#the 6th formers had their own house in the middle of town

[oifaaa]

Tim hired Captain Boomerang to kill his parents because all the previous Robins were orphans so he had to be one too. But then Captain Boomerang only killed his mom so Tim just pouted for a while when his dad was in a coma

It wasn't captain boomerang that killed tims mum it was that other dude obian man or something like that captain boomerang was the one that actually did kill his dad in the end - they were both hired by Tim though he realised that both Jason and dick have dead parents in common the only other Robin with alive parents was steph and batman didn't like her so Tim decided his dad had to die no other options Tim loves you jack but you gotta go

#ask #randox-talore #tim was like #me and my dad are finally understanding each other #but i need to be the best robin ever #so guess he gotta die 😔 #rip jack #also side note #speaking about tims parents again #i do kinda think its funny #how people will use the whole #he sent tim to boarding school thing #as like an example of bad parenting #like maybe its just bc town i grew up in had a boarding school #and i had friends who went there #and they all loved it #like its just rich kid central #the 6th formers had their own house in the middle of town #not on the schools campus #just in town centre #over at my school we weren't even allowed into town at lunch #you could really see the class disparity between our two schools #that our 6 form room was a dinky wee Mobile class room with a toaster and kettle #height of luxury for us #they got a whole ass fancy house

[bllsbailey]

Why Didn't Nikki Haley Answer Questions on Lloyd Austin or Liz Cheney?

On Monday night, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley participated in "Democracy 2024: FOX News Town Hall with Nikki Haley," an event held in Des Moines at the Iowa Events Center, a week out from the Iowa Republican Caucus, the first nominating contest for 2024. When it comes to memorable moments, it was arguably more memorable what she didn't say than what she did say.

To start the event, co-hosts Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum went through some current event stories, including how Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has come under fire for failing to disclose for days how he was in the hospital. This included a stay at the Intensive Care Unit. 

MacCallum pointed to "this mysterious situation around the secretary of defense, Lloyd Austin, who, for several days, the White House didn't appear to know that he was in intensive care," adding we just learned moments ago that they are saying they don't know when he is going to be released from the hospital, which makes this mystery a little bit deeper." She went on to ask if Haley agreed with former and potentially future President Donald Trump, who has called for Austin to be fired.

"I think Biden should be fired," Haley responded. We already know that, though, given how Haley is running to defeat President Joe Biden in November. And while some accountability for the president over this and other matters would be nice, it doesn't answer the question that MacCallum asked. 

"This is unbelievable that we have a situation like this. When I had a crisis in South Carolina, if we were dealing with anything and I had to deal with my adjutant general, I was on the phone with him every day twice a day. We have war in Europe. We have a war in the Middle East. North Korea tested an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of hitting the United States. China is on the march," Haley continued.

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She went on to list out her concerns with the administration, highlighting how "there are so many things wrong with this." 

"First, I have a problem with the fact that Biden is not talking to his secretary of defense every single day anyway. Secondly, is there not enough connection that he didn't even know he was put in the hospital in intensive care at that? And then to go and say, oh, but his deputy secretary knew what was going on but she is vacationing in Puerto Rico? There are so many things wrong with this," she shared.

Haley, who also served as the U.N. ambassador under the Trump administration, spoke to that experience as well. "But the biggest one that bothers me, when I was at the U.N., we knew the intel. We knew the health of everybody in every country. They know what's happening to Secretary Austin. What bothers me is while our adversaries may know, our own president doesn't know. And these things continue to happen and it's why I say the one thing that keeps me up at night is what happens between now and Election Day. Because Biden is making America very vulnerable and putting us at risk," she added to complete her answer, once again making it about the president.

Later in the town hall event, Haley was also asked about former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) and her remarks about January 6. The candidate's response got the notice of Karoline Leavitt, the spokesperson for MAGA Inc., the PAC supporting Trump.

"We obviously just got through the anniversary of January 6th," Baier pointed out, as he went on to ask if Haley agreed with Democrats and "people like... Cheney, who say former President Trump is a threat to democracy?"

"Oh, what I think is I think the American people can decide this," Haley offered. "And so what I have said is, he said January 6th was a beautiful day. I think January 6th was a terrible day. I hope we never see that happen again. And so that's the focus we should have."

