#erins bio was one line

[katareyoudrilling]

The Sweepstakes: Javi Gutierrez (Porn Star AU)

Series: The Sweepstakes

Pairing: Porn star Javi Gutierrez x Female Reader

Summary: It seemed like a great idea at the time, but now you’re not sure you’re brave enough to claim your sweepstakes prize.

Word count: ~3.2k

Rating: Explicit (18+ only. NO MINORS)

Content Warnings: reader is a full-figured gal, vague body descriptions, body insecurity, some ass smacks, ass worship, oral (m and f receiving), unprotected PiV (there is paperwork)

A/N: Huge thank you to @burntheedges for all her help with this!  Javi is a new character for me as is some of the subject matter I’m writing about.  I hope I’ve done both justice!  Spanish translations are at the end, but everything should be able to be understood in line with context.  I hope you enjoy!

Reblogs and comments are always appreciated!

Series Masterlist

Main Masterlist

Taglist – link in bio or ask me to add you!

“There’s a kitchen to the left and a bathroom here,” Erin opens a door to show you a spacious full bath.  “The production room is at the end of this hall, which is where I will be if you need anything.”

You nod along and follow her down the hall.

“And of course, here is the room where you’ll be doing your scene!” She opens the double doors with a flourish.

It’s so… bright in there.  Is it always that bright?

You look around the large bedroom.  A bedroom you are very familiar with, as it is where your favorite porn production company films many of their videos.

You wrap your arms around your torso, feeling exposed even though you’re still fully clothed.

Maybe this was a bad idea.

You entered a sweepstakes you never expected to win.  You saw the ad after a particularly satisfying session with your vibrator.  It said, “Enter to win a night with your favorite performer!”

Your favorite performer had just given you a fantastic orgasm.  In your dopamine haze it seemed like the best idea you’d ever had.  You’ve never had an orgasm with a partner, but he gets you there every time.  Could he do it in person?

The “he” in question was none other than Javi Gutierrez.  The friendliest porn star there ever was.  Sunshine incarnate. You wondered and then you clicked submit.

Now, seeing the room in person, faced with the reality of the large bed and sunlight filtering through the curtains… your brilliant idea doesn’t seem so brilliant anymore.

Erin leads you into the room and continues, “Since you’ve opted not to be filmed, we have removed all the cameras except one.”  She gestures towards a tripod in the corner.  “The lens cap is on though, it’s just for sound.  We will be monitoring the feed just to be sure everyone is safe.”

“I… I don’t know… if I can do this,” you choke out, your breaths coming faster and faster as panic builds in your chest.

“Hey, it’s ok.”  Erin places her hands on your shoulders and captures your darting gaze.  “You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do.  If you just want to meet Javi and call it a night, that is completely fine.  He really is the sweetest.” She smiles at you, and you let out a long exhale, allowing your shoulders to relax slightly.

“He won’t be upset?”

“Upset? No. Our performers are all very aware of how intimidating this is and would never judge anyone for backing out, Javi especially.  I know he is excited to meet you, though.”

“Me? Why?”  That’s just ridiculous.  One of the most beautiful men in existence is excited to meet jiggly, squishy you?

“He’s excited to meet everyone, all the time, but we did show him your photo and tell him a little about you from your paperwork.  I believe his exact word was deliciosa.”  She winks.

Delicious? What? Javi is always so complimentary to his scene partners, telling them how beautiful they are and how good they feel, but none of his scene partners look like you.

“What do you think? Want to meet him?” Erin asks you gently.

You nod.  “Yeah, I guess.”  If Javi is who you think he is, then he will at least be friendly and kind.

“I’ll send him in in a few minutes. Make yourself comfortable and remember, we are here for you, however you want this evening to go.”  She leaves the room, closing the doors behind her.

You face the bed, the space you’ve traveled to in your mind so many times now real in front of you.  You’ll just meet him, and it will be fine.  So what if you’ll never know what it’s really like to be with him.  So what if this once in a lifetime opportunity passes you by.

You hear the doors open behind you and quickly turn around only to be blinded by the gorgeousness that is Javi Gutierrez.

He’s wearing a white tank top that shows off his broad, muscular shoulders, lightly freckled from the sun, and loose linen pants that hang low on his hips, revealing a thin slice of tummy and happy trail.  His skin positively glows in the setting sun.  His hair falls softly in ringlets of brown and gold around his handsome face.

“Hello, I am Javi.” He introduces himself with a wide smile and open arms.  You allow him to gather you into his broad chest, too stunned that this is happening to even introduce yourself properly.  You mumble your name against him.

His scent fills your nostrils—citrus and the ocean breeze—and you breathe it in greedily.  Too soon he lets you go and steps back.  A look of deep concern fills his chocolate brown eyes as he considers you carefully.

“Erin said maybe you want to leave.” His deep voice is so gentle and soothing. “It is ok if you do, but I hope not.”

“You don’t have to say that.”

His brow furrows in confusion. “Say what? That I would be sad not to get to fuck you?”

“You don’t… really want to do… that with me. It’s ok.”  Your cheeks heat as you stutter your answer.

“Of course I want to, why would I not want to? You are so beautiful. Bonita.”

“No I’m not, you don’t want this,” you gesture towards yourself, your tummy, your ass.

“I do want this.  What is wrong with this?”  He looks genuinely confused.  “May I touch you, bonita?”

“I… I guess.”

He takes your hand and brings it to his lips then trails kisses up your arm.  You shiver as his mustache brushes against your sensitive skin.

“¡Que linda!  So beautiful and soft,” he murmurs as he gets to your shoulder, dropping your arm and placing his hands on your waist.  “Why would I not want more of you to fill up my hands?” He slides his hands around to your ass, bringing your fronts together.  You can feel his length hardening between you and your mouth falls open in surprise.  He squeezes your ass, “This. You. Are beautiful.  And I do want to fuck you.  Te deseo, bonita.”

He closes the distance between you to press a kiss on your mouth, currently open in shock.  He teases your lips and chin as his hands knead your ass, pulling you against him.  One hand travels up to palm your breast. He finds the hard point of your nipple and you gasp as he pinches it.

“Do you not want the cameras because you do not think you are beautiful, bonita?” he whispers against your skin as he drags his angular nose along your jawline.

You nod as you whimper.  The idea of watching yourself like that… it makes your insides churn.  You just knew when you saw the question in the paperwork that you would never want to watch it, so why record it?

He pulls back and holds your gaze intently.  “It is your choice, por supuesto.  But I hope I can make you feel beautiful tonight.  With me. Will you stay?”

His smoldering gaze is hypnotic and you find yourself replying, “Yes, I’ll stay.”

“Bueno, this makes me very happy.”  The smile that lights up his face confirms his words.

You find yourself smiling back, your insecurities taking a backseat to the fizzy excitement now bubbling through your veins.  His joyful presence is contagious.

Javi returns to your mouth, no longer in teasing nips, but with intent as he draws you into a deep kiss.  His tongue slides against yours with languid, knee-weakening strokes.  He leads you backwards until you feel the bed against the backs of your legs and directs you to sit.  With your head tilted back, he continues to explore your mouth, standing between your legs, his large hands cradling your face.

He steps back and pulls his tank top over his head.  He moves to return to your kiss, but you stop him with your hands on his chest.  You have to see him, touch him, this beautiful man you’ve fantasized about so many times.

“You’re gorgeous, Javi,” you whisper reverently as you drag your palms down his golden chest, delighting when his nipples pebble under your fingers.

“Gracias, bonita,” he chuckles softly.  His fingers trace your jaw and the shell of your ear as you explore his body.  “Undo the tie,” he murmurs as your fingers trace the edge of his trousers.  You can already see the shape of him through the thin material, straining to be released.

You bite your lip and Javi groans, “Fuck. Those lips, ay, son deliciosos.”

Carefully, you tug at the drawstring knot, it gives way, and his pants slide down his beautiful legs, revealing the full glory of his nakedness to you.  His cock bobs in front of you and your mouth waters at the site.  You shift, squeezing your legs together at the ache building at your center.

His glorious length, hard… for you.  It boggles your mind.

“It’s so sexy, you looking at me like that,” Javi growls.  “I can’t wait to fuck you with this cock.”  He strokes himself in front of you.  He’s so thick it sends shivers up your spine.

You look up at him and lick your lips.  “Can I taste you, Javi?” The boldness of the request surprises you even as the words escape your mouth.  You’ve become brave so quickly in the presence of Javi’s obvious desire.

“Absolutamente.  Whatever you want.  I am here for you.”  He smiles down at you as he stands in front of you next to the bed.

You take him in your hand and stroke lightly from root to tip, then bend over to retrace your path with your tongue.  Javi’s approval rumbles in his chest as you lick and taste your way along him, ending with a swirl of your tongue over the head of his gorgeous cock.  Grasping him firmly in one hand you draw him between your lips.

Javi caresses your neck and cheek as you pump him into your mouth.  You close your eyes and focus on remembering the salty taste of his skin on your tongue.  You never want to forget.

You lose yourself in the rhythmic action, stroking him with your hand in time with your mouth until your jaw aches.  You pull back to catch your breath only to have his mouth on yours again.

“Your turn, bonita,” he practically growls into your mouth.  “I need to taste you. Por favor. Lo necesito.”

You remove your clothes with his help. You want to look down, away from his face, so you don’t see his reaction to you, but you force yourself to meet his gaze.  What you see looking back at you is pure lust and desire.

Goosebumps rise over your skin at the intensity of it, your nipples pebble and your pussy throbs.

“So soft,” he whispers reverently, cupping your breasts.  He squeezes and moans before taking your nipple in his mouth.  He presses you back, so you’re laying on the bed.  Out of habit, your arms move to cover your body, to somehow make yourself smaller.

“Don’t hide from me, bonita.”  Javi gently takes your wrists and pins your hands out to the side.  “Let me see you. You are so beautiful. Quiero verte.”

Sincerity shines from his kind eyes.  You take deep breaths and relax.  You want to trust him.

He kisses your lips then travels down your neck, sucking at your pulse point and making you gasp.  He gathers your breasts in his large hands and nuzzles into them before taking each peak in his mouth.  He travels across your belly, licking and nibbling at your roundness, before grasping your thighs in his hands and licking a broad swipe up your slit.

You moan as his warm mouth envelopes your cunt and his tongue nudges at your sensitive bud.  “Delicioso,” he groans between licks.  He slips a finger inside you, and you instinctively roll your hips into him.

Him stroking you inside and out is divine, and you try to sink into the sensations and just enjoy, but a thought keeps worming its way back in.  Your mind won’t let it go, so you clear your throat, “Um Javi? I need to tell you something.”

“What is it, sweetheart? Are you ok?  Do you not like it?” he kisses the inside of your thigh, looking worried.

“No no, it feels so good, don’t stop.  I just…  I… fuck…” you lose focus, distracted as he resumes dragging his fingers in and out of your pussy, circling your clit with his thumb.

“I have read your papers, have you changed your mind about something?”

“No, it’s not that.  It’s just… I’ve never… come with a partner.”

“Hmm,” he murmurs into your skin, continuing to stroke you, “Do you come when you watch me?”

“Every time,” you moan as his fingers find a spot deep inside that makes your arch off the bed.

“Then we will see.  It is ok if you do not.”

“I want to.  With you.”  You do, so so badly.

It’s something you’ve thought about a lot.  It could be a matter of skill, but you can get yourself off alone just never with a partner.  You have a suspicion that how you feel about your body might be the reason.  None of your partners have ever said anything to make you feel badly, but you haven’t exactly let them appreciate you either, assuming that they wouldn’t.

