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thadelightfulone · 3 years

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All I Want... 25 Days of Christmas Challenge, Day 3

November 20th

Two days later and DeeDee kept thinking about Erik and his note. She buried herself in work, taking over other shifts just to stay busy. Whenever her mind was not focused on a physical task, it shifted back to thoughts of Erik. It was bothering her how much the whole thing was occupying her every thought. Her girls hit her up for an impromptu night out and she jumped at the opportunity.

The ladies got ready at DeeDee’s place. Phyllis danced around the bathroom to whatever song played. Beverly was in DeeDee’s closet in search of an outfit. DeeDee sat on her bed, with balled up hands on her lap.

Beverly pulled out a cute purple blouse and some dark denim boot cut jeans. “What do you think?”

Phyllis slid out of the bathroom, “Doesn’t she have a dress?”

Ignoring her, Bev turned to DeeDee, “Do you like it?”

“Yeah, it’s cute.” DeeDee replied.

“You gotta do better than that?” Phyllis walked into DeeDee’s closet. She pulled out a red dress. “Now, that is what I am talking about. Here.”

She shoved the dress into Beverly’s hands. DeeDee reached up to grab the other items that were falling.

“We want her to get a man.”

“Phyll, I just want to have a good time. I am not looking for anything.”

“And that is your problem.” Phyllis grabbed DeeDee and walked her to the bathroom mirror. “You are a gorgeous woman who needs to get her head out of the books and onto something more substantial, if you know what I mean.”

DeeDee rolled her eyes and walked away, “No, I don’t.”

While DeeDee and Phyllis bickered over the benefits of having a personal life, Beverly hung the dress and blouse up on the back of DeeDee’s closet door. As she put the jeans on the lounge chair nearby, she saw the notebook from the other day.

“Hey, did you ever find out anything about the guy who wrote the note?”

“What?” DeeDee and Phyllis asked together.

“Ya know, the note DeeDee found in the book.” Beverly lifts the notebook up to them.

“Oh.”

“Hmmph.”

“Well?”

“I did get his name and email address.” DeeDee offered.

“Ok, so did you email him yet? You know, present yourself as the woman he is looking for?” Phyllis cackled.

Beverly hit her, “Shut up!”

“I don’t know why I even told you about it?” DeeDee muttered. She grabbed the book from Beverly and tossed it onto the top of her vanity.

“Well, did you?” Phyllis fixed her eyelashes before she waved her tweezers at DeeDee.

“No, I have not.” She huffed out.

Beverly sat on the bed, “Why not?”

“I don’t know.” DeeDee started pacing the floor in front of her dresser, “I guess, I didn’t think I would get this far.”

“So, what are you gonna do?” Beverly asked.

“She’s gonna send that email. That’s what!” Phyllis said before she walked out of DeeDee’s room. “Come on.”

They all walk out of her room and to her home office in the corner of the living room. Phyllis pulled out the chair and DeeDee sat down in front of her laptop.

“Go on, and power this thing up. We got work to do.”

DeeDee logged in and opened up her email application. Under Beverly and Phyllis’ guidance, she was able to write something interesting. Phyllis bumped her from the seat, and while pretending to read it again for any errors, she hit ‘Send’ before DeeDee figured out what was going on. Beverly led a stunned DeeDee back to her room.

They got dressed for the night -- DeeDee in the blouse and jeans fit. Phyllis did her makeup and Beverly did her hair. Ready to go, they all headed back out to the living room. DeeDee stared at her computer, shook her head and walked over to shut it down. There is no time to worry about that tonight.

---

Erik was sitting in his home office, going through his emails when he received a video call from Marquis. He accepted it and smiled as his best friend and his youngest daughter, Jasmine, greeted him.

“Hey Jazzie! How are you?”

“Hi Uncle E. I’m good. So, when are you coming to visit?” Jasmine asked.

“Jasmine.”

“What daddy? You told me to ask him.” She looked back at her father, who grimaced as she spoke.

Erik laughed at her candidness, “It’s ok babygirl. I plan to be out there soon. I promise.”

“Okie dokie.” She smiled at him, her toothless grin visible.

“Ok, Jazzie bear. Time for the adults to talk.” Marquis lifted her off his lap. “Say goodbye to Uncle E.”

“Bye Uncle E.” She waved to him and bounced away.

