#opposite side of the country while still being in the north | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

czascornertfs · 2 months

Text

A Defector's Story

[DISCLAIMER: Some anon requested this, and I honestly found the idea pretty interesting to explore outside of the usual sexual stuff I write on here. ALSO this is in no way portraying North Korea in a glorifying way, and the story below is purely for fantasy. I do not condone anything North Korea is doing, and I still wish for their citizens' liberation from tyranny.] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"곧 우리 중 하나가 될 것입니다..."

The soldier's tone was firm, his low voice drilling itself into Hans Moretti's ears...along with a cold sharp pain in his neck. Hans had found himself deep in the hermit kingdom's countryside after he answered a call about some "strange geological phenomena". A brilliant geoscientist, he and a few of his associates flew into Pyongyang a week earlier, but Hans was assigned a solo trip to some random forest. As he was mapping the area, a group of soldiers gradually formed a small crowd, curious at the strange sight of survey tools and a man who absolutely did not belong. And Hans was annoyed. Even more so when some of the soldiers began stepping into the survey area and walking past him while making silly faces. He was fine with it, until one of them purposefully made him trip and fall to the ground. In a fit of rage (and a good dose of being absolutely terrified at being watched in a country like North-fucking-Korea), he grabbed the soldier by the collar and threw him to the ground. His comrades rushed to his aide, as two others quickly pulled Hans aside to where he was now. The jab to his neck felt immensely painful, as he felt his vision slowly darken and his knees buckle to the ground. As he stared up, he saw the sneering face of the soldier above him, spitting in his face just before he drifted off to sleep. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As he awoke many hours later, he found himself in some strange building. He found himself sleeping on some cold hard wooden bench, as he sat up and shifted his boots on the floor. W-wait, boots? Hans immediately got up as he found himself wearing some sort of uniform, very much like the one the soldiers wore. He looked at his hands trying to see if they did something to him when he noticed how much callus they had. Sure, he worked with the earth, but these felt different, as did his skin color which had now developed a sort of tan. Holding his hand out against the sunlight, he stared in disbelief as he felt his breaths become deeper. He had somehow turned into one of them.

"아-아니... 므-뭐...?" Hans felt his voice tremble as he heard how different he sounded. Gone was his usually higher-pitched tone, replaced with a deeper, gruffier one. He tried speaking English to himself but all that came out were a jumbled series of syllables barely resembling a "This can't be real". "You enjoying yourself?" He heard a voice speak in English from the opposite side of the room as he tilted his head towards it. It was the soldier he pushed to the ground. He knew the sounds, but for some reason it made zero sense to him. Finally the soldier laughed as he repeated himself in Korean, to which Hans responded by shaking his head and slapping himself in the face to see if this was all some nightmare. "동무, 모든 것을 잊어버리라고 명령합니다." (Comrade, I order you to forget everything.")

As soon as the soldier spoke those words, a piercing headache erupted within Hans's head as he literally felt his brain start rewiring itself. Tears flowed down his face as he started forgetting more and more about his past life, now slowly being replaced with memories of growing up in the harsh environment. He remembered the brutal cold of winters gone by, and how he and his comrades remained so close together in the barracks to pass the time trapped indoors by the winds and pelting rain. Soon enough, he started forgetting his own name. Hans...

Han...

Hanj...

Han-jae.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Hans's colleagues were informed that his survey had been completed and had flown back earlier than expected to his home country, and they were none the wiser. Hans was kind of a loner after all. Meanwhile, Han-jae was back at the barracks, standing outside ready to greet whatever tourist was intrepid enough to visit his country.

He scrutinizes every face that passes by, his head filled with nothing but the commands of his superiors and...well nothing else really.

“동무, 혀를 내밀어보세요!” (Comrade, stick your tongue out!) It was spoken in a condescending and mocking tone, yet he was compelled to follow through with it. After all, he was a good soldier, and he certainly didn't want to disappoint his superiors by insubordination.

But deep inside his mind, a piece of the old Hans remained, itching to find it's way out by any means possible. And only a few weeks later, a chance encounter would help him escape.

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

It was when a couple of tourists came to the barracks to take some pictures when he saw it: an iPhone. The image of the phone suddenly materialized itself in Han-jae's mind as slowly but surely, hazy memories of his past self came back.

It had been so long since he thought about such things, and Han-jae simply stared in quiet contemplation. Sure, he still had zero clue who he was, but he sure as hell knew he had to leave. Hans was all but gone, but Han-jae knew he had something to do about these memories as curiosity about the outside world became overwhelming. He had to leave.

And so a day later in the dead of night, he managed to escape his barracks and made a long and dangerous trek up to the Yalu River, managing to avoid suspicion and being spotted by the patrolmen who guarded the border. After crossing it by sunrise, he secretly hopped on some train where he was greeted by a few scared English and French tourists who just had a trip to his country a few hours back. After some failed attempts at communication, Han-jae was locked in one of the roomettes by the authorities, along with the other tourists who stayed to help this defector. One of them was especially fond of Han-jae, giving him some food and water, and a small wipe for the rivers of sweat rolling down his face. After being handed a small tablet, Han-jae stared at it in pure confusion before some of the people on board with him slowly and eagerly taught him how to use it. Opening the translator, he typed out something with shaky fingers before giving it to one of the tourists with a shy smile.

"반갑습니다. 고맙다."

Han-jae was free. Sighing sharply to himself, he laid his head back on the seat and chuckled silently.

"씨발...."

#male tf #reality change #racial change #male transformation

22 notes · View notes

cicerenella · 5 months

Note

Ooh please expand on the Italy bros relationship! Even in canon they have a bit of an odd relationship. Sometimes they actually act like brothers and other times they seem uncomfortable around the other.

ah, this is going to be a long one everyone.

the relationship of the two brothers is...much more complicated than what hima portrayed, so I hope I can explain myself the best I can. Let's start in order with a bit of history! (I'm not at home, so if the writing/formatting is a bit weird sorry in advance! I will get to the other asks as soon as I can use my pc)

So we all know that both Felice and Romano are Rome's grandkids and cherish him very much even after his passing. Although Rome wasn't an ideal grandfather, preferring Feli over Romano since he "inherited" his artistic tendencies. This point to understand their relationship is quite important, since it seems that Romano's inferiority complex starts from here at a very young age. He resents his little brother already, but that is only because he's still a kid and doesn't understand why he's treated differently.

Now, after the fall of Rome, Italy was divided and conquered by many nations. The two brothers, that already didn't have the best of relationships, get separated. And they don't meet or have a proper interaction up until the Unity of Italy, in the 19th century. This to make it clear, that for the most part of their lives, these two were separated and assimilated completely different customs and cultures. That is why when the Unity happened, it didn't make a "Greater Italy" rather a "Unified Italy".

And so the year 1861 comes, and the Reign of Italy comes into fruition. Nothing short of a mess. The South, still deeply rooted in agriculture and farming, is much much poorer and behind the rising North, whom, closer to other European nations by geographical position, is being affected by the industrial revolution. How do you (the government) intervene with this situation in hand? Harshly repressing any uprising coming from the people, of course.

There have been some instances where the government tried to help the South, but all the attempts can be described with a perfect adjective "Half assed". The Giolitti government (we are in the first years of the 20th century), whom tried to industrialize the South with modern infrastructure, called the southern part of Italy "nothing more than a place where to gather political consensus"

you understand where I'm coming from?

The resentment between the brothers is HIGH at this point of history. People are literally fleeing the crumbling south (and still today!) and Romano and Felice cannot for the life of them stand eachother. Felice thinks his brother is just a big burden, while Romano thinks Felice is an ungrateful bastard that walks all over him.

There's also the whole argument about the Unity of Italy and how it was more of an "occupation" from the North, but uhhh...I'm not really going to go in that place for now.

This to say, that back then they had a terrible relationship. After WW2 however, they are trying to rekindle their broken relationship, although still today there are a lot of prejudices between the north and the south.

Romano is very sour about this, and so is Felice. They are trying to move on past this, but it's hard. It's hard to not dislike eachother. They argue a lot nowadays, since they always seem on opposites sides for everything. But, deep down, I think they care for eachother, even if they don't show it.

This to say, Hima was wrong to make romano the only one that is "mean" to feli, because in actuality it is a dislike that goes both ways. Have you ever seen a Juventus-Naples football match? don't tell me these two don't get into physical fights after it.

Oh and Romano still has a massive inferiority complex in regards of his brother. Feli is the richer, modern, and successful one, while in the parliament he is the "black sheep" of his country. Its rare, but Feli sometimes comforts him for this, explaining to him that he is an important part of their country too.

Because, despite their differences, they're part of a bigger thing, Italy. They might argue A LOT but its undeniable the love they share for one another. Never forget that ♡♡

#hetalia #right in the feels with this one #they still have a lot of problems to sort out #but they still care #in their weird way #hws italy #hws romano #cice talks

43 notes · View notes

invested-in-your-future · 11 months

Note

How would you do Mistral?

I already sort of answered it before, but I guess I can expand upon it.

So okay, Mistral in my mind is pretty interesting situation. Mainly because it does not work as a "normal" Kingdom.

With Vale you have a central "City of Vale" location with Beacon Academy there and then you have places like Patch or failures like Mt.Glenn, but its all pretty centralized.

In my mind Mistral would be the opposite of that. There's no "City of Mistral" because Mistral hasn't "started" as a unified Kingdom and originally was multiple related regions with their own government structure that sort of came together out of unified mythological roots and collective need for safety. Each of the regions had a central city, each of them being oldest cities on the continent of Anima, modeled after real world mythology of each region and located geographically in such locations that make them easy to defend. Each region had a symbiotic sort of relationship with each other being uniquely positioned to provide what other regions lack.

And then the Great War happened.

Mistral as a whole tried to do some pretty awful things in regards to Faunus and fought on the wrong side of history, allying with Mantle (while government of Mistral did not really care for the whole self expression thing, it did give those in power a convenient excuse to galvanize their supporters against the Faunus population which they saw as one of inciting parties of the war). Post-war, Mistral came out from it all in a way worse shape. Political shake-ups, completely tanked economy (and also one of the regions kind of literally sinking), ruined cities, poverty, increased Grimm attacks, etc. Thus the three (remaining) regions integrated together in a stronger way to survive and the leadership of the Kingdom was revamped. Under an effort to preserve the newfound peace and with the help from Kingdom of Vale, the City of Haven was built in a central area, meant to be (both governance and communication) hub for the Kingdom of Mistral and the location of the Haven Academy. While it was meant to be the central body of power, that ended up being true only on the surface, as the regional power structure remained, and so did Mistral's noble families and past grudges, with each region vying for power and resources of the post-war reconstruction era. The noble families specifically got a lot more leeway as to preserve the overall order of the country. So while peace reigned and overall state of the world improved, the divide between those in power and those marginalized only grew in shadows.