Haley also said "I believe the American people and I trust the American people. And all these people who are trying to tell, whether it's Iowans or Granite Staters or South Carolinians, what they're going to do before they have even done it, everybody is tired of that."

— Karoline Leavitt (@kleavittnh) January 8, 2024

Cheney, has been something of a favorite of the mainstream media as she continues to bash Trump and fellow Republicans, especially as she looks to sell her book that was released last month. She's been trending over X, in part for her Sunday appearance on CBS News' "Face the Nation" in which she claimed "you can't count on these elected Republicans to defend the Constitution."

When it comes to a "threat to democracy," including how Biden and fellow Democrats are looking to get Trump kicked off of the ballot, as they've done in Colorado and Maine, Haley was later asked about that to. This time she was more direct in her response when Baier asked "should he be taken off the ballot? How do you think the Supreme Court will be receiving that?"

"No, he shouldn't be taken off the ballot, and the Supreme Court needs to rule quickly, before other states start to do this," Haley responded. The U.S. Supreme Court announced last Friday that they will take up the Colorado case, with oral arguments taking place on February 8. 

"This is one of those don't open a door if you don't want to see what happens. This is a door we don't need to open. I will defeat President Trump fair and square. I don't need anybody throwing him off the ballot to do it," Haley also said. 

There's been chatter about Trump picking Haley as his running mate, should he be the one to win the nomination, but moments like those above should give us serious pause about Haley being on the ticket. Trump would not only have to ask her, but she'd also have to accept the offer. Haley has also said that she is not running to be vice president.

The Trump campaign and MAGA Inc. have also been attacking Haley over immigration, which also came up during Monday's town hall event. Last week, Haley took issue with calling illegal immigrants "criminals," prompting negative responses from fellow Republicans, and said during a CNN town hall event that there are "some" indictments that Trump's "going to have to answer for." In a Friday statement, Leavitt offered that "Nikki Haley disqualified herself last night from the Republican nomination. Haley thinks that President Trump might be a criminal, but not the illegals invading this nation."

Haley herself on Monday also pointed out that then President Barack Obama sued her "for passing one of the toughest illegal immigration laws in the country" and noted "I appreciate all the attention President Trump is giving me. It is quite sweet and thoughtful of him. But he’s lying about it."

[michael-weinstein]

My Bayreuth Problem

When I was nearly 14, I travelled to Germany for the first time. It was to be a Bar Mitzvah Wagner pilgrimage to Bayreuth with extra days in Nuremberg and Munich. Bar Mitzvahs happen at the age of 13, but the trip (me and my dad) was delayed because of my mom’s cancer (long story short, we discovered it when it wasn’t too late, and after several months of chemo, she recovered). Meanwhile I was getting recordings and scores of all the Wagner operas (that is, from The Flying Dutchman on), and was getting pretty hyped.

Apparently the hype was too much, because when I arrived I was dissapointed. I consciously went to Bayreuth before the festival was underway, but I couldn’t visit the Festspielhaus, though my dad and I did spend quite of an amount of time at the front, taking photos, and listening from outside to an orchestral rehearsal of the second act of Walküre (not that I knew it). Wahnfried came, and went, and it was only a bit interesting to see the Margravial Opera House (newly reopened from UNESCO renovations). Nuremberg was okay-ish (not that you need to know a lot about it), though there was an amusing incident in discovering that the Documentation Center of the Third Reich, built on the former grounds of the infamous rallies, was off the track from the road named, of everything, Yitzhak Rabin Strasse (Rabin was one of Israel’s most famous leaders, and his asassination is highly important for understanding Israeli politics today). We spent a rainy day in Munich (it was the day following Germany’s loss to South Korea in the FIFA World Cup), saw the day before the memorial cross at Lake Starnberg where King Ludwig II died (it’s a mystery, google it up). Also, it was my first experience of an actual forest! It was pretty dark, and the trees were very high.

But perhaps the interesting visit - perhaps the most important in view of what I’m about to talk about - is the one that my dad and I did as soon as we rented a car at the Munich Airport: we went to the Dachau concentration camp. We both agreed that Dachau should be our first destination as soon as we get a car, for 2 reasons: to remember who I am, and the disastrous effect of Wagner’s polemics (if not even his music). We also planned to have a detour to Regensburg, but we were falling behind schedule so we decided to head directly to Bayreuth.

