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holycatsandrabbits · 3 years

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Tollense, an original serial romance by Dannye Chase, Chapter 4

A history professor falls in love with his best friend, a 3000-year-old vampire.

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

Chapter 4

1997 (One year later)

The convention center had been beautiful under the blue Minnesota sky when Liam had arrived, and it was still beautiful now with its windows backed by heavy showers of falling snow that threw diffuse, moving light onto the walls inside the conference room. Beautiful and alarming.

Liam’s university was located in Florida. Florida was quite nice in January, and besides, there were theme parks. Didn’t people always like theme parks? But instead, the conference was being held in Minnesota, and this was the final day. In an hour, Liam and his colleagues, other faculty of the history department, were supposed to start the twenty-some-hour drive home.

“Could have been at Disney World,” Kurt remarked, startling Liam. Liam had been too busy watching the storm to realize Kurt had come up beside him.

“What on earth?” Liam asked, quite rightfully surprised, not by Kurt’s sudden unexpected presence, as he was used to that by now, but because Kurt was not a history professor, and therefore didn’t have a reason to be at the conference.

“Thought I’d drop in,” Kurt said. “See how things were going. Anyone interested in your research on Tollense?”

“Everyone. It’s very exciting.” Liam kept his voice low. “Am I talking to myself, or can everyone else see you?”

Kurt smiled at him. “I wouldn’t give you that kind of reputation. I’m visible.” Liam could see it was true, as Kurt’s good looks were attracting a few appreciative glances. “Are you ready to come home?” Kurt asked.

“Yes, we’re due to head out soon. Not that we’re really looking forward to it.”

“Well, your co-workers can head out whenever they like. I’m taking you home.”

“What?”

Kurt looked surprised by Liam’s surprise. “You’re from Florida. You have no idea what to do with snow. They’re pulling locals off the roads, Liam. I'm not letting you drive in this weather.”

“But you don’t even know how to dr— wait.” Liam felt a bit of a shiver crawl up his spine. “Oh, no. I’m not teleporting home.”

“I’ve been doing it for thousands of years. With humans. You know that. It’s perfectly safe.”

“No.”

Now a bit of hurt flashed over Kurt’s features, and like all his dark expressions, it was vaguely unsettling. “You don’t trust me?”

“Don’t be ridiculous. I just don’t want to teleport.”

“Why on earth not?”

Liam hated to lie to Kurt. Partly, it was because Liam was not entirely sure that Kurt couldn’t somehow tell that he was lying. Kurt claimed that he couldn’t read minds, but he was a vampire who could teleport himself from Florida to Minnesota, and Liam would not have been at all surprised to find that Kurt was aware of the snowstorm confronting Liam without having checked the weather.

But it was also true that Kurt was Liam’s best friend and it seemed wrong to lie to him. Except Liam couldn’t tell him the truth about this, because that wasn’t going to help anyone. It was better if Kurt didn’t know that Liam was in love with him, that for over a year now, Liam had been obsessed with the memory of Kurt kissing him, slow and sweet, and that the last thing Liam needed now was for Kurt to pull him close and show off his impressive supernatural abilities in a rescue. Kurt had made it clear that he never allowed himself to fall in love with humans that he met, and Liam had to be protective of his heart, already cracked and in danger of breaking.

“Look, if you are so dead-set on it, you can use your mind-control powers to convince me,” Liam joked, and immediately realized that was worse than lying, because Kurt flinched.

“If I do that,” Kurt said, in what sounded like a carefully controlled voice, “I will lose you anyway.”

“Wh— you’re not going to lose me. I’ll get a hotel, then. Drive home later.”

“I don’t want you driving to a hotel!” Kurt looked exasperated. “Liam, you are the most adventurous person I know. Why not this?”

“Oh, I’m hardly—”

“Yes, you are. You’re like an explorer, always hungry for something new and unusual. You’re brave, and not terribly cautious, which is bad for your driving habits, but it’s perfectly safe when it comes to me, because I am never going to let anything happen to you.”

Kurt had stepped close, and Liam could tell how upset Kurt was because Kurt was losing his grip on the human appearance and mannerisms he tried to put on. Right now he looked sleek and strong and shadowy. He didn’t reach for Liam with his hands, but Liam could feel something surrounding him, like a faint cool mist. It felt oddly familiar, and Liam got the impression that the mist might actually always be there, a piece of Kurt holding onto him, and Liam had just never been consciously aware of it before.

And then everything suddenly snapped back into place: Kurt looked ordinary again, and Liam realized with a shock that a couple of his colleagues had approached them.

“What do you think?” asked one of them. “We’re talking about getting a hotel.”

“I have a ride home,” Liam said faintly. Everyone looked at him in surprise, including Kurt. Few of Liam’s fellow faculty had met Kurt, partly by Kurt’s design, because he wasn’t terribly social, and partly by Liam’s. Liam was aware that his very close friendship with a very handsome man was likely to give him a certain other reputation, one that was quite deserved (though sadly not much practiced), but not very wise in the current political climate.

Nothing for it now. “Chris Mullens, Doris Sullivan, this is my friend Kurt, ah, Smith. He was in town for something else and is heading back to Florida today. He offered me a ride.”

“Is it safe?” Doris asked, looking concerned.

“Kurt’s a very good driver. Got a— a car like a tank.”

Doris laid a hand on Liam’s shoulder, and to Liam’s surprise, Kurt seemed to bristle at that, almost literally, and the whole room seemed to go with him, the air around them feeling oddly sharp. Liam understood that Kurt was concerned that he’d change his mind and be convinced to travel with his colleagues, but it undoubtedly looked like something else from the outside— a sort of possessiveness.

“What a nice friend,” Chris said lightly, looking at Kurt in a way that Liam did not like at all, as if Kurt was not a person but a problem, not a good-looking man but a tempting trap. Liam’s personal belief was that men who were so vehemently opposed to homosexuality were probably terrified that they themselves might be vulnerable to such a “trap,” but it was better if that went unsaid.

Kurt rescued him, of course. “Yes, Liam and I have been friends for a while. I used to date one of his students, Martina.”

Chris’s face cleared a bit, losing some of its distaste. He had apparently not heard of bisexuality, or whatever word might describe Kurt. “Oh. Sure.”

“Ready to go?” Kurt asked Liam. He barely waited for an answer before steering Liam out of the room. They walked down an empty hallway where the storm winds were pushing hard enough to make the windows shift in their frames. Kurt spoke in a gentle voice. “Give it a few years. The world is becoming more tolerant again. Humans keep discovering their natures over and over.”

“This must all be very trite to you.”

“Not in the least.” Kurt’s eyes were sharp on him. “Do you think Chris is the one sending you those threatening letters?”

Liam scoffed. “He barely knows how to tie his shoes. Worse than even the typical history professor.”

Kurt looked unconvinced. “I’ll keep an eye on him all the same.” He held out a hand to Liam. “Let’s go home.”

Liam looked down at Kurt’s hand. A pale blue vein ran delicately along his wrist, and Liam wondered what flowed there, if anything. “What about my luggage?”

“I already picked it up from Dr. Sullivan’s car. It’s at your place.”

“You’re awfully confident that I’d say yes to this.”

Kurt sighed, exasperated. “I can’t believe you haven’t asked me sooner. I thought I’d be taking you to the Louvre every weekend. Or Rome. At least Antietam.”

Liam laughed. “I should have.”

Kurt smiled, looking at ease for the first time since he’d arrived. “You should.”

“Next weekend then.” Liam finally took Kurt’s hand, and their fingers fit together easily. As always, Kurt was slightly cool to the touch.

The convention center faded away into a sort of bland white light. Liam felt like he was floating, but still with his feet planted on the ground. He looked down and found his own office floor beneath his shoes.

“Stay still a moment,” Kurt warned. “People can get dizzy when they’re not used to it.” He dropped Liam’s grasp and put a steadying hand on his arm instead. And now was the moment Liam had dreaded: Kurt was so close, so strong, and so hauntingly strange.

“We must seem so very fragile to you,” Liam said.

“You are fragile.” There was a harsh coldness in Kurt’s voice.

“So how did you learn to do that? To teleport?”

Kurt shrugged. “Just always could.”

“Always?” Liam frowned. “I thought a vampire’s abilities were based on age.”

“They are.”

“But if you’ve been doing it as long as you can remember— since at least Tollense— doesn’t it follow then that your origins would have to be a great deal older than that?”

Kurt narrowed his eyes, considering.

“Or else,” Liam said, “maybe you’re not a vampire.”

“I drink blood.”

“A lot of creatures— uh, beings— are said to drink blood. I’m sorry, it must be so frustrating not to be able to remember.”

Kurt looked at him with a sort of gratitude, but then he turned away, toward the door. A second later, there was a knock, and Kurt finally let go of Liam’s arm.

It was one of Liam’s graduate students at the door, Jonah. “Hey,” he said. “Hope I’m not interrupting anything. Just have a couple of questions. I thought I heard you talking. Do you have company?”

Most of the students never met Kurt either, despite the fact that he was around quite a bit. Liam had learned by now that Kurt only appeared to those students he thought he might start a relationship with. Kurt had been alone since Martina had graduated, and Liam assumed it would only be a matter of time before he picked another student, someone to provide him with blood and share his bed. In between lovers, Kurt drank blood from animals, but he had told Liam that it was much better to have a human source. Kurt chose those people whom he thought would be open to the idea of a finite relationship with a vampire, those who wouldn’t be afraid of him but also wouldn’t want to stay with him indefinitely. Because Kurt never got attached.

“Let’s find out,” Liam said, and opened the door wider. His heart sank immediately when he saw that Jonah could see Kurt standing by the desk. Liam thought back for a moment to Kurt’s reaction when Doris put her hand on Liam’s arm. But Kurt wouldn’t get jealous, of course.

Liam definitely was.

READ FROM THE BEGINNING

Updates Fridays on Ao3 and DannyeChase.com (rated E), and Tumblr (rated T)

Want to create fic, art, or other works based on this series? Please do! Just dm or tag me.

My previous serials are for Good Omens: Mr. Fell's Bookshop and Love's Endless Light

My Carrd

#Dannye writes #original fiction #serial fiction #tollense #vampires #romance

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rinharu-purple · 3 years

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Lucien: MLQC’s Mastermind

Yes, I said that Lucien is the creepiest LI in my opinion, and I wouldn’t choose him in a million, billion years. BUT, Lucien is by far the one person, who is pulling the strings and is the driving force of the MLQC universe. He is the only person who acquires all the information from all sides and is connected to every important actor in the story. Therefore, Lucien has become the second LI I’ve started to follow more attentively. Mind that the ranking ist 1) Gavin 2) Gavin 3) Gavin 4) Lucien ;)

In my manifesto, why Gavin is MC’s choice, I’ve already mentioned briefly, that Lucien has the strongest EVOL among all the characters but is also the strongest character (it’s not the MC or the Black Queen, let’s not fool ourselves)

The Machiavellian

Before we talk about Lucien’s part in the MLQC universe, we should first look at him as person and observe the elements that make up his personality.

In the game, all our guys have their personal priorities. Gavin and Kiro are on the front line, fighting for peace and prosperity, Victor, well...I don’t think that he cares for anything else besides MC, maybe his position. But with Lucien, his priority is not a person or a concept, but rather a philosophy. Lucien wants to see the next step in human evolution and is determined to take any measures necessary to see it to it’s end. Other guys can not stand oblivious to other things that come up their way in achieving their goals but Lucien only has his eyes on the prize and to him nothing else matters, no one else matters and no ethics matter.

Machiavellianism denotes cunningness and claims, that those dark triads use whatever means necessary to gain power. If we consider the choices Lucien has made throughout the story so far, we can clearly find his manipulative ways in getting other actors to the positions of his conjecture. He lies to MC and hides his personality as Ares, penetrates Black Swan to use their facilities, but also uses LFG’s resources for his R&D projects all the while concealing his true nature.

Another trait of a Machiavellian, is that he is charismatic and friendly, all the while displaying no emotions. I think, there can be two possible reasons as to why Lucien has limited display of emotions. The first possible explanation has something to do with his parents passing and the trauma he suffered afterwards. Among all LIs Lucien is the one with the most loveless childhood and teenage years, the most important years in developing one’s psychological traits and during those years Lucien received alongside with Kiro the most blows. That resulted in him losing the connection to his emotions as a defense mechanism.

Another possibility might be him losing the connection to his emotions as a result of a chemical reaction in his brain due to excessive testing Black Swan objected him to. Lucien’s EVOL was created in a lab and he was the first man-made Evolver. Lucien is called various times a psychopath, because he shows signs of psychopathy such as lack of remorse, empathy or compassion. It is said that that kind of behavior might occur due to a misconnection between the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) and the amygdala. Considering the fact that Lucien’s parents were killed right in front of him and that he was both physically and psychologically abused for the coming years, this might have led him to experience an imbalance in his chemical balance. One might argue, that his altruistic actions in the orphanage are an evidence for his compassion, I think it is yet another disguise for his unethical ways of reaching his goals.

The Orchestrator

In all honesty no one is actively seeking alliances and keeps tabs on other’s actions for their agenda like Lucien does. Maybe Commander Leto but he mostly fails in drawing others to his side, because he is not able to speak in their pendants’ language or resonate with their perspective. Lucien, on the other hand, is gifted with an extraordinary ability to observe his surroundings and companions, making it very easy for him to talk to them in their terms and desires. Lucien doesn’t show much empathy, UNLESS, it contributes to his cause, in that case he can perfectly put himself in other’s shoes and plays them in such a meticulous way, that they join him willingly.

That is how Lucien directs MC successfully in entering the Black Cabin or in understanding the evolution core.

Lucien is not exactly a piece on a chess board, but is a player, who knows all the pieces very well, knows the rules of the game, has observed many games and took notes of how they all has turned out and therefore knows what kind of a game he is going to play. Just watch closely. how he co-operates with Kiro and the Black Queen. He knows that Kiro is using Black Swan for his goals, much like he does, so he uses his hacking abilities to access to information. The Black Queen is the initiator of everything in S1, so he makes sure to stay close to her. He knows that Victor is searching for MC and trying to understand the Evol gene, there he has an investor.

The Cool, Calm and Collected Type

in the MLQC universe, everyone loses their composure at one point or another, because...who wouldn’t? Time and space warps constantly and people are also changing their stances depending on the time-space constellation they find themselves in.

MC loses her cool almost on a daily basis, Gavin was in a constant haywire in the Daybreak era, Victor literally threw people into black holes in CH11 and freaked out as he saw the Black Queen for the first time and Kiro walks around in a bipolar state. So, everybody is pretty unstable due to understandable conditions but we never see Lucien lose his cool and this is one of his best qualities.

Here is the thing about Lucien. This guy is always at least one step ahead of everyone and he achieves this by two simple rules:

1) Acquire all possible information

2) Observe everyone and everything at all times

Why am I saying this? It lies in the basis of anxiety and angst. We humans tend to feel uncomfortable in the face of an uncertain situation, meaning in the wake of the unknown. MC is constantly anxious, because she doesn’t know what is going on, why is everyone after her, why is she blessed with the unconditional affection of 5 equally attractive men? (ehm, but not quite equally ehm *Gavin* hihi, sorry, Gavin-stan gotta Gavin-stan ^_^). Anyway you get the picture. Gavin went haywire in CH22 because he was pushed in a tight spot and therefore had angst. Same goes for Victor in CH11 his mind went blank as he saw history repeating itself and then in CH18 when he saw with his own eyes what could the girl of his dreams might become.

We don’t see Lucien in such deadlock situation though do we, and I think it is mainly because he is always prepared for every possibility and he can calculate them meticulously, because he possesses the largest chunk of information and also keeps tabs on everyone and everything that’s going on. So, when a crisis occurs he doesn’t freak out, sure he gets surprised at times, because the outcome of a a certain situation is the possibility, which he calculated to be no higher than 1% and yet there it is. But since he’s already took this into consideration, he has a plan. Combine this with his knowledge about the persons and organizations involved in the matter, then you have a calm Lucien, who is in control of the situation. Thus, he is calm. You can actually also bind this behavior of Lucien with that of a predator, whose movement are languid, is non-reactive and doesn’t mind turning his back to his opponents, since he doesn’t perceive them as a threat.

