#are the meijers not safe anymore?? | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

rebelwithacausesolveig · 3 years

Note

Time Warp! (Matty)

Let’s do the time warp again! Send me “time warp” to meet a younger or older version of my muse!

@matthias-meijer [I couldn’t decide between past or future, so you get a 2 for 1! yay~ lol. Also, special honorable mentions; @katrienmeijer , @margaritaxromanova , plus a couple un-named] Obligatory disclaimer, I own none of these characters and this isn’t cannon unless unanimously decidedly so.

The Past

Solveig’s hands trembled slightly as she looked at herself in the full length mirror. She’d been training her entire life to asses and take down threats but somehow talking to her best friend had her nerves frayed beyond repair.

The king will be there.

Of course he would, she remind herself. He couldn’t risk the girl saying anything to his son that he didn’t want him to hear. Turning to the side Solveig lifted her shirt enough to show her abdomen. Still flat, lean, and muscular; she wondered how long it would take before she started showing. Another month would put her at the beginning of her second trimester, is that when? How long until she could find out if it was a little boy or girl? She could have easily found these things out online, but somehow Googling it made it too real to handle. No, she’d just wait until she got to Norway to ask her aunt about it.

Putting on her most convincing smile she walked through the halls, doing her best to act like it was just another day. Maybe she wouldn’t even find Matthias in the palace and she could just leave without a word. That sounded easier, and it wasn’t forever, right? Just one year.

A familiar voice pulled her from her worries and she had to pause to gather herself before turning to face him with a grin. “Little prince... I was wondering if I was going to be able to find you before I had to leave.” He didn’t look thrilled, but admittedly not as upset as Solveig expected. Then again, he didn’t really know the full story, just that she was spending a year abroad.

It took everything Solveig had to keep her face passive as the king stepped out of the office behind his son. With Matthias’ back to him his eyes bored holes straight through the teenage girl. She hated the man with every fiber of her being. For threatening her family. For forcing her to lie to his son. For making it so that her own child would barely know her and never meet their father. As much as she hated him though, her fear of him was so much greater. Men like him were the reason she’d joined the rebellion when her father had told her about it months before on her sixteenth birthday. One day he’d be taken down a notch, and she hoped she got to personally see to it.

“It will only be a year, and we can still text and face-time or whatever,” she added with a grin, pulling her attention back to Matthias. Standing on her tip toes she wrapped her arms around him. ‘Little Prince’ had been an ironic moniker for years now. “I promise to bring you back some cool souvenirs.” With that she pulled away before quickly pinching his cheek with a chuckle. “Maybe by the time I get back you will have gotten rid of some of this baby fat.” She was teasing of course, but whether he knew why or not, she needed something to lighten the mood.

Giving a small wave and a lingering glance she left him there in the hall. Even as she re-treated she could feel the king’s eyes on her and it took everything she had not to run from him as quickly as possible. This was only one of the first battles in what would turn into a lifelong war of glares and veiled threats, but she wouldn’t let him win it.

“Ms. Trulson.” Solveig stopped dead in her tracks and took a deep breath before wordlessly looking back at the monarch that had addressed her. “Have a safe trip.”

Solveig had to swallow hard, glad they were far enough away to not see the lump in her throat. He’d managed to make the phrase sound like more of a curse than a payer. Nodding in reply, she didn’t dare speak knowing her voice would be shaky.

---------

The Future

Solveig had to bite her tongue as the small girl tugged on her dress.

“Mama! Maaaaamma~ Asy needs help. Maaaammaaaaa~ You have to come now! Asy needs help! C’mon, Mama! Mammaaaaa!”

Solveig loved the six year old with all her heart, but damn she knew how to be obnoxious. A trait, the blonde was adamant, that she got from her father. Not to mention today was already a whirlwind of stress and emotion to begin with and her youngest child’s constant talking wasn’t helping.

“Okay.” Solveig finally caved, kneeling down to her daughter. “Shh, less volume please, Klara, and take deep breaths.” She waited a moment for the small child to calm down and catch her breath. “Okay, now tell me calmly, what does Astrid need help with.”

“Um, there’s lots of buttons. And, um, she said something about pictures with you helping with her dress and, um, finding Matty....ummmm.” The small child’s eyes seemed to wander as she tried to remember. Solveig knew her daughter well enough to know she wasn’t getting anymore information out of her. Klara’s attention was gone for good. “Mama, I’m hungry.” Yup, there is was, she’d moved on to food. As was usual.

“Your papa is through that door,” she said, spinning the girl to face the double doors to the sanctuary. “He has snacks in his pocket, go find him.” With a pat on the butt she watched the girl run off with a grin. There was still an hour until the ceremony, no need for Klara to sit around in the dressing room bored.

Heading back to where her eldest child was she turned a corner and if she hadn’t been so light on her feet, would have run straight into Matthias. “Oh good, I was just going to come look for you. I am told you are needed, though perhaps my six-year-old is not the best source of reliable information,” she added with a grin.

Taking a moment she looked him over. It was hard to believe they were both in their forties now, their accidental daughter only an hour away from getting married. The last eleven years since he’d found out about Astrid had been somewhat strained, their relationship had never fully recovered, but it had gotten better. She’d seen him a number of times after leaving Russia, especially after the then teenager had decided she wanted to split her living time between her mother and newly found father. He looked older now though, or perhaps just wiser. It seemed the stress of taking over the kingdom the pervious year had aged him some. His hair now speckled with gray and the lines in his shallow though prominent. He still had the same kind eyes though and she couldn’t help but return it as he smiled at her.

He had children with Maggie now, and even Katrien had her own family. Though Solveig was still certain the girl had more adopted pets than children. It seemed like a lifetime ago that they’d all lived under one roof. Pushing the door to the room her daughter was holed up in open she nodded at Matthias. “After you, little...king? That will still take some getting used to,” she mused, following him in.

Seeing her daughter made Solveig gasp. Of course she’d seen her in the dress at the fittings, but here with her hair and makeup done, she looked truly regal. Astrid was kindly directing her bridesmaids around the room though stopped as soon as her parents walked in; her eyes lighting up.

“Mamma! Pappa! I wasn’t sure if Klara would actually relay the message.” The woman wrapped her arms around the two of them together. Solveig couldn’t help but notice it was the closest she’d been to Matthias in a while. “Okay, Mamma, we’re doing pictures with you buttoning my dress. Pappa, I want to get some with you too. Can someone please go find my little sisters, we need getting ready pictures. Then Pappa, I need you to take the photographer to where the boys are getting ready and make sure your son is with you. We need one with the groom and ring bearer.” Just like that Astrid was off on a whirlwind again before pausing as a thought occurred to her. “Is Maggie not with you two? I want one of Maggie doing my buttons too.” She turned to a bridesmaid. “Anita, can you go find the Dutch queen please? And bring my little sisters back while you’re at it, all of them. Thank you.” Without another glance at the woman that was already moving Astrid started for the other side of the room.

Solveig looked to Matthias, his brows raised as he took it in. Men weren’t usually privy to this part, though Solveig had to admit, Astrid was being much nicer right now than she’d been on her wedding day. ��Come on,” she said with a grin, tugging him through the fray of moving women to an adjacent room that had been staged for pictures. --- Solveig bent down, smoothing out Klara’s skirts. Not that they were in disarray, she just needed something to keep her busy. She heard the music start to play though and quickly took her place once more at the front of the processional. The groom was to escort the mother of the bride. So with Solveig back on one arm and Maggie on the other he took off. Glancing back quickly she tried to give Matthias a reassuring smile; he looked nervous.

It had been last minute, but Astrid had decided to switch to Matthias escorting her instead of Solveig. A decision she’d backed entirely. He’d spent too long not knowing his daughter existed. Something Solveig still felt terrible about. The man waved back though just before she turned away and she felt tears sting the back of her eyes. No, things weren’t the way they had been growing up, but they were getting better.

