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justforbooks · 4 years

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Cécile Rol-Tanguy, one of the great figures of the French resistance.

By Robert Gildea

Cécile Rol-Tanguy, who has died aged 101, was one of the great figures of the French resistance. She came from a communist family and worked in tandem with her husband, Henri Rol-Tanguy, who led the irregular French forces in the Paris insurrection of August 1944. Long in his shadow, she came into her own as a veteran and voice of the resistance in the years after his death in 2002.

Her father, François Le Bihan, a Breton who had worked in Les Halles market in Paris, joined the navy, trained as a radio electrician and met his wife, Germaine Jaganet, while based at Royan in the south-west of France at the end of the first world war. Returning to Paris, he joined the French Communist party (PCF) as soon as it was founded in 1920.

Cécile, who was born in Royan, was brought up in an environment dedicated to international communism. Her family’s home sheltered political exiles from Italy, Germany, Hungary, Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia, and as a girl Cécile joined the Jeunes Filles de France, set up by the PCF. In 1936, aged 17, she found a job as a shorthand typist in the engineers union of the Confédération Générale du Travail. There she met Henri Tanguy, a Breton like herself, who had been repeatedly sacked from car factories for fomenting strikes and now worked as a permanent official for the union.

Cécile and Henri were soon plunged into the maelstrom of what they saw as a war between fascism and communism. When the Spanish civil war broke out in 1936, Henri went to fight in the International Brigades while Cécile worked with the Aid for Spain Committee and wrote him letters as his “war godmother”. Henri claimed to be a revolutionary who would never marry, but they wed in 1939. When the second world war broke out Henri was sent to the front at Sarrebourg, then to a factory in the Pyrenees as a skilled worker.

Cécile’s father was arrested as a communist in 1940 and her first child, Françoise, died as a baby in the same year, just as the German army closed in on Paris. Instead of collapsing, she decided to resist. “I had nothing left,” she said in a 2012 interview. “My father had been arrested, I didn’t know where my husband was, and I had lost my little girl. What could hold me back?”

Henri became an underground communist resister, first for the Organisation Spéciale, then the Franc-Tireurs et Partisans (FTP). Cécile typed flyers and acted as his liaison agent, keeping the resistance network together and replacing those who were arrested.

Resistance was extremely dangerous. Those who fell into the hands of the Vichy or German authorities risked deportation or execution. Cécile’s father escaped after his arrest but was recaptured in 1941 and deported the following year to Auschwitz, where he died.

After two comrades were arrested in the autumn of 1942, Henri was sent away to the Poitiers area for six months. Cécile stayed in Paris with her mother, who, when necessary, cared for their two children, Hélène and Jean. Henri returned to Paris in the spring of 1943 and was appointed FTP chief in the Paris region, working with the Polish-Jewish resister Joseph Epstein. Cécile liaised between them and also with Boris Holban, the Romanian-Jewish leader of the Paris FTP-MOI, which mobilised communists of foreign origin. Epstein was arrested and executed on 11 April 1944.

In June 1944 Henri became Paris head of the Forces Françaises de l’Intérieur (FFI), which brought together communist and non-communist irregulars. He adopted the nom de guerre of Rol after a comrade killed in Spain.

On 14 August 1944, Cécile took Henri’s machine gun from one part of Paris to another, avoiding German road blocks, while her mother took flyers in Jean’s pram and Hélène danced along the pavement. At dawn on 19 August the insurrection order signed by Henri was posted across Paris.

The liberation of Paris covered Henri in glory but General Charles de Gaulle was determined to reassert his own power and to prioritise the role of the Free French forces, which he had founded and which had fought outside France until they entered Paris under General Philippe Leclerc on 24 August 1944.

On 27 August, the day after he walked down the Champs-Élysées to rapturous crowds, De Gaulle invited 20 leaders of the internal resistance to the War Ministry. Each was tersely thanked before the general dismissed him with “Good. Next!” Cécile was the only woman present. “Personally, I did not find it very welcoming,” she recalled. “It was a very small reception, without even a glass of wine to finish with.”

The internal resistance was humiliated because it had a large communist contingent and because it detracted from De Gaulle’s personal glory. Henri continued in the army proper and fought his way to Germany, but he was then given a military desk job in Versailles.

Commemorations always celebrated the role of the Free French and of Leclerc in particular. On one occasion Cécile told the mayor of Paris, Jacques Chirac, that not giving her husband a seat in the front row of such commemorations was “an affront to history”.

In recent years Cécile enjoyed greater recognition. She became co-president of the Friends of the Spanish Republican Fighters, set up in 1996, of which her daughter Claire was general secretary. Frequently she gave talks in schools about the resistance, becoming the star turn after the death of Lucie Aubrac in 2007. In May 2014 she spoke at a conference to mark the 70th anniversary of the Liberation at the French Institute in London. She was made a Grand Officier de la Légion d’Honneur in 2014 and was awarded the Grande Croix de l’Ordre National du Mérite in 2017.

She is survived by her four children, Hélène, Jean, Claire and Francis.

• Cécile Rol-Tanguy, French resistance agent, born 10 April 1919; died 8 May 2020

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allen-tiller · 5 years

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Ghosts of the Barossa: The North Kapunda Hotel

The North Kapunda Hotel was built in 1848 by the North Kapunda Mining Company. ‘The Northern Arms Hotel’ as it was then called, was a small single-story hotel situated on Franklin Street Kapunda, the first publican was a man named John Bickford.

James Crase: 1879 - Photo SLSA: B76601

In the early 1850s the hotel was sold to a local butcher, James Crase. Mr Crase was a wealthy local man with big dreams for the town of Kapunda. He also had big plans for his newly purchased hotel. His first step in changing the hotel was a rebranding from the Northern Arms Hotel to The Garland Ox Hotel. In 1865, Crase invested heavily in his hotel, expanding the basement area, and building the second story of the hotel, which also linked the previously built miners quarters at the rear (now referred to as the “Hallway From Hell”, but once known as the Bachelors Hall). The new hotel featured the most expensive kitchen in Australia at the time, located in the basement, which now also had living quarters and a rainwater tank. Upstairs now contained a living area for the Crase family, a new meeting room known as The Commercial Room, and hotel and display rooms for travelling salesmen. Crase also built a new two-story building at the rear of the hotel that could house banquet dinners and roller skating, as well as a small bowling alley. Mr Crase sold the hotel in the early 1880s, but not after dealing with much controversy, with members of his staff caught selling alcohol outside of hours, prostitution, and gambling in his establishment. Later owners were also caught doing similar things, and in 1923, under the ownership of Mr Pearce, the hotel lost its liquor licence for a year. To survive, the downstairs and rear accommodation served as a brothel.

Basement North Kapunda Hotel 2009: Photo by WISPA Paranormal

The Hotel has seen numerous deaths in its 165 plus years of service, including scissor grinder Martin Jansen who choked to death in the ground floor Parlour. Henry Binney Hawke, a very well respected man in Kapunda, who died in the billiard room of the hotel after suffering a heart attack. Joseph Caddy, a local music teacher and a politician who died of natural causes in an upstairs bedroom. In 1912 Mr Henry Fairclough, publican of the hotel for 14 years became very ill, and by November of that year had been confined to his bed as his condition worsened. On Monday 17 November 1912, Henry Fairclough lost his battle with illness and passed away in the upstairs bedroom he shared with his wife. Dennis Horgan, was publican of the hotel from 1913 until 1919, then again in 1925. Horgan died from a heart attack in the hotel in December 1925 in an upstairs room he shared with his wife. Other deaths reported include that of servants, at least two young prostitutes, a travelling salesman, and at least 3 young children. The North Kapunda Hotel was featured in the 2000 Documentary “Kapunda: Most Haunted Town in the Western World”, in episode 7 of Haunting: Australia, and in 2015 gained international attention when tourism website Travel MSN listed it as the 8th most haunted bar or pub in the world!

The hotel has numerous ghost stories, too many to cover here – so here are a few of my own personal experiences from investigating and visiting the hotel from 2009 until now.

I had many ghostly experiences in the hotel after tours and on private investigations, but the most memorable for me happened one night after a tour. As the last guests were leaving. Karen and I were doing our “after-tour” walkthrough, to lock up the hotel and make sure no-one had been locked inside. As I went to close the tour room door, I turned and saw a young girl, I would estimate around 7 years old, standing in the hallway looking at me. She didn't appear “ghostly”, she looked like a real little girl, except her clothing was very old, much like a pinafore, similar in style to the clothing actress Shirley Temple would've worn near the beginning of her movie career. My first instinct was that someone’s child from downstairs had somehow gotten upstairs. The girl suddenly turned and ran towards room 1, a room we have now dubbed “The Nursery Room”. I quickly followed, knowing she was trapped as I had just locked from the outside the only other exit door to the rooms she was running toward. I made my way down the hallway, into the Nursery Room, the Dressing room and back into the Drawing room, to find no-one in there at all. I checked the windows, locked from the inside, I checked under the bed, nothing. This ghostly young girl did not glow, she was not misty, nor did she have any of the other attributes we associate with spirits or ghosts. She looked as real as my wife who was waiting for me at the top of the stairs in case the girl came back that way – it was an unusual encounter, but not the last time I would encounter this little girl. The Nursery Room proved to have other spirits. One spirit manifested and was witnessed by a young man, who during the evening, had thought it would be funny to jump out and scare other tour guests, little did he know, the spirits were about to do the same to him. As he came into the Nursery Room the back way through the Drawing Room, he stepped through the threshold of the Nursery Room door and witnessed a partially manifested spirit of a woman standing behind the door. This young man had been sceptical all night, but this incident changed his whole perspective. It was also in this room a man was groped by a ghost on the backside, which also happened to another gentleman in the Hallway to Hell, one of the flirtatious prostitute spirits perhaps?