If this wasn’t enough, Lucien manages to joggle all of this without exposing himself. Even in the last stage of the play he never gets caught. Unless he willingly exposes himself, as in the case of revealing Ares to MC. MLQC actors can usually see through each other and use their weaknesses to meet their own ends. MC is obviously Gavin, Kiro and Victor’s weakness and their opponents can see this pretty easily. IT’s not quite the same with Lucien though and he doesn’t let himself be blackmailed or threatened by any weakness. He always keeps his cards close to his chest.

Considering the fact that Lucin is the least outstanding LI, this is pretty impressive. So I guess this makes him the embodiment of the phrase “still waters run deep”.

The Renaissance Man

Lucien is a man of science and aesthetics. Explaining phenomenons with associations and loading them with philosophical substance. He doesn’t necessarily perceive things bluntly as they are, but interprets them in a meaningful way. The way he associates MC with a butterfly, how he wants to entrap her in ajar, so she wouldn’t get away, alas taking the only resource of color in his life away. Not only that, but he can also break down the matters at hand to its fragments and can therefore work his way up from there. He is blessed with a strong deduction ability, so he can connect the dots easily, come to a conclusion and act accordingly. No doubt that the other guys have very good deduction abilities, but because Lucien always has a bit of an information more than them, he can find the solutions just a little bit faster in my opinion.

Reading is a necessity for his guy much like eating and drinking, Which is why we see him reframing events in the context of a certain story he’d read at some point in his life. With time, I will add here some of his quotes about certain situations to explain what I mean. Or even better, if you have some, that are evident in you opinion, you could add them in the comments. I really enjoy reading/hearing Lucien’s philosophical, scientific explanations to certain moments in MC’s life. They are always to the point and helpful.

-------------

So this is my very first analysis on Lucien and I have to admit, I still have so many material to check on him, so if anything is missing please bear with me here :)

I was watching Joe’s Twitch while I wrote this, so there are many spelling, grammar mistakes, which will be corrected gradually.

This post will get better and better, scout promise!

#mlqc #mlqc lucien #mlqc simon #mlqc xumo #mlqc xu mo #mr. love queen's choice #I had to rewrite a large part of this because my PC #broke down #so this post will be edited around a 100 times #Im sorry

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nikkoliferous · 4 years

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Phase One: Thor

Since I was looking up my past live-blog of the novel and realising how annoying and repetitive reading through it all is because of my having structured it as a bunch of reblogs, I’ve decided to organize it all into one long-ass post instead. In case anyone else wants to read it in the future. Or in case I decide to re-read it. Because I’m hilarious. 😅

SO WITHOUT FURTHER ADO

My Hilarious Yet Wrathful Overview Of Phase One: Thor, Redux

—

If your son who’s to become king requires a babysitter to not screw it all up and also the idea of him being king is stressful enough to put you into a coma, maybe, uh… reconsider doing that? Just a thought.

But you see here why Odin was so deadset on Thor becoming king, despite him being ill-suited for the role. It’s not about what’s best for Asgard; it’s about personal legacy. Thor is Odin’s mini me, and Loki is very much not. There are places within the text where Odin laments Thor “lacking his father’s wisdom” (he’s definitely inherited your humility, though, Odin!), but he hopes for Thor to grow into a “wise king” like himself. Whereas he holds no such illusions (lol, pun) that Loki will ever take after him.

now with tag commentary! #this scene is in the script and both novelizations #(though in reading this novel seems to just be a more complete version of the junior novel? #idk i'm confused because they're supposedly written by different authors but so far the text is identical) #and it drives me insane each time i read it

“Haha, I’m a warmongering piece of shit, isn’t it funny?”

I know, I know. I try to cut Asgard some slack for being such a militaristic culture because social changes happen slowly and when you live for thousands of years per generation, it makes sense that your views on things like war would be regressive. The text says Odin has ruled Asgard for tens of thousands of years (so much for taking Loki’s “give or take 5,000 years” line literally; sure, the Odinsleep would have extended Odin’s lifespan, but by that much? Idk).

Still, fuck Odin. Especially since he’ll eventually try to shame Loki for doing the same thing he’s fucking boasting about here. And on a much smaller scale too.

…is it, though?

I actually think Loki’s relationship with being the centre of attention is really interesting in its complexity and we don’t discuss it enough. I’ve said this before, but he strikes me as the sort of person who craves attention but also wouldn’t really know what to do with it if he had it. He craves it as a result of neglect, because he’s never been shown recognition or validation. This is why he seems to revel in it in Stuttgart, even in (or maybe especially in?) his brainwashed state. But he also frequently comes across as pretty introverted and has horrible self-esteem, so I think on another level, sustained, genuine attention would make him feel kind of uncomfortable. Loki seems to believe that in order to be loved or respected, he has to literally be Thor, though. And Thor has always been the centre of attention, so for Loki, attention is synonymous with respect.

I find Loki’s relationship with wanting attention especially fascinating because I too both crave and fear it. As a borderline, I need it. When no one is paying attention to me, I lose my sense of identity. I feel as though I literally cease to exist. It’s excruciatingly painful. And yet, I have no authentic sense of self; I’m just a chameleon, and the closer people get to me, the more likely it is they’ll see behind my mask. They’ll realise it’s all a show and that I’m actually no one. And then they’ll leave. I can’t help wondering if that’s how Loki feels sometimes too.

Wait, what? You mean goat. His horns are shaped like a goat’s. This is a ram:

This is a goat:

This is Loki:

Do you see now? They’re like a goat. Not a ram. Not a cow. A GOAT.

This book was written before Ragnarok was a thing, so it may be unfair to connect the two, but it still seems worth noting that it was Thor who reduced Loki to being no more than a trickster to begin with. “You could be more,” my ass. Loki’s problem has never been that he was one-dimensional; it was always that the people in his life, including Thor, refused to see any other dimensions to him. Which makes those words particularly cruel—as if they aren’t cruel enough already, what with the physical torture and all.

Always happy to have cause to point out that

Loki was on Thor clean-up duty their whole lives; he certainly was not trying to kill Thor.

People like to point to Loki’s attempted genocide of the Jötnar and attempted(-ish? lol) conquest of Earth as proof that he’s some kind of violent maniac. But in a little place I like to call reality, Loki was historically far less aggressive and bloodthirsty than his peers.

Question: why is one conqueror evil and the other is righteously entitled to ruling over the Nine Realms?

Asgardian exceptionalism FTW

I can’t even begin to imagine what would lead you to expect such a thing, Odin. 😂

Uh, ‘cause it is?? And also their planet is MELTING without it??

This is all only within the first two chapters, btw. Lmao

—

“Looking for answers,” my foot.

YOU WOULD THINK SO, WOULDN’T YOU??

#i mean unless you knew heimdall #he only commits treason on days that end in y

—

What’d I say? Thor clean-up dutyyyyy

Just wanna remind everyone that this

is why he’s smiling during this scene

because it makes me laugh every time. 😂

—

My heart breaks every time I remember that second excerpt because literally ALL OF IT happened to him when he survived falling through the wormhole. My poor boy. 😭

But also of note… Loki gets cold (and also does not like being cold). This interests me because 1) as many are aware, the prevalent headcanon that Loki has a low body temperature irritates me and 2) it possibly(?) lends weight to the theory that he may not be fully Jötun, whether by virtue of his birth or Odin’s spell.

Haha, look at this Feminist Icon™ trying to take credit for his female friend’s accomplishments! Truly inspiring.

#for some reason the ragnarok lovers have somehow decided that thor is both a feminist and lesbian icon #whatever that means 🤷‍♀️ #and i'm still trying very hard to figure out why #is it literally just because he *says* he respects women or whatever in that dumb rambly conversation with valkyrie?

Ooh… you were so close to getting the point, Volstagg. So close. Take your tongue off Odin’s boot for just a couple minutes longer.

Also, the author just forgot the name of the Casket. How did this book get published? 😂

JUST LOOKING FOR ANSWERS, HUH?

Because fuck Loki, amirite? He, uh… he’s a prince too, you know.

Also… Fandral, you dweeb 😂

…am I reading too much into this, or did Odin just literally forget that Loki exists?

On the other hand, the author also seemed to forget Loki existed for most of this chapter, so who knows. 🤷‍♀️

lmao @ Jane immediately trying to convince herself she’s too rational to be attracted to a stranger

Honestly, though, big mood.

Just your periodic reminder that Thor’s sycophantic friends KNEW Loki was right and decided to throw him under the bus anyway.

Just as I’ve always said: That was it. That was their ENTIRE rationale. That Loki *could* have done it, therefore he must have. Please tell me these people have nothing to do with Asgard’s justice system.

…lol, jk, Asgard has no justice system.

Ok, first of all, no.

Second: thank you, Fandral. You’re a self-absorbed cad, but also evidently Thor’s least stupid friend.

Thirdly, how…? First, it was, “Loki arranged all this because he’s jealous of Thor.” Now they’ve suddenly jumped all the way to, “All of Asgard is in danger.” What exactly does Sif think Loki is planning? He’s gonna, what… assassinate Odin and then sell Asgard to the Jötnar?

—

Please stop hurting me.

Just so there’s no confusion: this one sentence explains everything Loki did for the rest of the movie. It explains how a person who has been historically non-aggressive suddenly transforms into a warmonger. To prove himself a real Asgardian, like his brother and father and grandfather.

—

…why did Odin fall into the Odinsleep in two completely different scenes in this book? I’m super confused.

Also, we really need to talk about how cruel it is of Marvel to keep forcing Loki to prove his loyalty again and again and again when he’s been doing so almost literally since we met him. And by “we need to talk about it”, I mean I need to tie Kevin Feige and co. to a chair and spend a minimum of five hours lecturing them on how poorly they understand their own fucking character.

Let’s just be clear here: they’re talking about Loki. They’re saying Loki, their LEGITIMATE king, is an enemy of Asgard, based on evidence so paper-thin it’s practically invisible. Just… please, let that sink in. Take a moment to appreciate how utterly fucked up that is.

I’m sorry (not really), but Thor was so much funnier before Ragnarok.

This scene has always kind of bugged me. If Odin removed Thor’s powers, how come he can still control the weather? Confusing.

So what exactly was Thor’s plan anyway, before he realised he couldn’t lift Mjölnir? He was just gonna call on Heimdall to help him commit treason AGAIN, show up on Asgard against the expressed command of his king, and… Odin would just shrug and be like, “You got me, son! I guess I can’t keep you down. Welcome home!”?

…I mean, I guess that more or less is what happened in the end, but it’s hard to imagine it would have still gone down that way without all the stuff that happened with Loki. Idk.

#look what i'm saying is... thor is not exactly a thinking person #no one on asgard is a thinking person #except loki but he's crazy now so he's also thinking somewhat poorly lol

Cool, Thor. Now imagine feeling that way for ONE THOUSAND YEARS and develop a little fucking empathy for your brother.

But you won’t.

You’ll brush off his feelings of worthlessness as “imagined slights”. 😒

Nice that somebody knows how the royal line of succession works, I guess…

That sound you hear? Yeah, that’s just my heart breaking. NBD.

First, they mislabelled it the Casket of Eternal Winters. Now it’s the Cask of Ancient Winters. Author must have been thirsty when they wrote this. Lol

Look, not to nitpick, but this is not the recommended procedure when you see a storm that you don’t believe is of supernatural origin coming. I’m just saying. Lol

Uh… ‘cause he is?? And your pals are committing treason AGAIN, Thor, so it technically is responding to a threat to Asgard. Just FYI.

Anyways, this is an important point that doesn’t get made often enough. People want to act like Loki illegally usurped the throne somehow, but even without the deleted scene that explicitly shows Frigga passing rulership to him (a scene which is, for some reason, entirely skipped over in this book, but whatever), understand this: Loki could not have controlled the Destroyer unless he was legitimately King of Asgard. The fact that he’s able to do so is irrefutable proof that his rulership is valid.

lmao you little shit

So… here’s my issue with this scene (and with Thor as a character): He always assumes that Loki’s acting out specifically to hurt him. That Loki’s entire life and thought process revolves around Thor. He does it in this scene, he does it in The Avengers… it’s just a chronic thing with Thor. Everything is viewed through the lens of Loki inexplicably hating him.

But that’s… just not accurate. Yes, Loki harbours a lot of jealousy towards Thor. But that’s not what’s happening in this scene. Loki is not trying to kill Thor here because he wants him dead; he’s doing it because Thor (and his friends) are getting in the way of Loki completing his ultimate goal. Loki tried to solve this problem non-violently, by lying about Odin being dead. It’s Thor’s friends who all but forced his hand by going behind his back and trying to bring Thor back to Asgard against Loki’s (and Odin’s!) direct orders.

For all the humility he’s learned in the past few days, this entire speech is still really all about Thor. About assuming that Loki’s doing this for personal reasons, because he holds a grudge against Thor for some unknown reason. This is implicit in his request to “take [my life] and end this.” It never even occurs to him that his friends are traitors to the Crown and Loki, as King of Asgard, is perhaps justified in pursuing them.

It also needs to be acknowledged that Thor’s apology here is hollow, even if it’s ultimately coming from his heart, because he has no idea what he’s apologising for. “Whatever I have done to wrong you” is not an apology. An apology addresses specific hurtful actions taken and commits to not repeating those mistakes in the future. Thor cannot commit to not repeating the hurtful things he’s done, because he doesn’t know what he’s done. Despite his best intentions, what Thor is doing here is actually kind of manipulative. He’s not addressing any substantive issue between the two of them; he’s just trying to talk Loki down. And it ultimately fails not because Loki doesn’t care or because he wants Thor dead, but because it doesn’t actually change anything.

Finally and only semi-relatedly, we should maybe at some point talk about the fact that Loki, who is stated to be a master tactician, has displayed a weird pattern of hardly ever being as lethal as he could be. He freezes Heimdall in place instead of killing him outright; he backhands Thor with the Destroyer instead of incinerating him; he, well… *gestures vaguely at almost the entirety of the first Avengers movie* Anytime the violence is even a little bit personal, he seems to hedge. Odd behaviour for somebody who’s supposedly super evil.

I’m sorry, I know I’ve pointed it out at least a hundred times before, but I just can’t encounter this scene in any form without taking a moment to appreciate how underrated and hilarious it is.

I also genuinely wonder how many Ragnarok stans who have accused me of having no sense of humour, have failed to laugh at moments like this one. Kinda feel like if you need to have the comedy spoonfed to you in the form of ass jokes, maybe you’re the one whose sense of humour is lacking. 🤷‍♀️

Let’s be super clear: this is not what happened. Loki did not betray Odin; he was betrayed by Odin. He did not open Asgard to its enemies; he attempted, misguidedly, to destroy Asgard’s enemies. And he most certainly did not commit suicide out of a sense of guilt.

I’m not saying Loki did nothing wrong, nor am I saying he feels no regret for the lives he has taken. What I’m saying is there’s no indication that he believes he betrayed Odin or Asgard in the process. Which makes perfect sense, because he didn’t. Everything he tried to do was for Odin and Asgard. It was misguided and horrible, yes, but it can hardly be classified as a betrayal.

The insurmountable burden on Loki is not that he did terrible things, but that no matter what he does or how hard he tries, Odin will never look at him with anything but contempt. Consider once more these passages from the very beginning of the book, at Thor’s coronation:

—

Consider that this book goes to great pains to point out that Odin favours Thor because Thor is a warrior like him. And yet even when Loki embraces that, even when he acts more war-like than ever before, Odin rejects him— just as he always has.

There is a reason why this moment is the last time Loki will ever call Odin his father. Because he realises once and for all that, no, nothing he tries will ever be good enough; no, Odin won’t ever look at him with pride. That is Loki’s burden. That is why he lets go.

The epilogue is really just two pages of making me want to vomit.

There’s your party where Thor and a certain subset of the fandom insist that Loki was mourned. There’s barely an indication here that anyone even perceives his demise as a negative thing.

