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ihavelovednone · 3 years

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what do you think will happen with miguel in season 4?

Thanks for the question! This is gonna be a long one ‘cause I don’t have the ability to keep it short.

This is really hard to answer because honestly, I don't know. This season had many great aspects but I found it to also be really messy. To say the least. I had a harder time following all of the storylines this season, more so than previous ones.

On one hand I think Elgin James wanted to get rid of what he saw as dead weight from season two. It's about making storytelling more concentrated to a few specific people. Elgin James got rid of some people to move the plot forward, that’s clear but I think some were to compress time for the story he actually wanted tell.

Elgin James got rid of both SOA-members and Mayans from other charters to concentrate his universe to a smaller group of people. He also removed Palomo by having Adelita kill her. He got rid of Palo - who was a great villain - by having his own sister kill him - and with that there was a closure to the David and Taza storyline and a path towards an ending to the Riz storyline. He had Antonia move away and gave an answer to why fans believed that she and Bishop had a relationship. And also, the ones relating to your question, and the biggest conundrum of them all, he might've gotten rid of the Galindo family.

This is where I come to on the other hand. Honestly, I'm not sure that's where Elgin James is going. I have trouble understanding why they'd remove Miguel when nothing's really resolved there about his mother's death or the possibility of him being the brother of Angel and EZ. Then there's the Emily and Miguel storyline that hasn't really been resolved either - at least not in my eyes. It's also weird if Elgin James casts Miguel aside and replaces him with the other cartel leader. Was he called the Gardener or something?

This is really hard to answer. I mean, Miguel can't continue living in Santo Padre, or even in the U.S. if he's wanted by FBI, DEA - you name it. Unless they play the whole, they couldn't find anything on him-card. Which I wouldn't mind. Or perhaps he gets a really good lawyer and the charges are dropped. That could also work.

I would love to see Miguel try and fight to get Emily back - which is weird 'cause I despise toxic romcoms a la The Notebook where a guy can't take no for an answer. But (despite my stance on that issue) I really want it. It doesn't really fit into the show since it's not a romantic drama, but I think we need a bit of that in between all of the violence and darkness - and I think that’s a behavior he’d display. I also want them to fight about who gets what and Emily threatening to go public with information she's got about him. Ultimately I don’t want them back together - he’s toxicity personified - but I want both him and Emily to stay on the show.

Miguel had and still has, in some aspects, the possibility to be a great ally or villain to the Mayans. Without him they’re not getting any heroine. And if the new rising cartel has gone into a deal with the others - well, then Miguel might be needed to keep Bishop’s crew afloat. I don’t know how though.

I also want him to be Filipe’s son because I want to see him interact with Filipe, Angel and EZ. He had no one after his mother died so that could be really interesting - not to mention finding out EZ is the one who killed her, and that they’re brothers. There’s so much potential. Think about all the funny comments that might come of out of Angel.

I’m not sure you got your question answered with this long post. But I hope so. Danny Pino is wonderful as Miguel Galindo and I think he has a huge fanbase that will disappear if he’s not in season 4 and since the ratings aren’t that great, it would be a crime not to let him continue on. Plus, there’s so much to explore about his character. I want more background story, which we’ve never really gotten much of, and future stories with Emily and his relation to the Reyes.

Maybe someone out there have some other ideas of Miguel in season 4?

#mayans mc #mayans mc season 3 #mayans mc season 4 #danny pino #miguel galindo

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the-busy-ghost · 6 years

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hey what’s the deal with james iv and lowland ross and glen finglas?

Hi!

Ok so James IV, while generally quite a capable king, still, like any person, needed to let off steam. He was also an inveterate traveller, for both religious and political, and personal purposes, and so Me-Time for James IV seems to have meant riding off somewhere hilly but near political centres (like Glenfinglas) or somewhere quite time-consuming to get to if less hilly (Tain in Ross and Whithorn in Galloway are notable examples).

In the case of Ross, he was particularly attached to the shrine of St Duthac in Tain, the oldest royal burgh in Scotland but still pretty out of the way, situated on the shores of the Dornoch Firth. St Duthac was an eleventh century saint who had quite a devoted following in his local area but was otherwise pretty obscure until the late fifteenth century when the ‘liturgical nationalism’ of James IV’s reign got into full swing. There had been a church dedicated to his cult in Tain for centuries- notably, in 1306, it was where the women of Robert the Bruce’s family sheltered before they were betrayed and handed over to Edward I of England- although the original church had been burned in the 1420s (the ruins can still be seen though). Over the fifteenth century the cult of St Duthac gradually centred around the new collegiate church at Tain, and it was this building- which is still complete though rather bare looking today- that James IV regularly travelled to to pay his respects at the shrine of Duthac. From 1490 he made almost annual pilgrimages to Tain, often in autumn, usually travelling by the major coastal burghs of Aberdeen, Elgin, and Inverness, and other political centres on the way. Sometimes he travelled with a lot of members of his court, and even dispatched political business on the way. Other times he was either alone or had few companions, as on the occasion where he allegedly slept on a table in Elgin, and rose early the next morning to say mass a further fifty odd miles away (including ferry) in Tain.

