#old deuteronomy wants to make things right - i feel - but i also feel as though there is *something* preventing him for doing it himself

[jellicle-shifters-au]

Demelurina Week - Day 7 - AU/Free Day

Under the Iron Moon

something a little different! a werewolf/shifter au inspired by maria vale’s legend of all wolves series bc i just finished binge reading it and the worldbuilding is so damn good.

a few notes on this au: a couple names have been changed to fit (malachi = macavity; rina = bombalurina), and old deuteronomy is the alpha (though here he would just be called “deuteronomy”). shifters are wolves who can change at will never have to be in wolf form; pack are wolves who can change at will but also have to be in wolf form for three days each month (they cannot change during this time).

“Eadig waþ,” the Alpha says. Happy hunting.

“And be yourself not hunted!” the Pack responds.

Demeter shuffles on the floor beside Rina. The rest of the 8th Echelon is crowded around them, eagerly awaiting the pull of the Iron Moon. A few of them, those who spend most of their time Offland, returning each month for the three days when the Pack has no choice but to be wild, stand at the windows and scratch at the glass or pace, pausing to gnaw at the window frames. Cassandra snaps at the nearest packmember, the 9th’s Delta mate, Olivia, who bares her teeth at the challenge but backs down. Beside Demeter, Rina takes a heavy breath, and Demeter feels her skin crawling, her urge to change after so much time spent away from Homelands. But she won’t, not until the Iron Moon takes her.

The Iron Moon takes us as she finds us and makes us wilder, Rina had explained in the days leading up to what the Pack called the Iron Moon, in words that had been repeated for centuries, passed down through the generations to each wolf. If we are in skin, she makes us wild. If we are wild, she makes us æcewulfs. Real wolves. Forever wolves.

Forever wolves? Demeter had asked, feeling a knot of unease forming in her stomach.

Rina nodded. Wolves who can never return to the Pack. Wolves who no longer remember who they are, what they are. Wolves who can no longer take human form. Her expression had darkened, and Demeter had asked no more.

“Rina?” she asks, something prickling along her back. And she knows, without saying, that this is the pull so many of the Pack are eagerly awaiting. 

“Wait,” Rina says, reaching over to grab her hand, the last time she will for three days, until the Iron Moon is over. “Let it happen.”

“I don’t want to,” Demeter says, fidgeting beside her. She doesn’t want this, she doesn’t want this. She’d never been allowed to change under Malachi’s law. None of them had. They were Shifters, not bound by the Iron Moon like the Pack. They were better than that, better than those dogs, Malachi always said, with a disdainful curl of his lip.

To survive in the world of men, to thrive, you must tame the wild within you, he’d always said. Ignore that itch. Never, ever scratch it. She’d seen what happened to those who had.

Now she was among the very dogs Malachi hated so deeply, and come the end of the Iron Moon, the Alpha would present her to the Pack, and there will be a Thing, Rina had said, and they will decide whether you will bring strength to the Pack. And then, at a later time, she would fight to determine her ranking among the wolves of the 8th Echelon.

Rina squeezes her hand tighter. “You’ll be alright,” she promises. “I’ll be right here, waiting for you. I’m sorry I didn’t—” but whatever she’s going to say—what Demeter assumes is something along the lines of I’m sorry I didn’t teach you how to be wild sooner—is lost to the turn, and, similarly, so is anything Demeter wants to respond with. When the Iron Moon finally takes her, the world goes black and silent and cold, and when it releases her, she comes to in a world bright and loud crowded with the smells of wolves and moss and trees—and Rina, a massive red wolf with one vibrant white foreleg, is right there, waiting for her.

Just like she’d promised.

#demelurina week #demelurina #bombalurina #demeter cats #werewolf au #cats the musical #cats 1998 #slowly but surely finishing the three days of demelurina week i missed

[herooffire101]

Okay, so I wanted to at least do one thing for demestrap week. I know that I haven’t really done anything, mainly because I don’t want to alienate myself with my personal headcanons for Cats. I'm still nervous, okay? I saw that it was demestrap week, and I looked at the prompts, and I had this thought in my head that I wanted to do. This is one of two versions of my Cats human au. In this au, Deme and Bomba are sisters. In the other one, they are not. This is the biggest difference between them, though there are other differences I am not going into right now. And I am not going into the original version of both of these. Bomba, Tugger, and Munk have what we would consider sensible everyday names which are respectively Beatrice, Travis, and Marcus. HOWEVER, they address themselves as Bomba, Tugger, and Munk. They are their personal Jellicle names. Anyway, background is that Bomba and Tugger work/partially own/are the inheritors of their hometown’s local family restaurant/bar and they live in the apartment above the restaurant because Old Deuteronomy owns the building and set it up so that they could live there (It’s one of their many jobs. They have several). The only name I had for it is the Heaviside Layer Bar & Grille. Bomba is the Front-end Manager/Bartender(one of the bartenders) and Tugger is the back/kitchen manager with other managers as well. Demeter has a photography hobby that she manages to get paid for it, I feel in my human au. It’s just something about it that makes her happy, seeing how Bomba loves to see her sister smile. Munk is still the hardest for me to pin down his occupation. Also, They refer the kittens as kittens even though they are human. I have written this out yesterday and waited, because I needed to get it out.

Here we go

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A Demestrap lunch date.

Demeter entered Heaviside, the door closing behind her as she walked towards the bar, where her older sister by 11 months stood, with her long dark red hair up in a ponytail, cleaning, her eyes lined with black eyeliner and dark red lipstick, and her ever-present spiked collar. Her black undershirt stood out from her half-buttoned up red gingham blouse with an old nametag reading ‘Beatrice’ written on it pinned to her side, as she looked up to see her younger sister. “Well, I haven’t seen you in a while.” The bartender commented, dramatically putting her hand with the rag to her face.

“You saw me yesterday, Bomba. With the kittens. We were teaching most of them dance. Caramel was watching. Etcetera was pushing your buttons.” Demeter snarked to Bomba, rolling her eyes, “Heaviside forbid you never see me more than once a day.”

Bomba smirked. “I love seeing you, Deme. Can I take it that you want to pick up some hours in your free time? Or you waiting for Munky?” Giving her younger sister a smile that meant more to Demeter.

Demeter again rolled her eyes at her sister’s impliance. “I don’t know whether or not you should spend so much time with Tugger, Bomb. I’m here to wait for Munk. He’s meeting me here for lunch. Care to give me a drink?”

“I choose to spend time with Tugger, thank you very much.” Bomba said, still smiling at Demeter, “I live with him.” Pointing with the rag still in her hand. “Now, what kind of drink would you like?”

“Something good with a bit of a kick.”

Bomba gave her a questioning look. “How do you plan on getting home?”

“Munk, of course. I walked here.”

“Did you feel safe to walk here?” Bomba asked, her voice laced with concern and slight fear.

“Yes, Bea. I made sure that I was completely visible to any passersby.” Demeter gave Bomba a knowing glare, making her sister back off on the worry. “I won’t have that happen again to either of us.”

Bomba released a breath she was holding. “Good. I know that you are strong, I just don’t want to see you like that again.”

“Same to you, Bomba.”

“Thank you for going back to Bomba. You know how I feel about my actual name,”

“Same as Munk and Tugger. Now, that drink.”

Bombalurina gave her sister a smile that Demeter knew. “I have just the right drink for you.” Demeter watched as Bomba went over to grab the bottles for that drink. She watched as her sister deftly mixed the drink with practiced ease. The process of how well Bomba made the drink made Demeter feel that Bomba was happy after what they went through growing up. Bomba slid the finished drink to her, and said, “Here you go, Dem. Vanilla Schnapps, Dr. Pepper, Maraschino cherry syrup and on top, and a dash of Baileys. I think that I got it right this time. But be careful, sis. This earned you a niece and nephew.”

“That was you, Bomba. I bet that Bailey’s doesn’t affect me like it does to you.” Demeter snarked. She took a sip and nodded to her. “This tastes good, Bomb. What took you so long to have me taste it?”

“Because I don’t know if Bailey’s makes you horny like me. After both times, I want to be sober when we make love. Jemima and Caramel are proof of how Bailey’s affects me. I want to be at least a semi-responsible sister.”

“Bomba, I’m legal now!”

“Well it’s the thought that counts!”

Demeter smiled at her sister, who shown her emotions in her eyes. Plato, Electra, Jemima, and Caramel have been good for her. She thought. “I love you, Cherry.

“And I love you too, Skittles.” Bomba gave her sister a loving smile.

“Will I ever have another nickname?” Demeter gave her a side-long glare.

Bomba shrugged. “It was either Goldi or Skittles. You know I borrow Tugger’s nicknames. Now, the cost of the drink will come out of your paycheck next time you pick up hours.”

“So I don’t have to pay now?”

“Eh, it’s the same thing I do with Jerrie and Teazer. You have no idea how many non-alcoholic drinks costs I take out of their paychecks. I tell them each and every time they ask me to make them mocktails.” Bomba said airly. Then, she gestured to Demeter. “Now go along, sit at a table. I’ll direct Munk to you. Enjoy that mixed drink. If you’re only having one then I’m fine with you driving. If you’re going to have more, then I will either insist Munk drive or I’ll stick you upstairs.”

Demeter laughed at Bomba’s quip. “Alright already, I’ll go sit. Thanks for the drink.” And she got up from the barstool she sat at.

As she went to one of the tables, she heard Bomba say, “And make sure that he knows that he’s perfect for you and him deprecating himself is not allowed in our family.”

“I tell him that everyday!”

“Well he doesn’t get the message apparently! You need to be more in his face about it!”

“And what? Be more like Tugger? Hah! Munk doesn’t need to emulate his younger brother! He’s perfect the way he is!”

“Then tell him that! Heaviside knows he worships the ground you walk on.”

Demeter just rolled her eyes at Bomba’s statement. Once she sat down, she sipped again on the mixed drink, marveling how Bomba finally managed to get the drink right after the first tries. While remembering seeing the results of the first few tries, a voice cut into her thoughts.

“Is this seat taken?” A deep familiar voice spoke. Demeter looked up to see her loving partner Munkustrap asking if it was okay to join her.

“Go right ahead, Munk.” She said, smiling at him.

“Don’t mind if I do.” As he sat down, Demeter looked at her man, his black hair with several strands of grey that were definitely from Deuteronomy, and his blue almost grey eyes. “I see that Bomba actually gave you a drink. Heaviside knows that she’s slightly overprotective of you.”

“More like she’s paying attention to the matter of the law. Bomba likes to follow the right procedure when it is absolutely necessary for the safety of everyone. Remember, she has to deal with not only Tugger, but Jerrie and Teazer as well.”

“At least I know exactly how Tugger is. Jerrie and Teazer, now those two I’m not so sure. They are our wild cards, after all.” Munk agreed, though always leery on the chaos twins.

“I trust Bomba with them because she knows how to redirect them to something good for all of us.” Demeter smirked, knowing exactly how fond both her and Bomba were of Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer. Demeter was always closer to Mungo like how Bomba was to Teazer. “Besides, she has Jeremy and Theresa deal with customers, and Jerrie and Teazer deal with the horrible customers. It’s like how you’re Munkustrap to the group and Marcus when we’re out in public. We have our public personas, which is Beatrice, Travis, and Marcus, and our Jellicle personas, which is our real selves as Bomba, Tugger, and you, Munk.”

“I always love it when you make sense of our siblings and our friends.” Munk said, gazing lovingly at her. “Bomba said that she’s tentatively calling that drink Cherry Surprise. Fitting, how it gave us our niece and nephew.” Pointing out her drink.

“She just wanted to make the name a bit on the nose for what it’s worth.” Demeter pointed out, sending the loving eyes right back at him. “It tastes really good, Munk. It’s no wonder Bomba got drunk on this.”

“And it’s no wonder that she feels safe enough to give it to her sister.” Munk quipped back. Demeter gave him a look.

“She trusts you with me. After what happened I understand.”

“And all the better. Tugger is getting unsufferable lately. Says that it’s safer to have a legal piece of paper so that they can tie everything up in bureaucracy.” Munk said, making a confused face on his younger brother’s words.

“And that’s the Bomba speaking. You know how ticked off she was with our former classmates when it came to Jemima. She went through all stops to put it on paper that Tugger is her dad. It wasn’t her word that was questioned, it was what Mac did to us.” With that mention, Demeter gave an involuntary shutter. Munk noticed, and placed his hand on hers, sending comfort. Everyone that was close to them knew what the eldest Deuteronomy brother did to the sisters. Just, majority of their classmates did not believed them, especially Bomba even though she is the most honest, blunt, and frank person in their lives.

“Hey.” Munk murmured, putting a hand on Demeter’s chin, lifting her face up gently to face him, “Both of you were very brave to escape that warehouse. While it was not the best time with both of you two healing from being there, both you and Bomba are the strongest people me and Tugger know. I look at you in awe, and so does Tugger, though probably not in the same line of thought. You are a goddess, Deme, and I willingly bow down to your presence, in any form.”

Demeter’s eyes glisten to Munk’s words. “Bast, you are so good to me. I love you so much, Munk.”

“And I as well.”

It was that moment that both of them noticed Tugger, dressed in a form-fitting black shirt, and his mane of dirty blonde hair tied behind his head, exit the kitchen, and snuck over to where Bomba was at the bar. She was looking over the stocks of different bottles of liquor and syrups when Tugger grabbed her sides and lifted her a bit. “TUGGER!” she cried as she turned around and slapped his shoulder, making him laugh. It was after a quick exchange of words when they started making out, causing both Demeter and Munk roll their eyes.

“Always in public.” Munk murmured, looking away and into the menu half-heartedly.

Demeter snorted in agreement. “Neither of them mind.” And joined him in the half-hearted perusal of the menu booklet.

Both of them were interrupted by a familiar cocky voice. “Welcome to the Heaviside Bar & Grille, I will be your waitr-oh hi Demeter, Munk! I didn’t realize that you guys were here today for lunch!” The oh-so-familiar trouble-making blonde friend Rumpleteazer exclaimed. She had on one of her main yellow shirts, and had rainbow suspenders clipped on her black skirt, with her nametag having ‘Theresa’ written on it with a heart on the end, her hazel eyes filled with mirth.

Demeter gave their friend a smile. “Hi Teazer. Me and Munk are here for lunch.” Munk just nodded in agreement.

“Right! What are you guys having, your usual?” Teazer asked, nodding, and getting ready to take their orders, her pencil at the ready.

Both Demeter and Munk shared a look, and Munk confirmed. “Yes, the usual.”