You cover yourself, turn off the lights, only partially undress, in the hopes that a partner won’t notice what you look like.  As if they haven’t been looking at you in all the moments leading to the bedroom.

But Javi didn’t let you do that.  In this bright room, you bared yourself to him and he said you were deliciosa.  

“You have my word, I will try very hard,” he places his free hand over his heart, sealing his promise with a nod, making you giggle. “And we have things to help, if you need them.  It is ok. I will take care of you.”

“Thank you, Javi, oh…” you cut yourself off with a moan as Javi dives back into your cunt, sucking your clit into his mouth and making your hips jerk.

You decide to believe him and work to clear your mind.  Your eyes drift close as you focus on the pleasure he is pulling out of you.  His warm tongue strokes wide and firm, circling your clit in determined strokes.  You let your body respond how it wants.  Your hips rock into him with each stroke of his tongue, seeking that perfect pressure.  It feels amazing.

But you don’t come.

Before you can get frustrated, Javi kisses his way back up to your tits and gathers them in his palms.  “Look at you in my hands,” he moans, mouthing at your soft flesh, swirling his tongue around each nipple.  You take the opportunity to run your fingers through his silky hair, twirling one curl and then another.

He groans in appreciation when you tug slightly.  The sound goes straight to your core.

He looks up at you with a wicked grin. “Roll over, bonita.”

He rolls you on to your stomach, kneeling across your outstretched legs.  He gently smacks your ass cheek, sending ripples through your body. You gasp and your pussy clenches around nothing. 

“Yesssss,” he hisses and he smacks you again.  “Look how you bounce for me.”

He takes handfuls of your ass cheeks and kneads and squeezes them together.  Suddenly you feel his cock slide through the cleft of your ass.  You try to twist to see him but can only get glimpses of him staring down at you, slack jawed and wrecked.

Your body is making him look like that.  It makes you feel powerful, and you wish you could watch him enjoy you.  For the first time, you regret not allowing the cameras.  

“Fuuuck,” Javi growls, sliding his cock between your ass cheeks.  You whimper and whine pinned underneath him.  “I could come like this, bonita, you feel so good.”  He lets your ass cheeks fall apart and smacks them again before gathering you back up around his cock.  “So juicy and plump.  Fucking amazing.”

You’re drenched with arousal and unable to relieve any of the pressure.

“Fuck me, Javi, please,” you beg.

“Sí, bonita, I will fuck you,” he growls.

Javi scoots back and rolls you over then wedges himself between your legs.

Taking his cock in hand he glides himself through your slippery folds, nudging at your clit with each stroke.  You whimper as he teases you until he notches himself at your entrance.

He eases himself into your channel.  He’s a lot to take and works his way in gently, watching your face for signs of discomfort.

You let out a guttural moan as he bottoms out in your cunt. “So good Javi, you’re so big.  Fuck, I’m so full.”  The stretch of him is glorious.

He pistons his hips slowly at first as you both savor the drag of him through your walls.  Gradually he speeds up until he’s slamming his hips into you.

Every thrust reverberates through your body.  Your breasts and tummy wobble, but you don’t try to stop them.

“Look how you bounce when I fuck you,” Javi groans, continuing his relentless pace, “ it’s so sexy.”  His fingers dig into your thighs as he presses you open.

“Yes Javi, more… yes… please.” You beg nonsensically as your orgasm begins to sparkle at the edges of your awareness.

“You need to be filled up, don’t you bonita?  You need to be stretched around this cock.  That’s it.  Fuck. You feel so good.”  He moves a hand in between your bodies to circle your clit and you cry out.

“I think I’m close, Javi,” you whine.  He circles your clit faster continuing to drag his thick cock in and out of you.

“Let go, bonita.  Let me see it.”

You tip over the edge, an edge you have never found with a partner before, but you’ve never felt so desired with a partner before and so free in your body.  Javi’s skill with his cock and mouth and fingers is unparalleled for sure, but what does it is the look in his eyes and his filthy words when he fucks you.

He has made it so clear that his arousal is not despite your body, but because of it.  And he made you believe it too.

“Bonita?”

“Mmmm?” you mumble as you come back into your body, the aftershocks of your orgasm spacing farther and farther apart.

Javi is next to you, holding the back of your hand up to his lips as he peppers it with kisses.

“I have a question.”

“What is it?” you crack one eye open.

“Can I go get Erin to set up some cameras? For the next one?” he asks, eyes wide and hopeful.

You bite your lip as a shy smile spreads across your face.  “Yeah, ok.”

“Deliciosa.” He smiles in return before bounding out of the bed towards the door, leaving you giggling on the bed.

You stretch out while you wait for him to return, feeling more at home in your body than you have in a long time. You wiggle your fingers and toes and smile to yourself. The next one is going to be fun.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - 

Translations: Deliciosa/o/son deliciosos – delicious, they are delicious Bonita – beautiful Que linda – how beautiful/pretty Te deseo – I desire you Por supuesto – of course Bueno – good Gracias – thank you Absolutamente – absolutely Lo necesito – I need it Quero verta – I want to see you

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#the sweepstakes #javi gutierrez #javi g #javi gutierrez x reader #fav g x reader #pedro pascal characters #pedro pascal

[bfpnola]

Abolition For Beginners (2023 Edition)

In honor of Tyre Nichols and all others we have lost to policing and imprisonment. In honor of Black History Month. In honor of Better Future Program's mission to educate and serve marginalized youth globally... Let's break down abolition, again. (As usual on Tumblr, tap for better quality.)

Better Future Program's Linktr.ee | Donate | Liberation Library | Open Leadership Positions | Staff Application | Discord Server

Image description below. Written by @reaux07. Proofread by the volunteers and supporters of @bfpnola.

Image Description:

[ID: All of the following slides use a wrinkled, black fabric as their background with black text (bolded red added for emphasis) on top of white boxes with rounded corners. “@bfpnola” is written in the top right corner and the sources for the slide are in the bottom left corner. 

Title Slide (No. 1):

Written in red text, “UPDATED FROM 2021 EDITION.” The outlines of the word “ABOLITION” is written line by line 8 times in light grey with the year “2023” written on top in bold, white lettering. Below, written in red within a white bubble and red arrow, it reads “FOR BEGINNERS*.” Across from the bubble, “@BFPNOLA” is in red. Below, in red again, the asterisk mentioned before leads to the following note: “This post is heavily text-based so if you do not learn best by reading, feel free to utilize our Abolition Study Guide in our bio under "Social Justice Resources" instead!” Lastly, white stars and outlines of grey circles can be seen in each corner of the slide.

Slide No. 2 reads:

Abolition is an anti-capitalist, intersectional framework that aims to not only destroy the cages created by various “industrial complexes,” but to create inclusive, effective alternatives for addressing harm. As defined by Dr. Jennie Wang-Hall, an “industrial complex (IC) is a system that creates profit through embedding into social inequities and providing an ineffective product that keeps consumers under-resourced and returning for more.”

The most common examples of such systems? Prison and policing, psychiatry, foster care/family policing, the military, and even the Family (as an institution, not kinship altogether).

Despite common misconceptions, abolition is not just a negation of what currently exists, but an active evolution of what community-based support can and has looked like. Abolition is about the radical working-class imagination, about Black and Indigenous imagination.

If individualistic, reactive, punishment-based strategies are maintained, true accountability and rehabilitation will never exist. Instead, we can choose to be proactive, analyze the circumstances that perpetuate violence, and address harm at the root! Of course, no one is saying that harm will completely cease to exist, but to paraphrase butch anarchist Lee Shevek, wouldn’t it be a profound improvement to expand our capacity to respond to harm and challenge our abusers, rather than being restricted to system-granted authority? Especially when such systems deliberately ignore the suffering of marginalized communities (e.g. people of color, queer and trans folks, women and femmes, Mad and disabled folks, and so on) to begin with?

Sources: @Dr.JennieWH, @ButchAnarchy, Stella Akua Mensah, Erin Miles Cloud, @WokeScientist

Slide No. 3 reads:

Before we continue any further, let’s destroy the myth that cops actually stop violence. First off, we can’t depend on crime stats at face value because this begs the question of who exactly gets to define what counts as a “crime” and why (e.g. drug possession and sleeping in public vs. tax evasion of the wealthy and wage theft). Continuing, crime rates often only reflect violations that have actually been reported, chosen to be shown, and deemed out of line. By this logic, crime rates are simply reflections of cops’ perceptions, not of the material and emotional realities of the proletariat (i.e. the working-class).

As for perpetuating violence, “US law enforcement killed at least 1,183 people in 2022, making it the deadliest year on record for police violence.” (And those are just the deaths that were reported. In our home state of Louisiana, turns out the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, as of January 12, 2023, has been unlawfully destroying records of officer misconduct for at least 10 years.) Many (69%) of these murders were cases in which no offense was alleged, were mental health or welfare checks, or involved traffic violations and other nonviolent offenses.

This is, of course, without even touching on the involuntary servitude (i.e. enslavement) and maltreatment ongoing in American prisons. How many more deaths must occur before the general public says enough is enough? Or is this acceptable since these are working-class, disabled, Mad, non-white, queer, and trans lives being lost?

Sources: @InterruptCrim, The Guardian, Mapping Police Violence, @VeriteNewsNola

Slide No. 4 reads:

So we agree police are harmful. Why abolition instead of reform? Historically, reforms have either provided further funding to the prison, foster care, and psychiatric industrial complexes and/or just reinforced harmful ideologies surrounding policing as a whole. And trust us, these systems already have more than enough money. In the fiscal year of 2021, at least $277,153,670,501 were spent on federal law enforcement and prisons as well as on police and prisons by state and local governments. Can you even conceptualize a number that large? We could end all American medical debt with that much money. We could even provide clean water and waste disposal to everyone on Earth!

Continuing, reforms like body cameras are pitched as making officers more accountable, that if “done right” policing will actually keep people safe, and that those who do not use excessive force are suddenly no longer guilty of perpetuating centuries worth of systemic oppression. In reality, body cameras require further funding and increase surveillance!

Similarly, civilian oversight boards and the push to “jail killer cops” reinforce the belief that cases of murder, assault, falsifying information, and so on are exceptional occurrences rather than intrinsic to the very nature of policing itself. This is where the phrase “All Cops Are Bastards” comes into play, stating that while the individual character of some officers may be morally permissible, all cops are part of a “bastardized,” or corrupt, system.

Sources: Security Policy Reform Institute, Matt Korostoff, @CriticalResistance 

Slide No. 5 reads: 

Even laws don’t prevent police violence, e.g. the murder of Eric Garner despite the NYPD passing a policy against chokeholds, or the murder of Daunte Wright despite the passing of the George Floyd Law Enforcement Trust and Integrity Act and a separate Justice in Policing Act of 2020.

Alternatively, we can advocate against the expansion of policing “responsibilities,” i.e. not allowing officers to address Mad individuals in vulnerable states, the housing crisis, or people who use drugs (PWUD). We can reroute funding into non-coercive, peer-led initiatives for harm reduction, de-escalation, first aid, and self-defense. And maybe most importantly, we can reaffirm that EXTENSIVE power can, in fact, be found amongst everyday folks like you and me!

Abolition is not a one-and-done sort of deal but rather a progression of steps toward an infinite future of improvements. The act of building parallel infrastructures and modes of governance while the previous ones still exist is known as dual power. Abolition must begin as dual power. We can start today!

And in building such, these steps cannot: legitimize or expand oppressive systems we aim to dismantle, create divisions between “deserving” and “underserving” people, preserve existing power relations, or utilize exclusionary, one-size-fits-all, standardized treatments.