(The remains of Tain Collegiate Church and a worn medieval statue of St Duthac in the same)

James IV’s zest for pilgrimage is unsurprising in light of the extreme guilt he was said to have carried over his role in the death of his father, and his deep personal spirituality (even if his religious policies were less than pious at times). On another occasion, when Margaret Tudor had just given birth to his first legitimate son, he walked from Edinburgh to his other favourite shrine of Whithorn in the very south-west corner of Scotland- a journey of 140 miles- in eight days. And of course one of his major ambitions- the ostensible dream of most medieval Christians but particularly for James IV- was to go on crusade to the Holy Land.

However they weren’t just religious- there was some fun to be had in getting away from it all in Whithorn or Tain. In the case of Tain in particular James IV’s most enduring mistress Janet Kennedy was installed in Darnaway Castle near Forres from 1501 to 1507. Since this was right on the pilgrimage route to Tain, and the high road to Inverness as well, James often stopped off there to be entertained by musicians and spend time with his mistress (and a couple of his infant daughters), sometimes accompanied by his courtiers.** In the case of the famous Whithorn pilgrimage above, James may have walked 140 miles, but he was also followed by four Italian minstrels most of the way. Whilst as I said he could dispatch political business on these trips- and they also served a political purpose in themselves in that the king could be seen by his subjects in many corners of the realm (except the north-west)- these pilgrimages would therefore have been very personal too, both as spiritual experiences, and a chance to unwind and essentially get away from the main political centres. In the words of Norman MacDougall:

“It seems clear, therefore, that apart from the penitential and devotional aspects of the pilgrimages which he undertook, James IV enjoyed them as occasions when he was free of the court and its intrigues, and when travelling the length and breadth of Scotland with only a small company of retainers, he came closer to his people than at any other time. There was probably an element of ostentation in all this, as no-one in the wilds of Kirkcudbright or the Grampians can have failed to realise that the pilgrim passing by was the king, clearly identifiable by his travelling circus of Italian minstrels. This is not to deny the validity of King James’ piety on his arrival at the shrines which he visited when, as at Whthorn, the minstrels were dismissed to the abbey of Tongland and the king spent long hours on his knees; but it requires little imagination to understand that James preferred being serenaded on the banks of the Nith while the local cobbler in Penpont mended his shoes, to staying in Edinburgh and enduring homilies from Bishop Elphinstone on the need to overhaul the entire fabric of civil and criminal law.”

(Glen Finglas and Glen Artney. In the case of Glen Finglas that big lake wouldn’t have been there in James IV’s day since it’s a modern reservoir but nonetheless. Not my pictures)

In the case of Glenfinglas, in the Trossachs, and other areas in Highland Stirlingshire and Perthshire, James IV’s attachment was hardly new. Glen Finglas had been a royal hunting park for several generations by his time, combining the benefits of rugged country and good deer hunting with close proximity to an important political centre (Stirling). Nonetheless, James IV was a keen hunter and spent quite a bit of time riding around the Trossachs with dogs and falconers in tow, and payments to women who brought him butter in Glen Finglas or for the king’s offering in the church of Balquhidder or related to his hunting in Glen Artney or trips to islands on Loch Lomond and so on appear often in the Treasurer’s Accounts. It’s not particularly unusual in the context of royal hunting retreats, but in the case of James IV- who could be in Glasgow one week and Ross the next, and who is often recorded as being ‘out and about’ in his kingdom (whether being ambushed by wedding parties in Leith or playing pranks in Bathgate)- it kind of demonstrates a wider trend in his reign which really shows him to have been a tireless traveller.

Seeing the Highlands as romantic is kind of a modern thing- for Lowlanders anyway, since at least some Gaels certainly Understood how lovely they are. James IV was certainly not regularly burying himself deep in the mountains of Sutherland or Lochaber and he definitely stayed well away from most of the Western Isles when he wasn’t organising campaigns there. But the fringes of what we would now call the Highlands, and the Trossachs, still offered a lot of opportunities for the king- for hunting, for pilgrimage, or any other way of unwinding. Add to that the fact that areas which we would now consider thoroughly Lowland- Galloway for example, which was still largely Gaelic speaking in parts and sometimes rather lawless- were not really considered so pedestrian in the sixteenth century, and certainly James IV’s frequent (as in, not just once or twice) journeys into these areas still stand out. There was not quite such a rigid divide between Highland and Lowland yet, although this was really starting to develop in this period, nonetheless I think he could have maybe identified slightly with the post which I originally (if somewhat jokingly) attached those tags to.

Hope that cleared anything up though! If you need any further sources, the quote and some details are from Norman MacDougall’s bio of James IV, the history of the shrine of St Duthac in Tain is from what I remember of the museum there, and everything else can be found in the Treasurer’s Accounts or other primary sources- if you want a specific source for something I can easily link to it.

**Coincidentally James IV’s son by Janet Kennedy, James, seems to have been born just before St Duthac’s day in 1501, and was almost certainly christened on St Duthac’s feast day itself (8th March); the younger James was made earl of Moray a few months later, while his mother received the keeping of the seat of the earldom at Darnaway, though unlike his mother and sisters he did not usually reside in Darnaway as a child. Now I don’t know how James IV managed to wrangle such a coincidence that his son was born right in time for his favourite saint’s feast day, but it certainly is appropriate.