“Right-o! I’ll get Jerrie on that and it’ll be out in about fifteen minutes. Luckily it’s one of those days today around this time, so you guys came around at the right time. There’s only five of us waitresses on right now, including me. Reinforcements are supposed to be arriving around two, according to Bomba.” Teazer said, writing down their usual orders.

“So Bomba’s the main bartender right now?” Demeter asked, slightly curious.

“Yea. Tugger needs to get back in the kitchen right now if we get more customers. They’ve only have 6 people back there not including Tugs. Me brother is somehow in charge of the grill, and even I know that’s asking for trouble.” Teazer explained, making a face on the thought of Jerrie the grill. Demeter and Munk both gave agreeing faces on that thought. “Well, I’m going to give your orders to the crew, and see if they can get Jerrie off of grill. I feel like Mom wouldn’t like it if he came home with burns on his hands…again.” And with that, she left the two as she skipped into the kitchen.

Munk gave a confused look. “’Burns again?’ And you said that Bomba knows how to keep them in line?”

“I only know the outline. Bomba was not on that night and Tugger was making sure the orders went to the right customers during a busy night. Ernie made the mistake of putting Jerrie on grill in an attempt to curb him because he was being too much for Ernie and Declan both. Jerrie had no such training what so ever, so it’s a miracle Jerrie lasted as long as he did, and from what I managed to get, he accidentally hit something and the grill flared up, giving Jerrie some first degree burns on his hands and face, and he lost his eyebrows.” Demeter explained what she knew of the story, “When Bomba heard of it, she yelled at them about putting someone who wasn’t trained on a section on a busy night. The night did go smoothly, otherwise, so they didn’t loose profits.”

“And how did you hear of it?”

“When I picked up that shift two weeks ago.”

“Did you ask Bomba how she learned of it?”

“Mom and Jenny.”

“That explains it.”

“Yup.” Demeter popped the p. By then she noticed that her drink was half-gone. “Normally I don’t go through a mixed drink this fast.”

“You usually don’t like them.” Munk agreed, “Bomba succeeded in making a drink that you would like.”

“I’ll tell her later. She’s busy right now.” Gesturing to the bar where she and Tugger were kissing a while ago. She was not there at that moment, giving the idea that they were in her office.

“Jerrie must have driven Tugger to Bomba, if he was on grill.” Munk thought out loud, “He never did grow that much of a tolerance to the twin’s antics.”

“You would think that he would grow one living with Bomba.” Demeter chuckled as she took another sip of her Cherry Surprise. Man, she really liked it.

“How can you tolerate Jerrie, anyway?” Munk asked, giving her a smirk.

Demeter gave him one right back. “When you get past that goofy troublemaking exterior, he’s very sweet and caring. Always makes sure that I’m comfortable on my bad days. He has this sixth sense on how other people are feeling.”

