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#since the ST socials are doing their character recaps
0aurelion-sol0 · 3 years
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Four main (playable) characters #2
Stranger Things 4 NSA #3
So in almost an hour, Netflix will be live streaming the third day of an event called Geeked Week. During this event, Netflix celebrates all their shows and movies and gives exclusive trailers, teasers and sneak peeks about future stories.
While they were announcements made on social media by unofficial but reliable and trusted sources, nothing was confirmed...
Until now.
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"We're not in Hawkins anymore"
It's confirmed there is something coming related to Stranger Things, moreover it's the first thing that we see in the description so there must be something coming from this. From some sources, it has been said that we will get a sneak peek from ST.
Before you start going in a frenzy, let's take a look at all of the options that we have before jumping to conclusions. It could be something big but it could also be something small.
The 003/004 teaser, the third teaser centered around a character:
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So as you may know, we had two teasers from ST4. One centered around Hopper and one centered around Eleven each representing what these two characters storyline will be in season 4.
What interesting is that Stranger Things Twitter once posted four images of four different characters, Hopper, Eleven, Joyce and Will with the number 4 next to them.
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Many assume and rightfully so that this is indicating that there will be four teasers showing the four main storylines this season.
We already got El and Hopper, the only two left are Joyce and Will.
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Even if I am skeptical about the main plotline that could carry Joyce next season. If some of the theories about Joyce's demise in season 4 ends up being true, it would make sense that they would give her one last important storyline next season.
Moreover every teaser so far had something to do with parenthood especially fatherhood. Hopper because he is a father and because Hopper has a lot of trauma due to what he experienced as a father but also because the last sound in his teaser is the Demogorgon which is called in D&D: "The Deep Father". This could indicate that we might go deeper in Hopper's psyche and his past.
Eleven was Brenner who was an abusive father figure to her and put her through a great deal of trauma and we could see more of her past with him maybr giving a new meaning to some of her interactions in season 1.
Now if there is a third teaser something related to that could appear in the teaser and the most likely candidate is Will who also had an abusive father who would be horrible to him because of his sexuality. Lonnie's actor has also been seen on set. It is also pride month and Will's sexuality has always been pointing him to be gay in the show, including some of his interactions with Mike. Father's day is also really close as it takes place June 20th during pride month, it would be very fitting if the teaser for Will would be dropped now.
For Joyce, Mother's day was not so long ago but considering there's more hint for Will, I think he is the most likely candidate. But you never know, Eleven's teaser had very secret easter eggs for why her teaser dropped at this moment. Maybe something related to Joyce's past ?
The reveal of the episode titles:
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Now this could happen as we don't know anything about the episode titles yet and it would be a fitting anouncement during an event that celebrates Netflix's stories since it's an event that seems to be extremely centered around the narrative of their stories.
Moreover if the release is scheduled to be in early 2022, it would fit with the title tease of Season 2 and 3 who all took place one year before the release.
"In the Fall of 1984..."
"In the Summer of 1985..."
Could the adventure continue "In the Spring of 1986"?
An update on the filming with, or Behind The Scenes footage (possibly short interviews):
Now this is a possibility rather than a full blown teaser, we could have a look at some BTS footage with interviews and a recap by the crew and cast of ST until season 4 drops.
Or something a little bit smaller like new characters revealed or a new cast member coming in the ST crew. Maybe a small update from the set like how are they moving into the filming.
Though since they haven't finished filming, it would also be unlikely that we might get something like that.
A literal Sneak Peek:
Maybe we could literally have a scene or a clip of season 4. As I said, maybe a bit unlikely but they could decide to give us some sort of overall view of what season 4 is going to be about. Like maybe the first minutes of Season 4, to show where our characters are and what they are doing.
Or maybe something smaller introducing a key setting or element in ST4.
Pretty unlikely but you never know, Stranger Things is extremely unpredictable in it's promotion.
An 80's ad:
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Why not ? Something like the promo for season 3 and Starcourt Mall but with a drastic change of tone. This could mirror it but this time instead of being about the quiet, happy, beautiful and thriving town of Hawkins, it could be about all the terrible and horrific events that takes place in this town but with a more serious tone. Maybe Nancy doing some journalism stuff and reporting about something happening in a certain place or in Hawkins overall.
Or an update on the economic problems of the town, the Hellfire Club and the view of the townspeople have on this club, what the army is doing and a hint about the supernatural plot of the season if there is one and if it is in Hawkins.
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Whatever it is, we will probably dissect the hell out of it, as always. 😏
Stranger Things 4 | Sneak Peek
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Conageddon: Richard Harmon’s Panel + associated stuff
Disclaimer from the last post: So it’s just my luck that immediately after posting my Richard/Luisa recap, a whole bunch of the Conageddon panels including that one became available online! I definitely encourage people to check them out!
Unfortunately the people who taped them missed Luisa’s solo panel and Richard’s solo panel. So I will still share what I remember and notes from those.
SUNDAY RICHARD PANEL
- I'll admit *I* actually missed the beginning of this because I was in the auto line for Bob with a friend. (”How’s Richard treating you?” were in fact the first words Bob said to me, which made me feel The Betrayal a bit, lol. Also side note, I went so blank on anything to say to Bob that I had to get up and ask a question at his Q&A later just because I thought of something after the fact.)
- Anyway uh... I did finally get over there, and he was wearing this.
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- Via twitter learned one of the first questions was whether Murphy sees himself as a bad guy. He answered that Murphy does think he’s a bad guy, but he as Richard doesn’t think Murphy’s a bad guy. ;__;
- Asked if he could only use one word for the rest of the day, what would it be? He went with “cute” because you can use it a lot of different ways, say it sarcastically, etc. It became a running joke in response to things for the rest of the panel, he would just deadpan in an annoyed voice, Cute.
- His next project is a guest role on a show he didn’t name but it’s already on the air and has some of the same writers from “Continuum”. (Can anyone figure this out? “Van Helsing” maybe?) They offered him a multi-episode part as a villain and human trafficker involved in bad things.
- Someone asked a question about Murphy's relationship with alcohol, we've only ever seen him drink a little or when he was getting trashed in the bunker. SPOILER: Murphy being "drunk" a lot is something that we’ll see in season six. Then Richard -- green mustache and all -- actually went into a serious riff about how he drinks socially in real life but tries to avoid doing it for the wrong reasons, out of anger or sadness, and it sounds like that’s where Murphy is and that’s not a healthy coping mechanism for him.
- Someone opened a question saying Murphy is her husband’s favorite character and he proudly calls himself an asshole. Richard was like “your husband has good taste, and he [Murphy] is an asshole, nothing wrong with that.”
- Honestly the real gem of this panel was the long answer to the question of whether Murphy could be more stable if they were in peacetime again. This was the response I summarized on twitter as "talking soberly about mental health and the importance of seeking help while wearing a green mustache." Because it was very moving and I’ll try to remember the gist of it -- he was talking about how he likes to think Murphy could fight his demons because he is a fighter, in reality he probably needs therapy, but his answer as an actor is always that Murphy is more *fun* and interesting to play when he's dark. His demons are part of him, he's not a happy person. He went back to the "vial of poison" metaphor he’s used before, like Venom it feels good and keeps him alive when he lets the poison in.
- ...But also thinking about mental illness consciously as a part of Murphy especially since season 5, there's a responsibility that comes with talking about it. (Actually one of the con staff jumped onto the mic and was talking about how important therapy was to his family and Richard was like “yes, thank you for taking what I said that way.”) He likes Murphy the way he is but he never wants to give off the idea that real people are beyond help. He was very emphatically like: help is out there, life is worth living right and being happy, and Murphy isn't beyond that but he can't get it because it's a TV show and it's more fun for him to be fucked-up.
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- An audience member commented about how well Murphy seems to work and have an interesting relationship with every character on the show, from someone like Emori who he has a long relationship with to Abby who he only had a couple of scenes with. Richard appreciated that and said he's always liked that about Murphy, that you can throw him in with anyone and he's a great accessory. “Leaving Emori out” (thanks, question-asker) who is his favorite person to play off of? He answered Bellamy. He repeated what he's said before about thinking if Murphy was going to die, he (Richard) would want Bellamy to kill him. Bringing it full circle from when they both wanted each other dead, now it would be different but Bellamy would still have to be the one to put him down.
- I remembered something else! He talked about McCreary and how he would’ve liked to do more exploring the parallel between him and Murphy, which he acknowledged they didn’t go that far with. He thinks that Murphy saw and respected him in a weird way. They have the same kind of poison running through them, but for Murphy it’s something he really is trying to keep under control.
- He talked about how he always saw Murphy as very smart. Even from the beginning when he was described in the script as an idiot, he didn't want to play him that way. He's not educated but he's a chess player -- however, sometimes he gets impatient and jumps ahead moves. An audience member said they thought Murphy would make a good FBI agent or something in the real world, but Richard said he could just as easily be unemployed because he’d never get past a job interview.
- Audience member compared Murphy to Loki (mythical, not the Marvel one), but Richard said the figure he really based him on in the beginning was Lucifer -- I can’t remember the whole answer, but being like the fallen/cast-out one who was alongside Bellamy and then wanted to overthrow him. And then later Vegeta from Dragon Ball Z. ;)
OTHER RICHARD STUFF
- Like I said in another post, twitter user murphybeiiamy/Noemie had sold me her Richard Harmon VIP badge even though I was on a low budget since no one had offered her the ticket price for it. I am eternally grateful for that. I did witness the Memori Beer Pong thing in person. Other things included were the meet & greet which has its own post, solo photo and selfie... boy am I glad I chose to go for those on the right days, ‘cause I don’t think Emori + Insane St. Patrick’s Day Richard would’ve meshed as well as this: 
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- I also got the Jealous Emori sequel to my UD photo op. They were so game for everything! They had taken their “honeymoon” picture shortly before this and left the flowers on for the rest of the session. *g* I should thank Lindsey Morgan again for the completely unnecessary wrapping-her-leg-around-me pose, because it’s the first thing they noticed in the picture and made sure to replicate it with Richard’s leg. XD
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The next day I told him that I really appreciated everything he said on the panel about mental health and I feel the same conflict about just wanting Murphy to be okay but thinking then he's a better character *because* he is fucked up and that's why he's identifiable. I gave him the Murphy playlist, his eyes kind of perked up and glanced over at Luisa when I said I'd given her one too. I warned him his had more dark & sad songs on it than hers did (tbh I think his turned out better), and he was like that’s GOOD, he wants all the sad songs. So yeah... he seemed to be legit into it as a gift and I believe and hope he will also listen to it. <3
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- Finally, if you made it to the end of this post, please watch this video of Richard Harmon and Chelsey Reist doing Jameson shots and casually donating $1000 between them to CURE Childhood Cancer. I love my chaotic-good son.
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gaymusicchart · 5 years
Video
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GAY MUSIC CHART – 2019 week 03
 Welcome to the Gay Music Chart, the LGBTQA related music videos TOP 50 actuality and most request.
Please notice that we received dozens of suggestions, and it's impossible to present all of them in the same week edition because the video would be too long. We have three months three months late to catch up, so it will take some times.