#James IV #Scottish history #British history #Scotland #sixteenth century

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tomorrowedblog · 2 years

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Friday Releases for April 1

Friday is the busiest day of the week for new releases, so we've decided to collect them all in one place. Friday Releases for April 1 include Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood, You Won’t Be Alone, The Contractor, and more.

Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood

Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood, the new movie from Richard Linklater, is out today.

A man narrates stories of his life as a 10-year-old boy in 1969 Houston, weaving tales of nostalgia with a fantastical account of a journey to the moon.

You Won’t Be Alone

You Won’t Be Alone, the new movie from Goran Stolevski, is out today.

Set in an isolated mountain village in 19th century Macedonia, You Won’t Be Alone follows a young girl who is kidnapped and then transformed into a witch by an ancient spirit. Curious about life as a human, the young witch accidentally kills a peasant in the nearby village and then takes her victim’s shape to live life in her skin. Her curiosity ignited, she continues to wield this horrific power in order to understand what it means to be human.

The Contractor

The Contractor, the new movie from Tarik Saleh, is out today.

Chris Pine stars in the action-packed thriller as Special Forces Sergeant James Harper, who is involuntarily discharged from the Army and cut-off from his pension. In debt, out of options and desperate to provide for his family, Harper contracts with a private underground military force. When the very first assignment goes awry, the elite soldier finds himself hunted and on the run, caught in a dangerous conspiracy and fighting to stay alive long enough to get home and uncover the true motives of those who betrayed him.

Morbius

Morbius, the new movie from Daniel Espinosa, is out today.

Dangerously ill with a rare blood disorder and determined to save others suffering his same fate, Dr. Morbius attempts a desperate gamble. While at first it seems to be a radical success, a darkness inside him is unleashed. Will good override evil – or will Morbius succumb to his mysterious new urges?

Barbarians

Barbarians, the new movie from Charles Dorfman, is out today.

Four friends come together for a celebratory dinner party at a country house. But as the night progresses dark secrets emerge and unsettling events begin to unfold around them.

The Bubble

The Bubble, the new movie from Judd Apatow, is out today.

The Bubble is a comedy about a group of actors and actresses stuck inside a pandemic bubble at a hotel attempting to complete a sequel to an action franchise film about flying dinosaurs.

See You Then

See You Then, the new movie from Mari Walker, is out today.

A decade after abruptly breaking up with Naomi, Kris invites her to dinner to catch up on their complicated lives, relationships, and Kris’ transition. Over a night of intimate and vulnerable conversations, a shocking truth is revealed.

The Last Bus

The Last Bus, the new TV series from Paul Neafcy, is out today.

A group of mismatched students on a school trip become unlikely heroes when a robot apocalypse zaps away the rest of humanity.

Slow Horses

Slow Horses, the new TV series from Will Smith and James Hawes, is out today.

Slow Horses follows a team of British intelligence agents who serve in a dumping ground department of MI5 – Slough House. Oldman stars as Jackson Lamb, the brilliant but irascible leader of the spies who end up in Slough House due to their career-ending mistakes.

The Outlaws

The Outlaws, the new TV series from Elgin James and Stephen Merchant, is out today.

From Emmy winner Stephen Merchant and Elgin James comes THE OUTLAWS–a contemporary British comedy thriller about a disparate group of lawbreakers thrown together to complete a Community Service sentence. Seven strangers from different walks of life – people who would never normally interact – are forced to work together to renovate a derelict community center. They resent the menial physical labour and they resent each other. But when one of their number gets dragged into a dangerous world of organized crime, they unite in ways none of them thought possible.

Tomorrow

Tomorrow, the new TV series from Hong Sook-woo, is out today.

Made half-human and half-spirit by accident, a young man is employed by a company of grim reapers in the underworld to carry out special missions.

#Movies #TV #News

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himbimhohum · 3 years

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The Carver - Part 2

From this point on, there is a general trigger warning for death, blood, and weapons. Please be advised that there will be few, if any, graphic descriptions, but if you are bothered by these topics at all then proceed with caution.

This should be read while listening to Burning Pile by Mother Mother and Body by Mother Mother.

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Carver meandered his way through the city streets until he came to a stop before a storefront. The windows had paper taped to the inside and a “Closed” sign hung from a peg on the door. Disregarding the sign, the lanky man got out his keys and unlocked the door, making his way inside. It was barely warmer in the store than out but that would soon be fixed. A counter stood next to the left wall with floating shelves making a wooden backdrop behind it. Small tables were stacked in the back corner next to another door which led to a storeroom and a set of stairs leading to the second floor.

He felt the need to do something with his hands. Carver picked up the broom that had been leaning against the stacked tables. He began sweeping up some of the sawdust and debris left by the contractors during the build. As he swept, he let his mind wander a bit, mentally making a list of the orders he would have to place in the coming days to make the shop functional. A cash register, at least a thousand flowers, some watering cans; the list seemed to grow by the second.

The expense of opening this little flower shop didn’t bother Carver. He had plenty of money saved away from his main job. He was a contractor, of sorts. Carver took on the dirty work that few people were brave enough to do. Helped into the field by some of his contacts from the army, Carver had found some “friends” in the various mobs that ran the underbelly of the city.