Munk gave her another one of his loving gazes. “Deme, have I told you how much I love you?” “I know” Demeter lovingly smiled right back. With Teazer coming right back with their orders, they both continued to have small talk, enjoy this lunch date at the restaurant they both loved, with their siblings in the background making sure that the Heaviside Layer runs as smoothly as it possibly can with it’s collection of eclectic personalities of the employees and customers.

~~~~~~~~~~

Well, I did it. Enjoy! This made me slightly nervous. Again, I wanted to do this. I did intentionally hint at how my human au is, and I'm willing to answer questions on it.

#cats the musical #tuggerlurina #demestrap #demestrap week #fanfic #cats human au

[the-cat-at-the-theatre-door]

#CATS Musical #CATS the Musical #CATS on Tour #(Asia Tour 2020) #Old Deuteronomy #Jemima #Coricopat #catsedit #my posts #two posts on the same day on each other's tails #because i am bored #the implications here are fascinating #old deuteronomy wants to make things right - i feel - but i also feel as though there is *something* preventing him for doing it himself #maybe he realizes that his sympathy and desire to take grizabella back isn't enough - that at the end of the day #unless the other cats are convinced - unless they are able to understand - then it's just spinning in the mud with no traction #jemima is perhaps the best to deliver this message - she has no previous connection to griz and is representative of turning a new leaf

[nevermindirah]

Yitzhak!

is a character! who Gregadiah What-Is-Math Rucka gave us almost no information about!

I've gone through Tales Through Time #6: The Bear and #1: My Mother's Axe with several magnifying glasses and done a lot of googling and taken my copy of the Tanakh off my shelf for the first time since (well, since the last time I needed to read Torah for TOG reasons, which I think was Booker Passover headcanons) and here's the best I can come up with.

In The Bear we meet someone who goes by the name Isaac Blue:

Read on for a lot of comic panel analysis and historical research and Jewish flailing!

So what do we know about this Isaac Blue person?

He's Lorge, he's got curly hair, he's basically a taller version of Joe as drawn by Leandro Fernández (ie an antisemitic stereotype why the fuck did they approve this character design?? and then why did they double down and copy-paste it to Yitzhak??):

He's got a mezuzah on the doorpost of his house in Alaska!

I screamed about the mezuzah way back in January in this post where I (very reasonably) assumed this character was Joe and spun myself a tale about how Booker is still Joe's brother so the mezuzah stays up even though Booker isn't welcome in that house for a century. Bottom line: the mezuzah is a tradition with origins in the commandment from Deuteronomy 6:9 to "write the words of G-d on the gates and doorposts of your house" and evolved over the course of the Rabbinic period into the modern mezuzah we see here.

I did unnecessary levels of google image search to glean absolutely no useful information about Yitzhak’s origins from this panel:

I've decided the variant cover of TTT 6 is Yitzhak because of a panel in My Mother’s Axe, shown here, and what's likely an unnecessarily deep reading of Exodus, discussed further down:

The person at the right of the bottom panel is wearing the same clothes as in the TTT 6 variant cover and has the same shoulder-length curly hair and hairy forearms.

Left to right, the people in this panel are Lykon (I'll never get used to him being white in the comics), Andy, Noriko (I think? why doesn't Andy mention her by name here?), and Yitzhak. Andy's robe has a stereotypically Greek design on the sleeve cuff, and I had to stop myself 10 minutes into a Wikipedia rabbit hole because Gregorforth doesn't think that deep about this shit. The solid clues as to timeline that we get in this panel are:

Andy's iron axe

the presence of Lykon, who Andy first met in 331 BCE

So all we know is that Yitzhak is an immortal, he was a contemporary of Lykon, and he's Jewish.

Isaac is the most common Anglicization of Yitzhak (which in turn is the most common Anglophone transliteration of יִצְחָק‎), and Greg always uses the (transliterated) Hebrew when he refers to this character. Yitzhak is the long-awaited child of Abraham and Sarah in Genesis, the child who G-d commanded Abraham to sacrifice but spared at the last minute. I see what you did there, Gregory.

Why Isaac Blue? This is where I pulled out my Tanakh. According to the New JPS translation, blue is the first of three colors of yarn listed in Exodus 35:6 among the gifts requested of the Israelites to construct the priestly garments for the Tabernacle and later the Temple. Then in Numbers 15:38 the Israelites are commanded to "make themselves fringes on the corners of their garments throughout the ages; let them attach a cord of blue to the fringe at each corner."

And now for sandbox timelines party! Gregadiah gave us ALMOST NOTHING to go on, so I'm gonna make my own fun.

I, like many modern Jews, think the stories in the Tanakh are foundational mythology that are valuable because of how they've shaped our people but that contain some fucked-up shit and either way aren't meant to be a record of historical facts. Modern scholarship generally agrees that the community we now call Jews emerged as a distinct group of Canaanites sometime in the late Bronze Age (cw this video's host says the Name of G-d aloud despite being a religious studies scholar who knows that is not a name anyone but the Temple priests are allowed to say). The first non-Biblical written record of the people Israel is from an Egyptian source c. 1200 BCE, and the Biblical kingdom of David and Solomon was probably an exaggeration of whatever really happened during the Bronze Age Collapse. We start getting into historical-fact territory a few centuries into the Iron Age:

588 BCE Solomon's Temple destroyed, Babylonian exile begins

538 BCE Cyrus of Persia allows Jews to return to Jerusalem

515 BCE Second Temple construction complete

332 BCE Alexander the Great At Something I Guess conquered Judea, beginning the Hellenistic period of Jewish history — 331 BCE Andy & Lykon find each other

167 BCE another jerkface Greek king desecrated the Temple and basically outlawed Judaism

164 BCE recapture of Jerusalem and Temple rededication during the Maccabean Revolt

70 CE destruction of the Second Temple by the Romans, beginning of the Rabbinic period of Jewish history that we're still in now

What if... and hear me out... what if immortals come in pairs, and the pairs are:

Andy & Quynh

Joe & Nicky

Booker & Nile

LYKON & YITZHAK

What if Yitzhak was a priest of the Second Temple? What if he and Lykon killed each other just like Joe and Nicky would in the same city around 1300 years later, but instead of enemies-to-lovers speedrun with an absurdly long happily-ever-after, when Lykon died permanently Yitzhak decided to separate from Andy and Noriko and become the hermit we later see in Alaska?

We don't know how old Yitzhak is compared to the others, only that he was a contemporary of Lykon at a time when Andy was using an Iron Age version of her mother's axe. Other plausible origins for him:

a Jew of the early Rabbinic period, maybe a child or grandchild of people who were still alive before the Second Temple was destroyed

a Judean of the Second Temple era under the Romans or Greeks or Persians, maybe a priest, maybe not

an exilee in Babylon, maybe of the generation who got to return, maybe of the generation who was exiled (he doesn't look like he was 50 at his first death but who knows, he could've been mortal for both)

an Israelite of the Kingdoms of Israel and Judah, maybe a priest of Solomon's Temple or again maybe not

an Israelite wandering in the desert with Moses

THEE Yitzhak, ben Avraham v'Sarah, our patriarch who was brought up for sacrifice and then spared, and then spared again, and then spared again, and again, and again...

or! he could also be a Canaanite or other Levantine who predates the people Israel, who at some point in his very long life chose to join our mixed multitude, who like Andromache before him (and like Avram and Sarai would in this case do after him) took a new name to reflect the magnitude of influence this people has had on him

Why do I keep saying Yitzhak might have been a priest? It's thanks to the one detail in the artwork I could plausibly connect to solid research without getting a PhD real quick. Take a look at the gorgeous detail on the opening of his robe in the TTT 6 cover. He's dressed in rags, holes and dirt everywhere, rough stitches probably from hasty repair work — except for the neck opening. Compare that to this description from Exodus 39:23 of the construction of the priestly garments for the Tabernacle: "The opening of the robe, in the middle of it, was like the opening of a coat of mail, with a binding around the opening, so that it would not tear."

The next verses describe the intricate designs for the hem of the priestly garment. Yitzhak's ragged garment looks like the hem was torn off entirely.

Am I overthinking this? Yes I am! You're welcome!

My friend and historical research hero @lady-writes​ is in a Discord server with Gregadiah and asked the man himself some questions about all this. He clearly thinks he's being sneaky?? No shit Yitzhak is Jewish, dude, I want DETAILS!

I will not be giving up my Jewish Booker headcanon, I've put too much thought into it by now, the internalized shame of antisemitism explains Booker's depression too well for me, and it just adds so much richness to Booker/Nile both being children of forced diasporas. Fortunately (for him, not me, bc I'd do it anyway!) Gregothy supports fan headcanons even when they're not in line with his own:

One last thing before I close like 100 research tabs and go back to writing historical fantasy and/or porn! I love that, despite that atrocious caricature of a face design, our canon Jew and our fanon Jew are both Lorge and Soft and Kind, flying the face of the antisemitic stereotype of Ashkenazi Jewish men as small and weak, but also not falling into the New Jew / Muscle Jew stereotype that Zionism created. (I am trying SO HARD not to talk about Israel/Palestine for once ughhhhhhhhhh) Anyway here's a (US-centric but very good) primer on both these stereotypes of Jewish masculinity. Is this why I'm forever projecting my transmasc diasporist feels onto Jewish Booker the service sub? 🤷🏻‍♂️

I’ll reblog a second version of this with full image descriptions so that there’s a version accessible for folks who need IDs as well as a version accessible for folks who get overwhelmed by walls of text.

#TOG POC Love Fest #yitzhak #jewish booker #tales through time spoilers #tales through time #tog meta #tog #jewish things #mine #antisemitism #hi i'm an antizionist jew no i don't really want to talk about it

[uppastthejelliclemoon]

Uppast's Cats Tour Comments: Act 1

note: i'm referring to the cats by their show names, however I may use the actor's name for a specific comment!

Overture

They did this SO well! I definitely missed seeing the cast in the aisles, but they projected the green eyes onto the stage, and it was the perfect amount of creepy/weird/hypnotizing.

I absolutely love the lights slowly being raised while shining all the spotlights, it sets the vibe PERFECTLY

also saying this now: the orchestra was incredible!

Prologue: Jellicle Songs for Jellicle Cats

right off the bat, we’ve a super sweet Demestrap moment, with Munkustrap checking on Demeter after the car! It was adorable!

Devon's voice is SO good for Munkustrap, also the man is TALL OH MY GOD

Tugger didn't get his "can you say of your bite that it's worse than your bark" line, which I was a little disappointed about. However, Zach as Bill Bailey is absolutely 10/10.

Brianna… the babiest Sillabub… so precious... so small...

There were some Victor and Gus moments, with them either standing near each other or sharing looks/touches, so if anyone ships them, y'all got your rarepair moment!

THE BOOT WAS SO LOUD LMAO

They use the set so well!

The Naming of Cats

creepy, wonderful, everything I want from this number

A handful of the cats got right to the edge of the stage where the lighting was, so they were all glowing, and it was the BEST vibe.

Taylor was staring into my soul during the last verse so now I can say I've been vibe-checked by Coricopat.

Invitation to the Jellicle Ball

Hyla is the PERFECT Victoria!!!!! She's so incredibly graceful, she had the sweetest expression on her face, and ugh it was flawless.

Paul is also just an amazing Mistoffelees.

Munkustrap had literally the sweetest moment with Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer and I almost started crying. Right before Jennyanydots' song, when everyone's getting into place, Mungo and Rumple immediately went to Munkustrap and were cuddling his legs, and he gave them pets, and just oh my god T_T

Gumbie Cat

OKAY SO I ABSOLUTELY ADORE THE KITTEN SQUAD SO MUCH MY HEART

When everyone's setting up for Jennyanydots' song, after the nuzzles, the lights start to switch, and the kitten squad was trying to catch the lights on the ground while Munkustrap was looking at them with the fondest expression and i swear i cried a little bit over how cute they were.

SKIMBLE LOVES HIS WIFE SO MUCH AND WAS HELPING HER GET THE KITTENS INTO THEIR MICE COSTUMES

Plato, Alonzo, and Mungojerrie were great cockroaches, 10/10

The Gumbie Trio was so good! Their voices sounded amazing together, and they were all just having so much fun!

SO MUCH MAMA JELLY AND SON TUMBLE I FEEL SO HAPPY

I'm going to go more in-depth in my Kitten Squad post!

Rum Tum Tugger

The way Zach said "Who will it be?" was absolutely amazing, i loved it, 10/10 character introduction.

Jennyanydots stomped off when he interrupted her accolades, she was very upset.

Zach and Devon nailed Tugger and Munkustrap's sibling dynamic PERFECTLY, Devon was the best Tired Older Brother Munkus.

Yeah, this number pretty much confirmed Zach as my favorite Tugger.

Mistoffelees and Cassandra did some lounging together in the background on the car.

Chelsea's Bomba is absolutely *chef's kiss*, I adore her

Obviously Tugger and Mistoffelees did their little dance, and it was wonderful. I'm not sure if other shows had Mistoffelees do this, but he went between Tugger's legs at the end of his little solo and Tugger was just vibing.

MY FAVORITE MOMENT THOUGH had to be near the end of the song, Munkustrap was 100% getting into it, and Tugger went over to him and was teasing him, poking him, and it was the cutest brother interaction.

They did have the camera! Zach did some very Tugger poses, and it was great.

Grizabella the Glamour Cat

haha Tugger went to hide behind the metal bars on the furthest side of the stage away from Grizabella, I'm in ✨pain✨

Sillabub goes to touch Grizabella, Grandpa Skimble pulls her back and starts scolding her, I want to hug the baby.

No, but I did really love that moment. It's off to the side, but you can see him giving her a talking to, and she's trying to say something back, but he's very firm.

Mungojerrie egged George on to scratch Grizabella, George sweetie don't be mean.

Taylor has such a perfect voice for Grizabella, and I loved her look!

OKAY SO LAUREN AND CHELSEA'S VOICES

Lauren's voice is so smooth and suave, and Chelsea's voice has a little growl that almost made me pass out, like ma'am i'm in love? But their voices mixed together, as well as how slightly different they are was such a great choice, and I kind of hope that other future productions take note and have two actresses with vastly different vocals for Demeter and Bombalurina.

Bustopher Jones

Mistoffelees and Victoria go to great Bustopher together and it was the cutest thing, they were so excited to see him!

Munkustrap immediately grabbing Mungo and Rumple by the necks and steering the gremlins away from the Very Important Cat.

Tugger was keeping watch so Munkustrap could be silly with everyone else during Bustopher's number, and that's not something I'm forgetting. Usually, obviously, Munkustrap's sort of in the background, standing, watching, and not really interacting. But Tugger switched places, and was up on the scaffolding watching, and it was CUTE!

My Tuggandra crumbs, thank you Zach and Lexy, I'm indebted to you both.

Tugger literally was just lounging on the car during the end of Bustopher's song, just waving his arms around, and I love him.

Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer

Elana (Teazer for this show) had the PERFECT Rumple giggle!

They're so silly, I love them

They made the best facial expressions, especially when Mungo "stole" Rumple's pearls.

Very dramatic gremlin twins, jumping all over the place, not caring about anything!

They were so confident at the end of their song when they went to walk off, and immediately went into "oh shit" mode when Munkus, Plato, and Alonzo came out.

Run through the legs of Munkus! See Munkus, this is why you need to not stand with your legs apart when you're attempting to control kittens.

Old Deuteronomy

Saying it again, Devon and Zach are SUCH a good Munkustrap and Tugger.

The babies were so excited to see Old Deut! They could barely contain themselves, and then got cuddles! (Also Tanto was with the kittens and i love that for her, let her be a kitten!! I definitely got "big brother Cori/little sister Tanto" vibes)

Everyone's getting Deut nuzzles!!

Tugger did a VERY dramatic shimmy at his dad, and Deut laughed, and I cried.

Tugger and Munkustrap standing on either side of their dad!!!! He's so proud of them!!

Jellicle Ball

Sillabub was hiding on top of the oven before the Ball, sweet baby T_T

George got to sing with Old Deut!! Happy boy!!

TUMBLE FLIPS TUMBLE FLIPS TUMBLE FLIPS

Jennyanydots and Skimbleshanks being the Supervisors!!

There was a really sweet Jellylorum and Alonzo moment (def going to talk more about it in the Alonzo post), but my "Jellylorum is Alonzo, Tumble, and Pounce's Mom" hc is feeling SO VALIDATED TONIGHT

I've said this so many times, but I adore that Plato and Victoria get their own little solo before their Big Solo. It's so sweet, and Hyla and Adam have wonderful chemistry!

Tugger chases Bomba offstage before The Moment, and I love that for them

CUDDLE PILE!!!

Munkustrap and Demeter cuddled together in the corner away from the pile and I want to sob because they were just so sweet, her head was on his shoulder, and he was holding her, and literally everyone in this show has such good chemistry with each other.

Tugger looks up with the psychic twins during Grizabella's reveal, once again making me think that Tugger and Munkustrap have magic like their brother.

OH AND TUGGER DID THE STUPIDEST LITTLE DANCE WHERE HE WAS SHAKING HIS BUTT AND HAVING FUN AND MUNGOJERRIE LAUGHED AT HIM AND THEY HAD A MOMENT AND IT WAS GREAT

Memory

ouch ouch ouch

Jennyanydots blocks the stairs up to Deut's tire so Grizabella can't go to Deut, my heart

steering the babies away from Grizabella even though Silla wants to give her a hug.

Taylor you hurt me in the best way possible

I always get emotional over Grizabella's dance before her song, it's such a telling moment, but unfortunately I don't think everyone understands that it's supposed to be a serious moment and not funny.