Sources: @ProjectLets, @HarmReductionCoalition, CrimethInc., Survived & Punished NY

Slide No. 6 reads:

One of the main questions brought up, though, is what abolitionists plan to do in the case of homicide, rape, domestic violence, and other harms. While this is entirely valid, this question seems to imply that 1) police are already effectively responding to such harms rather than perpetuating and/or ignoring them and 2) that there is one collective abolitionist response.

For one, the majority of sexual assault, for example, goes unreported and less than 0.5% of perpetrators are incarcerated. (And this assumes that through the reporting process and incarceration, survivors will somehow find healing, perpetrators will find understanding, and that sexual assault does not continue within prisons.) Meanwhile, let’s use our hometown as one example of many, a complaint of sexual violence is filed against a New Orleans Police Department officer every 10 days and nearly 1 in 5 NOPD officers have been reported for sexual and/or intimate partner violence. 

And secondly, we have a plethora of organizations like Critical Resistance and cultures like that of the Diné (Navajo) to learn from and build upon. We don’t have to be stuck within this false dilemma fallacy, that there is only policing or total chaos. Don’t you see that that is the state’s way of constricting communal power?

Sources: @RAINN, @CopWatchNola, @WokeScientist

Slide No. 7 reads:

To expand this conversation, abolition heavily aligns with the political ideal of “anarchism.” Anarchism supports the absence of government and absolute freedom of the individual. And despite its negative connotations, anarchy also reflects an evolution of community-based care rather than just a deconstruction of what currently exists.

A simplified version of its 6 agreed-upon principles are:

Autonomy and Horizontality: define yourself on your own terms, we stand on an equal footing

Mutual Aid: bonds of solidarity form a stronger social glue than fear, support your community

Voluntary Association: associate or don't associate with whomever you wish

Direct Action: accomplish goals directly rather than depending on representatives or authorities

Revolution: overthrow those in power who enforce coercive hierarchies (ex. white supremacy)

Self-Liberation: you must be at the forefront of your own liberation, freedom must be taken

While being an abolitionist does not require alignment with anarchism, it is worth considering how the state plays such an enduring role in various social harms. Concurrently, whenever you treat other living beings with consideration and respect, come to reasonable compromise rather than coercion, and decide to share or delegate tasks, you are already living by anarchist principles.

Sources: Peter Gelderloos, David Graeber

Slide No. 8 reads:

So, how can you get involved? How do we continue the efforts already being made by activists worldwide? After such an overload of information and even more to learn, we understand how political frameworks like abolition can seem daunting, but they don't have to be! Here are some general next steps:

Read the "8toAbolition" steps.

Look into "podmapping" so you know whom to run to when you have been harmed or perpetuate harm.

See if there are any pre-existing mutual aid networks in your community, and if not, start one with your neighbors or peers!

Begin to research issues affecting communities other than your own. Abolition is intrinsically tied to all of us as we are all surveilled. For example, do you understand how prison and policing further ableism, transphobia, or the sex trade? What about policing internationally (see our allies in: the Kingdom of Hawai'i, Palestine, Artsakh, Kashmir...)?

Research the differences between capitalism, socialism, and communism. Abolition and anti-capitalism are foundational to one another as well.

Look into the other industrial complexes we named in the beginning (psychiatry, foster care, the military, the Family...).

Volunteer (remotely or in-person) with organizations like Better Future Program (@bfpnola) to both educate yourself and directly serve your community!

And if you're looking for further reading/listening, BFP offers over 3,000 FREE social justice, mental health, and academic resources in our Linktr.ee, including study guides for beginners. While we can't promise that the struggle for liberation will always be easy, BFP will always do its best to support you in whatever way we know how.

End ID.]

#reaux speaks #signal boost #tyre nichols #keenan anderson #cop city #abolition #abolish the police #defund the police #anti capitalism #intersectional feminism #palestine #black lives matter #blm #bipoc #disability justice #queer #trans #mass incarceration #study guide #mad liberation #psychiatry #family #military industrial complex #foster care #ACAB #tw rape mention #indigenous #anarchism #pinned post #BLACK HISTORY MONTH

[gmwsuperfan5467890]

Paper Girls

I read the comic in one day and binged the show in two days and let me just say, I am obsessed. I love all the wonderful, complex characters, the beautiful artwork, the engaging plot and of course, the wonderfully built-up main sapphic relationship. Because I read the comics before watching the show, I think I was a bit too critical of the show at first (especially because there were so many changes) but after the first two episodes, I began to fall in love with the show as well. There were some changes the show made that I loved and some that I did not like so much.

Changes I loved:

1)The development of Dylan and Alice. In the comics, he is referenced quite a bit and the audience can infer that he is a douchebag but other than that and the one interaction with Mac where he calls her a “butch” ,we don’t get much from him. But in the show, we see that he is a changed man, who has acknowledged how the trauma of the abusive home he grew up in has shaped him and how he in turn added to his sister’s trauma. He has grown and has apologized for his mistakes and loves and misses his sister. In fact, his sister’s death is what inspires him to change his life for the better and break the cycle of generational trauma. He treats both his kids and little sister so gently, the complete opposite of his dad. It was so heartbreaking when Mac had to leave her brother and the better life he could have provided for her behind.

Alice’s portrayal in the comics is heartbreaking. She doesn’t seem to care for Mac as much as Mac cares for her and is an absent parent. While the show seems to keep the same tune at first, we later find out Alice stepped up and took care of Mac and Dylan after Mac was diagnosed. Her love for her stepdaughter is abundantly clear, shown by how brings flowers to Mac’s grave on her birthday and her absolutely grief-stricken and hopeful expression upon catching a glimpse of her step-daughter in the graveyard. I absolutely love that Mac got to see that there were people who loved and cared about her (although they showed it too late). Overall, it was a beautiful and poignant plot line.

2) Erin’s martyr tendacies due to her being parentified as a child cause her to self-destruct. Erin was forced to take a lot of responsibility as a child because if her father’s death and because her mother couldn’t speak English. She made taking care of people her whole personality and pushed her own wants and needs to the side. When her sister and mother became more independent, Erin felt hollow and lost because she had no dreams and aspirations of her own, thus when her mother became sick, Erin subconsciously jumped at the chance to play the martyr/caretaker role again, feeling like she should have to handle this on her own and not realizing that her sister would also want to take care of their mother. This was definitely a more nuanced approach to Erin’s character and I loved the complexity that was added to Erin and Missy’s relationship, whereas in the comics Erin’s jealousy of Missy’s perfect life was only slightly hinted at.

3) I also loved Erin being angry at her future self and that being delved into a bit more.

4) I loved Erin and Mac’s friendship. We didn’t get enough one-on-one scenes of them in the comics.

5) I loved that they made Mac a cancer, partly because it’s also my zodiac sign and partly because it’s such a dark joke.

Changes I didn’t love:

1) 1999 Tiff wasn’t goth enough. And her bf wasn’t goth either. I also disliked that they used the fact that Tiff was adopted as a shocking secret. I preferred to have her know that she was adopted from the start like in the comics. The comics hinted that she had some abandonment trauma with her bio mum, I wish that was explored instead. I just feel like the whole secretly adopted plot twist is cliche and also implies that being adopted is a shameful thing and that’s why parents don’t tell their children that they’re adopted, which is a horrible thing to imply.

2) I’m sad that they cut out the plot-line of the girls saving Wali and Japho. I get why they cut it but I remember finding out that Japho was the Grand Father after they saved him and I was gobsmacked and flabbergasted, it was such a good plot twist.

3) I’m sad that they got rid of homophobic Mac. Once again, I get why they did it, I can’t imagine a child saying slurs would be greenlit on any tv show and the scenes where she’s homophobic to KJ are downright painful but it was so refreshing how they made they more stereotypical butch character have internalized homophobia and it paid off in the end when Mac accepted that she was gay and she wasn’t homophobic anymore.

4) Larry was there. I did not really care about Larry, although I got super pissed when he yelled at Tiffany twice. I was also really worried that he was going to be adult Erin’s love interest (which would have been weird and horrifying), luckily their fake dating scene hilariously showed that they are definitely not going to date. I’ve also noticed that the best scenes are when the paper girls are alone (or with their future selves) Larry doesn’t add anything to the story.

I adored the show and I actually loved that they made such huge changes. It keeps the suspense alive. There better be a season 2!

#paper girls #mac coyle #kj brandman #erin tieng #tiffany quilkin

[multi-muse-transect]

Resident Evil Revised TV Series Idea.

The show should be told American Horror Story like meaning its gonna be anthology-ish based with stories bouncing back with returning characters.

Season 1’s cast is Jessica Henwick as Jill Valentine, Kellan Lutz or Sebastian Stan as Chris Redfield, Antony Starr as Albert Wesker, David Harbour as Barry Burton, Charlie Hunam as Richard Aiken, Jack Quad as Brad Vickers and Erin Moriarty as Rebecca Chambers.

Season 1 is an adaptation of RE1 taking creative liberties from the remake and original. The one difference is that Brad’s helicopter is hit by crows leading him to nearly crash and fly away, this results in a subplot of Brad returning to HQ and finds dirt on Irons before returning.

Season 2 has a different set of characters and a bigger budget with Hailee Steinfeld as Claire Redfield, Mason Dye as Leon S. Kennedy, Sadie Sink as Sherry Birkin, Elizabeth Olsen or Laurie Holden as Annette Birkin, Karen Fukuhara as Ada Wong, Temura Morrison as HUNK and Jason Issacs or Paul Bethany as William Birkin. Takes influence from the RE2 Remake.

Season 3 is an adaptation of RE3 Nemesis mixed with the remake. Jill is the same, Oscar Isaac plays Carlos Oliveira, Jonathan Adams as Tyrell Patrick, Tom Wlaschiha as Mikhail, and Michael Fassbender as Nicholai Zinoviev.

Season 4 adapts a story from the Umbrella Chronicles which is the fall of Umbrella and also Code Veronica Jamie Campbell as Alfred Ashford and Natalie Dormer as Alexia Ashford. Also Tye Simpkins as Steve Burnside.

Season 5 adapts the story of Leon and Krauser (John Cena or Frank Grillo) with Jenny Ortega as Manuela Hidalgo.

Season 6 is an adaptation of Resident Evil 4 with Mason Dye reprising his role as Leon and Cena or Grillo as Krauser alongside Fukuhara as Ada while newcomers Ashley Graham and Luis Sera are played by Natalia Dyer and Diego Luna with Javier Bardem as Saddler. A couple of unknowns for Mendez and Salazar.

Season 7 adapts Resident Evil Revelations with Jason Momoa as Parker Luciani, Kit Harrington as Raymond Vester and Alexandra Daddario as Jessica Sherawat.

Season 8 is an adaptation of RE5 but it’s more in line with the original draft albeit the mind controlled Jill part is there. Danai Guerera is Sheva Alomar, Daniel Kaluuya as Josh Stone, Jesse Plemons as Richardo Irving and Monica Belucci as Excella Gionne.

Season 9 adapts Resident Evil 6 with most of the cast returning and a better written Jake Muller played by Wyatt Russell and has been reimagined as a BSAA soldier instead of a mercenary who teams up with Sherry Birkin played by Billie Lourde with Liam Hemsworth playing Piers Nivans and Jill tagging along. Also Simmons is changed from instead of being a member of a secret society, he was just trying to cause global bio terror attacks to promote the his own agendas of a better secured world with Carla Radames being a rogue operative and an ally of Ada’s. Temura Morrison returns as HUNK and is Ada’s partner.

Season 10 is Resident Evil Revelations 2 with Emily VanCamp as Alex Wesker with Harbour reprising his role as Barry Burton, Millie Bobby Brown as Moira Burton, and an unknown actress for Natalia. Steinfeld returns as Claire too.