During the Great War, Carver had become one of the best shots in his regiment and had been noticed by his superiors. At the ripe old age of 19, he was sent on special missions to take out some of the enemy’s higher-ranking officers. Carver preferred knives to guns when it came to these missions. It was easier to ensure the enemy would never get back up if he watched the light fade from their eyes.

Now, back home in Port Stepper, there was no shortage of work for a hitman with a penchant for stealth. He had been home for only six months when he was offered his first hit. Two rival, small-time gangs, one with men from his former regiment, had crossed paths and had a tense situation in need of resolving. Carver had been asked by his former comrade to take out the leader of the rival group.

Despite the unfamiliar environment, Carver had easily gotten past the thugs and guards into the boss’ office. The hit was swift, nearly silent, and instantly fatal. Lying in wait, Carver had been able to quickly come up behind the man, slit his throat, and stab him in the liver. He didn’t hear any sign of alarm on the other side of the door so he decided to invent a calling card for himself.

Carver, who was not a very creative person at the time, quickly decided to carve a “C” into the back of his victim’s hand and tuck a note between his fingers.

“The Carver sends his regards.”

In the moment, Carver was quite pleased with himself to have come up with a “clever” name to inspire fear. Every time he thought back to that night however, he cursed himself for not coming up with something different. Carver is a fairly unique name and any detective with more than two brain cells to rub together would probably make the connection sometime.

But two years had past and no nosy police officer had ever come knocking at his door. That was a positive, perhaps, of taking jobs from crime rings: no one was eager to call the cops.

Carver had begun to gain more confidence after his third job. His work was being noticed by more important figures and his calling card was feared across Port Stepper’s underbelly. Surprisingly, the men from his regiment who ordered the first hit agreed to “forget” his name and face and only referred to him as “The Carver” after that.

The anonymity he had been afforded made keeping his day-to-day life unobtrusive far easier than he had expected. He had been able to rent a mailbox in a post office across town and had bribed the postmaster into removing his name from the record. Anytime a crime family had a hit they wanted, they’d have to find out which box he owned and send him half their offer upfront with the name of their target.

His private life did not stay private for long, however. About a year and a half after his first hit, Carver was singled out by Elgin Canmore, the father of the Canmore family. The Canmore family controlled five major ports in the harbor and were one of the four major crime families in the city. Canmore had sent Carver an official invitation to the family’s dinner table and had assured his cooperation with fifty thousand dollars.

Since then Carver’s work had mainly been directed by the Canmore Family who fully recognized that they did not own his allegiance in any way. He had been trusted with some knowledge of the family’s operations, under the agreement that Carver really didn’t care to tell anyone about the plans. It wasn’t hard for him to hold true to the promise; he rarely spoke to anyone and indeed rarely spoke at all.

Carver didn’t particularly care about who the targets were specifically. Some of the names he recognized, like a minor leader of the Galley Boys who controlled one of the city’s many commercial ports. Carver was able to fill his savings quickly with his unique skills since each hit cost about four thousand dollars. To keep his small fortune hidden, he had taken to opening accounts in several banks around the city.

Shaking himself back into the present, the fiery-haired young man brushed a drop of sweat off his brow. Carver shucked off his coat, laying it on the countertop. Rolling his sleeves up to reveal lean, muscular arms, he swept the small pile of dust into the corner and made a mental note to buy a trash bin.

At some point soon, he would need to find out what was so important last night that he wasn’t allowed in the backroom of St. James’ Tavern. The Canmores controlled that territory and often held emergency meetings there. Carver was merely curious as to the goings-on, barely more interested than he would be in finding a dollar on the ground.

Carver finished cleaning up the store before setting out the tables, arranging them carefully. He imagined the flowers he would soon have spilling from baskets, bouquets, and pots. He allowed himself to smile. His guilty pleasure had always been gardening, especially flowers. Helping something beautiful grow had helped the confusion he felt growing up.

At some point during his years in middle school, Carver had realized that he always felt fuzzy around the edges as though he was only mostly what people thought he was. Of course, he was a man but why did he feel so detached from it at the same time? During the war, he had found comfort in the fuzzy feeling. His secret missions had garnered notoriety among the ranks and more than once he heard his comrades praise the hitman.

“Didn’t you hear? There’s someone taking out officers on the other side! They’re certainly making our job easier.”

“I wish I could shake their hand. They must be incredibly brave to go on those missions. Or at least they’re too reckless to feel fear.”

Carver had heard himself referred to in a detached way, as an entity rather than a person and it was surprisingly pleasant. He didn’t know what to call it exactly, but just knowing that he could feel comfortable in his own skin at all was nothing short of a miracle in his eyes. After becoming The Carver and being discovered by Elgin Canmore, Carver had decided to have a little chat with the father.

He had approached the man in his office. Elgin’s short muscular frame was stationed behind an ornate desk. Thick, pale fingers covered with heavy rings drummed a steady cadence into his desk. He only looked up from his work when Carver cleared his throat.

“You’re aware that The Carver’s identity is a mystery to nearly everyone besides you, correct Mr. Canmore?” Carver began. “I’d like it to stay that way.”