The Commercial Room on the first floor also proved to have several spirits, although these ones are passive, and at least one seems to be a residual haunting and not an intelligent haunting. It was in this room the tours originally started, and on one tour, a guest pulled me aside to let me know a man had been standing next to me the whole time I had been speaking. She described him as wearing a suit, about the same height as me, very thin, and amused and puzzled as to why I was standing in the hotel talking about ghosts. It was in this same room on another night, a young woman witnessed the spirit of a man, standing in the far corner facing the wall, looking rather morose and staring at an old tapestry that has hung on the wall for over a century. Another spirit was that of a man who has been witnessed standing in front of a window looking out into the Main Street below, transfixed by what he was looking at. In his right hand, he was continuously opening and closing a pocket watch chained to his inner pocket. On a tour, a young lady who went into the Commercial Room and witnessed this apparition, but it wasn’t until she entered the front bar and saw the mural of Sir Sidney Kidman it dawned on her who she had just seen!

During the filming of Haunting: Australia, paranormal guru Gaurav Tiwari and I set up several ghost hunting devices given to us by Jason Dickson of Apparition Technologies. We placed REM Pods (a device that emits an electromagnetic field from an aerial, that if a spirit comes close to, will set off a warning alarm and coloured lights) as well as voice recorders, EM Pumps (a device that emits a very strong electromagnetic field thought to attract spirits) and Vibration Detectors in the downstairs hallway basement, a large side room that was once bedrooms, originally for the cooks, but eventually used by prostitutes. Whilst standing in the basement, a room once used to store dead bodies, kegs of rum and kegs of beer, we began to ask if there was anyone present who wished to communicate with us. It didn’t take long to get an answer. I was standing where I could see into the downstairs hallway to watch if the lights on any of the devices were turning on, all of the sudden, I saw a young girl, no more than 7 years old, walk into the dimly lit hallway, and into the doorway of the room Gaurav and I were standing in!

Without hesitating (or thinking) I chased after her to find out who she was. She ran into the hallway and turned left into the arched hallway that led to the former basement bedrooms, an old decrepit room with damaged floors and no ventilation. Gaurav was following quickly behind. There was nowhere for the girl to escape too, but she was not to be found in the room. Whilst standing in the room, we noticed a small window that looks into a smaller room, which in turn has a doorway back into the hallway. Gaurav noticed some movement, so we ventured back into the hallway. At this point, the cameraman’s batteries failed so he radioed back to central control to get a go-fer to bring down a fresh battery for him. As he did this, Gaurav who had turned to look back into the bedrooms noticed a large shadow jump across a doorway, which startled him enough to drop a few swear words! We re-entered the room, whilst Mick, our cameraman waited in the hallway, just as we entered the bedroom, Mick heard our REM pods going off and thinking it was the runner with the battery turned to say thanks, only to notice no-one there! In the next few minutes, things really picked up. Gaurav and I raced into the hallway to see all our REM Pods and Vibration meters lit to full, every light in the basement, including our torches and camera lights suddenly drained completely and we were left in the total pitch black. At the same time, Mick got a call over his headset to get the hell upstairs as the producers thought Ray may have had a heart attack in the Hallway to Hell. The three of us, in pitch black, found our way out of the basement hallway, and onto the stairs that lead back up to the ground floor hallway, only to find the metal bar doors locked. Just as we got to the top we saw Field Producer Lucy Connors and a camera crew walking backwards. Ian and Rayleen passed us supporting Ray and were heading into the beer garden. I tried the metal-bar door again, and suddenly it unblocked, and we were free of the basement! We followed them outside not knowing exactly what had happened. Ray was very pale and did not look good, he was crying and slouched over. Ian performed an exorcism on him. Ray was vomiting and pale and looked very unwell, but not long after Ian started his exorcism, Ray suddenly looked a lot better, got up, and left the beer garden to go back into the break area and away from the hotel. As Ray left, Rayleen was very suddenly and very vocally saying the Lord’s Prayer at break need speed, as she was overcome with whatever had just left Ray. Gaurav performed a cleansing ritual on her, and soon she too left to go into the break room and recover, with Ian following closely behind to make sure they were both OK. This left Gaurav, Robb and me standing in the beer garden wondering what had just happened. Without hesitation, Robb told Gaurav and me to go upstairs and find out what was going on. Considering neither of us are psychics, it probably wasn’t the smartest move, but we're paranormal investigators, right? Fearless to the end and go where Angels fear to tread. To lighten the very heavy feeling the hotel now had upstairs, Gaurav and I began to crack jokes about just how tough and manly we are. We then entered The Hallway to Hell, which felt very different from how it did earlier in the night, much more foreboding, but much more “alive”. It took only a few seconds for things to start to happen, within minutes of being in the hallway I witnessed a full-bodied apparition of a woman dressed in a period dress that I could only describe as from the “Victorian” era. The Dress was black and lacy, the woman was very white in the face, red full lips, but had a very sad look to her demeanour. She walked backwards into room 11, and I released a number of swear words in disbelief of what I was seeing with my own eyes!! (the edit on television was a few seconds, in reality, my swearing probably went for a few minutes).In the next half-an-hour, Gaurav and I experienced 3 gunshot sounds, they were clear and very, very loud. The first, in room 11, was right after seeing the mysterious woman disappear into the room, it came from the air in the centre of the room and echoed throughout the room. I suggested later during our reveal filming at the Old Kapunda Courthouse, that the noise may not have been a gunshot at all but could have been the sound of what psychics and mediums call a “portal” snapping closed as the spirit returned to her own realm. We heard the next shot only a few minutes later in room 12, which is the room in which Ray was partially possessed and fell to the floor. At the time we didn’t realise his voice recorder was still in the room recording. Later we would find out Ray had captured an EVP of someone saying, “hates blue eyes”, it also contained the gunshot sound we heard in the room. As we re-entered the hallway, I heard footsteps, so we turned to look in the direction they came from, as we did so, a stone was thrown at us. Next, we entered room 13, where we thought the footsteps had gone, only to hear another, and the loudest of the gunshot noises for the evening. This is also around the time Gaurav took a photo that he claimed later, looked like a shadow person standing on the stairs leading out of the hallway. In the reveal, I declare that I cannot see what he was talking about, and I honestly could not at the time see anything resembling a person in his photo, but a few months later, after filming, I would see for myself a shadow person in the Hallway to Hell right where Gaurav had claimed to capture his photo. As a side note, the Haunting Australia episode featuring The North Kapunda Hotel rated first place on Foxtel as the most viewed show the night it was broadcast, beating “The Walking Dead” and other popular shows – so on behalf of all of the cast – thank you to each and every person who watched the episode and supported the show. Another very important thing that happened whilst filming Haunting: Australia which was never aired, occurred to my wife Karen and to “psychic bad-boy” Ian Lawman. Ian was in the basement under the front bar when psychically he picked up on a poker game being played. He described the gentleman running the game and even got his name and a few attributes associated with him. My wife worked in the hotel in 2009, and knew the name of the person as a former publican, but didn’t know anything about him. So, Karen made a phone call to her former boss who ran the hotel in 2009 and asked her if she knew anything about this man, who was named “Charlie”. As it happened, she did know him, and confirmed everything Ian said, even down to his description, his dog and the poker games!

Karen was subsequently interviewed as a witness for the show, in a portion that would have confirmed Ian's psychic abilities, that was for reasons unknown to the cast, entirely cut from the episode, which was a great loss for the viewers as it would have proved that Ian does actually have psychic ability (even if he is a scaredy cat and runs from some of the ghosts!) I may at some point reveal more about ghostly goings on in the North Kapunda Hotel, perhaps in a book.

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marcellusbitsandpieces · 3 years

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Bits and Pieces - The Oatman Massacre Story 7/11/21

This week, I gave a presentation to our local DAR chapter, Captain Samuel Felt. Because this month’s program issue was American Indian and a local speaker was not available, I became the speaker.

To those of who do belong or have belonged to small groups with dwindling memberships, you understand how this works.

Though I do not have native people in my genealogy, I do have an interesting story involving the American Indian people. I thought I would also share it with you.

Maybe you recall in the 1960s a TV show hosted by Ronald Reagan titled “Death Valley Days.” One of the episodes dealt with the story of a family from La Harpe, Illinois, near Nauvoo.

Nauvoo, Illinois was home to Joseph Smith and was the 1840s headquarters of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon Church). With Smith’s murder a succession challenge developed. Brigham Young took a group to Utah and other splinter groups journeyed to other westward points.

A great-great-great-grandmother on my mother’s side was the aunt to one of the families that met up with and then followed the splinter group of James Brewster along the Santa Fe Trail toward California.

This family was Royce and Mary Ann (Sperry) Oatman. They had seven children: Lorenzo, Olive, Mary Ann, Carrie, Lucy, Royce and Roland. My relationship to this family is through the mother, Mary Ann Sperry.

Royce had had both business failings and health issues. He thought heading to New Mexico would be better for his health. The family with seven children, ages 17/16 – 1 year old, headed off from Fulton, Illinois.

The family was in Missouri when they met up James Brewster and his party called Brewsterites.

Along the way many arguments within the group left several families separating for other destinations or staying put and settling early. Eventually even Royce Oatman left Brewster to head off on his own with a few others. In the Arizona region of the New Mexico Territory, warnings were given about the danger of advancing Indian groups which had made the area unsafe and threatening.

Though the rest of the families decided to stay put, Royce felt that he had a good rapport with the Indians and wanted to continue. It is said by those who knew Royce, that he “would rather suffer calamity than back down.”

Nearly within reach (only about 120 miles) of their destination in California, the Oatmans ran into difficulty at the river near Gila Bend. The oxen refused to cross the raging river. Near what is now Yuma, Arizona the Oatman family stopped to wait out the river.