“[Sif] could see Frigga thought [Loki was dead] as well” also contradicts the tie-in comic for TDW, so I don’t know what the author is on about there. Unlike the majority of Marvel comics, the tie-in comics are canon to the MCU, so it’s a bizarre statement to make.

COULD YOU SMEAR THE DEAD* ABUSE VICTIM A LITTLE HARDER, PLEASE? Fucking hell.

No matter how many times I encounter this scene, in whatever format, I still fail to become desensitized to how disgusting it is. I realise there’s a good chance that whatever version of events Thor has been told was twisted at best; but how you can look at a man whose son has just committed suicide under any circumstances and say there will never be a better father than that guy, is utterly beyond my capacity to understand.

And Odin’s “you’ve already made me proud” line just feels like extra salt in the wound because, again, Loki let go because he realized Odin would never say those words to him. And yet they come so damn easily when it’s Thor.

Fuck this entire family so much. I think I hate them more than Loki does. Sometimes I wonder what he would think about that. How he would react to knowing that not only is he actually loved, but that he’s so loved that people are genuinely furious at the way he’s been mistreated. That there are people who regularly devolve into full-on rants because they just can’t contain how much anger they have towards the people who hurt him. I think he’d have a hard time wrapping his head around that concept, tbh.

Anyways, to end on a not-completely-depressing note, I’m still waiting for someone at Marvel to explain how Loki knew what Thor said in this scene after plummeting into a wormhole. ‘Cause he references this conversation as Fauxdin at the end of TDW. So like… ?? Did he steal Odin’s memories before he erased them? Because that would be… kind of neat, actually. And very clever. Not entirely ethical, of course, but it’s Odin, so fuck ethics.

WELP, THAT’S IT. Thanks for following along with my dumbassery, hope you enjoyed yourselves. Lol

#phase one: thor #loki meta #thor meta #odin's a+ parenting #frigga's b+ parenting #topic: thor and loki's broken relationship #loki #thor #heimdall #lady sif #the warriors 3 #jane foster #ragnarok cinematic universe #mcu #topic: asgardian hypocrisy #topic: asgardian militarism #topic: odin's family dynamic

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laurelnose · 4 years

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monster! parasites!

you know how a few days ago i said we weren’t going to talk about monster parasites? that was a fucking lie.

the basis of my monster parasite thoughts are: every organism comes with its own internal ecosystem that goes with them everywhere. it’s like having built-in friends! ergo, when monsters crossed over to the witcher dimension during the Conjunction of Spheres they must have brought many new and delightful parasites with them. you know what fiend manes are full of? MITES. you know what drowners got on their skin? COPEPODS. what can we do with this information? anything we want.

i promise there are no pictures below the cut. i have tried to put warnings on all my sources but click any of the links below at your own risk. warning for internal and external parasites of animals, monsters, humans, and witchers; parasites altering the behavior of their hosts; and probably general body horror. if you read the eating-liver-flukes post that’s probably a decent baseline for how revolting you will find this post.

also, super obvious bias towards aquatic parasites as referents. my degree is fisheries science not terrestrial ecology so that’s primarily what i’m drawing on even though nearly all of the witcher monsters are terrestrial. there is a TON i’m missing here bc of that bias! specifically i really wish i could talk about how parasites of invasive species often act as co-invaders with their hosts and monsters definitely count as invasive species and would have majorly reshaped ecological interactions on the Continent but i don’t know enough about terrestrial ecosystems to speculate properly. (ETA: while i still think monsters would have majorly reshaped ecological interactions on the Continent, I don’t actually think they’re invasive species anymore!) hopefully you enjoy it anyways!

it is, hilariously, canon that parasites are used for alchemy. according to The Last Wish, the Temple of Melitele’s grotto grows a bunch of different “rare specimens—those which made up the ingredients of a witcher’s medicines and elixirs, magical philters and a sorcerer’s decoctions” and some of those specimens are, uh, “clusters of nematodes.” nematodes being parasitic roundworms. this is really funny because it’s so fucking weird. also everything else in this description is a plant or a fungus and nematodes are definitely animals? i choose to believe the world makes sense and nematodes aren’t plants in the witcherverse. therefore parasites are alchemical ingredients, it’s canon, give me more witchers digging through monster intestines in search of worms and put a nematode colony in the basement of corvo bianco please and thank you

this actually leads right into my personal favorite drowner headcanon (hello yes i’m tumblr user Socks Laurelnose and i am always thinking about drowners)—you know those bits where drowners kind of have red blotches in their skin? those are nematodes, actually, because i said so. the reference is Clavinema mariae, a nematode that infests English sole. the worms are basically harmless but they’re dark red and you can see them through the skin. it freaks people out and makes it hard to sell sole. (IMAGE WARNING: a picture of an infected flatfish. it looks mostly normal but there’s a dark red lesion near the fin.) said lesion is probably a coiled-up Clavinema. sole have so many of these, it’s not even funny (PDF article link, IMAGE WARNING for worms visible underneath skin of flatfishes. relevant images pointing out exactly how many worms on page 5). “but the red parts of drowners could just be flushed from blood”—no. worms.

okay that was my main specific-parasite-for-specific-monster headcanon (except also succubi probably have a unique species of lice for their hairy legs. but that’s barely even a headcanon, basically all terrestrial vertebrates have a unique species of lice.) i wanted to start with it because i think that everyone should feel free to arbitrarily assign a totally benign but conceptually gross worm to their favorite monsters. why not, yanno? also it probably sets the tone for the rest of this post.

carrying on: “what monsters might have nematodes, besides drowners,” you may be wondering? probably all of them! all of them are full of nematodes. nematodes are fucking everywhere. allow me to share a deeply unsettling quote from nematologist Nathan Cobb:

“In short, if all the matter in the universe except the nematodes were swept away, our world would still be dimly recognizable, and if, as disembodied spirits, we could then investigate it, we should find its mountains, hills, vales, rivers, lakes, and oceans represented by a film of nematodes. The location of towns would be decipherable since, for every massing of human beings, there would be a corresponding massing of certain nematodes. Trees would still stand in ghostly rows representing our streets and highways. The location of the various plants and animals would still be decipherable, and, had we sufficient knowledge, in many cases even their species could be determined by an examination of their erstwhile nematode parasites.”

jesus christ! thanks nathan, I hate it. nematodes are usually both benign and microscopic, but we’re talking witchers, we want some parasites we can fuckin get our hands on. sperm whale placentas are sometimes infested with nematodes up to 28 feet long but only a centimeter in diameter (Wikipedia link, no images). like an incredibly awful spaghetti! we don’t really seem to know if this bothers the sperm whales. also, i unfortunately do not know enough about the size of whale organs to tell you how big the placenta is in relation to this worm. the point is: real big monster? REAL BIG NEMATODES.

moving on from nematodes—okay, you know, since i mentioned eating deer liver flukes at the start of this post, let’s just go there. real life flukes max out at about 3 inches long, but hypothetical monster flukes could be much bigger and equally edible if desired. (if you’re wondering what a liver fluke would taste like: the flukes feed on the liver and they have very few organs of their own, so they would taste basically just like liver, just also long and flat like a fruit roll-up. if you’re going there, a witcher should not eat any flatworm live. if they’re digging them out of cockatrice livers or whatnot they should kill them before munching or save to cook later. it would probably be safe to eat one live, but you know that cliche “their tongues battled for dominance”? handling a live flatworm is like a handling very strong and energetic tongue complete with slime, okay, it wouldn’t be nice.)

parasites often need more than one host to complete the life cycle—for instance, Leucochloridium paradoxum (VIDEO WARNING: you may have seen this, it’s the one that makes snail eyes pulsating & green) has a bird stage and a snail stage, and it makes the snails look and act really weird in order to attract the birds. parasites altering host behavior to attract the next host in the life cycle is pretty well-documented; for instance, there’s an eye fluke that can make fish swim near the surface where predators can eat them (New Scientist article link, images of a microscope slide & a normal-looking fish) and a tapeworm that does the same and makes the dark silver fish turn white (JSTOR article, no images). i posit that at least some monsters are accompanied by “ill omens” of animals looking or acting strangely because they become infected with a stage of one of the monster’s parasites—usually, the mechanism is that internal parasites lay eggs that are passed in feces & transmitted that way. witchers who are up on their parasite ecology might be able to identify what monster is hanging around by observing exactly what kind of freaky-looking animals or animal behavior is going on around the area!

(if geralt is involved you may desire to have him explain this totally non-supernatural mechanism for abrupt animal appearance or behavioral changes at excruciating length to the chagrin of all present. or maybe that’s just what i desire. it would be funny okay)

potentially even more hyperspecific application of dual-stage parasites: there’s a dinoflagellate parasite that, when it infects crabs, makes the meat chalky and bitter like aspirin (Smithsonian link, images of healthy crab and microscope slide). geralt hunts down dinner, digs in, and immediately sighs and grabs jaskier’s portion away from him to the poet’s complete bafflement before going to get his swords because judging by the flavor there’s definitely a shishiga nest in this forest.

like. parasites are one of THE most hyperspecific things in biology. the majority of them have very specific hosts and life cycles, many of them are completely unique to a species, if you think a fictional parasite is too specific to be plausible you’re probably wrong, make it even more specific. “the witcher monster lore is so hyperspecific lol” IT AIN’T TRULY HYPERSPECIFIC UNTIL YOU CAN IDENTIFY EACH MONSTER SPECIES BY ITS UNIQUE PARASITIC LOAD, OKAY.

and, with regards to behavior-affecting parasites, before anyone brings up Cordyceps (Ophiocordyceps, as of 2008): yeah that sure is a thing! if you weren’t aware, just a couple of years ago we found out it actually is not a mind control fungus!! it bypasses the brain entirely and affects the muscles (Arstechnica article, Atlantic article—photos of fuzzy ants and electron microscope pictures of fungi). or as Ed Yong puts it, “The ant ends its life as a prisoner in its own body. Its brain is still in the driver's seat, but the fungus has the wheel.” which is. significantly worse than the brain thing. awesome!! i bet there would absolutely be similar fungal parasites of endrega and arachasae. real Ophiocordyceps still very much does not affect humans, but you know what, if plants can be cursed into becoming archespores and cultivated by mages i see no reason why mages could not also curse endrega fungus to affect humans, just saying

aaaand quickly back to hyperspecificity: monsters in different geographical areas having different abilities because of their symbionts. forktails in vicovaro acquire a bioluminescent symbiont in their diet that forktails in other parts of the continent can’t get, and they can create flashes of light? that’s sure gonna fuck a witcher on Cat up when he comes in the cave expecting a normal forktail. (geographic location affecting bioluminescence is a thing that actually happens in midshipman fish—Wikipedia link, no parasites.) geographically-dependent symbionts can also produce different toxins and such for their hosts! this isn’t exactly a parasitism thing per se (although parasites are also symbionts because ‘symbiosis’ refers to two organisms in close association not two organisms in positive association) but like. it’s cool okay ecology is so cool

writing fic and tired of all these same-old monsters-of-the-week? quick and easy way to spice up either the horror factor or just make the hunt stand out slightly: just add parasites!! i know i’ve read fics where monsters were described with distinguishing old wounds. you can do the same with parasites! i would fucking swoon over a detail like an ancient water hag’s eyes glowing in the dark, one of them marred by a dangling parasite—geralt notes the blind spot and presses his advantage. (Wikipedia link, no images: this one is referencing an aquatic copepod called Ommatokoita.) also, please put barnacles on skelliger drowners, i want it so badly. just—some percentage of monsters should be Extra Grody on the inside and/or the outside, that’s how nature works. spicing up a mundane hunt by making the monster a little extra gross for its species is Valid, is what I’m saying.

also, every single time frozen specimens with obvious fungal/ectoparasite infections come into the lab we absolutely always take extra close-up pictures of those suckers and make sure everyone else gets to see them. witchers bringing field sketches and notes of the weirdest shit they found on the path back for winter. lambert declares they’ll never know if this alleged fiend tumor was a fungus or mange because geralt sucks at drawing. eskel, the man who hauled a katakan corpse all the way up the mountain so he could dissect it, produces actual skin samples of his own encounters for examination, possibly in the middle of dinner. this elicits mixed reactions.

quick detour into preservation, since I went there—witchers are probably immune to parasites that infect humans by virtue of having pretty different biology to begin with, and probably immune to parasitic infections from other sources by virtue of superhumanly boosted immune systems and all the poison they put into their bodies on a regular basis. picking up a monster parasite would probably not be a big deal for witchers, either in that they have total immunity or that they would only be minimally and briefly affected, but the field of monster biology is likely such that they probably just don’t actually know what would happen to them in the majority of cases. this has potential as a source of battle stories and/or stories intended to freak out trainees, i think. therefore, out of caution, a witcher harvesting/preparing parts for alchemy might want to be sure to treat them first. personally i think all monster parts should be preserved immediately anyways to avoid attracting necrophages, and given that alchemical concoctions in witcherverse are alcohol-based, preservation in strong alcohol is probably the best way to maintain potency and kill basically everything. (cons: alcohol is SUPER heavy and jars are fragile. tissues or organs which are thicker than perhaps half an inch or an inch require additional preparation for the alcohol to penetrate properly. other preservation methods are more efficient for travel. depends on how soon your witcher intends to use or offload their stash.)

also, here’s an absolutely wild marine parasite that would make it worth a witcher’s while to make certain everything was dead! pearlfishes are long eel-like fishes that live inside the anus and respiratory organs (which are attached to the anus) of sea cucumbers, and they have pretty nasty teeth (PDF article link, IMAGE WARNING: dissected sea cucumbers literally stuffed to the gills with pearlfish). the highest number of pearlfish discovered in a single sea cucumber was sixteen (ResearchGate article, free PDF; no images). a different fact: we discovered tiger sharks eat each other in the womb because a researcher got bitten by a fetal tiger shark while he was dissecting the mother (NYT link, no images or parasites). what i’m saying is: parasites are often very small relative to the host and usually harmless to things rummaging around inside, but what if the monster’s parasites were also monstrous. give me a monster that has to be very dead or when you start rummaging around for alchemy ingredients the things in its intestines will lunge out and bite you.

what happens if a human becomes infected with a monster parasite? bad things, probably, i mentioned before that parasites in the wrong host, if they don’t just die, often super fuck things up internally (if you get tapeworms outside of the intestine where they’re supposed to be... it’s not good y’all. CDC link, no images). host-jumping for parasites is actually fairly rare since most of them are highly specialized for their hosts, but it does happen. humans are very not my strong suit so i’m not going to dwell on this but it is entirely possible that something like necrophage infestations or monster-contaminated water sources or just being a little too involved on a witcher’s monster hunt could produce strange parasitic diseases in humans. up to you how well-known and/or how clouded in superstition these effects might be! opportunities for hideous whump? gross body horror? messy and horrifying parasite-driven behavioral changes? terrifying and potentially prolonged uncertainty over what the issue actually is because of minimal information about parasites? the decision whether or not to dose with a witcher potion? excellent possibilities.

okay last one, just because i think it would be fun: myxosporeans and sirens. Myxos are a parasitic relative of jellyfish that produce whirling disease in baby salmon. whirling disease causes neurological and skeletal damage and has a pretty high mortality rate, but it also makes infected fish do this, well, whirling behavior and it’s honestly fascinating. (video link: a pretty normal-looking young trout spinning like a fuckin top). imagine a siren doing that in the sky. i just think myxos are neat!

tl;dr: extra grody hyperspecific biology of monsters!!!

#kaer morhen biology of monsters 101 #fic reference #parasites cw #VERY parasites cw #body horror cw #i have a bunch of new followers who i think came for library content and to you i am so sorry #half the time i am yelling about libraries but the other half of the time i am yelling about the GROSSEST bio shit

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alexsfictionaddiction · 4 years

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Review: Rules For Being A Girl by Candace Bushnell and Katie Cotugno

I am in love with the fact that there are so many explicitly feminist YA contemporaries now. We’ve always had feisty, no-nonsense girls in YA novels but I feel that there has always been a lack of books that tackle serious female issues head on. So of course I was delighted when I was accepted for a copy of the latest release from Sex and the City author Candace Bushnell co-written with gritty YA romance writer Katie Cotugno.