The end result of it all still ended up being that you had three regions of influence with bustling cities and their flourishing pet-projects and then in between you had the few run-down time-forgotten (more often ruins of) villages and towns mostly left to fend for themselves. Each region still had their own regional Council, but they now answered to the the unified governmental body of Council of Haven. Thus the big difference from pre-war time being that the new Government structure was built around unanimous agreement between the three regions, making the situations and decisions like the ones before Great War harder. With establishment of Huntsman Academies and post-war demilitarization of concept of "Huntsman", the Council of Haven formed multiple "Departments" that would oversee specific aspects of managing the Kingdom and would have free reign to act as the form of central government oversight within each region.

At the top of the map, closer to Atlas, you'd have Japanese-inspired region. The region's central location was a giant seaside fortress-city on a cliff all the way up in the north, overlooking the ocean between Mistral and Atlas. As one of the oldest cities on the continent, the said fortress also happens to be a holy site for one of Remnant's biggest religions, with the enormous tree in it's center playing a role in one of Remnant's creation myths. Ironically, for being a holy site, the region also is arguably the most technologically advanced one and the fortress-city contains most of Mistral's scientific organizations and research companies, which is in part due to the fact that the body of water between Atlas and Mistral is scientifically fascinating mystery (in that the whole region of the ocean between Mistral and Atlas is completely toxic and devoid of any forms of life).

All the way in the east, you'd have Chinese inspired area with the region's climate being mix of arid steppes and lush grasslands proving to be perfect for agricultural industry. It's central city is located in a crater of a long dead volcano and is considered to be probably the oldest(and safest) city on Remnant, very likely built on even older city, as indicated by existing catacombs and tunnels below that provide for fascinating source of data for archeologists, but also are carefully managed with access to them restricted by Mistral's own military forces, so as to prevent the possibility of underground incursion like in Mt. Glenn. (Mt. Glenn was Vale's failed attempt to replicate the idea with modern tools).

And in the south you'd have Greek-inspired region with extremely well established industrial infrastructure, which provides huge amount of not just Mistral's but overall Remnant's metalworking and weaponry, with it's central city basically being a giant industrial complex with a giant forge in the center. The central forge doubles as both judiciary and religious complex, as the region also handles a lot of Mistral's judicial work. The city is also where the modern tradition of transformable weaponry originally began.

In the center of the kingdom, overlooking a giant set of lakes that used to be the fourth region of Mistral, stood Mistral's newest city and it's official central body of power, Haven, named after it's Academy. Its there that Mistral trains their huntsmen who then move on to the other regions to fulfill their duties. Its also where the tournaments that Mistral is famous for (and that Pyrrha was a recurring champion of) are held. While "Haven" is the official name of the place and people from other Kingdoms sometimes mistakenly refer to the city as "Mistral" itself, each region actually do have their own cultural names for the location it's built on, as fitting of the location meant to unify the Kingdom, as well as the intended Post-Great-War idea of celebrating self-expression, the city being the melting pot of Mistral's varying cultures and history.

Now, with the Fall of Beacon and the worldwide communication network going down and with the doubts about Atlas role in all of that, the ties between the regions loosen and Haven's overall hold starts to weaken, Mistral's central port is closed for outsiders because of rising tensions, various factions within Mistral start to move, the movement to forcibly relocate all Faunus onto Menagerie is once again gaining traction, WF presence is increasing and the overall population is divided between wildly different opinions on what actually happened in Vale, the overall worldwide relations are degrading (just think who Pyrrha and Penny were in terms of both kingdoms) and Ozpin is "unavailable" to try to do his usual plotting.

Pretty "good" time for characters to find themselves there after V3 and to overall portray the unraveling of the world of Remnant.

#RWBY #rwby au #rwby rewrite #rwde #rwby stuff mine

20 notes · View notes

selfindulgentpoorlywritten · 2 years

Text

Auriferous (Jamie Oleksiak)

Hi! Was I ignoring my WIPs to write this? Perhaps. Anyway, this is my fic for @antoineroussel ‘s surprise prompts! I got Jamie Oleksiak and the word auriferous - yielding or containing gold. Yes, I am obsessed with the idea of men being the one proposed to.

Rating: T

Pairing: Jamie Oleksiak/fem!reader

Words: 4295

Warnings: none

Summary: A craft class inspires you to take the next step.

There are a lot of fun things to do in Seattle, as you’d learned shortly after moving here. You’d been nervous that you would regret the move, but it had surprised you how much you love the city. It’s incredibly different from Dallas, in a good way. You’ve spent a lot of the last year working, but there’s been no shortage of things to do in your free time. Jamie loves tagging along when he can, always eager to spend as much time with you as possible. Dating someone who’s away half the time can be difficult, but the two of you have been able to make it work.

The new season hasn’t started yet, but the two of you are back in Seattle and training camp is right around the corner. Two weeks ago, you’d both signed up for a jewelry making class at the Pratt Fine Arts Center. This is your second class, and while you’re a bit distracted as the instructor speaks, Jamie is endearingly focused. He has a little crease between his brows as he takes notes. Sometimes he’s so cute you can’t stand it.

You’re able to pay more attention once the hands-on part of the class starts, having always been a more tactile learner. Last class had been mostly verbal instruction, so it’s exciting to finally have the tools in your hands. You’ve already cut the metal strip for your band, and today’s challenge is to shape it. Jamie is carefully tapping the strip into an oval, concentrating so hard that you’re not sure he remembers that anything else exists. The metal looks tiny in his huge hands, as he hunches over to reach the worktable.

You beat him to the brazing process, using more force than he does and so having your oval done first. It’s a little beat-up looking, but you think it’s pretty good for your first time. The ring glows bright red under the torch and you carefully wrap the solder around the joint before reapplying the heat. Generally, you aren’t super trustworthy around fire, but at least you have proper safety equipment this time.

Both of your rings are brazed and circular by the time you leave. You discuss the class in the car, watching the city pass around you. Once home, you change into comfortable clothes and watch an episode of a show while you have a snack. With the little time that you have left before hockey reclaims Jamie, you don’t mind staying up late.

The class has gotten you thinking along lines that you’ve mostly avoided. Picking up your life and moving north to be with Jamie had made you think this way, too. You really have structured your life around being with him, and you’ve found that it works well for you. That you wouldn’t change a thing. That you intend to stay by his side as long as he’ll allow, whether that’s forever or not.

“Forever” is the idea that’s been haunting you. The rings that you’re making are sterling silver, but that doesn’t stop you from imagining a little gold band in the future. Even in your longest relationship before Jamie, you’d never really seen the appeal of being married. Now, you get it.

The two of you had begun dating less than a year before he got traded to the Penguins, and you had expected it to fizzle out once he was halfway across the country. Instead, he’d put in even more effort to keep the relationship going despite the distance. You’d surprised yourself by reciprocating it, trying harder than you’d ever bothered before.

It had been way too early for you to even consider moving to Pittsburgh to be with him, and luckily he was traded back to the Stars before you had to reconsider that decision. Another two years went by, and he still hadn’t gotten tired of you. Quite the opposite: he seemed to fall more in love with you over time. Even when you’d moved in together and he had to be around you all the time, he still loved you. Even as he learned more of your flaws, even when you fought, he loved you.

So when he got drafted by Seattle, you didn’t hesitate. You’d never known that someone could make you feel the way Jamie does, so you followed him without regret. Despite your friends’ reservations, you knew what was right for you.

Landing in Seattle had been the first time that you considered how a flash of gold would look on Jamie’s finger, and hadn’t been the last.

You’d mostly avoided the thought until you’d started the class, not wanting to examine how you feel about the possibility. It had been made clear to you throughout your life that you’re a bit too much, more effort than you’re worth. Jamie is the first person who’s ever made you question that idea, and by now, you don’t believe that anymore. Most days. But thinking about marriage brings it back with a vengeance. You know that you want to marry him, that there’s never going to be another person you love like him. Your brain just won’t seem to let you believe that he could feel the same way.

He’s spent the last five years proving just how much he wants to be with you, but certain insecurities are difficult to overcome. You’re trying, though.

When Jamie proudly shows you the setting he’s made for his ring the next week, you can’t help but kiss him. Being so careful about the process has made him move slower, but it’s also made the ring look more impressive than you’d anticipated. You look back to your own setting, slightly different than his. The entire class is making the same pattern, but the instructor had allowed some of you to alter it slightly to be more masculine. The wide band has a few small dents in it, and the setting is a little uneven, but you think Jamie will like it anyway.

His first day of training camp sneaks up on you, only really registering when you kiss him on the cheek on his way out. He’s excited, like he always is, despite the way the previous season had gone. He’s in on the ground floor of something brand new, and he truly believes that things will get better. You admire that kind of strength and optimism.

You’d found a nice work from home job when you moved to Seattle, so you get to sit around in your pajamas while he sweats at the rink. The work is a lot of “hurry up and wait”, so you get to be paid for browsing the internet and watching a bunch of Netflix.

Between meetings, when you’re caught up on your tasks, you remember a website that you used to play on all the time. You open it up, being presented with a clean, white page with tasteful text. You used to think it was so fun to mess around designing custom jewelry that you couldn’t afford. You hadn’t been in the same mindset, then.

The men’s rings are mostly either boring or painfully ostentatious. You play around with them anyway, giggling as you design the biggest, ugliest ring you’ve ever seen. Looking at rings is mostly for laughs, is what you tell yourself. You’re just rediscovering an old pastime, nothing serious.

After a couple more meetings, you have some more downtime, and go back to the website. It’s only another fifteen minutes before you see a piece that stops you in your tracks. All of their necklaces are technically “women’s”, but this one could definitely work for any gender. The chain is less delicate than other options, the pendant a rounded diamond shape, almost circular, with a large stone in the middle.

You click it, customizing it without thinking. With your cushy new job, it’s within your budget. Not that you’d decided on a budget going into this entire endeavor, but the price isn’t anything scary. You’ve clicked the checkout button before your brain kicks back in. Unfortunately, you have awful impulse control. Once you’ve decided to do something, there’s almost nothing in the world that can stop you. So you stare at the order confirmation screen, mentally screaming.