“Well of course dear boy, I would never think of sharing our little secret with my enemies,” Eglin replied cooly. “Why are you bringing this up though? No one knows your name.”

“You see, sir, if people were to find out that The Carver was a man with special skills that are usually found in the military, they might be able to track me down. I assume that is how you found me after all.” Carver was treading carefully here, speaking without an accusing tone. He didn’t need Elgin thinking he was angry at being found out.

“But suppose someone thought I was a woman. They might think she came from a prominent family, one that had plenty of people to train her. Personally, my sense of honor wouldn’t allow for a girl to be pinned with my sins. It just wouldn’t be right.”

“Get to the point, son. I respect your skills but your rambling is trying my patience.”

“I want you to tell your men that they can only refer to The Carver as “they” from now on. The Carver is an entity, a mysterious being who comes in and kills without a trace. Threaten them if you have to. Say I’ll come after whoever says the wrong thing. Just make it known that The Carver is not a man, not a woman, but a threat to their lives.”

Carver delivered his demand without breaking eye contact with the kingpin. If this were to work, he couldn’t show a flicker of weakness or doubt. His resolve had to be absolute.

Elgin took his time deliberating this. He didn’t like Carver threatening his men, but he respected the anonymity required to be a successful hitman. After several long, silent minutes, he agreed. There was no need to upset his most prized asset after all.

Carver didn’t dare take a breath of relief until he had completed the twenty-minute trek from the Canmore’s home to his apartment. He was shaking slightly; nervousness, excitement, and relief all tangled in a ball of emotions he was too confused to sort out.

He pulled himself out of his reverie and decided that if he was going to be zoning out and daydreaming about the past all day, he’d much rather do it at home. At least there he would be able to lose himself in a warm mug of coffee and listen to his favorite jazz radio station. Carver pulled his sleeves back down, put on his coat, and casually walked two blocks west and one block south. His building was an unassuming brownstone that was two stories tall and nearly as old as the Port Stepper itself. An acceptable place to call home while he waited to move in above his flower shop.

#thecarver #carver byrne #part2 #oc #original story

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theconservativebrief · 6 years

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Amazon will sell full-size Christmas trees for the first time this year, following a successful test run with mini trees last year, the Associated Press reported.

Obviously, Amazon is continually making headlines for the many ways it is now involved in our daily lives. A selection from the past two weeks: It’s steadily and rapidly expanding its Whole Foods delivery service in an effort to disrupt your grocery store, partnering with J.Crew for the first time as part of its year-end goal to crush Walmart, and fueling its feud with Sen. Bernie Sanders, which is tied to the extreme wage gap between its workers and its executives as well as reportedly heinous working conditions in its fulfillment centers.

And now, it’s getting involved in Christmas. The trees will be delivered via Prime to any user’s door within 10 days of the tree being chopped. Shipping will be free, but the trees themselves come at a premium — $115 for a 7-foot Fraser fir, for example. (The average Christmas tree in the US cost $51 as of 2016.) This is not even close to being the first Christmas tree delivery service, but it is the first arranged as part of Jeff Bezos’s ever-expanding empire, and therefore, something about it feels a little different.

So would you order an Amazon Christmas tree? While Christmas tree delivery is clearly useful for the elderly and others for whom Christmas tree farms may not be physically accessible, does it not also smack of a corporate monolith trying to grasp at yet another precious facet of the human experience? Is it not sad that the tree is just kind of dropped in front of your house and there’s not even a nice man to put it in a tree stand for you, as there is with established, comparable services?

Maybe I don’t actually need dominion over Christmas tree rituals — I just don’t want Amazon to have it

Wanting to avoid snowy roads and hordes of screaming children is a desire that is quite reasonable to me, but at the same time, I would like to point out something that we might accidentally miss here — Christmas tree farms often give out free hot chocolate to their customers. Sometimes cute boys work at them! Traditions are not about convenience; they are about joy and sweaty group photos.

Amazon has already irrevocably changed the way we shop at Christmas, but will this new service change the way we perform Christmas too? Before we work ourselves into a tizzy, it would behoove us to consult some people who really know Christmas trees inside and out and know exactly how much “disruption” the industry (or an individual uprooted tree) can take.

To that end, I asked five Christmas tree experts for their thoughts on Amazon’s new service.

Beth Walterscheidt, owner of Evergreen Farms (Elgin, Texas)

I speak [for] a choose-and-cut Christmas tree farm where people come out for the experience of choosing and cutting their own tree to take home. These people enjoy the experience and often bring extended family members to enjoy the experience. I do not see [Amazon’s Christmas tree delivery service] as having an impact on our sales. As far as the industry is concerned, I think it has a niche for people who are unable to get out to a tree lot or a farm to get their real tree. It might increase the sales of real Christmas trees, but as I mentioned earlier, it will not deter people from getting out with their families to choose a real tree.

Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Brian Eshenaur, plant pathologist specializing in ornamental crops (Rochester, New York)

Fresh-cut Christmas trees are resilient. They should be able to handle a few days in a box without a problem as long as the box stays at room temperature or below. You see, when it’s compacted in the box, the surface area of the tree is reduced and the humidity builds up inside, so very little evaporation will take place. When it arrives, it is best then to get the trunk of the tree into water right away.

