#i picked from stuff i watch specifically at this time of year/halloween vibe

[taylizmasterpost]

Jake Gyllenhaal and Jealous Liz (October 2010 - February 2011)

Now, there’s a lot to say about Jake and Taylor. The time they got together was a time when he was promoting his movie, Love and Other Drugs, and she was about to drop Speak Now. So at first glance, it look a lot like a traditional PR stunt. However, they do not have a first public meeting -- something that Taylor has with a lot of her other PR relationships (think Calvin at the Fund Fair or Harry at the KCAs), and seemed generally more camera shy. 

Jake’s costar in Love and Other Drugs, Anne Hathaway, was also single at the time, and arguably a PR relationship between the two of them would’ve drummed up significantly more buzz for the film, so stunting with Taylor seems an odd choice.

Jake also reportedly annoyed Taylor with how much he wanted to hide from the press, which is interesting. I’m not totally certain if they were real or not, but I’ll put all of their stuff in here, because it’s interesting to note Liz’s reaction to all of it, despite her relationship:

23 October 2010 - Emma Stone hosts SNL. Both Taylor and Jake G show up to support her, supposedly they’ve already started dating at this point and this was their first public appearance together.

"They walked around together backstage, but they were careful not to be seen too close. It was hard to tell if they were together, but everyone was shocked that she brought him," a source told People magazine.

Notice the lack of public meeting. Strange that they just showed up together dating. 

24 October 2010 - Liz tweets about listening to Never Grow Up

October 2010 - Taylor writes All Too Well, the first of the three “Nashville songs” -- All Too Well, State of Grace, Stay Stay Stay-- that were written for the Red album before she moved to LA, based on the fact that she said she started writing for Red slightly before Speak Now was released.

We also know All Too Well has to have been written in 2010 because what the copyright record for it says:

Now, it seems to me that this is too soon to be about Jake. It’s obviously a breakup song, and Taylor and Jake have only just started dating (unless they had a secret dating history we don’t know about). It would be weird for her to be writing all this about him while they’re still dating.

All Too Well could be about any of the three women I’ve spoken previously about in this masterpost. However, I’m going to try to make the case that this song is for Liz:

All Too Well is Liz’s favorite song from Red. She has said so on multiple occasions. Years later, when she came to watch Taylor’s Reputation tour in Glendale, Taylor even played it for her as the surprise song. Sure, it could just be that Liz is just a fan, but the song fits where we are in the timeline. Liz has moved on with someone else. Taylor is trying to get over it, but she can’t help but think back to the past she remembers “all too well.”

If the song is about a woman, lines like “back before you lost the one real thing you’ve ever known” reads to me as Taylor making a (possibly unfounded) dig at closeting. All Too Well also carries the bad driving metaphor with “almost ran the red,” which runs throughout a lot of the other Liz songs on Red, and which Liz will later reference herself in her own music. The lines in the bridge about “asking for too much” and “running scared,” remind me of Taylor insisting she was single during Valentine’s Day, despite spending it with Liz, only to turn around and miss her once Liz got a boyfriend. Lines about loss of innocence are also interesting, when we think about that L Chat post about Liz from earlier...

Of course, obviously, you can think this song is about whoever you want. If you wanna claim it for JH or Joe Jonas or Taylor Lautner or maybe even some girl Taylor went to high school with, be my guest. I personally don’t buy it being about Emily in a post-Dear John world, and the timeline doesn’t read as Jake to me, so I’m giving it to Liz!

25 October 2010 - Speak Now is released. In the album’s prologue, she specifies that the song “Long Live” is for her band, which is interesting to me, considering that the bridge of the song sounds like it might be about a relationship, and the secret message of the song is “For you,” which sounds oddly specific:

Will you take a moment? Promise me this That you’ll stand by me forever But, if God forbid, fate should step in And force us into a goodbye If you have children someday When they point to the pictures, Please tell ‘em my name

The secret message for Mine is “Toby,” which is the name of the actor who played her love interest during the song, making it make no sense for the song to be about him (and, in my eyes, making it more likely she was trying to cover up who the song was really for). We’ve already discussed Story of Us having “CMT Awards” and Back to December having “Tay,” so I won’t beat you over the head with those.

Unlike the original handwritten lyrics to Sparks Fly, which featured the lyric “Get me with those brown eyes, baby,” the version that Taylor put on the Speak Now album had the lyric “hit me with those green eyes, baby,” with the eye color presumably being changed because Liz has green eyes:

The secret message for Sparks Fly is “Portland, Oregon,” which is where Taylor and The Agency covered Tom Petty’s song American Girl in May 2009 during the height of early TayLiz. 

26 October 2010 - Taylor and Jake are spotted together in Brooklyn getting lunch with Emma Stone:

Liz does a sound check for Taylor for the Today Show. A video later gets posted on YouTube and someone leaves this comment noting Taylor and Liz’s chemistry:

31 October 2010 - Taylor and Jake are spotted in Big Sur together and stay at California’s Post Inn Ranch. 

Liz spends Halloween with her boyfriend:

1 November 2010 - Taylor’s appearance on Ellen airs. Ellen asks her about Jake. Taylor says “I’m always optimistic about love. Yes, always, sometimes.”

2 November 2010 - Taylor and Jake are spotted in Santa Barbara together. They get ice cream, interact with fans, and Taylor reportedly laughs at everything Jake says.

16 November 2010 -  Jake attends the Love and Other Drugs premiere alone. This is interesting to me, considering if this was a PR relationship you would’ve thought he’d bring Taylor as his date. Still, Paula made some weird decisions in her time as Taylor’s publicist (like putting her with a carousel of 18 year olds), so this could just be Paula thinking that Taylor showing up at the premiere with him would be too obviously read as a stunt. Doesn’t rule it either way. Still, I think Anne would’ve been a better choice for PR for this.

Mid November - Perez Hilton alleges that Jake has picked up Taylor on his private jet to fly her to London because she was “feeling lonely.” Jake was in London promoting Love and Other Drugs so this seems very stunty to me personally.

22 November 2010 - Taylor attends the American Music Awards and wins Favorite Female Country Artist.

Liz tweets congratulations at her and seems generally excited.

24 November 2010 - Love and Other Drugs is officially released in theaters.

25 November 2010 - Taylor and Jake spend Thanksgiving in Brooklyn with Jake’s family.

26 November 2010 - Liz seems to have spent Thanksgiving with Jason:

27 November 2010 - Taylor and Jake are spotted in a coffee house in Nashville:

And, maybe in response, Liz makes this weird and vaguely jealous Tweet:

Now, I don’t know what this means. Maybe the “you” refers to Liz and she’s having what Carly Rae Jepsen would call “boy problems” -- feeling torn and overburdened between a best friend and boyfriend:

Or, perhaps, the “you” in this Tweet refers to Taylor, and Liz is trying to say that Jake is “using her up,” maybe meaning taking up her time. Or maybe Liz wasn’t referring to any of this. We can’t really know. Still, it’s interesting.

29 November 2010 - TayLiz hang out and Liz tweets about it. Perhaps to make up for the lack of time spent together since they both got boyfriends.

30 November 2010 - Taylor and Jake have coffee in Nashville:

1 December 2010 - Taylor writes a MySpace post about the CMTs.

Liz tweets about watching Glee, meaning she’s the one who got Taylor hooked on the show and therefore interested in Dianna. Hilarious.

2 December 2010 - Taylor calls Love and Other Drugs a “good movie” when asked about it, and won’t say anything more. She also adamantly refuses to talk about her personal life (This gives me 2018/19 Joe vibes, whatever that means).

3 December 2010 - Liz tweets that her favorite song on Speak Now is Last Kiss. She also tweets at Jason about his cooking:

5 December 2010 - Jake is asked about Taylor and says this:

“One of the greatest parts about being in a relationship is the intimacy you share, but it can be difficult if you’re being watched the whole time.”

This reminds me so much of what Taylor’s currently saying about Joe. Interesting, looking back on it.

7 December 2010 - Jake and Taylor do the “maple latte” pap walk stunt in Brooklyn with Maggie and her daughter. This is the only series of photos of them that I think was a set-up, but that means it’s pretty gross this is the one they chose to bring a child into:

I think the reason this was so obviously a pap walk was to get the “maple latte” in the shot. I’ve already speculated that Taylor had written All Too Well prior to her relationship with Jake, and this stunty pap walk would make sense if she needed to use him to cover for it.

8 December 2010 - Liz makes another weird vague possibly jealous tweet:

Now, in the context of Mine possibly being about Liz and Taylor saying that song is about her “tendency to run from love,” it’s possible Liz is shading Taylor’s pap walk with Jake the previous day. This tweet feels very “back before you lost the one real thing you’ve ever known.”

However, maybe she’s just really happy with Jason. I don’t know. I don’t know these people.

9 December 2010 - Taylor and Jake drive around LA, Jake yells at the paps.

Compare these to those photos with Taylor Lautner earlier in the timeline. These are not nearly as staged. Take away from that whatever you will.

13 December 2010 - Taylor turns 21. Liz and Caitlin bring her a pizza. Liz tweets at Taylor that she’s changed her life. This is supposedly the birthday that Jake didn’t show up to that The Moment I Knew is about. Liz and Caitlin bringing her pizza if she’s sad about it would make sense...

31 December 2010 - Taylor and Liz spotted together in Nashville. They get Pei Wei and JustJared calls Liz a “gal pal.” Taylor seems upset, possibly about her whole Jake birthday thing. Or possibly something else.

Liz tweets about going for a run and listening to Speak Now:

5 January 2011 - Taylor and Jake break up.

19 January 2011 - Taylor and Jake are spotted together by fans in Nashville, first at a coffee shop and then at dinner. Jake did not have any other business in Nashville, so it can be assumed he came there to talk to Taylor:

CONCLUSION: Were Taylor and Jake real? I don’t know. They really only ever did that one pap walk and didn’t seem to publicly promote each other’s work, as far as I could find, despite both releasing projects while together. The one pap walk they did seems to maybe have been to cover for All Too Well, which had possibly already been written (likely about Liz) before Jake and Taylor started dating.

Were those tweets from Liz jealousy? Or am I reading too much into it?

Either way, Taylor’s had her fun, and now it’s time to maybe start thinking about getting back together with Liz. There’s just one problem: her boyfriend.

The Speak Now Tour Begins (February 2011 - May 2011)

[we-are-the-amb]

Hey what up bro. How have you been? I was wondering if you had any headcannons of Star hanging out with Edgar and Alan? I dunno if I asked this or someone else, but ya know-

And if you wanted to take a break from talking about the lost boys, then what's your favorite fruit? I have a three way tie of Strawberries, Kiwifruit, or Mangos. Anything tart is pretty preem.

Hey there, buddy! I’ve been well, thank you, I hope you have been, too? I will happily answer both your queries! My favourite fruits are mangos, cantaloupe and pineapple. However, I also enjoy raspberries, mandarins and green apples. I agree, tart fruits are king. Funnily enough, I think I’m slightly allergic to kiwi fruit! Each time I’ve eaten it, my lips have gone raw and sore. 

As for headcanons about Star and the Frogs, I certainly have some! I’m taking note of the term “hanging out”, because I have a lot of angsty thoughts about this, but I shall keep it a bit lighter. 

- Okay, here’s the thing; Star, Edgar and Alan are all really quite similar and come from similar backgrounds. All are children of neglectful parents, and all are neurodivergent and undiagnosed. The main difference is that Star was an only child, where the Frogs are siblings and very close knit. This has affected their developments, differently. 