 Vote for your favourite LGBTQA related music videos by leaving a comment for this post on :
YOUTUBE (in the comment section of the video of the week) : https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCz7yfp-xq-b08tD6mAWwclA
BLOGGER : http://gaymusicchart.blogspot.fr
FACEBOOK : https://www.facebook.com/GayMusicChart/
TWITTER : https://twitter.com/GayMusicChart with #GayMusicChart  
TUMBLR : http://gaymusicchart.tumblr.com  
 Here are some partners who also makes LGBT charts or presents some LGBT artists :
https://tadslgbtmusiccharts.blogspot.com/
http://picdeer.com/gaymusicgram
Don’t hesitate to visits their sites !
 Here is the recap for this week :
 OUT : morgxn feat. WALK THE MOON - "Home" LW: 25 / WO: 1 / PEAK: 25
OUT : Aaron Yan 炎亞綸 - "Mad Wave of Love"【狂愛潮浪 】LW: 26 / WO: 1 / PEAK: 26
OUT : Courtney Act - "Fight For Love" LW: 27 / WO: 1 / PEAK: 27
OUT : SOFI TUKKER & Pabllo Vittar - "Energia" (Parte 2) LW: 29 / WO: 1 / PEAK: 29
OUT : Echo Black - "Poison Apple" LW: 37 / WO: 1 / PEAK: 37
OUT : Alex Palmieri - "If That Was You" LW: 39 / WO: 1 / PEAK: 39
OUT : Cher - "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)" [Audio] LW: 41 / WO: 8 / PEAK: 03
OUT : Ria Mae feat. Frank Kadillac - "Hold Me" LW: 42 / WO: 1 / PEAK: 42
OUT : Chris(tine and the Queens) - "5 dollars" LW: 44 / WO: 5 / PEAK: 15
OUT : Hoshi - "Ta marinière" LW: 46 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 39
OUT : Dani Ride - "No Existe Nada" LW: 47 / WO: 1 / PEAK: 47
OUT : Christine and the Queens - "La marcheuse" LW: 48 / WO: 1 / PEAK: 48
  01 (+ 1) : Calvin Harris, Sam Smith - "Promises"
LW: 02 / WO: 7 / PEAK: 01 (x1)
UK - 2018
 02 (- 1) : Calum Scott - "No Matter What"
LW: 01 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 01 (x1)
UK - 2018 - from the album "Only Human" (Special Edition)
This really personnal song tells the story of Calum Scott telling his parents he was gay and their reactions of loving him "no matter what". It's a deep and emotional power ballad.
 03 (=) : Jax Jones, Years & Years - "Play"
LW: 03 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 03
UK - 2018 - from the EP "Snacks"
A music video as a Play-doh toy.
 04 (NEW) : Troye Sivan - "Lucky Strike"
LW: - / WO: 1 / PEAK: 04
Australia - 2019 - from the album "Bloom"
Another pop love song from the sweetest prince of this chart.  
 05 (+ 25) : Bilal Hassani - "Roi" (Lyrics Video)
LW: 30 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 05
France - 2019
Bilal Hassani is a famous French singer and YouTuber. He has a lot of devoted fans, but also a lot of haters, who bullying him and threatening him to death on social networks. This song, which talks about proud and self esteem, seems to change some people. At first, it made a huge buzz in France and was in the TOP 3 of the French singles sales. Then, several people wrote in the comments section of his video on YouTube that they didn't liked him before because of his manierism and his wiggs, but have changed their minds since they saw this lyric video, because they love the song and respect his courage to face with intolerance and be who he is despite the hate on social networks. Now, he won by far the first semi-final of Destination Eurovision 2019. Will he won the French contest and fly to Tel Aviv in May to represent France at the Eurovision Song Contest ? The answer next week !
 06 (- 1) : Charli XCX & Troye Sivan - "1999"
LW: 05 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 05
UK / Australia - 2018
The music video is a real revival of what made the year 1999.
 07 (+ 7) : Sam Smith - "Fire On Fire"
LW: 14 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 07
UK - 2018 - from the OST "Watership Down"
"Watership Down" is a BBC mini-series adaptation of the book, which tells the story about a warren of rabbits fighting to survive numerous perils as they search for a new home.
 08 (- 1) : Panic! At The Disco - "High Hopes"
LW: 07 / WO: 5 / PEAK: 06
USA - 2018 / from the album "Pray For The Wicked"
 09 (+ 3) : Blair St. Clair - "Irresistible"
LW: 12 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 09
USA - 2018 - from the EP "Call My Life"
This is the third single of her first EP. Her EP was #1 on Billboard
Dance/Electronic Albums Sales Chart.
 10 (- 4) : Years & Years - "All For You"
LW: 06 / WO: 13 / PEAK: 01 (x1))
UK - 2018 / from the album "Palo Santo"
 11 (- 3) : Peter Wilson & Sean Smith - "Verona"
LW: 08 / WO: 8 / PEAK: 01 (x2)
UK - 2018 / from the album "The Passion and The Flame"
This awesome cover of the 2017's Estonian Eurovision track from Koit Toome and Laura is produced by Matt Pop.
 12 (+ 1) : Sam Bluer - "Body High"
LW: 13 / WO: 9 / PEAK: 03
Australia - 2018
This is his debut music video. A revelation.
 13 (+ 7) : Allen King feat. Amor Romeira - "My Boy"
LW: 20 / WO: 4 / PEAK: 03
Spain - 2018
 14 (+ 7) : Halsey - "Without Me"
LW: 21 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 14
USA - 2018
Her latest music video has 60 millions views on YouTube.
 15 (- 6) : Theo X - "You Don't Wanna Dance"
LW: 09 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 09
Denmark - 2018
In this cute music video, a young teen dares to give an invitation to dance to another boy. Love is love.
 16 (- 6) : Urgence Homophobie - "De l'Amour"
LW: 10 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 10
France - 2018
As homophobic attacks have increased by 15% in 2018 in France, 70 French celebrities made this song to fight homophobia.
 17 (NEW) : Westlife - "Hello My Love"
LW: - / WO: 1 / PEAK: 17
Ireland - 2019
The members are reunited after a break of 6 years and a half !
 18 (+ 31) : Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper - "Shallow"
LW: 49 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 18
USA - 2018 - from the OST "A Star Is Born"
This song won the Golden Globe for Best Original Song 2018. The movie is about seasoned musician Jackson Maine (Bradley Cooper) discovers-and falls in love with-struggling artist Ally (Gaga). She has just about given up on her dream to make it big as a singer - until Jack coaxes her into the spotlight. But even as Ally's career takes off, the personal side of their relationship is breaking down, as Jack fights an ongoing battle with his own internal demons.
 19 (- 4) : Tiago Braga - Ilusão
LW: 15 / WO: 20 / PEAK: 06
Portugal - 2018
A story of infidelity.
 20 (+ 4) : Greyson Chance - "Good As Gold" 
LW: 24 / WO: 4 / PEAK: 20
USA - 2018
The song was already in our chart in September, but the music video was released during our break.
 21 (+ 1) : Troye Sivan and Jónsi - "Revelation" (Lyric video)
LW: 22 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 21
Australia / Iceland - 2018 - from the OST "Boy Erased"
The song was nominated on the 2019 Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song. The movie "Boy Erased" follows the son of Baptist parents who is forced to take part in a gay conversion therapy program.
 22 (- 18) : Mark Ronson feat. Miley Cyrus - "Nothing Breaks Like a Heart"
LW: 04 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 04
USA - 2018
An excellent collab.
 23 (- 4) : Jake Shears - "Everything I'll Ever Need"
LW: 19 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 19
USA - 2018 - from the album "Jake Shears"
This is the third single of his first solo album.
 24 (+ 11) : LP - "Recovery"
LW: 35 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 24
USA - 2018 - from the album "Heart To Mouth"
This is the second single of her latest album.
 25 (- 2) : Michael Medrano - "Love Somebody Else"
LW: 23 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 23
USA - 2018
The song was previously presented in our chart, but the music video was only released during our break.
 26 (- 9) : Jeff Carl - "Buried in New York"
LW: 17 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 17
USA - 2018
The music video shows the singer living his first months of celibacy in New York but realizing that he hasn’t totally forgotten his previous love relationship.
 27 (NEW) : Scott Free - "We Honor The Dead" (World Martyrs)
LW: - / WO: 1 / PEAK: 27
USA - 2019
A tribute to engaged LGBTQ men and women who died while defending LGBTQ Rights around the world.
 28 (- 10) : Kevin Chomat - "La vague"
LW: 18 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 18
France - 2018 - from the album "Mon renouveau"
This is the second single taken from his second album.
 29 (NEW) : Allen King - "Mejor Me Quedo Solo"
LW: - / WO: 1 / PEAK: 29
Spain - 2019
After the success of his previous single "Boy", here the new single of the famous pornstar. Shake your bon bon on this sensual rythm !
 30 (NEW) : Federica Abbate - "Finalmente"
LW: - / WO: 1 / PEAK: 30
Italy - 2018
This song came second in the first part of the Sanremo Giovani 2018 Music Festival for emergent artists. The lyrics talk about a love relationship badly judged by the entourage. If the lyrics aren't specifically gay, the music video is, with the portrayal of a young man who comes out to his father who rejects him in return. So, the young man can only be reconforted by his boyfriend and his friends. Until... Beautiful.
 31 (NEW) : Eddy de Pretto - "Grave"
LW: - / WO: 1 / PEAK: 31
France - 2019 - from the album "Culte"
The queer rapper was definitely the best new French artist revealed in 2018. He's praised for his lyrics by public and critics. This song has brilliant lyrics - for adults due to the sexual content - which tell that it doesnt matter to have homosexual desires.
 32 (- 1) : Zee Machine - "Dangerous"
LW: 31 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 31
USA - 2018 - from the EP "Brainchemistry"
Zee Machine, aka Joe Bissell, released his first EP in April 2018.
 33 (NEW) : Lizzo - "Juice"
LW: - / WO: 1 / PEAK: 33
USA - 2018
 34 (+ 2) : Pabllo Vittar - "Disk Me"
LW: 36 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 34
Brazil - 2018 - from the album "Não Para Não"
She was definitely the most successful drag queen in 2018, due to her large success this year, except in our chart (and we still don't know why).
 35 (NEW) : Fangoria feat. Ms Nina y King Jedet - "¿De qué me culpas?"
LW: - / WO: 1 / PEAK: 35
Spain - 2018 - from the album "Extrapolaciones y dos preguntas"
This new single is taken from their upcoming album, for their 30 years of career and success of the Spanish duo.
 36 (- 25) : Openside - "Character Flaws"
LW: 11 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 11
New Zealand - 2018
This is their sixth single, but we're still waiting for an album!
 37 (NEW) : Sam Tsui - "A Million Pieces"
LW: - / WO: 1 / PEAK: 37
USA - 2018 - from the album "Trust"
 38 (NEW) : Silva - "Duas da Tarde"
LW: - / WO: 1 / PEAK: 38
Brazil - 2018 - from the album "Brasileiro"
 39 (- 11) : Cub Sport - "Sometimes"
LW: 28 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 28
Australia - 2018 - from the album "Sometimes"
This is the first single of their upcoming third album, which will be released the 18th January 2019.