#Anonymous #meme answered #Matthias #AEJT #alterego #You Always Find the Best Part of Me || Matthias #Margarita #Where Are You? And I'm So Sorry || Maggie #katrien #I Love Your Precious Heart || Kat

3 notes · View notes

sole-cuore-amore-e-droga · 5 years

Text

Tel Aviv 2019: Straight outta United Kingdom to Eurovision with a blatantly non-blatant Melodifestivalen reject

youtube

Yes, obviously, Eurovision: You Decide might as well be the safest NF to ever exist. We get that you don’t want to even try, the UK, but can you please act like you’re not in Big 5 for a year and ATTEMPT to try your hardest with the song??? I doubt that, despite SuRie’s bubbliness, “Storm” would’ve pulled numbers if it were in semi, unless the anti-neo-Nazi stage invader were to butt-in there and people would then send sympathy televotes the Brits’ way or something. Unsatisfying. (The man, that is.)

And so we have gotten another safe as ever British entry this year, performed by an excited personality that got a side-dish song and now is tasked to sell the side-dish as greatly as he’s possibly able to - the first season of All Together Now winner, Michael Rice! The dish is “Bigger than Us” and I’m neither glad nor sad the song has not enough factor to eat up Michael as a whole if it’s that much BIGGER. Not even the fact that it’s a Melodifestivalen reject (yes, the title IS correct, one of the song’s co-writers, whom I’ll name later, has possibly said it at some point, and he couldn’t keep it to himself anymore so he sent it over to another country!) could help this poor number out.

If you strip the singer off, you just get a stereotypical Eurovision-y ballad you overhear when scavenging through foreign NF catalogues, wondering which kind of rent-a-songwriter-program person contributed to it. Well John Lundvik (yes THAT one) doesn’t sound like THAT kind of name you’d hear when you think of songwriters of such shtick but Laurell Barker is, so there you go. These are just the two masterminds behind this one, as there are more but icr their names and honestly idc to.

And there’s nothing wrong about these typical ESC NF shlocks. Only when you’re young and dumb enough to enjoy these kind of songs, but I had to unfortunately grow up and see just how “useful” they are... n’t. I mean, it’s great for the artists whose big dream is to taste Eurovision and NOT as a backing singer, but most of the time the singers that get these songs can’t even slightly relate to what they sing, and thus we get people like Bishara entering Melodifestivalen and Isaiah entering Eurovision.

Maybe Michael did get to experience the kind of love that’s BIGGER than him and his partner, idk. I certainly don't want to bother asking him. And frankly, it's only me overthinking this issue, because ain't nobody in the world really got time for that, definitely. Well, at least the relationship’s going on nice! (except for when Mike sings “‘cause I can heare the universe when I’m feeling you breathe”... spooky. o.I)

Anyway, time to get to talk more about the song. It's actually not THAT bad, just a little too typical and unextraordinary, where in the current times the Eurovision has to not be predictable in sound and to excite the viewer with... well, anything that can excite anyone. Be it the visuals OR the song. OR both. What's so special about "Bigger than Us" that can keep the viewer on toes? Probably just that keychange. I wish there were more things about it but not every commentator out there would have enough time to let them people know Michael works in a waffle shop, let alone the time that "HE WON A TALENT SHOW'S FIRST SEASON BUT THE SHOW ISN'T THE X FACTOR OR THE VOICE ZOMFG!!". Let alone people even listen to any Eurovision commenting these days, lol. It might be a charming little piece for some people though, but I don't see them voting for people selling their songs vocally much more than songs that draw in viewers with different ways. It's just a standart talent show winner song for a standart talent show winner that sounds like it's slightly too stuck in the mid-to-late-00s-early-10s rather than the 90s, which is warm and cool and all, but it's likely gonna not do the cool lad Michael the justice he'd need, just like SuRie's song for SuRie. Mayhaps a top 20-ish, or, in Lucie's case, even a top 15, is possible (although it's mostly thanks to the juries - they're the only ones eating up big voice ballads. And anything Maltese. And anything Australian. And anything Swedish... that only represents Sweden. Sorry Lukas Meijer), but when the British optimism levels are set in a deep deep ditch by default every year when the BBC comes with their platter of choices for EYD, what else could be there to raise them up after even Lucie hasn't done that amazing enough for everyone to believe that the UK are capable more than just always finishing last with 0 every year? Of course, a better than average song, but does BBC care about even pulling one out of a songwriting camp? These kind of songs are too shite for their taste, apparently, so with songs they send like these, it's probably yet another meander-er.

Which is a shame, because once again, it's not bad. It's just too plain Jane for Eurovision anymore. It's like everyone dressed up gorgeously for Miss Universe's National Costume event and you went with a cheap-ish designer dress that is decorated by small details that are notoriously known as the country's symbols just to count as something "national". It's like everyone brough their best baked (and dare I say extreme) dish to a dish competition and you only brought in a nice looking baked cod and circled the fries around it. It's like a prom night where everyone dresses casually and you come up all in a dull olive colored jacket and jeans with torn out knees. There might be something hidden in its niceness that can conquer (nice piano, nice chords, nice vocals, nice chorus, nice song formula, nice choir, nice keychange, nice message)... but with everything too nice, it just feels like that the UK are not feeling like getting a 'nice' result. Unless there's something that can make Michael do a 'male Lucie' and launch it around the 14th-19th place at best, but...

And here's the section where I repeat myself some more of what I think of the song as a whole and chances as a whole:

Approval factor: Eh I'll probably have to approve this but only reluctantly somewhat, maybe because I felt positive on the first listen unlike these people who wanted UK to dare to do something else than safe... yeah lol

Follow-up factor: It’s rather marginably favourable song than SuRie’s and only because I like it despite its ‘blandness’. “Storm” is just a song that I don’t really care about. Provided Michael gives all out personality-wise though and the revamp’s not gonna suck balls (if there’s one), this is a decent step in a decent direction for the UK... hope Michael’s not getting stage-invaded by anti-Israel people!

Big 5 factor: Thanks to all this pre-partying kicking in heavily as I put out these reviews (and actually having finished), it turns out that Michael is one of those people that clearly works his hardest to sell this typical British averageness (like he sells his waffles), with his live being so decent enough he was thought of to be a perfect EYD winner this year, so, if he keeps building up his vocal strenghts and rehearses a lot (and stays well and such), he’s actually likely to at least achieve something above bottom 7! Yes, yes, John Lundvik is still the master that will beat his pupil in the end, but that wouldn’t seem that excruciating for the UK anymore if they happen to have a place that’s not bottom 3 or anything. Just for the Michael to do his utmost best out there, and if he does, the UK won’t be in an extremely bad position this year - just not a very high reacher, because at the end of the day there are more nations that run straight with their A-game and therefore continue leaving the common-appealers in the dust. Only Sweden (and Australia until 2018 or so) usually excels at their safeness. The others must outstand to survive. And to wrap things up on this factor section, imo the UK just meanders in the safeness for another year - but at least the good enough safeness that might even be able to qualify if it were sent by a semifinalist country! (apart Sweden ffs, of course Mr. Lundvik would qualify with this one if he kept it to himself, jeez)

NATIONAL FINAL BONUS

Thankfully EYD didn’t really stink this year, because of certain key factors:

• There’s always this one or two act(s) that acts like a saviour each year. Bianca and Dulcima (or Darline idk) from 2016, Holly and Salena from 2017, Asanda (and maybe Jaz? or even Raya??) from 2018 and... ponder no more, Kerrie-Anne’s got you covered in that spot! Her version of the two one’s of “Sweet Lies” was arguably the greatest possible choice for the NF (or, in this case, the “very least bad”, and eventhough it’s incredibly reminiscent of Sigala’s “Sweet Lovin’” (vocals provided by Bryn Christopher, who - controversial opinion - is probably my fave male singer of all time), which makes it “dated” (to a 2012-2014 pop radio degree, yes), it still was a bop that I’d want to dance to in rollerskates (if I had any!!) and spray the colourful smoke things that... well idk what it is but the said video of “Sweet Lovin’” demonstrates the action. Get back to me to let me know what’s that, anyone reading this. K-A lowkey underperformed though (just like Asanda from last year) but the bop remained AND she was rightfully included in the British televote’s superfinal trio! ^^

youtube

• The hosts were, yet again, the ever-so-loveable comedienne of Lithuanian roots, Mel Giedroyc, and the witty-ass Eurovision 2015 winner Måns Zelmerlöw. The duo is charming as usual and delightful to see on the Beebs when there’s the Eurovision case. If I didn’t know him better I’d even say Måns is a native English speaker. When there’s at least the drought of the ever-so-good entries in an EYD, we can look back at the hosts provided us some entertainment we’ve probably been missing while trying to find some on those competing entries. My favourite moment throughout that evening was the “next up is” jokes, all randomly stringed together, all in one row - all of those “next ups” were so hilariously random (until one hit the point - I think it was something about adverts or another performance being next up).