Did you just buy Jamie an engagement chain? Yes. Yes you did.

You try to rationalize it to yourself, anxiety bubbling up from your stomach. It doesn’t have to be an engagement thing. Hockey players wear chains all the time, so you could just give it as a regular gift and he would never know. Except you don’t want to do that. You want to get on one knee and offer it up while you ask him to marry you. But you can wait to do it, as long as you want. It’s not like jewelry goes bad. You could totally let this sit in a drawer somewhere for a month, a year, whatever. Nothing you tell yourself helps quell the fear.

When Jamie comes home, it takes him less than sixty seconds to notice that something’s off. You deflect his questions, coming up with a half-baked excuse about work being stressful today. He gives you a look, making it clear that he knows you’re lying, but thankfully he knows when to drop the subject.

You manage to act much more normal than you feel, after that. You have a thorough discussion with your therapist about the situation, and leave feeling both better and worse. She knows you well enough by now to pick just enough at your insecurities and memories that you spend the next two days trying to untangle the knots she’d loosened.

By the end of your final jewelry class, you and Jamie have two silver rings with dark stones in them. You’d decided before you’d even started that you’d exchange them, but you wait until you get home to do it. As Jamie slips the ring onto your finger, a perfect fit, you can’t help the way your heart leaps into your throat. You return the gesture, admiring the way that the ring glints on his hand. Neither of you can stop smiling, playing with the rings and complimenting each other’s skills.

Luck must be on your side, because the conspicuous package arrives while Jamie is at practice. The second the black box is out of the cardboard, you break it down and take it out to the dumpster so that Jamie doesn’t see it. The logo printed on the box was too clear about its contents to keep around.

The chain is perfect. The loose fit of the golden chain links, the shine of it around the black diamond embedded in the center. It takes a couple tries to get it back in the dark blue box neatly.

You’re already tapping the contact in your phone on your way to stash the box in the back of the closet. It rings while you shove the chain into a larger box of random things you never bothered to unpack, buried in the back of the closet.

“Hello?” Penny’s voice is clear through your headphones.

“Hey,” you greet, “How are you?” The pleasantries don’t last long, as if Penny can tell that you’ve called for a specific reason. She tells you a little bit about her training that day, and you confirm that your job is still just as boring as last time you spoke. You make sure to ask after her parents, and she assures you that they’re doing well.

“Y/N,” she interrupts, “What’s going on?” You swallow, sitting down on the edge of the bed. You let out a deep breath to calm yourself.

“Is it outdated to ask the family for permission to propose?” you ask. Her silence is deafening.

“Is this a hypothetical?” she asks. You laugh a little, fiddling with a loose thread on your pajama pants. Upside to having a work from home job is that you only have to wear a nice shirt, because no one ever sees your legs.

“Maybe?” you reply, “I haven’t decided yet.” You can practically hear Penny shaking her head at you. She sighs, saying your name again.

“Hypothetically speaking,” she answers, a smile evident in her voice, “It’s really up to what makes you comfortable.” That’s basically the response you were expecting, but it’s not exactly what you want to know.

“Hypothetically speaking,” you say, “If I were to propose to Jamie, would your parents want me to ask first?” Penny laughs. You were worried about her being too serious about this, or being mad that you called her about this in the first place.

“Hypothetically,” she replies, “I think that they would appreciate it, but wouldn’t require it.” There’s something terrifying about the prospect of asking their parents for their blessing. They’ve made it clear for years that they love you, and consider you part of the family. But there’s always the tiny chance that they say no, or come up with some condition. What if they think the man should be the one to propose? They’re forward-thinking enough that you don’t expect them to feel that way, but there’s always a chance.

“Okay,” you say, “Okay.” You chew on your bottom lip for a few quiet moments.

“Hey Penny?” you ask, waiting for her “yeah” in response.

“Would you be okay with me proposing to your brother?” you ask, fingers digging into the bedspread. Penny loves you too, even calls you her sister to others. Still, you’re expecting even a slight pause that doesn’t come.

“Of course, dumbass,” she says immediately, making you chuckle, “Now I’m gonna be disappointed if you don’t.” That rips the smile off of your face. You swallow hard, throat clicking. It’s weird to have some type of pressure on this, especially when you’re still on the fence about doing it at all.

“Hey,” Penny calls a couple seconds into your silence, “He’s gonna say yes, okay?” You nod, even though she can’t see it. The nodding helps you find your voice.

“Okay,” you say, trying to convince yourself, “Yeah. Okay.” The both of you let the silence hang this time, neither of you sure of what to say. You keep repeating in your head he’s gonna say yes over and over, like thinking it enough will make it true.

“Let me know when you do it okay?” she says with an upward lilt to her voice, trying to lighten the mood “I’d better be the first to know.” A half-hearted laugh is all you can manage.

“I have you on speed-dial,” you reply. There’s not much else to say, so you close with more pleasantries before hanging up. At least one person thinks that this is a good idea.

As nerve-wracking as talking to Penny had been, asking Jamie’s parents for his hand in marriage is on another level. You’ve been preparing for over a week, rehearsing exactly what you’re going to say and how to say it, talking to yourself in the mirror like a loon. You have Jamie’s game schedule memorized, so you had already planned to do this on the day he leaves for a long roadie. If it goes badly, you’ll need the time he’s away to lick your wounds.

Alison is both surprised and happy to see you when she answers the FaceTime call, fussing over you and how you’re doing. You get through the mom-ness of it all with a smile on your face, overly fond of how she treats you as her daughter.

“Mom, is dad there?” you ask at the first appropriate pause. Alison’s brow furrows.

“Yeah, he’s here,” she says, “Is everything okay?” You rush to assure her that it’s all fine, no bad news. Well, maybe bad news, if they don’t take it well. You’ve amended Penny’s statement in your head for the past few days to say they’ll say yes, which you start repeating to yourself. Alison fetches Rich, the two of them trying to cram themselves into frame in the awkward way that only older people can manage.

“I have a question for you both,” you begin, all of your carefully rehearsed words flying out of your brain. There’s silence as you grasp for them, trying to piece together something coherent. Rich gives a quiet “go on” in encouragement.

“I’m going to propose to Jamie,” you blurt out, the first time you’ve said it in a concrete way, “And I wanted to know if you’re okay with that.” They both look stunned, eyebrows raised and mouths slightly open. The dead air gives you just enough time to panic. You’re not even sure what you’re panicking more about: asking them that, or the fact that you’ve now officially solidified your plan.

“Of course!” Alison practically shrieks, stifling a high-pitched, excited noise with her hand. Rich’s face breaks out into the biggest smile you’ve ever seen on him. You let out a comically huge exhale.

“Really?” you ask, mostly in disbelief. This has all been too easy. Not only are they okay with it, they seem excited about it. You’ve known that they love you, but to want you as an official, legal part of the family? That’s more of a surprise than it should be.

“Of course, honey,” Rich replies, his chest puffed up a little in pride, “There’s no one else we’d rather have.” The tears are building up in your eyes, but you refuse to let them fall. Being loved and accepted is something you’re still not used to- from anyone but Jamie- and it’s making you emotional.

Alison grills you on the how and what and when, and you answer her questions gladly. She seems to think it’s all incredibly sweet and romantic, which helps your confidence. Even if he were to say no, at least it’ll be a great proposal.

Being that you know Jamie’s schedule, you know exactly when to propose. He has a complete day off a week and a half later. No games, no practice, not even media. You spend the time perfecting your plan, figuring out what you’re going to say. Considering how your preparation had gone when asking his parents, you’re pretty sure you’ll forget everything in the moment. It helps to practice, anyway.

It takes pretty much no convincing to get the guys to agree to lunch that day, them being constantly hungry hockey players. You invite a few of his non-team friends as well, wanting all of his favorite people to be there. Only one person can’t make it, which you consider a relative success.

The morning of, you wake Jamie up with breakfast in bed. It’s something you’re prone to doing now and again since you work from home, so he doesn’t question it. You spend the morning lazing around in bed, before casually bringing up lunch. Surprising him with a huge group of friends would tip him off that something is going on, so you make it seem like you’d been invited by someone else and forgotten to tell him about it. He agrees readily, excited when you tell him it’s at his favorite spot.

You use lunch as an excuse to get dressed up and do your makeup. The sundress you wear, dotted with bright yellow sunflowers, is Jamie’s favorite. You do your makeup in shades of gold to match. Jamie wears a simple combo of jeans and a button-up, but you think he looks amazing. You always think he looks amazing, though.

Lunch is a hit, with everyone upbeat and playful. The only thing you’d had to explain was why his other friends were there, but you played it off that you’d just invited them because you hadn’t seen them in a while. Thinking on your feet isn’t a specialty of yours, so you’re proud of yourself for coming up with something believable. You hadn’t told anyone why you’re doing all of this, just that you had a surprise for Jamie.

He chatters the entire way home, entirely unlike himself. The happiness is radiating off of him, making him shine like the sun. Your heart warms to see him so bright.

When you get home, you spend the afternoon watching his favorite movies. It’s peaceful, even with the way you both comment at the screen throughout. Jamie tells you little trivia facts, some of which you’ve heard before, but are glad to hear again. You’d listen to him talk about just about anything. The day is going perfectly, setting you at ease.

Typically, a proposal would involve a fancy dinner at a nice restaurant, but you know better. Jamie likes the upscale places you go on occasion, yes, but he’ll like this better. You take him to the hot dog truck next to the park, ordering your usuals. You walk around the park as you eat, talking amiably about nothing. There had been a similar truck back in Jersey, where you’re from, that you missed when you moved to Texas. When you came to Seattle, Jamie had gone out and found one just for you. This park is a lot safer to walk around after sunset than the one back east, which is a nice upgrade.

Full and satisfied, you head home. You’d made a playlist of all his favorite songs that you’ve been playing in the car all day. He sings along to one of the songs, and you can’t help but join in. You’re both laughing as you walk through the front door, playfully shoving each other.

“Hold on a second,” you say, “I gotta go grab something.” He’s too happy to even be confused by that. By the time you return with the box, he’s moved into the kitchen. You can hear the snap of popcorn in the microwave, Jamie standing in front of it on his phone. The plan is to watch more movies, so you’re not surprised.

You call his name softly and he turns around. The box is in your hand, surreptitiously hidden behind the island. As expected, the words leave you. Guess you’ll just have to speak from your heart.