Rules For Being A Girl follows smart bookish Marin, a 16-year-old girl who is dating her classmate Jacob and co-edits the school newspaper with her best friend Chloe. She also has a special bond with her English teacher, Mr Beckett. When something happens and turns her world upside down, Marin comes to some pretty shocking conclusions and the campaign to wage war on the injustices towards the women of her high school begins.

The first 30% of the book gives us an insight into the nature of the dynamics of Marin and Mr ‘Bex’ Beckett. The red flags were so numerous and so blatant that I instantly knew what was going to happen. Bex is reasonably young (possibly about 30), attractive, smart and charming. Had he been the hero of an adult romance novel, I’d have fallen for him instantly. Therefore I completely understood why Marin and seemingly most of the other girls in her year did. But of course, I was painfully aware that this wasn’t an adult novel and that Marin was a teenager. His behaviour towards her made my flesh crawl from the very start and when the incident came, I wasn’t the least bit surprised.

I’m pretty sure I physically tensed up with frustration when Marin told Chloe what had happened. I understood that Chloe’s own crush on Bex was the reason for her blinkered reaction and outright denial but I was still astonished. However, I know that this kind of kneejerk negative response isn’t uncommon. As shocking as it seems, it rings incredibly true when women talk about their abuse even to those who apparently love them the most.

One of my favourite things about this book was watching Marin’s blindfold come off and the realisation that she needs to change. As she begins to notice the differences between the treatment of boys and girls in her own school, she starts to see how her own thoughts and behaviour may have contributed to it. Her transformation is a great example of how a terrible life event can be the catalyst to improve your own life.

Passages like the one above carries something that every woman can relate to. We’ve all felt the cold knife of self-hatred burrowing its way into our heads and compared how we think of ourselves to how we think of others. As a high-flying academic and popular girl, Marin could easily have been a character that I struggled to connect with. However, it’s moments like this that give her a degree of humanity and vulnerability that makes her very likeable.

There is also a really lovely unexpected romance that starts around halfway through the book. It’s very cute and slow-burning, which is my favourite kind of romantic relationship to read. I’m pretty sure it was the driving force for me zooming through the book because I just wanted to see everything work out!

Rules For Being A Girl is a must-read for everyone but especially teenage girls. It possibly wouldn’t speak to guys in the same way as it is inherently about female issues. However, there is also an abuse of power element that could relate to anyone. It’s a quick read that is fierce, inspirational and incredibly satisfying.

#rules for being a girl #candace bushnell #katie cotugno #ya #feminism #books #review #book review #bookworm

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earaercircular · 3 years

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The Micro Factory, a workshop where they share more than tools

In Anderlecht –one of the municipalities of the region of Brussels-Capital-, the Micro Factory offers a space for inspiration and co-creation to professional craftsmen or Sunday DIYers. The opportunity to share equipment, wishes and skills. And to relocate the production of objects in cities.

A little bit of sandpaper here, a final adjustment there. Against a backdrop of jazzy music, Olivier is putting the finishing touches to the assembly of the Victor Fund[1] book boxes which are about to be placed in two Brussels restaurants. In the metal workshop, a few meters away, Sébastien for his part is finishing the welding of elements for the manufacture of bookshelves for a literary café which will soon open its doors in the centre of the capital. In another room, right next to the common table where we spend as much time "designing on the computer as eating pretzels", Rima shapes table accessories using techniques from the jewellery store.

We are in Anderlecht, a stone's throw from the Brussels-Charleroi canal, where the Micro Factory[2] has established its quarters in an old building of Bruxelles-Propreté[3]. A vast space of 650 square meters where both experienced craftsmen and Sunday handymen and artists come together.

"Here, we are in the soft zone. This partition made with salvaged glass separates what is noisier and dustier from what is less. There is a corner dedicated to textile work. Overthere, these are the screen printing and printing equipment. There, a table for the electronics. There again, a booth for painting and stuff that smells bad ... ", explains Gilles Pinault, taking us around, punctuated by an impressive list of tools that can be found there: 3D printer, thermoforming machine, laser cutting machine, digital milling machine for metal, wood lathe… There are many.

"We could point the finger in any direction, I could tell you a story about the machine," he smiles.

A place to go from idea to realization

While some of this equipment belongs to the Micro Factory, most of it is the property of its users who leave them at the disposal of the community. “The deal is that people can leave their tools in their personal space or in the common. If they're in the common, it's for common use. It works a lot on trust. But people meet there because it is a free hosting of their machines. This saves them having to rent a clean place ", continues Gilles.

Born in the bubbling spirit of our guide, this shared workshop project took a few years to build. "I am an architect by training, I did a little virtual reality and I am rather a handyman in everything", he summarizes. Entrepreneur too, since he was one of the co-founders of Softkinetic,[4] this small Belgian company specializing in 3D imaging and motion analysis software, sold to the giant Sony in 2016. "The archetype of the start-up who has grown up and who is doing the rounds of investors. I saw that what the company needed now was more management and processes, than developing new ideas. “,says Gilles. His thing is to do things. And, obviously, he's rarely lacking in imagination.

Three years earlier, he had set up with his wife and a few friends regular meetings to materialize "lots of ideas that we have always had in mind without taking the time to realize them". DIY workshops, therefore, organized in each other's salons. The embryo of the Micro Factory was born.

But the participants quickly felt cramped. Inspired by American "makerspaces", they therefore set out to find a place where they could more widely express their creativity while sharing their tools. Together, they will thus occupy "a somewhat rotten squat of artists" in Saint-Gilles, then a building on temporary rental in the city centre.

In 2016, the day of Softkinetic's sale, he decided to take the plunge and devote himself completely to the Micro Factory project. He then sets out in search of a "real" building where it could develop and structure itself over time. Renovated as part of projects supported by the European EFRD fund[5], the Bruxelles-Propreté building offers it an ideal base. "We got a reduced rent and a ten-year lease. It is important because we could not cope with the market price. This allowed us to make somewhat ambitious arrangements."

Switch to a cooperative and gain impact

If it functions a bit like a de facto association, the Micro Factory has in practice been created on the basis of an Limited company (Ltd) linked to the former activities of Gilles Pinault. "It was easier to start. Technically, I am the manager, but in practice not at all", explains the person who now has the wish to switch the project under the status of cooperative. A status which corresponds more to the spirit of sharing that he wants to encourage. "This will make it possible in particular to carry out the purchase of machines in common and to involve everyone in the decisions. Today, I still have a limiting effect. People do not dare to do certain things without 'asking Gilles '. It will help them feel at home. "

The project, which he financed largely on his own funds with a few other contributors, must also evolve to achieve economic equilibrium, which is not the case as it stands. "Our break-even point is 9000 euros per month, which means about 200 users. The cooperative will collectively take new directions. Do we want to limit ourselves to 30 hyper professional members who pay € 300 per month or 200 members who pay 45 €? Should we not operate other than by subscription mode and try to remunerate the Micro Factory on the basis of the projects that are carried out there, by highlighting the diversity of skills that are offered? We can take these decisions together, ” he argues.

Pass the series threshold

Currently, most of the creations that come out of these workshops are prototypes or unique pieces. The goal is to move towards a professional production of objects in small series, adds Gilles Pinault. "How to make twenty tables a month rather than three? To have a local impact beyond ideas, we must achieve a more affordable economic dimension. If we want to bring back work and the production of products to the cities, transmit skills, this involves production accessible to as many people as possible without switching to the Ikea model. "

A workshop subscription rather than fitness

Two years later, the Micro Factory has 100 to 150 users, who have subscribed to its subscription system. "It's a bit like in a fitness room. We offer a monthly subscription system that offers flexible access ranges for 50 to 150 euros per month", continues Gilles Pinault, who insists on the continued group dynamic.

"Someone who comes for just an hour to use the machines doesn't really fit into the intended philosophy," which consists of facilitating links and collaboration between participants. It is, for example, the regulars who welcome new visitors and accompany their first steps. The "pros" also advise the "amateurs" and generally speaking, each other's creativity and skills feed on each other.

It is this spirit that excited Olivier who, alongside his work in the field of opinion polls, chose to embark on an activity of craftsman-cabinetmaker. "Rather than settling in my small basement or renting a workshop alone, it was obvious to come here on my first visit", he says, emphasizing the conviviality and the atmosphere that reigns. at the Micro Factory.

"Everyone works on their projects, but there is an exchange of ideas which takes place during the discussions and even in the practical realization. Multidisciplinarity is another interesting aspect that attracted me: being able to move from one area to the next. I am particularly in the process of training myself in metalwork, which will allow me, for example, to offer a table combining two materials. It is really a breath of fresh air to come and work here. "

Source

Gilles Toussaint, La Micro Factory, un atelier où on partage plus que des outils, in La Libre Belgique, 11-02-21, https://stories.lalibre.be/inspire/numero80/index.html

[1] The Victor Fund was created in memory of Victor Van de Woestyne who died accidentally in Brussels on November 4, 2016. In memory of Victor and to give sense to what does not have, his parents decided to create a Fund whose objective is to encourage young people between the ages of 12 and 15 to read. At this age, adolescents discover a new school environment, new friends, new activities. And even good readers often reduce the time they spend exploring books. Through its concrete and targeted actions, the Victor Fund wants to participate in an active, fun and radiant approach in favor of reading. https://www.lefondsvictor.be/ [2] The Micro Factory is a shared manufacturing workshop, based on participation and pooling. It's like a co-working space, but for makers. http://microfactory.be/ [3] Bruxelles-Propreté is a para-regional entity. It acts under the direct authority of the Minister of the Government of the Region of Brussels-Capital in charge of Climate Transition, Environment, of Energy and Participatory Democracy. Bruxelles-Propreté employs about 2,400 people. https://www.arp-gan.be/en/who-whe-are.html [4] https://www.sony-depthsensing.com/ [5] https://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/en/funding/erdf/

#circular economy #regional development

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droneseco · 3 years

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Lanq PCDock Monitor Stand Tries to Do So Much, but Fails at Nearly Everything

Lanq PCDock

5.00 / 10

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The Lanq PCDock is a competent monitor stand with RGB lights, a fingerprint reader, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and some USB ports. But I can't quite figure out ... why?

Key Features

All-in-one desktop hub

Specifications

Brand: Lanq

Connection: USB-A

Ports: 2 x USB3.1, 2 x USB-C, Fingerprint reader, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth 5.0

Pros

As a monitor stand, it's solidly built

Qi charging pad is convenient

Cons

Drivers requires for the Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and fingerprint reader

RGB lighting doesn't integrate with anything

Buy This Product

Lanq PCDock other

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The Lanq PCDock claims to be the new standard of monitor stand. With a built-in USB hub, fingerprint sensor, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip, Qi charger, and RGB lights—everything except a kitchen sink, in fact—is it everything you could want from a monitor stand? Probably not.

Crowdfunding Disclaimer

The Lanq PCDock is currently seeking backers on IndieGogo, with about a week left on the campaign. Back it now to save around 40-50% off the eventual RRP. Or don't.

The usual disclaimer applies here: crowdfunding is not a pre-order system, and there's no legal responsibility for the company to deliver anything to backers. Lanq—or Langqun Yunchang (Shenzhen) Electronics Co—appears to be a new company, with no previous products or crowdfunding history.

PCDock As a Monitor Stand

Two sizes of Lanq PCDock monitor stand are available—the Pro and Max—and they only differ by width. The largest Max size (as tested) measures 43.5W x 8.62D x 3.27H inches (1105W x 219H x 83D mm), while the smaller Pro measures 24.8 inches (631mm) wide.

One benefit of a monitor stand is that it frees up desktop space, allowing you to store a keyboard, mouse, and other bits underneath it when they're not in use. Both sizes of the Lanq PCDock offer 2.24 inches (57mm) of clearance underneath. That's just about enough for a mouse, but just shy of what's needed for an Xbox controller. It's deceptively small, in fact.

The PCDock Max size is designed to accommodate dual monitors, side-by-side, though I "only" have a 55-inch TV to test with on my gaming desk. It handled that fine, thankfully not collapsing at any point during testing. With ABS plastic legs on the side, the main frame is made of an unspecified metal (probably steel), and certainly feels sturdy.

If I did have two, or three monitors, I suspect I'd rather attach them to adjustable VESA mounting arms, so as to give me more control over the angle and tilt.

Lanq claims the PCDock stand will raise the monitor to the correct viewing height, thereby easing neck strain. I can't help but think monitor manufacturers have already considered this rather fundamental design aspect into their products, so this statement may be a little presumptuous. My work monitor actually includes a height-adjustable stand, as do many designed for use in an office.

RGB Lights

RGB lighting is not to everyone's taste, but it's a key feature of the Lanq PCDock. Offering either 60 or 120 LEDs depending on the size of the dock, these are pixel LEDs rather than a single color strip. A remote control is included, and a variety of attractive, if somewhat distracting, animations are pre-programmed.

You can also choose static colors, or you can change the speed of the animations to be less annoying. It really does look quite impressive, if you're into that sort of thing, which I am. I want all the RGBs.

Unfortunately, there's no integration here between the lights and desktop controller software. Your only method to choose how the lights behave is through that small remote control, so don't lose it.

Keen gamers who already have a lot of RGB kit will likely have already bought into a specific system, such as Razer Chroma, Corsair iCue, or even Philips Hue. This is therefore not going to appeal to them.

As a Hub

The Lanq PCDock is also a generic hub, offering two USB-A 3.0 ports, and two USB-C 3.2 ports, which have fast charging capability. However, these aren't Thunderbolt, so don't expect to be running a monitor off of them.

The exterior right-hand side of the dock feels like a sub-optimal placement. I'd much rather hide my keyboard and mouse cable underneath the monitor stand, and keep the cables off the desk. Useful as quick access for plugging in a USB stick perhaps; but my Razer keyboard also does that.

Ultimately, you wouldn't be purchasing the Lanq PCDock for the USB hub alone, so I'm not going to dwell on it; it's an ancillary feature that's useful to have.

10W Qi Charger

Also on the right-hand side you'll find a smartphone-sized rubber pad embedded into the top surface; this indicates the location of the 10W Qi charger.

This functioned much as expected, reliable triggering a wireless charge when my phone was placed onto it. But I can't say I found it all that useful. Modern smartphones tend to last me the entire day if I'm sat at my desk. It's only when heading out and about, using GPS, or taking videos that the battery doesn't last a whole day. In which case, I'm not at my desk.

Fingerprint Reader, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi

I've grouped these features together because they all require a separate driver download. The drivers come as a RAR file, and extract to reveal a bunch of DLLs, as well as a INF file, which you should locate and right-click on, then select "Install" in order to add them to your system. In 2021, I expect much better. A single driver package with an install executable should be an absolute minimum. But moreover, the fact you even need to install drivers for such generic features is almost unheard of nowadays.

It seems even more curious when you consider that in order to activate the Wi-Fi functionality, you either need to already have Wi-Fi, or an Ethernet cable plugged in. Are you going to unplug your faster, Gigabit Ethernet, to replace it with a less reliable and potentially laggy Wi-Fi connection? I doubt it. The only reason to use this Wi-Fi adaptor is if your existing one is a decade old, and only capable of 2.4Ghz. The Lanq dual-band Wi-Fi apparently goes up to 5.8Ghz.

The Bluetooth chip (BlueSoleil), worked briefly after a lot of fiddling and allowed me to connect to an Xbox controller. Until Windows decided something was wrong and disabled the driver. Fixing it required a restart and USB dance each time, which seemed like far more effort than it was worth.

I was unable to test the fingerprint reader, but in fairness, I don't think this is Lanq's fault. I disabled Windows login years ago, and now it won't let me re-enable it again. As a gaming-only Windows user, I don't need to secure my desktop in any way. Supposedly it can be used for Windows Hello, but there doesn't seem to be any deeper integration such as web payments, as I'm accustomed to on my Macbook Pro. That said, this might be the one killer feature for you, and if it is, you can probably justify the rest of the package too.

Should You Buy the Lanq PCDock?