 40 (=) : Nacha La Macha - "Eres Cobarde"
LW: 40 / WO: 12 / PEAK: 03
Spain - 2018
 41 (- 9) : Laganja Estranja feat. J. Tyler - "Look At Me" 
LW: 32 / WO: 4 / PEAK: 06
USA - 2018
 42 (+ 1) : Man Meadow - "Play It Loud"
LW: 43 / WO: 6 / PEAK: 14
Sweden - 2018
 43 (+ 2) : Leo Kalyan - "Focus"
LW: 45 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 43
UK - 2018 - from the album "The Edge"
The queer artist was recently dubbed by Billboard as one of "10 LGBTQ Artists To Watch This Fall". We were already convinced when we heard his cover of "Jesus To a Child" from George Michael in 2017.
 44 (- 28) : Smashby - "Under The Sheets"
LW: 16 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 16
UK - 2018 - from the EP "Wild One"
This is the second single of the EP "Wild One".
 45 (NEW) : Mike Maimone - "Through The Changes"
LW: - / WO: 1 / PEAK: 45
USA - 2018 - from the EP "The High Hat Club"
 46 (+ 4) : Janelle Monáe - "Crazy, Classic, Life"
LW: 50 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 46
USA - 2018 - from the album "Dirty Computer"
This is the fifth single of her latest album.
 47 (- 14) : Cassandre - "Respire"
LW: 33 / WO: 4 / PEAK: 09
France - 2018 - from the album "Nous"
The French duo will be in concert in Paris the 23rd march 2019, to promote their new album "Nous", which will release the 15th February 2019.
 48 (- 14) : Boy George & Culture Club - "Life"
LW: 34 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 34
UK - 2018 - from the album "Life"
This is the seconf single of their latest album.
 49 (NEW) : The Diesel Tykes feat. Tim'm West / LnK - "Every Day Is Earth Day"
LW: - / WO: 1 / PEAK: 49
USA - 2018
It's everyday time to save the Earth with this catchy song by Scott Free !
 50 (- 12) : Mathew V - "The Coast"
LW: 38 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 38
Canada - 2018
The 21 year old singer/songwriter had 10 years of classical operatic vocal training before having more Britsih pop influences in London. His first album "The Fifth" was released in April 2018.
   NEW THIS WEEK
 Milow feat. Matt Simons - "Lay Your Worry Down"
LW: - / WO: - / PEAK: -
The Netherlands / USA - 2018
There is a gay couple in this music video. It"s actually #1 on THE GAY 100 chart.
 JHart - "Why Does It Hurt"
LW: - / WO: - / PEAK: -
UK - 2018
James "JHart" Abrahart is a British multi-platinum selling, Grammy nominated singer, songwriter, record producer and arranger. It's actually #1 on Tad's LGBT Music Charts.
 H.E.R. - "Carried Away"
LW: - / WO: - / PEAK: -
USA - 2018 - from the EP "I Used to Know Her - Part.2"
It"s actually #1 on the Weekly Top 40 LGBT Urban Charts.
 Alex Palmieri - "In The Backstage"
LW: - / WO: - / PEAK: -
Italy - 2018 - from the album "Reset"
 Alfie Arcuri - "To Myself" (Official Lyric Video)
LW: - / WO: - / PEAK: -
Australia - 2019
The Australian singer is selected with this song about self acceptance to "Eurovision - Australia decides", the Australian national selections next 9th February 2019, for the Eurovision Song Contest 2019.
 Emmanuel Moire - "La promesse" (Live @ Destination Eurovision 2019 semi-final 2)
LW: - / WO: - / PEAK: -
France - 2019
This personnal song about selfesteem and loving men won the televote on Destination Eurovision, the French selection for the Eurovision Song Contest, and is qualified to the final next week.
 Eddy de Pretto - "Random"
LW: - / WO: 2 / PEAK: 46
France - 2019 - from the album "Culte"
The first album "Cure" of the queer rapper with strong lyrics has been so successful that it has been extended with new singles to create the new album "Culte".
 Hyphen Hyphen - "Mama Sorry"
LW: - / WO: - / PEAK: -
France - 2018 - from the album "HH"
The music video denounces homophobia by following the story of a young lesbian.
 Etienne Daho - "L'Etincelle"
LW: - / WO: - / PEAK: -
France - 2018 - from the album "Blitz"
The singer is really close with a man and a woman in this music video.
 Hollydays - "On a déjà"
LW: - / WO: - / PEAK: -
France - 2018 - from the album "Hollywood Bizarre"
Hollydays is a French duo composed by Élise Preys and Sébastien Delage. As you can see in the music video, Sebastien is gay.  
 Vendredi sur Mer - "Écoute chérie "
LW: - / WO: - / PEAK: -
France - 2018 - from the album "Premiers émois"
Their first album will release in 22nd March 2019. The music video is full of straight and same-sex kisses (and nudity).
 Corine - "Il fait chaud"
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France - 2018 - from the album "Un air de fête"
 Requin Chagrin - "Sémaphore"
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France - 2018
Is this friendship, or is there more between these two guys in this music video ?
 Falko - "Fragile"
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Belgium - 2018
The former contestant of Idol 2011 and Mister Gay Belgium 2018 releases a new song in english and spanish, and don't hesitated to show his body naked in his music video.
 Not.Your.Regular.Boy. - "It's All Yours"
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The Netherlands - 2018
This is his third single.
 Amy Wald - "Liebesleben"
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Austria - 2018
 Cheat Codes X Kim Petras - "Feeling Of Falling" [Official Lyric Video]
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USA / Germany - 2018
 Andie Case - "Mysterious"
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USA - 2018
 Sam Tsui - "There For You"
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USA - 2018 - from the album "Trust"
 MCEWEN - "A+E"
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USA - 2018
 JORDY - "Just Friends"
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USA - 2018
A love declaration.
 Sam Smith, Normani - "Dancing With A Stranger" (Official Audio)
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UK / USA  - 2019
This is a passionate duet about coping with loneliness and trying to get over a lost love.
 Clean Bandit feat. Marina & Luis Fonsi - "Baby"
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UK / USA (Puerto Rico) - 2018 - from the album "What is Love ?"
In this music video, during her wedding with a man, a woman remembers her love for another woman in a summer camp.
 Kevin Fret - "Soy Asi"
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USA (Puerto Rico) - 2019
Kevin Fret was the first openly gay Latin trap artist. The 24 years old out rapper has been shot dead, with eight shots with a gun while he was on his motorbike. Police is urged to investigate whether rapper's murder was hate crime. This song, called "I'm Like This", and the music video, don't hide his homosexuality.
 Kany García, Residente - "Banana Papaya"
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USA (Puerto Rico) - 2018 - from the album "Soy Yo"
There are several straight and same-sex couples kisses in this music video.
 Jaime Kohen - "Fuego"
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Mexico - 2018
There are several same-sex couples kiss in this music video.
 Esteman - "Fuimos Amor"
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Columbia - 2018
His third album "Amor libre" will release in debut 2019.
 Mateus Carrilho feat. Mc Tha - "Sonzeira"
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Brazil - 2019 - from the EP "Não Nega"
 Namuel - "Ganamos"
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Chile - 2018 - from the album "Payasos"
 Javiera Mena - "Alma"
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Chile - 2018 - from the album "Espejo"
 Alex Anwandter - "Locura"
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Chile - 2018 - from the album "Latinamerica"
The track entered for one week in our chart just before our break and the release of the official music video.
 Hương Giang - "Anh Đang Ở Đâu Đấy Anh"
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Vietnam - 2018
This music video is by far the most popular from the transgender singer on her YouTube channel with already more than 20 millions views. The music video is a 11 minutes short movie, where her boyfriend is cheating on her with her best friend. Tragedy.
 Jay Shih 是元介  - "Old Man"《偕老》
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Taiwan - 2018
This is another song from "The Rainbow MV Film Project" which fights homophobia in Taiwan. The music video presents a gay couple getting older together, until death comes.
 HUSH - "Lumens" [ 流明 ]
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Taiwan - 2018 - from the album 『换句话说』/ "In Other Words"
 LEW - "Short Story Long"
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Singapore - 2018 - from the album "There's Something in My Eye"
The new music video from Lewis Loh, which features a lesbian couple.
 Bass-Suradech Phiwit【บาส-สุรเดช พินิวัตร์】- "The right person doesn't have to change anything, right? " 【คนที่ใช่ ไม่ต้องเปลี่ยนอะไรก็ใช่อยู่ดี】
LW: - / WO: - / PEAK: -
Thailand - 2018
A music video made and sponsorised as a commercial by cosmetic Thai brand ACNOC.
 Darshan Raval, Rochak Kohli - "Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga"
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India - 2019 - from the album "Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga" OST
This Bollywood lesbian romance is the story of a man, played by Rajkummar, who fell in love with a girl, played by Sonam. Her family is looking for a suitable match for her and while there are several good options, she isn’t ready to say yes to any of them. She says she has a secret, something that causes her parents to turn against her. Bits from the trailer, like showing two women being torn apart by a mob, hint that she has fallen in love with a girl. The film will release on 1st February 2019 on Indians cinemas.
 Navraj Hans, Harshdeep Kaur - "Gud Naal Ishq Mitha"
LW: - / WO: - / PEAK: -
India - 2019 - from the album "Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga" OST
This Bollywood lesbian romance is the story of a man, played by Rajkummar, who fell in love with a girl, played by Sonam. Her family is looking for a suitable match for her and while there are several good options, she isn’t ready to say yes to any of them. She says she has a secret, something that causes her parents to turn against her. Bits from the trailer, like showing two women being torn apart by a mob, hint that she has fallen in love with a girl. The film will release on 1st February 2019 on Indians cinemas.
 Mx Blouse - "No Match"
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South Africa - 2019
 LOZOVOY - Певица ("Pevitsa" / "Singer")
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Ukraine - 2019
This is his first single.
 SKAMP - "Love Me Like There's No Tomorrow"
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Lithuania - 2018
There are several straight and same-sex couples kisses in this music video.
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pandorathexplora · 6 years
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Bonus Ep of Podcast Now LIVE
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Greetings Exorcist fam! A special bonus episode of our podcast is now up. You can listen here or on iTunes here. Under the cut is the summary and table of contents. We’ll return to do season 2 rewatch in a few weeks, so stay tuned!
Thank you everyone for listening and for continuing to fight for our show’s season 3 pickup. #SaveTheExorcist Together we can bring our show back :) 
Bonus Episode – The Devil and Father Amorth & Deliver Us From Evil
In this special bonus episode, we watch and analyze two films with themes of demonic possession.  The first film is The Devil & Father Amorth, a documentary from the director of the original The Exorcist movie, William Friedkin.  The second is 2014 film Deliver Us from Evil, directed by Scott Derrickson and based off of the real life events of NYPD cop Ralph Sarchie.  