“Today was nice, right?” you ask. He puts his phone down on the countertop, taking a step closer.

“Yeah,” he replies, “Of course.” That brings you some relief, knowing that he enjoyed your plans. The anxiety is still nearly overwhelming, though. You take a deep breath, steadying yourself.

“Every day is nice with you,” you begin, letting the words come naturally, “Every day since I met you has been the best day of my life.”

“I never really thought that I could love someone at all, let alone the way that I love you,” you continue, feeling yourself tear up against your wishes, “And I definitely never thought that someone could love me back. Especially someone like you.”

“You’re the most amazing person I’ve ever known,” you say, the words pouring out of you, “And I’m so incredibly lucky to have you in my life.” His face has moved from being scrunched in confusion to something soft and bittersweet. You’re beginning to get choked up, so you forgo the other million things that you want to say to him. Ideally, you’ll have the rest of your lives to tell him all of that.

His hand flies up to grip the island counter when you drop to one knee.

“Jamie Oleksiak,” you swallow hard, “Will you marry me?” You brandish the box, cracking it open. If someone had asked you the reaction you’d expected to get, you wouldn’t have said “baffled”. Yet Jamie’s staring at the box, completely perplexed. You tilt the box so that you can look at it too, horror overcoming you.

It’s empty.

What the absolute fuck. The box has been sitting in the back of the bedside drawer since you’d moved it there a few days ago. No one knew it was there except you. Did you somehow get robbed for literally one item?

Suddenly, Jamie starts laughing hysterically. This had been one of the options you’d considered for a reaction, but not for this reason. Your face is burning and you’re truly on the verge of tears. It takes every ounce of willpower to resist the tears, staring up at him with watery eyes.

He steps forward to kneel down in front of you, laughter subsiding into a radiant smile. This is somehow more humiliating than the option where he’d outright rejected you. How could you have been so stupid as to lose it? Jamie cups your face in his hands, kissing your forehead.

“I didn’t realize,” he says, reaching into his shirt with one hand. The chain glints gold in the dim kitchen lighting when he pulls it out. He’s… wearing it. He’s wearing it?

“What?” is all you can say.

“I found it in a drawer,” he explains, “I thought that I bought it and forgot about it.” That is, objectively, hilarious. You sob out a laugh, relief flooding your body. The wetness in your eyes isn’t subsiding quite yet, but at least you hadn’t lost the most important thing you’ve ever bought. Jamie hugs you tight, kissing the top of your head over and over again. You clutch onto his shoulders for dear life.

“By the way,” he says after a minute, “The answer is yes, in case it wasn’t clear.” Now you’re helpless to keep from crying, letting the tears soak his shirt. He’s sniffling too, tear tracks down either side of his face when he pulls back.

“I love you,” you say, kissing him with everything bubbling inside of you.

“I love you, too,” he replies, giving you a quick kiss before looking into your eyes so deeply that you feel stripped bare, “Forever.”

“Forever,” you echo. You both laugh.

#jamie oleksiak imagine #nhl imagine #nhl imagines #RI #andis coping mechanism

62 notes · View notes

firespirited · 6 months

Text

The event was the most sedate 'protest' I've ever been to.

I gave sis a quick opsec rundown before we left the house, locked my phone with a pattern and switched off, pointed out the various cops (1 for about every 5 people) found a bench and sat myself down. I was the only person wearing a mask and was expecting more of a somber vigil than the friendly hopeful chatty meet up, pain and emotional whiplash made me want to wait and see if people would engage with me rather than the opposite.

The event was organised by the local unions, lefties and greens and the league for defense of human rights. I quickly twigged that the reason they were so chill is that they've spent half the year clashing violently for workers rights and against police violence so a quiet meet with no slogans and no signs is a very different experience. One guy had spent the day before kettled by police until a judge approved the pro Palestine march in a city two hours away and the police had to retreat.

[The human rights folks have offices about 500m from our building, I remember coming across it in a cul de sac while looking for a post box and wondering if I got much weller, would they'd be interested in a fluent translator, I'd rise to the challenge of learning legalese and handle patois/créoles pretty well in both languages.]

Sis made some connections: chatted about accessibility and ecology with two people then after about 15 minutes the union leader read out a pre-approved statement which had been carefully worded: anti war crimes, pro accountability, pro human rights, condemnation of backlash against jews and muslims and a quick acknowledgement of last week's peaceful pro Palestine meet that got banned.

There were few young people and one woman in a veil, I'm guessing they either travelled to where clear protest is allowed or are trying to stay under the radar. There are a lot of muslim locals who feel it isn't their business, twenty years of being dragged for every muslim or north african action is exhausting. Being accepted as your own 'thing' means staying away from politics or having to answer twenty bad faith questions from randos. Just on the way to the meet, I got a crypto-racist rant from a dude we know and couldn't get a word in edgeways to counter.

-------

I took monday 'off' to reflect a little on having to witness the horrors from your house to the news throughout our lives and how much your mind resorts to dramatic threats 'just stop caring about everything then' or even just going numb in tantrums. (I was hoping to have a chance to mourn in some way but that didn't happen either so that's still heavy and may never fade.)

And just how hard it was to tap into hope even while surrounded by people who have fought losing battles their whole lives and kept the faith. I'm really touched by a lot of local initiatives that are doing a lot of good and am heavily invested in the food bank, family planning and social rehab programs.

But yeah, the idea that even all of us protesting could override the weapons manufacturers and defence ministry's investments in a strategic middle eastern country just makes a inner cynical voice laugh and that's very ugly and it's much stronger these days.

The ugliness has been there for as long as I remember, way back to childhood talks about how to handle bullying gracefully by patronising teachers and how we'll save the planet by remembering to switch off the lights and taps like half the class wasn't rationing electric use and wearing winter clothes at home.

I have not made peace with my inner nihilist side. We co-exist in a constant clash, it's not that I have a hopeful side to counter balance her but I shut her up with action I guess. Fighting becoming spiteful with spite, what a mess... It produces hope in others so at least I have anecdotal evidence on my not hopeful but not completely resigned side LMAO.

But I couldn't even fake hope for show, I kept my mouth shut but I wasn't encouraging to sis either. Have to 'hope' being present was enough and keep on keeping on in my own little ways.

You tell yourself everyone is complicated and fractured then you meet people who truly honestly believe in the inherent goodness of humanity and the universe and you and your monsters are thrown in stark relief.

#Saf #ramblings #Long post

2 notes · View notes

lucienballard · 11 months

Text

Glenda Jackson has died at the age of 87 after “a brief illness” at her home in London.

In a statement, her agent, Lionel Larner, said: “Glenda Jackson, two-time Academy Award-winning actress and politician, died peacefully at her home in Blackheath, London, this morning after a brief illness with her family at her side.”

Jackson bestrode the narrow worlds of stage and screen like a colossus over six decades. Though such a Shakespearean tribute would undoubtedly have had the famously curmudgeonly actor reaching for her familiar catchphrase: “Oh, come on. Good God, no,” nothing less will do for a star who emerged from a 23-year career break to play King Lear at the age of 82.

Not only did she win an Evening Standard theatre award for that performance, but she brought the audience to its feet by playing up to her ferocious reputation with an attack on the awards’ sponsor. For decades, the newspaper had scorned her as an actor, opposed her as an MP, she said, “so I’m left thinking what did I do wrong?”

Discovering that she liked acting, after being persuaded by a friend to join the local Townswomen’s Guild drama group, she applied to the one drama school she had heard of, Rada, with the proviso that she could only afford to go if she won a scholarship. She duly did. She was still a student there when she made her professional stage debut in the seaside town of Worthing in 1957, in a two-parter by Terence Rattigan, Separate Tables.

Six years as a jobbing actor and stage manager in repertory theatres around the country eventually brought her to the attention of the RSC, which she joined in 1964 just as the director Peter Brook was making a mark with a season entitled Theatre of Cruelty. He cast her in Peter Weiss’s Marat/Sade, as a prisoner assigned to play Marat’s assassin, Charlotte Corday, a performance that was recalled years later by the playwright David Edgar as one of the best he had ever seen, in a production that “changed British theatre for ever”.

By the time she finished making Women in Love she was six months pregnant with her son, Dan, the only child of an 18-year marriage to fellow actor turned antique dealer Roy Hodges. But far from slowing down for a while, two years later she was back, in a rollercoaster of roles. Her achievements in 1971 included Tchaikovsky’s nymphomaniac wife in another Russell film, The Music Lovers; Queen Elizabeth I, in an influential TV six-parter Elizabeth R which won her two Emmys, and a mouthy, placard-wielding Cleopatra in the first of a series of comedy turns for the BBC’s Morecambe and Wise Show. In 1973 she won her second Oscar as sparring lover Vicki in the romantic comedy A Touch of Class.

Any ambitions she may have had for a lead role in government were banjaxed by her outspoken opposition to the Iraq war. Grandstanding opportunities were limited to occasions such as the death of Margaret Thatcher, when she cut through sentimental parliamentary etiquette with her own salty verdict on an ideology of “greed, selfishness, no care for the weaker, sharp elbows, sharp knees”.

She followed her triumphal return to the theatre as King Lear with another award-winning performance, as the shuffling, vituperative 92-year-old widow A, in a Broadway revival of Edward Albee’s Three Tall Women, and as Maud, the Alzheimer’s-struck protagonist of Elizabeth Is Missing (of which Guardian TV critic Lucy Mangan wrote that she was “wonderful, in that vanishingly rare way that can come only from next-level talent as razor-sharp as it ever was plus 40 years of honing your technique, whetting both blades on 80 years of life experience.”)

She forsook her north London stronghold in her later years for a basement flat in the south London home of her son, Dan Hodges – now a political columnist whose views were markedly different from her own – where she gardened, watched her grandson growing up, and continued to pour the finest sort of scorn on any passing folly or hypocrisy.

#glenda jackson

4 notes · View notes

newstfionline · 1 month

Text

Friday, March 22, 2024

America’s happiness score drops amid a youth ‘midlife crisis’ (Washington Post) The United States is no longer among the world’s 20 happiest countries, according to a new report—with young people hit particularly hard and reporting lower levels of well-being than any other age group. The United States fell from 15th in 2023 to 23rd in this year’s World Happiness Report, which was released Wednesday to mark the United Nations’ International Day of Happiness. The country’s results varied dramatically among different age groups, however, with young people under age 30 ranking 62nd out of 143 countries for happiness, while U.S. adults age 60 and above ranked 10th. This is the first time the United States has slipped out of the top 20 since the report was first launched in 2012. But a similar downward trend in youth well-being is also seen in Canada, which ranked 15th overall but 58th among young people this year. Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, director of the University of Oxford’s Wellbeing Research Center and an editor of the report, said that the report’s findings show “that in North America, and the U.S. in particular, youth now start lower than the adults in terms of well-being. And that’s very disconcerting, because essentially it means that they’re at the level of their midlife crisis today and obviously begs the question of what’s next for them?”