• The postcards were lovely too. With the format of EYD upgraded to make it as a three-song duel between two different versions of each one and the juries deciding on the best one for each (one vote per version), we got to see some nice friendships over there (I mean, a postcard for two people who did duel over whose version is the best - they had to listen and compliment each others’ versions) and some nice things the artists said themselves on separate postcards. Like the time when the only band of the competition of the year’s, MAID, named Buranovskiye Babushki as one of their girlband idols (a ‘so random yet glorious‘ answer) and the victorious Michael confessing that he’s “never been to Tel(iv) Aviv”... that’s true Michael, I believe ya. You’ve so never been there that ou struggle to even say it right! Not to mention that the postcard setups were cozy, too.

• Can we all just kind of agree that at least the jury for EYD made THE BEST CHOICES POSSIBLE??? I mean, yeah, it’s a biT cruel they’re the ones to choose the superfinalists without the audience’s interference, but they still made the best choices possible, at least imo. Anisa’s “Sweet Lies” was a godawfully dreary sex slow-jam (no really, I can’t not imagine a scenario where you can’t use it anywhere other than a sex scene in a movie, or a steamy hot shower scene. Call me crazy-minded but it’s true), MAID’s “Freaks” was godawfully too creepy, strange and unbearable, and Holly Tandy’s “Bigger than Us”... well... while much more chill and way less overbearing (also with not enough “BIGGER” memes potential), it would have probably not stood out all that much - just written off as a Kygo remix rented for a cheap price of half a pound (but still co-written by John Lundvik though!!). So thanks to Rylan and the other two for picking the superfinalists reasonably, unlike A Dal jurors this year. It still wrenches my gut whenever I think about it, ugh.

• What even would be an appearance of Måns if he didn't try to remind y'all of his enthusiasm for Eurovision. No one really cares he won Eurovision 4 years ago, if anything, I dread that he's only being remembered as the "male singer guy of Love Love Peace Peace song" by the newer fans. At least Pepperidge Farm I remember how Måns really wanted to get to Eurovision (even if he didn't participate in that many Melodifestivalen editions). So in this year's EYD he went all out to be a part of the Eurovision best (British?) songs medley (and we got Katrina and the Waves later in the show, performing the nation's last winning hit, 22 years later... and that wasn't even a fully British-branded win, if yanno what I mean!), and it's all courtesy of the Melodifestivalen's best known scriptwriter and an occasional Eurovision commentator (and Melodifestivalen's narrator too), Edward af Sillén. Or at least I remember it being written that he has written some stuff for Måns to do in EYD, IDK. Eitherway, it was kind of a fun thing, the interlude. Just remembering all the nice Eurovision entries out there, even including Gina G (whose ESC entry was also sung by another person in another NF whose review will be up next I suppose!).

• Heyyyyy, wasn’t it all kinds of nice to see SuRie doing an interval act and a reprise of her own run-of-the-mill entry “Storm”? I applaud her of doing a tremendous piano rendition of it, with even singing some notes a little higher than in the actual song. Maybe THAT version could have done so much better in Lisbon - showing off SuRie’s vocal decency, intimacy and... idk about the intruder part, hopefully he’d have had no way to wrestle the mic out of SuRie’s hands that time. At least SuRie had just enough support from Eurofans to be wanted to represent the UK one more year in a row, with a special EYD designed for her, where the songs could be mostly composed by her and not by the useless songwriting camp. While it’s a nice idea for some British and non-British people to get to know each other on these camps, the end results barely end up satisfying because the artists barely get involved in the songs they’re singing - not even a song line, not even a hum of contribution! Why can’t you at least take examples from German songwriting camps... (except for the time “Sister” was invented, that one could have been a perfect contribution for an EYD (not necessarily in this year’s format but still)

All in all, this may seem like an improvement of things, but I still am really hoping that BBC will give into a decent internal selection... afterall there are good names that are down to do Eurovision and didn’t even say it will harm their ‘reputation’ (*cough* Paloma Faith *cough* Hurts), and yet BBC refuses them somehow, not thinking that Eurovision is more than just a SONG contest (while ironically not even having their songs sounding THAT ‘great’, oops)? Or at least reformat EYD big time and make it exciting a la Australia Decides is (you know you suck when even your colony does better NFs than you). For now, I’ll just grit my teeth and nicely wish Michael Rice all the best in Tel(iv) Aviv. You’ll need it, chap! And in secret I hope that you’ll get it xx

#eurovision 2019 #tel aviv 2019 reviews #united kingdom 2019 #michael rice #bigger than us #united kingdom

4 notes · View notes

multipleservicelisting · 3 years

Text

Trump Impeached for Inciting Insurrection

WASHINGTON — Donald J. Trump on Wednesday became the first American president to be impeached twice, as 10 members of his party joined with Democrats in the House to charge him with “incitement of insurrection” for his role in egging on a violent mob that stormed the Capitol last week.

Reconvening in a building now heavily militarized against threats from pro-Trump activists and adorned with bunting for the inauguration of President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr., lawmakers voted 232 to 197 to approve a single impeachment article. It accused Mr. Trump of “inciting violence against the government of the United States” in his quest to overturn the election results, and called for him to be removed and disqualified from ever holding public office again.

The vote left another indelible stain on Mr. Trump’s presidency just a week before he is slated to leave office and laid bare the cracks running through the Republican Party. More members of his party voted to charge the president than in any other impeachment.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California, declaring the past week one of the darkest chapters in American history, implored colleagues to embrace “a constitutional remedy that will ensure that the republic will be safe from this man who is so resolutely determined to tear down the things that we hold dear and that hold us together.”

A little more than a year after she led a painstaking, three-month process to impeach Mr. Trump the first time for a pressure campaign on Ukraine to incriminate Mr. Biden — a case rejected by the president’s unfailingly loyal Republican supporters — Ms. Pelosi had moved this time with little fanfare to do the same job in only seven days.

“He must go. He is a clear and present danger to the nation that we all love,” the speaker said, adding later, “It gives me no pleasure to say this — it breaks my heart.”

The top House Republican, Representative Kevin McCarthy of California, conceded in a pained speech on the floor that Mr. Trump had been to blame for the assault at the Capitol. It had forced the vice president and lawmakers who had gathered to formalize Mr. Biden’s victory to flee for their lives in a deadly rampage.

“The president bears responsibility for Wednesday’s attack on Congress by mob rioters,” said Mr. McCarthy, one of the 138 Republicans who returned to the House floor after the mayhem and voted to reject certified electoral votes for Mr. Biden. “He should have immediately denounced the mob when he saw what was unfolding.”

Outside the House chamber, a surreal tableau offered reminders of the rampage that gave rise to the impeachment, as thousands of armed members of the National Guard in camouflage fatigues surrounded the complex and snaked through its halls, stacking their helmets, backpacks and weapons wherever they went. Their presence gave the proceedings a wartime feel, and evoked images of the 1860s, when the Union Army had quartered in the building.

The House’s action set the stage for the second Senate trial of the president in a year. The precise timing of that proceeding remained in doubt, though, as senators appeared unlikely to convene to sit in judgment before Jan. 20, when Mr. Biden will take the oath of office and Mr. Trump will become a former president.

The last proceeding was a partisan affair. But this time, Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican leader, was said to support the effort as a means of purging his party of Mr. Trump, setting up a political and constitutional showdown that could shape the course of American politics.

If a Senate trial resulted in Mr. Trump’s conviction, it held out the prospect, tantalizing for Democrats and many Republicans alike, of barring Mr. Trump from holding office again in the future.

In a measured statement after the vote, Mr. Biden called for the nation to come together after an “unprecedented assault on our democracy.” He was staring down the likelihood that the trial would complicate his first days in office, and said he hoped Senate leadership would “find a way to deal with their constitutional responsibilities on impeachment while also working on the other urgent business of this nation.” That work included cabinet nominations and confronting the coronavirus crisis.

