom Jack had introduced to them before. They found Crutchie by the refreshment table with Sean Conlon.

“Hey guys,” greeted Tony to them. “Seen Jack already?”

“Kelly’s crying in the bathroom,” said Sean and sipped his drink.

Crutchie grinned. “He’s talking to some big-time artists.”

Sean and Crutchie were studying to get an English degree and so they hung out together frequently with Jack mostly rolling his eyes at them when they got into some heated discussion. Albert has seen it up close. Tony usually tunes them out when it happens and Jojo nods along at some points.

“Have you already looked around?” asked Jojo to the two.

“Yeah,” answered Crutchie. “Jack’s works are on the other side. “You’ll see.”

They joined them in looking around. Albert found varying styles of art. He never had the eye for such things and he was never really good at making them but he appreciated them. He admired that one of his friends could create such beauty with colors and lines. They passed by canvasses of black and white and bursts of colors. They neared the middle of the room where the sculptures were placed and the others crowded around a mermaid made of copper wires. Albert stood with them with his hands inside his hoodie when a particular painting caught his eyes. He walked towards it.

Albert was headed into a sunset. He’s had many memories of seeing oranges, pinks, purples, browns and greens coming together. He and Tony would go up to the roof just to watch the sun set. Jojo sometimes joined them when he would come by before dinner. Davey liked to watch with them when he needed a break from his pile of assignments. There were time when it was just Albert on his back and staring up at the sky. He’d have his blanket with him because he knew Tony would come up carrying it anyway. Albert would just wait there, watching the sky turn from blue to colors he’d see even as he closed his eyes.

He knew of this painting.

“Hey, Jack, yous making some pretty colors!”

“Don’t touch it, Albo. It’s still wet.”

He smiled at the little plaque next to it.

“Jack’s a sap,” a voice from his right said.

He turned his head and saw Davey, looking at another painting. Albert followed his gaze and saw the other work of Jack. It was of Davey on his desk, probably in the middle of scribbling something furiously with only a lamp to help him see.

“It’s you in your natural habitat,” grinned Albert.

Davey rolled his eyes just as Albert saw Jack coming towards them.

“Hey!” he beamed. “Glad you guys could make it.”

Jack pulled them in for a hug. It didn’t escape Albert’s notice that Davey had a slight blush on his cheeks. He sent a knowing look to Jack who winked at him.

“Where’s the others?” he asked.

“They’re going around,” replied Albert.

He nodded towards the paintings. “Your work is amazing, man. Seriously, you should have your own exhibit.”

“Aw, thanks, Al,” said Jack, giving him another hug.

Soon enough, the others came and congratulated Jack on his work. People began milling around and Jack must have had made an impression like he always did because people were coming up to him. Tony found few of his classmates and went off to talk to them while Davey and Sean chatted about some confusing theory about a book.

“Are you okay now, Albie?” asked Crutchie. “I heard you got the fever.”

Albert shrugged. “I’m fine now. Jojo took care of me because Tony would have gone into cardiac arrest.”

“You should have seen him when he came home, Crutch,” added JoJo, laughing.

The exhibit seemingly went on for hours. People left but there were more who arrived. Albert saw Jack talk to some famous-looking people that he and JoJo couldn’t help but raise their thumbs up from across the room where Jack got a perfect view of them while he was talking with some group. He subtly flipped them off. Crutchie called it a night and Davey volunteered to take him home. No one missed the kiss he gave Jack on the cheek. It was his turn to blush.

“Have you seen Tonio?” asked Albert to one of his classmates at some point.

“I don’t know, dude,” he answered. “Last I saw him he was trying to piss off one the professors by starting some debate.”

Albert sighed and looked around. The event was nearing to an end. JoJo was talking to Jack at one of the tables and some professors were still milling around, probably asked to grade the works of the students. Albert took off his hoodie and rolled his eyes when he realized that he was wearing a long sleeved shirt. How he managed to forget, he didn’t know. Tony was probably distracting him while he picked up the nearest clothing he could find. Tony also probably put it there.