Season 11 adapted Resident Evil 7 fully with Joe Keery or Chris Hemsworth as Ethan Winters (to make the plot sound more sensical, Ethan is a private investigator and a former RPD cop), Emilia Clarke is Mia Winters, Michael Rooker is Jack Baker, Toni Colette as Marguerite Baker, Rooney Mara as Zoe Baker and Aaron Paul as Lucas Baker with Stan returning as Chris.

Season 12 is an RE8 adaptation with Cate Blanchett or Gwendolie Christie as Lady Dimitrescu (CGI), Eva Greene as Donna Beneviento, Nicholas Cage as Karl Heisenberg, Stellan Skarsgard as Salvatore Moreau, and Emily Blunt as Mother Miranda. Hound Wolf squad consists of Jill, Chris, Barry and Rebecca.

#resident evil #resident evil 2 #resident evil 3 #resident evil 4 #resident evil 5 #resident evil 6 #resident evil 7 #resident evil 8 #leon s kennedy #Claire Redfield #Chris Redfield #jill valentine #Albert Wesker #sherry birkin #ethan winters #alcina dimitrescu #karl heisenberg #salvatore moreau #donna beneviento #mother Miranda #mia winters

[cfcorruptibility]

❝ My past is My business . ❞

        savannah smith  ›› K9 Officer  ››  sophia bush  ››   tw: drug use, alcoholism , death , murder , overdose, relapse, serial killer/rapist , kidnapping

🇦​🇵​🇵​🇱​🇮​🇨​🇦​🇹​🇮​🇴​🇳

―  ✘ ╱ ⟨   –  sophia bush, female, she/her.  ⟩ it seems like savannah bradley has been seen around town, humming unsteady by x ambassadors under their breath. apparently they are a 39 year old human. townsfolk whisper about them being dauntless and adventurous, but also blunt and resentful. the police officer has been in town for 4 years, and gives off the vibes of a rebellious past scared straight, lonely nights, and k-9 loaded police cruisers. ( penned by sushi, 27, she/her, est. ) (charlie swan wc)

🇧​🇦​🇸​🇮​🇨​🇸  

full name : savannah nova smith

nicknames : sav, savvy, nova

age : 39

date/place of birth : april 5th in Queens, NY

occupation : K9 officer

affiliation : n/a

language(s) spoken : english  ,  spanish , french, latin

hair color : brunette

eye color : green

notable scars : couple of scars scattering here and there from bullet and knife wounds from work

PERSONALITY ​

positive : dauntless , resilient , adventurous , persuasive , independent , outgoing

negative : impulsive , truculent , cantankerous , aggressive

moral alignment : chaotic good .

deadly sin : wrath

hogwart house : slytherdor

element : earth

emotional stability : for now stable but wasn’t always

alcohol use : regularly

prone to violence? : very

habits : tbd

drives / motivations : her kids

aesthetic : brooke davis from one tree hill ; erin lindsay from chicago pd ; mace browne from the 355 ; jennifer “jj” Jureau from criminal minds ; penelope garcia from criminal minds ; natasha romanoff from marvel cinematic universe ; 

🇫​🇦​🇲​🇮​🇱​🇾​​

mother : unnamed hartfield ( bio mother ) †  , unnamed smith (adoptive mother)

father : unnamed smith ( father )

sibling(s) : unnamed ( older half brother ) , unnamed ( older half brother )

spouse : noah alexander dawson sr ( husband )  †

child(ren) : emma rose dawson ( 13-year-old daughter ) , aspen lily dawson ( 13-year-old daughter ) , isla grace dawson ( 10-year-old daughter ) , noah alexander dawson jr ( 8-year-old son )

other family : tbd

🇧​🇮​🇴  

―  Birth : Born in Queens, NY

―  Age 2 : Mother dies of overdose; goes to live with bio dad and his family

―  Age 4 : Adopted by bio dads wife

―  Age 14 : starts high school ; joins volleyball team and softball team ; works part-time at local cafe

―  Age 15 : starts kickboxing and martial arts in spare time ; starts dating

―  Age 16 : boyfriend cheats on her with best friend ; begins to spiral ; meets guy ( he was twenty five ) at party and is introduced to alcohol and drugs ; rebellious stage begins

―  Age 17 : arrested at party for drug use and under-age drinking ; current nypd sergeant takes pity on her ; gives her slap on the wrist ; enters rehab for 6 months

―  Age 18-23 : graduates high school and joins the police academy ; rises quickly in rank ; joins homicide team with sergeant that took pity on her at 17 ; grows close to sergeant like a second dad ; dating partner/sergeant’s son, noah dawson ; becomes best friends with the only other female cop on homicide team ; loses best friend in the line of work when she’s shot through a door with a shotgun by perp ; toxic ex boyfriend from when she was 16 shows up as suspect holds her and his baby mama hostage, ends up shooting him in self-defense, he doesn’t survive ; noah proposes on her 23rd birthday and  she accepts 

―  Age 24 : her and noah go to bar that is mostly full of off-duty cops and detectives after work to destress over some drinks when bar gets shot up ; takes bullet to abdomen, survives surgery ad returns to work a month later ; married three months after shooting and honeymoon in the maldives ; 

― Age 25 : suffers head injury chasing after suspect, spends a week in the hospital before returning to work ; meets 21-year-old girl with a drug addiction much like herself when she was younger and saves her, puts her through rehab and gets her a job helping the homicide team in house as she goes to school for criminology, the two become best friends and practically inseparable ; serial killer/rapist becomes obsessed with her and begins to stalk her ; best friend is kidnapped by the serial killer/rapist obsessed with her and is killed by him ; homicide team is called and savannah identifies the body as her best friend ; begins to spiral ; makes risky moves and puts herself in the way of harm without second though ; is held at gun point by a childhood friend, yells for him to shoot her what’s one more person ; relapses ; is ambushed by fellow cops who broke into her and noah’s home ; quits job ; few months pass discovers she’s pregnant and returns to rehab, gets clean ; finds out she’s pregnant with twins in rehab

― Age 26 : gives birth to twins ( emma and aspen ) at 30 weeks ; gets job back with homicide team ; gets kidnapped 6 months after giving birth to daughters, more psychological trauma and games from serial killer/rapist obsessed with her, shoots and kills him 

― Age 29 : Pregnant again, gives birth to daughter, isla dawson

― Age 30 : Pregnant once more, gives birth to son, noah dawson jr

― Age 31 :  husband is linked to the murder of a woman and is later found in the trunk of his car shot in the head, noah sr doesn’t survive, leaves savannah widowed and single mother of four young children under the age of 5 ; father-in-law/sergeant retires.

― Age 35 : Father-in-law passes away and Savannah moves herself and her kids to Forks.

🇭​🇪​🇦​🇩​🇨​🇦​🇳​🇴​🇳​  

―  has a cat named sapphire and a german shepherd named alpha

― attends therapy twice a week 

― has a masters in criminology and is self-taught in hacking and coding

― working on her phd in psychology

― suffers from ptsd and severe night terrors

― has been clean for 13 years

― is terrified of returning to the dating scene especially being she’s the single mother of four children

#bitten.intro

[virgosjukebox]

I still wanted to do this post so I’m redoing it.

Reblog/Repost with 6 songs that help you write your muse(s)

1. Chandelier—Sia/Moulin Rouge! The Musical

One, two, three, one, two, three drink/ Throw 'em back until I lose count/ Keep my glass full until morning light/ 'Cause I'm just holding on for tonight

2. Firework—Katy Perry/Moulin Rouge! The Musical

You don’t have to feel like a waste of space/ You’re an original, cannot be replaced

3. As Long as You’re Mine—From Wicked

And just for this moment/ As long as you’re mine/ I’ve lost all resistance/ And crossed some border line/ And if it turns out/ It’s over too fast/ I’ll make every last moment last/ As long as you’re mine

4. Heat Waves—Glass Animals

Sometimes, all I think about is you/ Late nights in the middle of June/ Heat waves been faking me out/ Can’t make you happier now

5. All Up in Your Mind—Beyonce

My eyes, yeah, I really like your smile/ It stops the time, yeah, I think I’ll stay here for a while/ You give me that real good feeling that I need/ Be careful what you ask for ‘cause I just might comply

6. Headlines—Drake 

I might be too strung out on compliments/ Overdosed on confidence/ Started not to give a fuck and stopped fearing the consequence

Reblog/Repost with 6 Quotes that Help you Write your Muse(s)

I forgot how good Erin's monologues were in the last ep which is why there is a bonus quote.

Trigger Warnings for Quotes: Religious ties, Interpretation of Death

1. Shakespeare—As You Like It: Rosalind Act 3, Scene 2—Also featured in my bio

"Do you not know I am a woman? When I think I must speak."

2. Shakespeare—As You Like It: Orlando Act 5, Scene 3

“Oh, how bitter a thing it is to look into happiness through another man’s eyes!”

3. Edgar Allan Poe—A Dream Within A Dream

“All that we see or seem is but a dream within a dream.”

4. From Ludwig Bemelmans’ Madeline

“In an old house in Paris that was covered with vines lived twelve little girls in two straight lines.”

5. From Mike Flanagan’s Midnight Mass—Father Paul

“That is what it means to have Faith. That in the darkness, in the worst of it, in the absence of Light and Hope, we sing.”

6. Also from Mike Flanagan’s Midnight Mass—Erin Greene

“The electrons of my body mingle and dance with the electrons of the ground below me and the air. I am no longer breathing. And I remember there is no point where any of that ends and I begin. I remember I am energy. Not memory. Not self. My name, my personality, my choices, all came after me. I was before them, and I will be after, and everything else is pictures, picking up along the way. Fleeting little dreamless printed on the tissue of my dying brain. And I am the lightning that jumps between. I am the energy firing the neurons, and I’m returning. Just by remembering, I’m returning home.”

7. Bonus also from Mike Flanagan’s Midnight Mass—Erin Greene

“More galaxies in the universe than grains of sand on the beach. And that’s what we’re talking about when we say God. The one. The cosmos, and its infinite dreams. We are the cosmos dreaming of itself. It’s simply a dream that I think is my life, every time. But I’ll forget this. I always do. I always forget my dreams. But now, in this split-second, in the moment I remember, the instant I remember, I comprehend everything at once. There is no time. There is no death. Life is a dream. It’s a wish. Made again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and on into eternity. And I am all of it. I am everything. I am all. I am that I am.”

#this took a lot longer for me to format than I wanted #seph💞 #out of character.

[nwbeerguide]

Stone Brewing Company & Sanuk® collaborate to release a line of limited-edition capsule footwear.

Press Release

images courtesy Stone Brewing Company

GOLETA, Calif., Mar. 21, 2023 – Sanuk®, a division of Deckers Brands (NYSE: DECK), has teamed up with powerhouse San Diego-based craft brewery Stone Brewing for a limited-edition capsule collection. The fresh, earth conscious collaboration celebrates the Southern California ‘Live Buena’ lifestyle, where Stone Buenaveza Salt & Lime Lager and Sanuk sandals meet the Pacific sands.

 Fresh out of the tap, this Sanuk x Stone Brewing collection features a six pack of classic styles with custom artwork, vibrant Stone Buenaveza-inspired colors and tastefully co-branded moments. This premium lineup of men’s and women’s summer styles are made with natural materials like hemp, recycled plastic and rubber, along with bio-based materials like BLOOM™ foam.

Sanuk Sling ST x Stone women’s sandal is decked out in colorful, custom Stone Buenaveza graphics with waves, palms, cacti, gargoyles and lotus flowers printed on the iconic stretch knit sling upper strap crafted with UNIFI REPREVE® Our Ocean™ fibers sourced from bottles at high risk of entering the ocean, a high rebound footbed with killer arch support and a recycled sponge rubber outsole.