We chose these pieces for a few reasons.  Since we started doing this podcast last February, we have grown fascinated not only with the cinematic portrayals of demonic possession in Hollywood, but also with the religious and scientific perspectives surrounding exorcisms in the real world. Are these exorcisms of actual demons? Are these manifestations merely symptoms of mental illnesses?  What is the answer?  
Music is "Ludovican" by notforme!, from album Ludovican.
Podcast Cover Art is by @Smeary on Twitter.
Table of Contents
:22  - How Exorcist Fans Can Help with Season 3 Pick-Up Efforts
2:55 – Bonus Episode Introduction
4:35 – William Friedkin & Father Amorth
10:35 –Audio of the Possessed Woman in the film
13:10 -  Why is this the first Vatican-approved exorcism to be filmed?
16:10 – Friedkin’s Choice of Recapping a Second Meeting with the Possessed
21:50 – Exorcism Approach of Love in documentary and Exorcist TV show
22:20 – Father Amorth’s usage St. Michael Archangel Prince of Heaven prayer, not used since 1964
25:08 – Conversation with Bishop who is Afraid to be an exorcist; “Teacher v. Warrior”
a.       Marcus Keane is the warrior, not the teacher
27:42 – Blatty’s Desire to Write a Non-fiction Book
29:10 – William Defoe in Italy, Robert Downey Jr. in England, the guy who invented a kitchen utensil in Tampa (maybe???)
31:20 – Deliver Us From Evil then and watching now
34:20 – The Scary Toy Owl Scene
36:00 – Jungler, the Demon is Named
39:10 – Why Zoe gets Stressed by Some American Horror
41:00 – The Final Exorcism Scene
44:54 – Why Do Demons Target Certain People (Tomas Ortega, Marcus Keane, Eric Bana’s character)
50:10 – The Problem of Evil v. The Problem of Good, quote from priest
Follow us on social media! Zoe - @LetZoeSpoilYou on Tumblr, Twitter Gaia - @Herbeloved82 on Tumblr Tina - @PandoraTHExplora on Tumblr, Twitter
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almondbiscotti · 3 years
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Week 1 - The Rain Helps
What a first week of 2021! 
Okay, actually, it wasn’t anything particularly special. Except for how rainy it has been I guess. But I love the rain and I’m relishing the gloominess and solitude that the rain brings. It’s nice to be home and not have anything to do. 
I kind of made resolutions this year. Just 2 actually. To read and write more. Specifically, a book a week, and a written piece a week too. And not bad, I have managed to keep it up for the first week of the year. (Woohoo, only 51 more to go. *sweats nervously*)
Reads this Week
The Neil Gaiman Reader Selected Fiction by Neil Gaiman On the reading front, I finally finished The Neil Gaiman Reader Selected Fiction collection on the 2nd day of the year. I love Gaiman’s words with the passion of a thousand fiery suns and I dragged finishing this collection because I didn’t want it to end. Even though I’ve read pretty much everything in this collection before (it’s nothing new, just a collection of his top short story hits from various places. With just one new short story towards the end.) I still enjoyed it very very much. Gaiman is a beautiful storyteller, unmatched in my opinion. 
Super Freakonomics - Global Cooling, Patriotic Prostitutes and Why Suicide Bombers Should Buy Life Insurance by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner  I also finished Super Freakonomics - Global Cooling, Patriotic Prostitutes and Why Suicide Bombers Should Buy Life Insurance by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner the week past. Will count this as my first completed read of the year. I enjoy the Freakonomics series very much since picking up the first title some years back. I even listened to a few of their podcasts but I think they write better than they speak. Personally prefer the first title better but it might have been because some of the topics covered in the 2nd title weren’t as interesting to me. Still good, still fascinating. Inhaled the hospital/healthcare related stories. The one about Ignatz Semmelweis and how he discovered the reason behind the high mortality rate of mothers in a maternity clinic (and the original speculated reasons given hohohoho) kind of blew my mind. 
If I Had Your Face by Frances Cha  I started on If I Had Your Face by Frances Cha last night and am about 20% in. I picked it up based on a recommendation I saw on an Influencer I follow’s Instagram. (Jemmawei guys, her book recommendations aren’t always great but I’m of the opinion reading preferences are highly individualised anyway. But because she reads and talks about her reads SO much, it’s almost like browsing a mini-library scrolling through her Instagram highlights.) It’s not bad! So far. IIHYF is set in S.Korea, and tells the tale of 4 women living in the same apartment complex. It discusses ridiculous beauty standards, exacerbated by the societal demands of S. Korea, strict social hierarchies and...K Pop apparently? I haven’t gotten to the Kpop part but I’m enjoying it so far. 
If anyone has anything good to recommend me on the reading front, please let me know! I would like to read a variety of styles this year and move away from things I’m comfortable with. (As I type this, I see a copy of The Fifth Discipline by Peter Senge staring at me. Ha. Ha. Ha.) 
Writes this Week
I had a conversation with my good friend, ST, earlier this week about left handedness because Song Kang, the Korean actor I’m currently enamored with seems to be right handed but eats with his left. (I do not understand this and attempted using the chopsticks with my left hand. I managed to spill half the contents of my soup bowl and bring dishonour to all my Chinese ancestors in the process.) 
The conversation expanded into a writing idea and I ended up with a trio of stories I’ve titled the Kang Trilogy. I’ve finished the first (needs edits though) and am halfway through the second. It’s my attempt to write while channeling my slight obsession with Song Kang. But overall, am happy with the writing progress so far. :) 
Maybe I’ll share the pieces here one day. Ah, courage, my heart. 
Watches this Week
Bridgerton on Netflix Started off okay, seem lighthearted and fun. Then the sex bits kind of caught me off guard. I am by no means a prude and I have nothing against sex on screen if it adds to the storytelling but it was so strange! (Not the sex, the sex was extremely vanilla). It felt a little like fanfiction brought to screen. Was alright I guess. The costumes and the diversity of characters and actors seem to be what people love about it. I don’t know, nobody does good costumes like Chinese Concubine dramas in my opinion. And I’m rather apathetic about racial representation on TV because I care more about good storytelling, acting and cinematography than social issues when I watch the telly. *shrugs*
Extracurricular on Netflix I’ve only managed to finish one episode and about 10 minutes of the second episode. It is SO STRESSFUL. I don’t even know why I’m so stressed out by it. D is completely undisturbed by it. But if I take an objective view of it, it’s not bad and deserves the rave reviews. Just that topics like underage prostitution and violence against women make my skin crawl. 
Korean Porkbelly Rhapsody on Netflix An entire series dedicated to samgyeopsal?! SIGN ME THE FUCK UP! A very typical Korean documentary style watch. I enjoyed it because I really like pork belly. :) 
The Nanny on Prime Video D started watching it randomly one day and I watch along. Such an oldie but a real solid goldie. Is good as a filler watch. 
Listens this Week
Been majorly loving the Sweet Home OST on Spotify. But in general have been loving Korean OSTs quite a bit this week. I think it just matches the weather, soft, simple and easy listens that I don’t pay much attention to in the background. :)
Though, writing this made me realise the Sweet Home OST is not a soft listen. Hahahahaha. I like it in the background though, really pumps you up! 
If you read through all of that and are still here with me, HI MY FRIEND YOU ARE A VERY PATIENT PERSON. I hope to do a recap of my reads, writes, watches and listens on a weekly basis. Part of it is to help me write more, another part is just to keep track of my intellectual consumption. I don’t think I have many readers anyway but if the handful of you have any recommendations for me, please share! :) 
I hope you’ve been having a great week! May the next week be kind to you and me! :)
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AK Monthly Recap: September 2017
I started September in Minsk, eager to visit four new European countries. I finished the month in New York, recovering after a very busy six weeks of on-and-off travel. And now I’m sitting in my apartment, totally pooped and yearning to travel like crazy while savoring all the time I have at home.
Here it is — the best of September!
Destinations Visited
Minsk, Belarus
Vilnius, Lithuania
Tallinn, Estonia
St. Petersburg, Russia
Helsinki, Finland
New York, NY, USA
Favorite Destination
St. Petersburg. It far surpassed my expectations with its beauty and grandeur.
Highlights
Visiting four new countries — including one that I thought would be quite difficult. I would really love to visit 100 countries, and being at 74 now puts that goal within reach. Also, I only have one country remaining in Europe — Cyprus!
That said, the last thing I want to be is the kind of person who lands in a capital, spends a day and a half there, and yells, “Country done!” I hate that. And I know that sounds ironic considering that I only visited one city each in Belarus, Lithuania, Estonia, and Russia. That wasn’t my intention at all for Lithuania and Estonia; see “Challenges” for why. So as I move on, I’ll be making an effort to visit more when possible.
Vilnius delighted me from the start. Coming from a tricky destination like Minsk, arriving in Vilnius felt like Scandinavia — people spoke English! There was wifi! Taxi drivers didn’t rip me off! I had a door code and could walk right into my apartment rental without having to meet the owner! But beyond that, I found Vilnius to be a beautiful and artsy city, as well as a major bargain compared to Western European capitals. One highlight was dining at Grey, where they have a Lithuanian tasting menu for just 14 EUR ($16), including beer. Thanks for the recommendation, Alex!
Tallinn entranced me with its beauty. Of the three Baltic capitals, Tallinn is easily the prettiest, and it reminded me very much of Prague. Once I left the old town, it reminded me a lot more of the Nordic cities I’ve seen, which sets it apart from the other Baltic capitals. I felt like I got to know the city much better once I headed away from the tourist zone, dining on Korean food and hanging out in coffeeshops among the locals.
The Hermitage is my new favorite museum in the world. It seriously blew me away — I could not believe the sheer level of art and beauty on display. The analogy that kept coming to mind was if the French had decided to put the art of the Louvre in Versailles instead! St. Petersburg as a whole was a delight from start to finish. It’s now one of my favorite cities in Europe! I loved the grandeur and the fashionable people.
Chill time in Helsinki. One thing I love about Helsinki is that there aren’t a ton of must-see sights — it’s a place for hanging out, drinking coffee, eating Fazer chocolate, and especially SHOPPING. I didn’t do much during my final days in Helsinki — more on that below — and it was what I needed.
Lots of fun times with friends and family in New York. Not one but two sets of college friends came to see Hamilton and I met them for eats in Hell’s Kitchen afterward. One night my sister, her boyfriend, and my friend Dave, a.k.a. the blogger behind Go Backpacking, and I competed at trivia at At the Wallace, one of my local bars, and we WON! My friend Anna from The Legendary Adventures of Anna turned 30 with a bang (and lots of wigs and jello shots), and my friend Amelia hosted a clothing swap where we brought several nice items of clothing we didn’t want anymore, swapped what we wanted, and donated the rest to Housing Works.
Also, my dad came to visit New York for the weekend! He split his visit between September and October, but I’ll share the September highlights here. First we went to see Kinky Boots on Broadway, a super-fun musical with great songs and a heartwarming message. Billy Porter has returned to play his Tony Award-winning role as Lola, and I haven’t seen an actor so perfectly suited for a role since Daveed Diggs in Hamilton. He was that good.