They had little food and the animals were weak. On the morning of February 18, 1851, about 17 Indians (according to Lorenzo) approached the family. Royce shared what he felt he could and refused any more.

The discussion grew heated, clubs came out and that is the last Lorenzo remembered of the event.

Olive and Mary Ann were kidnapped. But the rest of the family was massacred except Lorenzo who was left for dead.

The four oxen were butchered for meat, the wagon stripped of whatever they wanted, the girls had their shoes removed so they couldn’t run away, and then marched 3-4 days back to the village.

Life with this tribe was difficult. Over time, a nearby group of Mohave Indians would come to this village to trade. After a few times and seeing the girls, the Mohave brokered a deal to take them in trade.

The wife of the Mohave chief “took” to the girls. Olive and Mary Ann were tattooed with blue from the powder of a stone. This was for religious identification in the hereafter – not as a label as a slave to the tribe.

Though life for Olive and Mary Ann was not as brutal as before, starvation became a way of life. Mary Ann grew weaker and eventually died. Olive stated that had it not been for the chief’s wife, Aespaneo, who gave Olive the last of her food – she, too, would have perished.

In the meantime, Lorenzo continued to search for his sisters. He had been found still alive in the camp by some who followed later and came upon the massacre. The men who found Lorenzo took him to a nearby fort. He was later taken by a local doctor to San Francisco.

As the railroad and other developments emerged in the southwest, Olive was discovered, ransomed back and returned to white society. After all her time away, this was not an easy acclimation.

Lorenzo read about her in a paper, and they were reunited in February 1856 – 5 years after the massacre.

Lorenzo and Olive were befriended by a Reverend Royal B. Stratton. Stratton was a Methodist minister. He used his friendship with the brother and sister to write their story.

However, much of his version is untrue. Even Stratton admits that he disliked Native Americans and used false information and personal opinions. He wrote what would sell. His book is titled, Captivity of the Oatman Girls.

The version of the family’s and Olive’s ordeal that is most accepted is Margot Mifflin’s, The Blue Tattoo.

The Arizona DAR purchased an acre of land near the site of the massacre and erected a granite and concrete monument with bronze marker. It is marked and dedicated at Oatman Flat near the Gila River by Route 66.

Lorenzo married in 1860. He farmed and held various jobs. He died in 1901 in Red Cloud, Nebraska while working on the construction of a hotel there.

Olive went on many speaking tours around the country, and married in 1865. She married John Fairchild whose brother was killed by Apaches in a cattle drive. John and Olive moved to Texas where he bought a bank and became very successful.

When Olive died in 1903, John had her body encased in an iron coffin so it would not be disturbed by Mohaves. She was 66 years old. Quite a life.

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vamonumentlandscape · 3 years

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Staunton and Sweet Briar College

Last week we drove up Lee-Jackson highway yet again on our way to Staunton. We were all eager to take a bit of a break from our usual Civil War related endeavors to see the Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library and House Museum. One of our good friends also got to come along for the adventure so that added extra fun to the day. The first thing we did was interview Andrew Phillips, the museum's head curator. He has done quite a lot for us two this year. Earlier in the school year, Tomi actually interviewed him for her virtual internship. All of us were excited to meet Andrew in person and talk about the direction of the museum.

Phillips has been at the Presidential Library since 2012. He came into the job without much knowledge of Wilson as he was a trained Civil War historian. Despite seeming like an unlikely candidate for the position, he was exactly what the organization needed. His extensive knowledge of the time when Wilson was in the home and of slavery is something the museum was lacking. Wilson was actually only at the Staunton home for sixteen months, so Phillips decided that it was time to use that to their advantage. His thoughts are that the museum needs to tell the whole story, from birth until the end of his life, with more of a focus on the events of the time he was alive. He did not mince words when he said that “...you will be disappointed when you go downstairs [in the museum].” The exhibits are over twenty years old and the museum has never undergone any renovations to change them. The exhibits are “very nitty gritty on Wilson” and Phillips wants to focus on the pivotal moments within his presidency. Phillips says that the events that happened while Wilson was president were “incredibly consequential” and wants to provide the context for visitors to understand this. By 2026 he and his team wish to overhaul the museum to be a space for education for the important moments that were hallmark to Wilson’s presidency. By expanding the exhibits, the staff can create more in-depth exhibits. Women’s Suffrage, World War I, the Jim Crow Era, and so much more will be covered in more detail than ever before in the museum. The staff at the museum has drive, passion, and ambition to complete these goals, but the only thing they are lacking are the funds. They have applied for multiple grants, but have not received what they need. If you would like to learn more about how to become a member or to help out Phillips and his cause, click here: https://www.woodrowwilson.org/ways-to-give .

Even though the big steps have yet to be taken, Phillips has already had to make major changes. “When I first got here, in 2012, they were still calling the enslaved people servants. They were misinformed and I had to change that,” he said, speaking of tour guides and how they addressed the enslaved population of Wilson’s first childhood home. The guides were trained initially to use the term “slave” and then later “enslaved person” by Andrew. Phillips said that he and his staff spent at least one year changing this narrative. “The guides wanted to learn and were more than open to the change, but these kinds of things take time.” His next steps are attempting to learn the names of the three leased enslaved people from the church Wilson’s father preached at. “I want to give these people names. We know what they did for the family, but I want to give them their names.” After the tumultuous summer of 2020, he could not stand for the poor exhibit on African Americans to continue to stay up. Phillips claimed that it was “too neutral” and was “sensitive to a position that Civil Rights is bad and showed two sides of the coin.” He and his staff took a huge leap in creating all new signage to create a more honest narrative about how African Americans were treated by the Wilson administration and the country. “We are constantly trying to improve,” said Andrew and we could not agree more. Speaking with Andrew about all the changes that have taken place and that will soon take place was so inspirational. We cannot wait to come back one day to see how much the museum is transformed!

The Woodrow Wilson Museum is an older institution that presents the life and legacy of the man that led the United States during one of the most challenging periods in world history. We first encountered an exhibit that follows Wilson before he became the 28th president. He earned his Ph.D. in political science from Johns Hopkins University before becoming the president of Princeton University, where he incorporated many progressive reforms. He was also governor of New Jersey between 1911 and 1913. We were able to see some reproduced and original artifacts that belonged to Wilson. We were also able to read about his two marriages. He only married Edith Bolling in 1915 after Ellen Axson died in 1914 while he was in office. In the first few rooms, we saw how he campaigned against Republican presidential incumbent, William Howard Taft, and third party candidate, Theodore Roosevelt. As we learned in our interview with Andrew, the museum is no longer misguiding visitors about the actions taken by President Wilson. Though he enacted major reforms like the Revenue Act of 1913 and the Federal Reserve Act, he also allowed segregation to continue within the federal government and throughout the entire country. We saw the newly added yellow Civil Rights panel that did not shy away from being completely frank about Wilson’s personal views. He was a racist man, but again, we saw some pretty consequential things come out of his time in office, such as the passage of the 19th Amendment, which finally gave women the right to vote in elections across the country. This Amendment was only possible after the lobbying of famous suffragists like Lucy Burns, Carrie-Chapman Chatt, as well as the many others that came before them. Though the United States remained neutral through much of the Great War (World War I), we were able to see why and how Wilson convinced Congress to declare war on the Central powers in Europe. The exhibit in the basement about the war was our favorite part of the museum. As the museum mentioned, Wilson was a master negotiator in setting up the Treaty of Versailles and the League of Nations, but the U.S. Congress did not ratify it as Wilson refused a Republican compromise. It was the terms of the Treaty of Versailles that led to the rise of Adolf Hitler in Germany, and the world would yet again enter a deadly conflict only a little more than a decade later. Woodrow Wilson was anything but a decent person that sought equality for all, but we must study his life and presidency at places like the museum and library in Staunton. If we want our country to be better for all Americans, then we must remember and learn from the mistakes of our former leaders. The history within truly matters and we are looking forward to newer interpretation once the anticipated renovations are completed. If you are able, we highly recommend a visit not simply to say you went to a presidential site, but to learn from Wilson’s successes and errors.

After we walked through much of the museum, we went on a tour of the home where Woodrow Wilson spent the first few months of his life. Joseph Ruggles Wilson and Janet Woodrow started their family in the house known as the Manse in Staunton. The family owned and defended slavery through the end of the Civil War, and Joseph was a Presbyterian minister and chaplain for the Confederacy. Though not much is known about the enslaved persons that worked at the Manse, it does seem that an effort is being made to present what they did in the house while enslaved by the Wilsons. A question was posed by another visitor that was on the tour with us. “What is the difference between saying enslaved person and slave?” The tour guide responded that this was the phrasing that most Virginia museums are using. While this may be true, there is more to it than that. Dr. Sherayko stepped in to offer the whole reasoning behind this choice in language as heard at Monticello and Appomattox. Saying “slave suggests an identity of subservience to others and nothing else. Stating “enslaved person” instead suggests an identity of personhood first, not just the condition they had forced upon them. It is important to understand this shift in language as the stories and personhood of those that were enslaved matter too. We hope that when asked similar questions in the future, the tour guide responds with this explanation. Overall, the house tour was a quality look into a historic home and showed how the Wilson family lived.

On our way back from Staunton, we made a pit stop at Sweet Briar College. The 3,250 acre campus is in the heart of Amherst with beautiful mountain views. We drove all the way back to where their top notch equestrian team practices to see Monument Hill. It is a small cemetery to the founders of the college’s daughter that has expanded to include members of their family and faculty who have passed on. Looking out from this point is an absolutely stunning view of the campus. The tall angel statue for Daisy Williams, founder Indiana Fletcher's daughter, stands tall overlooking the campus as a guardian. We drove around the campus after viewing this solemn, serene area and came across a small cabin in the backyard of the president's home. It is the only surviving slave cabin on the property. What once was the home to enslaved people of the William’s plantation has been used as office spaces, storage, and other uses by the college. But in 2012, with the help of the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities and Lynn Rainville, the cabin was re-interpreted to capture the history of the 170 year old structure. There were signs telling the history with old photographs, maps, and even the names of those who lived in the cabins. The most important piece of signage was the recognition of descendants of those who once lived, worked, and who are buried there today. It was a small, yet powerful exhibit that is worth the visit.