- It does reach a point where they can see eye-to-eye, and consider each other friends, even family. However, they have a lot to unpack, before they get to that point. Progress is slow, because while they do see each other a great deal, they rarely converse and are rarely alone with each other.  I wanted to air some of this out in a fic I planned to write, but never did, in which Star and Edgar have a heavy confrontation. Specifically Star and Edgar, because while their backgrounds are similar, their is a greater conflict of personality, than between Star and Alan. 

- The Frogs had joined the Emersons on a camping trip, and one evening the youngsters decided to play hide and seek, in the forest. Star had split off from her group, to enjoy the scenery, alone. It was on her walk that she came upon Edgar, also alone and fast approaching a meltdown. He in an unfamiliar area, and Alan was nowhere to be seen, and that was enough to make him feel like the trees, themselves were bearing down on him. 

- Star remembered seeing Marko get like this, at times, and she had not known what to do then, either. Though she liked Edgar much less, hated him even, she knew it wouldn’t be right to leave him alone in that state. So, she gingerly approached Edgar, reluctantly holding out her scent locket, her favourite stim item. When Edgar took notice of her, he growled defensively, and refused to sniff the locket in her hand, he wasn’t a dog. With some strain, she took off the locket and offered it to him to hold, snapping at him not to drop it. He did listen, holding the locket so hard his knuckles turned white. Huffing at the tiny gap in his fingers, he was surprised and relieved to smell lavender, not patchouli. He had always hated the smell of patchouli, as his mother wears it, as an alternative to bathing. He could never sit near Star, because of the familiar smell. 

- Star stuck with him, until the others found them. It was then that all the bad feelings came out. See, both parties have some strong flaws, preconceptions and issues that have gone without confrontation. Star, at her core, is a very stubborn person, with a view that much resembles those of the fantasy books that comforted her, as a child. She’s carrying a lot of guilt from that bloody night at the Emerson house, because deep down she believes she could have done more to prevent such an end. She coddles herself, by projecting her own feelings of weakness and selfishness onto the Frogs, but particularly Edgar, being the stronger personality. Edgar does not seem to feel conflicted at all about what he did, and she both envies and hates him for it. It’s easier for her, to cast him and Alan as the villains. 

Edgar, for his part, does have one regret from that night. It does scare him that he wielded a stake so readily against Laddie, even if he could have fought back and won. Laddie has sort of become his friend, a kid he wants to protect. It makes him queasy to remember standing over him with a stake, ready to kill. But, similar to Star, he comforts himself by thinking he did what he had to do, to make things right and protect Santa Carla. He wasn’t the genius who turned Laddie in the first place. And he hates Star, because that fanciful, flighty way of her’s just makes him think of his mother, who has never raised a finger to help him. How dare she blame him for her failure to fix things on her own. 

- So, that’s where the relationship really begins, with a fight. By the time the others find them, things have changed. They’ve both seen sides of themselves and each other, they had not wanted to, but had to. It’s rocky, but it’s a start. When Star gets her locket back from Edgar’s hand, the metal is hot from a clenched fist. She can hardly stand to touch it, though the fragrance has become strong in that heat. 

- Anyway, on to the lighter stuff, because things do get better! 

- Alan and Laddie are pretty close. Both share a great love for fantasy and fairytales, as Star does. More than once, Star has caught him reading one of her’s and Laddie’s books to him, with Edgar sitting back and listening (Edgar is dyslexic, and Alan frequently reads to him, too). When Alan quarrels with Laddie about whether, or not fairies are real (Alan says yes, Laddie says no), those arguments invariably end up coming up with Star. Star, for her part, very much wants to believe in fairies, but isn’t as sure of them, as Alan. The first Halloween she has with the Emersons, Alan actually tells her to leave some dishes of honey around the perimeter of the house, to keep the fairies away from Laddie. 

- As you can imagine, the three end up talking folklore quite a bit, when they do talk, at all. Star has a great interest in it, but the Frogs exhaust themselves into comas every Halloween, trying to kept the town safe. It gets to a point where she begins to help with some of the cake baking and cross making that goes into their elaborate defences. 

- Star is a very good artist, particularly when it comes to sculpture. She rediscovers her talent, living with the Emersons. She makes toadstools, and dragons and little nonsensical critters. Sometimes, when the Frogs are waiting for Sam, they furtively watch her sculpt. One year, Sam commissions Star to make a pair of little frogs, for the brothers’ Christmas presents. They repay her the next year, with a painted pebble and a hand woven bracelet. They are quite artistic, themselves. 

- Star teaches herself embroidery, and the Frogs can sew fairly well. Now and then, they sit together and customise their jackets. 

- Their taste in music is quite similar. Sometimes they can all sit and vibe along to Janis Joplin, or The Grateful Dead, or The Incredible String Band. They all really let their stims out when they listen to music, as it make sense them so happy and eases their self consciousness. 

- Star and Sam both collect crystals, which they share with great enthusiasm. Edgar and Alan have a fear and mistrust of crystals, though they played with them as children, and refuse to even touch them. Star almost teases them at first, waving pieces of her collection near them and almost getting her hands smacked, each time. Then, she and Sam make an effort to help them see that the crystals won’t harm them. Star picks out the smallest, smoothest rocks and places them in their hands, getting them used to the feel of them and showing them the stones have no power over them and won’t hurt them. 

That’s all I can think of, for now, buddy! It’s not much, I know, but I hope you enjoy it. 🖖

#star #star (the lost boys) #edgar #edgar frog #alan #alan frog #the lost boys #lost boys #awesome monster bashers #frog brothers #headcanons

[fuck-you-i-am-spiderman]

Oh lookey, it’s another tag-game I’m doing late 🤭 whoops! But here I am and my answers are all little paragraphs so you’re welcome! Thank you to @daggery and @hoodpane for tagging me, ILY guys 💕

Favourite colour: listen y’all, I fluctuate between favourite colours because black isn’t technically a colour? But so like my fave villain kids, my most loved/fave colours are red and purple (and black! I’m including it!!!) Those are the colours I like the most and if I have to pick an object or an item based on colour I will gravitate to one of those three. Also, fun fact - my hair has been all of these colours at one point (my hair is currently red-orange and pink-ish sooooo)

Currently reading: novels who? I only know fanfic. I wish I was joking, but I haven’t read an actual book in soooo long, I’m pretty sure I’m part way through like 3 different books and they all have a different bookmark in them. I struggle with reading actual books unless I’ve read them before. But I loooooove reading fanfiction and I can read 20+ chapters in a very short space of time. I have a list of ones I need to read within the descendants fandom (ily guys and I will read and comment on things eventually, or you’ll just get a moodboard made for you).

Last song I listened to: I listen to so much music on a daily basis, like I need it to function properly and then I end up flicking through songs until I find one I “vibe” with at that moment. The two songs I listened to last are: ‘Good to you’ by Marianas Trench (on spotify when we were in the car) and ‘Thank god you introduced me to your sister’ by Sarah Barrios (on youtube, a few moments ago), two completely different vibes but my music taste is so varied it flicks between so many genres and moods

Last series I watched: Motherland Fort Salem. It’s soooooooooo good and witchy and there’s only like 2 men in it. It got me really excited and hooked in so quickly. I watch a lot of shows, I like to emerse myself in different worlds to escape my problems...I mean what but it’s so dramatic and I love how gender roles are really flipped in it. Side note: I am super excited for Doctor Who to return on the 31st, so prepare yourselves for that explosion on my blog

Last movie: Monsterville: Cabinet of Souls. Cheesy halloween movie that feels like a DCOM but actually isn’t. It has the same vibes and made me smile a lot. I had a good time and it has several cast members I really like in it so the cheese is worth it. I’ve watched a few other things on Netflix but it’s mainly series or catching up on Bake Off

Sweet, savoury or sour: why do I have to choose? Like, why can’t I snack on all of them and enjoy it?! Like give me a bag of cheetos and some sour patch kids. Watch me snack on crackers like a fucking bird and then eat an entire tub of jelly beans in one sitting. I have a sweet tooth so I’m probably more inclined to eat sweet snacks but then I need savoury, like give me a cheese string or some carrot sticks and homous. I cannot and will not choose!

Anything you’re craving: Too many things. Emotional stability Like now I’ve mentioned jelly beans I want those. Also this very specific brand of iced tea that I first found in a small shop that was across from the flat I lived in during my first year of university. Also some breadsticks!

Currently working on: Getting the motivation to do the last of food prep for today and do the boring tasks of cleaning shit in the flat. Butttttt, fun-ish stuff I’m working on include: finishing my embroidery project, adding more characters to the “characters I relate to/headcanon as having/1000% have ADHD” powerpoint that I will eventually post on here and trying to finish my “5 times Carlos is a little shit and Jay gets the blame” oneshot featuring a lot of marlos shenanigans and a pouty Jay.

#about me #personal #taggety tag game #spidey speaks #I tried not to write an essay for every answer :'))) #I know I've been pretty ghosty and I have no excuse except life got REALLY hard #I've been in a bit of a shitty headspace but I'm getting a bit better now #so voila have this

[amplesalty]

Halloween 2021 - Day 5 - The Invisible Ray (1936)

Doesn’t that just sound like a bad magician? “Ladies and gentlemen, introducing...The Invisible Ray!”

Ah, this takes me back. Back in year 0 of this horror marathon business, before this blog was a thing, it was kinda heavily skewed towards the ‘classic’ period; Dracula, Frankenstein, The Mummy..all that Universal 1930’s type stuff. Amongst that first run were a pair of films starring both KARLOFF and Bela Lugosi;  The Black Cat and The Raven. I remember them both being quite good, both having this sort of rivalry between their two characters. The Black Cat moreso with a young couple caught in the middle of a heated feud between KARLOFF and Lugosi’s characters. Whereas The Raven has KARLOFF as more of a de-facto good guy as he plays a reluctant henchman to Lugosi’s character. Not that that level of power translated off screen, with Lugosi’s star beginning to fade but I remember reading something about KARLOFF insisting on some parity in pay between the two in one of their movies when the studio tried to lowball Lugosi so good on you, KARLOFF.

Neither have much to do with the Edgar Allan Poe stories they take their names from, outside of Lugosi’s character in The Raven having an obsession with Poe and adapting various means of torture from Poe stories. There have been plenty of Poe adaptations throughout the years but the other big uptick in them was in the 1960’s with a series of films directed by Roger Corman, often starring Vincent Price but with other big names sprinkled in like KARLOFF, Peter Lorre and Lon Chaney Jr. Plus a relatively early Jack Nicholson appearance in The Raven, which was shot at the same time as The Terror. That bloody bird!

So, yeah, it’s good to see one of these KARLOFF/Lugosi films again. Apparently there are eight films that featured both of them so I’ll be halfway there now on them. This also has Carl Laemmle Jr’s name attached, albeit in a minor way as he’s listed as ‘presenting’ the movie. I’m not sure if that ever means anything. It’s like when Tarantino ‘presents’ something, did he have any actual input on the film or was he just shining a light on something he personally liked because he has so much power and influence?

The movie’s foreword is an early indicator of the more science-fiction leaning nature of the movie which catches you off guard a little with the people involved and the timeframe we’re working in. Feels like the 50’s was more when the whole sci-fi thing took off. Also, since when was science a verb?

Certainly has the feel of that classic ‘old, dark house’ horror thing early on as we start with the Rukh household awaiting the arrival of some of Dr Janos Rukh’s (KARLOFF) peers who are to bear witness to his new discovery.