“She’s getting so big.” Erik said.

“Who you telling?” Marquis laughed. “She’s been here before. I know that much.”

Erik laughed along with him.

“And you are just the person I wanted to talk to.” Erik nodded to him.

“Oh. What’s up?”

“Do you know what happened to the student that wanted my information? I haven’t heard anything yet.”

“Well, I gave it to her. I’m surprised that she hasn’t reached out, but I wouldn’t worry about it.”

“Yeah, you right.” Erik masked his face at Marquis’ mention that it was a woman who was looking for him.

“Yeah, so anyway. I was calling because I found out that Dr. Bell is retiring at the end of the semester.”

“What? She’s finally ready to travel the world?”

“Yup, said her first trip is set for January.”

“Well damn.” Erik chuckled. “Good for her. So, when is the party?”

“During the annual Chemistry Department Holiday party. We have a few surprises for her retirement.”

“So, am I one of those surprises?”

“Yeah, I am sure she would love to hear from her second favorite student.”

“Second? Nigga, I am her favorite. Go on with that.”

They both laughed and told stories of who is really Dr. Bell’s favorite.

“Yo, just send me the details, I’ll be there.”

“You sure, it’s right before Christmas? I just planned to have you give her a video call or something.”

“Nah, that woman did so much for me while I was in school. There is no way, I am missing this.”

“If you say so. I’ll send you --”

“Quis?” Erik interrupted him, “Do you know a Deidre Chabert?”

“Deidre? Oh yeah, that’s the student who was looking for you.”

“Hmmm, ok.” Erik’s cursor hovered over the email that just popped up.

“I take it, she finally emailed you.”

“She did.” He opened the email, “Quis, how do you know her?”

“She’s one of my doctoral students.”

“And you said, she found one of my articles?”

“That is what I was told.” Marquis shrugged, “She is still studying, I figured she found the one about how chemistry works for us in everyday life.”

“Huh.” His mouth dropped as he read the message.

“E, you good man?” Marquis asked.

Erik looked back up at him, and shook his head. “Yeah, yeah. I’m good.”

“Ha, I know that look.” Marquis smirks at him, “Sounds like she asked some good questions. I’ll let you go. Look out for my email with the details for Dr. Bell’s retirement.”

“Sounds good. I’ll talk to you later man.” Erik ended the call and went back to the open email on his screen.

SUBJECT: ‘MgYHeArTaNdSOULa’

Hello Dr. Erik Stevens,

I apologize for the false pretense in which you are receiving this email.

My name is DeeDee Chabert. I am a student at Southern University.

I found a very personal note that you left in a textbook while you were here. I don’t know if you remember it or not. But I do hope that you were able to find what you were looking for. It sounds like your parents are definitely relationship goals.

Best Regards,

DeeDee

Erik inhaled deeply. His eyes kept going back to the subject line. My Heart and Soul. He never thought he would see that phrase written like that again. Erik only wrote it once. He remembered the day that he wrote it and left it behind.

He was taking a break from studying one day when his parents crossed his mind. He recalled how his father showered his mother with affection whenever possible. Little things like flowers delivered with her breakfast or a sweet voice message to wake up to. It would have his mother on cloud nine for the entire day. And she always gave as good as she got. A short hand-written note in his lunch or singing voicemail on his work line, wishing him a wonderful day at work.

Erik smiled at the memories of his parents and the perfect example of a loving relationship that they showcased for him. He knew from a young age that that is exactly what he wanted for himself. And that day, he finally put it to words on that piece of paper. And someone found it.

Not only found it, but she deciphered the note. She thought that the love that his parents had was aspirational. Relationship goals as she put it. He laughed at the sentiment that described it perfectly.

Erik stared at the screen. Should he respond? What would he say? Thanks for sharing, I never thought someone would find the note. Or does he address the comment about finding it for himself.

He got up from his desk and went to the bar across the room. Erik poured himself a tumbler of whiskey and looked out over downtown Oakland. The view of the night sky allowed him to take a few moments to think.

Erik knew that he wanted to respond to her email. It meant something that she went out of her way to track him down with just his initials to go on. But also, he was curious about her. What kind of woman found that kind of note, thought to find the owner and reach out? She could have just kept it for herself to cherish and no one would be any wiser.