#Staunton #virginia #sweet briar college #monument #history #important

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jamezvaldes · 6 years

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PLEASE RAMBLE ABOUT DESPERATO I LOVE NICKY SO MUCH

I’ve been answering this over the past couple of days because idk what you wanted me to ramble about?? like come on man, give me the rambling direction. and tbh i didn’t know what i wanted to ramble about when I posted. This is actually gonna be under the cut because I ramble about secondary characters a lot.

Desperato/Blackwell Gals: I don’t think people will expect it to go certain ways in terms of some areas. Like I don’t think it’s what people’ll expect and this inadvertently gives me a number of issues and makes my anxiety a lot worse, because i don’t know if people will like that i just do my own thing sometimes and not have the canon storyline at the forefront of the fic. Nicky’s issues are a major point of the fic. Emmy’s relationship with her mother is another important issue, like Em learning to not care about her and learning to not feel guilty about cutting her out of her life.Also I will fight anyone who says that the relationship between the Blackwell gals isn’t the most important relationship in the whole fic. Like fight me.S2!Nicky is a fun character to play around with because it’s more true to who she actually is, like S1!Nic is sort of an act? like the person she wants to be. In relation to Jacob, I don’t think that Nicky has actually grieved him. Like she lives in the same house, her cabin was his, her car was his, her old motorcycle was his. Like there’s just a constant Jacob presences in her life so has she actually grieved him? and Emmy is so angry that she never got to have a relationship with him but has a relationship with a small select of videos that Nicky took of him. Emmy doesn’t know the real Jacob but a false one because of a small selection of moments that Nicky captured. Jacob wasn’t a good man but he tried his best for Nic and he loved her so much. There’s a running joke that Jacob haunts the Blackwell home and the cabin.Nicky’s friends are my life line tbh. I love them all so much and they’re just a good group of people. - Nate Jenkins, Holly Mitchell, Quinn Lewis, Dean Murphy - They’re just so good!!!!! And Emmy’s other friends - Scott Bishop and Amber Mitchell - are just the best and this little trio are going to be the best and I’m just so excited to bring in my Amber. Who knows what the ships will be at the end of the three seasons? I sure as fuck don’t, well I have a vague idea but that’s a later problem for a depressed post 3am breakdown Jess to figure out. Nicky’s birthday party/event is probably one of the only times she’ll be truly happy throughout the entire fic tbhSecondary Characters: if you want to see FC’s check this link and go to Desp on the right (x)▫️ Nate Jenkins - Nicky’s childhood best friend (they were next door neighbours) business partner and the other mechanic. Married to Joseph and are in the final stages of adopting a baby, they’re literally just waiting for it to be born and have all the paperwork finalised. The mom friend, and has been making dad jokes since he was a child. He’s a serpent but on the edge of the gang since he got married because they knew adoption was the only why they’d be able to have children so they have to look like #decent members of society and not knee deep in crime. Just loves pulling cars apart. ▫️ Holly Mitchell - Bartender in the Wrym. Was almost an accountant because why not. But left because of a ~scandal~. Engaged to Quinn Lewis and older sister to Amber Mitchell. Makes a lot of “i’m engayed” style of jokes . A fun loving gal who takes nothing seriously. Also a serpent. Lost both her parents within the period of a year. Often sarcastic and acts as a therapist for the serpents because that’s sort of part of the job description for bartenders. Loves puns but not Amber’s puns. What is organisation? how was she almost an accountant with all this chaos.▫️ Quinn Lewis - She’s just the best, a nurse who works at the hospital and does nights at a no questions asked walk in clinic in the southside. Getting married so planning that takes up almost any of her free time. Has made Nicky maid of honor but has not told her that, just assumes that Nicky knows. Often very tired, always disgruntled. Patches Nicky up after fights far too often despite knowing she could and probably should lose her job because of it. A good person who loves her friends too much. Probably the most serious of the group and the most adult one. Also pool game is next level with this gal. Serpent as well. Very organised and has a good eye for detail. ▫️ Dean Murphy - A soft serpent who is one of Nic’s childhood best friends. They shit a lot of illegal stuff together, stole cars and all that jazz. Cleaned himself up, worked a number of odd jobs until he started working in the sheriff’s department. Still a serpent despite this. A sarcastic rugged man who is often done with serpent shit and just wants to sit down and not help cover up a crime. Nic and Dean have a complicated relationship, like are they only friends because Nicky (lovingly and jokingly) threatens to blackmail him? Nah they be actual friends. ▫️ Amber Mitchell - My angry and depressed gal who i love and cannot wait to bring her in, see this ask if you want to know more about her. She’s happy being a wallflower, probably will fight Betty Cooper at some-stage but also fight Jughead as well. ▫️ Scott Bishop - baby boy who i love with my whole cold dead heart, see this ask to see more from him. Sees the best in everyone bar Betty. Despite being a “loner” not friends with Jughead, can’t deal with his over dramatic ass.▫️ Amanda Harrison - Nicky’s mother. left baby Nic on Jacob’s doorstep. She’s an interesting character who I think you’ll hate to begin with but you’ll understand why she did what she did. I don’t think you’ll hate her when she leaves the fic. ▫️ Lucy Fletcher - Emmy’s mother and a complete bitch. A drug addict and she often successfully manipulates Emmy into doing stuff for her. Not a good person to be around, didn’t even tell Jacob that she was pregnant with his child▫️ Jacob Blackwell - lowkey often regret killing him but it had to be done. Nicky and Emmy’s father, didn’t know that Emmy was his child. A good father to Nicky and she was his only weakness. Was the leader of the serpents until his death. Was very violent and if anyone went against his wishes or challenged, fight would always occur, and he would always win. Was meant to be a pro bare knuckle boxer but did too much bad shit outside the ring to be one. ▫️ Tristian Owens - evil tbh. He’s a drug dealer and a ghoulie who is currently in prison for tracking drugs across state lines. He’s a good five years older than Nicky, so she would have been 14 when they met and him 19. Became her “boyfriend” at age 15, he was 20, so not a boyfriend, there’s clearly a power imbalance from the offset. He introduced nicky to the harder drugs. Nicky never really got justice for what he did to her, he’ll be before the parole board soon. ▫️ Jordan Naylor - Sweetie and music teacher. How he meets Nicky is cute ish. Comes back to Riverdale because his mother isn’t well.▫️ Simon - Nicky’s sponsor at her AA meetings, he just wants the best for her. The only one who understands Nicky’s addiction since he was one as well. Like nothing is really known about him, since the sponsor isn’t meant to get personal with the sponsee. ▫️ Joseph Aquinas - A southsider who isn’t a serpent. He’s a lawyer who works in civil law. Nate’s husband. Often gives Nicky legal advice, and he’s a good name who deserves the world. Cannot wait to start a family. Doesn’t mind that Nate will be dragged into dangerous stuff, but doesn’t like it, he’d rather that Nate didn’t get involved. But he knows that Nate would follow Nicky to hell and back. Joseph can deal with a husband who comes home late but not a dead husband.

#Anonymous #q and a with jess #fic: desperato #i hope this a ramble that makes sense #because idk #i hope you enjoy the part about the secondary characters #tbh i don't know what you wanted me to ramble about so i just picked stuff i've always wanted to ramble about #lowkey gonna be annoyed af if this doesn't get engagement #because i worked on it for a little while #longer than some of the other asks

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briangroth27 · 7 years

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Timeless Season 1 Review

Without a doubt, Timeless was my favorite new show of the season! The adventures of history professor Lucy (Abigail Spencer), pilot/tech genius Rufus (Malcolm Barrett), and soldier Wyatt (Matt Lanter) were a blast, zipping through American history to prevent a “madman” from changing it. Shawn Ryan, Eric Kripke, and the show’s writers added much more than a dash of historical accuracy to the Time Team’s exploits, providing real context to the events the team tried to preserve.

Full Spoilers...

Our Time Team was brought in by DHS Agent Denise Christopher (Sakina Jaffrey) and tech billionaire Connor Mason (Paterson Joseph) to catch former NSA asset Garcia Flynn (Goran Visnjic), who’d stolen Mason’s time machine to rewrite history and save his family from the shadowy Rittenhouse organization. Matters became increasingly complicated as Lucy’s sister Amy (Bailey Noble) was accidentally erased from the timeline, Rufus and his family were threatened by the scarily powerful and omnipresent Rittenhouse, and Wyatt was tormented by the death of his wife Jessica and whether or not he could prevent it. Spencer, Barrett, and Lanter were all excellent leads, bringing vulnerability, compassion, intelligence, humor, heroism, and just a touch of darker angst to roles that could’ve easily been one-dimensional. To that end, the series mined all the drama inherent in time travel and changes to the timeline; I was surprised from the get-go that things—at least minor ones—were allowed to change so much! For example, Lucy's comment about forgetting her sister's birthday, despite being the only person in her family who knew she existed, was heartbreaking. The reveal that she had a fiancee (Daniel Di Tomasso) in the newly altered timeline whom she’d never met could’ve been played with more, but I think it was best (and probably more realistic) for her to focus on the missions over that awkward situation. Wyatt trying to peacefully prevent Jessica's murderer from being born, even though time was fighting to maintain itself, was great drama too. His reaction when the killer’s father accidentally died was perfect and the crushing reveal that Jessica was still dead once he got home was brilliant. Rufus’ growing confidence in every area of his life was a great season-long arc that dovetailed perfectly with the steadily-developing bond within the Time Team, even as it was threatened by Rufus being an unlikely spy for Rittenhouse. Barrett brought great tension to Rufus as his turmoil over spying on his friends increased from episode to episode. I thought they’d play Rufus against Lucy and Wyatt for much longer than they did to build up a bigger betrayal, but I was pleasantly surprised he came clean rather quickly and the trio worked through it, enhancing their bond. I figured the team would go rogue eventually and I'm glad it happened before the season finale. More shows should take big risks like that rather than maintaining the status quo until “special event” episodes!