KARLOFF has clearly been eating his crusts to get curls like that, normally he’s a slicked back kind of guy. And it’s kinda weird seeing both of them with facial hair. Oddly though this is one of the rare times that Lugosi plays a good guy, this is a clear violation of the parallel universe protocol:

Normal universe – clean shaven – good guy Parallel universe – goatee – evil

This early version of Dr. Doom is a bit naff. Are you making a great scientific discovery here or doing a spot of welding?

Apparently Dr Rukh’s invention is a telescope that is able to see into the deepest reaches of space, but can also pick up on vibrations left by the events that have taken place and he can then project that as a moving image that shows an asteroid crashing to Earth millions of years ago that can help him pinpoint the crash site and allow him to discover new elements inside the asteroid...wait, what?! Is this like that time on CSI when they solved a murder by getting sound out of something someone made in pottery class because the grooves could be played like a vinyl?

We then pivot sharply into the great plains of Africa where our team have set off in search of what will become known as ‘Radium X’. Oh yes, I think that’s on the periodic table next to Hardtoobtainium. And I’m specifically trying to avoid animal cruelty by not watching Cannibal Holocaust, don’t come around here with your dead leopards and talk of how many rhinos you’ve shot. I must say I’m a little wary of this sudden introduction of all these natives carrying spears and wearing bone necklaces, I just don’t feel like I can trust a movie made in the 1930’s to be sensitive on it’s portrayal of other cultures.

Thought it does present us with the best actor in this picture, look at those bug eyes! He’s like Africa’s answer to Marty Feldman.

And that’s just his reaction to a piece of scanning equipment going off, him and his mates are definitely going to be worried when this white devil makes a demonstration of his new found Radium X and it’s ability to melt pure stone. Looks like a portajohn backing up...

He then promptly turns his cosmic ray gun on all the locals when they tell him they want to go home. Sure, you can leave, you’re not going to get very far though. Dude, there’s like 12 of you and he’s given some of you rifles. Just jump him when he’s asleep.

Dr. Rukh finds that evening that he’s suddenly turned an interesting shade of neon yellow and can be seen by anyone in a three mile radius so either this Radium X is highly poisonous or Rukh has been running in opposition to Vladimir Putin. This poisoning leaves him so irradiated that merely touching another living thing is enough to kill it. Dr. Benet (Lugosi) is able to make a serum for him but can never truly cure him, he must regularly take this serum or otherwise he will revert to this killing machine type state.

But, in his eagerness to not spread this poison to his wife, and his general upholding of the man code to never air ones medical problems, he generally acts a bit surly and tells her to piss off which see views as him not loving her anymore so he promptly shacks up with the young explorer type who came with them to Africa. Worse yet, Benet and crew have taken a sample of Radium X to show at a scientific conference in Paris. Between losing his missus and thinking that other people are taking all the credit for his work, Rukh is just slightly annoyed.

It’s not all bad though, he is able to use this new element to cure his mother’s blindness. I like how his first reaction upon learning that Radium X has irrecoverably changed his life, leaving him one missed injection away from imminent death, is to shoot it directly into his mother’s face.

“Patients won’t like being shot in the face.” “They’ll like what I tell them to like.”

Whilst sulking outside of the church that his ex is getting re-married in, he spots a series of statues of saintly figures and imagines them representing each of the 6 people on the African expedition, vowing to destroy each of them until only he is left. Marvelous invention this Radium X, it can melt statues and cure blindness. Do you have to put special filters on that ray gun of yours depending on the situation? That’s a malpractice suit waiting to happen if you mix those up.

Dr. Benet is a little suspicious when one of their party dies suddenly for no explainable reason so takes a few ultraviolet photos of the victims eyes in order to study. And wouldn’t you know what he finds?

Bullshit! Nevermind the ultraviolet camera, this is more like the dues ex machine camera. I know this is science fiction and all but what is this, 1936 or 2036? Or maybe they’re just able to make the most detailed contact lenses known to man.

Eventually, when Rukh finds himself unable bring himself to kill his former love, he is confronted by his mother who smashes the serum and condemns him to death as, going unchecked, the Radium X within him will destroy his body. Sensing the end coming, Dr. Rukh dives out of the nearest window and promptly erupts bursts into flames, now left as little but a pile of ash on a damp Paris street. It’s a shame really, dozens of people spontaneously combust every year, it’s just not widely reported.”

This one was okay, definitely a different vibe compared to other Universal stuff at the time with all the science fiction and Africa based stuff but it does still travel down that ‘descent into madness’ thing that they often fall back on and it’s always fun to see KARLOFF and Lugosi, especially when they’re together. But, if we’re strictly talking about the KARLOFF/Lugosi pairing, I’m definitely leaning towards one of their other outings like Black Cat, Raven or Son of Frankenstein. There’s just something not right about Lugosi playing some normal, if he’s not being unhinged then you’re not really getting what you came here for.

#Halloween 2021 #The invisible Ray #KARLOFF #Bela Lugosi

[amazingmsme]

For the horror ask thing, 3 and 20!

3. you're planning a horror movie marathon with your friends - which movies are you picking? The original Halloween & Nightmare on Elm Street first of all, those are my top faves. Room 1408, A Quiet Place, The Amityville Horror but the one with Ryan Reynolds, Delirium, Silence of the Lambs, What Lies Beneath, Bad Times at the El Royale, Kiss the Girls & probably a lot more that I can’t think of right now, but horror is like my favorite genre of film & I tend to prefer paranormal & psychological stories as well as more realistic ones like people being kidnapped or escaping a killer. Midsommar & The House that Jack Built are also fantastic films but both get extremely fucked up & graphic so I’d have to check with whoever I’m watching with. The Conjuring movies are all great & id probably have a marathon just for them

20. do you have any personal scary stories? something that happened to you or somebody close to you? I have way too many, you’d think being the only people who ever lived in this house would mean no ghosts, but you’d be wrong. But I’ll give some highlights:

-1 time when I was trying to leave my room as a kid, some orange nail polish shot out directly in front of my face & hit the wall before sliding down to the floor. With how fast it was going it 100% should’ve broke but it kind of stayed there for a second before falling down

-my sister heard & felt someone whisper in her ear that was pressed against her pillow

-I saw a tall man in my closet watching me dance in my room, this was around the time I was in middle school. To this day I’m still paranoid that I’ll see him if I go dance in there

-one time as a kid it was freezing outside but I still wanted to go out & play. My grandma was watching me while my mom took my sister to the doctor & I was playing out of sight from any window. My old dog Gabby was super protective & barked at everything, & out of nowhere this young woman appears, I’d say mid to late teens. For reference I was wearing 2 pairs of pants, a long sleeve shirt, a puffy jacket & a hat & gloves. This girl was wearing short shorts, a spaghetti strap tank top & was barefoot with no visible signs that she was cold. I was just frozen staring at her & she looked at me. I think she might’ve said she liked my dog but I can’t really remember. I looked over at Gabby & back at her & she was gone

-a few years ago when I stepped out of the shower, 3 full fingers were pressed into the steam on the mirror, but what’s really odd is that there was no palm mark. Of course I took a picture

-we have a tiny porcelain doll that’s haunted & I’m positive that’s where the little girl came from. She’s chilled out over the years but it used to be every time you talked about it, something would happen about 30 minutes after. Like our drapes would fly open, the tv would turn on, we heard a ringing that wasn’t our doorbell, weird shit like that. The guys my mom used to baby sit were terrified of her

-when I was like 3 I was staring at the cabinet she’s kept in & my mom asked what I was doing. She said I had this strange determined & stern look on my face & said “she needs to be standing up.” I was never a stubborn kid but I was adamant about it. After that the activity lessened by a lot

-also regarding the doll, my sister took some pictures of her on the first step in our pool for her photography class but no matter what, the teacher couldn’t open the files for the doll pictures. She could get the other ones but her computer would act very weird when she tried to see those specific ones

-everyone in my family has seen the little girl & even 1 of my sister’s friends saw her go to my room. I think only my sister & I have seen the man tho & he usually appears as a dark shadow, tho when he was in my closet I could see more detail like clothes, but his facial features were in shadow

-the girl looks like your basic horror movie child ghost, like I’m not shitting you. She’s got long dark hair & wears a white dress & whenever I see her the dress is usually the first thing I notice

-2 years ago my sister & I were at our house while my parents when you a high school reunion. We were chilling out by the pool when the chair sitting next to me scooted away from the table. I saw it happen & it freaked me out & my sister heard it & we were both scared. Idk why but I always just assumed they’d never go outside & so shit like that

-random objects can go missing & then appear right before your eyes, but not before you turn the house upside down first. I think they enjoy seeing us frustrated & it ticks me off

-we will hear people talking sometimes but you can’t really make out what they’re saying. If it’s more than 1 voice then it’s always a guy & girl’s voices

-I get touched by them the most out of my family & I fucking hate it. Get your fake dead hands OFF my body I do not like you. I’ve been touched in my house & a few times when I was hospitalized, & once this year at a guest house on vacation. The weird thing about the times in the hospital were that they all happened on the left side of my body. Hands down the worst part of it is when I can feel the size of the hands so I know if it’s a child or adult. & for some reason, ghosts like to touch you 1 finger at a time, 0/10 would recommend

-in my dad’s old house he said he could feel someone sitting on his bed with him & could even see the indention. He said he thought it was his Papaw. But when we go there I almost always get an unsettling vibe

-I made sure to save the best for last! This is my worst/scariest experience & I really hope my cousin doesn’t see this because it happened when they were here. But the younger one was in my room already asleep so I was just chilling on my phone in the dark. My phone illuminated the room just enough so I could see a few feet around me & I saw the girl at the foot of my bed. She had on that stupid white dress & her dark hair hung over her shoulders & hid her face. Then she grabbed the footboard & acted like she was about to fucking crawl up so I noped the fuck out & turned off my phone & proceeded to hide under the covers. Then I just… went to sleep? I mean I’ve been used to that shit all my life but I have no idea how I slept after that. I knew that if I got my mom then it would wake up my cousin & she’d know that something weird was up so I just ignored it the best I could. But you bet your ass I told Mom the next day

Like I said, I have a lot of stories & there’s still more I could share, but most stuff is pretty insignificant & I forget what exactly happened, but stuff does happen. Lately I’ve been seeing a lot of shadows & I really hope that there’s nothing in my new apartment. But yeah, sorry this got so long!

#asks #horror asks #ask meme #ticklishfanart #horror stories #ghost stories #ghosts #scary stuff #scary movies

[havocinthebluebox]

autumnal asks : all of it. Titeplait XD

I am on my phone, it took me like FOREVER to type that XD but thank you sister, I had a lot of fun answering these questions !

1. what is your favorite autumn scent?

The smell of fallen leaves, the smell of cold days to come.

2. would you rather go through a corn maze or go pumpkin picking?

Pumpkin picking, I've never done that ! 🎃

3. what is your favorite halloween candy ?

I don't know if it's a very Halloween candy and I don't know the English word for that but Pommes d'amour are a favorite of mine. I don't like very sugary stuff anymore but anything with caramel in it will make me happy.

4. favorite autumn holiday?

As if you don't know which one ! XD it's not a formal holiday but Samhain for sure.

5. rainy,foggy autumn days or cold,sunny autumn days?

I'll take a whole season of rainy,foggy days over any sunny summer day. Anytime. I love the winter sun though.

6. favorite horror movie to watch on halloween?