In the House, Democrats and Republicans who supported his ouster made no attempt to hide their fury at Mr. Trump, who was said to have enjoyed watching the attack play out on television as lawmakers pleaded for help. Republicans harangued members of their own party for supporting his mendacious campaign to cling to claim election victory.

Returning to the same chamber where many of them donned gas masks and hid under chairs amid gunfire one week ago, as rioters carrying zip ties and chanting “hang Pence” and “where’s Nancy” overtook the police, lawmakers issued stinging indictments of the president and his party.

“They may have been hunting for Pence and Pelosi to stage their coup,” said Representative Jamie Raskin of Maryland, the lead impeachment prosecutor, “but every one of us in this room right now could have died.”

At least five people did die during the attack, including an officer and a member of the mob who was shot just outside the chamber door.

Lawmakers, on edge about the state of the country, said the threat from Mr. Trump had not subsided.

“He is capable of starting a civil war,” Representative Maxine Waters of California, a veteran liberal, said.

Updated

Jan. 13, 2021, 6:50 p.m. ET

After four years of nearly unquestioning alliance with him, few Republicans defended Mr. Trump’s actions outright. Those who did resorted to a familiar set of false equivalencies, pointing to racial justice protests last summer that turned violent, and accusations that Democrats had mistreated the president and were trying to stifle the 74 million Americans who voted for him.

“It’s always been about getting the president, no matter what,” Representative Jim Jordan, Republican of Ohio, shot across the room at Democrats. “It’s an obsession, an obsession that has now broadened. It’s not just about impeachment anymore, it’s about canceling, as I’ve said. Canceling the president and anyone that disagrees with them.”

Overhanging the proceedings was the deadly coronavirus pandemic, which is killing 3,000 Americans a day. A handful of lawmakers were infected, as well, after the chaotic evacuation of the Capitol, as many Republican lawmakers refused to wear masks in the secure rooms where they huddled for safety. Fearful of exposing colleagues or of putting themselves at risk to the dual health and security threats, dozens of lawmakers cast their votes remotely by proxy.

Far from contrite, Mr. Trump insisted in the run-up to the vote that his words to loyalists swarming Washington last week had been appropriate. In the days since, he has repeated bogus lies that the election was stolen from him. He denounced impeachment as part of the yearslong “witch hunt” against him, but had taken no apparent steps to put together a legal team to defend him when he stands trial.

Not long after the vote, Mr. Trump released a video condemning the violence and urging his followers to avoid a repeat in “the coming days both here in Washington and across the country” as federal authorities warned of a nationwide wave of violence surrounding Mr. Biden’s inauguration. But he did not mention his own role in instigating the violence or apologize, nor did he concede or mention Mr. Biden’s name.

The president recorded the video under pressure from aides, who have warned him that he faces potential legal exposure for the riot, which took place after a speech in which he urged supporters to “fight” the results of the election.

It also came after Mr. McConnell had released a note to Republican senators in which he did not deny that he backed the impeachment push. The leader said that he had “not made a final decision on how I will vote, and I intend to listen to the legal arguments when they are presented to the Senate.”

He also issued a separate statement in which he rejected a plea by Democrats to agree to begin the proceeding immediately. After the House vote, Mr. McConnell said there was “simply no chance that a fair or serious trial could conclude” before the inauguration.

“I believe it will best serve our nation if Congress and the executive branch spend the next seven days completely focused on facilitating a safe inauguration and an orderly transfer of power to the incoming Biden administration,” said the Senate Republican leader.

The statement did not mention the merits of the case, but privately, Mr. McConnell was seething at Mr. Trump, whom he has sworn he will not speak to again, and is said to believe he committed impeachable offenses. It would most likely take 17 Republicans joining Democrats to convict Mr. Trump, an exceedingly high bar.

Mr. McConnell’s anger was shared by some Republicans in the House, most prominently Representative Liz Cheney of Wyoming, the chairwoman of the House Republican Conference and scion of a storied political family.

The other Republicans who voted to impeach Mr. Trump were Representatives Jaime Herrera Beutler of Washington, John Katko of New York, Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, Fred Upton of Michigan, Dan Newhouse of Washington, Peter Meijer of Michigan, Anthony Gonzalez of Ohio, David Valadao of California and Tom Rice of South Carolina. Together, they issued some of the sharpest condemnations of Mr. Trump, defying the prevailing view of their party.

“I’m not afraid of losing my job, but I am afraid that my country will fail,” Ms. Herrera Beutler said. “I’m afraid patriots to this country have died in vain. I’m afraid my children won’t grow up in a free country. I’m afraid injustice will prevail.”

Mr. Rice, who represents a safely Republican seat, said that he had “backed this president through thick and thin for four years.”

He added: “I campaigned for him and voted for him twice. But, this utter failure is inexcusable.”

A dozen or so other Republicans indicated they might have supported impeachment if Mr. Trump were not on the brink of leaving office or Democrats’ had slowed the process down.

Mr. McCarthy, who had privately mused about calling on Mr. Trump to resign after years of eagerly defending him, spoke out against a “snap impeachment,” warning that it would “further fan the flames of partisan division.” But he also batted down false suggestions from some of his colleagues that Antifa had actually been responsible for the siege, not supporters of Mr. Trump. He proposed censuring the president instead of impeaching him.

But there were strong signs of support for Mr. Trump as well, despite the fact that he has now lost his party the House, the Senate and the White House in the course of two years. Far-right Republicans immediately started a campaign to oust Ms. Cheney from her leadership post, which she said she would not relinquish.

While Ms. Cheney had released a statement on Tuesday announcing her intention to impeach Mr. Trump and denouncing him in scathing terms, she chose not to speak during the impeachment debate. Democrat after Democrat quoted her anyway — despite the party’s longstanding antipathy for Ms. Cheney and her father, Dick Cheney, the former vice president — effectively arguing that her backing signified a broad consensus that Mr. Trump must go.

“As Liz Cheney was saying, there has never been a greater betrayal by a president of the United States of his office and his oath to the Constitution. Don’t dismiss that,” said Representative Steny H. Hoyer, Democrat of Maryland and the majority leader. “As she has taken a stand, I hope others will as well.”

The vote came a little more than a year after the House impeached Mr. Trump for attempting to use the levers of power to pressure the leader of Ukraine into smearing Mr. Biden, then his leading rival for the looming 2020 election. Republicans unanimously opposed the charges then, but the themes at the center of the impeachment and subsequent trial were ultimately the same on debate Wednesday: Mr. Trump’s willingness to put himself above the nation he swore an oath to lead and abuse his power in pursuit of retaining it.

The House’s case was narrow, laid out in a four-page impeachment article that charged the president “threatened the integrity of the democratic system, interfered with the peaceful transition of power, and imperiled a coequal branch of government.”

Specifically, it said he sowed false claims about election fraud, pressured Georgia election officials to “find” him enough votes to overturn the results and then encouraged a crowd of his most loyal supporters to gather in Washington and confront Congress.

The article referred to the 14th Amendment, passed after the Civil War, which prohibits any officeholder involved in “insurrection or rebellion” from holding official office. It also quoted Mr. Trump’s own words at the rally a week ago, when he told supporters, “if you don’t fight like hell you’re not going to have a country anymore.”

This time, there were no witness interviews, no hearings, no committee debates, and no real additional fact finding beyond the public record and the plain facts of the brutal attack and Mr. Trump’ words.

Emily Cochrane and Luke Broadwater contributed reporting from Washington, and Maggie Haberman from New York.

from Multiple Service Listing https://ift.tt/2XAWr7N

#multiple #service #listing #news #local #business #ads #near #me

0 notes

sarahlwlee · 4 years

Text

31 Stories in 31 Days: Belonging

What is this? As part of celebrating Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month (May), I am writing a story a day about my experiences as a Chinese Malaysian immigrant in America. My friends and family have provided numerous one-word prompts to help me create these stories. Today’s word prompt was contributed by Carrie PE. and the word is “Belonging”. Thank you Carrie for your contribution and thank you everyone who stopped by to read my story today.