The growing familial bond between the core trio over the course of their adventures was a joy to watch, while Agent Christopher and programmer Jiya (Claudia Doumit) seamlessly fit into the group as the season progressed. I was happy Jiya was more than just a generic love interest (as cute as her romance with Rufus is) and was his equal in the tech arena, holding her own to save the day when time was tight and the odds were against them. I was genuinely surprised we met Agent Christopher’s family and continued to follow her after she was dismissed from the time travel project. That felt like the natural time to cut off the Time Team’s resources, but the show surprised me by having her go rogue and join the team. I also liked that she trusted Lucy to keep a flash drive of her family on the Lifeboat time machine in case they were erased; that was really clever. Even Mason, who I thought was genuinely a bad guy, shocked me when his self-interest (at least) won out, landing him on the Time Team's side at the last second.

I liked that Flynn wasn’t the purely evil villain he was initially made out to be, since he really was trying to save his family. It was smart to make him the extreme version of our heroes; not only did that make him a great foil for them, but at several points late in the season I thought each member of the Time Team was just a slight push away from being ready to join him. As much as Agent Christopher arresting Flynn before he could save his family (as Lucy had promised him) in the end will make him even more of an enemy, I wouldn’t be surprised if Flynn joined the Time Team next season. I can’t wait to find out when Lucy will return the journal to him and what the circumstances of Future Lucy reaching out to him—as a last hope?—are! Matt Frewer was solid in a supporting role as Anthony Bruhl, one of Flynn’s allies and Rufus’ former friend, lending a nice bit of conflict to the villains’ side of the show. The third prominent member of Flynn’s team, Emma Whitmore (Annie Wersching), proved to be calculating and capable, making her a good foil for Flynn’s more emotionally-driven methods.

Rittenhouse was a great enemy waiting in the shadows, ever-present and ready to strike, but also just out of sight. Getting Armin Shimerman to play the original Rittenhouse back in the Revolutionary War era was excellent casting! Since the organization was so powerful and imposing, I was surprised at how low-key their seeming defeat actually was. I'd like to think bringing them down by documenting all of Rittenhouse’s affairs over half a century was inspired/foreshadowed by the team’s adventure with Elliot Ness (Micha Collins) and Al Capone (Cameron Gharaee), since that’s how he was brought down before they changed history. I was expecting big changes to the timeline with Rittenhouse finally removed from the past, but this was just as satisfying. It was truly shocking that Lucy's mom Carol (Susanna Thompson) was revealed as a member of Rittenhouse too! The status quo seems to be shattered and I can't believe any of the Time Team would work with the government ever again. Are they going to join Flynn (maybe he shares some of his plutonium to power the Lifeboat) to stop Rittenhouse from creating their “perfect” future?

Many of the show’s historical guest stars were very entertaining! Harry Houdini (Michael Drayer), Bonnie & Clyde (Jacqueline Byers & Sam Strike), Ernest Hemingway (Brandon Barash), and Josephine Baker (Tiffany Daniels) were definitely among my favorites, but all of them added an engaging aspect to the weekly adventures. My absolute favorites had to the real-life inspirations for the Lone Ranger and Tonto, Bass Reeves and Grant Johnson. Reeves’ moral code played extremely well against Wyatt’s increasing difficulty with not taking more action to save Jessica, spurring a great debate about heroes and killing. On a side note, I’d love it if Timeless’ creators made a Lone Ranger series starring Coleman Domingo and Zahn McClarnon (Reeves and Johnson here), mixing Bass Reeves’ historical past with the Lone Ranger mythos! The temporal guest stars gave the show a great, varied texture: moments like actor John Wilkes Booth (Kelly Blatz) practicing his lines before committing an assassination were hilarious and the team getting to co-star in a new James Bond book/film after teaming up with Ian Fleming (Sean Maguire) was very cool! Other historical figures became well-written parallels to our heroes, like Werner Von Braun (Christian Oliver) and Rufus, or H.H. Holmes’ (Joel Johnstone) victims and the unexplained death of Wyatt’s wife. It was also great to learn new things about history, like the fact that Al Capone had a brother in law enforcement (Mather Zickel) and Jesse James (Daniel Lissing) was a psychopath instead of some noble outlaw of the Old West. Some of the changes to history, like General Cornwallis (Brad Dryborough) and Elliot Ness getting killed, genuinely shocked me (particularly as Micha Collins’ role as Ness had been so hyped online).

The show’s aesthetic was polished and sleek while staying true to the grit of war zones and the Old West when the story brought the characters there. There was a definite formula to many of the episodes—a necessary evil, as they had to show us how history really went before showing it change—but I don’t think it hurt the series at all. When they did play with the formula, like Wyatt and Rufus’ reverse-Back to the Future attempt to stop Jessica’s killer from being born and episode 7, which opened with the team being stranded during the French and Indian War, it was a great change of pace! I loved the smart writing, which injected a lot of humanity, humor, and drama into the proceedings while deftly including history lessons that never felt like lectures. I do think the series’ ratings were damaged by the timeslot (10 pm on Mondays); there was nothing content-wise that required that time and Timeless would’ve been great as an 8 pm show, given the all-ages tone. While it would conflict with The CW’s similarly-toned superhero shows Mondays-Wednesdays, maybe Timeless season 2 could find a home on Thursdays as counter-programming to ABC’s TGIT or on Fridays.

All the time-travel physics were well-explained over the course of the season, but I do have one theoretical question: they can't go back to where they've gone before, but what if they showed up a couple of days before an earlier trip to the same time zone? What would happen if they accidentally stayed past the barrier into their previous trip to that time and crossed the time streams, as it were? I think there’s a great “ticking clock” plot in there. The one area that I’d say the show could go further—and perhaps this is about to be addressed with Rittenhouse rewriting the timeline as they see fit—is that we should probably start seeing an increasingly altered future as more and more trips are taken to the past. As pointed out by the Bitter Script Reader on Twitter, this would eventually render Lucy ineffective as she knows less and less about the new history (unless her role shifts to documenting the history that was), but I don’t think the show should be afraid to go big on the changes.

I had a plethora of crazy theories about how the show could twist the plot and the timeline: Was Flynn from the future? Could he be Lucy’s son? Amy’s son, now existing only because he was outside the timeline when it changed and she was erased? Lucy’s father? Someone sent back in time by a future Lucy? Could one of the accidental changes to history bring back Wyatt’s wife Jessica? Did Rittenhouse kill her in the first place? Is Wyatt going to kill the parents of her killer to save her? If they eliminate Rittenhouse, will Lucy be born? Will Rufus get caught playing double agent? Will the Time Team find themselves aligned with Flynn by the season finale? I love theorizing and I love when shows fool me even more. Timeless did that often, and their reveals were never disappointing compared to my theories.

I can’t wait to see where this show goes if it gets a second season! Jessica’s death is still super suspicious; I’m 100% positive it was carried out by Rittenhouse (and they just used a different killer once Wyatt eliminated the original one from the timeline), and I can’t believe Wyatt is really ready to let it lie. If it was Rittenhouse, why would they have her killed? Was she involved with them too? Could Rittenhouse’s plans to create their perfect world bring Jessica back? The one thing I don’t need to see is Lucy and Wyatt together romantically. I know it's big in the fandom—at least on Twitter—but to me, it's clear he absolutely still loves Jessica and until he can't possibly bring her back, I don't see him moving on. Wyatt and Lucy do have chemistry, but it doesn't feel romantic from his side. Lucy’s maybe, but Wyatt seems unwavering in his devotion to his wife. I still think it'd be gut-wrenchingly brilliant if they discovered that Lucy's dad killed her, so the only way to save Jessica would be to kill him before Lucy's conceived.

Are Wyatt and Rufus going to break Flynn out of prison so he can help rescue Lucy from her mom and retake the Lifeboat? Will Lucy ever find a way to get Amy back? I don't see why Lucy drew a connection between her mom's illness and Amy existing, but if they are connected somehow, that’d certainly be surprising. Are we going to see Lucy fill out the journal, now that she has it? Will we see Flynn time travel to meet older Lucy, or are we going to see her grow to a point where she sends him back in time? Will Mason’s self-serving nature continue to supply the team indefinitely, or are those resources shut off for good? What’s secret Rittenhouse agent Emma Whitmore off to destroy? Is my sister right, and Jiya’s visions of the past will give the Time Team their history-saving missions by cluing them in to what Whitmore is changing?

Whatever they have in store, I’ll be very disappointed if NBC doesn’t bring Timeless back for another season! The cast, writing, and historical nature of the show are all top-notch. #RenewTimeless, indeed!

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fitnesswomenshealth-blog · 6 years

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Dr Paul Lam Tai Chi for Health Newsletter October 2018

New Post has been published on https://cialiscom.org/dr-paul-lam-tai-chi-for-health-newsletter-october-2018.html

Dr Paul Lam Tai Chi for Health Newsletter October 2018

Hello <<First Name>>,

As I travel around the world I visit and enjoy many places. I have been to Manchester several times, but this time I saw it in a new light. Please see Hazel Thompson’s article below on the changes in Manchester over the last sixty years.

I have never been to Calcutta, but I hope to go there in the future to work with Kartikey Shukla and Sylvia Das. Kartikey is an architect and Sylvia is an IT expert. I am enormously impressed that they have both given up their very competitive professions to teach tai chi. A bright and enthusiastic couple, they are doing wonderful things to help the people of India, and they report on their progress in this issue.