Deut sits on his tire the entire song and it's HEARTBREAKING

At the very end, Grizabella does the reaching back, and Deut reaches forward, and if you're sitting in the right spot it looks like they're touching and i'm NOT OKAY

#cats the musical #cats us tour 6 #uppast's cats tour comments

[sevenkittensinatrenchcoat]

Some Analysis of the Heaviside Layer and the Jellicle Choice

NOTE: This is mostly going off on the 1998 version, because the story is made more clear there.

Why Does Anybody Want to Go to the Heaviside Layer?

We know that those who are chosen to go to the Heaviside Layer “Can now be reborn and come back to a different Jellicle life”. So, they’re reincarnated. This is based on the idea that cats have nine lives. The Heaviside Layer moves them from one life to the next. I’m guessing that only after living all nine lives do cats actually die. What happens then? Do they remain in the Heaviside Layer? Is there some other sort of afterlife they move on to? Can cats tell which life they’re currently living? Old Deuteronomy has apparently “lived many lives in succession”, all as Deuteronomy, so he’s probably aware, but is that just him, or does every cat know? There are a lot of holes in the lore that can only be filled with “for the purposes of this story, it doesn’t really matter”.

The Heaviside Layer is “full of wonders” as well, so everyone wants to see what’s up there someday, but if it’s not their day, it’s not their day. If Heaven exists, it would be cool to see what it looks like, but that would mean dying and most people don’t want to do that.

The play never explicitly states that any of the cats gathering for the ball want to be chosen. The question they’re asking is “Who will it be?”. They want to know who the lucky cat is and see them off. This is probably the end of that cat’s life as the cat they know, so they all want a chance to say goodbye. The Jellicle Choice has their life celebrated before moving on to the next one, because that’s what most of the musical numbers do.

Who Actually Wants to Go to the Heaviside Layer?

Everyone, someday, but only a few are probably interested in being chosen at the specific ball that the play’s about. Cats who don’t have songs about them aren’t being put in the spotlight, so none of them are up for it. Out of the cats with songs, several of them are also out. Macavity is only sung about because he’s the antagonist and we need a song explaining who he is. Old Deuteronomy’s number is also just musical exposition for a main character.

Some of the musical numbers are spontaneous, while others seem to be presentations being put on for the ball. The cats with songs that are presentations are probably the ones making a case for the Heaviside Layer. So, now we have to determine which is which.

Gumbie Cat:

This one seems pretty planned. There are costumes and special effects. Munkustrap has a Gumbie Cat in mind, right after talking about the Jellicle Choice, meaning that he either thinks Jenny should be picked, or he thinks she will be picked. Jenny is the OLD Gumbie Cat, someone reaching the end of one life, possibly ready to move on to another.

Rum Tum Tugger:

Tugger crashes the party here and Munkustrap isn’t pleased with this. He appears to be the one organizing the night’s events, so if an event annoys him, it probably wasn’t meant to occur. Tugger’s number is spontaneous. Since Tugger is a fairly important character, the song serves as his introduction. It’s a typical musical I Am Song.

Bustopher Jones:

There aren’t any costumes or effects in this one and Bustopher doesn’t even stick around for the ball. But, some of the cats sing his praises when he shows up. He most likely had no intent to campaign to be the Jellicle Choice. He dropped in to say hi and Jenny just started cheering for him, because she’s his biggest fangirl. He probably could qualify for the Jellicle Choice, but he’s clearly not interested. He doesn’t even care who the choice is. Bustopher is not a normal Jellicle cat, not asking “who will it be?”.

Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer:

Jerrie and Teazer perform their number to no one after everyone scatters in fear of Macavity. Their number is just them messing around, telling the audience about what they’ve been up to, because it’s fun.

Since Old Deuteronomy probably doesn’t count for the choice, since he’s the judge, we end act one with only one established candidate. Tugger, Jerrie, and Teazer had other reasons for their musical numbers and Bustopher basically declined, “I’m still in my prime, I shall last out my time” meaning that he doesn’t intend to go anywhere, Jennyanydots is the only cat who’s been seriously considered by this point.

And Jenny doesn’t really qualify either! She performed her number before Old Deuteronomy showed up, and by starting up Bustopher’s number, she nominated someone else. If she nominates someone else, she most likely doesn’t want to win, or at least doesn’t care very much. So, Munkustrap nominated her, but Jenny herself isn’t really competing to be chosen. She appreciates that she was given her own number and that she’s admired that much by the tribe, but she’s still got a lot to do in this life.

So, on to Act Two. Old Deuteronomy has seen Grizabella sing Memory by herself and implies in The Moments of Happiness that he’s basically already made his choice. However, he implies it with references to Memory, which the other cats haven’t heard yet, so they don’t know that. Old D is still hearing people out though, so now we enter the “auditioning for the Heaviside Layer” portion of the show.

Gus: The Theatre Cat

Gus is an ideal candidate for the Jellicle Choice. He’s old and frail, he’s lived a long and meaningful life, it would be good for him to move on. Jellylorum nominates him. She’s interesting, because the other cats in her age range were all nominated themselves, but her moment in the spotlight is nominating someone else.

Jellylorum is Gus’ caretaker. She most likely brought him to the ball, intending to plead his case. Gus is far too weak to dance at the ball, so I imagine that he was off napping somewhere throughout Act One.

Gus is the only cat who can really compete with Grizabella and his number is the only one that can really compete with Memory. Jenny had a big show put on for her number, and the amount of energy she put into it shows that she’s got a lot of life left in her. Theatre Cat and Memory are both about cats who are definitely reaching the end of their current lives, not able to put on a show. They’re simple, but emotionally powerful.

Gus isn’t just physically weak, but mentally a bit out of it as well. He’s barely involved in the creation of his own number. He just plays off of what Jellylorum said. He’s not even really present enough to want to be chosen. Jelly is pleading his case for him, not because he wants it, but because she believes that he needs it. She knows that he’s not what he used to be and that it’s probably time to move on. She sings a song to celebrate his life and accomplishments, knowing that if she succeeds, this is the last time she’ll see Gus as Gus. But, she keeps the mood fairly upbeat, keeping any pauses in the song from lasting too long, not wanting anyone to get too sad. The Jellicle Ball is a celebration of life, not a funeral.

There’s a lot going on in this number.

Skimbleshanks: The Railway Cat:

So, Theatre Cat has a bit of a downer ending, so Old Deuteronomy decides to change the subject, calling in Uncle Skimble to lighten the mood. The kittens all love his train stories and mentioning his name cheers Jemima up immediately.

This is another number that appears to be a presentation. The construction of the train feels like there were props ready and that this had been rehearsed, only going wrong at the last second. So, Skimble’s another candidate for the Jellicle Choice, but, like Jenny, the energy of his number is proof that he doesn’t really need it. Skimble’s goal at this point is just to entertain. He leads the number himself, so one nominated him, so I doubt he’s being taking very seriously as a candidate. At this moment in the show, everyone’s probably certain that Gus will be chosen.

One interesting detail of Skimble’s number is that he always sings in the past tense. Not every single lyric in the song is in the past tense, but the lines in the present tense are sung by the chorus, not by Skimble himself. The number starts with the chorus in present tense:

There’s a whisper down the line at eleven thirty-nine

But, when Skimble takes over, the tense shifts:

All the guards and all the porters and the station master’s daughters would be searching high and low

The chorus alternates between past and present tense throughout the number, but Skimble stays in the past. He’s mainly telling specific stories about his time on the train, but he also makes more general statements about his time as railway cat:

You could say that by and large it was me who was in charge

Skimble’s time as railway cat is purely in the past tense. He’s retired. The retirement is fairly recent, since the chorus of mostly kittens don’t seem to know about it. My theory is that the humans running the train decided that Skimble was getting too old to do his job and Skimble had to retire. He’d defined himself by his job as The Railway Cat. He was defined by his career, so without his career, who is he?

This is part of a reoccurring thing with several other characters. Many cats have titles of The X Cat, with X being a career or role in society. But, some of them are now too old to play their parts. Grizabella’s looks have faded with age, so she can no longer be The Glamour Cat. Gus is too weak to perform, so he can no longer be The Theatre Cat. Grizabella, Gus, and Skimble are defined by roles that they can no longer play, so who are they now? What do they have left to contribute to society?

The answer is Memory.

Gus and Skimble tell stories from their past careers to the future generation. They inspire the younger cats. The stories of their lives, their memories, are what they have to give. The show has the importance of memory as a reoccurring theme. Skimble clearly figured this theme out on his own, creating his own number to share his stories with the kittens. Gus isn’t quite as aware, but his theatrical career is clearly an inspiration to Jellylorum, who tells the stories when he can’t. The memory can outlast the person, because others hear the stories and tell them to even more people. In that way, Gus will always be The Theatre Cat, Skimble will always be The Railway Cat, and maybe, Grizabella will always be The Glamour Cat in the same way.

This concludes the Auditions For the Heaviside Layer. The remaining character number is another one that Old D isn’t present for and features a younger cat who’s just really getting into his role of The Magical Cat. But, there are still some things worth pointing out:

Mr. Mistoffelees:

The song, despite being as flashy as the rehearsed numbers, is played as spontaneous. Tugger has an idea and then he sings a song to sell the idea, the idea being “Misto can save the day with his magic”.

Up until this point in the show, the only real interaction between Misto and Tugger is Misto calling Tugger a “terrible bore”. If he had a planned number, Misto probably wouldn’t have picked Tugger to sing it. The opening of Gumbie Cat implies that he would’ve wanted Munkustrap to do it. He thought Munk was going to sing about him, but he sung about Jenny instead. So, Misto thought he’d have a number, for whatever reason, and that Munk would sing it.

It doesn’t make sense for Misto to want to go to the Heaviside Layer. He’s just become an adult and is still trying to prove his worth as one. He wouldn’t want to have to start over. Misto is very competitive, so he might think of being chosen as winning a competition, and he just has to win, wanting the victory, not the prize. He also might’ve wanted his own number, not as an audition for the Heaviside Layer, but purely for a moment in the spotlight and the validation of someone wanting to sing about him. He wants to put on a show for the party and show off his magic tricks. He assumed that Munkustrap was in on that plan and would give him his own special number, but he didn’t. Munkustrap arranged a number to nominate Jenny for the Jellicle Choice and didn’t really have anything for Misto to do.

Misto wouldn’t expect Tugger to give him a number. The number is exactly the sort of number Misto wanted, a chance to show off his magic with a long break to show off his dancing. He didn’t expect Old Deuteronomy to be kidnapped, and the trick to bring him back is one he’s never done before, so it isn’t all fun and games, but the fact that he gets a number gives him confidence. So, Misto shows off a lot and gets to be a hero and the adults take him seriously now and this is basically his dream come true. It’s not about the Jellicle Choice, but it’s still a big deal.

Sidenote:

In many productions I’ve seen, when Misto does his Conjuring Turns, the UFO that Grizabella rides to the Heaviside Layer starts to descend. He’s powerful enough to open the gates to the Heaviside Layer and might not even know. Munkustrap is Old D’s son and heir, but Misto will be the one who sends cats to the Heaviside Layer in the future, because he can. The importance of his magic might give him co-ruler status with Munkustrap!

So, the candidates for the Jellicle Choice are:

Jennyanydots (declines, nominating Bustopher instead)

Bustopher Jones (declines)

Gus (loses out at the last minute)

Skimbleshanks (didn’t expect to win and didn’t)

Grizabella (last minute nominee and winner)  

#cats 1998 #jennyanydots #rum tum tugger #grizabella #bustopher jones #mungojerrie #rumpleteazer #old deuteronomy #gus the theatre cat #jellylorum #munkustrap #skimbleshanks #mr mistoffelees

[aceofshitposts]

I saw that you like CATS the musical. What are your thoughts on the movie?

AAAAH AHHAHA oh man oh boy y'all should BUCKLE IN cuz it's a ride

my simple thoughts? it's entertaining if only because it butchered the stage show so badly in an attempt to idk modernize it? Well, modernization is one part of it I think. The other part I'll go into below lol. I don't necessarily hate some of the more modern renditions of the songs (mostly the ensemble sets like Jellicle Song for Jellicle Cats) but then others are just... so poorly done it's insulting.

I've said this at the end of this whole rant too but I'm gonna put it up here in case people don't (justifiably) wanna see me go on and on about it:

The movie wasn't made for fans of the musical. It was made to make money and I believe they choose, at least partially, to do that through making it the weirdest and worst possible adaptation they could so that people would want to go see the train wreck. Which, really, worked! It was all people could talk about for a good while so like... Goal achieved, I guess.

A MUCH MORE COMPREHENSIVE ANALYSIS UNDER THE CUT cuz i don't wanna. flood your dash with... this

ALRIGHT SO. Most of my friends know I'm actually a huge fan of new adaptations of things. I love remakes (provided the people making it are coming at it with some form of heart and not just... cash grabbing which is more often the case) I love seeing other peoples interpretations of characters, or changing settings. It's one of the reasons I like American comics so much, getting to see different writers takes is fascinating.

I think musical movies can be wonderful ways to introduce people to a stage show that might have been unavailable to them otherwise! Chicago, for example, is one of the BEST musical to movie adaptations in my opinion. It kept the heart of the show, it's funny and the song numbers are done really well.

There are of course other famous examples, such as Grease or Bye Bye Birdie. Hairspray was also a wonderful take. These are simply off the top of my head, there are of course more.

CATS in particular has a history. If you go through my CATS tag you may see a few posts from @catsnonreplica which posts photos from non broadway productions of CATS! It's a fascinating read and I love, love, love looking at the other interpretations of the characters! CATS is a musical full of fun and wonderful characters if you take the time to see past the ridiculousness haha and the Korean and Japanese runs of CATS especially have some of my favourites.

How does this relate to the movie, I hear you say well. As you might has noticed the movie's interpretations of the characters is........ lackluster at best and downright uncanny valley at best.

CATS is, at its core, a ridiculous thing. I will fully admit that! But it's fun, it's entertaining and if you pay a little attention you can actually get the plot. (Honestly I don't understand when people complain it has no plot but that's a whole other rant for another day)

The movie was... obsessed with this idea of like... semi realism? Like obviously, as a fan, I think they should have leaned into the over the top character designs but instead we got...w ell:

Bombalurina:

Demeter left and Bomba right. Demeter was actually cut! From the movie which is. upsetting lmao.

Macavity is one of the worst offenders for me:

Macavity was... I wish I could know what the hell they were thinking there cuz it's even in his song? Ginger cat??? THAT IS NOT... A GINGER CAT...... but I digress. I would show more examples but I think you get the point.

So. We've butchered the characters appearances. Okay that's fine but what about their personalities?

ALSO BUTCHERED.

There's... there's a lot to unpack here. Just for context: the Jellicle Ball happens once a year and the Jellicle leader chooses a single cat to be reborn into a new life. In the stage play all the cats who are nominated for this honour are on the older side (Jenny-Any-Dots, Bustopher Jones, Skimbleshanks, Gus The Theatre Cat, and eventually Grizzabella) AND are always nominated by another cat. Not themself, unlike the movie where they all seem to nominate themselves.

Jenny-Any-Dots went from a doting grandmother figure who's celebrated for her selfless volunteering and tireless work into a conceited, vain younger cat who is obsessed with fame.

It's an incredibly strange dichotomy. I don't doubt some of it isn't the result of the uh people playing the characters honestly. I do think some of them did the best they could! I don't really blame Jason Derulo, for example, for Tugger. And honestly, Tugger was probably closest to his stage version (while being a trouble maker, he's shown to show Deuteronomy an immense amount of respect)

Speaking of Tugger! This will bring us to one of the biggest grievances with the movie and that is how they handled Mr Mistoffelees.

So... Ugh. So. We have Victoria as the pov character, which imo is like whatever in the grand scheme of things, and then we have Misto who they have decided will be get live interest cuz... Of course. Misto is shown throughout the musical to be awkward, unsure of himself and well. Really, kinda incompetent. Which is Wild cuz in the stage show he might be aloof but he's fairly confident in his powers.