Sanuk Ashland ST x Stone is a water-friendly women’s flip flop featuring a tonal Sanuk x Stone Brewing printed footbed and a pop of color pink LYCRA® upper strap, with a high rebound footbed made with BLOOM™ x Soft Top Foam and a recycled sponge rubber outsole.

Sanuk You Got My Brew ST x Stone men’s and women’s Sidewalk Surfer® offers a classic transitional style for day to night comfort, including a 100% hemp upper, contoured leather lined footbed featuring BLOOM™ x Soft Top Foam with custom co-branded geometric graphics.

Sanuk Ziggy ST x Stone water-friendly men’s sandals will take you comfortably from the beach to the brewery and beyond, decked out with bold accents and a tonal Stone Buenaveza printed footbed. These sleek sandals feature a synthetic leather upper strap and a super supportive footbed made from BLOOM™ x Soft Top Foam.

Sanuk Bixby x Stone men's sandal features a new water-friendly design so you can slide right out of the water and into these with a fresh beer in hand. Now with an ultra-soft printed footbed on high rebound BLOOM™ x Soft Top Foam midsoles and an adjustable hook and loop closure for the perfect fit and radical comfort.

 “As two brands with synergistic missions and San Diego roots beginning in the 90s, teaming up with the good humans at Stone Brewing just made sense,” said Katie Pruitt, Brand Director at Sanuk. “This collection embodies the ethos of both Sanuk and Stone Brewing by delivering innovative, quality goods, with tasteful design details and superior comfort for that beach-day-mindset, no matter where you are.”

“When we released Stone Buenaveza Salt & Lime Lager, we couldn’t wait to bring its ‘Live Buena’ spirit to life beyond the beer itself,” explained Erin Smith, VP of Marketing at Stone Brewing. “Sanuk’s capsule collection embodies that laidback, active SoCal lifestyle and does so with an eco-conscious commitment that speaks to our shared brand values.”

The Sanuk x Stone Brewing capsule collection is now available online at Sanuk.com and in store at all Stone Brewing Tap Rooms and select premium retailers. Retail prices range from $40-65.

For more information about the Sanuk x Stone Brewing collection, visit Sanuk.com/StoneBrewing or follow along on Instagram @sanuk #smilepassiton.

…

ABOUT THE SANUK® BRAND 

Welcome to the world of Sanuk. We’re an unconventional footwear brand on a mission to be the outfitter for the journey to your happy place. In 1997, we were founded with one simple goal: to make people smile...and pass it on. In the world of Sanuk, smiles are always wider…every step of the way to your happy place. For more information, visit sanuk.com or follow @sanuk #smilepassiton.

ABOUT DECKERS BRANDS

Deckers Brands Deckers Brands is a global leader in designing, marketing and distributing innovative footwear, apparel and accessories developed for both everyday casual lifestyle use and high performance activities. The Company’s portfolio of brands includes UGG®, Koolaburra®, HOKA®, Teva® and Sanuk®. Deckers Brands products are sold in more than 50 countries and territories through select department and specialty stores, Company-owned and operated retail stores, and select online stores, including Company-owned websites. Deckers Brands has 50 years of history building niche footwear brands into lifestyle market leaders attracting millions of loyal consumers globally. For more information, please visit www.deckers.com.

ABOUT STONE BREWING

Founded in 1996, Stone pioneered the West Coast Style IPA, helping to fuel the modern craft beer revolution and inspire generations of hop fanatics. Today Stone operates breweries in Escondido, CA and Richmond, VA plus seven tap room and bistro locations. Stone offers a wide range of craft beers including its most popular Stone IPA, Stone Delicious IPA and Stone Buenaveza Salt & Lime Lager. The company’s long list of environmental efforts includes a LEED Silver Certification, world-class water reclamation and creative uses of spent grain. Stone has been called the “All-time Top Brewery on Planet Earth” by BeerAdvocate magazine twice. To find Stone beers, visit find.stonebrewing.com. For more information on Stone Brewing visit stonebrewing.com, Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. 

from Northwest Beer Guide - News - The Northwest Beer Guide https://bit.ly/3TDyMQe

#Craft Beer #Beer #News

[notabarista]

“Whatever you’re doing right now may not be significant the next day. So, make sure you don’t stop learning, don’t base your knowledge on something in just the now, because maybe tomorrow it will change.” Mariam Erin Pinza @mariam.erin, the UAE Brewers Cup Champion in 2021 and UAE Cezve Ibrik champion in 2022, who is originally from the Philippines and based in the United Arab Emirates, had a lot to say and share about her experiences and, of course, her love for coffee. “I fell in love with specialty coffee when I went to a coffee shop, and then the barista was full-heartedly talking about one cup with a guest.” This moment took her down a wondrous path that has made her gain recognition, even as an immigrant in the UAE. In her five years living in the Emirates, she has seen significant growth in the specialty coffee industry, mainly due to its consumers. “It’s the people. We’re so connected over a single cup of the crop, that innovations don’t stop. People keep learning about it, and people keep arguing about it as well. But it’s good because, at the end of the argument, there is a conclusion.” Article by Oluwatobifunmi Olaniran Please read the full article with the link in our bio. — Help us raise funds to help coffee people in need *Coffee Wristbands 50% OFF *101 Coffee Stories 50% OFF on Kickstarter Use the link in the bio to get the special offers today. — Want to see Mariam’s story in the book 101 coffee stories? We have featured hundreds of coffee stories on the internet. Now we want to bring their voices to the front line and share their stories directly with coffee lovers in coffee shops, at homes, in bookshops, and everywhere coffee enthusiasts exist. — Want to share your story? Check the link in our bio and DM us. #iamnotabarista #baristaonbike #barista #speicaltycoffee #coffeestories #love #coffeelover #coffeelove #coffeecommunity #colombia #coffeeroaster #coffeefarmer #brewbar #咖啡师 #咖啡 #バリスタ #باريستا #قهوة #コーヒー #café #caffè  #uae (at UAE) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cln6qlyqp-j/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#iamnotabarista #baristaonbike #barista #speicaltycoffee #coffeestories #love #coffeelover #coffeelove #coffeecommunity #colombia #coffeeroaster #coffeefarmer #brewbar #咖啡师 #咖啡 #バリスタ #باريستا #قهوة #コーヒー #café #caffè #uae

[mybookplacenet]

Featured Post: A Match Made in Spell by Erin Lynn

About A Match Made in Spell: What good is a witch with no magic? I’m Lexi Balefire and I wear a lot of hats, but none of them are tall and pointy. I spend half my time making love matches that last forever, and the other half trying to keep my faerie godmothers from turning each other into toads. Or worse. I come from a long line of witches, some of them wicked, but none of that will matter if my magic doesn’t awaken before midnight on my next birthday. If I miss that deadline, I’ll never be a true witch. If my mother and grandmotherhadn’t used their magic to kill each other, one of them might have been able to give me the keys to the mystery and I’d be one step closer to claiming my Fate Weaver heritage. Now, I guess I’ll have to figure it out on my own. Targeted Age Group: Trade Written by: Erin Lynn Buy the ebook: Buy the Book On Amazon Buy the Book On Barnes & Noble/Nook Buy the Book On Apple Books Buy the Book On Kobo Link to Series Author Bio: ReGina Welling and Erin Lynn are a mother-daughter writing. Together, they have penned two series, The Fate Weaver books and the Ponderosa Pines Cozy Mystery series. ReGina is also the author of the Psychic Seasons books and Earthbound series. They live in rural Maine. Follow the author on social media: Learn more about the writer. Visit the Author's Website Facebook Fan Page Instagram Read the full article

[fellowstrangetownappreciator]

Curious and autistic-coded

Hello there! April draws to an end and with that I think it’s high time to hurry up and write this. What does April have to do with anything, you ask? April is the Autism Acceptance Month. So what better month to do this?

Unfortunately I didn’t make it. I failed. It’s already 1. 5. when I’m posting this. But at least I tried to deliver on time.

In this mini essay I’ll present my case about why I think the Curious brothers from TS2 Strangetown display autistic-coded traits and my personal takes on it.

It’s basically your average headcanon post but with a funny top hat!

0: Preface: What do I mean by “autistic-coded”?

When a character is coded as something, it means that they have traits that are associated with the demographics in question to make the consumer knowingly or not link the character with the demographic, although the character's "label” is never explicitly disclosed.

In the nutshell, it means that there are canonical reasons to read the characters as autistic, although you won't find the word "autism" anywhere in the game nor in the developer's commentary.

In this particular case I do believe that the developer may not even be aware of the code, as there is no evidence to suggest otherwise. If there is, I’m not aware of it and I would be happy to learn.

So, let’s start!

1: “The white male who is very good at science”

Unfortunately autistic representation in pop-culture has a long history of being rather straightforward in which traits the characters often have. This stems from the belief that autism is “a boy’s disorder” (that’s why some autism charities to this day use blue in their symbols). Among popular examples of autistic-coded characters are Big Bang Theory’s Sheldon Cooper and Death Note’s L and Near. I’m sure you can think of more but you’ll find that most of them are men and either explicitly white or racially ambiguous white-passing. They also tend to be gifted in tech, logic or other science-y activities.

There’s nothing wrong with that! Nothing wrong with being an autistic with those “stereotypical” characteristics and there is nothing wrong with people being represented. What is wrong is the monotony and afab people/people of color being underrepresented which leads (among other factors) to harder access to diagnosis and resources for those people in real life. But! That’s a topic for a different day. (and not for a simbrl, mind you)

Back to the Curiouses! I just wanted to say that autism in media is traditionally associated with characters whose gender presentation, race and interests align with theirs. Those characteristic thus make a very convenient template for autistic-coding.

2: Inconsistent performance, huge gaps between strengths and weaknesses

Pascal, Vidcund and Lazlo are very skilled Sims by default, extraordinarily even for their age. Pascal has a skill maxed while his younger brothers both near maxing theirs.

But as you can see in Pascal’s default skill panel, apart from Creativity, all his other skills are extremely low, 0 points for Mechanical, Body and Charisma, 1 point for Cooking and Logic and his second best skill, Cleaning, has only 3 points. The same situation can be observed in Vidcund’s and Lazlo’s, except their strong suits are Logic and Cooking respectively.

Huge discrepancies within performance in different cognitive areas is a common trait found in those on the autism spectrum. We’re often talking extremes here and the scale of the difference is the defining factor. Everyone has their strengths and weaknesses, it’s just in neurodivergent people those tend to be unusually noticeable.

I think that skills, simplified as they are, are the closest The Sims has to possibly simulate that because they track the character’s performance and expertise in different areas and allow comparison. In real life, of course, this comparison is not nearly as possible and exact, nor desired, but for all our analysis-loving enthusiasm, here we’re still talking fictional characters.

3: Struggle with social cues

It is widely known that one of autistic traits are difficulties with processing social situations, picking social cues and successfully replicating socially desired behavioral patterns.

But these three are Sims, are they not? They cannot possibly display this trait, since they’re programmed the same way as others.

Yes and no.

It is true that there is no specific in-game feature that would allow Sims to behave with explicit neurodivergency in mind* but with the right combination of traits they can simulate behavior that really hits close to home for neurodivergent players.

*at least not in TS2, TS3 has traits that simulate some possible neurodivergencies but their names tend to be rather... ableist unfortunate and they’re not relevant to this post since they’re not autism related, and even if they were, we’re focusing on TS2 exclusively

Let’s take look at Lazlo here. He is, indeed, a playful soul. He likes to goof around, tell jokes, make others laugh. And since he’s very close to his brother Vidcund, close enough even to Tell Dirty Joke (an interaction that needs quite a high relationship to unlock), he autonomously does just that.