In Vermont, ‘Town Meeting’ is democracy embodied (AP) Julie wants more donations to the food pantry. Kipp is busy knitting a sweater. Shorty is ready to ask: Why is so much being spent on a truck? The coffee, fresh-baked bread and donuts have been laid out. Eighty-seven voters have squeezed into the Elmore Town Hall. Town Meeting is about to begin. Across the United States, people are disgusted with politics. Many feel powerless and alienated from their representatives at every level—and especially from those in Washington. The tone long ago became nasty, and many feel forced to pick a side and view those on the other side as adversaries. But in pockets of New England, democracy is done a bit differently. People can still participate directly and in person. One day each year, townsfolk gather to hash out local issues. They talk, listen, debate, vote. And in places like Elmore, once it’s all over, they sit down together for a potluck lunch.

The challenge of aid delivery in Haiti (BBC) Haiti counts an estimated 360,000 people who have had to flee their homes because of gang violence. Aid is sorely needed. Helicopter flights carrying supplies from the Dominican Republic have begun to arrive. But with the airport in Port-au-Prince and the port both still closed, far more is needed. Juggling her baby godson on her knee, 20-year-old Sarah gives the appearance of a much older woman. "I go to school with no food, spend the day hungry and then go to bed still with nothing in my stomach," she explains. Many in the camp are suffering from illnesses. Drugs and medicines are often prohibitively expensive given their food budget rarely stretches to the basics. On the days they can't raise funds, they're dependent on scarce donations and aid.

As election nears, Venezuelan government keeps arresting opponents (AP) As Venezuela’s government would have it, President Nicolás Maduro and members of his inner circle have been the target of several conspiracies since last year that could have left them injured or worse. Few details have been released about the alleged plots. But the government has cited them in the arrests of more than 30 people since January including a prominent human rights attorney and staffers of the leading opposition presidential candidate. Local and international nongovernment groups, the United Nations and foreign governments have described the crackdown as a pretext to stifle political opposition ahead of the July 28 president election in which Maduro, in power since 2013, will seek a new six-year term.

Russia fires 31 missiles at Kyiv in the first attack in 44 days, and 13 people are hurt (AP) Russia fired 31 ballistic and cruise missiles at Kyiv before dawn Thursday in the first attack on the Ukrainian capital in 44 days, officials said. Air defenses shot down all the incoming missiles, though 13 people including a child were injured by falling wreckage, they said. Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched two ballistic missiles and 29 cruise missiles against the capital.

Blowing Up Russian ‘Gas Stations’ With Drones (Bloomberg) Ukraine’s fight against Russia’s invasion has entered a new phase, pitting homegrown drone technology against a 2,000 kilometer (1,200 mile) swathe of largely Soviet-era oil facilities. At least nine major refineries have been successfully attacked this year, currently taking offline 11% of the country’s total capacity by some estimates. “Russia is a gas station with an army, and we intend on destroying that gas station,” Francisco Serra-Martins, co-founder and chief executive officer of drone manufacturer Terminal Autonomy, said in an interview. “We are going to focus on where it hits the hardest, and that’s financial resources.”

China on Track to Be Ready for Taiwan Invasion by 2027, US Says (Bloomberg) China is building its military and nuclear arsenal on a scale not seen by any country since World War II and all signs suggest it’s sticking to ambitions to be ready to invade Taiwan by 2027, a top US admiral told Congress Wednesday. Beijing’s official defense budget has increased by 16% over recent years to more than $223 billion, said Admiral John Aquilino, leader of the Indo-Pacific Command. The Chinese military has also been rehearsing other types of military action against Taiwan including maritime and air blockades, he said. “All indications point to the PLA meeting President Xi Jinping’s directive to be ready to invade Taiwan by 2027,” Aquilino warned.

Vietnam: President Vo Van Thuong resigns after a year in office (BBC) Vietnam's president Vo Van Thuong has resigned after only one year in office following a corruption scandal. As his predecessor also quit over corruption, his departure cast a shadow over the ruling Communist Party. While an ongoing anti-corruption campaign is popular with the general public, it has now cost the jobs of two presidents, two deputy prime ministers, thousands of other officials, and seen a former health minister jailed for 18 years.

North Korea’s Missile Threats (Foreign Policy) Pyongyang successfully tested an engine for its intermediate-range hypersonic missile at the Sohae Satellite Launching Ground in northwest North Korea on Tuesday, state media reported Wednesday. The weapon reportedly used a solid-fuel engine, which lasts longer than liquid-propelled missiles and makes launches more difficult to detect, among other benefits. Defense experts believe that the missile was designed to hit faraway U.S. targets, including military bases in the U.S. territory of Guam; areas of Alaska; and U.S. military installations in Okinawa, Japan. The “military strategic value of this weapon system is appreciated as important as” the intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) that can target the mainland United States, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said. Solid-fuel hypersonic missiles “can potentially neutralize the South Korea-U.S. missile defense system,” Yang Moo-jin, the president of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul, told Agence France-Presse.

Congress Seeks to Bar Funding for U.N. Agency for Palestinians (NYT) The United States would cut off funding for the main U.N. agency that provides aid to Palestinians in Gaza under a spending agreement on track to soon become law, according to two people familiar with the plan. The ban, part of a massive spending bill negotiated by lawmakers and the White House that is expected to clear Congress by this weekend, would create a shortfall of hundreds of millions of dollars for the agency, known as UNRWA. That could have disastrous consequences for Gazans, who are facing an acute hunger crisis and displacement in crowded shelters and tent encampments. The move would also put Washington at odds with its Western allies over how to respond to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza amid accusations that Hamas fighters have infiltrated the agency. Though before the war UNRWA employees filled a broad array of civil functions in the territory, operating schools and providing health services, they have since become the main resource on the ground for delivering aid to the territory’s besieged residents.

Israel’s military is using Palestinians as human shields in Gaza (Daraj/Lebanon) Omar Ashour, a 34-year-old Palestinian, describes what Israel’s military did to him after his arrest in northern Gaza: It is just one example that Daraj has found of how the IDF is using detainees as human shields in its months-long war against Hamas. “The Israeli military detained me, and took me to a place where soldiers were gathering. They put a camera on my head, tied explosives to my body, and asked me to enter one of the apartments and quickly return to the place they had gathered.” Ashour was forced to respond to all the demands of Israeli soldiers out of fear for his life. Ashour is one of dozens of detainees used by Israel's military as human shields during its ongoing war on Gaza. Soldiers put civilian Palestinians in front of military targets, endangering their lives, according to multiple accounts from recently-released detainees. International law and the 1949 Geneva Conventions prohibit the use of civilians as human shields. The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and the Rome Statute also considered the use of human shields a war crime. In Israel, the B'Tselem rights group said that the Israeli army has over the years, as part of its official policy, used Palestinians as human shields and ordered them to carry out military actions that risked their lives.

Taps have run dry across South Africa’s largest city (AP) For two weeks, Tsholofelo Moloi has been among thousands of South Africans lining up for water as the country’s largest city, Johannesburg, confronts an unprecedented collapse of its water system affecting millions of people. Residents rich and poor have never seen a shortage of this severity. While hot weather has shrunk reservoirs, crumbling infrastructure after decades of neglect is also largely to blame. The public’s frustration is a danger sign for the ruling African National Congress, whose comfortable hold on power since the end of apartheid in the 1990s faces its most serious challenge in an election this year. A country already famous for its hourslong electricity shortages is now adopting a term called “watershedding”—the practice of going without water, from the term loadshedding, or the practice of going without power.

Musk’s Neuralink hosts livestream showing quadriplegic playing online chess (Al Jazeera) Elon Musk’s brain-chip start-up, Neuralink, has livestreamed a patient appearing to play online chess using only his mind. In a video posted on the X social media platform on Wednesday, Neuralink introduced Noland Arbaugh, 29, as the first human patient to be implanted with its brain-computer interface technology. Arbaugh, who described becoming paralysed from the shoulders down in a diving accident, said that using Neuralink had become “intuitive” after practising imagining moving the cursor on the screen. “Basically, it was like using ‘the Force’ on the cursor, and I could get it to move wherever I wanted. Just stare somewhere on the screen and it would move where I wanted it to, which was such a wild experience the first time it happened,” Arbaugh said, referring to the superpowers possessed by the Jedi in the Star Wars films.

#headlines #news

0 notes

bllsbailey · 4 months

Text

‘Conquered’: Minnesota’s New Flag Bears a Strong Resemblance to THIS Flag

New Non-Racist Flag :-)

Old Racist Flag :-)

No one noticed until the world got woke, but it turned out that Minnesota’s state flag was racist and white supremacist. That would never do, and so the State Emblems Redesign Commission went to work to choose a new flag that would reflect the realities of today’s brave new diverse, multicultural Minnesota. On Friday, they picked a new flag, subject to a bit more tweaking before the end of the year, and the commission did a terrific job: their new banner does indeed reflect the new Minnesota. Not everyone, however, thinks that’s a good thing.

The bad old Minnesota flag reflected the realities of a vanished America: it depicted a farmer plowing in the foreground while a Native American is riding a horse in the opposite direction in the background. The two figures are not interacting, and there is no indication of any discord between them, but one could conceivably understand the image as the white man supplanting the Native American as the owner and developer of the land, while the land’s original owner rides off into history.

It’s easy to see how that would not be acceptable to today’s Minnesotans, and why the Minnesota of Keith Ellison and Ilhan Omar would need, and indeed demand, a new flag that properly represents the fact that this is no longer the Minnesota of Hubert Humphrey, Harmon Killebrew and Mary Tyler Moore. And oh boy, did they get one.

The Minnesota media focused on the fact that the new flag features an abstract rendering of the shape of the state itself, plus a star, in keeping with its nickname, the North Star State. MPR News reported Friday: “What’s striped and shows a blocky figure of Minnesota and an eight-point North Star? Minnesota’s new state flag.” The Star Tribune said the same thing, albeit a trifle more sedately: “Minnesota’s next flag will feature an abstract shape of the state with an eight-pointed white North Star on its hoist.” No one who read these reports, however, would get any idea of what has raised eyebrows about the new flag.