Many thanks to New York neuroscientist and tai chi instructor Lucy Brown (members can watch her fascinating interviews at the Online Community) for sending us this link to a very interesting article on tai chi in the New York Times.

Yours in Tai Chi,

Paul Lam, MD Director taichiforhealthinstitute.org

Please don’t reply to this Newsletter, contact us via [email protected]

Upcoming Workshops by Dr Paul Lam

October 2018

Beyond Tai Chi for Rehabilitation with extra new movements with Dr Paul Lam, October 4, United States, FL

Exploring the Depth of Tai Chi for Arthritis and Fall Prevention with Dr Paul Lam, October 6, United States, FL, Cape Coral

Tai Chi for Memory Instructor Training with Dr Paul Lam, October 9. United States, FL, Cape Coral

Five Element Qigong with Dr Paul Lam, October 12, United States, MI

Exploring the Depth of Tai Chi for Arthritis and Fall Prevention with Dr Paul Lam, October 13, United States, MI, Pontiac

Tai Chi for Rehabilitation Instructor Training with Dr Paul Lam, October 18, United States, MO, St Louis

Exploring the Depth of Tai Chi for Arthritis and Fall Prevention with Dr Paul Lam, October 20, United States, MO, St Louis

Enhancing Sun 73 Forms with Dr Paul Lam, October 26, United States, AZ, Phoenix

Exploring the Depth of Tai Chi for Arthritis and Fall Prevention with Dr Paul Lam, October 27, United States, AZ, Phoenix

November 2018

January 2019

June 2019

17th Annual Pre-Conference, June 8-9, United States, OH, Cincinnati, Mount St. Joseph University.

17th Annual Week-long Workshop, June 10-15, United States, OH, Cincinnati, Mount St. Joseph University.

Product of the Month

Dr Lam’s Tai Chi Music CDs are specially composed to aid you your practice. For October only, when you buy the Tai Chi Music CD you will receive the Tai Chi Music 2 CD free! Please use the link below to order. Offer expires 31 October. Not to be used with any other discount.

Shop: https://www.taichiproductions.com/specials/bundle-tai-chi-music-cd-bundle

Matchstick Men and Matchstick Cats and Dogs

Hazel Thompson, Master Trainer, Sydney

I was born and raised in Manchester, England, in the working-class suburb of Rusholme, which to me seemed quite an unremarkable area. Recently I discovered that Emmeline Pankhurst was born in the neighbouring suburb of Moss Side in 1858. A political activist, she became the leader of the suffragette movement and coined their rallying cry “Votes for Women”. In 1999 Time magazine named her as one of the most important people of the 20th Century, stating “she shaped an idea of women for our time, she shook society into a new pattern from which there could be no going back”.

Back to the 70s, when I won the scholarship for the exclusive Loreto College Convent Grammar School for Girls. The Headmistress, Mother Victorine, was fond of telling us that we were the crème de la creme and that a “Loreto Girl” could achieve anything she desired. The school was in Hulme, a rather less select area, and, crème de la creme or not, we day girls navigated a risky path to and from the convent daily. A Loreto hat or scarf was a highly prized trophy amongst the less fortunate local teenagers, and we sustained many bruises and the occasional black eye as we defended our uniforms and ourselves.

Part of the curriculum was elocution lessons, so by the age of 12 I had lost my Manchester accent, which was replaced with a rather more refined Queen’s English, much to the bafflement of my parents. Imagine my delight, many, many years later at the 10th Anniversary workshop in Sydney to meet Anastasia Yianni, a Master Trainer candidate from Melbourne. Like Professor Higgins I recognised her Mancunian accent as coming from the square mile in which I had grown up, and we quickly established that we grew up just a couple of streets apart. At 21 we both married and moved to Middleton–again just streets apart. The years melted away and our accents became more pronounced as we reminisced about our childhood in Manchester.

We walked all around Sydney Harbour talking non-stop. We sang jingles from tv ads “Anytime, anyplace, anywhere, there’s a wonderful world you can share, it’s the bright taste, the right taste of Martini). We remembered our favourite TV programs–The Woodentops, Bill and Ben, The Clangers and the still-going Blue Peter. All classics in our eyes.

I am now back in Manchester for Dr Lam’s workshops. Yesterday we went to the Midland Hotel for afternoon tea, and it came back to me that in my early 20s my friends and I would visit the Tommy Duck’s public house, built in 1896, which was directly across the road from the Midland, standing in the midst of demolished buildings. Legend had it that the sign writer was commissioned to paint the landlord’s name, Thomas Duckworth, but ran out of room.

On the site now is a Premier Inn, but back then the Tommy Ducks featured coffee tables made from glass-topped coffins and a large collection of ladies’ briefs nailed to the ceiling. The landlord would offer a free drink to any female of any age who would remove her undies at the bar. (Please remember this was the 80s, sexism had yet to be discovered!) Female students quickly caught on and would don two pairs, hence retaining their modesty whilst enjoying a free beer. Not only students–there were some rather voluminous garments up there! Personally, I preferred to pay for my drinks. As Manchester city centre became more developed a preservation order was applied for but ran out at midnight on February 12th, 1993. The council offices were closed, and the bulldozers moved in at 3 am before anyone could reapply. By the next morning the site was completely cleared, and it was then referred to by the locals as the pub that disappeared in the middle of the night.

During the workshop we are staying in the fashionable area of Salford Quays, a very pleasant and prosperous area, full of cafes, and designer shops. Wind back to my teens when the area was part of the Manchester Docks complex, including the Manchester Ship Canal. Other major ports in Manchester were bombed extensively during the Blitz, so Manchester became the UK’s third busiest port, and employed a great many people.

The emphasis was on industry, rather than atmosphere, and the water was dank and polluted, with many semi-derelict warehouses crumbling along the canal. During the 1970s containerisation was introduced and the increasing size of freight-carrying ships meant they could no longer navigate the ship canal. This, combined with increased trading with Europe and the east, saw the use of Manchester Docks decrease and many jobs lost.

Recognising the need to redevelop the area, Salford City Council purchased the docks in 1984 using a derelict land grant. The Salford Quays Development Plan was adopted in May 1985, proposing complete reclamation and development of the area for commercial, residential and leisure use. Subsequently, it became one of the largest urban redevelopment areas in the UK, with beautifully landscaped canals, peaceful walks and the Salford Wake Park where people can learn to water ski and wakeboard in the middle of the city, towed by sophisticated pulleys which eliminate the noise and damage caused by speedboats.

The water has been extensively cleaned and aerated, and fish now thrive there, along with geese, swans, ducks, kingfishers and herons. Foxes and bats can be seen at dusk around the designer apartments. It is home to the BBC Television Studios, Independent TV and Media City. All in all, I find it totally unrecognisable from the Salford of my teens!

The painter LS Lowry was born in a prosperous area of Manchester, but a change in fortune meant that his family moved to Pendlebury, a more industrial area. To help make ends meet, Lowry left school at 16 and clerked at an accountancy firm. Lowry was never a full-time artist, in his early twenties he took a job as a rent collector, which lasted for forty years. Given his day job and the seemingly naïve style of his paintings, it was long assumed that Lowry was self-taught. However, he did take evening classes in painting and drawing at the Salford School of Art and Municipal College of Art.

I confess I was never a Lowry fan, but he did document a different way of life with his paintings of workers leaving the factory gates as the whistle blew, and grim northern scenes. He has certainly left his mark on Salford though, with the Matchstick Man restaurant (named after his stick-figure paintings), the Lowry Theatre and even the Lowry Outlet Mall. His work was well recognised and exhibited, and he was even offered a knighthood in 1968, which he turned down, telling the Prime Minister at the time, Harold Wilson: “All my life I have felt most strongly against social distinction of any kind”. Manchester may have changed quite dramatically in appearance, but I’m happy to report that the locals are as friendly as ever, with a great sense of humour. Also, the fish, chips and mushy peas are still the best in the world, no arguments permitted.

A Letter to Dr Lam

Gene Vineta, Retired Captain, World Airways

It’s hard to believe that the USA Annual Tai Chi Conference at the Pacific University was just 2 months ago. I am still on a High Energy from all the practice… It seems only a few days ago after the arrival on Friday, that we were getting ourselves ready for a weekend of the Pre-Conference and the Forms 24 with you Dr. Lam and all the instructors, where we were able to meet and practice with almost all the instructors, including you. What a feeling that Saturday and Sunday, the feeling was AWESOME, and I mean it in every sense of the word.

Sunday afternoon where the Demos and pictures and just simply great all around. I cannot tell you how much your instructional DVDs of Tai Chi have help me overcome my Arthritis and improve my health at the same time. It’s follow your lead and practice, practice… My humble thanks to all the people and in the background in helping you put this wonderful workshop/conference together. Now comes Monday morning meeting after breakfast and we are off to another tai chi adventure, this time it’s the “Exploring the Depth of Sun Style 73 Forms”, so for the week, we would be under the watchful eyes of our Instructor Bill & Linda Pickett who guided us on tai chi journey thru the 73 forms. It was great that you join us or stop by to check on our progress as we continue to Saturday for all the demos and pictures and awards.

At some of the morning meetings, you did several demos that was Inspiring to me and truly You are the Master. The Talent show was very good and a nice change of pace for the evening. And the Dinner/Dance was a Great event for all of us… Then it was Sunday and it was time for me to catch my ride and go to the train station, and you were there to see many of us going home.

This was a special trip/adventure for many of us, certainly me, this was my 1st time with a group and a workshop. There is no goodbye with the Cherokee’s, only until We meet again. I will cherish this time/event at the Pacific University, it would be great to return here again.

Product Review Prize Winners

Below we list the winners for September. Congratulations to Erica and Dennis! Please contact [email protected] or [email protected] within ten days to claim your prizes.