We also spent a lot of time uptown, hanging out at our favorite bars and restaurants in Harlem, visiting the Museum of the City of New York, and did a historical food tour with Taste Harlem. The tour in particular was awesome, the chicken and waffles from Red Rooster were rapturously good, and there was a hilarious little Australian boy on the tour named James who ran off everywhere, high-fived everyone, tried to befriend cops, and kept us all in stitches.
Challenges
A lot of things went wrong on my Europe trip. I didn’t expect that, and the challenges unfortunately ended up putting a damper on what was otherwise a very nice trip.
Minsk was a tough destination, as I wrote last month, but the most difficult part of all happened on September 1. I was planning to get to Vilnius by train, and one of my readers pointed out on Facebook that I was supposed to leave Minsk by air. Some nationalities including Americans are allowed to visit visa-free if they arrive by air and stay less than five days. That was my plan. I double-checked the official US international travel resource, travel.state.gov, and it said the same thing: arrive by air, stay less than five days. Then I checked the website for the Belarus embassy in the US and it said you had to arrive AND depart by air! Eek! Talk about a major oversight on travel.state.gov!
I found a flight to Vilnius for much later that day and booked it — thankfully, it only cost $60 and Uber exists in Minsk, so I could get a ride to the airport (the airport is WAY out of town). I actually found a cafe with wifi that didn’t require an SMS (!), so I was able to summon an Uber from there.
I am so thankful to my reader for pointing that out in the nick of time. You guys really are the best readers in the world, and part of that is because you saved me from a scary experience at the Belarus-Lithuania border!
As for other mishaps, one of my flights was cancelled in Vilnius, and my tour of Lahemaa National Park in Estonia was cancelled. I was not notified by email in either case, which irked me and wasted my time. These two incidents and having to book a late flight from Minsk meant that I lost a lot of time that I intended to spend exploring Kaunas in Lithuania and Lahemaa and Tartu in Estonia. I did not want to only visit the capital and leave. That disappointed me.
Arriving in Russia was a nightmare. Just read the post for the details. Next time I visit Russia, my passport is going to be pristine.
Finally, I dealt with anxiety during the end of my trip in Finland. I sometimes get hit with waves of of anxiety, usually brought on from stress while traveling. The first time was in Chiang Mai in 2015, when I suddenly felt so overwhelmed and suddenly doing easy things felt impossible. I even felt petrified of visiting a new restaurant. My anxiety never been quite that bad since, but it surfaces from time to time.
In Helsinki, I just felt like I was being pressured in every direction. So I did nothing. I walked around, I ate, I shoppedI met with my friend Eva. That was enough to make me feel like an overachiever. It was also pouring at Biblical levels, so I didn’t feel bad about not getting good photos.
The trains in New York have been AWFUL lately. One weekend I went to Brooklyn twice within a 24-hour period and spent about seven hours in transit total. SEVEN HOURS. To the next borough over. In other news, this is why I read as much as I do…
Most Popular Post
The Emotional Labor of Female Travel Bloggers — Required reading for both women and men.
Other Posts
How to Plan a German Christmas Market Trip — This is a trip that I think ever Europe lover should take
Visiting Russia Without a Visa on the St. Peter Line Ferry — The complete guide on how to take this unusual trip.
Vail, Colorado, Might Be Better in the Summer! — I had the best time hiking and enjoying the summer beauty!
In Kiev, a Stylish and Surprising City — Kiev was a lot of fun, even though my expectations weren’t high.
Most Popular Instagram Photo
Who knew Vilnius would get all the likes? This photo was taken in Užupis, a neighborhood in the old town that has declared itself a separate republic, not unlike Christiania in Copenhagen. For more live updates from my travels, follow me on Instagram at @adventurouskate.
What I Read This Month
Hell yes — I finally finished the Popsugar 2017 Reading Challenge! This is the second 52-book reading challenge I’ve done, and while I enjoyed it, I think it’s best an every-other-year undertaking. I went on to read several other books this month, making my tally 59 in 2017 so far.
Lately I’ve been laser-focused on reading the most noteworthy books published in 2017. By December, when all the best-of lists come out, I want to have an intimate knowledge of the best books of the year.
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee (2017) — This may be my favorite book of the year. It tells the story of four generations of a family in Korea that immigrated to Japan and all the hardships they faced. Before I read this book, I had no idea Koreans in Japan were treated so poorly. So much of this is directly analogous to how blacks were treated in the United States during Jim Crow, even though you couldn’t tell the difference between Koreans and Japanese — which really hammers home how much race is a social construct.
This novel is lush and detailed, immensely readable and easy to devour. It’s about family, and sacrifice, and destiny, but also social mobility. The characters are drawn vividly and the scenes are cinematic. I can see Sunja in the market in Osaka, struggling to sell kimchi, yelling, “Oishii!” until it all starts to click. I would love to see this become a film but I don’t have faith in Hollywood making a movie with all Asian characters.
Pachinko is now nominated for the National Book Award. If it wins, that will be two years in a row that the NBO winner was also my favorite book of the year (last year’s was Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad).
A Most Wanted Man by John Le Carré (2008) — This was the final book for the reading challenge: an espionage novel. I had never read any of Le Carré’s popular spy novels, and frankly, I don’t think I will read any others. This book is very much a reflection of the post-9/11 years and the war on terror. But what bothered me the most was the overt sexism of the book.
The only primary female character, Annabel, is a passionate civil rights attorney doing everything she can to save her client, a Muslim refugee from Chechnya with a mysterious past — yet every single time she is mentioned, and every time she’s in a scene, there’s such a focus on her attractiveness, her attractiveness in spite of her lack of fashion sense (oh, thanks for throwing her a bone, Mr. Le Carré!), her romantic life, her sexuality, how apparently this 30-year-old lawyer is both attracted to the 20-year-old refugee and the 60-year-old banker. Come on. I’d love to read an espionage novel where a woman does her work, does it well, and is respected for it. Category: an espionage novel.
Wendy Darling, vol. 3: Shadow by Colleen Oakes (2017) — This is the final installment of my cousin Colleen’s YA series that tells a darker, more mature version of Peter Pan. In the first book, a teenage Wendy and her brothers soon learn that behind Peter Pan’s charisma is a manipulative, controlling, bloodthirsty villain. In the second book, Wendy makes unexpected allies and enemies. In this conclusion, she fights to save her brothers and all of Neverland — not with her body, but with her intelligence.
A lot of readers expected Wendy to come out wielding a sword in this book — but Colleen was insistent that Wendy did not need to be a warrior in order to be strong. Here’s what she wrote: “To me the best thing about being a woman is that you can be whoever the hell you want. You want to be a bad-ass, slicing your way through a kingdom? Fine. We have a need for the Dinahs, the Katniss Everdeens, and the Tris Priors of the world. But we should also be cautious about equating the worth of a character based on her physical, violent ability…A woman standing in front of Congress is as strong as a woman standing up to the bully of her child. A character can be sweet and kind and still be strong.”
I love that quote. The Wendy Darling series is my favorite of Colleen’s books so far (she’s seriously Picasso-level prolific as a writer!). I highly recommend picking it up. Start with the first book here.
Al Franken, Giant of the Senate by Al Franken (2017) — Oh ho ho, Senator Franken. I absolutely loved this book! After being elected to represent Minnesota in the Senate in 2008 by the closest margin in his state’s history, comedian Al Franken decided to turn the humor way down and focus on working hard for Minnesotans. After winning a second term and establishing himself as an effective Senator, he’s finally bringing the humor back in this new memoir.
Franken and I have very similar political views, and I most appreciated how deeply he detailed the obstruction of the GOP and showing why when people think it’s both parties that are the problem, it’s actually only one obstructing anything at any turn. But beyond that, I appreciated this book for its in-depth look at what the day-to-day of being a senator is actually like. And it is HILARIOUS, especially his entire chapter about Ted Cruz (as he says, he likes Ted Cruz more than most senators do, and he hates Ted Cruz). A lot of people are encouraging Franken to run for president, and I think he’d be great, but I actually appreciate having him as a senator — he gets so much done, and that might be the best use of his talents.
Bad Feminist: Essays by Roxane Gay (2014) — I first read Roxane Gay’s memoir Hunger this year and I fell in love with her writing — it was time to check out her bestselling essay collection. And WOW. I adored this book. The title comes from the fact that Gay tries to be as good a feminist as she can, but she knows she falls short in many ways, whether it’s that she loves misogynistic hip-hop or she sometimes fakes orgasms or even that she knows nothing about her car. But what does it even mean to be a good feminist? To just be a woman who doesn’t want to be treated like shit?
Gay’s writing is warm and friendly, and she writes from an intersectional perspective — she examines feminism through race, class, size, sexuality. I feel like she and I would be friends if we knew each other in real life (but I’m sure everyone who reads her thinks that as well). I especially enjoyed the essays she wrote about pop culture, on everything from The Hunger Games to Chris Brown to Django Unchained to competitive Scrabble.
Also worth mentioning? Gay said in an interview that her favorite book of the year was Min Jin Lee’s Pachinko as well!
The Worrier’s Guide to the End of the World by Torre DeRoche (2017) — My friend Torre’s first book, Love With a Chance of Drowning, was an uplifting story about falling in love with a handsome man and facing her fears to sail across the Pacific with him. Well. Not long after, her father became terminally ill, her boyfriend couldn’t handle it and broke up with her (and told her she never would have written a book without his help — I wanted to smack him when I heard that!), and her father passed away. Meanwhile, Torre was still doing publicity for Love and having to answer questions like, “So when are you two getting married?” How awful.
So she met a friend named Masha and decided to join her on two pilgrimages, one in Italy, one in India. They became like platonic soulmates as they traveled across countries on foot, having misadventures and trying to find meaning in facing your fears and moving on after loss, and trying to figure life out. I felt so hard for her throughout the book and laughed at their quirkier mishaps. This book was sweet and kind, and it really made me want to do a pilgrimage of my own. I’ve wanted to do the Camino de Santiago since long before the blog existed; I should really get to planning that!
The Incest Diary by Anonymous (2017) — This is not the kind of book I would ordinarily seek out, but it had a lot of buzz this year, so I decided to give it a look. This memoir is written by a published female author who is choosing to remain anonymous. Her father began sexually abusing her when she was a very young child, and the abuse continued through her young adulthood. What makes this book different is that the author wanted the abuse, and her father, as she became older.
This book was extremely difficult to read. That’s probably the most that I should say about it. As troubling and horrific as it was, I absolutely loved the author’s writing style and descriptions.
Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng (2017) — I read Ng’s first novel, Everything I Never Told You, a few years ago, and got swept up into a tale of an interracial Chinese-American family living in suburban Ohio in the 1970s. The setting is similar, in the upscale town of Shaker Heights, Ohio, but the plot flips on its head — it tells the story of a perfect-seeming white family with four teenagers, the single mother and teenage daughter who move into their neighborhood, and how the characters become entwined. Then a local tries to adopt a Chinese-American baby under dubious circumstances and the trial and scandal tear the town and characters apart.