Here I am, 2 and a half years later, understanding that though I love Wagner, I don’t need Bayreuth for it. Besides, one of the things I realized is that Wagner makes you more extreme, and for a middle-of-the-road, all-accepting person like me that’s not a good thing. Bayreuth always attracts either the neo-Nazis or the hardcore-Marxists. And in either case, they are white, either Christian or atheist, male and above 40 (50 makes a better number on paper, but let’s try to be realistic, if it is). Obviously I’m generalizing, but it’s necessary for me to fight “Wagneritis” (as Artur Rubinstein so memorably called it, and he was a Wagner fan by any means). And the Wagner family itself is not exempt from this either; Wagner’s own terrible genetics are continued through the generations, whether through the direct family members Siegfried, Wieland, Wolfgang and Katharina, or their spouses Cosima (Wagner’s wife), Winifred (Siegfried’s), Gertrud (Wieland’s) and Gudrun (Wolfgang’s second wife).

Siegfried Wagner wrote in his testament that there need to be 3 more generations until the Festival can be released from its Wagner-exclusivity. It’s already time for it. In fact, back in 1966 Pierre Boulez (who was making his Bayreuth debut conducting Parsifal) was discussing plans with Wieland to expand the festival, and Sir Georg Solti (who only conducted there once, the Ring cycle in 1983), after discussing the bad quality of singers, likewise asked the same from Wolfgang:

What, then, should Wolfgang Wagner do? Close the Festspielhaus? On the contrary, he ought to open it further. Wagner intended it as a center not only for his works but for German opera in general. Why not perform Weber’s, Strauss’s, Henze’s operas, Pfitzner’s Palestrina, Hindemith’s Mathis der Maler? Abolish Wagnerism as a religion and let some fresh air into the theater, as Wagner wanted. Try to rejuvinate the audience. The Wagner Festival as such has outlived its time, and new thinking is needed.

So I know what I want to do when the Bayreuth festival gets some “fresh air”. Ideally it should be the very first concert, but I don’t mind anything as long as its early enough to effective. If I ever become a conductor, my plan is to conduct Mahler’s 6th symphony. This audience, and this family, need a slap of ice to their faces, they need to wake up and understand there are things beyond Wagner, stagings, opera and singers. They have become so enthused in their delusion in this town, place and festival, but their true, fanatic (even dark) nature will be revealed in the marches of the 1st movement and the finale, and the macabre scherzo. One could say that this is the victory of the spirits of Mahler, the Second Viennese School and Shostakovich, but that would be a downright lie, because each had at least appreciated if not even loved Wagner to an incredible degree.

But they showed they didn’t need Bayreuth for this. Mahler did his most forward-looking and most celebrated Wagner work in Vienna (most notably his Tristan production with Alfred Roller). He was never invited to Bayreuth, most likely because he was Jewish, but even if he was he wouldn’t have fit there artistically. Likewise, Schoenberg loved Wagner deeply, but preferred to learn from what Wagner did in Tristan and Parsifal and stretch it from there to the next level. As for Shostakovich, the sheer fact that whatever he went through in his difficult life, he never left the Soviet Union when he had the chance to speaks for itself (and it’s not because he necessarily supported the authorities).

Likewise, I’ve come to conclude that I don’t need anybody to tell me what Wagner is, and I don’t need Bayreuth for the ultimate Wagner experience. I can do Wagner wherever I want, whether it’s on both coasts of the United States, London, Paris, Berlin, Munich, Dresden, Leipzig, Frankfurt, Vienna, Italy, Salzburg, Greece, elsewhere in Europe or even (gasp) in Israel itself. And please think of me when a Mahler 6 happens in Bayreuth. I’ll do my best to be there.

#gustav mahler #wagner #richard wagner #bayreuth #pierre boulez #georg solti #nuremberg #munich #dachau #mahler 6

[inwintersolitude]

- May 6th 2021 -

What colour is the photo frame closest to you? Silver.

Are your pets asleep right now, if you have any? Nope, they're awake and very chirpy.

Would you have any idea what your parents are doing right now? Probably just going about their usual morning routine.

How many windows (roughly) does your house have? 11.

Do you have a good relationship with your cousins? Yes, although there are a few of them I'm not very close with due to distance and age difference.