He went out into the garden of the university, thankful that the lights were still on. He sat on a bench and let out a breath. He could hear the city outside, alive and still awake. He could hear cars honking and people chattering. He could hear the laughter from inside. He could hear music. Albert could see the memory already.

He could feel the hands pulling at his, prompting him to get up on his feet and join the other boys in dancing. He could feel the arms around his shoulders and the clapping from the top bunks. He could hear the whistling, the crowing and the singing.

“You gotta’ move those feet, Red!”

“There, that’s it!”

“We’s dancing all night, boys!”

It was there. It was all there.

“Albert?”

He turned and saw Tony, standing under one of the lights.

“Hey, Albie! Come dance with me.”

“I’s just gonna’ trip, Race!”

“Don’t care!”

Real.

He’s real.

Albert smiled at him. “Glad you finally turned up.”

“Turner was fun to rile up,” chuckled Tony. “You should see his vein ready to pop.”

He walked closer to him. Real. He’s real. He’s here.

Tony laid a hand on his shoulder and squeezed gently. Albert smiled up at him.

“Want to go home?” asked Tony, softly.

“Yeah.”

They dropped JoJo at his dorm and said goodbye to Jack. Albert almost forgot his jacket and hoodie and it was a good thing Tony was there to remind him. He was bunched up again before they walked out. Albert could already feel it before it bit at his skin. Tony put an arm around his shoulders and kept him close.

Albert sometimes hated the cold but during moments like this, he was more than peaceful staying beside Tony.

Real.

Where he’s close. Where he’s by his side. Where he can feel him.

It was a month later when Albert found himself up on the rooftop again. He had his blanket around him and his earphones plugged in. Jack loved coming to their rooftop. He said it was calming and a good place to draw something. Albert agreed with him although he rarely drew. He couldn’t draw to save his life but he liked sitting on the ground, seeing all his friends around him. He liked to be there under something so vast and wide. He liked to be just there.

Albert has spent his life moving. He was always searching. No one really talked about it. It was just something everyone knew or came to them. One day, they would make themselves believe that they are just tired and dreaming things and then the next they’re just there. Albert could remember how Jojo sat beside him, his hand weaving through his hair. It was familiar, something Jojo always did when some of the younger boys couldn’t sleep. He did it when Albert got himself sick to the point where he couldn’t get out of bed. Jojo was there when he was so sure- so sure that he will never get to see another day come. And Race…

“I’s gonna’ sell today, Albie. Gotta sell a lot of papes to get you a doctor.”

He didn’t know what happened to him.

Albert was nine when he cried so hard he could barely breathe. He was nine when he felt around in his bed, seeking for the people he’s known from a long time ago. He was nine when tried to run away, trying to get to a place that’s long forgotten him, to where people no longer knew him because so much time has passed. He spent years looking. He waited for years to come across someone because he knew he wasn’t alone. He could feel it. It was just there.

And he was right.

God, was he right.

He was fifteen when he met a boy named Anthony. People called him Tony. Some called him Tonio. To Albert, he was the boy who had such a mouth on him he was bound to get chased after with a stick. He was the boy who jumped on others’ backs to be carried. He was the one who gave his own blankets to other kids. He was the boy who liked to point out the birds in the sky and tell everyone he could fly. He was the one who looked so much like the angels he’d see at church.

He was fifteen when he met Anthony Higgins.

He was sixteen when he met the others.

He was whole.

An earphone was taken out and he turned his head.

“I thought you were still at class,” said Tony, already sitting down.

“The professor didn’t turn up,” returned Albert.

He’s real.

Albert extended his blanket to Tony and he shuffled closer to him. He kept him under his arm. Tony leaned his head against his shoulder.

“JoJo knows,” he mumbled.