The abstract Minnesota shape and the star are on the left side of the flag. Unmentioned is the fact that the design the commission chose, which could still be changed before year’s end, features three stripes on the right side. Are they red, white, and blue, to reflect Minnesota’s status as the thirty-second state to join the American Union? Come on, man! This is the new Minnesota we’re talking about, not the bad old systemically racist, white supremacist one. The new flag’s stripes are instead white, green, and blue.

White, green, and blue? Where did they get those colors? The new Minnesota flag bears a striking resemblance to the flag of Jubaland, a state in southern Somalia. Both flags feature one star on a blue field on the left and white, green, and blue stripes on the right. The flag of the new, woke Minnesota also shares numerous elements with the flag of Puntland, another Somali state. The Puntland flag also features white, blue, and green stripes and a single star, although in this case the star is centered within the top stripe, rather than being featured in a field on the left.

Minnesota, of course, is home to the largest Somali community in the United States. The results have not exactly been a resplendent advertisement for multiculturalism. The most significant contribution that Minnesota’s Somalis have made to the nation is sending Ilhan Omar (D-Mogadishu) to the House of Representatives. Also, as Fox News reported in 2019, “More men and boys from a Somali American community in Minneapolis have joined – or attempted to join – a foreign terrorist organization over the last 12 years than any other jurisdiction in the country.”

Related: Hamas Calls for Violence Against Americans, and So Does This Michigan Imam

The new flag’s adoption of Somali flag colors strongly implies that this community of new Minnesotans, despite the predilection of all too many of its members for jihad terrorism and far-left antisemitic congresswomen, is in the driver’s seat. Popular podcaster Tim Pool was succinct in his comment on the new Minnesota flag: “Yall are conquered.”

That certainly is how it looks. Instead of expecting the new Somali arrivals in Minnesota to become American, adopting American values, the new flag appears to be signaling that Minnesota has become Somalia. And given the prevailing idea these days that immigrants must retain their own customs, traditions and mores rather than adopting those of their new land, the North Star state is likely to get more and more Somali as the days and years inexorably pass.

1 note · View note

consistentlyexhausted · 1 year

Text

Sundays are Fun, aren't they?

I'm writing to you now from my living room sofa, in the middle of what can only be described as a somewhat frigid family meeting. Everyone is here, Mum, Dad, Myself, The Dog and even the two fish in the tank have made an appearance.

The attention of Tatty, my dog, is slipping. She is actively falling asleep on the armchair, and while I do admire her courage in this current atmosphere, she is letting the side down at the moment, making me yawn my head off alongside her.

While I was wanted downstairs by my Dad. Apparently, the speed at which I type is annoying to my mother. It is different from hers, I am much faster and do not do the Praying Mantis-style typing of people her age who aren't as technically inclined as I am.

So now I have returned to my first-floor freedom, my upstairs utopia to pour out such love for that woman to which I owe some gratitude for not only bringing me into this world but pushing me so far away from her that my relationship with my father is so strong.

Think of him as being something of a mother and father to me.

I don't like my living room for one reason and one reason alone, I feel as if it is some battleground, a tentative demilitarised zone between two countries that really want to tear the proverbial throat out of the other. Now it doesn't have the age and remoteness of the one between South and North Korea. It certainly doesn't have the pomp and seemingly lighthearted nature of that particular border crossing between India and Pakistan where they do that weird high kick thing and make faces at each other while fans and others cheer and clap.

No, my friends, this is a newer creation.

Now some for some context.

A few years back, when I was going through my GCSEs, my Mother had an operation to implant electrodes in and on the surface of her brain. This was to hopefully manage her condition of Cervical Spine Dystonia. Her brain would send the wrong signals to the muscles in her neck and pull on one side of them, dragging her chin and therefore her head, toward one of her shoulders.

It is a debilitating condition and she had an uphill battle to even see a specialist in London. That specialist introduced her to the idea of Deep Brain Stimulation, an incredible piece of technology used to treat everything from Parkinson's to Obssessive-Compulsive Disorder. There are also promising results now in people suffering from Tourette Syndrome and Huntington's Disease.

It is an incredible, life-changing technology and while not everyone is compatible with it, my mother was. It has changed her life and a quick Google search will show you some truly amazing videos of people with Parkinson's being able to finally hold a spoon and eat or drink a cup of water at just the press of a button.

The benefits of this operation are many but there have also been some really pronounced drawbacks.

Most notably, and one we were warned about by her surgeon was the chance she would lose her inhibitions, the filter between the mouth and mind that stops us from saying something awful.

Well, she lost that.

I think it changed her as a person.

Now don't get me wrong, I still love my mother but it has made our relationship difficult and her relationship with my brother is absolutely non-existent.

I'm not blameless, and neither is my brother. Circumstances, past grievances, and our own stubbornness have absolutely added to the situation.

My mother might have started changing at some point in my life, but I think I've suppressed many of the memories now. What I do know is that after this operation, immediately after, we noticed something was different.

In the bed opposite her was a woman in a very sad state. At some point, she might have had a brain hemorrhage and that meant that not only was she disabled, but she also relied on a tracheotomy tube so she could breathe. With that tube comes secretions and this woman was in some difficulty with them. She could not communicate her issues, due to her condition, and therefore the excellent team of doctors and nurses on the ward had the job of suctioning those out from time to time.

The noise was unpleasant and so was the talk but what made it all worse was my mother snapping at the doctors to please stop talking and making the noises as it was disgusting.

We should have seen the writing on the wall then as I mouthed an apology at the young doctor as he made to shut the curtains.

Now, not once in the years, my parents had been married, did she apologise to him. Over twenty years of not uttering the words I am sorry is some achievement.

That was the same for everyone in our family. She doesn't apologise and when she does, she doesn't mean it.

You might be beginning to understand now, dear reader, why our relationship is strained.

This lack of a filter has culminated in some of the cruelest things I have ever heard someone say to another. It was and still is mostly directed at my father, who is passive to the point that he won't argue back with her anymore. Whether that is through some conditioning or his nature, he just won't stand up to her unless she pushes him too far.

My dad has suffered from Depression since the pandemic when he was stuck at home, furloughed for an injury he sustained at work. He wanted to work, and he wanted to be out of the house but his company was saving a buck or two by not having him there (being paid rather well for what he was doing at the time).

Of course, that turned inwards, and because he was unable to do much, being in a leg brace as well, she started belittling him for being low. When we first saw signs of self-harm on him, she had the audacity to confront him in the worst way possible, calling him out on it while we were trying to enjoy a holiday.

I think most people, who could handle something like that, would do it in a much gentler way, maybe taking the aside and asking what they could do to help or encouraging them to give the article of harm to you.

This, of course, made it so much worse.

Now there is some private mental health history in our family that I do not yet feel comfortable sharing but, one part that I will, because it needs to be talked about is

My maternal grandfather.

He suffered from Bipolar Disorder, which type I do not know, and while my mother was pregnant with me, he came off of his medication and unfortunately committed suicide. I will not discuss why or how this was done but it happened.

My Maternal Grandmother had lost her battle with cancer some years before and while everyone was still reeling from that, another tragedy struck.

It was cruel, both diseases are so cruel.

As my mother had grown up in an incredibly dysfunctional household, it meant she also had a dysfunctional relationship with mental health. She doesn't handle others' struggles very well.

I won't slander her here, she's a product of so much tragedy that it can be expected and I can't entirely blame her for it.

But what I will say is this...

The operation, the loss of her inhibitions combined with the relationship with mental health issues have turned her into someone I really struggle to talk to.

When you get called miserable and gloomy, you begin to put up your walls. When you get told you're being dramatic, you start to lose faith.

It just so happens that every member of my immediate family has gone through depression at some point and some of us are still going through it. My support system is therefore triangular, not square.

My Dad, My brother, and I are our collective support system and we are all very close because we find it much easier to talk to one another.

Of course, this has bred some serious resentment as one can imagine. There is a keen lack of understanding there, somewhere.

And she lacks the accountability and reasoning to understand that some of it, might just be her fault, hence the never apologising part.

That might be a product of her upbringing.

Who knows.

But for now, the idea of limited to no contact after moving seems to be the only course of action to save my mental health.

I look forward to not having to walk on eggshells around my house.

Toodles

Scarlett

0 notes

kath-artic · 2 years

Text

i feel like ive talked about it so much at this point but its really impossible for me to overstate how much going to scotland like. healed me.

my whole life ive been so afraid of making mistakes because my brain just cannot imagine a future past them (ESPECIALLY regarding public transportation where i thought id just vanish if i missed my stop) and that fear melted away the moment i landed at my destination and ive come to realize that so much of that anxiety is my mom. ive also come to realize that i dont have to stay in new jersey just because my mom and most of her family never left (considering trying out the pnw or just generally somewhere more north). i think one of the absolute most healing experiences though was the little summer fling that i had during the program. we both had legitimate feelings for one another but live on opposite sides of the country and agreed to bookmark it until we wind up in the same place if that ever happens. we kind of wound up dragging things out over text until the other night where he said he wanted to focus on moving on for now before he falls any further into it because we just arent going to see each other face to face for a while and like. a lot of that dragging out was on my part and i recognize that its my desire to not leave things to chance and to keep some thread still attached so i can eventually find my way back but once that thread was "severed" i didnt feel the same crushing anxiety and loneliness i normally do. i cried that night but overall i feel ready to let life take me in a new direction and i trust that well find our way back to each other if thats whats meant to happen (same with my previous partner, which im also no longer suicidally depressed over). i think it was also the first truly healthy "relationship" ive ever been in. my first one was extremely abusive and left me with a lot of trauma that im still very much working through and my second one wound up just being timed poorly for both of us so that he needed a lot of space and i needed a lot of comfort which eventually evolved into me depending on him FAR too much because i had lost my house and had to live with him (DURING COVID so he was also pretty much the only person i was talking to in any meaningful way). i didnt have EVERYTHING in common with this guy like i did with the last but he was just. nice. he was just really really nice and made me feel important and listened to me and didnt always get it necessarily but he would just look at me like what i was saying was always incredible. it was also nice being the eccentric one (as much as i love being equally matched). idk just nice & good things <3