And oh boy, does Vidcund disapprove.

From my personal experience playing them, their relationship usually takes quite a hit from every cheeky joke Lazlo throws Vid’s way. They usually autonomously repair it very quick but it happens often.

But that’s a standard behavior. Vidcund’s very serious, he doesn’t take well to jokes.

No. I mean technically yes, Vid is definitely a grumpy old plant dad but, at least in my game, he tends to accept Lazlo’s jokes. All kinds of them, actually, except for the dirty ones. And Pascal, who technically has even lower Playful points (0 in comparison to Vidcund’s 4), doesn’t seem to mind Lazlo’s poor attempts at grown-up humor.

But! What is it that makes Lazlo try still? What drives him to attempt to make Vidcund laugh with a dirty joke over and over again? (and fail?)

I my interpretation, Lazlo doesn’t do that on purpose, he is just really poor at evaluating “dirtiness” of a given joke and frequently misinterprets Vidcund’s cues. The animation of a dirty joke being rejected even supports that as Vid doesn’t signal his discomfort with any exaggerated easy-to-read facial expression until Lazlo gets to his punchline.

No only that but as I mentioned, the invisible lines between spicy and too vulgar are often hard to thread. I can recall many times I thought I was saying a witty quip on an “adult” topic and was met with awkward silence or someone shushing me because “that’s not how you speak in public”. I can well imagine myself in Lazlo’s shoes.

A situation of social cues being misinterpreted or ignored can be observed also in Vidcund. Programming-wise, those are just his low Niceness and extreme Shyness showing but combined they again paint a picture of a very neurodivergent-looking behavioral pattern.

He often behaves like the concept of politeness or social rules doesn’t exist because the combination of the aforementioned traits makes him come off very blunt (lecturing and shoving telescope-peepers with no warning whatsoever) and distant (having a high chance of rejecting simple small-talk socials).

(That’s Jasmine Rai casting the “Summon Vidcund” spell.)

Yes, I am fully aware that it makes a stronger case for him being an a**hole than autistic but... there’s no reason he can’t be both. Not all autistic people are sweet cinnamon buns, all personalities you can think of can be neurodiverse and, for some their neurodiversity can even amplify their inconsiderate ways, as I believe it is the case with our dear grouch Vidcund.

4. Their bios

“No matter what happens, Pascal believes there is a logical explanation for everything. In his free time, he practices home psychoanalysis and collects conspiracy theories.”

(that’s how I imagine practicing psychoanalysis looks like, sorry Freud)

“Serious and exact, Vidcund strives to fit the universe into a nice tidy package. He has an unnatural fondness for African violets.”

(let’s collectively pretend those are African violets)

“Not as studious as his older brothers, Lazlo got his degree in Phrenology. He likes to call phone psychics and spends hours trying to bend forks with his mind.”

*error: screenshot of Lazlo bending forks not found*

(but here he is hanging out with Erin Beaker, the closest thing to “calling phone psychics” you can actually do in-game)

Both Pascal’s and Vidcund’s bios point to a pattern-focused worldview with a strong emphasis on rationality as the center-point that anchors the way they understand the world around them and build their principles on. This “pattern-ization” of thinking is a common autistic trait, with rationality being a popular theme because emotions tend to be difficult to access and asses for many of us.

Lazlo’s biography is an outlier. But it still has something significant in common with those of his brothers: All three of their bios allude to a potential special interest of sorts.

Special interests as an autism-related term are very specific, in-depth and long-term hobbies or areas of expertise that make an autistic person happy and they tend to go to seemingly exhausting lengths, often at the cost of other areas of knowledge and most likely the person’s ability to talk about anything else for a long enough time. (a loving hyperbole, no disrespect meant) Mine are my characters and cats. An even more intense but a short(er)-term passion is called a hyperfixation.

Them potentially having a special interest is yet another possible autistic-coded feature.

5. Wait. Why does it matter?

Right. What does it matter if a Sim (A SIM) (or two or three) is autistic? What do I hope to achieve, pushing my autistic Curiouses agenda down your throats?

I got to write a long rant-piece about some of my favorite TS characters and I feel like I can finally die satisfied.

Apart from that and me sharing my happiness of finding some good pixels I can relate to, it is a matter of representation.

Remember by the very beginning I wrote how most of the representation our community gets in media tends to be just a one specific type of character?

And how the Curious brothers seem to fit the stereotype to a point?

There is something I omitted, something I saved for the last on purpose.

The role. The role in their story, the role in the society the piece of media portrays.

We often see neurodiverse, autistic or autistic-coded character as children, students, villains, lone savants, victims in distress, comedic relief sidekicks, either very vulnerable and needing protection, or detached and having their role defined only by their academic prowess or their special interest/profession.

What we rarely get to see them as, are... parents.

That’s what many of us autistics are or plan to be someday in the future. The dogma around autism has started to dwindle relatively recently and there are little to no examples of autistic adults being the care-givers for once in the media around us.

The Curious brothers are just that. They are chaotic, they are eccentric, they can be a little too much... but they are dutiful and loving fathers/uncles to their little aliens they raise.

They make it work. Even if they face difficulties, even if they don’t exactly fit the standard.

“Sometimes, a family truly can be three brothers raising alien babies, and it’s beautiful.”

It encourages us to define family by love rather than traditional structures and it shows us that portrait of a functional neurodiverse family we need to see.

And goodness, is it a powerful sight.

#the sims 2 #the sims #ts2 #simbrl #pascal curious #vidcund curious #lazlo curious #autism acceptence month #headcanon #actuallyautistic #autistic curiouses agenda #please someone take tumbrl from me

[monkberries]

So here goes: Personally I find Paul to be hot with a beard. But it annoys me because there’s always some Paul stan who’s like “he was super depressed during that time you know” anytime someone says how hot he looks with a beard. Like first of all, I don’t think we should go around diagnosing people and assuming how he felt 24/7 just based on a couple of quotes when we don’t know him, and second of all I was just saying he looks good. Also idk why Paul stans want to pretend like Paul is STILL a victim when he’s definitely not. He’s a super successful billionaire musician. He’s fine.

I'm going to assume all four of these were from the same anon; I received another along these same lines that seems to be from someone else:

OKAY. There's a lot here.

As I've said before, I think the concept you are both talking about - that Paul is the favourite, that people will attack you if you criticize him, that people are vilifying John more now - is true, but is also a matter of perspective. I think sometimes we perceive the whole fandom as just the people we're surrounded by; that can be true in smaller fandoms, like for obscure shows or whatever, but for the Beatles, the fandom is so much bigger and more spread out across generations, social media platforms, and works of literature than almost any other fandom. There are literally thousands upon thousands of books either about or tangentially about the Beatles; there are pockets on every platform from tumblr to twitter to podcasts to instagram to facebook etc., and it branches off even more niche within those to like, facebook groups specifically for podcasts about the Beatles, or discord servers, or livejournal threads, or music forums, or fics on ao3. There are fansites with thoughtful speculative articles like heydullblog and blogs specifically reviewing Beatle books like beatlebioreview and sites cataloging every bit of minutiae like the Beatles Bible, all with their own flavor of comment sections. And not only that, the Beatles fandom spans generations and cultures in a way that almost nothing else ever has or ever will.

And this is not even going into the shifting narratives that have been in play over the years surrounding Paul specifically, and the huge, huge difference between the perceptions of him by the authors and the Counterculture People, the perceptions of him by regular ass Wings fans who have only idly flipped through Rolling Stone while waiting in line at the local bodega, and the perceptions of him by everyone in between, who may or may not have been unconsciously influenced by the wider narratives about him.

All that is to make the case that the fandom that you are experiencing on tumblr/twitter is an extremely small fraction of The Fandom at large. For every Paul stan on twitter that yells at people for not believing that Paul literally invented music, there is a John stan in a facebook group going on about John's supposedly tireless peace efforts. For every nuanced, well sourced post on amoralto's blog, there is someone in the Beatles Bible comment section saying that John and Paul hated each other. For every fan who's read the major Beatles bios with a critical eye towards bias, there are plenty more fans who just absorbed them as straight fact. This is not to say that your experiences are not real or valid! They absolutely are! What I am saying is that there are infinite permutations of infinite Beatles fandoms out there, and the people you see who insist that Paul is still treated worse than John, I would imagine, are occupying various permutations of the fandom where that is more true, alongside the one they share with you. It's not for me to say whether the Paul or John people have the upper hand on the whole - truly, I don't think anyone has enough perspective on the whole fandom to make any judgment on that, no matter what general Grand Pronouncements anyone may make about The Fandom.

As I've said before, any overly defensive "stan" behavior, whether it's for John or Paul or George or anyone, is exhausting to me, so I definitely understand where you're coming from re: him being supposedly underrated. He is literally one of the most successful musicians of all time; as of the beginning of this year, he is worth 1.2 billion dollars; and, thanks to his own efforts and the efforts of quite a few fans and writers out there over the decades, he now enjoys an incredibly positive "granddude" reputation. There are ways in which it can be exasperating to read yet another indignant refutation of music reviews for RAM that came out fifty years ago, when his last three albums have hit the top 3 in the charts in both the US and the UK and have gotten great reviews. I have seen people wonder, honestly wonder, how much more money Paul could have made, how much more respected he could have been, if the rock press had been inclined to give RAM good reviews. When I see that, it does start to feel like fans of Paul, at least the defensive ones in the fandom permutations I occupy, are arguing with the author photo of Philip Norman in the book jacket for Shout!. It's not that I think those arguments and discussions are not worth having; I do think they're worth having because I believe that the only way we can continue to grow is if we grapple with the mistakes made in the past. But there is a strange kind of disconnect that happens when you read about someone indignantly defending Wild Life as though the members of Wings are currently, actively having eggs and rotten fruit thrown at them, and then you remember that Paul is currently, and has been for many years now, one of the richest men in the entire world.

As for the misogyny thing, I'll copy and paste a quote from Erin Weber which may explain a little better than I can:

"Where it starts entering into serious discussion for me is when you have professional grown men (Schaffner would be the most glaring example of this, but not the only one) repeatedly using the term “pretty” or “pretty-faced” to refer to another grown man. (Norman does the same). Schaffner doesn’t only do that once or twice, he uses one of those exact words at least fifteen times in his references to McCartney. “Pretty-boy” is also a term that at least one journalist has used to describe Paul, and that’s not a stealth insult: that’s an overt one. (My husband, who hates the Yankees, routinely used the term “pretty-boy” to insult Alex Rodriguez. And it wasn’t meant as a compliment).

My reaction to this is based both on studies that I’m aware of (I’d have to hunt them up, but I’ve seen them referenced before) which argue that the use of feminized language can be a method of stealth insult/diminishment when used by men to describe other men, and my own personal experience. It is difficult to see a situation where a grown man using the term “pretty” or any variation of the word “pretty” to describe another grown man means it as a compliment. Even if its purely meant as a descriptive term, it is a descriptive term that is weighted with significant meaning and is feminizing. And given the rock press’s obsession with masculinity and its insistence, as noted in other studies, of using masculine terms to portray a song as good and feminizing terms to describe them as weak or inferior, I don’t think its a coincidence that a rock press that knew well the power of masculine and feminine language commonly used feminized language, particularly in the 1970s and 80s, to describe McCartney."

I personally see this more as pseudo-homophobic than pseudo-misogynistic (like, when I see a man called "pretty" by another man in an insulting way, I immediately think "oh, that author wanted to say a gay slur but he's too Professional"), but the two things can get muddled together, I suppose.