Albert looked down at him. He could still the bruises on the side of Tony’s face from the fight he got himself into. It has been two weeks since he got out from the hospital, already saying ‘fight me’ every time people asked about his black eye.

JoJo knows. He does.

“That’s good,” he said.

Tony made a sound and stayed silent for quite a while. Albert never really admitted it up until now but he’s pretty sure everyone probably knows. Tony knows. He knows because Albert waits up until he gets home. He lets him know when he hugs him before they go to their classes and after their day is done. He’s there every time Tony is upset. He’s there to hold him. He’s there to let him cry. He’s there when he’s happy. He’s there when he feels lonely.

Albert is just there and he doesn’t want to leave anymore.

“Albie,” called Tony, softly.

“Yeah?” he asked.

Tony let out a breath. Albert could feel him smile against his shoulder.

“The sky looks pretty.”

Albert smiled, too and closed his eyes.

“Yeah. It does.”

#newsies #albert dasilva #racetrack higgins #race higgins #ralbert #newsies au #modern au #au #reincarnation #reincarnation au #jack kelly #crutchie morris #spot conlon #david jacobs #newsies fanfic #fic #fanfic #jojo de la guerra

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weekendwarriorblog · 3 years

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The Weekend Warrior 7/9/21 - BLACK WIDOW, SUMMERTIME, THE LONELIEST WHALE and More

Well, well... It certainly looks like I’ve been given a bit of a “bye week” to recuperate and recover from all the insanity of June, huh? The 4th of July weekend saw a nice boon for Universal Pictures with the top 3, although The Boss Baby: Family Business ended up doing better than The Forever Purge despite the former also being on Peacock. But neither of them really got great reviews, so I’m not sure either of them will have much impact on this week’s big release…

BLACK WIDOW (Marvel Studios/Disney)!

Yes, after nearly two years, Marvel Studios is back in theaters with the long-awaited solo movie for Scarlett Johansson’s Natasha Romanoff, who has appeared in the movies going back to Iron Man 2, also played a key role in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, as well as three of the Avengers movies. The Black Widow movie goes back in time to after the events of Captain America: Civil War and before (SPOILER!) Romanoff was killed in Avengers: Infinity War. This one reunites her with her family including Florence Pugh as her sister Yelena, as the two of them want to take down the Red Room where they were trained to be killers. It also stars David Harbour as the Red Guardian and Rachel Weisz as their maternal figure, and honestly, you probably don’t even need that much to know that you probably already want to see it, because IT’S MARVEL!

It’s actually hard to believe that Black Widow is Marvel’s first theatrical release since 2019’s Spider-Man: Far From Home, and obviously, that wasn’t supposed to be how things went. Marvel’s original release date for the movie was kicking off the summer of 2020, but when COVID hit and theaters were closed, it was delayed, first until the end of the year and then until the summer of 2021. It must have been difficult because Marvel had already planned a series of television series that led into the movies, including Wandavision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and the currently-airing Loki.

Marvel’s first theatrical release in two years currently has a relatively decent 82% on Rotten Tomatoes, which for comparison’s sake is a better rating than Captain Marvel and Avengers: Age of Ultron, but that’s about it. I mean, at least it’s not stinking up Marvel’s track record like Iron Fist and The Inhumans did, so there’s that. I’ve already reviewed the movie, so you can read what I thought about it here.

More important than any other factor, there’s the Disney+ in the room, because Disney decided to offer Black Widow for a Premium on its streaming service this Friday, basically for $30, which I’m not sure if that’s for a certain amount of time or to own (which would make more sense). That’s a pretty sweet deal if you have a family and a nice home theater, because taking them all to the movies might cost $100 or more with concessions, etc. But for a lot of people, it’s long past time to get back to theaters, and despite the success of the Disney+ shows, many will want to see this on the big screen. At least that’s my theory, and I’m gonna stick with it until I’m proven wrong when numbers come in on Friday or Saturday.