0 notes

yallashoot94 · 2 years

Text

How To Begin A Business With Only Watch Live Football Premier League Free

The Bears are expected to lose this next one by 6.5. Now might not be the very best time to take Chicago against the unfold since they've let down bettors for the past four consecutive video games. Get ready for an NFC North battle as the Chicago Bears. Cincinnati and Cleveland will face off in an AFC North battle at 1 p.m. The Seahawks and Arizona will face off in an NFC West battle at 4:25 p.m. You will need a VPN to mask your location if you aren't within the UK really to be in a position to look at Premier League dwell free. In case you are travelling and the Premier League streaming service you paid for is unavailable, a VPN can mask your location and alter it to your property country. VPNs are a useful function that can do a lot greater than unblock sites and mask locations. US soccer fans can tune in on USA Network to look at a Newcastle vs Arsenal dwell stream totally free with a FuboTV free trial.

youtube

Arsenal received the home assembly with the Magpies 2-0, with objectives from Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli, however this visit to Newcastle will not be straightforward. With travel restrictions now being relaxed around the globe, there's every likelihood you could end up abroad throughout the 2021/22 Premier League season, which implies you might discover you're unable to entry your ordinary football protection like you'll at home. To search out out more, click on right here. Here’s how to seek out out extra. Green Bay have gained 11 out of their last 13 games in opposition to Chicago. Arsenal might've been taught a lesson at Tottenham last Thursday but the excellent news for the Gunners is that their destiny continues to be in their fingers; so long as they match their rivals' remaining results a high-four place will likely be theirs. The 2021-22 EPL season will kick off from thirteen August 2021 - 22 May 2022. Each group enjoying every different staff in the league twice (home and away), there will likely be a complete of 380 matches in a single season! While the home side now has little to play for, that is not the case for Arsenal: qualification for the Champions League remains to be of their arms.

After two video games on the highway, the San Francisco 49ers are heading again dwelling. Be certain you understand how to look at a Newcastle vs Arsenal reside stream in 4K and wherever you're. Arsenal continue their quest for Champions League soccer on Monday as they make the lengthy journey up to St James' Park to face a Newcastle aspect that has little or no to play for. Can the Gunners make up for his or her latest North London Derby defeat? Can they buck the trend on Monday. With the world slowly getting back to regular, you can lastly take pleasure in these items once more. It’s the perfect time to try out the VPN, so you'll be able to try all the websites we advised for streaming the EPL. However, there isn't yalla live to make use of another channels or sites as they'll show each match. If we have not talked about your nation above however still need to use the channels and sites we instructed, a VPN is the best way to observe an EPL stream. We counsel you utilize a VPN to stream the EPL video games, even when at residence, to extend speeds and decrease loading instances. Telemundo: To stream the games in Spanish, you will want to use Telemundo for all the Spanish and Latin followers.

We'll now rephrase to soccer, as soccer is a very different sport in the US. So why not head over to ExpressVPN now and provides it a go? In addition they present all different football occasions, so keep that in thoughts when the EPL is over. As part of their plan to take over the world, Amazon Prime have secured the rights to show some of the highest video games of the EPL. DAZN: this is the central place to observe the EPL stream this season as they have bought full rights to stream and shall be showing all video games. NBC: The principle NBC can even present a number of games, but not as many as DAZN. And check out your internet pace is stable if you'd like to look at more comfy once more, as a result of for the most comfortable watch television on-line most definitely not the primary drag or with out buffering. Most of these services are utterly freed from value and would only require web and nothing extra. In the event you do, it means you may watch Premier League stay free. Telemundo: Also mentioned in the USA part, you may truly watch EPL free stream, even with out cable, which is so convenient.

#yalla shoot #yalla shoot live #yalla shoot online #yalla shoot kora #يلا شوت #يلا شوت لايف #يلا شوت مباشر #يلا شوت اون لاين #يلا شوت حصرى

1 note · View note

astrosweet · 3 years

Text

🔱✨Makeup in astrology✨🔱

Part 2

.⋆｡⋆˚｡⋆｡˚｡⋆｡⋆˚｡⋆. Neptune through the houses .⋆｡⋆˚｡⋆｡˚｡⋆｡⋆˚｡⋆

☆Neptune represents your flashy or showier side its the planet of illusions and rules over makeup, glamour, fashion, theatre, films, T.V. ( Neptune is like Venus minus relationships and romance).

☆Your Neptune placements/aspects can tell you about your makeup style and what will suit you best.

🔱 Neptune in the 6th house could be sensitive/allergic to makeup or it could break you out or you already use clean natural makeup. I would say try to take a break from it for about three days to see if it is affecting your skin but the 6th house is also the house of daily life so you wear it every day either because you like to or you have to wear a specific makeup look for work. your pet always watches you do your makeup. you probably do your makeup in a weird order like mascara first then foundation after that eyeshadow/liner or have a different approach to your makeup every day, but you do it so fast and probably without a mirror because the routine is branded in your brain. the 6th house is ruled by Virgo/ mercury so similar to the 3rd house the innocent and doe-eyed looks are gorgeous on you. also try to do something different with your makeup every day. a daily routine of artistic self-expression is important for you.

🔱 Neptune in the 7th house (this one was hard ngl. it's literally the opposite of self and individuality). People will admire your makeup. It's something you bonder with friends. your significant other can also love how you do your makeup. similar to the 1st house people can give you a lot of shit for your makeup or will use it as a quick jab to your ego but it's really because they're jealous of your beauty. the 2nd & 7th are ruled by Venus but the 7th/Libra energy is much more showy, masculine, and dramatized glamor compared to 2nd/Taurus which is more of sweet feminine glamour. this placement kinda reminds me of New Year's makeup lol but really glamorous and extravagant yet you still want some classiness compared to just a normal party look. gold looks great on you and as well as bronzy contour.

🔱 Neptune in the 8th house. I have this placement so I'm gonna try to not project myself onto this one. but tell me why we all had an fx/gore makeup phase lol. your makeup is bought by someone else or just not with your money. you could also get makeup from other people like the stuff they never used. when you go through transformations you change the way you do your makeup. your makeup is dark even if you didn't mean for it to be. mascara will always smudge and look like you used lower eyeliner so might as well just add some lower line eyeshadow anyways. darker makeup looks best on you but if you are not comfortable with the dark looks just add a little brown (I just use my bronzer) as eyeliner. just a little flick on the end and maybe some on the lower lash line. overall this placement gives me maleficent vibes. you can get Inspo from people who are sex symbols or exude dominant femme fatale energy. Neptune in the 8th house can be really secretive with their creativeness and self-expression and a lesson you have to learn this life is to claim your power and natural creative talents and learn to show them to the world. we naturally have bad bitch, femme fatale energy so embrace it bb ;). you have the power to manifest creative abilities if you want.

🔱 Neptune in the 9th house you could be into culturally different kinds of makeup like Korean makeup, or French makeup, also you could be into cosplay or specific aesthetics like dark academia, and cottage core. you might have lived in a strict household and you were not been allowed to wear makeup. or it's just something that didn't interest you till you got older. as you get older you get better at doing your makeup and if you are good at it and like a specific niche the best look for you is bronzy and sun-kissed. you could be into different makeup aesthetics from different countries and generally like to be adventurous with your makeup.

🔱 Neptune in the 10th house. you could have gotten public praise for your makeup or for being creative. Creative careers are generally best for you. you also could have been told that you need to wear makeup in public or at work. your father(or if you have a dominant mother) could have also been kinda an ass about you and makeup. if you're not into makeup now and you are young you might learn how to do it because it will be an expectation in your career when you're older. bronzy looks and heavy contour can look good on you as well as dramatic but neutrals in more of a glamour way.

🔱 Neptune in the 11th house. you probably learned to do makeup through YouTube and friends. I know you have a makeup inspo Pinterest board with a thousand pins in it. makeup can be a creative outlet for you. a common interest you have with your friends is makeup and beauty gurus.. this placement also gives me euphoria vibezz. y'all can pull off crazy wild looks. the 11th house is ruled by Aquarius which reminds me of blue/greens and glitter lol. also pale regal-like skin and soft features. post ur looks on TikTok/ YouTube/insta you have luck with publishing ur art and posting it can be a service to people by inspiring them and teaching people

🔱 Neptune in the 12th house. I love this energy Pisces rules both Neptune and the 12th house. though this placement does kinda remind me of Neptune in the 8th where you keep your talents and creative abilities a secret. you can get inspiration from your dreams. or your dream of being showier with your talents. a big lesson for you in this lifetime is understanding and showing your hidden talents as well as overcoming the fear of judgment towards your creative abilities. you're amazing at drunk makeup. if Pisces is dominant in ur chart then you won't be as shy with your skills. light blush on ur cheekbones will look amazing on you also white liner in your waterline. and reddish-pink lips but not overdramatic. similar to the 8th you have the power to manifest creative abilities if you want.

Sorry this one took a while I posted part 1 on my birthday and we all know a Leo birthday is not just one day it's a Multi-day event lol.

this one was kind of hard to write bc my birth chart is very left side dominate. part 1 was more intuitive and natural for me to write but for part 2 I had to do a lot more research which my Gemini north node loved. so let me know if you resonate :)

823 notes · View notes

siumerghe · 2 years

Text

My Ukrainian friends are writing on twitter about their experiences in a country that was peaceful yesterday and now turned into a war zone. When I see their posts I’m both scared for them - and relieved: they are posting means they are alive.

My husband’s relatives are being bombed by Russian troops. We can’t contact some of them.

My husband’s father is dying from cancer. He’s been urgently hospitalized this week yet we can’t even travel there to see him, possibly for the last time!

Meanwhile in my native city in Russia (as well as in other Russian cities, big and small) people are being beaten and arrested for daring to protest against the war.

(Photo by @merr1k on twitter)

My mother who is living alone in Russia was scared and crying during our last call. She never supported Putin, she never voted for him or for his political parties. Now she can’t stop watching the news, horrified. We haven’t seen each other since Covid, and now the EU borders for ordinary Russian citizens may be closed, as many countries start to deny them visas. It’s the Iron Curtain all over again, enforced from both sides.

There are many Russians who support this war - but many of them are against it! They protest on the streets, they donate to Ukrainian charities, they spread news on social media, they fight the official propaganda, they support their Ukrainian friends however they can. Look at #нетвойне and other Russian tags on twitter, FB and Instagram.

Russia =/= Putin!

Citizens of the Free World, demand actions from your politicians! This war must be stopped!

Asking for direct military support is useless, as Putin threatened to use nuclear weapons in case of third party military intervention.