I am not a huge horror movie fan, I don't like modern horror. I find it lazy and relying on jump scare. but I like stuff with a creepy vibe and specific ambiance. Most of the time I don't watch movies on halloween, but i'd pick a classic like some Tod Browning's Dracula !

7. do you like raking leaves?

Yes but I am so clumsy believe me you don't want to be near me if I am yielding a rake !

8. do you have any special autumn traditions? what are they?

I put decorations in my flat and make space for a second small altar, season themed. I pour a glass of whiskey, put it there with a though for dead relatives. (It was my late grandfather favorite drink, as well as wine... Did someone in the background say ''social drinking problem'' ?)

9. do you like carving pumpkins?

I've never done that, I'd like to try someday.

10. combat boots or cardigans?

My everyday shoes : Combat boots. But why not both ?

11. yellows,reds and browns or purples,blacks and oranges?

purples,blacks and oranges

12. favorite autumn drink?

Semi-dry apple cider - or sweet cider if I drink it while eating a cake or a crepe with it because 4 heures is the most important meal in my day (I know it's not autumn specific, I just love cider !). But it's such a comforting drink after a stroll in the forest or along the coast on a windy day ! Something special I like to prepare in autumn is hot apple juice with spices in it !

13. do you like pumpkin spice flavored things ?

I do not like pumpkin spice flavored things... I have pumpkin spice flavor running in my blood !

14. favorite type of pie ?

Apple pie or tarte bourdaloue

15. do you have any special halloween traditions? what are they?

I put Halloween themed decorations a few weeks before and launch my Gothic themed playlist, or a Type O Negative album. If there is a party I get ready while listening to it (more like 50% getting ready, 50% awkward dancing). If I have nothing planned I stay home (sometimes in my best outfit or most dramatic dresses even if I am alone because why not ?), have a nice cup of cider and read creepy books : Poppy Z Brite, Edgar Allan Poe, or I go full Requiem Knight Vampire and re-read my comics collection (first edition, the apple of my eyes !)

16. halloween parties or giving out candy to trick or treaters?

Both but Halloween parties if my friends are organizing something.

17. hayrides or campfires?

Campfires.

18. describe your ideal autumn day?

Foggy morning. A long walk in the afternoon and a hot drink once I am back home and then reading or writing curled up in a soft plaid with music in the background while a good meal is simmering.

19. coffee or hot chocolate?

Hot chocolate !

20. alcoholic or non alcoholic apple cider?

Wait, is non alcoholic apple cider a real common thing, like sparkling apple juice, but different ? Is that like non alcoholic beer ? I am so confused ! I just discovered another world.

21. what is your go to autumn outfit(s) ?

I can put my favorite clothes again without dying because of a heatstroke : velvet dresses and light jackets.

My favorite one consists in a velvet black dress with a pointy white collar, a bow and long flared sleeves, lace pair of tighs and boots. If it's a bit cold I'll put a short jacket or cape on it, or the Holy Silver Perfecto.

22. do you wear scarves?

Yes. My favorite ones are my Racenclaw scarf when it's really cold and a black and white shawl with a skull pattern. It's worn out as hell but my father bought it for me at a motorcycle exhibition so it's linked with a good memory !

23. describe your dream autumn date ?

If someone is okay with the idea of spending time with me during my typical ''ideal autumn day'', it's my ideal autumn date ! Nothing fancy ! But for something more ''special'', a long stroll, a stop at a bookstore or record shop, then sharing a snack in a cozy tearoom or sipping a good beer in a pub !

24. scary stories around a camp fire or getting lost in a corn maze with someone ?

Both sound good. I have plenty of true crime/serial killer facts to take part in that ! But on the other hand I can be a scaredy cat plus, above all, I have a wild imagination and after hearing/telling scary stories I'll be startled by the tiniest noise (with the bonus high-pitched-cry). My street cred' won't survive it ! I mean, the corn maze can also be creepy but not in the same way (plus I guess interesting things can happen in there if you go with a special someone 😏).

25. black cats or bats?

Did I make you chose between chocolate and litterature ?! WHY ARE YOU TEARING ME APPART LIKE THAT ?!

...Lilith is a black cat so if I really must choose I'll say black cats. But I have love for all the cats in the world. And every single bat has my support.

26. do you decorate for autumn? what is it like?

I like to decorate. I put candles and soft lights everywhere, pick-up fallen leaves and pine cones I find pretty and put that where I can. Also, kitschy Halloween decor and a lot of pumpkin shaped stuff !

27. vampires or witches?

Witches.

28. do you collect crystals?

The corvid in me yells ''Yes. Give me all the pretty/shiny/odd rocks !''

29. do you like cold weather?

I like it a lot. No, I love it.

30. what was your favorite autumn activity as a kid?

I grew up in a French oversea territory so the seasons were not the same. There is no ''autumn'' there ! My favorite memories from that time of the year are linked with Halloween when I was celebrating it (I was a loner and still am so I was also really happy when I just read stories from my most frightening books alone in my bedroom) : finding a good costume idea, finding stuff to make it real, trick or treating with friends and telling scary stories while eating our loot.

#ask #autumn ask #autumn #about me

[ruby-dear]

all of them except 77, 78, 81, 92 and 96

Ember, I know this was you. I’m doing it, but that’s 93 questions you’re asking for so they’re going under a cut. 

1. Talk about your first love. There have been a lot of those, so let me talk about the first one I really remember. I was in eighth grade, at the time, and she wasn’t exactly a great person looking back but she was cool and confident and she liked me, and she called me her best friend, and probably the best school-related memory I’ve ever had was her tackle-hugging me from across a classroom. I didn’t even realize I liked girls until she’d pretty much left my life completely. Maybe I’m looking at it through rose-tinted glasses now, but I think that’s okay, sometimes.  2. What’s the most beautiful songs you’ve ever heard in your opinion? Most of my favorite songs are Owl City, especially the older stuff. It has a soft, dreamlike vibe to it that I find really pretty even when it’s depressing. 3. How’s your heart feeling right now? Pretty good, I think? 4. What kind of self care is your favorite to do? The fun stuff. Bath bombs, makeup, fancy shampoo. Retail therapy actually works pretty well for me, even if a lot of the time I don’t even buy anything. 5. What’s your skincare routine? Um... Shower? 6. How did you get to be so beautiful? Natural talent and carefully learned confidence. 7. Do you have any stuffed animals? Oh, do I. I have like, seventy Webkinz, and that’s without getting into anything else. You could say I collect plushes, even if I don’t do it as actively now. I have a couple of Eevee plushes, too - I’d say I want to own all of them one day, but I’m like, 95% sure that’s not possible. 8. Best trip you’ve ever been on? Once, we went to Prince Edward Island for a week, and my mom surprised me by meeting up with my best friend’s family, who happened to have gotten a room at our hotel for one night. I think that probably wins. 9. Favorite thing about your room? That it’s starting to look like it belongs to me, even if I want to move somewhere else. 10. Opinion on love? It takes work, but it’s worth it.

11. Are you affectionate? Around people I’m comfortable with, definitely. 12. Who do you look up to? The people who have enough confidence to be unapologetically be themselves.

13. Favorite poet? Robert Frost. When I was eleven, I found a book of his poems, and I loved that book so much I didn’t pay any attention in English class at all.

14. Song that makes you happy? How about one that calms you down when you’re in a bad place? There’s a lot of songs that make me happy. Hard to go wrong with the Pokemon theme, though. As for things that calm me down... It’s Alright by Mother Mother and Misguided Ghosts by Paramore have both got me through a lot.

15. Do you play an instrument? No. I was supposed to learn piano in seventh grade, but I couldn’t read the sheet music so they never let me play, and I tried to learn guitar multiple times but it never stuck for the same reason.

16. Do you do art? Using what (pencil, watercolor, etc)? I paint, though not as often as I’d like to! Using acrylics, usually, but watercolors sometimes.

17. Do you dance? What style of dance? I took ballet as a child, til they kicked me out of class, and I still enjoy dancing but I don’t remember any of what I learned.

18. What’s your zodiac sign? Do you believe in astrology? Gemini. I think it might have some kind of truth behind it, but I’m not really one of those all-or-nothing people. It’s just for fun, you know?

19. Favorite old film? I don’t watch a lot of them. Does The Aristocats count?

20. What’s your hairstyle? It’s long and wavy. I’m getting blue highlights soon.

21. What weather is the most beautiful, in your opinion? Light rain. The kind that dries off before you get inside, when the sky is perfectly clear, but it starts falling anyway and it stops just as quickly.

22. What upsets you most about the world? That however hard we try to fix it, we’re unlikely to get very far.

23. Are you in love right now? Yes. At least, I think so.

24. Do you have a crush? If so, talk about them! I have a girlfriend. Is that the same thing? She’s cute and funny and she thinks the same things about me for some reason, and she knows exactly how much of a disaster I can be and hasn’t run away yet.

25. Do you have pets? Talk about something sweet about them! I have a cat, Little Prince. His sister died about a month ago, and she was the one who usually kept me company (total lap-cat), but ever since he’s usually either close to where I am or comes when I call him over.

26. Do you have a lucky number? Any multiple of seven, but especially fourteen. They’re my favorite numbers for the same reason.

27. Have you ever wished on a star? What about on a fallen eyelash? I try to wish on stars, when I see them. Eyelashes I’m usually more annoyed about than anything.

28. Do you believe emoji spells to work? I think anything has the potential to work, given the right amount of effort and intent. That said, I don’t think you’re going to accomplish anything drastic.

29. Do you believe in magic in general? Oh, definitely. Just look at the world we live in. How can you not believe in magic when it’s all around you? The night sky without air pollution, the sunlight dancing on the water, candy cane white hot chocolate - it’s everywhere, in everything.

30. What’s the most beautiful thing in life, In your opinion? Everything. There’s something beautiful in everything, if you look for it. Today, let’s say the feeling of sliding around on a hardwood floor in fluffy socks, dancing along to one of your favorite songs.

31. Opinion on the color pink? What about baby blue? As a kid, I hated pink. I like it now, though. Blue is my color, light blue especially (particularly with star patterns), so I’ve always liked it.

32. What instrumental sound is your favorite? Am I alloawed to say wind chimes? I’ve always thought they sounded super pretty.

33. Do you like the sound of wind? What about the sound of rain? I love them both.

34.Who makes you happy? My friends. All of them, in different ways, the people who are still in my life for various reasons. I love them.

35. What makes you happy? Light rain, strong wind, good music. My cat’s soft meow when I wake him up by accident. White peppermint hot chocolate. Fall colors, string lights, Halloween and winter holidays. Ice and snow and skating, dressing up for no apparent reason. The trick to it all is finding new things every day.

36. Imagine your ideal life, the life you wish to make, what will that look like? A house big enough for a family. A degree of some kind hanging on the wall. A life where I’m making things because that’s what I love, and I can try new things just for fun, where I don’t have to worry about money so much. The chance to get married someday, maybe.

37. Do you wear makeup? If so what’s your favorite type of makeup or specific makeup product? Favorite store to buy makeup? I do! Unless someone else is doing it for me, I generally keep to lipstick and eyeshadow. I’ve never been especially picky about what brands I use, but I usually go to Nyx because it’s on my usual route when I go on shopping trips, and I’m kind of attached now. Plus, nowhere else I’ve been in person has as many bold colours.