It’s very hard to determine how many of the millions of people who went to see Avengers: Endgame over two years ago are ready to get back into theaters, but one benefit that Black Widow has over other upcoming Marvel movies (okay, well, Shang-Chi) is that Johansson’s character is a known commodity from previous movies, which certainly could have helped Tom Holland’s solo Spider-Man movies, although you would think that Spider-Man: Far from Home would have opened bigger following Endgame. To be fair, the Spider-Man movies were opening with over $100 million WELL before the MCU, showing the popularity of the character, although we also could see a bump with the second Captain America and Thor movies after their appearance in 2012’s The Avengers. Oddly, 2018’s Ant-Man and the Wasp didn’t see nearly as big an opening bump following Avengers: Infinity War from the first movie, but Ant-Man hadn’t been as big a player as Natasha/Black Widow. Oddly, the Spider-Man and Ant-Man movies have something in common -- they both opened in July vs. May.

The other factor, of course, is COVID and whether a movie can open even bigger than the $70 million opening weekend of F9, currently the biggest post-pandemic opener. If anything is going to do it, then it’s going to be a Marvel movie, especially one that should be as big a draw for women as for men. No, we don’t subscribe to the myth that female-led action movies don’t do as well as males ones. The MCU is all about the characters and the universe, and those factors should help Black Widow should be good for somewhere around $80 to 85 million over the weekend, which will make it the new barometer for the post-pandemic. (Incidentally, this is only about $11 million less than my original prediction from last March, and that didn’t have the COVID or streaming factor in play.)

Hey, you know what I haven’t done in a long time but probably should resume?

MY TOP 10 BOX OFFICE PREDICTIONS!

1. Black Widow (Marvel/Disney) - $84.3 million N/A

2. F9 (Universal) - $9.6 million -58%

3. The Boss Baby: Family Business (Universal/DreamWorks Animation) - $9 million -45%

4. The Forever Purge (Universal) - $5.7 million -54%

5. A Quiet Place Part II (Paramount) - $2.2 million -45%

6. The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard (Lionsgate) - $1.4 million -55%

7. Cruella (Disney) - $1.3 million -47%

8. Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway (Sony) - $1.2 million -42%

9. The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (New Line/WB) - $600k -57%

10. In the Heights (New Line/WB) - $550k -43%

Although one can expect big drops all around, this should be another weekend where the top 10 domestic grosses $100 million, but that’s kind of a given with Black Widow likely to make much of that itself.

I guess this week’s “Chosen One” is SUMMERTIME (Good Deed Entertainment), directed by Carlos Lopez Estrada (Blindspotting, Raya and the Last Dragon), which is a pseudo-doc, pseudo-narrative that follows 27 Angelino poets in a typical day in Los Angeles. I’m not really a poetry or spoken word fan so much, but the way that these talented poets are showcased, each in their own compelling segment. While having some kind of interconnecting story might not have been necessary, it’s actually what keeps you invested as you go from one situation and style of poetry onto the next. You can tell that there are some real stars of the future in this that will likely appear elsewhere. There are just so many great numbers from Tyris Winter complaining abut the price of food at a restaurant, Mila Cuda expressing her sexuality on the bus to an obvious homophobe, a couple at a marriage counselor relaying their issues through song and rap, an amazing dance number, and so much more. My favorite running storyline was the one involving street rappers Anewbys (Bryce Banks) and Rah (Austin Antoine), who are trying to make it. The incidental music is great, and the performances are embellished with cinema verité style shots of L.A. that really helps enhance the mood and set the environment for the story being told. It’s hard to call Summertime a musical, but there’s so much great rhymes and music that it just has a great youthful energy that seems so perfect for this time of the year.

You can read my interview with Estrada over at Below the Line later today.

Streaming now on Disney+ is the first episode of the new Pixar series Monsters at Work, based on the characters from one of my favorite Pixar movies, Monsters Inc., with new episodes airing every Wednesday.