What the buyer would be missing is the experience! The tradition of selecting your own fresh tree would be missed. It’s often a family event; whether at a tree lot or a field where you choose and cut your own, that’s where a lot of memories are made and traditions are built.

Some species of Christmas trees are tougher than others. As far as a tree that will stay fresh and holds on to its needles, Fraser firs are at the top of the list.

Leo Collins, owner of Bluebird Christmas Tree Farm (Heiskell, Tennessee)

I think there are different types of customers, and that’s a great thing. If you’re wanting to get a tree without the hassle of hunting one down, that’d be a good way to go, I would think. For our customers, it’s more about the experience, and the trees are fresh when they cut them down. But we’re at too low of an elevation to grow Fraser firs — we drive up to a different farm in Tennessee where they have them, buy ’em, bring ’em down, once or twice a week. They stay fresh for several months, so [Amazon] won’t have a problem.

Our customers have learned that [Fraser firs] stay fresh, they smell best and stay green and hold ornaments the best, so they usually end up taking those. You’re not going to get the same experience from opening a box, but if it’s a good tree and it’s at your door and you want that ease, that’s the way to go.

Andreas Rentz/Getty Images

James Cooper, professional Christmas blogger (Minehead, Somerset, UK)

I think this story might be getting a lot of press because it’s Amazon, but I don’t think it’s anything really new. I’ve run my main Christmas site since 2000, and people were offering mail-order Christmas tree services back then — and I know that many big tree suppliers have also been offering real and artificial trees via their sites for several years (even though it’s still a tiny percentage of overall tree sales).

I live in the UK, so it will be interesting to see if Amazon will sell real trees online over here as well!

There’s nothing like going and picking your own tree, either pre-chopped or still in the ground. But I can also see how it could be really convenient for many people. I’m actually basically house-bound with ME/CFS (I’ve had ME for over 25 years — longer than I’ve been in the Christmas business), and so I pretty much rely on online shopping. Being able to order online and get a tree delivered could actually be useful for a whole range of people, not just those two who are “too busy” or don’t want to go out shopping for a tree.

Kurt Emmerich, owner of Emmerich Tree Farm (Warwick, New York)

Boxed and delivered Christmas trees have been available for years. Typically, growers have teamed with FedEx or UPS to offer boxed trees and wreaths delivered to customers’ homes. Growers who market their products this way have been reporting strong sales. The announcement from Amazon should help the real Christmas tree industry recover market share from fake trees, so that’s a good thing. The convenience should rival that of a fake tree.

Of course, delivery eliminates the experience of selecting a fresh cut tree or a choose-and-cut tree from the farm, which is often an annual highlight and tradition for families.

As for freshness, the 10-days-from-cutting promise should help with needle retention, but species selection is probably more important. While you can select most any species on the farm and keep it fresh through watering, trees delivered 10 days after cutting must be a species with excellent needle retention qualities such as a Fraser fir.

“The announcement from Amazon should help the real Christmas tree industry recover market share from fake trees, so that’s a good thing”

Regarding price, $115 for a 7- to 8-foot tree is significantly higher than at most retail outlets or farms where you can cut your own. While the convenience factor is high, the overall value does not seem to be there when considering the limited species selection, inability to choose your specific tree, and the risk of shipping damage and/or trees sitting uncollected in depots, driveways, or building lobbies.

As a Christmas tree grower, the decision by Amazon to sell real Christmas trees is exciting and demonstrates the buying public’s growing preference for real Christmas trees. As a substitute for the “Real Christmas Tree Experience (TM),” Amazon has a long way to go to deliver the goods.

Iconic Christmas lover Martha Stewart was not available for comment for this piece, but for the record: She didn’t make a must-watch mini documentary about herself and Michael Jordan and Miss Piggy opening a box, okay? She loves cutting down a tree. She loves effort. On the other hand, Martha Stewart regularly acknowledges the value of our time and recommends convenience. It appears that in 2007, she did receive at least five of her Christmas trees via some kind of delivery service. We are without a final ruling here from her.

Again, is a Christmas tree about the experience of getting a Christmas tree, or is a Christmas tree simply about the smell? Is it about sweeping up pine needles 40 times a day so your cat doesn’t eat them and then barf, or is it about going outside and getting a kissing-by-a-barn picture for Instagram? I couldn’t say. And am I trying to get into the artificial tree versus real tree debate right now? Absolutely not!

However, none of the Christmas experts I consulted brought up whether they had an ethical issue with Amazon’s business model or corporate practices or impingement on storied cultural rituals; basically all any of them mentioned caring about was seeing real trees get out from under the horrible tyranny of fake trees.

They could not care less what Amazon does, so long as fake trees are the ones losing. This, above all, is the real Christmas spirit.

Original Source -> Amazon will deliver live Christmas trees this year. 5 Christmas tree experts weigh in.

via The Conservative Brief

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zeroviraluniverse-blog · 6 years

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LeBron James of Cleveland Cavaliers records historic 40-point triple-double

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LeBron James of Cleveland Cavaliers records historic 40-point triple-double

CLEVELAND — Normally, notching 37 points, 11 rebounds and five assists would leave a fifth-year player like Giannis Antetokounmpo satisfied with their night’s work.