38. Do you wear dresses? If so what’s your favorite dress you own? I like wearing dresses. My favorite that I still have is a longer black dress, and it’s in serious need of either repair of retirement, but I got it for $20 as a cosplay outfit last year and it served its purpose. I wear it around still, sometimes, because it’s generally an easy fix.

39. Ever been heartbroken? How do you deal with it? Yeah, a few times. I vent to my friends, usually, and then I eat ice cream and listen to gnash for a while and eventually I start to feel better.

40. Who’s your closest friend? What do you love about them?

41. Introvert or extrovert? Kinda both? It’s complicated.

42. Do you like MBTI? What’s your MBTI? Is that... Fuck, is that the one with the letters? I think I got ENFP last time, and when I was younger it was INFP.

43. Would you be a fairy, a mermaid, a vampire, a siren, a or an angel? I’ve had people tell me I have ‘fae vibes’ before, so let’s go with that and hope it’s not offensive.

44. What’s the best song a friend has ever introduced to you? I don’t remember enough of them to feel good about picking one. I basically only listen to music I’m recommended now.

45. Parlez-vous français? A little, by virtue of being Canadian and having driven through Quebec. Not enough to carry on a conversation.

46. Most beautiful place you’ve been to? Prince Edward Island, hands down. It’s gorgeous.

47. Where/when do you truly feel at home? When there’s a light breeze, and the perfect song is playing, and the people I love are there. When we’re laughing with each other.

48. Does smiling put you in a better mood? Try it right now, you’re smile is gorgeous! I don’t think it does, honestly? But it does tend to happen when I’m happy.

49. Favorite shoe you own? These ankle boots I got secondhand that have little metal stars on them. I’m gonna be so upset when they finally wear out and I need new ones.

50. Can you walk in stilettos? Do you like them? God, no, I’ve tried. Any heel that’s too sharp or pointy or tall is a major problem for me. It’s part of what makes finding shoes such a pain.

51. Do you feel loved? Not always, but yeah. When I remember, or when I ask, or when I’m reminded.

52. How do you express love to those you care about? I try to tell them, but I’m also the type to engage in constant teasing. I’m the friend that punches you in the arm as a show of affection.

53. Favorite term(s) of endearment? The more creative ones. The basics don’t do much for me, honestly, but it’s more about the person saying them anyway.

54. Most romantic thing someone’s ever done for you? Make me feel like I don’t have to try so hard to feel like myself.

55. When is the happiest you’ve ever been? Walking the downtown city streets in winter. It was cold, sure, but it was gorgeous and I finally felt independent for a while.

56. Are you happy right now? Yeah, I’d say so.

57. What makes you smile? Bad jokes, among other things.

58. Do you laugh a lot? Yeah. A lot more than I used to.

59. What’s your favorite kind of aesthetic? Punk/scenecore. They’ve really influenced my more recent style choices.

60. Do you want to marry for love or for some other reason (like money)? Love, definitely.

61. What would your dream wedding look like? Do you want to get married? With someone I love, and the other people I love there too. Somewhere beautiful. I think I do, someday, but it’s not something I’m so worried about.

62. Favorite flower? Roses. Blue Moon Hybrid Tea Roses, in particular, are especially pretty.

63. Favorite artist? I don’t really have one. I do enjoy looking at art, though.

64. Favorite music artist? Owl City.

65. How kind do you think you are? Is kindness important to you? I don’t know. People seem to think I’m kinder than I believe I am. It’s important to me, yeah, to try and help people and to do nice things.

66. Ever made a playlist for someone? A few times. They were never anything special, as far as I’m concerned.

67. Do you have anything you do to physically comfort you when your sad? Such as a favorite blanket? Or a relaxing bath? Long, warm baths and cuddling with my cat. Warm blankets and stories with happy endings.

68. Early bird or night owl? Night owl. I’m a night person.

69. Morning routine? Wake up, do nothing for a while, actually get out of bed and figure out breakfast. While that’s going on, try and figure out if anything important is happening today.

70. Night routine? Get comfortable, then write or daydream til I fall asleep.

71. What is the most lovely quality a person could have in your opinion? Self-confidence and a willingness to help others.

72. Do you cry often? Does crying help you get the emotions out? Do you feel better after? I tend to hold back my feelings til they all fall out. So I end up crying at least twice a month, usually. It helps, yeah.

73. Do you like hugs? From people I feel comfortable with.

74. When was the last time you kissed someone? On the lips? Never.

75. Are you small or tall? Small. I’m 5′0.

76. Do you like wholesome memes? Yes. They’re cute.

79. Have you ever lived in a different country than you currently live in? Nope. I’ve never lived outside this city, only been on trips.

80. Do you like plane flights? Airports? I’ve only flown once, and I was two, so I don’t remember it very well.

82. The beach or a forest? Sand or bugs? Depends on the day. Today, though, forest.

83. What time of day do you tend to be in the best mood? Evening, usually.

84. Do you push yourself to act together and in a good mood even when you aren’t? Yeah, when I’m stressed.

85. Favorite kind of tree? Either maple or pine. I’m Canadian, what can I say?

86. Do you care about the health of the Earth? Yes, but there’s only so much one person can do.

87. What did you like most about your childhood, if anything? Field trips. Adulthood is sorely lacking in field trips.

88. Do you read a lot? What’s your favorite book? I used to. These days I still read, but it’s mostly fanfiction. My favorite books, though, are Tamora Pierce’s Emelan series and the first two books of Kenneth Oppel’s Silverwing trilogy.

89. What are you most nostalgic for at the moment? Trick-or-treating.

90. What’s your favorite personality trait you have? I try to let the people I love know that I love them.

91. List at least ONE thing you love about your appearance. I have pretty great hair.

93. Do you worry a lot? Constantly.

94. The dazzling lights of the city or the relaxing countryside? The city. The countryside’s nice, but the streetlights and the city skyline are what make me feel at home.

95. Ever changed the shoelaces on one of your shoes? For what reason? I actually don’t know how to tie laces, so no. I’ve never been able to pick it up. I might get someone sense to, if I could find cool enough laces.

97. Do you like doing little acts of kindness? Yeah. It feels good to make people happy, you know?

98. How’s your day/night going? Pretty good! I did just spend over an hour on this, but I finished it, so that’s an accomplishment of its own.

#asks #Anonymous #ember why are you like this #ruby speaks #thank you though

[mj-spooks]

Leverage Crew by their favorite holiday?

Okay so I’m going to say Parker’s favorite holiday is probably Halloween? I think costumes would be fun for her since she’s like a little kid, and hello, candy. I could see Christmas, maybe, except one of her character traits is... well, “I don’t like stuff, I like money,” which is more or less a direct quote. If it came down to presents vs candy, I’m guessing she’d pick the latter. Plus she’s such an adrenaline junkie, I can see her being a horror movie fan. I’m now picturing her forcing Hardison and Eliot to watch them with her. This is of course hilarious. And honestly I could see her having a really good time working in a haunted house. Did you know a lot of the higher end haunts have people on bungee cords? Parker’s all over that. She’s terrifying. And no one can quite figure out how she gets to all the places she does with the rig she’s (supposed to be) hooked up on.

Hardison’s, meanwhile, is almost definitely Christmas. Nana’s house was probably one of the ones all done out, yeah? I can see him getting real into helping her decorate. Then there’s the general excitement of the season, and all the delicious food, and the presents. One of my favorite things about Hardison as a character is how he breaks most foster kid tropes, because he has a loving and affectionate foster guardian who actually treats him like her own, to the point that he still as an adult considers her his family. What’s a big foster kid trope in the media? They don’t like Christmas, because they never got a “real” one because they had no family. So this might be my own personal headcanon out of spite for those tropes.

Eliot... alright, I’m gonna level with you here. This one is me being hella biased by my own upbringing. In this specific instance, I gotta say, I have never met a Southerner who did not love the shit out of Fourth of July. And not in a patriotic “God Bless America” kinda way, because ew. I actively want this country figuratively burn in a metaphorical dumpster fire, but July 4 rolls around and you best believe I’ve got a matchbook and something to light. No, more like in a “let’s all go down to the lake, get fucking tanked, and blow shit up” kinda way. Throw in the fact that the food options for Independence Day are usually fish fry (with freshly caught fish), or BBQ, and this definitely feels like a place Eliot would be somewhat typical to his place of origin.

Nate’s complicated for me, because prior to his son’s death, I got a really strong “Thanksgiving” vibe from him. A special time to come together, be with the family, be thankful for your blessings. No obligations of gifts or overly religious trappings to get caught up in, just you and the people that matter most, coming together and talking about how much you love and appreciate one another. That sounds like something Nate could get behind, back in the day. But of course, then his son dies and what has he got to be thankful for? I’m not sure he would’ve had a favorite holiday for a while there, aside from “It’s St Patty’s/Cinco de Mayo/Fourth of July/insert other drinking holiday here, time to get fucking wasted.” I totally see him as being someone who started drinking way early in the day and when someone asked he was like “It’s Cinco de Mayo, I’m celebrating, leave me alone.”

For Sophie, I’m going to guess New Year’s. Partially because of the completely hilarious “New year, new me” joke. I half imagine her sitting around in the days leading up to New Year’s, trying to create a new character for the following year. Tossing out likes and grabbing up new ones. “I think this year I’ll be really into tarot reading,” she says, making a mental note to see about acquiring a deck. But also, New Year’s is one big party, and people love to get all glitzed and glammed up for it. It’s a champagne holiday, and that feels like somewhere she’d be. I don’t think she’s got enough people in her life (pre-Leverage) to have a favorite holiday that’s about family or community in any capacity. And she’s not really a Halloween kind of actress. But a holiday that’s about getting dressed up, going out, and drinking expensive alcohol while reminiscing about the past year and wiping the slate clean for the next? Yeah, I think she could get behind that.

#leverage anon #leverage #holidays

[allurascastle]

There isn't any shame in being upset about somebody who's harassing you. I'm sorry you're going through that. I hope everything works out with the restraining order, or that that guy just leaves you alone in general. Take care.

Aww, thank you! It makes me feel a little better for you to say it, I just…really hate having emotions and being effected by things. Boo.

Admittedly, I’m 60% sure most of my response to this is because this isn’t the typical kind of creeping. THAT I can deal with just fine. This is…wow. Just downright unsettling. (And the conversation we’d been having immediately before the one that sent me into fight or flight mode really just makes the whole thing worse.)

This dude, who I’ll from now on identify as Logan, was someone I first met in early May if I had to guess. It was before Ethan was sent to jail.

(Context of Ethan: he’s one of my two older brothers, who are twins. He is very much the problem child of our family, and is the one getting into legal trouble and drugs all the damn time, is abusive, self-centered, and delusional. Overall: awful person and has done enough shit to warrant me saying he deserves the life sentence he may very well be getting. Back to the story.)

I’m not sure why Logan was in the infant’s diaper aisle, he didn’t grab anything and just tried chatting with me, but he recognised me pretty much on sight (in retrospect, my name isn’t a very common one and we wear name badges, he could have pieced it together from that - and I say that because it was a little too fast for having been three years…or maybe not) as being Ethan’s sister. I say “tried chatting with me” because the second someone utters Ethan’s name, I’m all but gone. I hate him and want nothing to do with him and hia fucking friends need to leave me alone. (But I was at work, so I said “yes, now how may I help you?” and then left with “good night, I have work to do.”)

At the time, I assumed he was one of Ethan’s recent friends. He goes through them like toilet paper, as you’d expect from a serial abuser, and is really great at convincing him he’s great and swell. They never listen and frankly, 8 years of no one listening to you will just have you throwing your hands up in the air and saying “go get your fucking self esteem ruined away from me, idgaf.”