Joshua (Cropsy) Zeman’s doc THE LONELIEST WHALE: THE SEARCH FOR 52 (Bleecker Street), exec. produced by Leonardo DiCaprio hits theaters on Friday and then will be on digital July 16. Oddly, it’s the second movie in the last month about whales. This one is about the search for the 52 Hertz Whale that was discovered in 1989 and has become a global sensation as it lives in solitude, emitting a different frequency from other whales and therefore unable to communicate.

I have to admit that I was quite cynical about this movie, mainly because it looked like it could potentially be boring, as we watch and listen to a bunch of oceanographers talking about whales, and I was mostly right. Zeman himself is not the most interesting subject or narrator for his own doc, so that doesn’t help much either. Essentially, the entire movie is this group of rag-tag oceanographers (as well as a musician who plays clarinet with the whales -- yeah, he should be thrown overboard first, I’m thinking) looking for this elusive whale that no one has seen since 1989. As you can imagine, it’s a fairly fruitless expedition that makes you miss the excitement of Ron Howard’s whale movie, but if you’re just watching this to see beautiful whales in their natural habitat, the movie does deliver. I’m sure the less cynical than myself will find more interesting aspects of the film to enjoy, and yes, this is a far superior film to the recent Fathom, but it also shares lots of potentially interesting facts about whales and their history, which doesn’t make it a complete loss.

I have to imagine that The Loneliest Whale should be appreciated as a fine nature doc if you’re into this sort of thing, but if you’re looking for something particularly groundbreaking or moving, you’ll have to search elsewhere.

Judd Ehrlich’s doc THE PRICE OF FREEDOM (Tribeca Studios) takes on the gun debate and how the National Rifle Association has divided the nation and cost countless lives along the way. The movie features the likes of President Bill Clinton, activist (and Parkland survivor) X Gonzalez, Senator Chris Murphy, Representatives Jason Crow and Lucy McBath, and many more on both sides of the gun debate.

Also opening on Friday in theaters and virtual cinema is the Tunisian horror film DACHRA (Dekanalog), written and directed by Abdelhamid Bouchnak, which follows three journalism students as they investigate a cold case which takes them deep into the woods.

Netflix launched its “Fear Street” franchise last week based on the book series by R.L. Stine, and this week, the second movie, FEAR STREET PART 2: 1978 (Netflix), debuts on the streamer. I’ve actually seen Fear Street Part 1: 1994, and it’s a fun little slasher set in the town of Shadyside, the “Killer Capitol of the USA.” I honestly had no idea these were Rated R, since I thought it was more of a young adult type thing, but it’s really straight-up Wes Craven Scream. I might have to check out some of these books, but the first movie was quite enjoyable even if they generally seem derivative of other slashers.

Also, Eytan Fox’s Sublet, which has been playing in select theaters will now be available to Watch At Home via Apple TV, Prime Video, Vudu, FandangoNOW, Google Play, YouTube and DIRECTV. Also, Ivan Kavanagh’s horror film, Son, will be on Shudder this Thursday so if you missed it in theaters and VOD, now’s your chance to see it, and you can read my interview with Mr. Kavanagh over at Below the Line.

Oh, and TONIGHT at the Metrograph, as part of their Live Screening Series, they’ll be showing Rashaad Ernesto Green’s Gun Hill Road (2011) as part of their FIrst Film Series with the Green Brothers, which will be followed next week by the first film from his brother, Reinaldo Marcus Green.

And that, my friends, is it for this week! Next week, we have SPACE JAM: A NEW LEGACY from Warner Bros., and that’s about it! (Well, there will be a lot more limited releases, as well a Emmy nominations, so back to the grind!)

#The Weekend Warrior #Movies #Reviews #BlackWidow #Black Widow #BOx Office #Summertime

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barberwitch · 6 years

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Hey! So I'm a relatively new witch and I was wondering, is it normal to feel a bit silly while practicing sometimes? I keep finding myself doubting that what I'm doing is actually doing anything and it makes me question my spells and what I'm doing exactly.