What was the last kids movie you saw? I don't remember exactly, but back at the very beginning of the pandemic my husband and I spent the first few weeks of quarantine watching a bunch of Disney movies that neither of us had seen since we were kids.

Do you know anyone who was born in Africa? Not currently, but I had a former coworker who was born in Egypt.

Have you ever been to an internet cafe? Nope.

Are there any upcoming events for you to look forward to? Yep, I'm looking forward to going to the family beach villa next month.

Has the year gone quickly for you so far? Time hasn't been passing normally since the first few months of last year, haha. In some ways, 2021 feels like it's been going by quickly, but in other ways it feels like it's been forever and it's only early May.

How many siblings does your significant other have? One.

Are you one of those people who can drink vodka straight? I've never drank straight vodka. Nor would I want to!

Have you ever done three or more shots in a row? I did shots (only time I ever have, actually) when my husband and I were on our honeymoon, but I don't remember if it was 3 or more.

Do you share a middle name with any of your friends? My middle name is my maiden surname, not a given name, so no.

What was the last movie you saw in theatres? The most recent Star Wars movie. I've been a Star Wars fan since I was a kid, but this one was so awful that I don't even care to remember the actual title of it. I'd like to pretend it just doesn't exist because it practically ruins the original trilogy.

Are you interested in international politics? Yes, I keep up with it to an extent.

How many pairs of jeans do you own? Maybe 5? I'm not really a big fan of jeans. They have to be really soft and have the exact right fit for me to want to wear them.

When was the last time you showered? Yesterday evening.

Do you know the name of the pharmacist at your local drug store? Yep.

What was the first cellphone you had and how old were you when you got it? It was a Siemens CF26 flip phone. I was around 15 when I got it.

Do you use public transport in your town or city? There's hardly any public transportation in this city, it's not a big enough city to warrant having it. There's just a small shuttle service that does an occasional loop around town... not worth using.

Have your parents ever worked in a factory? Nope.

Do you have several best friends? No.

How many lights are in the room you're in? Three.

Is there a Hard Rock Cafe in your town or city? No.

Do you eat fast food more than once a week? No.

What flavour is your toothpaste? All 3 are some type of mint. I use a “bougie” Japanese toothpaste in the morning and afternoon, and a combination of two other kinds in the evening. When combined, they produce the perfect level of mintiness.

Have you ever shared a shower or bath with someone as an adult? Yes, with my husband.

When was the last time you had a bubble bath? It's been years. I'm not a big fan of baths.

Are you sleepy right now? No.

How big is your backyard? Not very big. Around 1,000 square feet... yes I used Google Earth to measure it, hah.

Do you know anyone with Tourette's Syndrome? No.

What time does your alarm wake you up in the morning? It depends. I don't always wake up at the same time. Some days, I don't set an alarm at all.

What was the last zoo you visited? The Cleveland Zoo. Waaaay back in 2001, haha.

Do you like crime films and tv shows? Yep.

When you shop, do you take a basket or a cart (trolley)? Depends on how much I plan on buying.

Have you ever tasted milk straight from the cow? Nope, I don't think I'd ever want to drink unpasteurized milk.

What's your favourite sleeping position? On my side.

What colour is the bra you're wearing? I don't wear bras, they're uncomfortable and I don't really even need one.

Have you ever seen A Clockwork Orange? No.

Are you bitter about anything? Not really.

Do you like to make games out of chores to make them more enjoyable? I've tried that before. It didn't make it more enjoyable for me, haha.

How many letters are in your best friend's surname? 5.

Is there anything in your possession that probably shouldn't be? No.

What is your favourite flavour of yoghurt? Any sort of berry.

What was the first online account you remember having? Probably my first email account, on FastMail.

Do you listen to music to fall asleep? I use an old phone to play a "zen spa" background track on my white noise app, it helps drown out my hearing distortions. But I don't know if I'd call it music, it's more like meditation tones.

Where did you go last time you left your town or city? Our birds' avian vet.

Do you use emojis? Occasionally.

Have you ever wanted to be a lawyer? Nope.

What percentage of battery does your phone currently have? 28%. It almost never gets that low, but I've been semi-bedridden since having crazy-high tachycardia from the 2nd Pfizer dose and having to go to the emergency room, so I've been using my phone a lot more than usual.