Now…Ethan has this habit of talking about us (the family) and showing off pictures (last I checked), so I chalked it up to that, fumed, angrily ranted with a friend and moved on.

Saw Logan a few other times. He asked me how Ethan was doing once and I angrily snapped “I don’t know, I don’t talk to him.” To which he responded: “that’s a shame, he’s a great guy.” I had no answer appropriate for my workplace so I just walked away from the fitting room with none of the items I intended to put away. I think I saw him one more time before this most recent* time, but I don’t remember any of it.

*the most recent time would be earlier today, 9/24, but I am actually referring to the incident, which happened around 8:10PM on 9/19.

So…the incident. It started off innocently enough - and at this point, I should mention I had bad vibes about this dude already, but brushed them off because he obviously wasn’t neurotypical (which made me disgusted with Ethan, but I wasn’t shocked), I’d guess on the autistic spectrum if I really had to: just the way he talked and seemed to process things.

But so, I figured it was good ol’ social ableism and told myself “you’re better than that” and was friendly with him bc a) it was my job, b) I had no reason to be rude but if he brought my brother the fuck up again I was GONE, okay, GONE. I ain’t here for that shit. I like my life drama-free. I should ALSO mention that thos whole time, spanning a few months, I didn’t know his name AND I was under the assumption he’s the one who turned Ethan into the troopers for the Rikki fiasco, and in my eyes, that was a bit of a redemption most Ethan’s friends would never get.

I really wish I’d just…listened to that bad vibe and gtfo of dodge. At first, he strolled up to Fitting Room while my coworker, an older gal named Sharon, with a cart of Halloween decorations and said he was just in the store buying some Halloween stuff and proceeded to tell Sharon about what he was going to be for Halloween, emphasising that it was the scariest thing he could imagine (turned out to be a “dark Flash” from Flash a few years ago. Idk bc I’m not really into superhero TV shows or movies. Doesn’t sound scary to me, but whatever. We all have different things that really spook us).

We somehow got onto the subject of a kidnapping that’d happened in the area, and from there some dude has apparently been reported watching female employees leaving at night from the parking lot (creepy, and I didn’t know that, but I also get picked up because I don’t have my licence yet). And from there, I mentioned some things to do in that sort of situation, and the conversation shifted towards the subject of kidnap AND rape (he mentioned that it happened to his friend’s niece when she was thirteen and that it broke his heart. This is the only thing that really sticks out from this part of the conversation and for a reason).

Sharon leaves, and Logan starts talking about his relationship woes and saying how when he’s around girls he likes, he gets flustered and starts pouring his heart out - and mentions a specific time he did this with a long time female friend of his and he starts bemoaning about how the friendship they’d had for so long was just gone. (I politely asked him if she had reacted cruelty, because - and I SAID this - there was no reason for the friendship to be gone since she didn’t reciprocate, after all she wasn’t obligated to. He said that she was but…the way he said it sounded Bad.) And then onto cheating (I told him no one deserved to be cheated on while trying to edge away, because dudes getting onto the friendzone is a huge red flag, and then going onto cheating? B y e) and he mentions he caught his recent* fiance cheating on him (and specified that he caught her walking up to some dude. Er…I hoped I was just missing some context from that, but I’m not giving the benefit of the doubt on it).

And then. AND THEN he says this: “You know, I was really into you a few years ago, but your brother said not to try because of the age gap.”

My alarm bells were already going off, but my blood went cold as ICE at this.

I’m eighteen, a few years ago I was fifteen. I hadn’t EVER met this dude, and I commit all of Ethan’s friends to memory so I can avoid them. Also, nice hypocrisy, Ethan (Rikki is either 14 or 15 right now. He’s in jail for dating and fucking her).

Let me emphasise I THOUGHT THIS WAS A RECENT FRIEND OF ETHAN’S WHO HAD SEEN A RECENT PICTURE OF ME AND RECENTLY BEEN TOLD ABOUT ME

Now, back in 2014 before Ethan moved to Anchorage, he did not live with me and my parents, and we were living in one of my dad’s friend’s cabin. He lived with my grandmother a decent way away, and were were pretty fucking livid with both of them. So he only got to come over to see his kids when we had them, bc their mother had a restraining order, but even that didn’t last bc - well, he was abusive and homophobic and screamed at my TODDLER NEPHEW that he would not have a gay son…when all he did was put on a straw hat to get giggles like his sister.

So yes, I have never met this dude. I didn’t even know his name until he mentioned going to grade or middle school with my sister in law (I…am not sure how he knew my other brother was married, that happened THIS year) and her brother, who he called by…well, I’ve only ever hear this brother called “RJ”. I was a little shocked and mentioned it, and he mentioned his name and how he wasn’t called by it much anymore either. I completely forgot this until I was in the car on the verge of crying again to Susanne.

“You know, I was really into you a few years ago, but your brother said not to try because of the age gap.”

Like. I’m going into panic mode as everything I’d thought is being challenged. (I vaguely recall in our conversation with Sharon, him mentioning how much he hates pedophiles and me asking if he was the one who called the troopers on Ethan than, and even after a short summary he maintained he wouldn’t “do that” to Ethan… Also at some point we established he was terrified of my parents, and after that night he has a very good reason to be.)

I don’t remember what I said. I just remember trying to leave again but a customer came by and I had to let them in the rooms because I had the keys, and policy states I can’t leave with people in the room, and Sharon has the radio with management on it.

He then asks me, while I am effectively trapped there, if I believe in fate. “No.” I said as curtly as possible.

“Well I do, especially when it comes to love.” I LEGIT WANTED TO FUCKING DIE. I WAS CRINGING SO HARD. He went on to say something about how love’ll happen of it’s meant to and…

The customer left and I told him I had to go do my job and took off weaving through apparel.

I think I saw him head towars Halloween (the front of the store, where he presumably got the shit in his cart; what brought him over in the forst place was apparently a discarded shit and it drives him nuts whem those get left around by other customers). I didn’t have a radio to find out where a manager was, but I booked it to Customer Service to hunt a CSM down.

I told her, came up with a code (code alex) if I ever needed to be saved from a similar situation. Not even an hour later I was still so nerve-wracked and only getting more anxious as I was there until 10 but Sharon was leaving at 9, that I went and talked to an ASM. Or tried. I staryed crying on the phone with her so she sent me on a break, and I started to break down again talking in the office. She sent me home early at 9:20 PM and told me to contact management if the dude showed up again.

My sis talked to her on Thursday about the guy, since she knew his name, but I don’t remember what Susanne said was the outcome bc I didn’t work Thursday and The ASM wasn’t there today. (I did have to tell another ASM who had me call the police, who recommended me to go get a stalking order after he stopped being stupid.)

Another ASM heard while he was back there and offered to walk me to my car, and hung around for a little bit when I told him I was being picked up. I know he told my sis he’d walk me to my car of I ever needed or wanted someone to, so that was a relief.

TODAY I saw him briefly right after I clocked in and was on the salesfloor talking with my coworker E. He tried talking to me but fight or flight kicked in and I noped all the fuck the way to Mark, who had the radio, and then hunted Jaime down with E walking with me.

[cookinguptales]

It was so hard to pick out of 75 questions so I hope this is ok 😬💦 2, 13, 18, 19, 25, 28, 29, 30, 33, 39, 42, 46, 47, 54, 58, 67, 71 (Doesn't have to be the romantic kind), 73, and 75

Oh wow, jeez. haha. OKAY I’mma do it, but I’mma put it under a cut bc this can only be long.

2. Who is your hero?

You know, I feel like I learn about amazing people all the time?? There are so many people in history who have done so many cool things. I love the information age we live in where we can here about heroes every damn day. But if I had to pick one that means a lot to me specifically, possibly Helen Keller. Like sure she did the whole learning to talk while blind/deaf thing, but she also became a hardcore social activist! If you read her writings, she was not even in the vicinity of fucking around, and I’m here for that.

13. What is your favorite book to read?

Hmm. My comfort read used to be Howl’s Moving Castle, but I haven’t read it in years. That’s...a bummer... Maybe I should reread it soon.

18. If you could choose to do anything for a day, what would it be?

Hmm... I mean, if we’re talking on like a magical level, then a pain-free, exhaustion-free day would be swell. I’d be happy doing just about anything. If you mean in a more normal way, then I think I’d be happiest traveling somewhere really cool with a friend and having a nice meal and seeing beautiful sights.

19. What is your favorite game or sport to watch and play?

Hmm. I mean, I don’t play/watch sports that often. Disability and all. But I used to do tae kwon do and karate fairly regularly, and I really enjoyed that. I usually really only watch games/sports during the Olympics, but I enjoy speed skating, figure skating, gymnastics, archery, women’s weight lifting... Um... I watch the Super Bowl for the commercials? lol. Honestly, my favorite part of watching sports is watching the winners cry haha. That’s why I like the Olympics best.

25. Who is your favorite author?

Probably either Diana Wynne Jones or Neil Gaiman. I’ve read a lot of books by a lot of authors that I’ve liked (and admittedly both of them have some stuff in their work that makes me raise my eyebrows now) but I feel like both of them really shaped me from a young age. I was devastated when DWJ died.

28. In the evening, would you rather play a game, visit a relative, watch a movie, or read?

Most of my reading energy is taken up by school stuff now, but hopefully I’ll start to get to read again come graduation. In the meantime, I like to watch movies best. I livetweet them a lot haha.

29. Would you rather vacation in Hawaii or Alaska, and why?

WELL I have actually gone to Alaska before! I really liked it, honestly. It was beautiful up there. And nice and cold! Which is good for the POTS, haha. But I think if I had to choose a future vacation I’d choose Hawaii just because I’ve never been there! And there are some shrines I’d love to visit.

30. Would you rather win the lottery or work at the perfect job? And why?I mean... The job I’d really like to do now certainly wouldn’t pay as much as the lottery, but it’d keep me comfortable. I mean. I guess it’d be great to win the lottery so I wouldn’t have to worry about working (which, as a PWD, can be...stressful) but not to put too fine a point on it, my current living situation is one where I don’t need to worry too much about money. I’m incredibly lucky on that front, I know. If I were as poor as I was about ten years ago, this would be a much easier choice. XD Though research does show that a lot of people who win the lottery end up getting fucked over by taxes, friends, etc. so. maybe not.

33. If you could go back in time, what year would you travel to?

I MEAN... I’m a gay, disabled woman. Going back in time probably wouldn’t be great for me, haha. But I guess I’d love to hear some of the old jazz musicians I love play live...

39. List two pet peeves.

Motherfucking DISCREET and DISCRETE which are TWO DISCRETE WORDS. There was a moment once when someone tried to assure me that “discrete” was just the British spelling and I just. I JUST!! Like if I were in the Cell Block Tango, that would probably be my prison origin story. I also hate it when strangers ask about my cane/disability.

42. If you were a super-hero, what powers would you have?

uhhhhhHHHhhhh teleportation powers which I would mostly use to get to class on time but also maybe catching babies when they fall out windows or whatever. That happens, right?

46. If you could go back in time to change one thing, what would it be?

Geez. I mean, on a big scale? Like Hitler? Bro, don’t put that much pressure on me!!! If you just mean in my own life, I’d probably just tell little!me what POTS is haha. If I have to change like. A personal decision?? I might have decided to do a different program while I was in Japan. It was very expensive (through my school) and I didn’t get to do a lot of the things I really wanted to do.