Yes. It’s completely normal to feel a bit odd especially during ritual.

Part of that is because it should feel odd. Most times people come to witchcraft from a different path and this is something new. Especially if that’s an Abrahamic faith (such as Islam, Judaism, or Christianity). That’s why you have things in certain paths like saying the pater noster (our father) backwards to “break” your connection to that faith. You are delving into new ways of thinking, and breaking from a set of traditions you may be used to, that’s natural.

Keep in mind that something’s should feel right. If working with fire doesn’t feel right but working with air does, that’s just a sign that you might have a natural affinity to working with that. If following deities seems wrong or off to you, that’s your right. Are you one to follow a set beliefs? Look at the different pagan faiths, maybe you want something all your own, do research on different beliefs, correspondences and skills, you may have just not found what works best for you and that’s ok.

There’s a word I do want you to meditate, think about, work with though and that is “Surrender”. So much of the experiences that can be eye opening or life changing are so out of our comfort zone we shut down and chalk it up to “that’s weird and I don’t like it.” But in witchcraft, you can’t start out that way. Always ask “why?” And figure out what’s holding you back. “Why does this make me uncomfortable?” “Why do I think that’s not for me?” “Why do I feel embarrassed doing this?”

Remember that you don’t have to follow a path for anyone, except yourself.

We all have spell failures, what’s so handy about a book of shadows is that it can keep a log for you to track your progress. Did something not turn out the way you planned? Check back, and see what could have been changed. Was your intention or dedication lacking. Did you stop 3 days into something that was supposed to be going on for 7. Were you working with an herb because you read it in a book, but had no personal connection to and even though you feel herb a, means protection but the book says it’s only good for use b.

You are allowed to make up your own spells, traditions and beliefs and don’t have to follow what Tumblr tells you. Most solitary witches of olde had to test and tinker and try until they found what worked. We get spoiled seeing “this does this without fail” but it may only work for them because of their personal experiences.

If you feel dorky or embarrassed about howling at the moon, or treading the mill with strangers or whatever, work on yourself. No matter how confident someone may appear, we all have our weaknesses and self conscious moments we all try and work through. One exercise to try and pick an animal you like. Watch videos in their natural habitat and try and act like they do in response to where you are. How would a crow interact with your home, is it the same as what a wolf would do? Surrender to the experience and forget about what it may look like.

Witchcraft aesthetic can really affect people and make them think they’re less than, but witchcraft isn’t about an aesthetic, it’s about an experience.

Sometimes, we need to surrender to that experience and forget everything except for the moment.

Sorry for prattling on, and apologies if it’s a bit all over the place. I’ve had two glasses of champagne and am just speaking from the heart.

#witchy asks #ask a witch #magic and embarrassment #self conscious #witchcraft #witch #witches #ritual #magic #witches with beards #witches with mustaches #gay witch #poison witch #poison path #real talk

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sussex-nature-lover · 3 years

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Saturday 27th February 2021

Big Coats

Look at the garden. The sun’s out. What a difference from just a couple of weeks back. The woods are so busy and there’s singing all day long. I won’t be needing my ‘big coat’ again for ages - or so I hope, not that it’s had many outings at all this past season.

Our lady Pheasant total is seven regulars plus one occasional and the lads, here they are with one teeny Robin in their midst. They’re a really good example of little and large getting along well together.

The House Sparrows regular perch by the Conifers caught my eye out of the side window and this time it’s occupied by a Blackbird and a Song Thrush who were having a little tussle. Despite the size difference, the Thrush wasn’t daunted and it didn’t really amount to anything. By the way, I’m still working on the mystery bird that I can’t identify from that same spot. I’m veering towards a very small female House Sparrow perhaps, kind of small Dunnock sized. I’d almost settled on a Dunnock but think the colours are much rich. I’ll post when I think I’ve decided, but I wouldn’t hold your breath in anticipation to be honest.