When I was growing up, I didn’t like myself and how I looked. I had a poor self-image and tried really hard to be something that others would like and accept. Whether it was for my parents, friends, co-workers or even acquaintances. I use to tell little lies or fudge details to make myself seem more than my ordinary existence. Culturally, I learned, it was more acceptable to lie than lose your temper. Losing your temper was a form of losing face (to lose the respect of others or to be humiliated publicly), especially in Chinese culture.

Some of the core narratives in my head that struck a chord with me during my formative years and stayed with me for a long time include: “you are not attractive, if you were attractive boys would like you without you even trying” and “you are not good enough that’s why you can never win”. There wasn’t one specific moment that I could point to that led to these core narratives shaping my self-image, but an accumulation of side negative comments by grown ups and peers during moments when I had accomplished something. Moments such as when my exams results came out, I was proud of what I accomplished but would hear grown ups take pride in their children who had straight A’s in their report cards and brag about it to my mother. In those moments, I felt incompetent and I didn’t make my mother proud to brag about my results.

In school, there was the constant bullying by schoolmates about being better than me academically because that’s the only reason they thought I ended up in the Arts stream — I didn’t do well in my exams. Also, boys in school avoided me like the plague and would never want to be known having a crush on me. I was either too direct, had interests that nobody knew about or spoke English only; characteristics of me that boys found unapproachable. The girls in my secondary class also enjoyed making fun of me, especially if there was something that took my character down a peg or just to humiliate me. One day, my school uniform had a slight stain on the back of my skirt. One of my classmates noticed it and loudly exclaimed to the whole class that I had period stains on my skirt and started to make fun of me. I was embarrassed and I panicked because I wasn’t suppose to be on my period neither did I bring any pads with me. I asked the teacher if I could be excused to the bathroom. The girls in the class continued to laugh and make fun of me as I left the classroom. In the bathroom, I learned it wasn’t period stain it was partially dried out bubblegum stain. It was the same uniform from last week where I sat on bubblegum someone left on the seat of my chair. The stain did not clean off completely even after going through the washing machine.

Most of these experiences fed into my core narratives, such as “if I were smarter, these girls wouldn’t be making fun of me and would be asking for help from me” and “if I were more attractive, boys would be interested in me and would have come to my defense when these girls were bullying me.” When I went to college, I had to confront many of my core narratives because I hit rock bottom where all these core narratives were working against me instead of helping me be better.

I liked a guy with an Australian accent who lived in my dorm. I had told one of my transfer mates, Serene, from Sunway College that I fancied this guy because he reminds me of an ex-boyfriend. He caught wind of my interest in him and decided to call me and tell me to stop it. I was shocked and appalled by his actions and I learned from him that Serene had told him. I was angry and fuming about what Serene had done. Serene lived in an adjacent dorm building and I walked over to her room to confront about this. She said, “Sarah, you don’t have very good luck with boys and you’re not very pretty either. I thought I’d help you out by telling him about how you felt.” I was so angry. All I could muster up to say to her was, “Why did you do that? Now he doesn’t want to hang out with me or even be friends. I can’t hang out with our group of friends anymore because he’s part of the group.” She didn’t apologize and I stopped talking to her after that conversation.

In a previous story, I wrote about Charlize, one of my best friend’s at the time and we moved into an apartment together. Her incessant criticisms of the way I looked and behaved added more fuel to my terrible self-image and I really hated myself. I felt trapped in a corner and I didn’t fit it nor did I belong anywhere. I felt alone even amongst a group of people. It was a feeling that gripped me at my core and refused to let me go. I didn’t like feeling this way and I needed something to change. When Charlize moved out, it was only then I started to work on myself because I had a lot of time on my hands and a whole apartment to myself. I was scared living alone the first few weeks but I started to make the apartment a place I wanted to be, my safe haven. I got my class schedule organized for months at a time and drew large scale calendars on the wall so that I had a visual on what my days would look like. I bought food that I liked from Meijer to cook at home or ordered my favorites from Campus Kitchen. I even bought beauty and hygiene products that I was curious about just to figure out how to take care of myself. It was the most nourishing care I did for myself physically.

What helped me work through my core narratives was meeting a few good people who were willing to reflect back to me how untrue those narratives were. Some are my friends today and some were acquaintances who were really good at lifting people up instead of tearing them down. Talking to someone helped a lot too. I participated in some student counseling through a student community theater and as a working adult continued to take on additional therapy to help me unpack these narratives as well as understanding the root of these issues that keeps me feeling othered instead of belonging. Many of those issues rooted from wanting acceptance from my mother. During my 2012 trip back to Malaysia, I was able to get closure with my mother on these issues and begin the process to self-acceptance and reclaiming my sense of worth. It sounds very linear but there were many ebbs and flows that took me off track of accepting myself and not allowing these old core narratives play this vicious cycle.

One of the best practices I learned from a therapist was to keep a list of things that I knew to be true and believable about myself and then recite those statements to myself on a daily basis as well as when my mind started to spiral into these core narratives. It was part of active participation in my own narratives to disrupt and rewrite what my new core beliefs and narratives. This process sounds easy, but I have struggled through this. I learned in this process that I need to prioritize healing myself in order for this to work well. Restoring my tank became more of a priority recently because I finally figured out after two decades that I am not my best self when my old core narratives take hold of me, which makes me incompetent not only as a leader but also as a human being.

One of my past co-workers and friend once said to me, “I see you and I hear you.” I don’t know why but no one has ever said that to me and those words sank in so deeply into my heart. Her words reminded me of what it felt like to belong. Thank you Kelley for saying those words, it has left an imprint on me that will never fade. I continue to hear and see those words in social media posts and conversations, especially in the work I am doing on myself as it relates to my internalized racial oppression and working on what being an anti-racist is as a Chinese Malaysian immigrant living in America.

When I shared with Chauncey the featured word for today’s piece, he sweetly shared that belonging is like a warm hug where everything melts aways and you feel like you belong. It seems like a simple analogy for such a complex process and yet it resonates deeply for me. My hope moving forward, beyond these 31 stories, is to experience that feeling of a warm hug (without having to hug someone physically) to know I feel like I belong and that feeling would start with self-acceptance as well as the continued willingness to challenge my old core narratives every day with a rewrite of my choice. It’s a work in progress and thank you for sharing in my journey.

#aapi #aapihm #aapiheritagemonth #shortstory #belonging #mentalhealth

0 notes

agent-indigo · 6 years

Text

Ode to the Small Town

Small towns are cradles, folding children in their embrace. You trail down chalk-crusted sidewalks, hold hands, and skip rocks into the waves on the lake. On weekdays there’s cold pop from Ricky’s Hot Dogs and homemade chips. At night your bed is a boat. You just spent the day at the beach and you still feel the swells tossing your body in slow ricochet. As your town rocks you to sleep, you think: “We belong here.” Wrapped up and safe.

Small towns make you grow; you grow into them. You take steps and mistake them for leaps, mistake your small town for the world and your accomplishments for a crown. Queen of the Small Town. High school makes you expand—first chair in symphonic band, scholarships, and volleyball championships. You know all the nooks and crannies: under the bridge down from Silver Beach Pizza, where graffiti-spattered walls roar with the sound of traffic. The Car Graveyard, lodged into the bluff, where mechanical bits and nature intertwine above lake-battered rocks. You blow smoke out your mouth like a pissing cat marks its territory. You think: “We are here. This is ours.”

Small towns are home. Your school has a new electronic sign, but every street, every block, the steadfast presence of Pizza Hut, Walgreens, and Bert’s Breakfast Korner—nothing has changed. The tires of your car wear down the concrete of John Beers Road, Marquette Woods, and Red Arrow Highway. Seven years ago, a Meijer shot up like an eager sapling across from the massive cemetery on Saint Joseph Avenue. You see someone you know while shopping there. Every time. Your small town is a class you’ve already taken. You feel stagnant. Your small town is a maze you know well.