So, Old Deuts gets kidnapped. In the stage show Tugger is the one to bring Misto forward! It's really quite sweet, imo, and I'm showing myself as a Tuggoffelees shipper here, but again Tugger is previously shown to be pretty conceited but then here he is boosting and hyping up Misto to bring Deuteronomy back. My friends and I have lovingly dubbed this the boyfriend hype song.

SOMEHOW. The movie manages to make this, easily, the MOST BORING number in the whole thing. Which, again, WILD. Misto awkwardly stumbles through his whole song, which again is... Boasting of his supreme magical powers which movie Misto clearly. Does not have or believe to have. The song, to me, feels super awkward and unnecessarily drawn out in the movie which sucks cuz it's one of my favourites in the show.

The declawing (heh) of Mr Mistoffelees actually reminds me strongly of how they changed Gaston in the live action Beauty and the Beast movie. He's gone from a beloved figure in the animated movie to someone so disliked in the town that Le Fou has to pay people off to say nice things about him. It's just. Wild character choices were made!!

Skimbleshanks the Railway Cat is probably my favourite in movie non ensemble number. It feels the most... Genuine? Compared to the other nomination songs.

Other problems include but are not limited to:

The inconsistent size scale of the CATS which throws me off constantly.

The weirdly overt sexual overtones added to MANY of the songs (Jenny and Bustopher being the worst)

This is just a personal gripe and opinion but I don't like that they used the UK version of Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer. The American version is both better known and tbh way more fun. Teazer's giggle? Adds ten years to my life every time.

Victoria's added solo song, Beautiful Ghosts, while I like the song as a song it doesn't fit the style of message of the musical. In the movie she's singing directly to Grizzabella who's being an outcast for years that she should be grateful she even has memories of being part of the tribe?? What?? But I know they had to add an original song to be able to be nominated for awards in like the Grammys n shit (which is why all musical movies will have an original song, fun fact!!) kinda funny they went to the effort though considering........... I don't think anyone could have genuinely believed CATS 2019 was gonna win anything but golden rhaspberries.

Movie Mr Mistoffelees has made repeated appearances as my sleep paralysis demon

The various cut characters, shout outs to Jemima, Demeter and Jellylorum especially

Bombalurina being a henchman to Macavity rubs me the wrong way

God I've written... So much. You probably get it by now haha. Like I said at the beginning, I try to go into any adaptation with an open mind but... Let's be honest, this movie wasn't marketed to people who are fans of the musical.

It was marketed, and made, to make money. And they choose to do that through, I think, intentionally making the worst possible version ever. Bad press is still press and the more outrageous people said the movie was the more people wanted to go see exactly what kind of train wreck it was.

Which is a disservice to the stage show, honestly, and all the people who've worked on it over the years.

But what can we do, right?

And besides all that, I do... Still own the movie version and I do still rewatch it on occasion. It is entertaining even if it's in a train wreck kind of way. I usually end up watching the 1998 version, then 2019 and then various tour runs that are on YouTube. (I highly recommend the 2016 tour, it's very good)

So in conclusion. It's fun (?) to watch. I enjoy picking things apart and doing analysis (if you couldn't tell!) so like... I don't hate it?

It did what it set out to do, I guess, and I can't fault it for that but. It's not a fair metre with which to judge the stage show imo. But I know it's not everyone's cup of tea, haha.

Jazz hands. I'm more than happy to elaborate or just chat about CATS if anyone wants! I grew up listening to the Broadway CD since I was a toddler so it's been! A very long standing obsession haha. Probably the only other thing on par with CATS is my obsession with Jurassic Park which I've also been a fan of since I was 3 (but that's a whole story in and of itself)

#astrix thoughts #cats the musical #Thanks for the opportunity to talk about one of my hyperfixations anon! #And to anyone who reads this whole mess lmao

[rainbowratsstuff]

Okay so I want to talk a little about my autistic mistoffelees headcanon. This might be a bit of a mess because I dont know how to structure these thoughts.

I have autism so I always love seeing autistic characters and the more I thought about Mistoffelees and his personality the more I realised he was seeming like an autistic character to me so now I completely run with it. I actually based a lot of his introverted habits after myself.

He always seemed like more of an outsider kind of character, like he wasnt fully understood by everyone. He keeps to himself a lot and is pretty quiet. I think magical mister mistoffelees is more like an alter ego for him. It's a way for him to be confident and show off his passions more freely (kind of like me online as RainbowRat).

I think he has a hard time understanding everyone else. He doesnt always know what to say so he gets quiet a lot. He also has a hard time having the right expression, he could be feeling happy but his face wont exactly show it and he worries he gives off the wrong idea.

It's not necessarily an autistic thing but I also think he's selectively mute. Some days he doesnt want to talk and sometimes he gets too overwhelmed and feels like he cant talk. He's also very sensitive to noise and will use magic to make the world seem quieter to him, unfortunately this makes him seem like he's purposely ignoring other cats which isnt his intention and him being not so good at communicating (at least not as good as everyone else) doesnt make things any easier. (also it could be a little sensitive hearing + magic that helped him sense grizabella and old doot)

(And here's Misto disliking Jenny's high note)

Dance and magic are his two biggest passions (even though he's still learning about his magic) if he cant show his feelings through words than dance and other movements do the trick for him. I also think all the sparkles are sort of a visual stim for him. Dance is also a good way for him to connect and interact with other cats (sort of like how I use my art to express myself and engage with people)

(Like him and Victoria here)

I usually think he's not overly fond of big hugs and stuff like that but I think this can fluctuate if he feels either really comfortable with the cat and/or when he gets really excited and happy. Like when he hugged old deut because he was so happy to get him back and proud his magic worked. (Right after the deuteronomy hug, it always looked like to me he got a bit uncomfortable seeing all the other cats surround him, until he gets a more space again)

Now heres some happy and excited moments from misto that look a bit like stimming to me

And heres that ear scratching stim he does when he gets embarrassed or uncomfortable

#mistoffelees #autistic headcanon #autistic mistoffelees #mr mistoffelees #mister mistoffelees #cats #cats the musical #cats headcanon #most of these are more my own idea of him #i seem to have developed his character a lot in my head #i love him

[paths-of-my-childhood-candid]

OH, TAYLOR! Taylor Swift On Side-Stepping Into Acting, Owning What You Make & Loving The “Weirdness” Of Cats

On a grey London afternoon in late September, Taylor Swift slips quietly through the doors of a north London recording studio. It is an auspicious moment: the queen of confessional pop has come to meet Andrew Lloyd Webber, the king of musical theatre. Together, Swift, who turns 30 this month, and Lloyd Webber, 71, have written “Beautiful Ghosts”, a new song for the soon-to-be-released film adaptation of Cats – Webber’s 1981 extravaganza, which ran in the West End and on Broadway for a combined total of almost 40 years. In it, Swift plays Bombalurina, and like her co-stars – Idris Elba, Judi Dench, Francesca Hayward, Ian McKellen, Jennifer Hudson, Rebel Wilson – appears in full, furry CGI glory. Track finished, these two titans of the music industry sit down to talk… 

Andrew Lloyd Webber: Well, the first thing we have to clear up is that we both love cats. Taylor Swift: [Laughs] We do! One of the first things you said to me when we met was that you’re president of the Turkish Van Cat Club.  ALW: Professionally, there is nowhere I can go to top this, as you can completely understand. TS: I have three cats. How many do you have now?  ALW: I have three, too – they are all Turkish Vans. And you’ve got a Scottish Fold I believe. TS: I have two Scottish Folds, we think the third is a Ragdoll mix. ALW: You’re probably never going to talk to me again, but you know I’ve got a puppy? He’s called Mojito.  TS: I heard about this! How does he get along in the hierarchy?  ALW: Well, he believes he’s a little bear actually. He’s a Havanese dog, which I got because Glenn Close has one. TS: I’ve met that dog, he’s really good. ALW: You come from Pennsylvania. TS: I do. People seem to think I was raised in the south, but I’m from the north – grew up on a Christmas tree farm, then moved to Nashville when I was 14. ALW: And you wanted to move to Nashville for the songwriting or the singing? Or both? TS: Both – I was just obsessed with Shania Twain, Faith Hill, Dixie Chicks, and the thing they had in common was that they had gotten discovered in Nashville. So I had it in my head that this is a magical place where discoveries are made and people are able to do music as a living. ALW: Was it the storytelling side of country songs that you liked? Absolutely. It reminded me of the ’90s, when you had these amazing female singer-songwriters like Alanis Morissette and Sarah McLachlan; incredible female writers like Melissa Etheridge, Shawn Colvin; and these types of Lilith Fair women. Then you started to hit the 2000s and the only place I could find real confessional storytelling was country music. ALW: Did you know anybody when you got to Nashville? TS: No, we didn’t really. I’d been going there on vacation with my family, and my mom, my little brother and I would stay in a hotel and try to meet people. Eventually, after several trips, I got a development deal – it’s a non-committal record deal, like, “We’ll watch you develop for a year and then we’ll decide if we sign you.” That was grounds enough to move the family. ALW: Presumably you were in school in Nashville as well? TS: Yes, I was going to high school during the day and doing my songwriting sessions at night. It was a double life. I’d be writing notes in class, and my teachers never knew if they were notes for my class or if I’d gotten an idea for a song. ALW: How many songs would you write in a day? TS: Usually, never more than one. I had these sessions every day, and if I didn’t come in with a good idea, I’d get stared at. You’re not inspired every day, as you know, but you have to show up and treat it like a job. That’s where I learned the craft of songwriting. ALW: I’ve never worked like that, because I’m so story driven. What interests me, though, is how Nashville works. How did you get your foot on the performing ladder? TS: It was really writing first. At the same time, I was singing the national anthem every time I could – at festivals and fairs and bars, anywhere I could get up on stage. I was trying to hone both sides of what I was doing, but I’m very well aware that I would not have a career if I hadn’t been a writer. I wouldn’t have just been a singer, it wouldn’t have worked. ALW: I guess that, today, very few people have a major career unless they write. TS: Yeah, I agree. I think it’s really important – also from the side of ownership over what you do and make. Even if you aren’t a natural writer, you should try to involve yourself in the messages you’re sending. ALW: How does a young country artist get their first break? TS: I worked as hard as I could, reached out to as many people as I could to make sure I got meetings with publishing companies and labels. They didn’t come about very easily, but once I got in the room I’d just get out my guitar and play for them. ALW: Do you have to sing in a certain club to get to the next stage? TS: Everyone does it a different way, but the Bluebird Cafe is a place where everyone was discovered – from Garth Brooks to Faith Hill to, arguably, me. I remember being at your house after we’d written a song, and you telling me you’d bought it when you were 24 or something, that’s when I realised just how young you were when you had a vision to be doing this at such a high level. ALW: I was writing for the theatre when I was eight-years-old. I had a little toy theatre and did dreadful musicals on terrible subjects. Then, when I was about 13, I met a boy who wanted to write lyrics, and we did a couple of musicals at school. TS: So from the beginning you would pair up with a lyricist? ALW: One of the things I worked out very early was Lloyd Webber and lyrics are not a good idea. TS: Wow. It is a good alliteration, though. ALW: You were 19, weren’t you, when you had your first big hit? TS: I was about 18 when “Love Story”, a song I’d written alone, was a worldwide hit. I was lucky enough to work my way up in country music, for new artists nowadays, it feels like the trajectory of their career is like being shot out of a canon into a stratosphere they could in no way be prepared for. I got to sort of acclimate to every step of the path I was on, and by the time I had a massive hit I’d been working since I was 14. Moving from country music to pop was a crazy adjustment for me. ALW: And now we’ve written “Beautiful Ghosts” together for Cats. TS: I remember the moment. I went over to your apartment to rehearse “Macavity” and you sat down at the piano and started to play this haunting, beautiful melody, and I think I just started singing to it right away. ALW: You wrote the lyrics more or less then and there – it was fantastic. TS: It’s a different perspective on the song “Memory”, too, and the character of Grizabella [played by Jennifer Hudson], who used to have majestic, glamorous times and doesn’t anymore. On the other side of it, you have this little white cat [Victoria, played by Francesca Hayward] who’s been abandoned – she’s afraid she’ll never have a chance to have beautiful memories. So that’s where she’s singing “Beautiful Ghosts” from, to counter Grizabella’s idea of tragedy. ALW: I’d like to come back to something I thought when I heard your album, Lover – which is really absolutely brilliant. Am I right in thinking you approached its recording just as though you were giving live performances? TS: I did. I was really singing a lot at that point – I’d just come from a stadium tour, and then did Cats, which was all based on live performances – so a lot of that album is nearly whole takes. When you perform live, you’re narrating and you’re getting into the story and you’re making faces that are ugly and you’re putting a different meaning on a song every time you perform it. ALW: That’s the point isn’t it. TS: Yeah. ALW: Does that ever make you feel you want to be an actress? TS: I have no idea. When I was younger, I used to get questions like, “Where do you see yourself in 10 years?” I’d try to answer. As I get older, I’m learning that wisdom is learning how dumb you are compared to how much you are going to know. I really had an amazing time with Cats. I think I loved the weirdness of it. I loved how I felt I’d never get another opportunity to be like this in my life. ALW: It’s weird, what I’ve seen of the movie. TS: It’s decidedly weird [they laugh]. ALW: I think Tom [Hooper, the film’s director] has really tried to make something original. And I agree, I think as you get older you do become less sure of yourself and start to question what you can do. Would you consider doing a musical? TS: A musical? Absolutely, absolutely. ALW: Or writing your own? TS: That is way up there on my list of dreams. ALW: You should. TS: Was it really wonderful for you when you got the news that Judi Dench had accepted the role of Old Deuteronomy? ALW: Judi was in the original version in 1981 but she snapped her Achilles tendon and had to withdraw. Then I had this idea, which I ran past Tom, that we could make Old Deuteronomy a woman. Seeing her perform this time was quite an emotional thing for me, because it was a very, very sad day when she had to leave the original show. TS: She’s lovely. I remember being on set, and there is one scene that Idris [Elba, who plays Macavity] and I do with Judi, and someone walked up to me with this kind of gummy candy and I was like, “Oh, I’ve never had this before, this must be British candy, this is amazing.” I was raving about this candy so much, and Judi must have overheard me, because the next day I got to my dressing room and there was a signed photo from Judi and, like, six bags of it [they laugh]. Andrew, we both started young. What do we have in common from our experiences? What do you think was hard about it? And what was great? ALW: I suppose what was hard for me was that I was a fish out of the mainstream water. In the 1960s, to love musicals was as uncool as you could possibly be, and kids in my class at school would laugh at me. TS: I was the same. I loved country music and, where I was in school, the kids were just completely perplexed by that. It’s gotten more mainstream, but when I was a 13-year-old in Pennsylvania, I got similar reactions. Do you feel like you’re glad you were really young when you started? ALW: Yeah, are you? TS: I’m really glad, even though there are challenges to it – like you’re not allowed to make the same mistakes as everyone else because your mistakes are a commodity. ALW: And your mistakes are made in public. But we share something in common, in which we are extremely lucky. We both knew at an early age what we wanted to do, and most people in life don’t have a clue. TS: That’s very true. I think, also, a lot of the time when people see a career that they want it can be results-based. Rather than wanting to write musicals, they want to be a person who has written musicals. But when I see you work, I see you consistently creating and being curious about the next idea. You relish in the process even more than the rewards, which is the advice I would give anyone who wanted to do anything remotely close to this job. It cannot be about the results. ALW: It’s the process isn’t it? TS: It has to be. It’s supposed to be fun!

MEET & GREET: Introducing the faces behind this month’s issue

When it came to interviewing Taylor Swift about her musical-movie debut in Cats, there was only one man for the job: Andrew Lloyd Webber, composer of the original West End and Broadway mega hit. The two colossi of songwriting had plenty to discuss at a recording studio in north London – art, ambition and authenticity, plus what we can expect from the soon-to-be-released film.

Vogue: What was it like to work with Taylor? Andrew Lloyd Webber: She’s supremely professional and very charming with it. In my view, she could go far. Vogue: What was your first impression of her? ALW: She’s a lot taller than me, and a lot more attractive. Vogue: What’s your favourite Swift hit? ALW: “Blank Space” from the album 1989. It’s a great pop song with great lyrics.