What was the last type of soda you drank? Would sparkling water count as soda? That's the only kind of carbonated drink that I like.

How far away from your house is your favourite place to shop for clothes? I don't really have a favorite.

Do you have supplies handy right now to draw something if I told you to? Sure.

Have you ever been married? Yep, I've been married for almost 9 years.

What does your deodorant smell like? Just a generic deodorant smell.

Is your bedroom more messy or clean at the moment? It's in between.

Do you use Twitter? Yep. I have an account but I don't go on there much lately.

Are you any good at baking cakes and cookies from scratch? Yep.

Is there a floor lamp in your bedroom? No.

What does most of your weekly or fortnightly income go towards? Savings/long-term investments.

Have you ever been to another continent? Yes, Europe.

Do you have any hidden piercings? (this includes bellybuttons) Nope.

What month is your birthday? January.

What can you hear right now? My birds chirping at each other.

#survey #surveys #random questions #personal blog

[crackimagines]

Daisy and Sunshine (FE: Three Houses Full Fic)

All 3H AU’s Listed Here!

—

DOOM Paralogue

On the Doom Slayer's day off, he loses track of his beloved pet Daisy, and he goes on the hunt to bring her back. He finds out quickly his day off is about to be put on hold...

----

“Against all the evil that hell can conjure,

All the wickedness man can produce,

We will send unto them, only you.

Rip and tear, until it is done...”

----

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP-

SMASH!

[Life at Garreg Mach Monastery - Fire Emblem: Three Houses]

Doomguy rose from his bed and looked over to the side. Before he smashed his homemade alarm clock, it was about 8 in the morning.

Once he finished stretching, he looked at the calendar and sighed in relief. 

Sunday.

Being an instructor for House Isekai was tiring work. Even though he never spoke, there hadn’t been a day for these past few months where he hasn’t sighed out of disappointment.

Compared to the other houses, this one was trying to herd several cats.

Megumi, Cocytus, and if it ever got too bad, Byleth had to try and calm them down.

Sara did nothing to help and in fact only added fuel to the fire.

(Hayden) “Must you keep destroying the alarm every morning? We do have to keep an eye on our resources.”

The voice speaking was one of the AI’s that Doomguy had on him when he was transported to Fodlan. Personally he would have preferred if it was just his main assistant, Vega, here but he made do with it. It’s not as if Hayden could do anything.

Ignoring him, Doomguy got dressed in his Praetor suit and checked his rabbit pen.

Daisy was normally still sleeping at this hour, but she was wide awake. Her head turned to Doomguy.

Getting a small hay cube, he held his hand out to her, which she nibbled off his hand.

Nodding in satisfaction, he left his room for breakfast.

At the mess hall he met up with Megumi, Sara, Cocytus, Byleth and Seteth.

Once they all grabbed their plates and food, they sat down at a table near the entrance. More and more students eventually poured in and the Mess Hall went from nearly dead quiet to extremely busy.

(Sara) “Finally, a nice old Sunday! These aching bones need to rest.”

(Byleth) “...I don’t recall you doing anything other than do lectures, Sara-”

(Sara) “Exactly! Teaching is hard work, ESPECIALLY with the kiddos that we have!”

(Seteth) “Hmph, that I will agree with. House Isekai’s students seem to be more high maintenance than any of our three houses.”

(Megumi) “You have no idea, but it is fulfilling work!”

(Cocytus) “INDEED. SEEING THE YOUTH SLOWLY BECOME BETTER AND BETTER FIGHTERS IS A REWARD IN OF ITSELF.”

Doomguy nodded in agreement.

(Sara) “Bah, enough talking about classes already! I’m gonna be drinkin’ the day away as soon as breakfast is done!”

(Seteth) “My goodness, it is not even twelve yet!”

(Cocytus) “I SUPPOSE I WILL BE ASSISTING ANY STUDENT IN THE TRAINING HALLS TODAY.”

(Byleth) “I haven’t decided yet.”

(Megumi) “Neither have I. What about you, Slayer?”

Doomguy put his hands to his helmet’s chin.

He wasn’t too sure himself. He supposed he could read for today. It’d make a nice change of pace.

Doomguy shrugged at Megumi and went back to eating.

After everyone finished their breakfast, they all went their separate ways.

...

Turning off the chainsaw, he had finally finished making a makeshift hammock for himself and sat down. He put his helmet onto a leftover parts of a tree he had punched off.