Small towns make you grow, bigger and bigger until you’re bursting at the seams of your own skin and—my god—we can’t stand it anymore because we cannot breathe, cannot fit into this small town space. Small towns smother. Small towns grasp around our necks, and we’re so restless, so eager to breathe. We’re squirming to escape and and when we do—if we do—we break through our small town surface with a gasp. We become free, a mote drifting in the dark, and nothing rocks us to sleep. We ourselves become small, finally—isn’t that what we wanted? We forget our small towns, but periodically, we may wander back—like a lost dog to its owner’s doorstep, yearning for some grounding. We can’t stay. We can visit, and we will. During those returns, everything else will return: our towns and ourselves, our reckless friendships and trails in the woods, a small town fondness. An outgrown cradle, marbled with memory. When we return, we will do it with love.

5 notes · View notes

p-artsypants · 7 years

Text

320 State Street: (10) August 6, 2017

FF.Net| Ao3

“I know it’s in there, it’s under my husband’s name, Jeff Sanderson.”

“Ok, I’m sorry, maybe I’m spelling it wrong.” Astrid was having a rough day. It seemed like 90% of the customers coming in were being buttholes and generally useless.

“It’s J-E-F-F S-A-N-D-E-R-S-O-N,” the woman insisted.

“Okay, that’s what I typed in, and it isn’t showing up.”

“I know it’s there! It was in there the last time I was here! It’s under J-E-F-F—“

“Yeah, that’s what I typed it!” She repeated, starting to get frustrated.

“Well, obviously, it’s not! It should be under J-E-F-F—“

“Can I have a phone number? Maybe I can find your tab that way.”

“They never have to put in a phone number, it should be under J-E-F-F—“

“Ma’am, is it possible you didn’t pay last months balance on your tab?”

“Why does that matter?”

“Payment is due every 1st of the month, and if it isn’t paid, we temporarily shut down your account. That is…unless you need an extension, in which case, I can get my boss for you.”

The woman narrowed her eyes at Astrid, then, without warning, took off out of the shop, leaving her merchandise behind.

Astrid sighed heavily and put the merchandise in a basket to be returned.

Hiccup came around the corner, fully immersed in something else and not paying attention to her.

“Hey Hiccup.”

He jumped a foot in the air and looked at her with wide eyes. “Astrid! Hi, Astrid…hi.”

She rolled her eyes. He had been like this for a while now. It was getting annoying. “I have some stuff for you to put back. The lady just walked out.”

“Oh, huh. Any idea who it was?”

She picked up the basket. “Yeah, Jeff Sanderson’s wife. She only said her name 80 times.”

Hiccup laughed. “Yeah, that’s her ex-husband. He doesn’t have a tab with us anymore, but every month or so, she’ll try to use it to buy stuff.”

“What a moron!” She handed over the basket and watched critically as he avoided touching her hands.

“Man, Elvis is really going to town.” Tuff commented, door to the shop propped open. The eclectic gift shop a few doors down had an Elvis impersonator performing on the street corner.

“Is that from State Street stuff?”

“Yeah, it’s an annual thing. He’ll probably be performing at the Chalk Festival tomorrow too.” Tuff explained as Hiccup scooted to the back.

“I’ve been in State Street Stuff probably…once in my life…weird stuff over there. You know they sell bacon flavor lip balm?”

“They have 18 different bacon flavored gifts.”

“You counted?”

“I stocked it!”

Astrid narrowed her eyes at him. “Just how many places have you worked?”

“Well, at 10, I started working for a pair of lesbians that were freelance contractors. Then I worked at a pickle factory, then Jimmy Johns, then Bath and Body Works…Meijer, Panera, the Chocolate Cafe down the street…oh, but my favorite place was Macy’s.”

“Like, the one all the way in South Bend?”

“No, the one they used to have in the mall.”

“Oh yeah, I forgot we used to have one here.”

“I worked there for a month, and was employee of the month…then they closed their doors.” He wiped a pretend tear from his eye. “Oh Macy’s…you will forever be in my heart.” He sniffed. “I need a moment.” And he headed through the doors.

“What about you, Hiccup?” She shouted to him.

There was a sudden clatter followed by, “huh, what?”

“How many places have you worked?”

He peeked around the corner, looking at the floor. “Only here. Oh, and I did have a short internship with a print shop.”

“That’s cool…did you like it?”

“Um…yeah. It’s how I learned how to 3D model and print. And…considering that’s what I want to do with my life…” He shrugged. “They just couldn’t hire me because of my leg.”

“Isn’t that being discriminatory?”

“No, in fact it was a very safe idea. It may sound dumb, but I was always on my feet and still pretty new to my prosthetic. I would get done with an eight hour shift and have bruises all over my leg. Not to mention how many times I slipped and nearly broke something…” Hiccup finally looked up and met her eyes. He suddenly blushed and looked away. “But yeah, Gobber lets me sit down anytime I need too. It’s nice.” And with that, he ended the conversation.

Astrid wrinkled her nose in offense. He was being so childish!

Tuff hurried in through the door, trying to act normal. “Heads up, my dudes.”

Not but a minute later, Alvin barged into the room, a scowl plastered in his face. “Hiccup, Astrid, cancel your plans tonight. You’re staying late and doing inventory.”

“Inventory!?” Hiccup nearly shouted. “It’s the Chalk festival tomorrow! We can’t stay up all night! And since when do we do inventory?”

“Since we have the chance to get a loan. We just have to have an accurate inventory. I have to have the inventory list turned into the Bank on Monday. So you can either stay tonight and do it, or come back tomorrow AFTER the festival and do it. It’s up to you.”

“I don’t know if we can! There’s still two aisles in the back that are just junk!”

“Then, just do your best and fudge it if you need to.”

Hiccup rolled his eyes. “But why me and Astrid? What about Tuff?”

Alvin crossed his arms. “That numbskull can’t count past 10. I don’t trust him. Besides, I thought you two wouldn’t mind spending time alone together.”

“What makes you think that?” Asked Astrid.

“Aren’t…you two dating?”

“No!” Hiccup shouted, much too loud. “Ah, no…we aren’t.”

“Huh. I could have sworn you were. My mistake. I’ll tell you what, if you stay late tonight, I’ll pay time and a half.”

That idea was much more flattering. “I’ll do it.” Astrid stated with confidence.

Hiccup sighed, “Well, I guess I will too. Since I’m the one who knows where everything is.”

“Great!” Alvin spared a smile for his hardworking employee’s. “I’ll tell Gobber the plan.”

Astrid met Hiccup’s eyes and gave him a hopeless shrug, in return he swallowed hard and gave a nervous smile.

Whatever was bothering him, she would find a way to get it out of him.

—

The task was simple, but lengthly. Each shelf had to be counted twice, and then the product had to be logged into the computer. They used post it notes to keep track of their totals.

The first two hours after close passed unfathomably awkwardly.

Astrid had attempted small talk, and Hiccup reciprocated, but it definitely sounded like he was trying too hard to be casual…and ended up not sounding casual at all.

“Okay, I’ll bite, what’s up?”

“What’s up with what?” He returned, trying to concentrate on jugs of insect killer.

“Ever since I had that fight with Scott, you’ve been super awkward. It’s been three weeks.”

“Awkward? Who’s awkward, I’m not awkward.” He began to count over.

“Hiccup, you’re a great friend, but a terrible liar. There’s obviously something about me that’s bothering you.”

“Nothing’s bothering me! I’m just…thinking about things?”

“Yeah, like I’m going to buy that. Look, since that whole thing with my black eye, you’ve been treating me different. And I know you don’t like Scott, but we’re friends. Taking a vow of silence isn’t going to do us any good.”

“Oh, uh…it’s not the black eye that’s bothering me.”

“Ha! Then something is the matter! I knew it! You can fool me, Hiccup.”

“I know…it’s just kind of embarrassing. I just don’t want to talk about it.”

“Well, it’s been a few weeks. You should be over it by now.”

“It’s not something that I can just get over.”

“Then let’s talk it over.”

Hiccup sighed heavily. “You can’t make anything easy, can you?”

“That’s not my forte, no.”

“Okay…I’ll tell you. It’s…”

Suddenly, the door to the shop rang.

“Did you forget to lock the door?”

“I must have.” Hiccup started to head to the front. “Hello? I’m sorry, we’re closed.” Coming around the front shelf, he halted instantly when he came face to face with a stranger in a ski mask.

“Hi.” He stated, swallowing hard. “Looking for some antifreeze?”