Do be sure to post your review when you make a purchase to win a mystery prize!

Australia

Product: Teaching Tai Chi Effectively Book Rated 5 out of 5 stars Posted by: Erica Bartlett

“Inspiring Teaching Resource”

Teaching Tai Chi effectively is not only a marvellous and inspiring teaching aid for Tai Chi, but its principles can also be practised in everyday life. Doctor Lam’s simple and sensitive approach to facilitating a Tai Chi class has covered every scenario and type of student you would ever encounter. I feel so much more confident and enthusiastic to begin my own classes with the tools Doctor Lam has so generously shared in this masterpiece of Tai Chi knowledge. My daughter is a high school English teacher and uses many of the principles in this book when dealing with bored or disruptive students. She also employs the stepwise method for teaching in difficult areas that students are having trouble understanding. In my personal relationships I am finding it so much better to be able to ‘step back and absorb the incoming force’. There is just so much wisdom in this book, it should be on the best seller lists. Thank you, Doctor Lam, for sharing all your experience and wisdom.”

USA

Product: Tai Chi for Heart Conditions DVD Rated 5 out of 5 stars Posted by: Dennis Fallo

“Excellent addition to Tai Chi for Health programs” Very well done and very much a needed program!

After going through the dvd program, I mentioned how wonderful it was to several places, including a regional medical center where I offer TCA. They can’t wait for me to add this program as well!

I hope that it will be offered as a certified program for myself and other instructors soon!

It is so very rewarding to see so many folks, especially older adults, benefit from the Tai Chi for Health programs! I feel so special, to be part of the Tai Chi for Health Institute. Thank you, Dr Lam….See you in Maine!!

Tai Chi in Kolcata – Just Like That!

Kartikey Shukla and Sylvia Das, Instructors, Kolcata

First things first, we are thoroughly enjoying our journey towards establishing Tai Chi for Health following in my city. Up until now, many people have joined hands, but we have never been this socially active. Things are changing now very slowly but surely. We recently got in touch with a Yoga school here in Kolkata which had conducted Tai Chi/Qigong workshops as recently as January 2018. They get an instructor to fly in from the USA. We have also got Program Head of one Autism Management Center very interested in introducing Tai Chi, but as it is with everything, she must seek permission from her Directors, etc., so it may take some time. As we are approaching the most important festival in this region, which is in the third week of October, every new venture needs to wait until the festival is over. We are eagerly looking forward to November. Many new things may happen, and if they don’t, we are ready to keep working on it. There is such a variety of places that we are in talks with right now. A few seem to know about Tai Chi just enough to get in touch with us or respond enthusiastically if we have reached out first. There are more than a few cold responses, but generally because we could not get through to the right person. One of the very interesting calls we received recently was from a Jain Monastery, where the Chief Guru is keen to know about Tai Chi. Since the Guru doesn’t talk on the phone, a disciple called us, and he found us on the institute website. Isn’t that exciting? Tai Chi may find its way to a non-Buddhist monastery, which might be first at least in India. Kolkata is a slow-moving city, so our Tai Chi ship is also tugging along, however slow it may be. The class we started before January 2018 workshop had to be closed soon after we returned from Australia, but since April 2018 we have started several new classes. Some of those we had to close due to lack of audience, but on average we are teaching about 12-15 students per month. We hope to increase that figure November onward. It will be exhilarating to watch the future unfold, especially while being in the middle of it. We will keep you posted, as it gives us great happiness to communicate with you through any medium. I am enjoying writing this and may send more in future. It has been just six or seven months since we have been really into it. From September 2017 to February 2018 we didn’t have any direction, and it took us two months of brainstorming and work to get few classes to start. Counting from April 2018 we believe we have made decent progress – it is really amazing how sometimes things work out and how sometimes they don’t. We in general never push anyone or anything too hard. I saw Denise Murray’s video and I was pleasantly surprised that Sylvia and I have been following most of the things she talked about. It is indeed a matter of great pride to be associated with the Institute!

Just yesterday one of my students, who is 78 years old, told me that he has a Defibrillator machine on his heart (also called an ICD) and I didn’t know that before. I was surprised to know that he also goes swimming with that machine. He never misses a class if he is in Kolkata, he is always smiling and eager to learn. There is another set of students who really haunted me to start a class in their neighbourhood. We may have just a handful of students yet, but all of them are inspiration enough to keep going on. One of my students recently dropped out despite liking the class very much. According to him, his knees are not able to sustain the 60-minute session. Also, he felt as if his knee pain has increased after the class. I was astonished to know that as not once he complained about his discomfort to me nor he ever took a break to sit and just observe. I mentioned that many times in the class as per my training to take rest if there is any sort of discomfort. I am still a little sad to lose a sincere student. Sylvia is also completely free from her office commitments, very actively involved in this task we have on our hands. I would be lost without her.

We have been practicing regularly just as well, mornings are dedicated to practicing and evenings are for classes. We are yet to have morning classes, but we are planning to have some soon. As always, these things will take time. I have learned Sword 32 forms the DVD we bought this year in Wollongong and now helping Sylvia to learn it too. Right before we returned to India in September 2017, we had few months of training on Sword form 51 with a teacher in Singapore, which helped us in learning quickly from the DVD. We are really enjoying that, I think having a sword in hand is slowly increasing our understanding of Sun 73 and Yang 24. Especially, Sun 73 has never felt same ever since we have returned from 20th-anniversary workshop. It may sound funny to some, but I think whenever I go out to practice among the trees early in the morning, I feel the trees around me are happy and filling me with positive energy. I myself try not to think too much on this. A 23-year-old who is probably our best student here is hoping to be an Instructor. I have been training her keeping that in mind too. I really hope she can continue learning and get certified as an instructor, so we will have company – reaching out to 14 million people will be much better if our team increases! We still don’t have an idea how we are going to take it to Mumbai, Delhi and other places. But we have a firm belief that just like tai chi has made its way to Kolkata, we will find a way to take it to other parts of India, too. Just earlier today a guy called me from another state in India. He has learned a few things from the online lessons he could manage to get hold of. He follows you keenly considers you as his Guru, and he hopes to meet you sometime soon. The enthusiasm he talked with I think he can be another future instructor – we’ll see how it goes. It generally excites me if I can see a future instructor in someone, but we need to see how much people put their words in action. We are happy that we could keep our words true when we met you in May 2016 in Singapore, you may not remember, but we committed to do this in that Exploring Depth of TCA workshop you conducted. It has been all good since that day, I still can remember how deeply moved we both were in that workshop. Each day since has been great, first learning Tai Chi followed by days trying to spread it in Kolkata. Each day has been different, and we are just going with the flow.

Humour, Laughter and Radiant Health

Dr Bob McBrien, Master Trainer, Salisbury, MD, USA

While reading Dr Dan Siegel’s new book titled “Aware, “my knowledge of the benefits of humour & laughter was updated by how he describes how humour enhances neuroplasticity, opens us to new learning and adds quality to our relationships Remember, it was Victor Borge who said, “Laughter is the shortest distance between two persons.”

Once again, we look to the innocence of children to enjoy non-toxic humour and the delight we experience when we laugh.

Primary school children responded to their teacher’s request to finish famous sayings with these answers:

An idle mind is………………the best way to relax

A penny saved is………….. not much

Laugh and the whole world laughs with you, cry …and you have to blow your nose

If at first you don’t succeed………get new batteries

Don’t bite the hand that………….. looks dirty

Two is company, three is …… the Musketeers

Don’t change horses …………. until they stop running

It is better to be late than be … pregnant.

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jo-shanenarooma · 6 years

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Heading South

5/01/2018: It was a late start today with no rush to get out of bed. Apart from a brief getaway with Jo having a few days off after the Christmas break, we deliberately chose this area as one of Jo's descendants, her great, great grandfather William Ringland, settled here some time ago and made a name for himself sailing ships up and down the coast transporting goods and such.

Captain’s ticket

William was born in Cumberland, England and married Susan Gallagher in 1848 in Sydney. That same year a daughter was both born and lost and on Boxing day 1849 their first son, also named William was born. During this period William earned a living as a sea-going mariner out of Port Jackson. By 1854 two more children, Joseph and Margret were born after which William changed his vocation to victualler and made a living out of working from the Fortune of War Inn in Pitt Street where in 1856 another son, James was born. Within two years he had pulled up stumps and moved everyone south to Greenhills on the Shoalhaven where he obtained a publican's licence to run the Settler's Home from which another child appeared, Henry in 1859. Around 1861 after Alfred was born, he and Susan again relocated, this time to Wagonga near Narooma where he took up the role of Master Mariner. On Christmas Eve 1864 the last of the tribe, John was born.

Image of William Ringland (they think)

First thing on the list today was a swim. Shane set off for a swim at the beach, Jo and Zac swam at the pool and Soph stayed in the cabin. Refreshed, we regrouped and planned the day ahead while Zac cooked up some bacon and eggs for breakfast. Ringland’s Point and Bega was the plan.

Lagoon at the end of Handkerchief Beach

Heading back north toward Narooma, we took a turn to the left before hitting the township and entered a new housing subdivision called Ringland’s Estate and a little further on Ringland’s Point overlooking Ringland’s Bay. After moving to the area, William and Susan purchased a substantial plot of land overlooking Wagonga Inlet where they built a small home for the family. It was around there that Susan would stand and keep watch for her husband returning home from his seafaring duties, captaining his tall ship up and down the coast.

Wagonga Inlet

Joanne considered that there was enough Ringland presence in the area to file for a land rights claim.

Old shot of Ringland’s Point. Ringland’s Bay to the left

After a good look around we headed to the Narooma Visitors centre and found a book that mentioned William as well as regattas that were held at Ringland’s Point during the 1920’s. While at the point a phone call to Jo’s brother, Michael, gave us an extra task for the day. William was buried at Bermagui to the south. He moved there after Susan died and lived there until his death in 1898. She died of the palsy while he was at sea during 1866 and is buried at Ringland’s Point, somewhere on the shores of Wagonga Inlet. No evidence of the gravesite or any indication of its location exist today.