Please, don’t demand sanctions that harm common people! There is a misconception - or, worse, a comfortable lie spread by some Western politicians - that if you put enough pressure on Russian citizens they will arise and remove Putin (while the EU can continue buying Russian oil and gas). What a bullshit! Just look at North Korea. Better yet, look at Belarus where people kept protesting en masse - yet Lukashenko is still there. And Lukashenko has only a tiny fraction of money, manpower and other resources that Putin has!

To those who don’t know: Russians have been protesting against Putin for the last 10+ years at least! And every time the repressions hit them harder and harder, while the world continued to accept Putin as a legitimate and “non-toxic” leader. The world didn’t even think to boycott the Football Championship in Russia in 2018, despite this year hundreds of political activists were arrested or forced to flee the country - this was one of the darkest years for the Russian opposition. So, when Russians had strength to fight, the world didn’t care. And now, when all independent media are silenced, all opposition leaders are killed, jailed or had to flee, all their organizations are destroyed, and the special anti-riot police force is created and trained (in addition to the regular and special police), the world wonders why Russians don’t protest as actively as people in democratic Tbilisi or Amsterdam?!

A common citizen is helpless against armored soldiers and anti-riot vehicles. In Russia, those who go on the streets are being fired from work, expelled from universities, sentenced to pay huge fines that make them bankrupt, arrested and put in jail. Parents are threatened that their children will be taken from them. Women detained at protests experience sexual harassment and humiliations. If you as much as touch a policeman this is equal to assault and guarantees you several years in prison. And modern Russian prisons are worse than Gulag: in Gulag prisoners were forced to work, in modern Russia they are tortured and raped for money and fun. So yeah, people are afraid, many feel helpless. Yet many in Russia still have courage to protest!

If you demand sanctions against Russia insist on those that either stop money influx for Putin so that he won’t be able to pay his troops and continue the war, or create pressure on his close circle so that they would off him or remove from power.

EU, stop buying Russian gas and oil! This is the main source of Putin’s power. The war in Ukraine is funded by European money! It’s been 8 years since the conflict in Ukraine has started, yet you continued to pay him all these years! First you make Putin the richest dictator on Earth - and then you hope that Russian plumbers, teachers, housewives and teenagers overthrow him?! What a joke! Instead, ask the Netherlands to open Groningen gas field again. It is the largest natural gas field in Europe and one of the largest in the world - you don’t have to depend on Russian gas to warm your homes!

UK, you’ve been for years thriving on investments from corrupt Russian officials, your capital is their biggest laundromat, they own palaces, newspapers, football clubs, businesses and what not, London is their second home so that their children don’t even speak Russian, some of your politicians are known to receive bribes from Russian oligarchs and Putin’s friends! Don’t tell me you didn’t know that these money are dirty! Perhaps, it’s time to investigate?! And not only in UK, but in Switzerland, Italy, Germany and other EU countries as well?!

I understand people’s anger but please don’t harass ordinary Russians living abroad, don’t destroy or boycott their small businesses. They chose to live and work abroad precisely because they don’t support Putin’s regime! Many of them literally HAD TO flee, despite their will - because of their political views or sexual orientation.

Many Ukrainian citizens are ethnical Russians. Many Russian citizens are ethnical Ukrainians. Many are of the mixed descent. Even President Zelensky’s native language is Russian! Are you sure you are harassing the right person?! (*that’s sarcasm as harassment is never ok*) Yesterday two of my friends living together in Czechia had their nameplates on the house splashed with red paint - yet one of them is Russian, the other is Ukrainian, and both are against the war!

If you want to be of REAL help for Ukraine:

- Donate to Ukrainian charities! - Demand actions from your politicians! - Help Ukrainian refugees! - Ask your governments not to close borders for Ukrainians! - Spread information on social media - but ALWAYS FACT CHECK! Be extra-careful for misinformation. - NEVER spread information about movements of Ukrainian troops! If you see such posts - either ask to remove them or report. - Don’t spread hate: by doing so, you are alienating Russian population and play in favor of Putin’s propaganda! Everyone who is against this war should stand united now, no matter ethnicity or citizenship!

We are living in a nightmare now, but this nightmare has to stop and never be repeated! Peace for Ukraine! And freedom for Russia!

#ukraine #russia #нет войне #no war #russia ukraine war

79 notes · View notes

vvienne · 2 years

Text

ZUKKA FIC RECS

Through the Ice Darkly by chuffystilton

“You know what I think? I think we both hold different pieces of the same puzzle, and we can only solve it if we work together. You and I – we’re on the opposite sides of a century-long mystery.” “We’re also on the opposite sides of a war,” Zuko said drily.

Sokka flapped a hand. “Small details.”

“Not to the people you invaded.”

A century after the Northern Water Tribe attacked, two years after the Avatar’s sudden emergence from the ice and snow – why does the world feel more unbalanced than ever? Zuko and Azula are on the quest for an answer.

ASYLUM by asfearlessasamango

asylum, noun 1. (Dated): an institution offering shelter and support to people who are mentally ill. 2. Shelter or protection from danger.

Or, if Zuko was Azula, trapped in a golden palace with no family but Fire Lord Ozai for years. If Zuko was Azula, now trapped in a marble asylum with no way out that he can see. If Sokka visited. And the complications of a whole world followed.

like the sun inside of you by ofherlionheart

Sokka's expression is caught somewhere between determined and pissed off when he says, “I know you think this is your responsibility. But you’re not going to be alone in this. This is why we’re building you a council.”

“I know,” Zuko says.

“And the only way you’re going to die having done nothing but sit in meetings is if you let yourself do that. You’re not a bad leader if you take a break now and then.”

Zuko scowls. “What, so people can then say at least my father wasn’t lazy?”

Sokka tilts his head. “Don’t you think there’s a difference between laziness and, I don’t know, choosing life and happiness in spite of a terrible dad who tried to take both from you?”

----------

Zuko is sixteen years old when he’s handed a crown, a throne, and a hundred-year ancestral legacy of colonial imperialism. He’s not scared of the work; he’s scared of being consumed by the responsibilities and burdens he’s claimed. What Zuko doesn’t quite realize, yet, is that he’s not alone in this.

oh damage (sweet damage) by interstellar_silence

Sokka doesn’t expect bringing Zuko home with him to go perfectly, but he also doesn’t expect to have to find a way to salvage the summer after it goes exactly as poorly as Zuko had thought it would.

And Sokka certainly doesn’t expect the biggest obstacle to be his dad.

victory lap by dickpuncher420

And then the countries start filing out onto the stage, one by one. And then it’s their turn to step out of the tunnel, into the heart of the National Stadium, into the blinding lights and the deafening cheers and the music that pounds into every bone in his body. And then it finally hits him.

He’s here.

—

Sokka is twenty-two years old when he qualifies for the Olympics.

the firebender’s guide to living life after destiny by chuffystilton

Sokka looked around the throne room with interest. “I always wondered what the world was like from up here - must be nice looking out at your adoring subjects.”

“Being the Fire Lord is pretty dull,” Zuko said glumly, "unless you enjoy hearing people bicker about taxes. After a while, thwarting the occasional assassination is basically a form of stress relief."

In which Fire Lord Zuko and Ambassador Sokka get drunk, go fishing, watch theatre, uncover a conspiracy, visit a teahouse, destroy a historical monument, and reckon with the painful legacy of the past – but not necessarily in that order. [PODFIC AVAILABLE]

The Caged Dragon Sings by AvocadoLove

There have been Omega Fire Lord's in the past, but that had been during times of peace. Zuko is still surprised when Ozai recalls him to the Fire Nation one year into his banishment.

(Everyone has ideas of who he is to marry. No one expects him to decide for himself.)

Boomerangs and Rainbows by mindbending

At Sokka’s behest, the Gaang skips rescuing Zuko during the Siege at the North Pole. Instead they leave him, unconscious, buried in the snow.

In completely unrelated news, Sokka’s haunted by a ghost now.

Unchained Melody by AvocadoLove

Sokka is a man of science, and science says ghosts aren't real. So, he can't be dead... Right?

Too bad science can't explain why the only person who can see or hear him is Prince Angry Jerk.

War Crimes by Lovely_Elbow_Leech

Book one ends with two major diffrences: 1. Sokka went on the mission with Hahn (it did not go well) 2. Zhao survives the North Pole and that proves unfortunate for everybody (except Zhao, obviously)

Imprisoned on Zhao’s war ship, Sokka and Zuko have to work together to survive. They are not very enthusiastic about this prospect.

And they argue.

A lot.

this love burns so yellow (becoming orange and in its time, exploding) by meliebee

Ten months after Zuko is crowned at seventeen, he faces his first coup.

lover, be good to me by shadowhokage

Sokka has an affinity for pet names.

(Spoiler: It’s contagious.)

The Stingray by Smediterranea

“You’re not carrying me.”

“I don’t mind,” the lifeguard says easily.

“I can just hop over.”

“On sand?”

Zuko will never admit it, but being carried feels pretty nice. The lifeguard sets him down and eyes him warily.

“Are you really all by yourself?” he asks in a worried tone. “No friends in town you can call to check on you?”

“No,” Zuko confirms. Tears are forming again with alarming speed; his foot throbs painfully with every passing second.

“What kind of burrito do you want?”

“You don’t have to —“ Zuko repeats.

“I’m getting al pastor. You like al pastor?”

AU: Zuko falls for Sokka, the super hot lifeguard who helps him after an unfortunate encounter with a stingray.

practice makes perfect by aiyah

Unfortunately, when it comes to the horizontal tango, Sokka has two left feet. Luckily for him, all he needs is a good tutor. Enter: Zuko.

(do you take this jerk to be) your one and only by jatersade

Under the leadership of Fire Lord Iroh, the Fire Nation has made every attempt to restore peace and make amends for the harm they inflicted during the Seventy-Year War. Their newest proposal is a literal proposal: a marriage to unite the Fire Nation and the Water Tribes.

The Fire Nation offers Prince Zuko’s hand.

The Water Tribes offer Princess Yue’s.

Sokka is apparently the only person in the world who has a problem with any of this.

Real Slow by surveycorpsjean

“I see.” Zuko closes the scroll. “Is the Water Tribe sending a replacement?”

“Uh yeah,” Sokka gestures to himself dramatically. “You’re looking at him.”

#zukka #atla #atla recs #fic recs #zuko #sokka #I’ll probs add more as I read more #zukka fic recs

143 notes · View notes