Apparently, the man did not share Hiccup’s humor as he pulled a pistol out of his coat pocket. “Get on the ground!” He shouted.

Astrid came running at the shout.

“Both of you on the ground!”

Both teens knelt, hands behind their heads as the gunman shifted the weapon between them.

“What’re we going to do?” Astrid whispered.

“Shut up!”

They barely even breathed while they waited for instructions.

“Now, one of you is going to go open the safe for me. The other is going to collect the most expensive stuff in the store. Copper wire, electronics, that kind of thing. Now, if either one of you tries anything funny, like calling the cops, I won’t hesitate to put a bullet through your head. Understand?”

Both nodded.

Astrid peeped up. “I’ll open the safe.”

The gunman smiled. “That’s a good girl.”

Astrid stood quietly, ignoring that bewildered look that Hiccup was throwing her.

She didn’t know the combination to the safe.

“Alright boy, get to work. I want to see the best and the most expensive items in this bag.”

Hiccup also stood, bag in hand and started walking into the back. He trembled slightly as his heart beat loudly in his ears. His prosthetic sounded unbelievably loud tapping on the ground.

“Don’t try to be a hero kid.”

Even if he wanted to, he wasn’t quite sure how too, considering he had a gun to his back. Best to just play it safe and let his dad review the security tapes later.

Suddenly, he heard a second pair of foot steps approaching quickly, and turned slightly.

Astrid stood, worn shotgun in hand, aimed right between the shoulder blades of the robber. “I’d drop the gun if I were you.”

“Didn’t I tell you no funny bus—“ The burglar turned and halted. Staring at the barrel that was now pointing at his face. There was a silent staring contest between the two as fear crept over both of their faces. He snickered. “Cute, but you don’t have the guts.”

She cocked the gun with a satisfying click. “Or do I?”

Hiccup recognized the weapon. It hung over the door to Gobber’s office. He always assumed it was broken.

However, the robber wouldn’t know that.

The man moved his gun from Hiccup’s back and pointed it at Astrid’s chest. “You shoot me and I’ll shoot you.”

“Well, that’s fair, I suppose.” She narrowed her eyes, a tick in her eyebrow. “What do you have? A 5 mm?”

The man didn’t respond, just held his gun straight. Indicating that she was right.

“So, you have a 5 mm, which could kill me. But it’s not guaranteed. I on the other hand, have a 12 gauge slug, which will put a fist sized hole in you, and will definitely kill you.”

She watched as he swallowed with difficulty.

“And I’m not afraid to die.”

She heard Hiccup take in a sharp breath, but didn’t acknowledge it.

“So, if you think you can shoot fast enough…would you rather go to jail for attempted robbery, or for murder?”

“I’d rather not go to jail at all!” The man looked as though he was about to pull the trigger, but seized up suddenly, and then collapsed on the floor.

Hiccup stood behind him, holding his prosthetic leg in his hand. “That was…terrifying…” He panted.

“Yeah…a little too close for comfort…”

“Mm hmm…” Hiccup continued staring at the unconscious man on the ground. “You know…I was standing right behind him, that slug would have killed me too.”

She sighed. “It wasn’t loaded. You weren’t in any danger.” She swung the gun over and the butt hit the floor. There was a resounding ‘bang’ and a light fixture exploded in sparks. Astrid dropped the weapon and recoiled her burned hand.

“Huh…I guess it was loaded…”

Hiccup, now sans leg, collapsed to the floor on his butt. He curled in on himself and put his hands on the back of his head.

Astrid, however, was not in shock yet, and looked down to the unconscious robber. “Where’s the duct tape?”

“Aisle 3.” He answered automatically.

Astrid didn’t reply, but quietly sought out the tape and bound the unconscious man’s hands with it.

She heard him on the phone, still curled in on himself. "Hey, dad?...I'm fine...I mean, there was an armed robber at Gobber's and...no no I'm fine, I promise. Astrid took care of him…well, we both did. He’s unconscious.” There was a long pause while he listened. “Yeah, we…Astrid has him duct taped.” His face was red as he answered, “yeah dad, she is pretty cool.” Another pause. “Okay, we’re not moving. See you soon.”

“Dad’s on the way?”

Hiccup finally sat up, making to put his leg back on. He sighed softly and stood. Wordlessly, he went over to check on the door and sure enough, two thin lock picks stuck out of the lock. “Note to self, tell Gobber to add extra security.” He shook his head and came back inside.

Astrid set the discharged shotgun and the robber’s handgun on the counter, out of the way, but in plain site. Then she picked up the broom and started sweeping up the broken lightbulb.

“I kissed you.”

Hiccup’s sudden words made her halt and look at him. He was unabashedly looking right back at her.

“I kissed you, and I liked it.”

“Huh?”

“The night you and the twins went drinking. You said you wanted to stay at my house…and well…we kissed.”

She was quiet a moment, considering. “Just kissed?”

“…there may have been a little tongue.” He finally looked away.

“How risqué.” She chuckled.

"You aren't mad?"

“Maybe I would have been a few years ago. I probably would have punched you. But now…” She seemed to think it over, “what was the situation?”

“Well, you wandered out in the rain, and I had to find you, and when I did, you were crying about Scott, so I hugged you…and then you kissed me…and I kissed you back instead of pulling away like a decent person.”

She had a knowing smile on her face. “Dude, I was so drunk that night.”

“Yeah…you tasted like booze.”

“As long as it doesn’t happen again, I don’t think we need to worry about it.”

“Are you sure?”

She nodded. “I don’t remember a lot from that night, but I was so angry and miserable…but then there was a distinct feeling of happiness. Where I just felt good. If you did that to me…I don’t think I could be angry.”

Hiccup smiled, “So…we’re good?”

“You were the one acting all weird! What made you finally spill?”

“I realized that having a gun to my back and seeing you almost get shot was infinitely scarier then potentially pissing you off. And if my adrenaline level was at max capacity, why not just get it over with?”

She chuckled, still calm.

“How are you not in shock after that?”

“I kind of feel like this is a dream right now, even though I know it’s not…and we almost died. Holy shit we almost died!”

“There it is.”

#320 State Street #httyd #fanfiction #hiccup horrendous haddock iii #Astrid Hofferson #modern au #how to train your dragon #hiccstrid

13 notes · View notes

gordonwilliamsweb · 4 years

Text

Health care heroes: ‘We are all in this together’

They take temperatures, swab noses, give breathing treatments, stitch up wounds, mop floors and deliver babies.

Under the shadow of a global pandemic, Spectrum Health team members show up day after day to provide hands-on care for the sick and injured. At the same time, they prepare for a surge in patients ill with COVID-19, the disease caused by the highly contagious coronavirus.

At the end of the day, they go home, exhausted.

Still, COVID-19 shadows their steps.

Some undress in the garage. Some at the back door or in the laundry room. They toss their scrubs directly into the washing machine and take a shower.

All to protect their loved ones in case the virus hitchhiked home with them.

It’s a challenge they willingly embrace during this pandemic. They work extra hours, cancel vacations and take on new responsibilities to ensure the safety and health of their patients.

“It’s absolutely what we signed up for,” Michael Tsimis, MD, said. “We have an obligation to our patients and our community to be the ones who are there for them.”

And how can we help?

Stay home. Wash your hands. Practice social distancing. Do what you can to prevent or slow the spread of COVID-19, they urge.

And maybe say thank you once in a while. A bit of appreciation goes a long way.

Meet a few of the heroes working on the front lines at Spectrum Health.

‘I took an oath’

Vivian Romero, MD, walks in the door after a day of work, and her 5-year-old twins rush to greet her. Her husband holds them back as she sidesteps—no contact allowed until she has showered and changed clothes.

A maternal fetal medicine specialist, Dr. Romero cares for women with high-risk pregnancies.

Babies don’t wait for pandemics, so her workload remains as busy as ever. She and the maternal fetal medicine team continue to treat patients, monitor their health, deliver babies, perform cesarean sections and provide follow-up care after delivery.

“I couldn’t be prouder of my team,” she said.

Receptionists, nurses, doctors and others have pulled together, and worked extra hours to keep operations going and prepare for a potential surge in COVID-19 cases in the hospital.