Opening his book, he continued where he left off.

Dungeons and Demons, 6th Edition.

As he read, the morning slowly turned into early afternoon, students and staff passing by and waving hello at him.

He waved back, but hadn’t moved from his spot in hours as he tried to better understand how to play this new tabletop game.

A little later passed and the sun was still shining nice and warm over him. It seemed like the rules and lore within this never seemed to end, so he put it down to catch a small break.

It was then he noticed his helmet’s visor was glowing.

Raising an eyebrow he put the helmet back on and Vega’s voice appeared on screen.

(VEGA) “Slayer, your pet rabbit Daisy has escaped the cage.”

Normally he would have let Daisy explore and come back on her own, since she had a habit of doing that anyway, but he was in the mood to stop reading for the moment, so it was a perfect excuse.

Knowing already where her favorite hiding spot was, he put his book down on the log and went down to Abyss.

[The Forgotten - Fire Emblem: Three Houses]

When he turned the corner, he was greeted by the Abysskeeper.

(Abysskeeper) “Oh, hey Slayer. Got something to report.”

Doomguy stopped walking and nodded at him.

(Abysskeeper) “We got that shipment of supplies we’ve been needing for a while thanks to your assistants. So thanks.”

Doomguy nodded again and grabbed a piece of paper nearby. Quickly scribbling onto it, he showed it to the Abysskeeper and pointed towards the paper’s drawing.

It was an extremely crude drawing of a rabbit.

(Abysskeeper) “Ah, your rabbit. Yeah I saw her run by, she’s fast on her feet. Think she went towards the former classrooms.”

Doomguy gestured his hand upwards as a sign of thanks and went towards that direction.

As he was walking, a familiar face emerged from the corner.

(Hapi) “Oh, Teary. What’s up, Daisy got down here again?”

Doomguy nodded.

(Hapi) “Hmph. Alright, I’ll help you look for her, wasn’t really doing anything anyway.”

Not needing to say anything further the two continued walking and searching every crevice for Daisy. After about 10 minutes of searching the classrooms, they decided to see if anyone else had seen her.

(Yuri) “Oh, hey you two.”

(Balthus) “Heya.”

Yuri and Balthus were in the main room with Angelica, and Sharon.

(Angelica) “’Sup?”

Sharon bowed.

(Sharon) “Good afternoon!”

(Hapi) “Supplies still being brought in, Yuri-bird?”

(Yuri) “Yeah, figured we would’ve been done about half an hour ago. Just how much were you able to get?!”

(Sharon) “When you’re as convincing as I am, you can get whatever you want!”

(Balthus) “That’ uh...ominous.”

(Angelica) “And that still didn’t answer his question.”

(Yuri) “Well anyways, we appreciate it. We’ll be good to go for the next few months with what we have. But I digress, what brings you to our humble abode, Slayer?”

(Hapi) “Teary’s rabbit got lost down here again. We were wondering if you saw it.”

(Yuri) “No idea, but I can send word for everyone to keep an eye out if that’ll help.”

(Constance’s voice) “AAAH!”

Everyone spun around as Constance ran in.

(Constance) “T-THERE IS A HIDEOUSLY LARGE RAT THAT IS SCURRYING DOWN HERE!”

(Yuri) “That should be nothing new, but a large one?”

(Angelica) “Would that rat happen to have been a light brown color?”

(Constance) “Yes! It had massive ears and-”

(Hapi) “Coco, that’s a rabbit.”

(Constance) “A rabbit does not move like that! They hop around in an adorable manner, not bolt around at super speeds!”

(Sharon) “Well, looks like we have found your rabbit!”

(Yuri) “Which way did it go?”

(Constance) “Ugh, we are chasing it?! Let’s see, this way!”

Finally chasing her down towards the arena, she was sitting in the middle.

(Sharon) “Oh, I have not been down here in a while!”

(Angelica) “Wait, what?”

(Balthus) “Er, long story short, she, Megumin, Momon and Nabe, and Akechi were down here a couple months back. They actually helped us stop that Demonic beast in the cathedral.”

(Hapi) “Yeah, pretty sure I saw Sharon slit so many throats down here that some of the stains are still here.”

(Angelica) “Huh, so THAT’S what the whole demonic beast attack was about.”