But after the Milwaukee Bucks‘ 124-117 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday, all the Bucks star could think about was how LeBron James upstaged him with 40 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists of his own.

“I was talking to myself when I was taking a shower. And I was like, ‘OK, what did I do wrong today guarding LeBron?'” Antetokounmpo said after the game. “Because he’s the first player ever to score 40 on me that easy. It’s hard; [LeBron’s] a guy that can drive the ball, shoot the ball, especially late in his career now he’s been shooting the ball amazing. He’s getting his teammates in the right spot. He’s the best player in the world. That simple.”

James’ night was historically dominant, as he became the third-oldest player in league history to notch a triple-double while scoring at least 40 points at 33 years and 79 days old, putting him behind only Larry Bird (35 years, 99 days) and Elgin Baylor (34 days, 48 days) among the game’s greatest graybeards in that category, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

LeBron’s back threatened to betray him. Then a former Navy SEAL went to work and gave him new strength.

LeBron James scored 40 points as part of his third triple-double in four games and the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Milwaukee Bucks 124-117 on Monday night as coach Tyronn Lue began his leave of absence to address health issues.

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James became the fifth player in league history with five 40-point triple-doubles, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, and he did it on the day he won Eastern Conference Player of the Week for a record 60th time (and the third time this season).

“Stay committed to my regimen,” James credited for his recent play after averaging 32.0 points on 56.9 percent shooting from the field, 13.3 rebounds, 9.7 assists, 2.0 steals and 2.3 blocks to earn player of the week honors. “I’m not going to make shots every night, but what I do know is I’m going to do other things if I don’t make shots to get my guys involved and rebound and defend. I can take a charge here and there if it presents itself, I can block shots and get steals. I can always figure out a way to be a threat on the floor even if I’m not scoring. For me that doesn’t change.”

While Antetokounmpo was frustrated with his performance guarding James, Cavs acting head coach Larry Drew — who was Antetokounmpo’s coach during his rookie season — marveled at the young forward’s development.

“If you remember, I was part of that staff that drafted him. And I’ll never forget when I first saw him, I had to take a trip to Europe, to Estonia, to see him,” Drew said. “And I’m watching this real thin kid. Had no idea — I don’t think anybody had any inkling — that he’d turn out the way he did. But I just remember seeing him back then and just seeing where he has grown to now. And he just leaves me scratching my head a little bit, to be perfectly honest.

“When you watch both Giannis and you watch Bron on the floor, I tell you, you can’t [look away] — you have to be focused at all times because Bron is a special, special player. I mean, as special as probably you’ll ever see. And Giannis is blooming into that.

“But watching a game like tonight, you are sure fans are going to get their money’s worth with them watching LB and watching Giannis.”

The win kept the Cavs a half-game up on Indiana for the No. 3 seed in the East. The loss kept the Bucks in a virtual tie with the Miami Heat for No. 7.

Perhaps the fans will get even more to see should Cleveland and Milwaukee somehow meet in the postseason.

“It would be a great experience,” Antetokounmpo said. “I think LeBron brings the best out of me. It should be a fun playoff series to watch.”

#40point #Cavaliers #Cleveland #Historic #James #LeBron #Records #tripledouble #Sports #Sports News

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hairterminator · 7 years

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10 Pieces Worth Buying Now For Spring/Summer 2017

#http://blog.hair-terminator.com When the weather’s still frosty, it can be tempting to stick to your wool overcoat and jeans combo and put off updating your warm-weather wardrobe until the clocks go forward. However, if you can shrug off the seasonal sadness, now is the optimal time to

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When the weather’s still frosty, it can be tempting to stick to your wool overcoat and jeans combo and put off updating your warm-weather wardrobe until the clocks go forward. However, if you can shrug off the seasonal sadness, now is the optimal time to stock up for the spring and summer months. To get ahead of the curve rather than be left scraping the bottom of the sartorial barrel, it’s worth noting that the rails are already bursting with new collections and must-buy pieces. Take your teacher’s advice – the early bird really does catch the worm. Helpfully, Style.com’s latest edit is full of essential wardrobe staples from some of the industry’s most respected names, as well as an eclectic mix of up-and-coming brands to add some seasoning to your rotation. Here are our top picks for keeping you looking on-point throughout SS17.

Marni Button-Down Hooded Twill Jacket

One of the most common (and most unforgivable) clothing crimes is wearing a coat that would see you through an Arctic expedition when – in reality – it’s pretty balmy outside. To avoid looking like you’re off to shack up in a moose carcass with Bear Grylls, swap your winter warmer for something more seasonally appropriate. Prepare for everything from April showers to Glastonbury mud with this cotton twill jacket from Italian label Marni. Lightweight enough that you won’t break a sweat if the temperature rises, but hooded and lined for practicality in unsettled climes, lightweight parkas are set to be a key trend this season – combine with slim chinos or denim to make for some seriously stylish off-duty dressing. Priced £690. Click to buy.