This morning the Blackbird was visiting on the roof and then while I was on the phone to Ms NW tE, we had a Goldfinch visit at the birdbath. It’s hard to capture a shot at the best of times, as you know well, but one handed whilst chatting, impossible. Crow has kept watch and declared that the Goldie dips its head for a quick drink exactly three times and then takes off quick sharp.

A rather damp Blackbird

Yesterday though I had a good viewing and took loads of photos. It was late in the afternoon as I’d gone upstairs to draw the curtains, so it wasn’t great light for pics and, because of who it was, it turns out most of them look identical.

The Reveal

Sparrowhawk is back, so I’m going to have a really good look at them here because it’s been a while since I spotted one.

The kind of good news is that Sparrowhawks can only thrive if their prey is present in good numbers and has a healthy population. Here’s the fact file

Scientific name: Accipiter nisus

Family: Buzzards, kites & allies

Status: Resident breeder and passage migrant

Breeding pairs: 35,000

Wintering birds: 100,000

Conservation status: Green

Length: 28 – 39 cm

Wingspan: 60 – 67cm

Weight: 110 – 350g

Average lifespan: 4 years

When I say the photos are all the same, it’s quite incredible how patiently birds of prey can sit still, observing and biding their time.

Sparrowhawks are small, broad and rounded-winged raptors with long tails and long, thin yellow legs. They can be difficult to spot but we usually remember to look out for one when we realise the feeders have gone quiet and we can’t see any birds around. We know all their regular perches.

The male bird is somewhere between a Blackbird and a Collared Dove in size, although the one below looks larger. He will have a blue-slate grey back and white underparts showing rufous barring and reddish cheeks. You’ll notice they are greyer on the breast and belly areas

The white flight feathers have conspicuous dark grey bars.The bill is hooked and is grey with a black tip and yellow cere.

Females have reddish cheeks, brownish-grey upperparts and less rufous barring than the male. They have a more prominent white line above the eye.

Female Sparrowhawks are about twice the weight of males, one of the largest differences between sexes in any bird of prey. This enables her to carry extra body reserves needed for reproduction and to go for several days without a meal, but it also means she is a less agile hunter than the male. Females are therefore more likely to take larger prey like Pigeons and males will typically hunt small songbirds. Sometimes they ambush their prey from a perch, while other times they may fly low, suddenly changing direction to fool it.

After a while, when they’re patiently staking out the territory, you see the bird standing on one leg only, I’m presuming, but it’s the same technique Elephants use, I think and is possibly the origin of ‘take the weight off...’ (your feet) meaning to sit and rest.

Between May and July, Sparrowhawks nest in dense woodland, so we have a good environment for them here. Both male and female build the nest inthe fork of a tree. It’s a platform made of sticks and twigs with little or no additional vegetation for comfort. The female lays 2-7 white eggs that are smooth and glossy and have a bluish tint and dark brown markings. She incubates the eggs for 32-34 days and until they’re old enough to be left alone, the male bird will hunt to feed both the female and their brood. Chicks fledge at 26-30 days but will be fed for a further month or thereabouts, by both their parents.

Juvenile Sparrowhawks are similar to the female but with browner upperparts and wider stripes on the underparts than adults.

Sparrowhawks reach sexual maturity between 1 and 3 years.

I think today’s looks like a young adult female.

She’s taken up the same location as this smaller male in a photo from my picture library. See what I mean about the Big Coat title, although she looks less like a coat wearer and more as though she favours a sweeping cape.

Over the centuries the natural balance between Sparrowhawks and their prey had meant that hawk numbers remained stable. They’ve no serious predators, although chicks and fledglings can be taken by Pine Martens and Goshawks. This threat isn’t really significant as both of these are scarce in the UK.