Dr. Romero has special admiration for the dedication of the ultrasound technicians. Their jobs require hands-on contact with patients during prenatal visits, conducting scans that can take a half-hour to an hour.

“The longer time they spend with people, the higher their risk of being exposed,” she said. “But they understand this has to be done. The information we get from the ultrasound is extremely valuable.”

She worries about what may lie ahead, as cases rise in the state, the country and the world.

She attended a recent webinar in which doctors from Italy and China spoke about their onslaught of cases. One day, a hospital had no patients in the intensive care unit with the virus. A day or two later, they needed 66 ICU beds.

The possibility that it could happen here haunts her. And it adds fuel to her pleas to family, friends and the community to practice social distancing.

“When we talk to you about not doing playdates or unnecessary shopping, that’s your little contribution to avoiding the spread of this disease,” she said.

In the back of her mind, Dr. Romeo plots what to do if she is exposed to COVID-19.

How can she protect her husband, her children, and her 90-year-old grandmother, who lives with her? The disease can be especially deadly to the elderly.

“Do I come home, or do I stay somewhere else?” she wondered. “Do I send them away?

“It’s a bit overwhelming.”

So, what keeps her going?

“I took an oath. And I love what I do,” Dr. Romero said. “This is my responsibility, and this is what I was trained to do. I take care of patients. That is what I do every day.”

‘I understand the risks’

In a pandemic caused by a respiratory illness, respiratory therapists form an especially valuable vanguard of the front line.

They maintain patients on advanced life support, like mechanical ventilators.

They provide treatments for people who are coughing and having trouble breathing.

“We deliver aerosolized medications —that’s the most dangerous thing we could probably do,” Ann Bowman, RRT, said.

Yet Bowman seems unafraid of the task before her—the care and treatment of patients with COVID-19.

“This is my 36th year of employment with Spectrum Health. I’ve been around the block a few times,” she said. “I don’t think it’s really in my nature to be overly excited.

“I understand the risks, and I understand how to take care of myself and my patients.”

Bowman, who works in the cardiothoracic intensive care unit, said respiratory therapists always keep universal precautions at the forefront. They work with vulnerable patients—newborns, transplant recipients, those with cystic fibrosis—and are trained to take precautions against the transmission of viruses and bacteria.

In the COVID-19 era, she said, “We are continuing on with our disciplines and precautions that we always use. We always practice diligent hygiene.”

Having the right attitude matters, as well.

“We have to keep ourselves calm and create that calm, so we can help others be calm,” she said.

At home, she takes steps to protect her family. She and her husband do not see their four adult children. She urges everyone to wash hands, to take care of their health and to stay home.

“Don’t have friends over just because you can’t go out to the bar,” she said.

And she encourages people “to shop responsibly.”

“You don’t need a pallet of toilet paper,” she said. “You just need enough for the next couple of weeks. Leave some so other people can have toilet paper, too.”

Although Bowman anticipates the pandemic will mean long shifts at work, she is ready to do her part.

“That is totally when we want to be at the bedside,” she said. “We don’t go into health care because we want a 9-to-5 job.”

What it’s all about

Dr. Tsimis was a resident physician in 2012 when Hurricane Sandy struck New York and plunged lower Manhattan into darkness.

For days, he and his co-workers cared for patients in a hospital powered by a generator.

That is just part of his job, he says.

His mission.

COVID-19 may be new, but he and other health care providers draw on their skills and experiences gained treating patients through other crises.

A maternal fetal medicine specialist, Dr. Tsimis has been busy planning Spectrum Health procedures to screen pregnant patients, treat those with COVID-19 and protect others from the virus.

A commitment to put the patients’ needs above all else permeates the culture, he said. He sees it in the dedication of the environmental services crew that cleans and sanitizes, the medical providers who care for patients and the health system leadership.

“If we don’t show up, then no one else will. We are very cognizant of that,” he said.

“This is what medicine is all about. We signed up for it. We are ready for it.”

‘We are all here to support each other’

When COVID-19 arrived in the United States, Alex Robertson, RN, became anxious.

She worried about risks facing patients and health care workers. She worried about potential shortages of ventilators and other critical equipment.

“I was not sleeping good the first couple of days, knowing it’s not 1,000 miles away anymore,” said Robertson, a charge nurse in the Spectrum Health Fred and Lena Meijer Heart Center intensive care unit.

As staff worked to prepare for an influx of patients, she found inspiration in the resiliency of her fellow nurses.

“Nurses are great. We kind of adapt to everything,” she said. “We are all here to support each other as much as possible, and the rest of the staff, too.”

People drawn to the nursing profession tend to be interested in science and helping others—and that makes for a can-do attitude in a crisis.

“We have seen people step up pretty quickly,” she said.

Robertson and her husband, an emergency medicine specialist, follow steps to keep their home environment safe.

They sanitize their cell phones. They keep a separate laundry basket for their scrubs, which they wash promptly at the end of the day.

To cope with stress, Robertson takes care of herself mentally and physically.

She does yoga at home several times a week. She tries to eat healthy and sleep well.

“I might vent about problems with my husband,” she said. “And sometimes we turn it off and go outside for a walk.”

She urged others to listen to public health advice to stay home, wash their hands and take any steps they can to prevent the transmission of the virus.

“We are not making things up,” she said. “We are serious.”

Think about how much harder it would have been 20 years ago to be isolated at home, she added. In an era of FaceTime and other video chats, people have a lot of options to keep in touch.

“Hang on to your family members working in health care,” she said. “They are the ones who are working to protect us.”

‘We want to help’

Some health care workers have contracted COVID-19.

Some have died of it.

Hearing their stories brings home the risks that come with the job, say Spectrum Health acute care surgeons Charles Gibson, MD, and Alistair Chapman, MD.

“I’d be lying if I said people weren’t a little nervous about it,” Dr. Gibson said. “We know it is a risk to be exposed to these patients in this pandemic environment.”

But taking precautions against contagious illness is part of the job.

“Before any trauma patient comes in, we always don personal protection equipment,” Dr. Chapman said. “We assume that a patient at baseline is going to present with a potentially communicable disease.”

Their chief concern, as COVID-19 cases rise in Michigan, is how it will affect their ability to care for the severely injured and ill trauma patients.

On a recent weekend, Dr. Chapman performed two or three emergency surgeries each night. Trauma patients typically require intensive care, blood transfusions and specialized equipment such as ventilators.

In other areas, surges of COVID-19 patients have led to shortages of these critical resources.

“We worry about our ability to provide the highest levels of care for trauma patients if we have a huge influx of COVID-19 cases,” Dr. Chapman said.

“We have to ask our community to take this very seriously and continue to socially distance as long as this remains a threat.”

The surgeons take heart in the “all hands on deck” attitude throughout the health care team—the environmental services crew, nurses, respiratory therapists, technicians, physicians and other team members.

“What I’ve witnessed in the last several days is a sense of camaraderie,” Dr. Chapman said.

“Every time we ask something, it’s, ‘No question. Absolutely, we want to help,’” Dr. Gibson said.

That does not surprise him.

“Usually, one common thing among health care workers is that we all have a desire to help people in their time of need,” he said. “It takes a little bit of selflessness to have that in you.”

If there is one silver lining in the COVID-19 pandemic, it may be a downturn in the number of patients rushed to the hospital with traumatic injuries.

“Motor vehicles accidents and falls are the No. 1 and 2 reasons for admission,” Dr. Chapman said.

It’s too soon to tell, but the numbers of both appear to be dropping as society slows and people stay home.

Asked how non-medical folks can help in this crisis, the doctors advised staying home and following the state lockdown guidelines.

An occasional thank-you goes a long way, they added.

“It really means a lot to hear people say they appreciate the care we are providing,” Dr. Chapman said.

And do what you can to avoid needing a trip to the emergency department.

“Take your time. Let people over in traffic,” Dr. Gibson said. “Why be a trauma patient in the midst of this madness? Show just a little patience and a little love.

“Remember we are all in this together. We are all on team humanity and we are all trying to figure this out together.”

Health care heroes: ‘We are all in this together’ published first on https://nootropicspowdersupplier.tumblr.com/

0 notes

michellelinkous · 4 years