Finished with his whiskey, Erik went back to his desk and set down the glass. He clicked on the reply button and started typing.

SUBJECT: RE: ‘MgYHeArTaNdSOULa’

Hello DeeDee,

Your email caught me off guard as I never expected anyone to find that note. But I do know what you are talking about.

Thank you for your kind words. I appreciate them. My parents definitely had a once-in-a-lifetime kind of love. I do hope that you find it for yourself.

I do have a question for you -- what made you search for me? Anyone else who read that note would probably think I was some nerdy virgin who needed to get laid. I am curious to know why it resonated with you.

Have a wonderful weekend.

E.S.

Taglist: @teakturn @ghostfacekill-monger @shaekingshitup @nahimjustfeelingit-writes @woahitslucyylu @ladymac82 @bugngiz @eyeknowmywrites @ajspencer1892 @arafatih @issimplyaamazinggg @tchallasbabymama

#25 days of christmas challenge #erik killmonger x oc #black panther fanfiction #bp christmas #all i want #thadelightfulone

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ourmuse-s · 3 years

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Luisa Fischer

Deidre Loughridge

Writing About Music

3.7.21

Artist Profile

A Closer Look at Eph See

Over the past year, I’ve had the opportunity and the pleasure of getting to know Felisha Cabral through classes and mutual friends, and feel as though she has become a person that I can always reach out to and rely on whether it be for musical critique or to get coffee. We first met in a Concert and Venues Promotion class, where I first started to develop my admiration for her confidence and kind, humble heart towards everyone around her. When I had her again in classes the next semester, such as Music Marketing and Promotion, I was always excited to catch up with her before and after class, hear her insights on the lessons and get to know more about what was going on in her life. Unfortunately, Covid-19 sent us home before I had the chance to really get to know her better, but we stayed in touch through instagram likes and comments for the net several months, and I shared some of her music with my family and friends because I could boast how talented people I met at school were.

Felisha is someone that carries an undeniable energy. It was one of the first things that I noticed about her. She’s not just someone you meet in passing and forget about, but a kind and generous person who will make you feel like you are special, seen and heard. I don’t know her much on a professional level, but after our lessons together we would often take short walks or stand outside with some of our peers and discuss personal matters in our lives without feeling judged (at least on my end). Over quarantine, seeing her name in my instagram notifications brought a light to my day, because her energy radiates through every single one of her actions. When I reached out to her about being interviewed for my Writing About Music class she didn’t hesitate to say yes, and when I told her I was nervous and terrible at interviewing, she assured me that it was going to be just like catching up and having a normal conversation, and that I had nothing to worry about.

Two minutes before we were scheduled to facetime, she let me know that she was just waiting to take the cupcakes out of her oven, but she would call me as soon as she was ready. When that time had passed and I answered her call, she was sitting in the sunlight in her apartment, smiling through the camera with her big brown eyes. I hadn’t seen her in a while, and I took notice that she had changed her hair again and was sporting space buns that framed her face nicely. The sun was glowing on her dark skin that she used as a canvas to display the bright colors in her eyeshadow, like a work of art in a museum.

It took us a while to even get to the interview questions, because we were catching up on other matters of life such as her past COOP, how I was worried about CO-OP, where she was living now, how we should go get coffee soon until I had to break out conversation to ask my first real question. She was eager and happy to answer all questions, and would go into detail and offer information to keep the conversation flowing naturally. I got to learn more about her other songs that she’s released through her stage name Eph See, as well as an in-depth view of what she wants to achieve with her music and what it means to her. She offered a lot of intimate details about her life and her identity, and traced them all back to her songs such as “the things i used to care about seem so stupid now” and well as “April”.

A topic we discussed in detail was the way in which Felisha - or Eph See’s - music was meant to be personal. Felisha wants people to be able to process their emotions through her music, and give them the words that they aren’t able to express themselves. The most played track on her SoundCloud is “the things i used to care about seem so stupid now”, the song she says is probably most authentic to her. The opening line “lately I’ve been feeling like my past self is slowly peeling away” displays the identity issues that Felisha was going through at the time, but she looks back at that time with a different perspective today. She told me: “I had what people would call a mental breakdown and it was really scary but needed” and that’s exactly what the emotion that the song creates. Her latest release “April” is another intimate look into the changes a person can go through as the seasons change. When I asked about upcoming songs, Felisha said that she’s currently in her winter season, and is letting herself rest. “My life follows the seasons,” she says. Winter is cold and dark, and she feels as though her best creative self is reborn with the sun in the springtime, much like how the song says.