The sales page seems to be aiming the Lanq PCDock at professionals and office workers, but the inclusion of RGB lighting would suggest gamers. Yet, the RGB lighting isn't integrated into any existing RGB system, which means gamers won't be interested in it unless this is their first foray into this kind of lighting system.

If the lighting was exposed to the connected PC system through the third-party "works with Razer Chroma" plugin or similar, it'd be a whole lot more useful. As it is, the reliance on a single point of failure (a tiny remote control) makes this aspect of the dock difficult to recommend.

Then there's the fact that the Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and fingerprint reader require separate driver downloads. I can't remember the last time I had to install drivers for such basic features. My experience with Bluetooth dongles thus far on Windows 10 has been "plug and play". And even if the Lanq Bluetooth had worked reliably for me, which it didn't, a plug-and-play dongle from Pluggable is less than $10, and only a fraction bigger than the USB port it plugs into.

The whole thing feels like it was thrown together as part of a "design your ultimate monitor stand" competition. It's a mish-mash of nice-to-have features (if they worked), but none of them are individually compelling, and the whole is, well, less than the sum of its parts.

The Lanq PCDock is a sturdy monitor stand with some cool lighting and a USB hub, but at $200, the value for money simply isn't there.

Lanq PCDock Monitor Stand Tries to Do So Much, but Fails at Nearly Everything published first on http://droneseco.tumblr.com/

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takemehomefromnarnia · 7 years

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A message from Kat, (co-) founder of Takemehomefromnarnia and Rainbow Direction

Yesterday morning I woke up to a storm. During the night, our twitter account had liked a tweet that was hateful towards Louis and towards a segment of the fandom, and we were following the account in question.

Deepest apologies

Before I say anything else: I speak for everyone at TMHFN/Rainbow Direction when I say how deeply sorry we are that this happened and that you have been hurt by it. We love all the boys, we welcome all fans whatever they ship, and we condemn all forms of hate.

Some might also need specific reminding that we love Louis. We do. Our blog was named after a twitter incident with homophobia directed at Louis. One of TMHFN’s early actions was speaking up against the homophobic slurs flying around on twitter after Louis joined a football team. On so many occasions we’ve pointed people to the interview in which Louis – when asked whether he appreciated gay and straight fans both – said that “I think it’s great, all fans are fans of our music so it doesn’t really matter what or who they are.” We have supported his music and solo career. And while we’ll never know whether they were in support of Rainbow Direction, we did take notice of Louis’ various rainbow themed T-shirts that he’s worn at important occasions over the years. So we love him, like we love all the boys, and we like to think he loves us, like he loves all his fans.

What happened

It’s been more than four years since the start of TMHFN and this is not the first time we’ve encountered crisis. From the past we’ve learned not to judge too quickly and to take the time to take things in, find out what really happened, and listen to everyone’s point of view.

For the past couple of days, whenever we were all awake and were able to discuss (we are spread over 4 time zones and 2 continents) we have been talking about what happened and how it could have happened.

Only the five current core team members (Li, Ellis, Tamara, Edwin and I) have access to the social media accounts. We have an indiscriminate follow-back policy, which is how the tweet showed up on our timeline. Its mention of homophobia was the reason why it attracted attention.

All five of us have known each other a long time, and we trust each other 100% . We are absolutely sure that no one here supports what the tweet said. We are therefore absolutely sure no one here liked the tweet thinking they were on their personal account. We are also absolutely sure no one here liked the tweet from our account on purpose for whatever reason.

Which leaves only two possibilities – a hack, or an accident. Since we consider the former to be a bit unlikely – our only reasonable conclusion is that it must have been a slip of the finger while checking out this tweet on our timeline for its mention of homophobia.

That night, being the only one on the account still awake, Edwin had already come to this conclusion: that it must have been a mistake, likely his since he was the last one on the account. He immediately took full responsibility for the error, apologizing for it, correcting it and offering his resignation. In doing so, he put Rainbow Direction and the principles it stands for above his own interests. And I am sure that every single one of us would have done the same.

What we stand for

That’s because we are all convinced that what we are doing here – trying to create visibility for marginalized young people, trying to create a safe space for all young music fans to be themselves, trying to make this 40 million strong fandom/community more inclusive for the 10% of it that doesn’t identify as straight – is bigger and far more important than any single one of us.

Thank you to everyone who has notified, expressed their anger, shown understanding, supported, been completely honest with us,... We appreciate and understand everyone's reactions - we are also shocked and saddened that this happened - and will do everything we can to keep TMHFN and RD the positive, safe community that it has been to so many of us.

If what happened last night makes you feel you can no longer support Rainbow Direction, we fully understand that. You can sign off by simply dropping us an ask/DM.

I ask you with urgency, though, that however you feel about this, please NOT to abandon you rainbows whatever else you do. There are about 4 million LGBTQ+ One Direction fans who need you to make them feel safe here. Remove your name, drop our tags, but please keep the rainbows.

No limits to love

There is one thing I do need to get off my chest. Like everyone else here, I have been taken aback by the speed and harshness with which this error was judged before we were even aware of it, and it’s been shocking to see the way it was blamed on various people who had nothing at all to do with it.

It’s symptomatic of a fandom that seems to be deeply divided into factions ever since the boys started releasing solo albums. As a bisexual polyamorous person I cannot count the times I have had to explain that “loving one person/gender doesn’t mean I’d love the other(s) any less, because there isn’t a limited amount of love”.

I am saying it again about love for music today: it’s perfectly possible to love two (or more) artists at the same time. Even if they are from the same band. And can we please also love each other a little bit more? Treat each other with a little bit more kindness (Harry), always assume best intentions (our own lovely Ellis), and find some mildness, some forgiveness in ourselves.

I have not accepted Edwin’s resignation, and was supported in that decision by the three other colleagues. Movements and organisations are driven by people, and people inevitably make mistakes sometimes. People who own up to their mistakes and learn from them should be valued, because they are the only ones that grow.

This organisation too will try to learn from its mistakes and improve. Edwin is taking a role that doesn’t involve access to the social media accounts. We’ll clarify our Twitter followback policy and simplify our “likes” policy, or abandon likes alltogether, as some of you have suggested. We’re also putting in place a password system that should allow us to correct any mistakes much sooner. As always, we welcome all of your concerns and any suggestions on how to improve.

I’ll close off by saying thank you, once again, to those of you who shared their feelings about what happened with us, whether positive or negative, we have learned from all of you. Thank you for your support and thank for your honesty. The five of us remain as committed as ever to create a safe space in this fandom for LGBTQ+ fans and hope we can count on many of you to make that happen with us. Together we are stronger.

All my love

Kat

#rainbow direction #rainbowdirection #takemehomefromnarnia #louis tomlinson #twitter

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27timescinema · 5 years

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INTERVIEW - LUX PRIZE - RODRIGO SOROGOYEN

By Pau Vall Capdet

Rodrigo Sorogoyen is a well-known Spanish director and scriptwriter who has gained both critical and popular regognition in his short, yet specially intense career. Born in Madrid in 1981, Sorogoyen debuted in 2011 with Stockolm a unique romantic drama which was critically acclaimed and already projected a very promising career. In his following two feature films (Que Dios Nos Perdone and El Reino) he has proven to master the political and police thriller genre by establishing his own cinematic style. Last year, he surprised everyone with his thrilling short film Madre, which was selected for the Academy Awards.

I had the enormous privilege of meeting Rodrigo during the Venice Film Festival, as his fourth feature film Madre (which explores and amplifies the same plot introduced in his previous short) premieres during this year’s edition of the Mostra. Additionally, his seven-times Goya winner film El Reino has been selected for the 2019 edition of the LUX Film Prize by the European Parliament.

If you had to measure the current state of the Spanish audiovisual industry, would you consider that its health (in terms of quality and creativity, but also regarding the number of completed movies and the results at the box office) has improved during the last decade?

It depends on the movie. Although, I think there is a type of movie (which used to be the classical mid-budget Spanish film) that was quite easy to produce and distribute in Spain. Those kinds of movies were normally related to a type of cinema that wasn’t risky or bold at all (I consider this to be the bad part of these films, even though the good part is they actually could be made and were seen in cinemas). Nowadays, only big-budget films can go forward and have a place in the market (normally conventional, low-risk features). Thanks to the digital revolution though, some independent, creative and narratively courageous low-budget movies can be produced.

How does it feel to move from making a low-budget film through crowdfunding (Stockholm, 2013) to directing a film with a much larger budget, (and a more mainstream projection) as it is the case of The Realm?

I lived this evolution in a natural, spontaneous way. Personally, I haven’t thought about it that much. Even though I manage more money, my work (with the actors, camera and so on) has remained the same. My method of working is identical: I create a script that must be translated into moving images (I don’t mind if there’s a lot of money or not, what is important though is that the budget fits the movie’s needs and structure). It would be absurd to produce Que Dios Nos Perdone using crowdfunding, but it was definitely a perfect method for Stockholm.

In previous interviews, you frequently mention David Fincher or Paul Thomas Anderson as basic inspirational directors for your last two movies. But what are your mentors in Spanish cinema?

I try not to have role-models at all. I believe it’s better not to have conscious mentors because they may interfere with my vision and my way of working. Of course, I do appreciate and admire a lot of Spanish (and foreign) directors, but my movies are not based on other’s work. Every day I’m facing more questions involving the directors I admire but I try to stay away from their vision because I believe it could interfere with my own.

The degree of credibility that the characters of The Realm convey with their performance is thrilling (if we consider their rhythm, their speaking manners and gesturing). Where is the line, the border between reality and fiction, in The Realm? Can reality overcome fiction in terms of likelihood?

Well, I believe reality always overcomes fiction. In fact, there were some actual true events (that happened in Spain) which we decided not to include in the script because they would be unbelievable, not credible at all for our story. For instance, Granados (an Spanish corrupted politician) ended imprisoned in the same penitentiary he had previously built as a politician some years before. Therefore, we thought this could lead to bad scriptwriting (like those American commercial movies where the man who constructs a jail suddenly ends up there as well) as in a feature film I wouldn’t believe the story, at least not from the spectators’ point of view.

In some interviews, you mentioned that the film is not intended to judge or criticize, but to portray a specific reality by giving the viewer the tools to evaluate what he is seeing on screen. Humanizing a corrupt politician creates a problem of moral ambiguity. Did the preproduction process help humanize seemingly dark characters?

Yeah, I guess it did. This was already thought and planned during the script process. Actually, it was kind of the starting point of the film, the key idea: take a well-known enemy for the people and get to know his ordinary familiar and political life. I have to recognize it was partly due to Antonio de la Torre’s obsession with talking to real politicians to make the main character as realistic as possible, and it helped a lot actually talking and hanging out with them. Also, it was very helpful to listen to the scandalous leaked audio phone calls between them, which made obvious that their language is as rude and common as any citizen. We’re wrongly used to the fiction works in which the politicians and the powerful only talk politely and calmly, and I wanted to change that (as in Spain it’s obvious we don’t speak like this). This made it easier for the actors as well.

Your trajectory as a director has consolidated your cinematic style and method: hand-held camera, constant closeness to the characters, interior scenes shot using wide lenses, a soundtrack with thrilling electronic music…. Are you aware of having established, with your four movies, your personal style?

I am conscious of some of the things you mentioned but I guess not as mindful as an spectator can be. I prefer working without thinking that I am creating a style as a director. This way I don’t judge and get obsessed with my work and don’t fall into repetition or the constant thought that I may be paraphrasing myself. I just prefer not thinking about it. It is a fact though, that if I watch my movies, I can observe that there are some filmic patterns which are reiterated.

Naturally, I do think about all the cinematic elements to shoot and direct actors properly along with Isabel Peña (my co-scriptwriter) and while we’re writing the script I visualize and project each scene in my mind.

How will the distribution of the film evolve from now on after being selected for this edition of the Lux Prize?

Well, this is kind of hard to answer because I’m immersed in a whole new adventure right now with Madre, my new film. I feel it’s a joy and a pleasure that new audiences can experience the movie from all over Europe. It makes a difference to not only be present two weeks during the theatrical release and have the chance to be in international European film festivals. Therefore, this will give more visibility and life to the movie.

Do you think that a new European film network should be created and reinforced against the American industry for example?

Absolutely, I don’t know who wouldn’t want that. Anything ready to confront the American blockbusters who manage to succeed everywhere in the box office is a good idea. We should have a stronger Spanish distribution system that works similar to the French model, which succeeds in supporting its industry so as to survive and grow. It’s a pity that people only watch one or two European movies every year.

Two years ago, you presented the critically acclaimed short film Madre. In this edition of the Venice Film Festival you are releasing its follow-up, this time as a feature film. What is the story behind Madre? Did you think about making the film when you were shooting the short?

Well, the short movie was born as an attractive and interesting film exercise to me and also to the spectator. By all means, I already knew Madre could be the first scene of a movie and the short being so successful made it easier for the feature to be produced and financed in such a short period..

Besides, the idea behind the short film came from one friend of mine who lived the same experience portrayed in the film. It didn’t end badly, she just received a call from his son who didn’t find his father, but unlike the movie, he luckily found him, and everything came back to normal. She mentioned to me it was the worst minute of her life. This is the source of the movie’s plot and from here on Isabel and I started asking ourselves how the story could continue and be developed into a full script. I think there are a lot of topics in the film’s narrative that can’t be simplified into one single argument or thesis. It was also a fun exercise: we have this start, now how do we continue her story?

At the moment you have already demonstrated mastering the genre of the political and crime thriller. Would you like to approach other genres or ways of narrating?

Yes, all of them! (laughs). Actually, I’d love to shoot a science fiction film and I already have two comedies in mind! Obviously, the important part is the plot, the script (and as I spend one or two years working on it certainly has to be appealing). However, I am indeed really fond to keep changing the shape and genre of my films.

#venezia76 #lux prize #interviews

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itsakyo · 7 years

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Taeyeon has been called an idol born to be a star sometimes. Do you think she was born to be a star? Why?

If you think about it, the phrase “XXX was born to be a star” has multiple layers of meaning. XXX would have to be a person who embodies all the necessary qualities a top star would require. Some of these qualities are unable to be nurtured/trained, meaning you have to be born with it, while some qualities can be trained or acquired through hard work/practice.

1. Appearance. We all know about plastic surgery and its powers. Even minor things like wearing braces to adjust your teeth, doing laser to clear blemishes/freckles on your face, or injections to tighten your skin and maintain a youthful appearance etc all play a part. But no matter how much you do to your face, the “basic structure” is there at birth. Meaning, your starting canvas (face) is fixed by birth. Like how some people naturally look pissed off until they smile but are actually super friendly and kind at heart, or how some people look friendly when they’re actually not.

Some people just naturally have more appealing looks to more people. I am not talking about individual preferences cos I know beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I am referring to looks that appeal to the MASSES, whereby MANY/TONS of people agree that this person looks appealing/attractive. Now this is one element of the X-factor. And you have to be born with it, more or less, cos everyone looks different from each other and there is a limit to how much PS/aesthetic procedures can change your appearance.

So from the get go, lots of people like the way Taeyeon looks. Whether it’s something in her eyes (soulful? charming?) or whether it’s the way all her features come together to form her face, the impression many people get is positive and they feel attracted to her.

2. Talent. Singing technique is trained. Vocal range can be expanded with training as well. Singing expression can be nurtured too.

But most critically, the one thing that can’t be trained/nurtured is the timbre/tone/shape/colour of the voice. You have to be born with it. The only way you can change your voice is by changing your hormones, which is why your voice changes as you go through puberty and various stages of life wherein hormonal changes occur. Otherwise, your voice is your voice. You can’t PS it to make it sound more appealing to people. Some people naturally have a DJ-quality voice. Some people’s voices are naturally sharp and more jarring on the ears to listen to. You get my point.

On top of that, style and expression in singing is also a highly personal musical taste/choice, unique to each singer. Some are able to move you to tears, while some are unable to convey much emotions.

Taeyeon’s voice can work magic on many/tons people. Enough people to make her a very popular singer. Again, I’m not saying 100% of everyone will like her voice but I’m saying a big enough mass of people are attracted by her voice such that they will listen to her songs and buy her music.