[bananaofswifts]

On a grey London afternoon in late September, Taylor Swift slips quietly through the doors of a north London recording studio. It is an auspicious moment: the queen of confessional pop has come to meet Andrew Lloyd Webber, the king of musical theatre. Together, Swift, who turns 30 this month, and Lloyd Webber, 71, have written “Beautiful Ghosts”, a new song for the soon-to-be-released film adaptation of Cats – Webber’s 1981 extravaganza, which ran in the West End and on Broadway for a combined total of almost 40 years.

When Lloyd Webber began playing the haunting, beautiful melody during an afternoon of rehearsals, Swift started singing right away. She wrote the lyrics more or less then and there. “I think [writing] is really important – also from the side of ownership over what you do and make,” says Swift, who balanced her school studies with songwriting sessions from her early teens. “Even if you aren’t a natural writer, you should try to involve yourself in the messages you’re sending.” Lloyd Webber agrees: “Today, very few people have a major career unless they write.”

The impresario of the theatre world, who began plotting “dreadful musicals on terrible subjects” from the age of eight, recalls the first time he heard Swift’s seventh studio album, Lover. “Am I right in thinking you approached its recording just as though you were giving live performances?” he asks. “I did,” Swift affirms. “I was really singing a lot at that point – I’d just come from a stadium tour, and then did Cats, which was all based on live performances – so a lot of that album is nearly whole takes. When you perform live, you’re narrating and you’re getting into the story and you’re making faces that are ugly and you’re putting a different meaning on a song every time you perform it.”

“Does that ever make you feel you want to be an actress?” interjects Lloyd Webber. “I have no idea,” she concedes. “When I was younger, I used to get questions like, ‘Where do you see yourself in 10 years?’ I’d try to answer. As I get older, I’m learning that wisdom is learning how dumb you are compared to how much you are going to know. I really had an amazing time with Cats. I think I loved the weirdness of it. I loved how I felt I’d never get another opportunity to be like this in my life.”

Swift’s co-stars, including the “lovely” Judi Dench, made shooting Tom Hooper’s surrealist take on TS Eliot’s quirky poetry volume, Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats, an experience to remember. “There is one scene that Idris [Elba, who plays Macavity] and I do with Judi [Old Deuteronomy], and someone walked up to me with this kind of gummy candy and I was like, ‘Oh, I’ve never had this before, this must be British candy, this is amazing.’ I was raving about this candy so much, and Judi must have overheard me, because the next day I got to my dressing room and there was a signed photo from Judi and, like, six bags of it.”

Lloyd Webber was overjoyed when he found out the news Dench had accepted the role: “Judi was in the original version, but she snapped her Achilles tendon and had to withdraw,” he remembers. “Then I had this idea, which I ran past Tom, that we could make Old Deuteronomy a woman. Seeing her perform this time was quite an emotional thing for me, because it was a very, very sad day when she had to leave the original show.”  

[raz-b-rose]

Hey so,, the Bible states that Eating burgers is a sin Women speaking in church is a sin Wearing blended fabric is a sin Eating SHRIMP is talked about more in the Bible as a sin than homisexuality is Women wearing pants is a sin Writing in your Bible or defacing it in any way is a sin Do some research on your own religion if you're going to preach it

Thank you for asking, I love this opportunity to help bring understanding to commands such as these. Thank you for your patience, lets get to it. 

I can understand the overwhelming presence that is Gods word. Its a big book full of a lot of things that take a lot of cross referencing on occasion. After all, it is just one continuous story of God who was and is and always will be. 

Warning, there's a lot.

Anyway there is a simple answer to all of those and it starts all the way back at Abraham. Some quick condensed history. God chose Abraham to establish the Hebrew/Jewish people. He faithfully followed Gods commands, and Isaac was born from his faithfulness and for Gods promise. A promise that Abraham’s offspring would cover the earth. 

Isaac then had Esau and Jacob. Jacob then had 12 sons, Joseph the youngest was used to bring the Israelite people to Egypt. Where the Egyptians turned them into slaves. 

Now enter Moses. God used this man to bring them out of Egypt and towards the promise land. This is where God starts to establish what would set his chosen people apart from the rest of the world. The old laws were there for their faithful obedience and for outsiders to know “thats an Israelite”. 

The entirety of the OT speaks of Gods character, plans for salvation, and absolute authority. The laws are a reflection of that as well. 

so now we have the group of laws God had Moses establish.

Now Jesus fulfilled the OT law. 

Matthew 5:17-20 (Jesus speaking)

17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. 19 Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least vin the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great vin the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

Part of that fulfillment was the laws on food. Food was used to represent Holiness/ cleanliness. Everything about them had to be clean (their bodies, their homes, their sacrifices, etc.) Blemish free. 

The Pharisees had twisted the laws to become legalistic and strict. An example would be here

Mark 7:14-23 (Jesus speaking)

14 And he called the people to him again and said to them, “Hear me, all of you, and understand: 15 There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.”[e]17 And when he had entered the house and left the people, his disciples asked him about the parable. 18 And he said to them, “Then are you also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, 19 since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?”[f] (Thus he declared all foods clean.) 20 And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. 21 For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”

Food isn't what makes us unclean anymore, but rather the condition of our heart. 

There is also a lot of debate over Acts 10:9-16

But I believe this passage has a double meaning. God is reminding Peter that he does not need to be legalistic to be “clean” anymore. Therefore the laws for food were fulfilled. This is reflected in his interpretation of the vision in verses 27-29. 

Remember there was clean food and unclean food. Same for people. You weren't to associate with “unclean people”. Jesus fulfilled this law by opening the path to God to everyone, not just Jews. God gave the great commission to go out into all the world to everyone to preach the good news. This meant that anyone now had direct access to God, and the Jews no longer had to go through the extra steps to seek forgiveness. Salvation is within everyone's grasp, no matter what. 

The command for blended fabric fits with these as well. 

Deuteronomy 22:9-11

“You shall not sow your vine yard with two kinds of seed, lest the whole yield be forfeited, the crop that you have sown and the yield of the vineyard. You shall not plow with an ox and a donkey together. You shall not wear cloth of wool and linen mixed together. 

By reading this we see the pattern that God is commanding that things that are different should be kept separate. Again we need context of the time. 

Pagans in the area believed that by mixing things together they would achieve “magical” results. So God made this law to set them apart from them. He reaffirms this command, even going as far as to say not to let cattle bread with different cattle, in Leviticus 19:19. 

In todays context, what sets us apart from others is our internal change that is projected outward. We become lights for God, and show Him through our change. Of course none of us are perfect, and if we aren't careful it can quickly become fake and legalistic. 

We can wear blended fabric because Jesus fulfilled this law. 

Next keeping with our fabric theme, clothing. This verse comes from Deuteronomy as well, so I will just put the link for both here. 

Deuteronomy 22:5

 “A woman shall not wear a man’s clothing, nor shall a man put on a woman’s clothing; for whoever does these things is utterly repulsive to the Lord your God.”

Some pretty strong language right there, but it's important to acknowledge why. We are sinners. God set very clear laws on what was and wasn't allowed. Remember that was to set His people apart, and to test their faithfulness. 

Historically at the time men and women dressed very similarly. There were cultural ways used to discern between genders and that is what this verse is talking about here. Men did not wear pants when this law was written (at least not by the Jewish people) so why would it be a sin for women to wear pants today? It simply isn't. (Just because human men decided to use the bible to push their weird sexist agenda via mistranslation, does not mean this is what this verse intended.)

To apply it to a modern setting, it would be “why are you wearing what you are? How do you want people to perceive you? What is your heart behind wearing these clothes?”

So really this is another verse directly tied to transgendered identity sin, again a pagan tradition at the time. 

ALL SIN is repulsive to the Lord. (The Hebrew word used in this verse is found all throughout the OT, with various uses.) Yes God established the laws, but He also established the sacrificial system for His people as well. He loved them, loved us, and gave them a way to atone for their sins and find forgiveness from God. 

But the sacrifice of animals could only go so far. That is why Jesus came to be the final sacrifice. The Lamb of Salvation for us. He willingly gave His life for us, just as we can willingly continue to sin against Him, or willingly give our lives to Him. 

Jesus fulfilled the laws and abolished the need for the sacrificial system.  

OK this one has no verse in the bible that God commands us to not write in our bibles. None. Unless I’m just having trouble finding it, it's not a thing. 

The sin is changing the words, as some translations do so you have to be very careful about which ones you use. 

I got a book from the library years ago that was like a devotional for teen girls. In the book it had a verse from Psalms that sounded weird to me and when I compared the translation to my ESV, it had removed the part about God's faithfulness and love. Took it right out. That is a huge problem! 

I know that translating the Hebrew and Greek to English is very difficult, especially given how the Greek had multiple words for love alone, and many other words. However, the languages are not so vastly different that you make changes like that without a prideful agenda. Good translations that I use, ESV, NASB, AMP for study purposes. As well as NKJV if you like a classic. I’m constantly comparing translations, and looking at original texts to get a feeling for what words were used. 

I encourage you to note your bible. Mark what speaks to you, the blessings, the commands, the warnings. Every time God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are mentioned, where verses intersect. Note everything. 

For some of our brothers and sisters around the world they may only have a few pages to pass between each other, or are able to have His full word and treasure God's words dearly and keep everything they can close. They want to remember it all, and remember what they learn. And God wants that for us. 

No writing in your bible is not a sin. Changing the words or removing them is a sin. 

Ok now onto your “woman can’t speak in church” debate. 1 Corinthians 14. But because of everything I’m about to get into, this answer will be longer than the others. Feel free to stop here and come back. I know I’ve already written a lot.  

First we need to look at the history of the city of Corinth, as when Paul wrote his letters, each one was tailored to the church in question and addressed their strengths and weaknesses. 

The city of Corinth was a trade city set in a key location for sailors from all over the world. Its citizens were from all over the world, though mostly Roman, Greek, Jewish, and even a considerable amount of Italians. Because there was such a mix of cultures, there were a mix of religions. 

The largest of these being the worship of the false goddess aphrodite. Sexual actions were common with her “temple” and prostitution was a rampant issue with the city. We have two sins of sexual nature and idol worship already. Within the church itself there were reports of incest, infighting, and drunkenness during services being reported as well.

Acts 10:1-23 is Paul's first visit to Corinth where he helped found the church. A family close to Paul and in the Corinthian church wrote to Paul with their concerns for how the church was conducting themselves. The 1 Corinthians letter (book) was written in response. 

The church was a blend of Jews and Gentiles. So practices such as the aforementioned were common practice within the city and the Gentiles were at a loss for how to conduct themselves because these things were common during the worship of false gods. 

Becoming Christ-like is a beautifully long process. It's not over night, no matter how much we wish it was. These people were still human and loved Christ but still knew very little about Him, and God the Father. (even some of the Jews had a lot of misconceptions they had to change) 

So at the very beginning of his letter, Paul reminds them of their new identity. (1:1-9) and reaffirms their forgiveness through Gods grace and faithfulness to our salvation. Nothing we do after we accept His gift can revoke it. It is ours for all time for one time. 

Woman and men were traditionally seated separately in synagogues so it makes sense that practice was still used in some new churches, such as that of the Corinthians, as they did have Jewish members. 

He is calling out woman for calling to their husbands during sermons and being disruptive. Paul is asking that they save their question for after. He is also teaching woman new to these practices, gentiles, how to be respectfully in the church. 

Paul encouraged woman to pray and praise in the church, chapter 11. So it would be contradictory for Paul to then turn around and say “woman can’t speak in church” in chapter 14. 

To answer, yes woman can speak in church, but not teach to a body of men. Women can teach women, but women can’t teach men. God established a order of command. 

God

Jesus

Men

Woman

Children

Following this upward, everyone is under authority of the role’s above them. That is how God designed the family unit, and in turn the church. The church is the body of Christ, and each of us have a purpose within his body for it function. Woman have a time and place to teach, and lead, but not to men. 

I am only addressing the command pertaining to women at this time. I would love to do an in-depth look at all of 1 Corinthians, there is so much to it. Really, thank you for the opportunity to study these passages deeper, and teach them to you. I hope I did, I hope these make sense now. 

I do need to add. When comparing these commands to the command of homosexuality, its important to remember the context. Homosexuality is a sin because it goes against Gods very direct design for mankind, how the family unit functions in direct relation to the church. These other ones however were established for a period of time to set the people apart from outsiders, and do not go against His intended purpose for creation. That is a very big difference.

Feel free to ask anything else, I loved doing this. I will try to get something for all of 1 Corinthians out, but I have a full life at the moment, so it will probably take awhile.

Praying and God bless 

#Raz speaks out #Christianity #answers #christian #ot laws #nt commands #bible study #biblical history #comparing sins #big post #understanding the bible #culture

[itskateak]

(Preface: this is a really long post as I typed it as I was watching the movie so this is unedited, pure thoughts as I was watching this movie.)

I just started watching the new Cats movie and I’m already having issues with what’s going on

Why did Munk spider man his way down a wall

What’s wrong with Misto

Why don’t they just crawl on their knees Jesus Christ if they weren’t on their toes it would be better

“Are you mean like a minx” that’s not in pitch

ThatS NOT HOW JUMPING WORKS

The choreography is going good though- I knew it would. I’ve worked with that choreographer before.

WHY IS THIS NOW A POP REMIX

I have so many questions

Music is too fast. Tempos are everywhere.

Singing isn’t too bad. I can understand the words better.

Munk is a little too feminine for my taste at the moment but I like his design.

ROMANTICAL CATS (heart hands) IS THE MOST ON BRAND MISTO THING YET

Macavity speaking and singing his own song is disgusting

WHY DO THEY HAVE HUMAN TOES AND FINGERS

Why is everyone bullying Misto

AND HUMAN NOSES

Munk there’s a rhythm to the Naming of Cats. You can’t go off it whole everyone else is on it.

You guys can’t keep a tempo can you

HIS name. HIS.

Munk that’s a little sexual. NO YOU ARE WITH DEMETER STOP

stop cutting the scene up. Just let them dance.

AH REFERENCE TO ORIGINAL CHOREO. I SAW THAT

Misto is on brand except he’s not Misto yet storytellers

Also I’m liking the idea that Victoria is new to everything and the plot is they’re introducing her to the wild and the whole heaviside layer thing

THATS NOT THE MELODY MUNK STOP

they have human eyebrows too what

Munk that note is too high for you

Is Jenny twerking excuse me

JennY IS SUPPOSED TO BE MOTHERLY STOP THAT

that’s also not the melody

The human mice are going to cause nightmares

Wait is Jenny lusting after Munk

Why does he actually look interested

Munk do you have an English accent or American. Please decide.

Jenny that’s not the right notes

HUMAN ROACHES NO

WHY DO THEH HAVE HUMAN FACES

The skiN UNZIPPED OH NO

no one needed that undershot of cockroach crotches

Mm meow

huh what Tugger what was that

Okay Derulo is not bad at all

I’m missing the Tugoffolees banter though

This Tugger is a little gayer than the original

THE NEUTER JOKE OH MY GOD

Tugger is reminding me of Dr. Frank N Furter from Rocky Horror Picture Show

Why does he have an English accent though

VictoriaaaaAAAAA? (The TOES)

Jenny’s humor is eh. Don’t see the reason of putting that in.

The ending is pure Tugger though

Not a bad rendition

Grizz isn’t as rough as I imagined her looking

Oh her VOICE

HER VOICE HITS HARD

Who is this cat singing about Grizz (the first) her voice was nice

NO. WHY THE SHORTNESS ON “that”

Munk why did you grab that queen’s head

Edward Hyde is that you?

Jenny stop trying to be the comedy relief you’re too awful at it

Bustopher please STOP singing your own song

PLEASE KIDNAP HER IDRIS ELBA

THANK YOU