Felisha brought up points of struggle such as being a femme artist in the music industry, and the pressure from that to write love songs when she felt like she had so much more to offer. Not only that, but she mentioned that as being a femme and non-binary person of color makes her feel less in tune with a lot of people she’s worked with in the past, who have mostly been straight, cis white men. She wants to work with people that understand her on other levels, and care less about the marketability of her music and more on the energy that she puts into it. Felisha mentioned several times that it’s important for music to give people a voice for their struggles, their feelings, and their thoughts, especially amidst the pandemic, and she wants her music to be relatable for people living their everyday lives. For example, her song “Body” describes the struggle of mental health and feeling lost and disconnected from yourself. In it, she sings “I don’t wanna seem like I’m crying for help but I’m having a hard time finding myself and I don’t want to lie” and “I don’t want you to worry about my health but I’m having a hard time sleeping sometimes, can’t get through the night”. Dark lyrics, but one that many people, especially in the times we are living in now, have struggled with.

For this reason, she says she’s stopped caring about how she looks on paper in the industry, and has been writing songs of all different sounds that she’s proud of and excited to release in the future. She’s tired of trying to be someone marketable, and wants to just be herself and release whatever type of music she wants. Eph See (Felisha’s) music can be best described as indie-pop, but she doesn’t want to limit herself to any genre and be as fluid as she wants in the sounds she creates. She said that her new unreleased music is different from what she’s put out so far, and she’s excited to grow as an artist and in the type of music she releases. She wants to be a “one stop shop” for those people who listen to a wide variety of music and show off the fact that she can be more than just a one-genre or one-sound artist. Felisha is currently working with a producer on six new songs, but as it’s still her ‘hibernation’ season, you can probably find her playing around with her guitar in her apartment and recording videos for her TikTok.

I’m so excited to see what Eph See, or Felisha, puts out in the future. She has a lot of ambition, passion and determination for her music, and staying authentic to whatever she wants to do and I have no doubt that it will take her far in life both musically and as a person.

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coraliviaith · 3 years

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Jane the Virgin- Chapter Eighty-Four

The eighty-fourth episode of Jane the Virgin focuses on the ongoing plot thread of Jane’s presumed-dead husband Michael (now “Jason”) returning, as well as side plots revolving around Rogelio’s television pilot, and a parenting dispute between Jane and Petra. Jason has decided to try and win back his “wife,” despite her previous rejections. He eventually persuades her into a fishing date in exchange for signing their divorce papers. Meanwhile, Jane’s father Rogelio discovers that his co-star, River Fields, is being paid more than him and grows upset, creating tension on the set of The Passions of Steve and Brenda. Jane and Petra argue over how to get their children to stop fighting, when the real root of the problem is revealed to be Petra’s insecurities in Jane not confiding in her.

One of the most interesting points in the episode appears in the conflict between Rogelio and River. When it is first revealed to Rogelio that his co-star is receiving twice the pay that he is, he grows childishly angry and disruptive on set, eventually leading to an intervention from his wife, Xiomara. Xo admits she finds it emboldening that a woman in Hollywood is “winning the fight for gender parity”—receiving such pay for doing the same work as men, and River echoes this sentiment when Rogelio confronts her, remaining firm that she is the “bigger name” and has worked very hard to get to this point in her career. Not everything is about Rogelio. But Rogelio later confides in Xiomara that he has done research that reveals pay parity also affects people of color. This is a rather serious moment for his character, as though he is often portrayed as a stereotypically dramatic and flamboyant Latinx man, here he speaks quite soberly. He makes the point that the telenovela is his passion project and his culture—he has been trying to bring it to American audiences for years, but as a Latino he feels that he and his work are undervalued by the White Hollywood mainstream. This brings to light the interesting point that while River is a woman working in a historically sexist industry (of which the show rightly critiques), she has the privilege of being a white American. Rogelio on the other hand, was initially a Mexican television actor and does not have this race advantage to aid him in his dream of being a crossover star. The commentary on racial issues in America is furthered in the next scene, where Jane is seen silently reacting to a web article about immigration titled “Trump tells ICE, ‘Deport the Illegals.’ Massive Family Reunification Failure—with a look of utter disbelief painted across her face. Suffice to say, with family being one of the most important things to Jane and with her being descended from Venezuelan immigrants, it makes sense that she would not be a fan of how the Trump administration was handling border control.