Paul Smith Check Carlo Barbera Wool Blazer

Tailoring has long been the place where subtlety reigned supreme. Yes, a suit is the cornerstone of almost every grown man’s wardrobe, and yes, we love a sleek navy or sharp grey two-piece. But to add some interest to your sartorial selection, a checked blazer is a more casual, effortlessly cooler alternative. Ticking off key trends faster than you can say ‘checkmate’, this sleek jacket from Paul Smith has been crafted in Italy using premium wool sourced from the renowned Carlo Barbera mill. The pink highlights nod to the rose-coloured hue we’ve seen everywhere for this season, while still being subtle enough that you’ll be able to wear it for years to come. Priced £745. Click to buy.

Rachel James Zirkel Waterproof Hoodie

The sportswear trend shows no sign of getting benched, so stay in the fast lane this summer. Bomber jackets are still a key silhouette, but those tired of dressing like a T-Bird can drop the Danny Zuko impression for a more relaxed, retro track top in a modern colourway. This hoodie from emerging designer Rachel James has a bomber-style hem and cuffs, but, thanks to some clever technology, is made from only two pieces of fabric, lending the drapey style a modern edge. It’s not just for show either – the waterproof material and roomy body make it a practical addition to any workout wardrobe as well as a casual roster. Priced £400. Click to buy.

Johnstons of Elgin Cashmere Hooded Sweater

When investing in cashmere, it’s worth checking out the company’s credentials. Good cashmere will last decades; bad cashmere will be in the bin by next winter. Johnstons of Elgin has been making quality cashmere goods for around 220-years but has continued to foray into more modern shapes, meaning you get the best of both worlds. This classic cashmere hooded sweater is the ultimate luxury athleisure piece. Equally at home lying on the sofa as it is layered under an unstructured blazer with jeans for a smart-casual look, it’s the equivalent of a grown man’s comfort blanket. Just don’t slobber on it. Priced £275. Click to buy.

Christopher Kane Wool Tailored Cuffed Trousers

Athletic styles have become ubiquitous in almost all high street and high-end collections. Therefore choice of fabric and colour is vital to avoid being a clone of every other bloke on the planet. Mixing high and low fashion has become every designer’s go-to this season, and these Christopher Kane trousers are one of the most wearable ways to tap the trend. Sitting at the crossroads of lazy and luxurious, they have a Savile Row feel with a South Beach silhouette. Cut from pure wool and featuring traditional tailoring details but with a cuffed bottom, they’ll set you apart from the crowd. Priced £445. Click to buy.

Filling Pieces Low Top Ghost Perforated Pink

Trainers are one of the most accessible ways to buy into trends. That said, get it wrong and it can be an expensive mistake to make. Choosing to shift away from mainstream footwear labels usually offers up more minimalist styles that have a greater chance of working with an existing wardrobe. Amsterdam-based Filling Pieces has quickly established itself as a cult labels in this area. These on-trend nude trainers – crafted in premium leather and suede – are a cooler alternative to the sneakers that’ll be on everyone else’s feet. Plus, you won’t have to queue up at 5am to get them. Priced £220. Click to buy.

Zoë Jordan Franklin Knit

Knitwear should make up a decent portion of your wardrobe budget, as spending here can elevate an otherwise basic outfit to luxury status. Though, it’s precisely this knowledge that means we often end up with duplicates of the same jumper we’ve been wearing since the age of 17. If you’re drowning in a sea of navy crew necks, it might be time to trade up. Since being shortlisted for the British Fashion Council’s Fashion Fund in 2012, Zoe Jordan has created some of the most desirable knitwear on the market, and this Franklin jumper is a SS17 must-have. Ticking off the camouflage trend without the obvious shades of green and brown, it’ll make a seamless (and non-boring) addition to your wardrobe. Priced £270. Click to buy.

Mismo M/S Shoppers

We’re currently in a logo renaissance. After a few calm years of brands paring back on splashy motifs, they’re back with a vengeance. This shopper from Danish label Mismo is the perfect antidote to the showy bags on offer this season. Minimalist without being boring, its simple shape hides functionality – there are inside pockets and removable and adjustable straps, so it’ll pull its weight for work and play. Plus, it’s in this season’s must-have shade of green, making yet another a great case for picking it up. Priced £200. Click to buy.

L.G.R TraNnsvaal Gold Green G15

Sunglasses trends can be tricky to buy into, as what frame suits depends so much on face shape. However, for those fortunate to be able to (we’re looking at you square-faced ), this season it’s time to channel your inner John Lennon with a pair of round lenses. These glasses from eyewear brand L.G.R come in classic gold shade but are a subtle way to pick up on the green trend too, thanks to their tinted lenses. Handcrafted in Italy and ultra-lightweight, they might be practical, but their cool slant on an old-school style makes them a contemporary classic. Shine on. Priced £196. Click to buy.

Paul Smith Leather ‘Simmons’ Loafers With Charms

Summer outfits need summer shoes. It sounds basic, but an often-repeated mistake is to ditch the socks and wear winter brogues when the weather heats up. In reality, subbing chunky ice-proof soles for a slimmer silhouette is the ideal move to make. Paul Smith’s loafers have all the hallmarks of a solid winter shoe – premium calf leather, hand-stitching, moccasin toes – but the neater, orange colour-flash sole and sleeker shape mean that when you ditch the socks in these, it won’t look like you just forgot. Priced £375. Click to buy.

Shop the full spring/summer 2017 designer collections now at Style.com.

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