47. If you could share a meal with any 4 individuals, living or dead, who would they be?

HONESTLY, a lot of the major heads of religion. Like. I just think it’d be so interesting to talk to them about philosophy and what they’d think about where their religions are at now. Like even if you don’t believe in the religions, people generally believe that people like Jesus, Mohammad, Siddhartha Gautama, etc. lived.

54. What's your favorite holiday?

HALLOWEEN, BY A COUNTRY MILE!!! I love Halloween! Lots of great spooky stuff and yummy treats and fun parties. I love Halloween SO MUCH.

58. What's your favorite type of foreign food?

I LIKE A LOT OF THINGS... In Japan, I think I loved curry and takoyaki and onigiri best. Some of the octopus and lemon chicken/soup/etc. in Greece was delicious. I loved like ALL the food I had in Barcelona. Tomato bread and jamon iberico and olives and everything was just high quality and delicious?? We just ate our way around La Boqueria (a giant market) one day and I loved it. I like poutine from Canada and pasties from the UK and basically anything cooked in red wine from France. haha. I’ve only had Thai food and Moroccan food in the US (so who knows if it’s accurate) but I love massaman curry and bastilla and Moroccan lemon chicken. I am a big fan of sweet and savory meat dishes, haha. Oh, and Afghan Palow!! Delicious.

I PROMISE I ALSO EAT FRUITS AND VEGGIES... I also like lots of international alcohols haha. Ouzo and absinthe (taste similar), champagne/prosecco/cava (cava was SO CHEAP in barcelona, rip), sake (especially nigori sake)...

67. What is your favorite childhood memory?

Jeez, that’s a hard one. I feel a certain nostalgia for the natural vibe from where I lived as a kid. (In other words, the people and buildings and stuff were fine, but I feel nostalgic for the natural phenomena.) Like the smell of fresh soil and the sound of the woods and rustling fields of corn. But like a specific memory... Long before we moved to FL, my parents did surprise us with a trip to Disney World when I was about 8! We were visiting a Floridian friend (who we later moved in with when we lost our house) and driving down and thennnn my dad “made a wrong turn” and checked us into the Wilderness Lodge just outside the Magic Kingdom. We drove up like RIGHT as the fireworks started over at MK so my sister and I were kind of in shock haha. It was really fun.

71. What's the craziest thing you’ve done in the name of love?

I WENT TO THE MUSICAL CATS. I kid, Loo. (Mostly.) I’m not really the kind to do big OTT things for love, but I think I am the kind to hurt myself for it, unfortunately. I loved a girl for a long, long time, and in retrospect, I realize that I allowed her to devalue me in ways that I’m still trying to undo. We were never together or anything -- I have a habit of falling for straight girls -- but boy did I get fucked up. Like...viewing this through my current lens, I can’t believe I let that go on for so long. It was crazy. There are a lot of reasons why I believed I was lesser and unlovable because of my disability, and I realize now that some of that started with her and another friend of mine. I just kind of wished that I’d figured that out before they ditched me for good and told me it was because I always “made everything complicated”. (I’d been late to a get-together because I was at the doctor...) I...cried a lot. haha. But I ended up becoming closer to my best friends today as a result, and learning a lot about myself. So I guess maybe it was for the best, even if it hurt at the time.

OH I’VE ALSO GOTTEN IN FIGHTS FOR LOVE but that was more for friends. I’d kick anyone’s ass in high school, or if we weren’t in an avenue where I could do that, I’d yell a lot or say stuff that was just, ah, really cutting. haha. I have...a protective streak. And I was frustrated about a lot in high school. Our school had martial arts classes, which was a good outlet. I was known as someone who could, uh, get things done. Um.

73. What was your favorite subject in school?

Uhhh. If we’re just talking high school, maybe math?? English if I had a really good English teacher. I love reading/writing. But math was comforting, in a way. Math is very solid. I also enjoyed French. And I enjoyed a lot of fibercraft techniques in that class, but hated the teacher. Womp womp. I liked making things with my hands. I found batik particularly comforting.

75. Do you collect anything?

I collect tarot decks! I’ve studied the history of tarot before, and I’m always really fascinated with the way that people attach meaning to mundane objects. I kind of love how tarot was basically just playing cards for rich people until a series of weird events and people started using them for divination. Now people rarely use them for anything else. That kind of applied religious/personal meaning is super interesting to me. PLUS a lot of them are very pretty. Haha.

[thriftchicago]

REVIEW: Unique (Elston & Kimball)

Quality... has a price.

★★★★

For a slightly higher price point than your average Village Discount Outlet, Unique’s Avondale location provides shoppers with a wide range of merchandise in a clean and well-organized store. It’s less charmingly neighborhood-specific than some other spots around the city, but excels in almost all areas as far as utility and quality.

Ahead: Sales, punch-cards, assessing the wildcard factor, and my recent best finds --->

MAJOR STRENGTHS: Unique’s best, most consistent departments include denim (a brief but well-curated section where it’s easy to find your size) office clothes, dresses, winter coats, furniture and fabrics/bedding (where my mom fuels her dress-making addiction with incredibly cheap shower curtains and straight up bolts of fabric you can buy for cents to the yard).

To my mom, these tablecloths are all Edwardian gowns waiting to be sewn.

Unique also has the distinction of being one of the best-organized stores in the city. Sections are well-labelled (knit tops, long-sleeved blouses, sleeveless blouses, etc) and organized by size, so it’s easy to peruse whatever sizes are most likely to fit you without having to sift through stuff that is way to big/small.

MAJOR WEAKNESSES: Lack of personality? Weird, corporate vibe? Those fucking smug & obsequious recorded announcements from the perspective of a grotesquely manufactured everywoman who’s constantly rock hard for all accessories (leather purses!!)?

I guess there’s not much (objectively) to criticize at Unique. In recent years, they’ve been acquired by a different parent company, which has led to some changes, including the sales of some actual non-resale goods like winter gloves and cheap costume jewelry, and the addition of a seasonal section where they sell much sought after “ugly Christmas sweaters” and Halloween costumes for common thrift rubes who don’t want to spend any time looking for things themselves. I guess it’s their job to yield to the consumer, but it rubs me the wrong way. The toys section is still pretty nasty and oft-exposed to childrens’ grubby hands & faces, and the menswear section tends to be boring and picked-over.

CLEANLINESS: Right down to the red-and-white colour scheme, Unique feels a lot like your average urban Target these days, and you can expect about a Target level of dinginess in the newly-added changing rooms. One time a man was talking to himself and having a loud sneezing episode in the stall next to me, but baby, that’s just Chicago.

QUALITY: It takes way less work to sift through the bad stuff at Unique, because the bad stuff doesn’t make it to the shelves. So many of the donations they intake are recycled or re-sold to other organizations, only the best, most wearable stuff ends up in the store itself. Most of the back room is devoted to breaking down unwanted clothing and recycling it or sending it off to a secondary facility - it’s like a wild assembly line back there, complete with a bird’s nest where the foreman watches happenings on the floor, from above. Panopticonic!

If I was shopping for office clothing - womens’ blouses and blazers, especially - Unique would be my first stop. It would also be near the top of the list for furniture and electronics, were I furnishing a new apartment. Unique in Avondale is one of the few non-sketchy spots in Chicago where you can buy a trustworthy table, and plug in/try out a new set of speakers before you buy them. Even the coffee makers in the housewares section are clean enough to purchase with minimal risk of ancient bean-borne botulism. Follow your nose!

White cushions & faux wicker? Call your grandma all ready.

WILDCARD FACTOR: The downside to the carefully curated merchandise is that you won’t find much that’s wild or out of the ordinary here, aside from predictably “ugly” sweaters and some comical seasonal knick-knacks. Keep your eyes peeled for ethnically specific romance novels (Lanelle Roberts was a proud and independent defense lawyer who did everything by the books... until luscious club promoter Dante Jackson came into her life) and take a glance at that VHS aisle for some classic films about sharks, but otherwise there’s not much to be found as far as the truly ridiculous.

There is real gold to be found at Unique if you’ve got the patience and follow-through to visit regularly. Most of the thrills and chills of the Unique experience come from finding really nice stuff at stupid good prices. It’s a store for the mature shopper.

A note: there are almost always high quality used roller blades in kids’ sizes back by electronics and housewares. If there’s a youth in your life or you have dainty, childlike feet, consider yourself bladed.

PRICING: The average item is $3 to $10. Very solid by Chicago metropolitan standards.

SALES & SPECIAL BARGAINS: Mondays are half-price. Keep your eyes peeled for additional holiday half-price events - they’re regular, but not as frequent and well-advertised as your average Village Discount Outlet sale. At checkout, ask about punchcards for frequent customers.

There was once a color-coded tag system but I think it’s been retired.

MY BEST FINDS:

Pendleton cableknit sweater, M ($1.99 (half-price), retail value ~$90)

Cool imported reversible bedspread & pillowcase (~$7, retail value ???)

Birkenstocks, EU37 (~$6, retail value ~$98)

Strom jeans, 25/36 (~$6, retail value ~$189, value in making my butt look good INCALCULABLE)

I’m not remotely a 36 inseam, but it’s worth the multiple cuffs for these very nice jeans. God bless whatever tall drink of water donated these.

In sum, Unique gets the job done, and is consistent in quality and cleanliness, but lacks regional specificity and true wildcard excellence.

#four stars #thrift store #chicago #furniture #office clothes #strom #pendleton #birkenstocks

[amplesalty]

Halloween 2021 - Day 2 - 28 Weeks Later (2007)

More like 49 weeks later!

...get it? Because it’s been 49 weeks since I saw the first one? No? Fine...

Science fiction and horror films are frequently interpreted as allegories of specific realities, their fantastic and supernatural elements seen as symptoms of social and political malaise. The paranoia generated by loved ones taken over by a co-opting entity or ideo…wait a minute, this sounds familiar.

I wasn’t in any great rush to see the sequel after watching 28 Days Later last year but after seeing the Monster Madness video and all the hubbub surrounding it, it kinda put me in the mood. Released some five years after the original, Danny Boyle handed off directing duties to Juan Carlos Fresnadillo which seems like a relatively obscure choice, he doesn’t really have many credits to his name either before or since this movie. But apparently Boyle really liked his 2001 movie Intacto so he was brought on board.

As the name might suggest, the movie takes place 28 weeks after the initial outbreak of the rage virus. In that time the infected have all starved to death and an American lead NATO operation have swept in in order to try and restore some form of order. Is it weird that I kind of want to see that movie without any of the horror themes or dramatic twists attached? You’ve got this entire country that’s had it’s population wiped out barring the odd survivor who’ve managed to board themselves up for months on end, I just think that’d be kinda cool to see a movie or a series exploring the process of getting everything up and running again. You have to re-establish all the infrastructure, install a new government, bring back some kind of population. And how would you do that? Do you entice all the ex-pats to go back? Get some of your own people to move over? Would everyone chip in and send some small fraction of their own population for like 5-10 years in order to get things going again? It’s kinda like that initial part of Endgame that was just dealing with the aftermath of the snap, you’ve kinda abruptly shifted tone and genre to go into this look at how everyone coped with having 50% of the worlds population vanished in an instance. That kinda threw me at the time as I was expecting it to jump straight into the action again but I was into that insight into how the world moved on and how people coped, it was interesting to see Steve Rogers away from being the ass kicking machine and running some form of support group.