Anyway, actionable items:

Diversify Your Fan Experience. More perspectives can really help gain a fuller understanding of not just the fandom but the Beatles themselves. Don't be afraid to be wrong, and don't be afraid to be right; always be open to learning new things and hearing new insights.

If All Else Fails, Block 'Em.

#macca #anonymous #i guess this is #hot take tuesday #? #even though its thursday night #about the blogger #for reference

[writemarcus]

Prospect Announces Full Line-up For 11/17 RULE OF THREE Musical Theater Lab, In Concert

The performance takes place on Wednesday, November 17th @ 7:30pm.

by Stephi Wild

Nov. 11, 2021  

Prospect Theater Company has announced the full cast for a special one-night-only concert performance at NYC's Symphony Space (2537 Broadway @ 95th Street). On Wednesday, November 17th @ 7:30pm the company will present RULE OF THREE, a concert evening featuring hot-off-the-presses offerings generated in its annual Musical Theater Lab.

Three is the magic number. Three strikes and you're out. Third time's the charm...

Prospect's annual Musical Theater Lab returns with a line-up of original short musicals created by a cadre of up-and-coming artists. This year, the lab brings together writers to investigate the "rule of three": a writing principle that suggests a trio of events or characters is more humorous, satisfying, or effective than other numbers.

The writing teams selected for the 2021 Musical Theater Lab are: Laura Barati & Danny Ursetti; Danny K Bernstein; é Boylan; Dorie Clark & Marie Incontrera; Dante Green; Durra Leung; Angela Sclafani; Marcus Scott, Charles Turner & Sean Mason; Dani Shoulman & Erin Hoerchler; and Kate Thomas & Joey Contreras. A full list of writer bios are available at https://www.prospecttheater.org/rule-of-three-writer-bios.

The cast for RULE OF THREE will feature a line-up including Broadway and Prospect alumni artists and new comers: Niki Afsar, Shannon Amiry, Gina Naomi Baez, Genesis Adelia Collado, Alexandra de Suze, Jovan E'Sean, Hillary Fisher, Mia Gerachis, Kat Griffin, Sarah Hamaty, Dickie Hearts, Amy Jo Jackson, Travis Kent, MinJi Kim, Austin Ku, Margaret J. Leisenheimer, Rosemary Loar, Sharaé Moultrie, Toren Nakamura, Jay Paranada, Allison Posner, Luis Ramos, Brian Charles Rooney, David Rowen, Logan Rozos, Tonilyn A. Sideco, Lauren Singerman, Martín Solá, LaDawn Taylor and Tatiana Wechsler.

The concert evening is directed by Dev Bondarin, Prospect's Associate Artistic Director. Music Directors are John Bronston and Anessa Marie. The Stage Manager is Michelle Navis, the Assistant Stage Manager is Allison Spann, and the COVID Safety Manager is Meghan McVann. Samuel Norman is the Production Associate, and ASL Interpretation is provided by Tim Smith. The musical theater lab is curated by Dev Bondarin & Cara Reichel.

Tickets are $25 and are available at www.ProspectTheater.org or by calling Symphony Space's box office, 212-864-5400. Audience members must be fully vaccinated and masks are required. To access Symphony Space's full COVID Safety protocols, visit: https://www.symphonyspace.org/your-visit/what-you-need-to-know.

The performance will be open captioned. Anticipated running time: 95 minutes, no intermission.

#WriteMarcus #Write Marcus #Marcus Scott #MarcusScott #Prospect Theater Company #Dev Bondarin #Charles Turner #Sean Mason #Prospect Musical Theater Lab #Musical Theatre #Musical Theater

[rokutouxei]

the wonder that’s keeping the stars apart

ikemen vampire: temptation through the dark theo van gogh / mc | T | [ ao3 link in bio ]

The challenge seemed pretty simple: to try to befriend the university bookshop’s most sour employee, Theo van Gogh. As a literature major with a boatload of book recommendations on her back, it ought to be a simple task indeed. But as she uncovers what lies between Theo’s pages, the more she finds it harder to become closer to him without having to put the feeling directly into words. What can she learn from Theo about what it means to stay—and how can she teach Theo about what it means to let go? | written for ikevamp big bang 2020!

[ masterpost for all chapters ] 

CHAPTER 22 OF 22 [ END ]

But the world is strange and endings are not truly endings no matter how the stars might wish it so.

-"The Starless Sea", Erin Morgenstern

--

Like a reversal of fate, everything else goes according to plan afterwards: much to Theo’s delight.

After the expectedly but also overwhelmingly successful two-week long exhibit at the gallery, Vincent—after years of indecision—finalizes his documents and portfolio, submits a stack of photos and a long, written document detailing the exhibit to the graduation approval panel. The following month is the longest of the brothers’ lives, but the committee approves Vincent’s submission, and a few weeks later he’s finally marching down the aisle to claim his diploma. (It was a beautiful affair, Theo would always say about it, but in truth he was unable to see anything more than a few smudges of color, due to how hard he was crying. Thank god for photographs.)

Freshly-graduated Vincent takes on various jobs while submitting to various institutions both locally and abroad, and finally persuades Theo to finish his bachelor’s degree, promising that he’ll always be facing forward into the future. The following semester, Theo enrolls for a final time at the university, taking his last units to write up his thesis.

Theo doesn’t quit his job at the bookshop, but eventually as things get busier he can only take so many hours until he’s barely there at all. They get a new employee named William—Theo doesn’t really like him. Arthur gives a little show of crying when Theo reveals he can only work weekends now, treats him to dinner and some alcohol at the end of it, so maybe it isn’t that bad. Theo, of course, still forwards all his book requests to the bookstore, and, much to his disgust, continues to spend Saturdays or Sundays (or both, if he’s unlucky) as “quality time” with Arthur, as the latter has called it. It’s not much, but more than enough for his “begrudging” best friend.

As Theo is working on his thesis, Vincent finally receives an offer for apprenticeship at a rather renowned fine arts gallery a few hours away, and Theo feels all his dreams are coming true.

And it’s time to get a new one.

He’s finishing a degree, bracing himself to enter a field he’s always long wanted to be in, to help support his brother but also to begin the long journey of a little hope he’d long kept in his heart, the one he hadn’t ever dared to say, fearing he wasn’t good enough for it—of being the director of a museum.

He might even be able to take a master’s on the side, if he finds a company that’s willing to get him trained both on the company floor and in an institution—and his grades and a few recommendation letters will get him there, he’s damn sure.

And next to him, or well, miles away, his brother is getting steadier and steadier on his feet, near-sprint towards a future with art he’s always dreamt of as well, this time with no one putting him down. Theo’s going to make sure that stays the same for all the years to come, too.

It feels like the beginning of everything good, and Theo walks around the town with a smile on his face.

All that’s left to do is wait.

He has faith that everything will settle into their proper places, like they always have.

And they do, because just as she always does, it’s 2:00pm on a Sunday, and she comes, in a long, plain cream coat over a sweater, a short plaid skirt over dark leggings, high black boots, because it’s fall now, starting to become cold. She’s looking around her with stars in her eyes, like she hasn’t been here in a long time. And she hasn’t.

Theo spots her first, and then, like she feels the touch of his eyes on her skin, she turns to him. Her face brightens with a grin that makes Theo’s heart stop.

And then she runs with a speed unexpected for the shoes she’s wearing. Theo braces himself as she jumps into his arms, but they still topple towards the ground.

THUNK!

“Oh my god, I could have killed you!” she says, but every word is stuck in between fits of laughter. Curls of hair hang over the sides of her face as she pulls herself up on the palms of her hands and her knees. Guiltless, as she always is.

Theo crinkles his nose, raises a hand to brush off the curtain of hair. “You have an accent,” he says. It’s not derisive, not an insult, just an observation, the same way he’d say something about a work of art.

And, just because she doesn’t run out of ways to take his breath away, she laughs and presses a kiss on his lips, her mouth warm, his face suddenly hot. She smells like strawberries and sour things and home.

She pulls away and breathes against his trembling lips, “I missed you so much.”

“Talk’s for later,” he half-growls, pulling himself up into a seated position before taking her lips in his once more—his fingers in her hair, her hand on his shoulder, seated on his lap. The kiss doesn’t deepen like she expects it to: instead it’s just a series of small kisses exchanged between the two of them, passed back and forth to each other like a shared breath. His hand squeezes her waist and—

“GET A ROOM!” someone shouts from across the street, followed by a burst of laughter, random onlookers to a long-awaited reunion.

“God, I sure miss being home,” she chuckles, making light of the call-out, chewing on her lower lip in embarrassment, turning her eyes away from him.

The word home hangs heavy between the both; but a good kind of heavy.

But for now, he’s not having that, not when they’ve been waiting for this for the longest time; he reaches out to cup her cheek in his hand, only to feel the damp trail of a tear slipping down.

It’s his turn to snort, rubbing a thumb up underneath her eye. “Don’t cry, liefje.”

She pouts. “…‘I missed you too, baby,’” she says mockingly, but wipes the tears that fall out with the back of her hand anyway. The two of them stare at each other for a long moment, like confirming each other’s existence, like making sure the other is really there.

Then, she breaks the silence with a laugh, like she always does.

His heart feels more than just full. It’s always more than with her around.

“I kept all your letters,” she says softly.

“And I kept all your postcards.”

That makes her laugh. A sound he wishes he could listen to forever. “Ah, we sound like some kind of rom-com protagonists. So silly.”

“That’s not so bad though,” Theo says, taking her hand in his the way he’s always wanted to but has always been afraid to do.

“No,” she says, leaning against his warmth. Pressing their foreheads together. “Not at all.”

 --

And because her friend’s been bugging her throughout her entire first year at the university while she was gone, said friend decides to get back at her by holding a little surprise party to match the little surprise arrival she had made for Theo. She, Theo, her friend, Dazai, Arthur, and a shifty-feeling Isaac—she will have to figure out the details for that later—end up having dinner together at a place that opened while she was gone, talking about all that she’d missed, stories that may as well have already been told but feel different when they’re told face-to-face.

They all go home flushed, half with drunk and half with joy. She hasn’t really checked into her apartment complex quite yet, but Theo shoots down her friend’s offer for her to be driven back to the city in exchange for getting her to sleep at his place. The van Gogh residence has been home to one for quite a bit now and Theo… well, he’d like some company.

The two of them are walking home side by side, swaying a little as they pass through flickering streetlights. There is so much to talk about, to catch up on, so many things hidden in between the lines of letters and messages that are better sorted out in person, and Theo feels each question rising up his throat clawing their way out.

Was coming back worth it?

Won’t you regret it?

Did you find what you were looking for out there?

But they have time—they have so much time now, so instead, he settles for the gentle quiet they’ve always known each other for. Instead, he bumps the back of her hand with his, and because everything is more than with her, she takes it as an opportunity to intertwine their fingers together.

There’s mischief in her voice.

“Hey.”

“What?”

“Say ‘I love you.’”

Theo stops in his tracks. “What?”

The shock makes her laugh. Pulling at his hand to get him to start walking again, she explains, “You’ve never told me you loved me, you know.”

“I have.”

“Not in person!” she argues. “Not even in call. You wrote it, but that’s different.”

Theo can feel the words on his tongue already anyway, but he continues to prolong the inevitable. “What’s all this all of a sudden?”

“Nothing! I just haven’t heard it, and well, I wanted to hear it? Please?”

“No.”

“C’mon, you’re not fair. Tell me.”

“No,” he says, pulling her by her hand and pressing a kiss on the back of it. Chaste, and yet so deep with hunger it makes her knees wobble just a bit. “I’ll tell you later.”

She flushes a deep red.