I loved this book, the characters, and the mythical setting of the perfectly planned community of Shaker Heights. My favorite thing about this book is that Ng showcased a character who is white and thinks she’s woke as hell (though the story takes place in the late 90s, not today), renting her duplex to people of color, donating to charity and people in need, protesting war, thinking she’s not racist at all — until it’s time to actually put herself on the line, and she fails people of color at every turn. It’s searing — and a worthwhile read.
What I Watched This Month
Jerry Seinfeld has a new special on Netflix called Jerry Before Seinfeld. It’s a comedy special that looks back at how Seinfeld began his stand-up career in the late 1970s. Back then, stand-up comedy was in its nascent stage.
I expected to laugh, but I didn’t expect to relate to it so much. Like Seinfeld, I launched a career for myself in a brand new creative field where most people didn’t believe it was possible to earn money. “You can get paid to blog about travel?” isn’t far off from “You can get paid to tell jokes?” At one point, he said, “If I earn enough money for a loaf of bread each week, I’ll be fine,” and that hit me hard — that was me in 2010 and 2011! Only it was, “All I need to make is $1000 a month and I’ll get by fine in Southeast Asia.”
If you enjoy this special, I highly recommend reading Born Standing Up by Steve Martin, a memoir of his stand-up years, which dovetails a lot with Seinfeld’s experience. Martin’s writing is not what you expect — it’s gentle, ethereal, exquisite. I consider Born Standing Up one of the best memoirs I’ve ever read and Seinfeld considers it one of the best books ever written about comedy and being a comedian.
Image: Ryan McKee
Coming Up in October 2017
I’m going to Tybee Island! Tybee is off the coast of Savannah and I’ve often pointed out that you can easily do a side trip to this getaway, but I’ve never done so myself. I’m excited to have three days to explore this island — and to have one last beach getaway before winter.
While Tybee did experience some flooding during Hurricane Irma, they are open for business and eager to welcome visitors!
Those are the only solid travel plans I have for the month. I do, however, plan on going crazy for HALLOWEEN! It’s my favorite holiday but I’ve missed the last several Halloweens, so I want to make up for it this year. I plan to visit multiple dog costume parades (Tomkins Square on the 21st and my neighborhood, Hamilton Heights, on the 28th), head upstate to the Great Jack-o-Lantern Blaze in Croton-on-Hudson, and I’d love to attend the legendary parade in the Village! My costume? I think it’s time to dress up as my childhood idol, Carmen Sandiego.
Any suggestions for Tybee — or Halloween in New York? Let me know!
via Travel Blogs http://ift.tt/2xPFOKf
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inhumansforever · 7 years
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Ms. Marvel 19 Review
spoilers spoilers spoilers spoilers spoilers spoilers spoilers spoilers spoilers
It’s the beginning of a brand new storyline in the pages of Ms. Marvel as illustrator, Marco Falla, joins G. Willow Wilson and Ian Herring for the start of an arc interestingly entitled ‘mecca.’  Full recap and review following the jump.
The tale begins with Kamala and her family preparing for their annual celebration of the first day of Eid Al-Adha.  Herein it’s shown that Aamir’s new bride, Tyesha is pregnant, meaning Kamala is to be an auntie in the not too distant future.  How exciting!  
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Yet the merriment is cut short when they return home to see their street partially cordoned off by barriers and signs reading ‘bring back the real Jersey City.’  It’s not clear what exactly is going on, but it certainly looks like trouble… it would seem that a tide of divisiveness has swept over the city.  
The Khan family try not to let it all spoil their good time and continue on with their celebration.  Eid Al-Adha is the Festival of the Sacrifice and is a major holiday celebrated by Muslims all over the world.  The family prepare a huge feast for friends and family.  Kamala enjoys herself but cannot help but dwell on those disturbing signs and what exactly is going on with Jersey City.  Wanting to investigate the matter further, Kamala excuses herself saying she wants to take a walk after having eaten so much.  Her step-brother, Gabe, opts to go with her. While on their walk, Kamala and Gabe are approached by two suspicious looking customers in matching uniforms who introduce themselves as agents of the ‘Keepers of Integration Normalization and Defense’ agency or KIND for short.  These KIND agents are patrolling the neighborhood to enforce behavioral norms.  
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The whole idea of it strikes Kamala as absurd and unconstitutional.  She states that Mayor Marchesi would never sanction such a thing.  The KIND agents inform her that Machesi has been unseated as mayor, fired by the city council in a closed session and replaced by Chuck Worthy.  
Worthy is a Hydra agent and former underling of Dr. Faustus who had run for Mayor several issues back.  The KIND agents refute this idea that mayor Worthy is associated with Hydra, stating that the whole notion is merely a smear campaign orchestrated by his political enemies.  
These agents add that they had been called to the neighborhood by citizens who had reported undocumented super-powered beings.  It all cuts Kamala like a knife.  The idea that her own neighbors would turn on her in this fashion is just crushing.  
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Kamala has seen this particular brand of authoritarianism before and feels confident she knows exactly who is behind it all.  She barges off intent on meeting the threat head on.  
Having donned her Ms. Marvel outfit, Kamala arrives at the old detention facility that had once been run by the Carol Cadets back during the second superhero civil war.  Here she encounters ‘Basic’ Becky St. Jude.   Becky (who is now going by the name ‘Lockdown’) explains that she is no longer an outlaw, now she is the law.  
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She works for Mayor Worthy and has every legal right to enforce her authoritarian ways.  Indeed the tables have turned and now it is Ms. Marvel who is the one operating outside the law.  Lockdown has her minion, a villain named ‘Discord,’ attack Kamala.  
This Discord appears to have some sort of electrical offensive powers, firing blast of energy at Ms. Marvel.  Kamala has been practicing her defensive dodges, utilizing her stretching powers to shift away from an attack in an efficient fashion.  At first she is quite excited that her practice has paid off and she is able to evade Discord’s attack with relative ease.   
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Yet Discord seems familiar with the particular limits of Ms. Marvel’s abilities; he changes up tactics and ensnares her with rings of electrical energy.   Such high voltage burst of energy is something Ms. Marvel is vulnerable to; and Discord is able to defeat her.
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It seems as though the mysterious Discord fellow is someone Kamala has encountered before.  Trapped in those energy rings, she asks him who he is.  He replies that perhaps he’ll answer the question but first he has a question of his own… and asks about the time in which Ms. Marvel fought against Chuck Worthy’s downtown development plan.  Discord asks Kamala what she saw when she first arrived on the scene?  It takes her a minute, but then it dawns on her that despite the clearly evil intensions of Worthy’s plan, there were indeed quite a few people there supporting him.  At the time, she just shrugged them off as easily manipulated stooges, but now she’s forced to realize that they were real people, people with real feelings and real concerns.  
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Worthy was offering totalitarianism in exchange to keeping them safe.  Ms. Marvel fight against it because, to her, such a bargain is evil and unAmerican.  Yet it nerve quite dawned on her that there were a lot of people who felt the opposite, who very much wanted what Worthy was offering… and she disregarded them merely because she believed she was right, that she knew better.   And then Discord knocks her out.  
Meanwhile, Gabe rushes back home and alerts the others that there are these creepy KIND agents out there enforcing social norms and rounding up super powered beings.  Zoe has been the Khan’s guest for the Eid Al-Adha festivities.  She interrupts Gabe, expressing a fearful dismay that government agents are out there rounding up illegal immigrants!   Embarrassed by her outburst, Zoe explains that she was actually born in France and has never actually gone about naturalizing her citizenship.  
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Aamir brushes off Gabe’s concern.  The family are all law abiding citizens and should have nothing to fear.  Mrs. Khan asks Aamir to bring the leftovers of their feast to a family down the street.  He complies, but on his way there is accounted by the KIND agents.  These agents identify Aamir as being an undocumented super-powered being.  Amir laughs it off.  He had only possessed powers for a short while, the results of an accident that have long since worn off.  The agents are unmoved by his explanation and haul him off to be processed, detained and who knows what else.  And it is with this harrowing turn of events that the issue ends with he promise of continuation in the next installment.  
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Anyone expecting a lighter toned story-arc following the rather heavy DocX saga is sure to be surprised.  Wilson’s scripts just do not shy away from the important topics of the day, and ‘Mecca’ may very well be Ms. Marvel’s most pressing and germane tale to date.  
The gag where Zoe assumes the KIND agents are out rounding up undocumented immigrants made for funny bit, but also acted to underscore the metaphorical valance of the issue.  ‘Super powered beings’ in the issue is rather clearly just a stand-in for immigrants, specifically immigrants who are Muslim.  
The trump Administration’s so-called ‘travel ban’ has just recently been once more struck down by the ninth circuit court of appeals.  It’s now being fast-tracked to the Supreme Court.  This travel band is very much a poorly veiled Muslim ban and is as unconstitutional as it gets; yet there is still a chance that the Supreme Court will uphold presidential authority over immigration and allow the ban to go into effect.  A daunting, horrifying prospect. The constitutionality and amorality of such a ban notwithstanding, there is the simple truth that there is a sizable portion of the American public who would very much like to see it enacted.  The specter of terrorism has created an irrational fear toward people who are Muslim.  And many are quite will to give up civil liberties to take actions that they believe will better ensure their safety.  I don’t agree with them, but it is folly to just see them as an uninformed rabble.  They are real people with real feelings.  
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Kamala is used to being loved.  She’s plucky and cheerful and wonderfully inspiring in her unwavering idealism.  It is surprising and terribly dismaying for her to realize that there are many people out there who fear her, who would feel much safer were she gone.  And this extends to the real world as well.  Ms. Marvel bursted onto the scene and was an immediate hit.  She was celebrated as the first major Muslim superhero and that, coupled with the amazingly high quality of her comic, made her an absolute darling of the progressive left.  Yet times have changed and the shift in political atmosphere in the states has very much emboldened people who have attitudes to the contrary to speak their minds.  And as one of the more visible Muslim characters of popular culture, Ms. Marvel (and her creators) has become the focus of a great deal of vicious and intolerant animus.  
Some may feel that it is inappropriate for G. Willow Wilson to incorporate all of this into once of her comics.  Who may think it better to keep comic books apolitical and just a man of escapism.  Yet I don’t blame her in the least.  How can she not think about things, not want to try to process and digest it all in her art?  Life and art always imitate one another, there’s really no way around it.
I’m curious about the story-arc being entitled ‘Mecca.’  Mecca with a capital ‘M’ is the capital of Hejaz, Saudi Arabia, the birthplace of The Prophet Muhammad and spiritual center of Islam.  Mecca with a lower case ‘M’ however can colloquially by used as any place in which a person very much wants to go, an idealized location.  The font utilized write out ‘Mecca’ at the beginning of the issue makes it impossible to tell if it is being written with an upper or lower case ‘M.’  It makes for a very intriguing ambiguity...
Recommended.  Four out of Five Lockjaws.  