I wish they spent more time dancing since that’s really the point of the show and the draw to it.

Bustopher wearing heels? I’m for it. Gay legend.

“Thanks Tugger” stop this whole sequence please

Bustopher is supposed to be a very prim and proper cat. What happened to him

Still can’t get over Idris Elba being in this

THATS NOT THE MELODY OF MUNGOJERRIE AND RUMPLETEAZER

What have thEY DONE TO THE MELODY GOOD GOD

AND THE RHYTHM THEY DESTROYED THE SONG

Oh. Hey that’s pretty neat choreo though

“I bought that for her myself” “hey” “what?”

My brain is rebelling because it’s not right at all in anything I remember

Did Misto just pull a whole femur from his hat

STOP THAT. MISTO LOOKS LIKE A CLOSETED TWINK STUCK IN A STRAIGHT RELATIONSHIP

is he wearing eyeliner

GROWLTIGER IS BACK

I don’t actually know his song so this is new to me

Jenny and Bustopher being comedic relief hurts because they’re not funny

Munk “where have you been?!” Is there a love triangle happening. What happened to Demeter

Also his voice in Deuteronomy is actually really nice

“Sits in the suuun” that was beautiful oh god

Deut looks more like how I imagined Grizz would look

IS THAT DAME JUDI DENCH

I bet she regrets ever saying yes after this.

What cat is randomly wearing a crow skull around their neck. Is that a witch’s cat

JUDI DENCH CAN’T YOU ACTUALLY SING? WHY ARE YOU STRUGGLING

Why are you singing Munk’s line

Oh the Jellicle ball is next let’s go Andy show me that awesome choreo

Asparagus are you okay

Tempo doesn’t exist in this movie does it

Neither does rhythm or time keeping

IS THAT MY BOY SKIMBLESHANKS

Twirly boy Munk

Munk really just wants to be topped doesn’t he

WhAT WAS THAT TWITCHING AND THE PANTING

Andy I love you man but the traditional and classic choreo would’ve worked just as fine

Skimble and Munk being gay

what happened to Plato and why is there something going on with Misto

TUGGER YOU HAD A MOMENT YOU COULD HAVE INTERRUPTED

Ah okay I understand why that happened. No mating dance or slumber party

Cats wearing shoes disgusts me more than the toes

POINTE WITHOUT POINTE SHOESSSS GROSS

honestly? Jellicle ball is disappointing. They just cut the ten minutes of amazing dancing down to like four.

I don’t like the heavy breathing. That’s not something that was ever necessary.

Okay, the end worked okay with the big synchronized dances.

I’m ready for this Memory rendition. Already getting chills.

Those are very human hands

Oh keep with the rhythm I beg of you

Ooh altered verse

Wait that’s jennifer Hudson???

Oh we just removed a whole verse, bridge, and chorus didn’t we.

Sweet moment? See I like Vic reaching for Grizz

Vic gets a song??? Ooh intrigued

I like her voice

I’m going to cry this song is sad and I’m glad she gets a story

Though it’s kind of “you think your life is hard? Mine’s worse” feeling after Memory

Awww I’m gonna cry what a sweetheart what a lovely dear protect her

Ugh meaning of happiness. I hate this song no matter who sings it.

Wait what happened to Rumpus Cat song :( the battle of the pekes and the pollicles

What do you mean you’re about to make the choice

We still have Gus’s song, Misto’s song, and Skimble’s song.

They got Ian McKellen to do this?? How much was he paid

“Cross paws” no stop

Why is Gus singing his own song please don’t

Munk’s face bugs me for some reason

His song always makes me cry for some reason but this is kind of goofy and cute and I love it

Misto in the background is just strange for me

Is he forgetting the words sometimes and mumbling to fill in because goodness

Misto’s so eager to please what a bottom

“Macavityyy” I hate it

Munk starting Skimble’s song has the same energy as Tugger doing Misto’s songs

I’m glad they’ve kept this song the same as it was

Skimble is SO gay oh my god what a classic twink

Oooh I like this addition of the train getting started via tap

I’m actually really liking this rendition and the tap dancing on the the rails

Though the tap continuing when no one is tapping or the rhythm being wrong is uh not good

Such an iconic song and I love the changes in scene

Oh skimble that note was not good

WAIT OKAY THAT WAS MACAVITY’S DOING WITH THE LEVITATION

Oh hi Taylor Swift

Use more breath. Stop doing the pop voice thing. Stop it.

Is Bombi a drug dealer

MISTO BEING TWEAKED ON DRUGS IS THE FUNNIEST GODDAMN THING IVE EVER SEEN IN THIS LIFE

I can say though that what they’ve done to the song is exactly the vibes it needed. Sultry and pushing the boundaries.

Sad there’s not a Demeter.

SORRY MUNK WHAT WAS THAT

I actually rewinded to see what happened there with the martini glass

OKAY MAN NEEDS TO BE TOPPED OH MY GOD

“Green house glass is broken” was changed and that makes me sad

This was a good song for Taylor to show off her vocal prowess but she just didn’t

Why is Macavity naked

Why is he singing his own damn song

PUT YOUR CLOTHES BACK ON

Munk you’re still tweaking out a little

Oh here’s the sleeping orgy

What’s with this drama now with the choice thing

We don’t have Munk’s fight with Macavity. Robbed

VICTORIA YOU ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE THE ONE TO GET MISTO OUT THERE. IT HAS TO BE TUGGER

If there are no 23 spins, I’ll throw my phone

Munk that’s gay and I’m here for it. Encourage your twink Misto

“Please don’t make me do this” has phantom vibes

Munk that was a lusty look

Where’s the “ooh ahs”

This is weird without Tugger singing it and being an ego for Misto

Tugger come on. Please save this number.

Victoria I swear to god I will beat you

Why do they have one person on the melody in this. And Derulo going through the stratosphere

WHERE IS THE DANCING >:(

That trombone is playing absolutely nothing in the music at all

DON’T YOU DARE KISS HER

oh here’s the fight music

WHY DID WE UNZIP SKIN AGAIN

oh they used the fight music for the escaping of cats

How much longer is there

Oh there’s the daylight reprise thing

I want to die

To the sun, Vic. To the sun.

Munk, Tugger, be respectful. That’s your mother.

Wait that doesn’t work in this universe because Deut is female.

Oh they gave the Asian cat patterns that resemble tiger stripes hmmmm

Why couldn’t they have just filmed an actual stage version and turned that out

Oh that “smile at the old days” was god awful

How much longer oh god

I’m tired man. I wasted 6 bucks on this

Victoria just stealing Jemima’s parts

“Like a flowER as the dawn is breaking”

Okay here it is

OH COME THROUGH QUEEN. WHOLE FILM IS WORTH THIS CLIMAX

Okay so there are some cats wearing clothes and others not. What are the rules for this universe. Are they naked or are they not.

I have not shed a single tear. Usually I have by now from this show. Not a single tear.

Deut X Grizz is still my favorite ship

Is that the intro to Til I Hear You Sing that I hear. Those F to Gm chords Lloyd Webber loves.

Judi Dench stop trying to sing for the love of god.

Ah yes show off that beautiful ballet dancer that plays Vic

Aww Munk bowing to Grizz

Oh so it’s a chandelier this time and not a tire

Where’d Macavity and Bombi go

Oh there he is. What a child. Hate that.

BUSTOPHER CONFIRMED A GAY ICON

Deut being a proud mother to Munk is cute with the hands on the shoulder

Why are we reprising the first song

Also Air balloon.

WHY ARE YOU STARING AT ME JUDI DENCH

why are they all staring so intently at her too wait

Munk looks like someone is touching him inappropriately this whole scene.

Munk and Misto looking at each other

MUNK STOPPPP JESUS CHRIST DO YOU NEED TO BE REMOVED FROM THE SITUATION

The choreography doesn’t even match the beat of the song. Huh???

Misto you’re gay stop

Munk and Misto looking at each other and the shy glances away

So Grizz gets hot air balloned to death is that what I’m seeing

Oh it’s over okay

I want to cry.

It’s not as bad as I heard. Once you got used to the way things looked and just let things happen and say it might as well happen, it became a bit more enjoyable.

It’s still god awful though and let’s pray the furries never get ahold of it.

#katetalks #ren live blogs #shitpost #cats #cats 2019 #cats the musical #im so sorrh for sich a long post but thoughts man thoughts

[uppastthejelliclemoon]

I KNOW THE MOVIE WILLOW!! I watched it for the first time during college and I really enjoyed it! There was also a book trilogy that came out that acted as a continuation of the film, Shadow Moon, Shadow Dawn and Shadow Star! You can probably find them online :) Anyway, I heard you have a Willow AU? I'd love to know more, please!

I WIILL ALWAYS LOVE WILLOW!!

It’s 100% my comfort movie, wonderfully campy with scenes that never fail to make me die laughing!

NOW MY WILLOW AU:

Macavity is on the hunt for a child foretold to defeat him. He searches for a baby who will be born with a crescent moon-shaped mark on their shoulder. His closest friend, Mistoffelees, is charged with checking on every newborn baby. Eventually, a young maid named Serafina gives birth to a healthy baby girl, and realizes that her daughter is born with the moon mark on her shoulder. The midwife helps Serafina hide her baby in a basket of clothes, and sneaks away with her just as Macavity and Mistoffelees arrive. Serafina, though extremely weak from giving birth, finds just enough strength to taunt Macavity before she dies.

Munkustrap is a Jellicle lives in a village with his wife, Demeter, and their daughter, Jemima. He’s a bit of an outcast, wanting to study magic instead of farming and “normal” things. One day, he and Jemima stumble upon a baby near the river, and they take her in, keeping her safe until Macavity sends his creatures to ravage their village, searching for the child. Gus sends Munkustrap and the baby away, telling him that the child must be taken to a human family.

Tugger is a mercenary that Munkustrap frees on his way to find the baby a new home. The two initially clash, but eventually strike up a tentative friendship. With the help of Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer, two sprites who try to take the baby when Tugger and Munkustrap are sleeping, the group travels to meet Grizabella, a fairy queen who reveals the baby’s name to be Hestia, who was born to defeat Macavity and restore the land to its previous glory. She encourages the group to look for Old Deuteronomy, Macavity’s greatest enemy, and seek his help. Grizabella gives Munkustrap Old Deuteronomy’s wand, and sends them on their way.

After meeting Old Deuteronomy, the group is captured by Mistoffelees, who firmly tells them they will be meeting with Macavity to destroy his final enemy. Tugger is utterly entranced by the right hand of the evil Macavity, and can’t help but flirt. Mistoffelees is confused, yet can’t help but feel something towards the mercenary.

In the end, since the AU would pretty much just follow the movie with a few minor changes, the group is able to defeat Macavity, and Munkustrap returns to family and his village with magic, Tugger and Mistoffelees adopt Hestia, and Old Deuteronomy assists them in restoring the land.

(and if i want the ending to be super soft, Serafina never dies and was simply imprisoned, she gets to reunite with her daughter, and seruggoffelees is hinted at because i love them 👉👈)

IN CONCLUSION:

The Jellicles are the Nelwyns (Munkustrap, Demeter, Jemima, Gus)

Everyone else (except for M&R and Grizabella) are human.

Munkustrap is Willow

Demeter is Kaiya 

Hestia is Elora Danan

Tugger is Madmartigan

Mistoffelees is Sorsha (though since he isn’t related to Macavity, there’d be more hesitance and questioning of methods on his end while he’s still with Macavity)

Macavity is Bavmorda

Old Deuteronomy is Fin Razel (DEUT AS AN OSTRICH THAT’S ALL I’M SAYING)

Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer are Rool and Franjean (”corporate needs you to find the difference between these two pictures” “it’s the same picture”)

Gus is The High Aldwin (they... they have the same energy...)

Alonzo is Airk Thaughbaer (can you IMAGINE him and Tugger? After watching Madmartigan and Airk’s interactions in the movie, that’s all I can think about)

Grizabella is Cherlindrea

#liv's writing corner #willow au

[sevenkittensinatrenchcoat]

Flaws of Cats 1998

Cats 1998 is my favorite version of the show and it’s basically designed to be the most watchable version, so it tends to be the favorite of many. But, like every production, it’s not perfect, so I’ve decided to gather a list of imperfections. Some of these are objective problems with how something was done, while others are nitpicks or entirely about personal preference.

I’ll start of with the disclaimer that I love this version, I love the cast, and I don’t think anyone did a downright bad job. Most of the Bad Stuff is less Bad and more Could Be Better.

Anyway...

The continuity editing is comically bad. *Insert teleporting Pouncival comment here*

1998 Tumblebrutus is, and I’m sorry to say this, underwhelming. He’s not bad, and Broadway-based productions give the character more to do than London-based productions like this one, leaving him at a disadvantage, but compared to Pouncival, Plato, and even George, he often feels like “the other boy”. Out of the trio of Plato, Pouncival, and Tumblebrutus, both Bryn Walters and Karl Morgan had played their roles before, while Fergus Logan had not and you can tell. He didn’t seem comfortable with the role. His voice in Jellicle Songs is much deeper than it is later on, so he was experimenting with how the character’s voice should sound between these scenes, meaning that he was probably still figuring the character out throughout filming. It’s an opening night performance, rehearsed but not quite perfected yet, and there was really no time to fix that.

That said, Fergus nails the physical part of the role. He can tumble like a Tumblebrutus should and his ballet during the Jellicle Ball is just as good as Jacob Brent’s is. According to Jacob, Fergus actually had the timing right for the dance while he was slightly off. Fergus is generally at his best here when he’s doing something he would’ve been doing as Mistoffelees on stage.

Disclaimer: Fergus Logan was not the only actor playing a character he’d never played before and these sorts of problems could apply to anyone in this situation, but this is the example I found to be the most noticeable.

Speaking of Tumblebrutus at the Jellicle Ball, the decision to give Tumblebrutus Pouncival’s track during the ball was a bit inconsistent. During the Boys Jump segment, Pouncival has his usual track, though it’s a Broadway-based version of the track. In London-based productions, Mistoffelees and Carbucketty/Pouncival usually have opposite roles in this part. Tumblebrutus comes out in what I usually see as Mungojerrie’s entrance. Then the tom kittens sort of switch out for the Boys Ballet. Having Tumblebrutus as Pouncival during the Cartwheels actually removed Tumblebrutus’ usual track in that segment. They should’ve either had Pouncival do his usual thing here, swapped the tracks completely, or had someone else, possibly Mungojerrie, cover Tumble’s track.

Exotica. They at least could’ve kept her in the ensemble consistently. Or kept a consistent character design. Or given her a better name.

Macavity’s design is too monstrous. It’s established that multiple queens, despite hating him, are attracted to him, so he should have at least a few qualities that the audience could see as attractive, in order for this to make sense. But he’s a big furball who lacks the more human face that the other cats have. He looks and acts like the monster that he is, so Demeter and Bomba’s thing for him, and him being described as “outwardly respectable” don’t quite make sense. He’s supposed to be unkempt and somewhat feral-looking, but they went too far with it.  

Lastly, this is not a flaw as much as a personal preference for something other productions have done, but this one didn’t. When it comes to the Mr. Mistoffelees number, there’s a specific version of their dynamic that best highlights Misto’s character development. Throughout the number, though Misto is the center of attention, Tugger is the instigator. When things aren’t quite working, Misto turns to him. Tugger narrates everything.

Towards the end of the number, as Misto gets to work bringing back Old Deuteronomy, he directs a few other cats on how to help him, but he never directs Tugger. He interacts with Tugger as if he’s the one in control here. This is why Tugger can’t be his assistant in the trick. But, after bringing Old Deuteronomy back, Misto has confidence and has truly come of age.

In some productions, this is when he realizes that this is his musical number and he can decide how it goes, so he whispers to Tugger how he wants the number to end. The words Tugger says at the end of the song are at least partially Misto’s suggestion. He has enough confidence and authority to take charge of the number and Tugger does what he asks. He probably would’ve done that before, but Misto lacked the sense of confidence to try. 

If you want to see a good example of this, look at the German Tent Tour.

The 1998 production has Tugger come up with the finale by himself, so the sense that Misto has come into his own as an adult isn’t quite as strong as it could be.

Also, they could’ve not removed every bit of choreography where Tugger and Misto touch. That was a bit lame of them.

#cats 1998 #criticizing the things you love #tumblebrutus #teleporting pouncival #jellicle ball #macavity #mr mistoffelees #cats german tent tour

[sybright]

Some disorganized thoughts on Cats 2019

So, I re-watched Cats 2019 for the first time since I saw it in theaters back in January. Thoughts? Honestly, it was much better the second time around. I didn’t like M&R’s scene when I first saw it because I wasn’t aware that the arrangement they were using was the original London arrangement, I thought they had just changed it for the movie. Knowing that now, I really enjoyed M&R’s scene, it was one of the better choreographed scenes and the song actually sounded really good. I would have preferred the newer arrangement, but I really don’t mind that much at this point. 

Something I didn’t like the first time around was Derulo’s Tugger, I thought he didn’t fit the role at all. But on a second watch, he actually wasn’t that bad? I still don’t think he fits the character vocally, but his performance was actually pretty good. I also kinda like his take on Tugger’s character, I mean, he’s just such a bro? Like, he’s just hanging around throughout the movie and just being chill? And have ya’ll noticed that near the climax of Mr. Mistoffelees song, Derulo is just in the back singing that angelic high note? I thought that was so sweet and such a nice detail. I would also like to point out, although this has been said already, that he’s the only celebrity that doesn’t get kidnapped. I think we’re all aware that the whole kidnapping thing was for the sole purpose of celebrities only having to spend a few days on set, and not having to be part of the ensemble when their song was over. But Derulo? He stayed for the whole movie and actively participated in the ensemble, that really shows how committed he was to the movie, and I really respect that. His song did lack energy, but I blame that on Rebel Wilson, the live recorded vocals, and poor direction from Tom Hooper, all of which were not Derulo’s fault. So yeah, Derulo’s Tugger was good, fight me. 