Could be sitting on her

Having looked around the visitors’ centre, its local history and seafaring memorabilia, we had to keep moving and with Bermagui added to our agenda, southward bound it was. Predicting a late finish for the day we stopped to pick up more groceries and took them back to the cabin on the way through.

The turn to Bermagui was a few kilometres along the Princes Highway, not far but the continual grey nomads and their caravans made the trip much longer than anticipated. A few kilometres further and we were back on the coast, passing small waterfront communities and across Wallaga Lake, a picturesque and seemingly shallow waterway via a rickety old timber bridge and long causeway.

Attractive surrounds and popular

Next stop the graveyard, but not before having to navigate the busy Bermagui waterfront with heaps of families, young’uns and boats everywhere. All enjoying the sunshine.

The graveyard was just out of town off of Bunga Street, across from the beach. Except for the trees in the way it everyone there would have a good view. Its dried grass was representative of the whole of the east coast at the moment, dry as and in drought. The beware of the snakes sign gave credence to the time of the season. At first, we just looked around as we find cemeteries interesting. They represent local history. Further down the hill, Jo found what she had been looking for, William’s grave, albeit a little more modern than anticipated, buried with his son Joseph, who died in 1937. There was also a commemorative plaque dedicated to Susan. Jo was somewhat moved by the experience as she was standing at the grave of her great, great, grandfather.

William and Joseph Ringland R.I.P.

Jo ended up spotting some flowers near the graveyard entry (not another grave) and after a quick dash to the fence line to pick some mauve and white agapanthus along with a few ferns, a quick bouquet was put together on left at the headstone.

We regrouped, decided not to drive to Bega, and much to Isaac’s disgust, headed back. It was almost three and Bega was still an hour away. An interesting town that we detoured through on the way down was on the cards. Tilba, founded in 1873, looked interesting with numerous old buildings turned into shops lining the main street.

Central Tilba lied in the shadow of Mount Dromedary, known as the sacred mountain Gulaga, ancestral mother of the Yuin people. During the late nineteenth century, gold was discovered on the mountain, starting a gold rush (bet the locals were happy) which led to the establishment of Central Tilba, where we were and just down the road Tilba Tilba. We drove through the main drag and pulled up adjacent to our first stop, the ABC Cheese factory.

There were still plenty of people around but the factory seemed to be finished for the day. The large glass display windows meant to show us how things were made was empty. Nobody around except to clean up. Nothing inside to tickle our fancy neither.

Cheese kept the town afloat after the gold rush

A bit of time was spent here but not too much. Shop after shop, from the cheese factory to the war memorial were just commercialised “cottage industry” rubbish. A few interesting tid bits, like the candle shop but in a nutshell the place was Morpeth revisited. We didn’t even go to the pub. Instead we took a break in a fifties style lolly shop that served milkshakes with malt. We all had one. Dad suggested that everyone have malt which we did. It didn’t go down too well with the kids though.

The Dromedary Hotel. A man is not a camel

We finally reached the war memorial at the end of the street, crossed over to it and headed back towards to car. Directly in front of us though, was the Bates Emporium and Post Office which gave us a blast from the past. Old post boxes and an old letter box. We went inside to look around but not for long. On our way out the old dude shop keeper remarked to Shane how lucky he was to have Jo as his wife. Shane replied “so I’ve been told”. Old dude “who told you that?” to which we both replied “she did”.

Resting at the Post Office

The area was nice to look at but nothing more than a Venus Fly Trap for kitsch and targeted at cashed up tourists. A couple of candles and a milkshake done us.

Back to the cabin. We were planning a BBQ and some dominos. While Isaac was doing the cooking, Shane was chatting up a couple of old sheilas staying next to us. One was from Vic Rail and the other looked like Judith Lucy. We seen them on the beach this morning which got the conversation going.

Blue bottles, work and holidays were mostly covered while the sausages and steak sizzled away, under the watchful eyes of number five son.

Isaac the cook

Before we returned to the cabin with the food, the ladies recommended that we head down the beach to the channel feeding the lake. They had done it earlier. They jumped into the lagoon and relaxed as the tide took them a few hundred metres inland while taking it easy. Once finished, they got out and walked back to the start to do it again. Sounded like a good idea. We’ll do it for sure.

Dominos to finish off the night

Tomorrow, we’ll head north on another fact-finding mission.

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kats-play · 7 years

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IchiLARP 2017 epilogue

Thanks to everyone that came out to Ichibancon and participated in the LARP. We had just as much of a blast as you guys did. In keeping with Ichi tradition, at least one of my NPCs gets an epilogue and Lucy (Elfen Lied) got one hell of a twist to her story: getting adopted by the Joestars (Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure). Much better than the super-sad ending she gets in the anime or manga. Enjoy!

Bonk.

Children taking turns kicking her. The teacher ignoring her cries for help.

Bonk.

Children holding her down and forcing her to watch. The terrified yelps of her puppy, suddenly silenced with a crack and spray of blood.

Bonk.

Kohta screaming over the dead bodies of his father and sister. She just wanted him to stay and be her friend. She didn't mean to...

Bonk.

Gunshots. The runaway gasping for air. “We'll help her if you come quietly...” Tranquilizer for her. An execution for the runaway.

Bonk.

“Oh, what a precious little dolly...” She would learn to fear Kefka's laugh.

Bonk.

It was too much for Lucy. Her memories were returning too fast for her to process. The people trying to talk her down didn't understand: She needed be Nyu. Nyu didn't have vectors. People didn't fear or hate Nyu. Being Nyu was joy and happiness.

Bonk.

Lucy's vectors whizzed around behind her, keeping her would-be helpers at bay. She was vaguely aware of shouts and things being thrown behind her. If she hit her head hard enough, Nyu would come back. All she had to do was let the vectors shield her until Nyu resurfaced. They wouldn't hurt Nyu. Lucy was content to sleep forever, if it meant she wouldn't be used and abused anymore.

Bonk.

Thick, strong arms wrapped around Lucy's body from behind. She stopped headbutting the wall, tensing for the pain she knew was coming. But the arms merely stayed there, gently holding her. Salt and pepper whiskers tickled her ear as Joseph Joestar bent his head forward.

“Shh... it's going to be okay.”

Lucy forgot she could cry. And when she started, she couldn't stop. She turned away from the wall and buried her face in Joseph's chest. Her body shook as all her pain came out in tears and near-screaming. And Joseph sat with her on the dirty saloon floor, rocking her gently and stroking her hair. Giving her all the time she needed to let it out.

“Oi! Lucy! Wake up!”

Kefka's laugh echoed through her head as she woke up. She looked over to see Jotaro Kujo leaning on the door. His Stand, Star Platinum, towered over her, gently shaking her awake. She looked away in embarrassment. Counselors at the Speedwagon Foundation had made a lot of progress with her, but she still had the occasional night terror. Because of Star Platinum's speed, only Jotaro had the ability to wake her up without getting skewered by her vectors.

“Nightmare?”

Lucy nodded, rubbing her eyes.

“Areare...” Jotaro ran his fingers through his hair. “Well, we need to get ready for school in an hour anyway. We'll get strawberry crepes on the way home today.”

Strawberry crepes were Lucy's favorite dessert. Though Jotaro acted annoyed when she had a nightmare, he always did something nice for her the following day.

Lucy went to the bathroom to start her morning routine. When she returned to change into her school uniform, she saw her futon was already folded up and put away.

“Oh! You look so cute in your new uniform!”

Holly Kujo hugged Lucy tight before ushering her to the kotatsu for breakfast. The fluffy eggs and crisp bacon made Lucy salivate before she even picked up her fork. Holly continued fussing over Lucy, tying a ribbon around her horns and arranging her hair.

“Holly, let the girl eat. She's got a big day today.” Joseph folded his newspaper and winked.

“Oh, hush and let me fuss over Lucy! I always wanted a daughter and now I have one. ”

“I think Lucy would count as your sister, Ma. The old man is legally her guardian.” Jotaro Kujo entered the dining area and sat down.

“But she's too young to be your aunt. And you wanted a sister when you were little, Jojo!” Holly scritched one of Lucy's horns before sitting down and serving tea to the family.

Lucy adjusted the hem of her pleated skirt and picked at the food on her plate. Was this what counted as “normal”? Jotaro needling Joseph. Joseph scolding Jotaro over his disrespect. Holly heaping food on their plates and chirping away about her school days. Lucy had spent her entire life as a street or lab rat. Sitting here, eating with a family, still felt unreal.

“Lucy?” Joseph's voice cut through her thoughts. “Are you okay? You've barely touched your breakfast.”

Lucy smiled. “Just... nervous about my first day, Papa.” She forced herself to eat, letting the resumed chatter wash over her. She could feel the warmth and love in this house. While it still felt strange, it was something she was getting used to.

Soon enough, Lucy and Jotaro were putting on their shoes and collecting their bookbags. Holly handed them both a handcrafted bento for lunch and gave them a gentle kiss on their foreheads. As Jotaro opened the door, Lucy dashed back into the living area, where Joseph was replacing a lightbulb. She wrapped her arms around the elderly man's waist, hugging as tightly as she could.

“Oh? What brought this on?” Joseph patted Lucy on the back, chuckling.

Lucy buried her face in Joseph's chest. “I... um... nyuuuu... Just want to say thank you, Papa. For everything.”

Yes, this was real. Nothing was going to take it from her. She didn't need to hide behind Nyu because she was now something better.

She was Lucy Joestar.

#elfen lied #jojo's bizarre adventure #lucy #joseph joestar #ichibancon #ichilarp

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