3. Personality. I’m sure many of you will agree with me, that personality, while it is shaped by family, friends, life experiences, the environment you live/grow up in etc, is something you can’t change easily. Unless you’re putting on a show/pretense 24/7 (which is extremely difficult to keep up without slipping up one day) your personality is something that is truly yours and yours alone.

Personality also isn’t something you can fix or change overnight. Neither is there a fixed set of personality that will guarantee you instant popularity and stardom. Not every friendly, kind and warm person will successfully earn a huge fandom and massive popularity. And not every popular idol is outgoing and hyper.

Some personality types might make it easier for a person to succeed as an idol/artiste but as we can see, all the successful idols out there have different personalities so there is no way of knowing beforehand if an idol/artiste will be able to be massively popular simply by analyzing their personality alone.

4. Fate. Given a person has the personality to appeal to lots of people, possesses great looks that attract heaps of people and has awesome talent in their chosen field of entertainment (voice/dance/acting etc). There are “perfect” artistes like that who are simply not popular enough and for some reason, are unable to gain a big enough fandom/popularity to be considered a top star, maybe B or C-list at best.

This is when you will find some people saying “this XXX is so underrated. great looks great talent great everything but why isn’t XXX as popular as ZZZ? And YYY isn’t even half as talented as XXX but YYY is way more popular than XXX”

The explanation for this would be put down to one of the most important factors - FATE. Sometimes, things are just meant to be.

SNSD without GEE would not have been the SNSD now. SNSD could just as easily have been just an ordinary girl group with a decent fandom that is nowhere as huge as the SNSD that we know today.

Think about Gangnam Style. PSY had been doing that style of music for such a long time and it definitely isn’t the first time he did a wacky dance but Gangnam Style went viral and PSY was propelled to massive popularity without him doing anything different with the intent to go globally viral. He was just doing what he does.

There are tons more examples of this and what it demonstrates is how little control idols have when it comes to MASSIVE popularity. Not to discount the effort they put in. The company tries hard. The idols all work hard and try hard and do everything they can to succeed and climb to the top. It is a given for them to be well-prepared for any opportunity that comes along. That will most probably lead them to somewhere in the middle of the pack - the average or above average.

But for something special enough to happen and help you to emerge from the pack and stay on top, you do need some lady luck smiling on you.

I remember Taeyeon saying in her PERSONA concert (not her exact words but the gist of it): “Thank you. There are so many (other great?) singers out there, but you chose me, so thank you.” She captured the essence of it in that line.

So is Taeyeon born to be a star? I think Taeyeon has qualified for all of the above. And therefore, in those aspects, is indeed born to be a star.

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wwe-fluff-fic · 7 years

Text

Roman Reigns - What Did I Just Witness...

Roman Reigns - Prompt #24 and #86: “Are you drunk?” and “Why are you walking around naked?”

- Warnings - Swearing, Sexual References.

Word Count - 1,666 words.

Requested by: Anon.

A/N - If you’d like to be tagged in any future fics feel free to message us :)

______________________________________________________________

“Woo!” You and several of your other girlfriends screamed as the last of the twelve men shut the door to your hired Las Vegas Mansion, leaving you all to get along with your huge girly night in. Most of the girls in the group had continuously bugged you about why you weren’t going on some wild night out to enjoy the nightlife of Vegas- your answer of ‘I don’t want to some big ass hangover on my wedding day’ was a simple yet effective way in shutting them up. One weekend in Vegas was all you had with the hectic schedule Roman and you were confined to therefore you had to make the most of what you had. Of course, Bachelor and Bachelorette parties on the Saturday and your Wedding Day on the Sunday. Yeah, not the smartest idea in the whole world... The day was all set to be perfect; what your dreams were made of, the picture you imagined at the age of five. The single greatest day of your life. A loud shrill of one of your bestfriends however broke you out of your small daydream.

“It’s time to partayyy” Nikki screamed whilst popping the first of what seemed to be endless bottles of champagne. You solely giggled at her as she began to haphazardly pour glasses for everyone, all except the very pregnant Brie who remained rolling her eyes at her clearly overly-eager twin.

“It’s hardly even a party,” you chimed in. “More like a bunch of girls wearing face masks, getting absolutely pissed out of their minds whilst watching some random ass shows on the television.” Your small remark caused a flurry of cackles to erupt from the women scattered around the lavish living area.

“Hey, it’s a celebration and a celebration means a party you bitch.” Renee practically screeched in your ear as she began hugging you, ultimately causing both of your bodies to topple over and land lying tightly against each other. Yeah... basically spooning... You shook your head and plainly laughed at the already slightly tipsy blonde as all the other girls nodded and hummed in agreement of Renee’s previous statement.

~ Later On ~

Somehow still after two whole hours, you were sprawled on the sofa in the ever-so-slightly peculiar position with your friend. Face masks were done, alcohol had been consumed by almost everyone- maybe a little too much and at this point it was clear to see everyone was just waiting for their ‘men’ to return from whatever adventures they decided to embark on. God only knows what time they’d be back though. “Alright let’s talk about some girly things,” Naomi muttered, breaking the silence that had formed in the room. An instant sense of fear rushed over you- I mean who wouldn’t be a little scared, they were bound to come up with the most awkward or ridiculous questions going.

“I’ll start!” Nattie pretty much begged, leaving you with basically no choice but to nod in agreement. “So Y/N... How are you feeling, like you’re getting married tomorrow!?” It all seemed so crazy. Yours and Roman’s relationship never truly was a secret, news spread 3 years ago exactly a week after you’d been on your first official date. Everything just seemed so right with him so why would you have kept it as any form of secret? He just knew you and you knew him... it was almost as if he was a part of you; to the point where if he left you wouldn’t know how to cope. It was as if commitment was an easy thing to agree to; but only with him.

Questions continued to flow around a circle from the 3 seated on the other sofa to the others who were left on the floor. “Alright, so Y/N, have you talked about kids with Roman?” Lana questioned, shifting her body on the immaculate flooring to be rested on her elbows.

“Erm, I mean yeah we’ve discussed it and we both do want kids but like I just don’t want to really stop work you know.” That was a tricky situation in itself to even remotely talk about. Yeah, you wanted kids and yeah it’d be incredible with Roman but just the simple thought of potentially stopping your dream career was heartbreaking. Of course, it’d happen eventually, just not anytime soon.

The spiral of questions soon reached the final person, Renee. “Well the real question is... how’s he in bed?” You instantly felt your cheeks flush a bright crimson and a smirk etched its way onto your face. “Awh well that just means he’s great then.” Renee responded to your visible answer through the form of complete embarrassment.

A mass of ‘awhs’ arose during the crowd before a sharp click virtually silenced them. Your body immediately shot up as seeing your soon-to-be husband enter through the door, a small velvet box cupped in his hands. “Hey babygirl.” He mumbled bringing you into a tight embrace as you rushed towards him. “I have something for you. I’ve been told every bride should have something old, new, borrowed and blue and since you already have the new dress, the old hair-piece and Nikki’s white Louboutins, I decided to get you this. He gently opened the tiny box, revealing a perfect pair of blue diamond earrings which instantly left you gushing in pure astonishment.

“Oh my god Roman. I seriously can’t believe you, these must have cost a fortune!” You babbled on, tugging your long hair into a loosely knotted bun.

“Don’t worry about that babygirl. Tomorrow’s our day.” Romans voice always soothed you, whether it’d be before you fell asleep or after a stressful day at work. He always seemed to have that trick up his sleeve; that way of making everything feel as though it was going to be okay- well, more than that... perfect. His fingers intertwined with the fallen strands of hair framing your face before he delicately placed his soft lips against yours. It wasn’t long before the rest of the guys entered the house, greeting their other halves. “Okay Y/N I’m going to head to bed before I literally pass out.”

“Alright we are going in like 5 minutes but I’m gonna stay the night in Renee’s room since I figured we shouldn’t see each other tomorrow, you know superstition and all that...so I guess I’ll see you tomorrow handsome. Night babe.” You explained releasing your arms from his extremely attractive, toned biceps to watch him walk away. All the guys seemed to have the same idea, heading towards the barrage of different bedrooms in the distant corridor. “Erm Dean your bedroom should be the second on the left. Everyone else knows where they are.”

You slumped back onto the sofa to continue your conversations with the girls for a little longer. The conversations were solely supposed to last five minutes; those 5 minutes soon turned into 10. “He’s just really sweet and gentle you know.” You answered to Maryse’s prior question, not realizing the immediate switch in Tamina’s facial expressions.

“My god, my eyes hurt. I’m not supposed to be seeing this.” She blurted out, shielding her eyes with the palms of her hands. What the hell was going on!?

“Gurl... you’re so getting it good.” Naomi’s words directed towards you. Utter confusion was the only thing on your mind right now. Your back was faced away from whatever had caused this mixture of reactions wherein all the rest of the group were gasping in shock as well.

You sat up in a fast pace, head already pounding to turn to witness that... it. “Roman what the actual fuck!? Why are you walking around naked?” There he was stood... your future husband. No towel, no boxers, nothing... just bare. “Are you drunk? There has to be some reason at least for this.”

“No! I swear I am not drunk, it’s just he was there and we were spooning and-” His words were cut off not only due to the eruptions of laughter filling the atmosphere but the urgent ‘what!?’ that rolled off your tongue.

Soon after the faint sound of footsteps could be distinguished, getting louder every second until another lean build came into view. “Ah shit.” Dean’s raspy voice muttered as he then realized everyone staring his direction. “Well, this is awkward.”

“Renee... can you please explain to me why both of our men are standing in front of everyone butt naked? Cos’ I can’t.” You questioned turning to your friend, your tone becoming more and more sarcastic by the minute as you desperately tried to seek an answer to this.

“Look Y/N, I was just lying there minding my own business, doing my sleeping and then I feel someone get into bed so obviously I’m like oh that’s you. So then I start spooning this person, naked might I add and then realised. Why the hell are you so bloody hairy... So I ran out thinking you guys would stick to your word and be gone but here I am. Naked.” It was hard to even take this partially seriously, like come on; Roman and Dean. You tried to keep it cool but it was just way too difficult at this point and you couldn’t contain the fit of laughter forming inside of you. It was even hard to find breath in between the on-going giggles leaving your mouth- it was borderline impossible!

It seemed like that with the other girls as well, it was just surprising how none of the other guys woke up. I guess they were pretty drunk then... That’s surely the only reason they weren’t able to hear the roars of eleven high-pitched giggles. Well, what would have been twelve, however it didn’t seem as though Tamina was enjoying this whole situation... at all. “Okay you know what, all of you guys can’t stop fucking laughing so Roman can you go and put some clothes on before my eyes literally burn.”

A/N - Okay it’s finally done after having to restart the whole thing -.- Anyways who doesn’t love a little bit of Roman so I hope you enjoyed this one as much as I do! xo ~ Nikkii.

Tag List - @m-a-t-91

#wwe #wwe imagine #wwe fanfiction #wwe fanfic #wwe x reader #wwe imagines #wwe × reader #roman x reader #roman reigns #roman reigns request #roman reigns imagine

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nuevorealidad · 6 years

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(2019) plot.plan.time

$$ MONEY $$ The only economy that matters, that can actually put money in your purse, wallet, or the cracks of your sofa, is the economy created by your thoughts, words, and actions. Every day, someone new, near you, becomes a millionaire. The Universe

Most people believe they must “earn” money through hard work and this is why it’s so challenging for them to manifest more money. With this belief, the Law of Attraction must continue to bring money only as the result of hard work. When we can start to expect money to come in unexpected, easy ways, it will.

It's time to give everyone the big fuck you and bloom how you choose. You get to be whatever kind of fucking flower you want to be. You inherit yourself.

This is where we make a choice, punks. What is the story you are going to choose to tell? Are you going to keep telling the same old fucking story, or are you going to take what you want? Are you the master of your own fate, or will you allow the illusion to suck you back in?

It tells us that we are finally shedding the bullshit, letting the hail storm knock away all that isn't fastened securely to the truth.

‘’ Tess Mahal Ko , 1 way to defeat invisible, limiting beliefs, even ones you may not know you have, is to simply ‘’dream*think*create’’ a life so grand, that they couldn’t possibly make sense. And then start living that life today, however humbly at first. Make a decision of what you truly desire, want.. give your attention there .. find the feeling place of it — and *bam* you are there instantly. ‘’ 😍 ‘’ ~ JS

****** OUR NEW GAME Commences November 2018 ***********

!!!!!! ^ - ^ !!!!! En Garde 😍 Get Ready For It !!!!! ^ - ^ !!!!!!

‘’He’ll always be there for her. Standing in the shadows to keep her safe. Laughing with her in the light. Watching through her eyes all those who get close. He’ll always be there. She will be fine.

T.E.S.S. (the.eternal.spontaneous.spin#master) ~

*T*F*S* a #baddass mf gangsta/goddess in cahoots w/ CIA (cosmic intelligence agency) @undisclosed no.extradition.treaty.lat/long.domain in the A.I.R. (alternate intelligence realm)

““ That’s My Girl ““

😍🌾⚘🌸🐱🐥🌻🍀🍂⚘ 🌷☘🌺🌳🌻🍀🐬🐺 🔥🌀🌷☘😍🌾⚘🌸🐱

Rewriting my story- Update 3/2018

Free at last/ free at last/ free to live my life the way I really choose it to be. I am Fearless & I am not afraid. I am sovereign/ I own my authority . No one/nadie/nada can impose itself on me. I am my own Higher Guidance Council how will I know.. if what I hear resonate or feel right to me then it is.. if not its kicked to the curb. I am not here to confirm or follow. I create my own reality / my own sets of beliefs it's my way or the highway .. everything always goes my way .. everything is always working out for me .. good shits are always lining up for me /awesome ideas /brilliant options flows to me in groves/ synchronocities leads to serendipities all the time. And why shouldn't it be.. I am worthy / I am integrity / I am a Privilege Being & a Pampered Soul.

😍🌾⚘🌸🐱🐥🌻🍀🍂⚘ 🌷☘🌺🌳🌻🍀🐬🐺 🔥🌀🌷☘😍🌾⚘🌸🐱

December 26, 2017 ·

in the flow ~ I AM FREE <3 I AM FUCKING FREE :) FREE AT LAST FREE AT LAST :*

2018

Become self-reliant, self supporting. Prioritise your own highest interests - highest being the key word. Cut away anyone or anything that drains or feeds on your precious life force. From now on your mission is to engage only with creators, those who have already woken up Get real and be real. Stop curating your life. Become inner not outer directed. Find what you're really good at and do it all time. Do a personal resources inventory. What do you know or what skills you have that are valuable to others? You have physical, emotional and spiritual resources all around, lying neglected and unacknowledged in your psyche or hidden away in your very own dustbin of history. Now is the moment to excavate all of them – your finances, time investment, skills, talents, possessions, qualities – and release them into the light of day to form and reform into more authentic ways of self-expression and making a living.

Be strongly steadily directed from within. there is no outer, THERE IS NOTHING TO DO INSTEAD YOU CENTER URSELF AND ALIGN W/ WHO U TRULY ARE AND ADAMENTLY REMAIN IN THE PLACE OF AUTHORITY AND POWER AND INWARD TRUTH as your statement and the only thing you know.”

It is all about FEELING EMPOWERED OF YOUR OWN POWER, (UR OWN MC/AUTHORITY) your own soverignity. NOTHING TO DO .. ALL ABBOUT BEING ALL THAT U ARE . So instead of thinking what is there to do...FEEL WHAT U FEEL LIKE DOING and doing preceeds the being...here i rule my life to the fullest as i await my instant death w/out pain without knowing ... there;s really nothing else ofcourse xcept for the receiving of alot of abundance, cash, money , gifts, bonus, opps stuf jup sco. all about attaining desire for personal sovereignty.independence and detaching anything less of my being. i am and will always be a priviiledge being and pampered soul.

Just do the next right thing Walk your talk Redraw your boundaries SHIFT TO LIVING AT CAUSE, NOT AT EFFECT. Identify the one thing you’re afraid to say about your life and what you’re going to do about it.