There is a prologue before we truly kick into the 28 weeks later portion of the film where we find Robert Carlyle and a bunch of other survivors shacked up in a nice old couple’s cottage until a little boy comes along looking for shelter. Unfortunately he brought a bunch of the infected with him who promptly burst through the windows and slaughter nearly everyone inside. Carlyle manages to make his escape but absolutely ditches his wife along the way when she gets cornered. Dude, that’s cold.

Only, you don’t actually see her get attacked so it’s fairly obvious that something’s up. They did something similar in Zombieland 2 where Columbus’ girlfriend is seemingly infected and Columbus is meant to put her out of her misery but you never see it happen so I figured she’d come back again.

So she ends up being this sort of shadow hanging over the film, you’re just waiting for her to show up again so it kinda feels like things aren’t truly going to get going until she re-emerges. It’s not as if it’s just left at her ‘death’ scene and she’s going to pop up out of the blue later, the movie makes sure you aren’t forgetting about her with Carlyle telling his kids who have been flown back from Spain about her demise. Plus she pops up in little flashbacks or nightmares.

Carlyle is a little sneaky here too as, the way he tells the story, he tried to save her but couldn’t do anything. Not how I remember it, mate. Maybe it’s his own coping mechanism, some form of denial in his own head or a way to soften the blow for his kids but the lie only further serves to detract from any sympathy we might feel for him. He’s not a bad guy or anything but it’s a neat little quirk to have this level of flaw in one of your protagonists.

Not that he lasts too long in that role however, when she eventually does re-emerge and the two re-unite, we learn that she has some level of immunity from the rage virus and seems to have something of a ‘half-zombie’. When the two kiss, the rage spreads to him and he promptly freaks the fuck out and batters her half to death before gouging her eyes out. Jesus Christ! Pretty brutal stuff.

I think brutal is the word of the day here between that scene and a later one in which a bunch of survivors are shuttled into and locked in an indoor car park by the military as part of lockdown procedures. Only, infected Carlyle breaks in and promptly starts laying waste to everyone. There’s a very creepy vibe with lots of slow mo, zoomed in shots of bloodied infected, set to a soundtrack of people screaming as they trample over one another in the panic.

It’s not much better when they get outside though since the military have snipers stationed on several of the nearby buildings and, after trying to pick off the infected, are soon told to open fire on everyone and just start indiscriminately killing everyone in an effort to stop the spread of the infection. Amongst their number is Doyle, played by Jeremy Renner. Clearly a good choice for a sniper, I guess he always was a hawkeye.

Only, his conscious gets the better of him and he promptly abandons his post and helps a ragtag group of survivors to try and get out of the city. Not exactly being led by men with sober minds and sympathetic hearts when they ask you to turn your crosshairs on the innocent. Who he is being led by is Idris Elba who seems to be putting some of the Stringer Bell type American accent training to good use. Or, at least he would be if he had anything of note to say in this film. At most he just seems to spend his time looking stern and giving out orders of escalating panic stations. Bit of a shame really as his name did stand out amongst the credits.  I suppose this is still relatively early in his career so he’s not quite at the level of landing those meaty roles just yet. Some might argue he’s not even peaked yet, not until next year at least when he is set to reach the pinnacle of his career in the Sonic sequel as Knuckles.

Doyle and his band of survivors include Carlyle’s kids who one of the American medical team suggest might share some form of immunity like their movie and could be the key to some sort of vaccine or cure. But, they all have to work quickly to try and escape because Doyle learns from one of his buddies that the army is due to firebomb the city in order to exterimate the virus again.

Bloody hell, do you think Boris has this as the nuclear option in his Winter plan for Covid this year?

It’s these type of scenes that really underline the direction this movie takes, shedding the more human story in favour of a more action packed affair. Which, for what it’s trying to do, I think it works.

Mainly because I do appreciate the mad lads doing a scene in which a helicopter is weaponized by tilting forward in order to use its rotor blades to mulch the hordes. That was clearly always the best way to try and kill someone in GTA Online. Nice to see someone embrace the use of rotor blade decapitation in cinema after John Landis nearly ruined it forever.

Ending is a little bit of a mixed bag though. Whilst on the surface we do get the kids making it to safety, we do have the added stinger of them seemingly causing the virus to spread to France and presumably leading to the total destruction of the nation. So, whilst it does render the preceding 90 minutes kind of pointless, we did manage to stick it to the French even after we’d already been wiped out ourselves and took them down with us so swings and roundabounts...

We’re some 14 years on from the release of this movie and there’s still no sign of the next sequel. Maybe they’re just really taking their time to make sure they’re only working with the best possible ideas. I mean, they’ve kind of written themselves into a corner with the naming scheme they have going on, there’s only so many of these you can realistically do. You’ve got 28 Months Later and then 28 Years Later. Are you going to do 28 Centures Later after that? The rage virus springs up on some Earthy colony on the planet Neptune?

#Halloween 2021 #28 Weeks Later #28 Days Later

[lovemesomesurveys]

the good ol’ days...

When you were a kid…

Were you happy or sad when you found out your babysitter was coming? Yeah, my babysitters were my aunt or my older brother, both of which were fun. My aunt liked to do fun activities, like arts and crafts, play games, and watch movies. My brother liked making silly home videos. Like, we’d have our own talk show and pretend to be the host and guests and all that. I had a keyboard and he used it to make the theme song for our show and when we’d go to commercial break, which consisted of actual commercials on the TV lmao. It was fun.

Did you have a boyfriend in kindergarten? No.

Did you ever play hopscotch at school? No. That would be hard to do in a wheelchair. Did you refuse to eat your vegetables? I was very picky (still am).

What did you usually dress up as on Halloween? I was a witch and a vampire a lot.

What was your favorite television show? As a real little kid I was obsessed with Barney. As I got a little older I was into Arthur, NickJr, WB Kids, and Saturday morning cartoons that came on ABC (stuff like Recess and Pepperann).  Did you have D.E.A.R. time in school? (Drop Everything and Read) I remember silent reading and accelerated reading... I don’t remember having something like that specifically, but it’s possible. Or at least something like it. Did you ever read the ‘Magic Treehouse’ series? Yes. How about the 'Bailey School Kids’ series? Yep. Do you remember the first movie you ever saw in theaters? Not the first, but one that comes to mind is The Rugrats Movie.  Who was your best friend in elementary school? Angela was my best friend in some grades, but you know how kids are…once they vibe with someone else, they’ll hang out with them 24/7. Angela was a way more sociable kid so she got close with everyone, while I remained terrible at making friends. If she wasn’t my best friend at the time, I had no one. <<< Yeah, I definitely can relate to that. Friends changed all the time, one day you’re best friends with so and so and then the next you’re not and they’re playing with someone else. I had a few different best friends. It wasn’t until 5th grade that I made more permanent, real friends. Did they continue to be your best friend in middle school? Yes. I made a couple others as well. Did you ever watch 'The Land Before Time’ movies? Yes. Did you ever watch the show 'Arthur’? I loved Arthur. Did the tooth fairy give you a lot of money? It was a lot to me.  How often did you visit your nearest grandparents? I spent a lot of time at both sets of grandparents as a kid. My paternal grandparents moved out of state; though, when I was like 10, so we only saw them when they came to visit every summer for a couple months (they had an RV). My cousins and I were at my maternal grandparents’ house all the time. That was the family hangout spot. Did you ever play with 'Little People’ toys? Yes. How about Polly Pockets? Yes. Did you collect anything when you were a kid? Barbie dolls and clothes/accessories, Pokemon cards, stuffed animals, and rocks. My paternal grandparents did a lot of traveling and it became a thing between my Nana and I where she brought me back a rock from various places they went to. It started when she and I would go on walks together and I’d pick up pretty or cool looking rock. She’d write the place and date on it, so it’s pretty neat to look back on. Did you get an allowance? Yes. What was your favorite sport to play? What is it now? I never enjoyed sports. What foods did you not like then that you do like now? Spinach is one that comes to mind. I think it’s creamed spinach that I wasn’t a fan of (I don’t know if I’d like it now, haven’t tried it since then). I love regular spinach now with my scrambled eggs and sandwiches.  Were you into American Girl dolls? Nah. I loved played Barbies, but dolls like that weren’t my thing. What was your first pet and what did you name it? We had a dog named Buster when I was like 3 years old, so I don’t remember him much. However, we got a dog when I was 5 and I named him, Scruffy. He was with us until I was 18 years old.  Did you ever read the 'Junie B. Jones’ books? Yesss, I loved those. What did you want to be when you were a kid? A teacher. I loved playing school. What was your first word? Your first sentence? (If you remember) I’m not sure. Have you moved into a new house since you were a kid? We moved a few times when I was really little, but the house we moved into when I was about 5 we lived in until my early 20s. Were you friends with your neighbors? Yeah, I was really close to these 3 girls that lived next door. Did you enjoy exploring your backyard? I played out in the front yard more. Did you bake cookies with your grandparents? Yeah. What was your biggest fear when you were a kid? Bugs! That’s definitely still one of them. Who did you look up to most? My mom and grandma.  Did you ever play the 'Reader Rabbit’ computer games? Yes. Did you have a swing set in your backyard? I did. How about a sandbox? No. How old were you when you learned how to ride a bike? I didn’t ride a bike. Did you ever spy on your neighbors through the window? No... Were you a teacher’s pet in kindergarten? Haha yeah. I kinda always was. Teachers loved me. Did you ever build a treehouse or a fort in your yard? No. My cousins and I built blanket forts in the house, though. Did you ever find anything interesting in your yard? *shrug* Possibly. Did you ever have 'themed birthdays’? Yes. Did your parents let you drink soda? Yes.  Did you ever watch 'The Powerpuff Girls’ or 'Dexter’s Laboratory’? Yep yep. Did you sleep with a blanket or stuffed animal? Well, yeah, I slept with a blanket lol. I had stuffed animals on my bed with me as well. Did you ever have a night light? Yeah. My TV was also like my nightlight. I still have to sleep with my TV on. I need to have some light and sound. Did you watch 'Winnie the Pooh’? Yesss, the movies and the animated series on the Disney Channel. I loved Winnie the Pooh. Still do. Not too long ago I watched a few episodes on Disney+. Did you ever have an imaginary friend? What was their name? No. The only thing I did was make up other people that were there whenever my cousins and I played school or house. We’d make up other friends and give them names, as well as describe what they looked like and what they were wearing.  What kinds of games did you play with your friends during Recess? I remember 4-square and tag. I couldn’t go on the playground, so I don’t really remember what else we did to be honest. I guess just hung out or I watched them play on the playground.  Did you dream of being a princess or did you not really care about that? Nah, that wasn’t really my thing. Did you have a special name for your pacifier? What was it? Not that I can recall. Did you watch 'Blues Clues’? Yeppp. What kind of car did your parents have? I can picture a few of them, but I don’t recall what kind they were, exactly.  Did you ever flush anything down the toilet by mistake? I don’t think so. Were you afraid to sleep by yourself? I had to sleep with the door closed, I remember that. I still do that. I think I was okay by myself cause I had a TV.  What was your favorite subject in elementary school? English. Or Language Arts as it was called. How often did you go to the park? Not that often. We had some family get togethers/BBQs at parks when I was younger. I could also go on the playground then cause I had someone to help me. What was your favorite kind of cake as a kid? White cake with buttercream frosting. Yum. Did you ever want to grow up? Nooo. I wasn’t the kid who couldn’t wait to grow up, I very much enjoyed being a kid. Waaaah, take me back. D:

#personal #text #survey #surveys #this made me sad I miss these days