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huffeldooduffle · 5 years
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Hi, beautiful people! 🙂 Honestly, there are times when I feel like I have no right to write, that my words don’t matter to the universe. That these frail sentences won’t matter to anyone but myself, as a way of letting go of the feelings that pent up inside my heart or as a way to express the things I can’t control or put in order. Yet, I promised someone important that I will write more regularly. So, dear reader, despite the doubt, I will do just that. Starting with… a recap of January!
A.
School has been pulling me in like the tides of the sea that draw in sand–eroding the land ever so slightly until one day there’s no land left. But don’t worry, I won’t drown! Once I told you about the subjects I’m taking, right? Well, I forgot to mention how I changed a lot of things. The subjects I’ll permanently take over these two years are Biology HL, Economics HL, English A Literature HL, ESS (Environmental Systems and Societies), Math SL, and Chinese ab initio. HL  means higher level, meaning there are more class hours dedicated for it, hence it’s more rigorous. IB is… demanding. It feels like a never-ending stack of homework or that pile of laundry that you keep putting off. It’s manageable though, don’t worry. And as much as people talk about how little they sleep or how stressed they are, I believe that if you can discipline yourself you’ll do fine…kinda. Hehe.
Anyway, in Biology, I’ve already learned most things we’re learning right now, since I was in jurusan IPA (science major). However, it’s still challenging, because I always have to study and memorize things before a test, otherwise I’ll probably fail. Reviewing and taking notes everyday is crucial, otherwise you’ll get left behind… unless you’re a genius that is.
All my life, Economics has been my weak spot. I never could understand when I read something in the news about it, or when someone started discussing it. So I thought that if I actually wanted to learn something new I’d better take it. It was the best decision ever. Economics is my favorite subject right now, maybe because I have an amazing teacher, or maybe because I it’s so relevant and important to understanding the world. After all, “you can’t always get what you want”–no one can–and it’s that allocation of resources that we study. During the holidays I read Poor Economics, which I recommend everyone to read, because it taught me so much about effective and non-effective ways of helping the poor. It’s quite easy to understand the concepts of Economics, and satisfying as well.
Literature… gahhh!!! This is the class that worries me the most. I took it thinking I’ll be okay, ready to face the risk of challenge, or whatever. How disenchanted I was upon the realization of it being the epitome of technical difficulty! It’s true that I love reading. That is not an issue. I read all the books and understood them easily. I loved the class discussions about the characters, plot, themes, similes, metaphors, backgrounds, and so on. However, believe me when I say that analyzing literature is not fun. Especially when you have to do it in a certain structure, at a certain depth, with an abstract and subjective marking scheme to judge your work upon. I hate how my grade hinges on how well I write the analytical essays. I dislike how the IB turned something I love into a seemingly insurmountable burden. I just pray that it’ll be worth it in the end…that there will come something out of it. However, dear reader, if you don’t want to torture yourself, it’s better to take English A Language and Literature, which is relatively easier. It doesn’t dive so much into one area but instead skims a broader range of texts, such as advertisements, news, novels, and so on.
ESS was the other subject that brought my grades quite low. In comparison to the others, it’s almost the easiest. It has a lot of overlap with both Biology and Geography. So, if you come from any of the two majors (science or social sciences), you’ll do fine in this class…kinda. 😀 However, I don’t really understand how we’re to be graded because I try the best I can with this class, the way I do with all the others, yet the teacher says I’m not thinking critically enough or that I’m not engaged enough. He actually gave me a 1 out of 4 for thinking skill on my report card. LOL. So my solution was to stop asking or asserting stupid things, in other words, to filter my words more–and to show 10 times the engagement and enthusiasm as I did in the first semester. Wish me luck!
Math SL is absolutely incredible. It’s easier than ESS for me, because I already took two years of high school math as a science student back home, and we were already beginning calculus at the point that I left. During first semester I barely studied but this semester we’re getting into trigonometry, so I think I’d better change that habit quickly. 😛
Last but not least… Chinese. Although I’m taking this at the most amateur stage, it’s another favorite subject. The teacher is funny and wholesome and he makes us enjoy learning the language. It’s taxing, but I believe it’ll be worth it in the end. My goal is to be able to speak with Chinese locals by the end of two years. 😉
Besides regular subjects, we’re being introduced for the first time ever to Extended Essay and Internal Assessment. My topic for EE is how socioeconomic factors affect the prevalence of dengue fever in a region of Tangerang Selatan, Indonesia. But please…let’s have no more talk of academics! :”)
B.
This month, on the 22nd of January, was my birthday. It was the most heartwarming thing anyone’d ever done for me. My best friend, Karol, planned most of it. I swear, it’s times like these that I feel Allah has blessed me with more than I deserve.
I don’t think you’ll be very interested in the story, so I’ll try to make it as short as possible. I was sitting there, trying to study Economics, but failing to concentrate because I was 97% sure that my friends were going to do something. Then Eesaa from Bangladesh came in and asked me to come outside. I forgot what he said because at that moment I was already grinning ear to ear and unfocused. The moment I stepped outside Kiki from China blindfolded me and put me in a chair. Then, she, Eesaa, and Amjed from Yemen pushed me to the playground, where a sweet drawing awaited upon a swing. After taking it, they blindfolded and pushed me again to the glasshouse. Along the way there a handsome tall stranger or something constantly talked about his presence, and how he’d replaced Eesaa, haha. ^_^ At the glasshouse, Karol opened my blindfold and there were about 12 or more people there, gathered in a circle around me. It was a clock. Each person said something nice about me or their favorite memory, and some brought a gift. My heart died. Karol also cooked Indomie for us all. They’d bought me a small fruity cake which was delicious. Fairy lights gave a warm ambiance to the room. I hugged everyone who came, because I truly appreciate them all. And Karol, if you’re reading this, I just wanted to remind you that you’re one of the best humans I’ve ever met. I’m not even exaggerating.
What’s interesting is that two times in a row during my birthday I’ve been reminded of time. Someone said the moral of the surprise was to cherish each second, and on my 17th birthday my parents gave me a watch so I’d inget waktu (remember time). It makes me think strange things, haha. Like how my life might end soon…? You never know.
C.
CCE stands for Chinese Cultural Evening. In this part, I’ll let the pictures and video do the talking.
Here is the video of the performances!
Anyways… besides that some other things that happened so far was:
Kak Rafa’s visit. She’s an alumni of UWCCSC who’s now attending the University of St. Olaf
Joining Creative Writing Zhixing and Choir Zhixing. This is the blog for Creative Writing Zhixing.
Trying to run for College Assembly, with the help of my good friend Eesaa, but failing because on stage my voice shakes and any trace of charisma is lost
Organizing Bravery Buddies with Abigail, which is a project that partners people up from campus to motivate each other to complete something you’re scared of doing
Trying to get to the bottom of what happens to trash and food waste at UWCCSC
Organizing a World Hijab Day (which is on February 1st) workshop with the two other hijabis, or as Karol calls it, swagijabis, on campus–Neha and Coumba. B) I’ll add pics of this later.
That’s all, folks. Have an amazing day!! ❤
Starting with ABC (Academics, Birthday, CCE 2019) Hi, beautiful people! 🙂 Honestly, there are times when I feel like I have no right to write, that my words don't matter to the universe.
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AK Monthly Recap: April 2017
It’s so strange that when I look back at this month, one random little memory comes to mind.
I was standing in the CVS on Broadway and 93rd St., fresh from a training session at the gym, picking up a bottle of coconut water, wondering whether I should pay my trainer more for analyzing my love life in between squats and deadlifts.
And then a song came on overhead — Sugar Ray’s “Someday.”
I was filled with nostalgia and warmth.
CVS was where I worked in high school; “Someday” was a popular song on the radio then. I remember the video, the band grooving on a beach in black and white, Mark McGrath all frosted tips and swaying hips. As it played, I moved over to the nearest speaker and danced a little bit, coconut water in hand, trying to pinpoint the feeling swelling through me.
Just close your eyes and I’ll take you there,
This place is warm and without a care…
The song ended too soon. I made my way to the self-checkout, feeling like something had been taken from me, but glad I had experienced it.
Destinations Visited
New York, New York
Reading, Beverly, Lynn, and Boston, Massachusetts
Favorite Destinations
It was so nice to get back to Boston — I actually haven’t spent much time in the city proper since I moved to New York. I used to know Boston like the back of my hand; now that I haven’t lived there for six and a half years, I barely recognize some parts of it.
Highlights
Meeting my feminist heroes. This was a fantastic month. I had no idea I’d be meeting feminist icon Gloria Steinem! My friend Amy invited me to an event honoring Dr. Willie Parker, reproductive rights advocate and author of Life’s Work: A Moral Argument for Choice.
(John Oliver was there, too, and gave a hilarious introduction. Olivia Wilde was there as well, as an attendee, and I cracked up when Amy said, “Hey, Olivia, your backpack is unzipped so I’m just zipping it up for you now.”)
I got a chance to briefly chat with Gloria and tell her about the work I do to fight gender inequality in the travel blogging industry and elsewhere. (“Travel blogging. That’s interesting,” she said.) “I’m continuing your work,” I told her. “No,” she gently corrected me. “You’re continuing your work and I support you.” My heart felt like it was about to burst.
I also met Lindy West, one of my favorite writers in the world, whose book Shrill I named one of my favorite reads of 2016. She was giving a reading at the NYU bookstore. We had a nice discussion about the ramifications of standing up for your beliefs when it can negatively impact your career.
Enjoying flower season in New York. I’m glad I actually got some good photos this year! The cherry blossoms are so beautiful. Spring is one of my favorite times of year in the city. I love when you can ditch a jacket and have a coffee or drink outdoors.
Trying out crazy treats in New York. I’m on a mission to photograph some of the crazier foods in New York, so I waited in line for a cronut at Dominique Ansel Bakery in SoHo (and ran into two lovely readers while doing so!) and tried the fish-shaped ice cream at Taiyaki in Chinatown. Pro tip: if you want a cronut, go right when they open.
Trying out vegan restaurants in New York. No real reason for it; I just happened to try a few this month! I know I have some vegan and vegetarian readers, so here are some tips: if you want something high-end, check out Candle Cafe on the Upper West Side or Upper East Side. I loved the “lasagna” with tomatoes, pesto, cashew cheese, and thinly sliced zucchini. For something more casual, try out Sun in Bloom in Park Slope or Tribeca. They make sandwiches in collard green wraps and they got me to say the most Brooklyn thing ever: “What’s your Brazil nut latte like?” (It’s actually really delicious; you should get it, too.)
Returning to the Boston Marathon. The last time I attended was 2013, the year of the bombing, which was a very scary day. You can read about my experience here. I always find the marathon to be a moving event, and it especially was for me this year. I also got to cheer on my friend Matt, who is an avid marathoner but was running his first Boston.
Spending Easter at home with my family. It was a good time to go home. I also got my chowda fix at Legal Sea Foods. If you want the best clam chowder in Boston, that’s where you go (and don’t even THINK of getting the low cal version); if you want the best seafood chowder in the world, go to The Maine Diner in Wells, Maine.