Take concrete steps to becoming self-supporting and self-sustaining Make financial independence your priority, what would you do differently starting now? How can you deliberately live between structure and surprise; between safety and experimentation Recognise that the deeper mind is always on 24/7, not only does it have your back, it’s part of who you are - when you lose sight of it it’s because you’ve gone back to thinking you have to handle this life thing on your own.

😍🌾⚘🌸🐱🐥🌻🍀🍂⚘ 🌷☘🌺🌳🌻🍀🐬🐺 🔥🌀🌷☘😍🌾⚘🌸🐱

"Now I know better, I do better". It's time to commit to your own preferred reality Time to stop trying to fit into friendships, jobs and realities that have nothing to do with who you are. you no longer need to try to "save" or "heal" anyone nor urself because there is nothing to be working on urself anymore there are so few people to connect to who get your reality - as it should be..dont want otras cramping my space solitude santuary

This is what it feels like to be brilliantly alive. Alive and active not reactive on the good or bad

no choice but to find higher level solutions. As Einstein’ said: 'We cannot solve our problems with the same level of thinking that created them'. But remember when such collective shifts happen, first comes confusion and chaos.

In your own life, this is a fertile moment to think out of the box or even to jump up and down on the box. Ask:” How have I been underestimating myself? What have I been settling for? What is my wildly impossible goal?” Doing new things is good. Going outside our comfort zones is what we are all about. We are not among those who are playing it safe. But we too can get stuck. So things happen to move stuck energies. They may come in the form of hurricanes, storms, celestial events, getting sick, losing a relationship or a job.This embodiment process is the most difficult thing a human being could ever do. You are being asked to do the impossible, or so if feels.

Pursuing what is desired and nothing else. Waiting, stalking, strategically watching for openings. One-pointedly intent upon grabbing and holding what you lost somewhere and must find again. Going for reminders, facsimiles, totems. Hungry for proof that it is there, that it is possible. Alone forever. You are deeply seeking the other side of yourself, the inner partner, the true motivating spark. You have got lost in the dark, identified with the one who needs and lacks, the one who is broken into fragments of experience. You search everywhere and come up empty. The one inside will be there, when the outer versions cannot sate your hunger,and as a last resort you feel into your own solitary spaces, willing to meet whoever is there and love them with all your heart."

the old world feels so dark eecky sucky that you're willing to let it go AS IT HAS ALREADY BEEN DELETED. Choice is not an option -the 3D time-lines are deleted. MAKE UR SHIFT QUICKLY AND PERMANENTLY so ur transition thru 2018 will go smooth effortless MASTERY OR BUST I am immensely powerful and deeply hidden. I work between the lines and the worlds. But I am good at what I do.

"What we take to be true is our reality " This is start of the Return Home via a solo journey of ground breaking proportions. It is living in Free Fall without a Safety Net ..TO LIVE AND THRIVE IN MY OWN PREFERRED DESIRED ALTERNATIVE the edge between order and chaos -

<3 Become self reliant, self supporting. Prioritise your own highest interests - highest being the key word. Cut away anyone who drains or feeds on your precious life force. Get real and be real. Stop curating your life. Become inner not outer directed. Find what you're really good at and do more of it. Upgrade the quality of your thinking -the codes which determine the results you're getting . If you believe your own random thoughts, you're living in the feeling of your thinking, in a self -created matrix.

😍🌾⚘🌸🐱🐥🌻🍀🍂⚘ 🌷☘🌺🌳🌻🍀🐬🐺 🔥🌀🌷☘😍🌾⚘🌸🐱

Visionary Activist principles -

0. Believe nothing, entertain possibilities. Therefore everything hereafter is offered playfully.

1. Imagination lays the tracks for reality to follow. 2. Better to create prophecy than live prediction. What makes us passive is toxic. Predictions make us passive, but prophecy is active co-creation with the Divine. 3. The invisible world would like to help, but spiritual etiquette requires that we ask. Help is always available; operators are standing by. (WELL THIS IS ME TO T, IN MY CASE I DEMAND :D ) 4. The only way that the gods know we're asking for help is through ritual. 5. If something is a problem, make it bigger. If you cook rage into outrage, it takes it from personal tantrum yoga into the realm of useful action. 6. We only possess the power of an insight when we give it expression. 7. Creativity comes from paradox. We aspire to be disciplined wild people who are radical traditionalists. 8. Stay Strong, FOCUSED INTENT TO CREATE & STAY IN UR OWN WORLD WITHIN THE WORLD .

"There are no right answers. But there is a right question. It's the one that whispers "Why the f* not?"

😍🌾⚘🌸🐱🐥🌻🍀🍂⚘ 🌷☘🌺🌳🌻🍀🐬🐺 🔥🌀🌷☘😍🌾⚘🌸🐱

Transition is itself transformation. So in this frequency shift from 3D to wherever, reading Facebook posts about "taking back your power" or "moving out of victim mode" as you have thousands of times before then "liking" them because it appeals to the need to feel special without actually changing , is a dead end. It is just another go-around of working on yourself by using willpower to get to somewhere new/different/more exciting than here and now. It is a deadly psychic shortcut avoidance of the alchemy that needs to incubate in the dark to carry you across from personality level living to your emerging higher time-line.

in 5D perspective, frame it as an opportunity to master the arcane art of becoming your own Source - of life, of energy, of feedback and validation, of generative creator consciousness.This will prove a crucial skill to help you navigate 2018's radically different astrology.

In your own life, you need to ask yourself some hard questions – about what you really want and what is truly good for you. About how specifically you're underestimating yourself and about which victory is now available for you to claim.

Make two lists: what you want to resolve or eliminate and what you want to create.

EASY BREEZY 4 ME... RESOLVE / ELIMINATE all if any 3D REALITY dat doesnt support me. WHAT TO CREATE ...TO CREATE MY VERY OWN DESIRED PREFERRED REALITY.

You are now in a moment where you get to review, rethink and recreate just about anything you want.

:are you channeling this insistent 5D wavelength consistently enough to expand your 3D paradigms and constructs so far out that they refract the whole, not just the parts?

We're in a freefall into future. We don't know where we're going. Things are changing so fast, and always when you're going through a long tunnel, anxiety comes along. And all you have to do to transform your hell into a paradise is to turn your fall into a voluntary act. It's a very interesting shift of perspective and that's all it is... joyful participation in the sorrows and everything changes.” Joseph Campbell.

The single most radical decision to make now is is refusing 3D ways of operating -not swallowing the bait of making New Year's resolutions or buying into programs to reset you for 2018,or calibrating your 12th DNA strand (!)- and instead tracking your unique emergence as it is happening.

This is a Gateway aligning you to your High heart, your crystalline DNA and switching up your time-lines, your bandwidths of experience. Don't even try to shape it to your 3D desires-

As I keep saying: nothing is working because the 3D time-lines have been deleted. No modality, no matter how temporarily uplifting, can change you or rescue you. Look around you right now -the current chaos-climate, political, financial -is elemental,energetic and profoundly personal and collective all at the same time. I've been writing for ages about events arriving right at your front door and this will escalate in 2018 and the crunch year of 2020. You have to make hard choices based on your highest values, not on comfort or expediency. The time for superficiality of any kind is gone - life is being stripped down to essentials and you need to collaborate with it.

If you have never been called an incorrigible, defiant, impossible woman… have faith. There is yet time" Clarissa Pinkola Estes.

You don't need to fight to make life happen in the way you'd planned, in the way you had thought it would be. Instead, see where the hours, the days are inviting you to go and try to participate in the dance. Don't fight your flow, put your energy where doors are opening" Sophie Gregoire The Writing Wand.

When you suddenly just " know" that none of the old ways work anymore and you stop. Even those things that seemed like a spiritual safety net- such as must-follow rules of meditation, clean eating, entire New Age belief systems- are revealed as just masks and defences against the dark.

All dressed up as spiritual but in reality more never ending pressure to work on yourself. F* DAT AM DONE W/ WKG ON MY SELF! There is no more working on yourself- there never was.(DAMN STRAIGHT) Drop that and feel your animal body exhale in relief and release. There is only and utterly your dance with life as it unfolds moment by moment. And it's a solo journey of sacred proportions . 2018 will be a giant stair step on the way through the Connected Universe into the Age of Aquarius when Pluto enters the sign of the Futurist in 2023. 😍🌾⚘🌸🐱🐥🌻🍀🍂⚘ 🌷☘🌺🌳🌻🍀🐬🐺 🔥🌀🌷☘😍🌾⚘🌸🐱

{Onyx Radcliffe} oh awww. thank you! wow. that's validating. i needed that lol. phew. Tess, I have been thru the ringer with humans, and been so ashamed to share a bloodline, to the point of no return. I guess now I only realize that we all have our own perspectives and lives, and our purpose is only to be what/when/where we are, whatever that is. You just go shine all over the place, roll around in the sand or the grass. You dont have to be a human, a human is just a word. You're a child of God, of the sun, of the stars. You're an inspiration to all of us with all of your posts. You are a kind, warm heart in a brutal, wintery world. We need people to stop being humans, and start being themselves. Shine as bright as you can. You're not a starseed anymore. You're the real thing, the star blossom, the star fruit, the star itself♥

😍🌾⚘🌸🐱🐥🌻🍀🍂⚘ 🌷☘🌺🌳🌻🍀🐬🐺 🔥🌀🌷☘😍🌾⚘🌸🐱

So This is what 2019 Goin 2b ALL ABOUT* A F* CULMINATION OF EVERYTHING U LEARNT/MUSTER OF BEING A MASTER

Next Stop Wonderland march 2018 (update) --- I AM AT AGE STAGE IN MY LIFE WHERE I JUST WANT TO LIVE THIS LIFE FEELING COMPLETELY ALIVE CADA f* MOMENTO IN WAY I PREFER/DESIRE IT TO BE . TO LIVE IN THE NOW CUZ DATS WHERE MAGIC IS WHERE SYNCHRONIZED./SERENDIPITIES & MANIFESTATION OCCURS.. where EVERYTHING’S ALWAYS WORKING OUT FOR ME & EVERYTHING GOES MY WAY <3

Ultimate F* Goal ~ 2 B ..

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lykanthropa · 7 years

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Support Class

Chapter 4: Friedrich

While the Mercs enjoy their dinner, a black Mercedes 600 drives up outside of the Base entrance. A man about 50 gets out of the car; Stylish and strictly dressed and faithfully accompanied by his two Dobermann dogs. One with pointed, raised ears, the other with bend ears. The coat of the man is as black as the fur of his dogs; Likewise the Fedora, the man had drawn deeply into his face. Deep blue eyes examine the surroundings and the large building in front of him. The entrance is not locked. The mouth angle of the man twitch and he enters the base.

“Blu Medic was hit by Demo's bomb and wushh! He flew high through the air and was shot dead by Snipe's arrow, which he had just shoot in this very moment. Directly through the head! And I call like this: Headshot!” The whole team laughs and is amused about Scout's tales. They had emptied their plates (and Pyro his glass) and are now sitting here talking about their battles to digest their food in a relaxed atmosphere before everyone makes his own thing again. Spy had left more than half of his wine in the glass to lean back in his chair and to enjoy the rest.

Medic feels a urinary urgency. “I will be right back” he says, gets up and heads toward the bathroom. “Hurry up, Doc! I want to tell you how Pyro has made BLU Soldier a head shorter with his ax!" cat-calls Scout at Medic. He lifts an arm as a sign that he will hurry. The doctor cannot help but to grin. Yes, he wants to go back to his family as soon as possible. But where come suddenly these slight abdominal pain?

Heavy yawns and stretches. “Tired, Big Guy?” Engie asks with a smile. “Little bit. That was good food.” “That’s true.” “When is the next birthday?” “I think Medic is the next… But when exactly, I do not know.” “In three weeks” Spy answers. “We must planning of something for him. He always does so much for us. Let's think about the days.” “We should cook something special for him. Something from his homeland. However, the German cuisine is not very imaginative.” “Why do you know so much about Germans? Are you perhaps a German too?” “Why should I feign to be a Frenchman, you brat? France is a direct neighbor of Germany. In my childhood I had a lot of contact with Germans.” “That's why you can speak a little German?” “Correct, Engineer.” “In your childhood? Oh man, that must have been centuries ago”, laughs Scout. “But yeah! You once said to this BLU Medic something in German. Umm… lick fich… Or something like that?” “Fick dich.” “Okay, okay. And what does it mean?” “Fuck you.” “What the fuck did you say to me?” “It means fuck you,… you brat.” “I see! Hahaha! Fich dik, German!”

A deep cough at the entrance of the dinner room attracts the attention of the Mercs. They think it's Medic, who is not pleased with what Scout was saying. They are flabbergasted when they see a stranger. He and the Mercs stay silent for a moment. “Umm… Can we help you?” “How could our Base be discovered?” The stranger cleared his throat again, this time even louder, to silence the mercenaries. Finally, the man takes off his fedora and looks at each one at the table. He has gold blonde hair, which has been strictly combed back and held with gel in its place. “My name is Friedrich König. I'm here to take up my job at Mann Co.” The man does not radiate sympathy. His voice is cold and imperious. “Friedrich König”? whispers Engineer to Heavy. “Isn’t this the name of our Medic?” “Do you have references?” “Quiet, Scout.” Spy rises from his chair and takes a few steps towards the stranger. But he doesn’t come too close to him. Not least because the two Dobermann dogs starting to growl. They are off-leash and the Frenchman hopes that the guy has his dogs under control. “Careful. They don’t like Franzmänner.” “It seems so…” Spy clears his throat; tries to ignore the brazen behavior of the man before him. “So you want to work as a mercenary for Mann Co. ‘ave you already spoken with the Administrator?” “No.” “Well, she would tell you the same as I do now. I am really sorry, but each class post is occupied. So goodbye.” Spy does not bother to hide the sarcasm in his voice. Nor his antipathy for König. “But just out of curiosity... What class do you wanted to represent?” “The Medic.”

In the very same moment, Medic comes back. “Why is it suddenly so quiet here?” The loud barking of the Dobermann dogs interrupts him. Medic just then notices the visit and stares at the man overwhelmed. “What the…?” The visitor turns around to him and none of those all present fails to capture as the color moves from his face. There is a smile on Friedrich's face. But it is by no means friendly. “Hallo, Hans. Long time no see. 25 years?” Medic is stunned. He's unable to speak or to move. “I can very well imagine that my appearance leaves you speechless.” The Dobermann dogs growl at Medic, but stay well-behaved next to their owner. “Hey, Doc. Who is that oddball?”