When I first saw the movie, I was really bothered by shy Misto, I prefer confident Mistoffelees from the stage-show. But you know what, Laurie Davidson really sold it. He was absolutely adorable, and his song was good even though I would’ve liked to see Tugger sing it. Old Deuteronomy’s song was as beautiful as ever because Robbie Fairchild has a gorgeous voice. Macavity’s song I’m still pretty “eh” about because I really feel like Taylor Swift just doesn’t have the right voice for that song. I will, however, commend her on the way she sings “wide awake” cause she really screamed that line, and that’s exactly how that line should be sung, so props to her for putting a lot of passion into it. The Gumbie cat and Bustopher Jones still sucked because Rebel Wilson and James Corden suck, they were the worst parts of the movie and that’s all I’m going to say about them.  

Jellicle Songs and Skimbleshanks were fantastic and super high-energy. Those two and M&R were the best musical numbers in the movie to me. The Jellicle Ball was also really good, we got a good look at a lot of the choreography and it was just really beautiful in general.

Alright, last few thoughts, I think Jennifer Hudson did great vocally, I just wish she didn’t have that snot all over her nose for Memory. I wish they hadn’t cut such a big chunk out of The Naming of Cats, but I can live with it. Gus the Theatre Cat was alright, I would’ve like it more if it had some more emotion. Beautiful Ghosts still feels really out of place to me, it’s not a bad song but I just don’t think it fits with everything else. The rest of the songs were pretty good I’d say, but everything would’ve sounded so much better if they had just recorded the songs in a studio instead of singing live, but I think we all collectively agree on that. The dialogue was really unnecessary, but again, I can live it. I can live with the CGI designs as well, they aren’t great but they aren’t like, the worst thing ever, there are certain points in the movie where they look fine. The camera work could’ve been much better, we really didn’t get to see the choreography that well for most of the movie, and that’s a big problem with a show like Cats. So yeah, Tom Hooper, learn to film dance you twat. 

Overall, I mildly like the movie now, I don’t love it, but I admire the work that the artists put into it, minus Wilson and Corden, we all know they didn’t do shit. One of the reasons I decided to re-watch the movie was because of all the positivity blogs here on Tumblr, I love them so goddamn much. I don’t know why, but seeing so many people who, prior to the movie, knew nothing about Cats but then saw the movie and unironically loved it makes me really happy for some reason. So I decided to re-watch the movie to see if I missed something that those people were seeing, because honestly I want IN on the “Cats 2019 was great” bandwagon. Even now I still really want to stan this movie so I can join the party, but I’ll have to settle for admiring the 2019 Cats movie cult from afar. However, that doesn’t mean that I don’t stan some of the actors in this movie. Robbie Fairchild, Francesca Hayward, and Laurie Davidson deserve the fucking world because they were all excellent, and I have a newfound respect for Jason Derulo and his portrayal of Tugger. Anyway, this was way too long but I wanted to share some thoughts, if you loved this movie, I admire and envy you so much, have a nice day.

Side note: I got this movie on Blu-Ray, I have zero fucking regrets. This movie is basically a novelty item now, so I don’t care if you loved or hated it buy it on Blu-Ray you cowards. 

#my original posts #cats 2019 #my rambles #thoughts on cats 2019 #cats movie review? #idk why I made this #cats the musical

[dailyaudiobible]

03/04/2021 DAB Transcript

Numbers 2:1-3:51, Mark 11:27-12:17, Psalms 47:1-9, Proverbs 10:24-25

Today is March 4th welcome to the Daily Audio Bible I am Brian it's wonderful to be here with you today. It's a special day at least in my life. Today is my birthday and it's been a while now, a long time ago that I decided to not do these birthdays. Like I don't want to be keep counting my chronological number but I have decided that I will celebrate my Daily Audio Bible birthdays. And this is my 16th birthday. So, that’s hard to believe, that since the time the Daily Audio Bible began, if it were a baby born on January 1st 2006…man…we…we would have a 16-year-old. This thing is looking for its driver's license now. We’re…we’re in the teen years. So, Lord help us as we continue to move forward. But today will be my 16th birthday that I'm…that I’m celebrating or observing since the Daily Audio Bible began. So, thank God. Thank God for His kindness to me. It is beyond expectations. Okay, but we’re not here to, you know, light a birthday cake. We are here to dive in. And actually we’ll be diving into our second day within the book of Numbers. We began the book of numbers yesterday. And numbers just by way of reminder is a part of a grouping of books in the Old Testament known as the Torah or the Pentateuch - Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. And as we began the book of Numbers a census was taken to count all the men that were able to go to battle and that was over 600,000 men. 609,000. And they are preparing now to move toward the promised land. All the different tribes were numbered. The tribe of Levi was not numbered. They were the priests. They’re responsibility is the tabernacle. this the place where God travels. And this is interesting. It's a portable tabernacle. It can be set up and torn down and God…God is embedding into the people's understanding that He's going with them. He’s leading them and He's going to stay with them and among them, which is what this tabernacle represents. And, so, the tribe of Levi is responsible for that as well as the worship of God and caring for the people, the soul care of the people. So, they’re preparing to move out and there are obstacles in front of them that we will…that we will encounter in due course. Numbers chapters 2 and 3 today.

Commentary:

Okay. In the gospel of Mark, the religious authorities are trying to narrow in on Jesus…like they're trying to pin Him down they…they want to get rid of him, that's the plan. That’s what they want to do. And, so, they're trying to entrap Him or discredit Him in any way…anything that they can do to diminish Him so that they can kinda isolate Him and then get Him out of the way. Like, literally they want to kill Him, which…which they eventually do. Today Jesus is in the temple complex and they come to Him and they say, “by whose authority are you doing these things?” So, like to put maybe a little bit more modern…like, “who gave you the right to do this? Who told you you could do this?” And Jesus sort of answers their question with a question. And this isn't…I mean we’ve talked about as before, but you…you watch the question. Jesus says, “okay I'll answer your question if you answer one of mine.” The question that Jesus asks forces the truth into the open so that their exposed. They can't stand this about Jesus. So, He says, “tell me about John. Was he from God or was he not from God? Well, the religious authorities had been against John calling him a fraud. The people believed he was a true prophet. So, they’re in like…there's no good answer because either way they’re trapped before the people. But it's even deeper than that. The correct answer to the question Jesus is asking is the same answer to the question they are asking Jesus. “Who told you can do this? Who gave you the right to do this?” If they could or would have answered truthfully that they believe John was a prophet of God, then there would be some common ground there for Jesus to reveal the continuation of that same story and say that He was empowered by God to do the things that He's doing. But Jesus knows they were against John and He knows that they’re against Him and they're trying to snuff out His life. These quote unquote things that Jesus is doing are the works of God, His ministry, but also more recently what they would have considered the vandalism of the temple complex because He goes in there and tips over the money changers and lets the birds go and the sacrifice…the commerce that's going on there. He disrupts the commerce that's happening in the temple in the holy city of Jerusalem, by the way. So, pretty serious what Jesus is doing. And, so, they’re like, “how…what makes you think you can do this stuff?” All Jesus was doing was restoring some things. He said, “this is to be house of prayer for the nations, not a den of thieves.” And the religious leaders, they don't, you know, contemplate that and go like, “wow this is time for lament and repentance. We need to figure out a better way to do this. You're right.” They just get angered at Jesus challenging their authority. They don't like their authority to be challenged. And, so, they're asking Him about His authority. I think we could agree that what Jesus did in the temple complex was disruptive to the system, was disruptive to the way of things and would've had people talking. And Jesus was clear what He was trying to do. But it was disruptive. Right, here's where the mirror happens. What about when we ask God to do things in our lives, to reveal things in our lives, to show us the way that we should go or even as we’re observing the season of Lent, to be openhanded and openhearted to allow Him to move things in and out and rearrange things within us. When that's disruptive or uncomfortable usually we start praying against it. If we understood that it was Jesus doing this our lives might be saying, “who told you you could do this? By what authority are you messing around with my life” even though we've claimed allegiance and claimed that we've submitted ourselves to him so that He can do whatever He wants with us, take us wherever He wants to take us. Usually if that's uncomfortable we’re start going like, “no…no…no, that's not what I was talking about. You…You have full permission to bless me. You can rain it down all you want but who gave you permission to disrupt me?” Ah….ah…now we find ourselves in the story.

Prayer:

Jesus that’s been our story way too many times to count. And we’re sorry. We’re in a season of lament, we’re in a season of repentance, we’re in a season where we’re focusing on these things that You are after in us, the things that we are…that we’re holding on to and we don't want to let them go, especially control. So, come Holy Spirit and continue with Your kindness and Your patience to show us, to show us the way to go, to show us the next step forward. Then it's in our hands whether we obey You or whether we don't, whether we listen or whether we don't. It's not Your fault when we disobey You. We like to transfer blame off of us at every turn but it's not Your fault when we don't obey You. Come Holy Spirit and let this sink in we pray. In the name of Jesus, we ask. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com is home base, it's the website, its where you find what's going on around here. So, definitely stay tuned and stay connected.

I’m going to try to spend some time in reflection today, reflecting back over these 16 birthdays of the Daily Audio Bible. And that's something going on around here for me. I’m so grateful. I’m so grateful that we’ve been able to share this journey together all these years. It is truly remarkable. My life is indeed forever changed because of this community. And, so, I am deeply grateful and hope you feel the same. So, that’s kind of what’s going on around here at least today but you can always stay tuned and connected to…to an anything…all…relating to the Daily Audio Bible at dailyaudiobible.com or if you’re using the app you can access like the Prayer Wall and the Shop. All that stuff that you can access on the web you can access in the app. So, check that out.

If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible, if…if the mission that we’ve had all these years, just to bring the spoken word of God read fresh every day and just given to the world to anyone who might come across it or encounter it and listen to it anywhere any time day or night, so that it’s just always there creating a rhythm, steps forward every day through a year and definitely through life. If that brings life to you than thank you for your partnership. There’s a link on the homepage at dailyaudiobible.com. If you’re using the app you can press the Give button in the upper right-hand corner, or the mailing address is PO Box 1996 Spring Hill Tennessee 37174.

And, as always, if you have a prayer request or encouragement, you can hit the Hotline button in the app, which is the little red button up at the top or you can dial 877-942-4253.

And that's it for today. I’m Brian I love you and I'll be waiting for you here tomorrow.

Community Prayer and Praise:

Hi DAB family this is Vonnie in Northern California and it's March 1st, a new day and a new week a new month and I'm reaching out to anonymous. I just heard your prayer request and my heart breaks for you my dear. I am praying…I'm going to be praying for you all day, all week. As much as God reminds me to pray, I'm thinking of you. This is a tough time for a new mom to have to go through postpartum depression. Oh, Jesus please, please help, please help this Young woman. I'm so thankful that she reached out to her doctor and she got medication. I'm also thankful that she took a step of faith trusting You God to…to answer prayer through the prayers of the family. I pray that many of us many, many, many of us will be just coming to Your throne and laying her before You God everyday, trusting You to lift this…this horrible depression, to protect her mind from these thoughts that she's been having, to protect her children and her husband, and to come like a flood, restore the joy in her heart, restore to her Lord a sense of peace and calm and trust and confidence and restore the balance in her brain chemistry. Dear Jesus, we ask You to rebuke the enemy and completely put a wall of protection around this Young woman. Thank You, God for what You're going to do in her life and answer to prayer. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Good morning DAB family this is Judy from Georgia. I want to first thank Brian, Jill, and their family for putting the DAB together. It is great. It's a great community and I enjoy listening to this every day. And then I want to thank Doctor John from Jordan New York for the feeling groovy tune that’ll be stuck in my head all day. It's a great uplifting tune and I'm appreciative. We all need that every day. Now I'd like to pray for everyone out there, that please God give them the strength to get through whatever it is they need to get through today and show them the way that they need to go for those that are lost. And anyone fighting addictions please help them get through and show them there's a better way to live their life. God bless all of you and I'll talk to you soon. Bye.

This is Kathy from Kentucky. I wanted to give a praise report that I'm 29 years sober. I celebrated on February 23rd and I got a token. A lot of people say I'm an inspiration. So, I…I don't feel like that but I…I guess I am. But anyways praise God for 29 years clean and sober. Continue to pray for my neighbor and friend Sharon who lost her daughter unexpectedly a couple of weeks ago. She's still grieving and she's going through a really hard time. Thank you. Kathy from Kentucky.

Good morning DAB this is Guinn from Texas it is March the 1st and spring is in the air but I'm calling in because I want to pray for the father who called in this morning about his two sons. He…he wanted…he asked for prayer for them. One is Nathan and the other one is Nicholas and I just want to lift them up in prayer because I think Nicholas is in…incarcerated right now and Nathan is…is homeless but their situation can change and it’s going to change because God is able. And, so, I want to say because I also had…had a son that was incarcerated and he got out and he did well and he accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and savior and…but he got killed in a motorcycle accident and it's been almost 10 years but it still feels like yesterday. And then my other son just is working, he's a hard worker but he needs to be more responsible. He has his own place now and I’m just praying that he keeps it. So…so, I know what you're going through right now. I feel your pain. So, Father I just lift up this Father to You who…who is praying for his sons Lord, that they will come out Lord doing well Father and I know they will because Father what You did for my sons You will do for his. And…and I just lift him up to give him strength. Your word says in Joshua 1:9 be strong be courageous do not be terrified do not be discouraged for the Lord Your God will be with you with whoever you go and God is with you dad and God is with your sons and He's going to encourage them and they’re going to come out on the other side and you're gonna be proud of them. So, I just want you to know that. Hang in there and God loves you and Jesus loves you and we love you. God bless you.

Hi family this is Melissa from Albertville AL I have a prayer request. My dentist who I've had for years and my neighbor he lives across the street from me committed suicide this morning. His name is Doctor Kirby and he has children and a wife. I don't know what he was going through. Just saw him a few weeks ago in the dentist office and I am devastated. I just wonder if I could have said something to him. I…I don't know. Please, please, please pray for his family. Please pray for his family. I love you family. Y'all hold on to Jesus. Satan is trying to destroy minds during this time but…if…if…you've gotta get ahold of Jesus. Hold on to Him and trust in Him. I love you all so much. Thank you. Bye-bye.

Hey guys this is Rachel in KC Missouri. This is March 1st. I'm not sure when you called in. You wanted to be anonymous. You’ve got three children and…and __ daughters. I don't know. You're married and you were just diagnosed with severe postpartum depression and you took me all the way back ten years ago when I had my last child Jonah. And darling I know exactly the thoughts that invade your mind, the scary, the creepy, the everything. As…as a sister of yours and you put so much faith and trust in us to share what you're going through, I started covering you in prayer as soon as I heard your voice because I…as soon as you said my name is…and you said you want to remain anonymous I knew, I knew something. So, I just want to go ahead and pray now so I don't lose any more time. But just know that I'm praying for you every time you come to mind darling. Heavenly Father thank You so much for this beautiful sister, this beautiful woman of God Lord. The trust and the faith that she's sharing and just reaching out and crying out to her family Lord. Father, please touch her right now this instant Lord, give her peace, cover her with Your feathers of protection. Lord every time she has a negative thought Lord please get her to…to remember something that Brian has said or one of us has said or a scripture Father…