Hanging out with a cool puppy with a bright future. My sister volunteers for Puppies Behind Bars, an organization where prisoners train puppies to become service animals for wounded vets. The puppies need to be socialized outside of the prison on a weekly basis, so Sarah gets to have a puppy stay with her overnight a few times a month. I loved hanging out with Waldo the black lab; he was so sweet. Also, you can bring a service animal anywhere, which is pretty cool.
Challenges
Overall, this was a very good month, and I’m grateful for that. Nothing worse than a traffic-filled bus back to New York that took nearly seven hours as opposed to the usual five.
Most Popular Post
“Do You Have Any Regrets?” — I extrapolate upon five regrets that I’ve encountered during my travels.
Other Posts
Miami Is Nice, So I’ll Say It Twice — I really enjoyed my time in Miami.
The Most Photogenic Places I’ve Ever Visited — Points for Copenhagen, Istanbul, and Lake Ohrid!
How I Joined Skillshare And Learned Cool New Skills on the Cheap — Be sure to check out this offer with two months free for AK readers, no strings attached.
Most Popular Instagram Photo
This photo from Samara, Costa Rica, taken two years ago, was just the prescription on a cold, rainy day.
For more updates, follow me on Instagram and Snapchat — I’m adventurouskate on both platforms.
Fitness Update
They say it takes a few months before your most observant friends and family notice any kind of weight loss. I’m glad to say that roughly 3.5 months into my fitness regimen, people are finally noticing and telling me how much skinnier I look. It feels awesome.
I took a few new classes this month: I tried out Orange Theory Fitness, which is an hourlong combination of running, strength training, and rowing in a small group setting. You wear a heart rate monitor and it tells you how many calories you burned. My friend Beth loves OTF, so I joined her at the Park Slope studio in Brooklyn. It was awesome — I loved the technology, the high calorie burn (635 for me), and how it feels like you’re on a team! I’ll definitely be back.
I also tried a combination trampoline and weights class at The Bari Studio in Tribeca, which was surprisingly hard, especially the weights portion, and I sweat SO much! Super fun, though. And I loved dancing to Beyoncé in Beyoncé’s neighborhood. (Me texting Beth: “DO YOU THINK THE BABIES HEARD US DANCING TO THEIR MOM?!?!”)
And if you’re ever around 145th St., check out Brahman Yoga. It’s a nice yoga space with cheap $8 drop-in classes. They specialize in vinyasa for all, from beginners to advanced practitioners.
These days there are two classes that I commit to at Equinox on W 92nd whenever I’m in New York: Zumba on Fridays with Adam, which is my favorite of the Zumba classes, and The Cut on Sundays with Chris, which is a hip-hop kickboxing class. Both Adam and Chris are fantastic instructors.
I will say, however, that I’m struggling a lot with diet this month. I need to smack myself back into shape.
Also — are you interested in trying out Equinox? Email me here, tell me which city you’re based in, and I can get you a free three-day trial at any Equinox gym (locations here).
What I Read This Month
This month I read six books and am now 23 books into the 52-book Popsugar 2017 reading challenge, putting me comfortably ahead of schedule. Here’s what I read:
The Trespasser by Tana French (2016) — I chose this from Book of the Month and I also suggested it to my book group. Tana French has written several novels about the murder squad of the Dublin police department; each novel focuses on a different detective. This book is about Detective Antoinette Conway, the only woman and person of color on the squad. There are two focuses: a case where a young woman is murdered and her new boyfriend would seem to be the obvious culprit, and the awful treatment Antoinette receives from her fellow detectives, from having her papers stolen and her coffee spat in to them urinating in her locker and worse. Because she’s a woman and biracial.
I don’t usually read thrillers or crime novels, but I loved this one. It unfolded slowly but soon I was wrapped up deep in the story, and I loved feeling like I was surrounded by Ireland. There were some weak points (and if you read it, you will probably agree on the same weak points), but I found this to be a compelling story along with a scathing account of what it’s like to be a woman in an aggressive male-dominated profession. Category: a book with a red spine.
Homesick for Another World by Ottessa Moshfegh (2017) — This book first came to my attention when I saw that Zadie Smith, an author I love, recommended it in her NYT By the Book interview. When it was an option from Book of the Month, I had to get it! Moshfegh has already published a novel, but she’s better known for her short stories and this collection has been highly anticipated.
I’ll be honest. A lot of people would hate this book. I liked it. The stories are uncomfortable; the characters are unlikeable; there are a lot of bodily functions described in great detail. That discomfort reminded me of Elena Ferrante’s novellas — it’s like holding up a mirror to your worst self. But if you love great literature and can handle a bit of feeling off-kilter, read this book. Her stories are sharp and tight and I’ve never read anything quite like them. Category: a book recommended by an author you love.
One Day We’ll All Be Dead and None of This Will Matter by Scaachi Koul (2017) — I got this from Book of the Month as well because it seemed like the kind of book I’d love — a collection of humorous essays by a rising star and Buzzfeed writer. Her parents immigrated from India to Canada and the book includes stories on being brown in Canada (especially when compared to being a light-skinned Kashmiri in India), sexism and rape culture, and why Indian weddings really aren’t that great, among others. It sounded like it was right up my alley.
Unfortunately, this book did not gel for me at all. I found the writing to be disorganized — Koul would veer off into different random topics in the middle of an essay, then circle back without making a point. She also seemed immature, which makes sense because she’s in her early twenties, and she wrote about her boyfriend constantly even though he had nothing to do with most stories. I did appreciate some of the stories, though, especially the one on body hair. I would totally be open to reading more of Koul’s work down the line, hopefully if that work is in the hands of a better editor. Category: a book where the main character is a different ethnicity than you.
Girls in the Moon by Janet McNally (2017) — I needed a book that took place in two time periods, and when I heard this one told of time perspectives from both a mother and daughter, it seemed like a good choice. It was a Book of the Month option as well, but it was actually a bit cheaper on Amazon, so I got it for Kindle. This book is told from the point of view of Phoebe, a 17-year-old girl visiting her older sister in New York. Her parents were once rock stars, but broke up and their mother abandoned fame to raise her children while her father chased fame and abandoned them; her sister is now becoming an indie rock star and following in her mother’s footsteps more than she will admit.
This is technically a Young Adult book, which I didn’t realize when I bought it. As a result, I felt like the young characters were FAR more mature than their ages (not unlike a Baby-Sitters Club book) and a little too perfect. But to my surprise, I actually ended up really liking the book and rooting for all the characters. I related quite a bit to the mother when she became more and more uncomfortable with fame, and I love that much of the book took place in Brooklyn Heights, one of my favorite New York neighborhoods. Category: a book set in two different time periods.
American War by Omar El Akkad (2017) — Yet another Book of the Month pick! I had been looking forward to this book’s publication ever since I first heard about it. It’s a dystopian book about the Second American Civil War, starting in 2074 and fought as climate change destroys the planet. America has prohibited the use of fossil fuels; the South rebels. The story of the war is told through the life of a young girl named Sarat, who goes from a six-year-old in a refugee camp to an indoctrinated instrument of war.
There were things I liked and didn’t like about this book. I loved the premise, as frightening and realistic as it could be. I loved how it was interspersed with academic papers detailing the war. But I felt like it held Sarat and other characters at so great of a distance that I couldn’t understand their actions and motivations (not unlike American Gods, which I read earlier this year). I will say, though, that the book makes a big shift at about the 75% mark and it becomes much more engrossing. Definitely worth reading. Category: a novel set during wartime. 
Sex at Dawn: How We Mate, Why We Stray, And What It Means For Modern Relationships by Christopher Ryan and Cecilia Jethá (2012) — I bought this book a few years ago on the recommendation of Dan Savage, but only read a few chapters before losing interest. It was time to pick it up again. The book seeks to educate people that humans are not naturally monogamous. Monogamy between humans did not exist until the dawn of agriculture. Prior to that, we were hunter-gatherers and everyone had sex communally and indiscriminately with children being raised collectively by the tribe. This book is a dense tome of anthropological evidence, but it’s also quite funny at the same time.
Does this mean that everyone should give up monogamy? No, but monogamy is definitely not the best choice for everyone. I think this book is valuable in gently pointing out that you’re not a complete failure if you’re in a committed relationship, yet become attracted to someone else — this is how we’re wired. And perhaps more people would be happier in their long-term relationships if they rethought their views on monogamy and infidelity. Category: a bestseller from a genre you don’t normally read.
What I Listened To This Month
This month was all about Kendrick Lamar’s new album, DAMN. Kendrick is one of my favorite artists and I knew it would be tough for his new album to measure up to the tour de force that was To Pimp a Butterfly. But you know what happened?
Kendrick Lamar created an album I actually related to. A lot.
I feel like a chip on my shoulders I feel like I’m losin’ my focus I feel like I’m losin’ my patience I feel like my thoughts in the basement Feel like, I feel like you’re miseducated Feel like I don’t wanna be bothered I feel like you may be the problem I feel like it ain’t no tomorrow, fuck the world The world is endin’, I’m done pretendin’ And fuck you if you get offended
It’s rare for me to relate to an album, period (though Miguel’s Wildheart is the closest I’ve found so far); it’s even rarer for me to relate to a hip-hop album. Most hip-hop is about the experience of being black in America by artists whose lives are nothing like mine. I appreciate it; I learn from it; I seldom relate to it.
But so much of this album is about Kendrick’s insecurities and internal struggles, particularly after achieving success as an artist. And on that level, I felt like he was singing from my life.
I practiced runnin’ from fear, guess I had some good luck At 27 years old, my biggest fear was bein’ judged How they look at me reflect on myself, my family, my city What they say ’bout me reveal if my reputation would miss me
The whole album is fantastic, but my favorite tracks are FEEL, XXX, FEAR, DNA, and DUCKWORTH.
What I Watched This Month
Who’s watching The Handmaid’s Tale? It’s outstanding. Beautifully filmed, scary as hell, and updated appropriately to take place in our current times. I read Margaret Atwood’s book years ago, and it’s amazing how it’s just as prophetic today as it was in the 1980s when she wrote it.
This is a dystopian show in the near future where America has been taken over by a militant theocracy. Environmental disasters and war are ravaging, infertility has severely declined, and fertile women become “handmaids” or forced surrogates to have sex with and bear children for the most powerful men in society. This is the story of Offred, a thirty-something Boston woman whose family is ripped from her and is then forced to be a handmaid.
The acting is fantastic across the board, but the biggest surprise is Alexis Bledel. I feel like this is the first time she’s been in a role where she can show her talents.
If you’re in the States, it is well worth getting a Hulu membership to watch it. But they’re only releasing it episode by episode, so you might want to wait until the whole series has been released.
Image: Stefan Jurca
Coming Up in May 2017
This month I’m heading back to Europe for two weeks. I’m starting in Bucharest, Romania, where I’ll be taking part in a multi-day event promoting Bucharest as a city, and after I’ll be exploring Moldova and Ukraine on my own.
I’ve only briefly been to Bucharest in the past, and Moldova and Ukraine are two of only seven countries I haven’t yet visited in Europe (the others are Russia, Estonia, Lithuania, Belarus, and Cyprus). It should be fun!
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What are your plans for May? Share away!
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