It is later seen that River was informed of Rogelio’s viewpoint and she apologizes, vowing to help him as they fight for pay parity together. In the end, Rogelio discovers River only told him this to achieve “woke points” and further her own public image, by featuring on covers of Latinx magazines as a declared ally to Latinx people. It is an interesting commentary on white savior behavior and performative activism, as Rogelio does not seem offended by this (in fact he looks rather impressed by her play), but seeing as he has consistently been portrayed as a man that takes career very seriously, it makes sense that a high profile actress doing a bit of self-serving would not surprise him.

Throughout the show, the strong bonds between the three Villanueva women (Jane, her mother, and grandmother) are portrayed as the heart of the story. Whether from Xiomara, who takes pride in her sexuality, or Abuela who remains firm, yet not unrelenting in her deep-rooted Catholic beliefs of saving oneself for marriage, they represent how there is not just one right way to be a woman and the only one in charge of how you want to present yourself and live your life—is you. In this episode in particular, there is another strong relationship between women on display, in the form of Jane and Petra. Petra has been a major supporting character since the first episode, and though her behavior as ally or antagonist has fluctuated over the course of the seasons, she has solidly found her way into Jane’s inner circle. Though apparently not as solidly as she had hoped, as in this episode she grows upset, believing Jane does not like or trust her enough to discuss sensitive issues. Jane assures her that this is not the case and likens them to sisters—something she never had growing up— and Petra awkwardly agrees. Fans in the past have been quick to see potential romantic undertones to Petra’s relationship with Jane, and connected her backstory of isolation, a controlling parent, and desperate need to be accepted and loved to themes found in traditionally queer narratives. Thus the previous season’s reveal that Petra is bisexual was not all that hard to believe. The show gave her a female love interest in the form of Jane Ramos (better known as “JR”-- her first name partially an homage to the connection fans found between Petra and protagonist Jane), but they have since broken up. In her heart-to-heart with Main Jane, Petra confesses that she still loves JR and wishes to talk to her again. Though there is something to be said about the show’s treatment of sapphic characters in the past (as with the villainization of Luisa and Rose…), in this instance the relationship is portrayed in a positive and casual light, as Jane happily suggests that Petra “accidentally” butt-dial her old flame to strike up a conversation. There is no judgment from any of Petra’s friends and family surrounding her choice of lover and they seem to support and encourage her.

Another moment that seems worth mentioning is the brief incident where Petra’s daughter, Anna, is fighting with her brother, Mateo. He hits his sister and she very vehemently declares, “Do not touch my body!” Petra immediately praises her for this, making it clear that she taught the child to “defend herself” (which is important in terms of Petra’s character, as she suffered multiple abusive relationships in the past). It is nice to see a portrayal of boundaries and consent in everyday life being taught at a young age. In this day and age it is imperative that more people understand that it is okay to say no and to reject physical touch if they are uncomfortable, and equally important to respect others who say no. Perhaps it is a lesson that Jason could use as well. This is in the same episode where he continues to pursue Jane, who is already in a loving relationship and has turned him down multiple times. Jane eventually agrees, partly to get the divorce papers, but also because she feels obligated to help the man she once loved. Petra advises her that she does not owe him anything—Jason is a perfect stranger to her now—and all Jane should do is what she feels is right, in order to protect herself and her family. So many times women are expected to push their feelings aside for the sake of being caretakers or support systems to a man, so seeing Jane put her foot down and send Jason away at the end of the episode feels a special kind of empowering.

- Admin Faith

Works Cited:

“Chapter Eighty-Four.” Jane the Virgin, written by Valentina L. Garza and Deidre Shaw, directed by Brad Silberling, CBS and Warner Brothers, 2019.

Swartz, Anna. “The showrunner of ‘Jane the Virgin’ on women’s sexuality, words you can’t say and Petra’s coming out.” Mic, www.mic.com/articles/188051/the-showrunner-of-jane-the-virgin-on-womens-sexuality-words-you-cant-say-and-petras-coming-out. Accessed 18 November 2020.

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