“I…I…” “Medic…” “What? You don't call each other with your first name? But they know what your name is, do they?” “………” König lifts his arm and points with his gloved finger at Engineer. “He said your name was Friedrich König. I am not surprised that you assumed my identity. Because otherwise you would never have gotten this job here, am I right?” Medic looks over to his teammates. They all look at him expectantly. Some look horrified, others disbelieving. What can he tell them? He would never have thought that the truth will ever come out. “What do you want here?” is all he gets out of; and it is rather a whisper. Shame befalls him. Anger, fear and various other definable and indefinable feelings. “I'm here to take up my job as a Medic you stole from me at that time. You just stole everything from me.” Now König steps up to Medic. And at every step he enumerate. Medic doesn’t move back, but he doesn’t look at him either. “You stole the confidence of the Prime Minister in me. The invitation of Mann Co. My job. My money. My identity.” Now he stands directly in front of him. Friedrich König is half a head taller than Hans. But with Medics lowered head he looks much bigger. And threatening. How much he must have clamored and raged at the time, when Hans had made off. He has always been a hot-head. Even now, Hans can still feel his anger, even if Friedrich doesn't let it show anymore. “You deserved it!” wants he shout in his face. But he remains silent. “Do you really have nothing to say to me?” “………” “Gut. If so, I will contact the Administrator now. What will she say when I tell her that you've deceived her all these years?” “………” “You!” Friedrich points at Spy. “Lead me to the contact room. And then you can show me the entire base. If I am the new Medic, I must be well versed.” Spy clasped his arms in front of his chest. “How do you know the Administrator will let you work as a medic here? Our Medic has been working with us for many years. He is an integral part of this team.” “Wrong. The Medic as a class by itself is an integral part. But the person who carries out this job is interchangeable. Always.” Now Heavy rises from his seat and stands behind Medic, for supporting Hans. “Show little man how to contact Administrator, Spy. She would never fire Medic… Hans… I’m sure.” The others agree. It feels good to have Heavy and all the others behind himself. And why should not they be right? For years, Hans had served well. The Administrator would consider his dismissal as a loss. Therefore, this would be out of the question for her. I hope so at least… Friedrich puts his head back to look at Heavy directly. There is a malicious smile on his face. “You are Russian?” A low-voiced, cold laugh. Heavy has to swallow. This German gives him the creeps. Then he turns his attention back to Hans. “We'll see what the Administrator will say.” Friedrich says this with such a self-assured voice that doubts arise in Medic. “Los! Go ahead! Don't worry, my dogs bite only when I command them to do.” Spy looks daggers at the German. But then he follows the order and advances with a proud attitude. Friedrich follows him. When both of them are out of sight, Medic turns to the Mercs. He opens his mouth but closes it immediately. Heavy puts a hand on his shoulder and smiles at him. “Sit down.” So Medic sits down, Heavy next to him. He suddenly feels like a stranger between his friends, his family. He lied to them all. He is afraid that they will blame him for that. But that all doesn't matter when he is fired anyway... “That’s umm… a joke, right?” “I'm afraid it's not, boy. Medic…” Engineer stops. He wanted an explanation from their doctor. But he can see how much the whole situation bothers him. So he says instead: “Take your time. Tell us the whole thing if you feel ready, okay?” “Thank you…” “Nah! It doesn't matter if your name is Hans or Friedrich. You’re Medic. Just Medic. Our Doc. Perhaps that's the reason why we never call us with our first names. Too many feelings and emotions. And when I think about it, I don't know the names of most of you.” Medic cannot help but smile. “Thanks, Scout. It's good to know that you think so. But… some of you are certainly disappointed that I deceived you.” “It’s okay, mate. I'm sure ya had a good reason.” “Mmmhph!” “I'd forgive ya all, lad. Really everything so that this bastard will not be our new Medic.” “Did you see how he looked at Heavy?” “This guy wanders in here as if he whoever is and thinks he can just replace our doctor.” “He has always been like this...” “Would you like to tell us now?” “…just let's wait for Spy and what the Administrator has to say.”

So the Mercs are waiting. Most of the time they are silent. Even Scout doesn’t know what to say. This silence is so unfamiliar and oppressive. Maybe ten minutes have passed when Spy finally comes back. He looks much stressed. With both arms he supports himself on the back of his chair. “And? Report, soldier!” The Frenchman massages his nose and sighs. The Administrator has not rejected him. But she said she only could make a judgment tomorrow. She has to go through documents and check data. Tomorrow she will report.” Medics' hopes are dwindling. “And where did you leave our royal König?” “In one of the empty bedrooms. He will stay there until tomorrow. We can only wait and see.” “I ... want to go to bed now. Is it okay if you undertake the dishes?” “But of course. Lie down, Doc. You should rest.” With a thankful nod, Medic rises from his chair. “Heavy will accompanies Doktor.” Medic allows it. He and Heavy walk down the corridor towards the infirmary. The way to get there suddenly seems so far ahead of. Although Medic is looking at the floor, he knows that Heavy is starting a few attempts to tell him something comforting, but fails. “It’s okay, Heavy. I’m fine.” “Are you sure?” “Yes. Yes, I’m okay.” The rest of the way they stay silent. At the infirmary, Medic opens the door and turns to Heavy. The Russian looks very worried. Hans touches him by the arm and forces himself to smile. “Heavy, thank you very much for your friendship. No matter what tomorrow is decided, we remain friends, okay?” Heavy is only capable of a nod. “Good night.” “Good night, Doktor…” Medic closes the door, leans against it and slides down to the floor. “Scheiße…” Archimedes head for him and sits down on his shoulder. It is as if the dove feels something is wrong. “Oh Archimedes. At the moment things look black for us. If we are unlucky, we will have to look for a new home.” “Coo~” “I don’t know what to do. What do you think I should do?” “Coo~” “Yes, I can do nothing except wait. You know, you're my lucky dove. As long as you are with me, everything will be fine. I'm absolutely sure.” “Cooo~” Medic leaned his head a bit to the side and Archimedes cuddled to his cheek. “Everything will be fine.”

#TF2 #tf2 medic #tf2 archimedes #tf2 mercs

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niallsstainedcoffeecup · 7 years

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It’s Worth It

WARNINGS: HINTS TOWARD SMUT

Liam managed to tolerate most people in the workplace, but she was a different story. She challenged his competence after he had degraded her presentation at one of the meetings. She thought that Liam was attractive, but his attitude drove her away. Liam found her attractive, but he associated her with the snobs in the office. “The annual office party is coming up?” Liam stared at the red poster. The office had a back to work party after the holidays that often consisted of drunken hook ups. His favorite part of the party was the couple competition. The winners often won tickets to some trip, so he made sure to have a girlfriend at the time of the party; however, he had just dumped his recent girlfriend. “Yeah, it looks like you won’t win the tickets to Hawaii.” Liam’s eyes nearly popped out of his head. Hawaii? He had always wanted to travel to Hawaii; therefore he needed to find a girlfriend. “That sounds like such a lovely trip.” She stared at the red poster. She was never the type to attend the big party, but she really wanted the trip this time. The only problem was that she had just gotten out of a long relationship, and she was having trouble getting back on the market. She hoped that somehow the trip would find its way to her. Liam was forced to stay late in order to finish up the report. He sat in his cubicle, watching her finish up some work that she had to present in the morning. That was when Liam had the best idea for the party. She was bound to be single, and she would be lucky to be seen with a guy like him, so she would say yes to a date with him. She didn’t even see him saunter over to her desk with that stupid smirk on his face. “Ms. Stick in the mud, how would you feel about attending the office party with me?” Liam leaned against her wall, causing him to look like some overrated jerk. “I would rather drink poison.” She stated in one monotone voice. “I think that we could have fun. We would win the trip, because everyone would be shocked to see us together.” She rolled her eyes at him. “Listen, I know you want this trip. I want this trip just as much as you do, and we are both single…” “How do you know if I’m single?” She was offended. “Look at how you act. You need to loosen up. Now, how about we be that couple?” “Listen, I want the trip, but I am not willing to spend the night with some egotistical narcissistic asshole!” She shouted, causing Liam to shrink. “I hate you and you hate me, now let’s get over this and move on.” “Fine, but I won’t enjoy it.” They both gritted their teeth into a forced smile. This was only the beginning for the fake couple. If they were going to act in love then they had to learn about one another. Liam had to admit that she wasn’t a bad person. She told these silly jokes that reminded him of his friend Harry, she got along with his friends, and she gave to those less fortunate people. She had to admit that over the past few days that she had fallen for the man she claimed to hate. He was such a romantic guy, he liked her music, and he got along with her friends. The night of the party had arrived, and Liam was shocked. She wore a black dress that showed her curves and overall looked beautiful. He had chosen to wear a button up shirt that showed off his muscles, driving her crazy with naughty thoughts. “You look great.” She purrs, holding his hand. “You look beautiful, are you ready?” They had practiced everything for tonight. “Yes.” Everyone stood in awe at the couple. Many co-workers asked about how they fell in love, how long they had been dating, and how their bedroom life was. Liam had left to get her a drink, but he watched her dance as he waited for her martini. The way she let loose, allowing the music to move her body in a way that not only made him want her, but he just wanted to be her actual boyfriend. He hadn’t noticed the man sneaking up to make a move on his girl. She thought the man was Liam until she felt his hands, and she instantly knew that this was not her man. “I’m sorry, I’m with someone.” She squeaked out, backing away from the creep. “No, I think he left.” She shook her head, trying to find Liam. The man lunged forward to press his crusty lips to her lips, but Liam had shoved the man out of the way just in time. “She is my girlfriend. I don’t want you to ever look at her again!” Liam roared with anger. She shrieked, pulling Liam away from the man. “Love, are you okay?” Liam asked the minute that they were alone. “Yes, are you okay?” She examined his knuckles. “Yes, I am more worried about you.” “Liam, what happened?” Liam looked confused. “You were almost attacked?” “No, what happened between us. We hated each other. We only did this for the prize.” She looked up into his eyes to find everything she had ever wanted. “I think I judged you too soon, and now I am kicking myself for not asking you out on a real date.” She blushed at his words. “I think I judged you too soon too, so should we go back out as a real couple?” He shook his head, pressing a finger to her lips. “Not without a kiss first.” His lips softly pressed into her lips, igniting the spark between the couple. Liam was lucky to have her as a fake girlfriend and now a real girlfriend. They didn’t even care about the Hawaii trip, because the love was worth all of the years of hatred.

#mine #liam payne #payno #liam #payne #one direction #1d #writing #story

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robertbassweb · 4 years

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What are You Thankful for – Gratitude is the Key to Open Doors

https://ift.tt/2AlcsXq

What are you thankful for?

We forget the ability to feel grateful when we have everything too much. But gratitude opens the door to a life of plenty. What are you thankful for?

For when we have too much of everything, we take things for granted. When we are not grateful, we are dissatisfied.

When we become dissatisfied, we are unhappy and do not know how to come back grateful.

How alienated we are from reality. The minced meat comes from a plastic box, a clothing store, a furniture store, a milk jar, a water tap and an interpersonal phone. And what a huge job behind them!

What would be a world where suddenly this would no longer be the case?

Okay, this is the reality today. I’m not claiming that everything was better before or that the reality was wrong. But all this abundance and ease blurs our gratitude for everyday things. We can no longer be grateful for such simple things as food, health, rest and work.

So we can’t be grateful for everyday life. They are all burdens.��Burdens that we should just be.

It is dangerous to be so ungrateful. For it drives us to want more. To seek that happiness in the wrong places when it is no longer out of everyday life.

To seek that happiness everywhere outside of everyday life, while nullifying every “ordinary” day.

Gratitude is the Key to Open Doors

One of the guiding stars of my life has been: to forget what cannot be changed is happy. ”

It is easy to agree with this archaeologist Arvo Ylpö’s life wisdom. However, the realization of wisdom many times seems to be a completely different matter.

It is worth taking pride in taking it seriously, because according to research, seeing the good in life improves health. Gratitude has been found to lower blood pressure and improve immunity.

With gratitude, a person can even relieve himself of physical pain.

WHAT moves in our minds before falling asleep doesn’t matter. If we think about the themes of gratitude in life, we fall asleep relaxed.

In addition, we sleep better all night. People who are prone to gratitude are also more merciful to themselves and their fellow travelers.

Almost always this does not happen by itself, but gratitude is a skill where there are many other things and thus it can be learned. In any case, what you pay attention to is strengthened; whether it is good or bad!

Another plus of gratitude is that it increases a person’s ability to boldly pursue their dreams.

What you are thankful for maifests faster

EXCEPT FOR DREAMS , gratitude can open doors in difficult life situations.

When you have learned to be grateful for the little things of everyday life, your endurance in the face of adversity is greater. Gratitude seems to cut off the tip from awkward feelings and give things the right proportions for the situation.

Whether it’s dreams or difficulties, a grateful person doesn’t have to be uncritical at all.

The situation and its own possibilities can be seen realistically. Difficulties are difficulties, but they do not discourage.

Just as Arvo Ylppö once said, it is wise to separate the things that can be influenced from the things that cannot be influenced.

Gratitude has some strange relationship with presence.

Stopping at good things is at the same time being present in the existing moment. And when you are present for yourself, there is an opportunity to be present for other people as well.

For another person, being present can, at best, allow him or her to be an accepted and valuable person. And that, in turn, gives cause for gratitude. Fascinating, isn’t it?

Gratitude does not come by force, but rather by gently inviting. One effective tool is a gratitude diary.

Simply put, in the evening you record the things you have been grateful for during the day and why.

It’s not for everyone to keep a gratitude diary every night. It can easily become a mere mechanical list. However, when you start writing a diary, you may get the most out of writing every night, for example for three weeks.

BY THE way, what are you thankful for today?

The author is a lecturer in geography and biology at Kiuruvesi High School and the hostess of an organic dairy farm: Sari Tikkanen

What feeling does the article evoke in you? By expressing your feelings, you can see the reactions of others.

A gratitude diary helps you notice the good

The counters stink, there is a bladder on the toe and the dog should run in the pouring rain.

The situation could also see this: I have put healthy food, bought a good-looking shoes, and in addition to her workouts. That’s what a person who is grateful and therefore also happy thinks.

It is easy to add a sense of gratitude. A proven way is to write a diary of gratitude. Coach Anne Karilahti advises that at least every other night it is worth recording things that you appreciate and that are good that day.

Things that are important to the diary can be very mundane and self-evident. I’m healthy. I have wonderful friends. I periodically clean up.

There was a good cabbage box in the workplace canteen.

– If you think only about what is missing, you live in inadequacy.

When you write topics of gratitude, you start to notice that whether it’s a nice program on the telly or whether it’s wonderful to get mail.

The ability to feel gratitude increases happiness, for a grateful person is not constantly thirsting for something more. He knows how to stop and see that things are going well right now.

This way you never forget what are you thankful for.

What are you thankful for today?

Through my research I have found some good examples for inspiration. To the exact question what are you thankful for today, this is what some interesting people referred:

Actress-dancer Sami Sarjula:

A trap who loves me just the way I am.

That I get to share with my spouse the joy and excitement of expecting a child.

Wedding planning.

About finding a dream home for our family.

About a great job and co-workers.

Song gigs.

About the opportunity to play rally and hockey.

That our dog Kaffe is super happy when we get home.

Personal trainer Mirella Koullias:

Happy kittens Blue and Fiona playing with each other.

Lovely parents and little sister.

About a man making spaghetti sauce when I come home tired.

Love and caring for loved ones.

Soft snooze blanket.

From emails sent by co-workers.

About calm stretching music.

About health and exercise.

Coach Anne Karilahti:

Awesome family.

A nice home with a utility room.

For the clothes I have already chosen for tomorrow.

From a new inspiring interior design book.

About the man cleaning the kitchen.

About the feelings of happiness.

For having time to watch Click me series.

Breakfast in a new wonderful place.

Practice gratitude everyday

To live the life we want to live, it is important to be thankful for each and every little aspect of our present lives that makes us feel good.

Just focus on the positive things. Focus on what pleases you and feel the joy of what you became until now.

Take notice that, as you have done today, you can manifest or make real ecerything you want into your life. Be aware that bad things can be attracted too, so keep your vision on whatever makes you glad.

Each and every morning wake up thanking a brand new day. It is the opportunity to create a wonderful page of your personal story.

Gratitude is the power that makes you get closer to the things you want, so think again, what are you thankful for today?

youtube

Gratitude F.A.Q.

What are you thankful for today?

Right here are 60 points that I am grateful for today: I am appreciative for my wellness. I am appreciative to have a God that loves me. I am thankful that we have the flexibility to prayer just how as well as where I want.

What are you most thankful for in your life?

Primarily, I am most grateful for the gift of healthiness. A lot pertaining to the high quality of one’s life depends upon healthiness. I applaud and also bless God daily for the solid mind and body he has honored me with. I am appreciative I have love in my life.

What are the points you are thankful for?

Things To Be Thankful For In Life

Healthiness. Even if your wellness isn’t terrific, it could be worse and also you likely still have some working parts to be happy for. Deposit. Having simply a few coins makes you richer than lots of people in the world.

Great Friends. …

Freedom of Religion. …

Your Parents. …

Weekend breaks. …

Having a Partner. …

Pet dogs.

Resources:

Doenload our free manifestation guide.

Comment & Share

I really hope you enjoyed the article!

If you liked it, I would really appreciate it if you can share it using one of the social sharing icons.

Also, leave me a comment and let me know what you thought – I love talking to the readers, so hopefully will talk to you in the comments below.

what are you thankful for

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