--

After all this, their friends will not stop joking about how they’ve had one of the most intense courtships in the history of their friend group—and likely their university—but the two of them both rigorously deny that, saying that there are likely to be more complicated ones they just don’t know. Besides, at this point, it doesn’t really matter how long it had taken them to get here—

Just that they had gotten here.

And what a good story that journey was.

Just fit for a literature major.

But stories are stories because they flow into each other, and so even if that chapter has ended, that just means another one has begun and—there is so much plot to be done. She and Theo have a talk about their relationship—this time in person, and this time for real—somewhere in between their last semesters in university. Their friends are, well, still their friends, ever so patient even now that they’re together, especially after all that happened before they got to this. And the future is wide and the world is out there waiting and—

They can’t wait to see it together.

Like flower facing upward to the sun daring itself to see what the world has for it out there before deciding it wants to stay, deciding to grow its roots, deciding…

Right here is okay.

Like blossoming in reverse.

When she and Theo move in together to their own little apartment, away from the university, long after shared books at the rooftop of the physics department and Dragon’s Hoard and Little Owl, Vincent sends to them a moving-in gift: a series of three canvases, a triptych depicting the two of them at that most vulnerable part of their romance. The start of the most beautiful part of it. On the opposite panels, she and Theo; sitting in front of their respective windows, looking out at different cities, different times of the day. And in the middle, a humble little paper airplane made of envelopes, with their blue and red marking, the stamps, the smudged ink, crossing the landscape without care for distance.

They hang the paintings in their living room, above the sofa, the first thing they see when they enter their little shared home.

Just another one of many shared things that will continue to grow.

And today, they’re not yet done unpacking and they’ve only gotten out two sets of dinnerware just enough to be able to eat—but there is so much time. So it’s two in the afternoon on a Sunday, music playing lowly from cheap Bluetooth speakers, and their next-door neighbors are hammering something in the wall but it is still beautiful. Standing in the middle of the living room on the carpet, the TV and the books still in their neatly labeled boxes stacked against the wall—they hold each other close to the slow beat of the music.

Sure, they may have been idiots about this but—they have the rest of their lives to make up for lost time

And so Theo presses his forehead against hers, smiling when the gesture makes her laugh. Nothing makes him feel as warm as she does, and no metaphor, no literary reference will be able to truly put into words how he feels about having found her at just the right moment.

How they crossed that near-miss.

And how lucky he is to get to keep her.

Arm wrapped reverently around the small of her back, one hand on her waist, the other with its fingers interlocked with hers—he presses a small kiss on her knuckles, eyes sliding shut. Everything goes dark: the music shushes into silence, the room collapses, the only thing is him, and her, and the long eternity.

“…And this is the wonder that’s keeping the stars apart,” he whispers, quoting a poem from a poet from a book from a bookstore from what seems like a million years ago, sighing when she squeezes his shoulder, “I carry your heart—”

Tilts his head upward with her finger, oh, she has him wrapped around her finger, always has.

He looks back at her and her heart dips into the deep blue of his eyes.

She kisses the words onto his lips, “I carry it in my heart.”

---------

thank you for reading this! longer A/N on ao3!!

#the wonder that’s keeping the stars apart #ikemen vampire #ikevamp theo

[canon-notcanon-warriorcats]

It's Gillian Philip, and while she doesn't work directly on warriors iirc, she is still one of the erins. She has a terf dog whistle in her twitter name and openly supports jk rowling

https://twitter.com/Gillian_Philip

well then

she’s only worked on survivors and i guess bravelands

she’s also written:

-the rebel angels series

-the darke academy series

-bad faith

-crossing the line

-the opposite of amber

in case anyone wants to make sure they avoid other stuff she’s written

i haven’t even heard of any of these

i also hate how she has “aka erin hunter” in her bio, like she’s the only one or even one of the most known ones (i have never heard of her until now)

she sounds like an arrogant fucker who thinks she’s the best thing ever, probably just because she’s part of erin hunter, the rest of what she’s written sounds like it’s mediocre at best

i bet she thinks licking jk rowling’s boots tastes great and thinks that she’ll notice her and make her heir to the arrogant mediocre UK authors thrown

#Anonymous

[anotherkindofmindpod]

I just read both interviews, Part 1 and 2 of Jann Wenner's Rolling Stone Interview of 1971. It sounds as though John and the other Beatles DID have a realistic gripe about Paul taking over, directly projects, handing out musical assignments, etc., etc. and I'm sure he had the ego by this point to match! I would probably have become irritated by Paul as well. And no hints or even reading between the lines of John being emotionally hurt by Paul with regard to loss of intimate relationship.

Hello and thanks for writing in, Listener!First, I’d like to point out that we haven’t reached the Lennon Remembers portion of our Break-up Series, and will dig into it much more thoroughly in a future episode (stay tuned!).  

Presumably this ask isn’t in response to anything we’ve actually discussed on the podcast, in which case I feel that I should explain that what we do on our show is reevaluate conventional wisdom and contextualize public statements within the realities of actual behaviors. In other words, not taking things like Lennon Remembers at face value is AKOM 101.

If what we were doing on this podcast was as easy as simply reading the most infamous interview John Lennon ever gave (the one upon which the conventional story of the Beatles break-up is founded), it wouldn’t be much of a podcast or a very groundbreaking analysis, would it?

Second, I’d like to mention that listeners/readers can hear the entire (3.5 hours!) interview on You Tube.  Very evocative with audio!  Wenner’s editing in the print versions often make John sound more coherent and less vitriolic towards everyone but Paul than the audio reveals (i.e. the shitty comments about Paul are always printed but the ones about George, Brian, etc often aren’t).

Next, we’d like to state the usual disclaimer (which everyone is probably already aware of but is a good reminder anyway!):  John later disavowed this interview.  In fact, he was so angry at Jann Wenner for publishing it as a book, it apparently created a permanent rift between the two.  You may choose to view/value this interview as John being super honest, but please consider that in this allegedly “truthful” book/interview, John:

claims George is musically/creatively inferior to John

declares the McCartney album “rubbish”

reveals his belief that he and Paul’s confidence levels are intrinsically, inversely related to one another

says George was so aggressively rude to Yoko that John wished he would’ve punched him over it

proudly admits that he “maneuvered” the other Beatles to get Klein in as manager

bemoans the fact that everyone says Brian Epstein was so great “just because he’s dead” and that Brian cheated and robbed the Beatles

makes derisive comments about “fags” at least five times in the printed version alone and calls Lee Eastman “a wasp Jew, man, that’s the worst kind of person on earth.”

admits to lying in interviews and deflects accountability on the basis of being “just a guy” who mouths off about stuff

As for Paul, John is admittedly all over the place, swinging fairly wildly from nostalgic (reminiscing about having “a good mind like Paul’s” on his side and co-writing with their “fingers in each others’ pies”) to bitter (”Paul thought he was the Beatles,” etc).

As for the accusations that Paul was tyrannical, we’ve addressed these before (particularly in Break-Up Episode 2).  Just as Geoff Emerick, Michael Lindsay Hogg and Doug Sulpy (and even John, when he was feeling more generous) have articulated, we too feel that Paul stepped up and led the band in a time of need and deserves unequivocal credit for that.  We believe much of the subsequent complaining from the other Beatles is akin to the kind of griping one directs at a colleague who gets promoted (“who died and made you king!?”) and while some of it was likely based in genuine irritation at Paul’s communication style, much of it was probably petty.  This is why we are looking at the situation from all angles, to get a better sense of what is reality v. spin.  In any case, we don’t dispute that there were power struggles within the band.Any reader is free to choose John’s side in any/all of these battles.  But our overall takeaway from this particular interview is that John was unloading a lot of pent-up rage; against teachers, fans, Aunt Mimi, his mum, critics, Paul and anyone else who didn’t properly recognize his genius and praise him for it.

“That’s what makes me what I am. It comes out, the people I meet have to say it themselves, because we get fuckin’ kicked. Nobody says it, so you scream it: look at me, a genius, for fuck’s sake! What do I have to do to prove to you son-of-a-bitches what I can do, and who I am? Don’t dare, don’t you dare fuckin’ dare criticize my work like that. You, who don’t know anything about it.”

Based solely on Lennon Remembers, one could reasonably believe John didn’t like anyone but Yoko and Allen Klein (of whom he also speaks with reverence).  Fortunately, John gave a million other interviews in his lifetime, so even though this one is given a disproportionate amount of weight (probably b/c it is the most inflammatory and “raw”) we can compare John’s comments, behavior and art over a broad spectrum of time.  We feel this gives us a better, more thorough and more authentic portrait of John’s POV.  This is a good idea with ANY public figure, but especially important in John’s case, since, by his own admission he has a tendency to say what he feels in the moment and doesn’t necessarily stand by his own statements afterwards.

John in 1976:  “I get a bit absolute in my statements. [laughs] Which sometimes get me into deep water, and sometimes into the shallow.”

To your other point, our overall impressions about John’s feelings regarding  “loss of an intimate relationship” with Paul certainly do not hinge on Lennon Remembers, nor have we ever suggested they do.  In fact, LR is commonly used as the primary proof-point by McCartney detractors and Lennon/McCartney deniers (those who willfully and sometimes passionately  ignore and/or deny the deep love between John and Paul, as described by John and Paul themselves and everyone in their lives) that Paul was a tyrant who destroyed the Beatles with his massive ego.  

We have never disputed the existence of Paul’s ego.  But consider this: John refers to himself as an egomaniac REPEATEDLY throughout this interview.  Why is there a loud faction of people who consider John being an avowed egomaniac perfectly reasonable (sexy even!), but find it unforgivable that Paul is the same way?  Consider these excerpts from Lennon Remembers:

Do you think you will record together again?

I record with Yoko, but I’m not going to record with another egomaniac. There is only room for one on an album nowadays.

How would you assess George’s talents?

[…] Maybe it was hard for him sometimes, because Paul and I are such egomaniacs, but that’s the game.

Who do you think is good today? In any arts…

The unfortunate thing about egomaniacs is that they don’t take much attention of other people’s work. I only assess people on whether they are a danger to me or my work or not.

[Tangential]

But the Beatles were artists, and all artists have fucking’ big egos, whether they like to admit it or not […]

Yes, John rants repeatedly about Paul’s ego during this interview- while he simultaneously declares his own genius and artistic superiority over others. We find it mind-boggling how this irony continues to evade some people, but there it is.  

George Harrison has repeatedly complained about BOTH John & Paul’s egos (and their shared ego IRT “Lennon/McCartney”), but again, this is often ignored in favor of singling out Paul as the villain.  

Furthermore, it’s helpful to bear in mind when consuming Lennon Remembers that John and Yoko had received training in media-messaging by this point and were very savvy at Public Relations.  We know from people close to them that they drafted their stories in advance before offering them to the public. This fact, combined with Lennon’s tendency to “mouth off” means we have the right and responsibility to question and examine John’s claims rather than simply  parrot them mindlessly.

If you are genuinely interested in our take, we recommend our Break-Up Series. We think you will find it well-researched and thoughtful, even if you disagree with some of our conclusions.

Or if you simply dislike McCartney and find him “irritating,” that’s fine too.  Not everyone has to like everyone!

For additional discussion/analysis of Lennon Remembers, I recommend any of several threads on Erin Torkelson Weber’s site, the Historian and the Beatles.

the flawed lens of Lennon v. McCartney

Jann Wenner’s bio

how Rolling Stone shaped the breakup

discussing a podcast appearance

Thank you so much for this ask!  It is always a pleasure to share information.  Have a wonderful day.-The AKOM crew

#Lennon Remembers #John and Paul #jann wenner #anotherkindofmind podcast #Beatles #HAPPY VALENTINES DAY

[bodyawarenyc]

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