In the 1800s, however, they suffered persecution at the hands of Victorian trophy hunters or landowners and gamekeepers. Even today we’re seeing distressing reports of various birds of prey being targeted.

During the Second World War their numbers began to recover, but by 1950 they were declining again as a result of the widespread use of organochlorine pesticides, such as DDT. These accumulated in the birds and resulted in a number of problems, including thinning of eggshells that reduced breeding success. By the late 1950s Sparrowhawk numbers crashed across the UK, and they almost disappeared from eastern England where the use of these pesticides was heaviest. It took until 1986 for DDT to be banned in the UK.

Also from the library, hiding in the big tree at the end of the garden

As well as feeding on birds, Sparrowhawks will also catch rodents, young hares, rabbits and other small mammals. Some people are worried that Sparrowhawks eat too many small birds and cause their population to fall, or even become extinct. Emotions can cloud the fact that the scientific research points to the contrary. Long-term scientific studies have shown that Sparrowhawks generally have no, or little impact on songbird populations, but I can speak from personal experience how distressing it is to witness the hunt and kill and it’s a reason why we removed the window feeder.

It is also worth remembering that Sparrowhawks and songbirds have existed side by side for thousands of years without any detrimental effect on songbird numbers. Food availability and the number of suitable nesting sites naturally restrict the number of Sparrowhawks in an area.

Small birds can rear between five and 15 young in a season. In the absence of predators such as Sparrowhawks, the vast majority of these would die anyway, of starvation or disease. The reason that small birds raise so many young is an evolutionary adaptation because so many will perish.

Only one or two of these 5-15 young need to survive and breed in order to keep the songbird population stable. If they all survived to breed there wouldn't be enough nest holes, caterpillars or territories to support such numbers.

Sparrowhawks remove the most vulnerable individuals, so those with the best escape tactics thrive. The fittest and healthiest are much more likely to breed successfully and produce a greater number of fitter young birds that have a better chance of survival.

If habitat is diverse and contains plenty of food and cover for small birds, the balance is tipped further in favour of the prey. It’s why we have feeders hanging from the towers and near the shelter of the multi stemmed palm.

So there we have it, both sides of the story. I always say that we’re lucky we can pop to a shop or order in, birds and animals have to start each day hunting for the food they need for themselves and their families. It’s all the circle of life, even though we don’t like to witness it and you’ve got to admit that the Raptors are a truly magnificent group of birds, imposing, majestic and beautiful just as much as their tiny relatives.

FUN FACT:

The colour of a Sparrowhawk’s eyes changes and depends on its age and gender. Typically younger birds have greenish-yellow eyes which become brighter yellow within the first couple of years of their life. In some older Sparrowhawks, the eye colour can become orange or, occasionally, in males even turn to a shade of red.

♦ all bird photos above are my own

For comparison

Photo credit: Birdspot UK

Goshawks were all but extinct as a breeding bird in the UK by the end of the 19th century due to loss of woodland habitat and persecution from gamekeepers. Deliberate and accidental reintroductions have seen the population slowly recover.

Measurements:Length:48-62cm

Wingspan:135-165cm

Weight:600-1,100g (male); 900-2,000g (female)

UK breeding:280-430 pairs

FROM THE NEWS THIS WEEK:

The ultimate BIG Coat!

The ultimate Before photo

A rogue overgrown sheep found roaming through regional Australia has been shorn of his 35kg (77lbs) fleece – a weight even greater than that of the famous New Zealand sheep, Shrek, who was captured in 2005 after six years on the loose. Imagine carrying that excess weight around with you...although I’m beginning to feel a bit the same myself!

The merino ram, dubbed Baarack by rescuers, was discovered wandering alone with an extraordinarily overgrown wool coat, and was promptly shorn to save his life.

What a smart young man he is, with his little light designer coat. Hope he gets a Spring in his step now.

You can read the full story Here (outside link)

#nature birds photography

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