Doomguy did have some recollection of defending the town during that period of time.

(Constance) “Now, mister Slayer shall you get your rabbit, please?”

Doomguy nodded and knelt down, trying to catch her attention.

Instead of running to him, she ran away in terror.

(Yuri) “Huh, that can’t be good.”

[Woven by Fate - Fire Emblem: Three Houses]

A portal slowly started to emerge, with red alerts blinking on Doomguy’s screen.

(VEGA) “Alert! Demonic presence detected!”

Doomguy’s eyes widened as he quickly got up. He instinctively reached for a gun but had none on him.

(Hapi) “Ooooh crap!”

(Balthus) “Demons, seriously?!”

(Constance) “Did you sigh, Hapi!?”

(Yuri) “Everyone, just get ready for whatever’s coming through that portal!”

Everyone pulled their weapons out as Doomguy walked closer to the portal.

“Slayer...I have found you once more...”

(Balthus) “Uh...are they buddies?”

(Hapi) “B, does it look like they’re friends?!”

(Constance) “Then what is he?!”

(VEGA) “That is a Marauder.”

His voice was coming from nowhere, in which they were all confused by.

(Hayden) “Do not be concerned of where his voice is coming from, focus your attention to the incoming portals!”

Behind the Marauder appeared several demonic beasts, some from Fodlan while some others came from Doomguy’s world.

(VEGA) “He will handle the Marauder, I recommend taking out the smaller beasts so he may focus on his task.”

Angelica cracked her knuckles.

(Angelica) “You got it!”

(Yuri) “Everyone, on me!”

Doomguy was looking back at the group and was relieved. VEGA and Hayden would be ensuring they’d be alright.

(Marauder) “How amusing. You think that they will be safe.”

Doomguy slowly turned to the Marauder and gestured towards him, daring the Marauder to even try.

They circled each other as the Marauder activated his Rune Axe, and Doomguy’s wrist blade shot out.

(VEGA) “Your team’s current objective, Rip and Tear!”

----

[Super Gore Nest - Doom Eternal]

UNIT SELECTION:

Begin the slaughter?

>[Yes] Yes

Victory Conditions: Rip and tear the enemy commander.

Defeat Conditions: Leave the area not filled to the brim with demonic organs.

----

Doomguy threw the first swing, the wristblade bouncing off the Marauder’s shield. 

The Marauder retaliated by swinging the axe overhead, crushing the concrete beneath him as Doomguy dove out the way.

A demonic imp jumped onto Doomguy’s back. Doomguy grabbed the imp by the throat and slammed it down onto the floor, his boot completely crushing the upper skull with its guts and blood splattering onto the floor.

The shoulder cannon spewed out flames behind Doomguy catching a demonic beast into flames as it howled out in pain.

Doomguy countered the Marauder’s axe with his wristblade, and used his freehand to gut punch the Marauder.

Staggering backwards, several hell hounds formed next to the Marauder and charged Doomguy.

(Marauder) “YOU WILL FALL, USURPER!”

(Yuri) “I can’t believe that guy’s so used to this!”

Yuri got his sword out of a demonic beast as another one tried to eat Balthus.

Balthus managed to punch it away, making it fall back onto its side.

Sharon used her wires to tangle it’s mouth shut as she threw her knife into its eye.

(Hapi) “His name is Teary for a reason, Yuri-bird!”

(VEGA) “Actually, his name is-”

(Hapi) “Not now, VEGA!”

Constance used her magic to disintegrate several demons into dust while Hapi did the same with her magic.

Angelica grabbed one of the demons and slammed its face into the wall, and kicking the head so hard into it, it exploded.

Another one tried to swipe at her, but was grabbed by Balthus. He snapped off its neck before slamming it into the floor, with him stomping it to death.

Angelica turned to Doomguy and noticed just how many enemies were around him.

(Angelica) “Some of us need to back him up!”

(Hayden) “That is ill advised, Rogner. Getting in his way is a good chance for you to lose your limbs.

(Sharon) “We should leave him to his fun, yes?”

(VEGA) “That is the recommended course of action. Several more portals appearing behind you.”

A demonic beast came charging out with everyone diving out the way.

With the last of the hellhound being punched so hard, the skull exploded into fragments, he checked his surroundings and noticed a massive shadow above him.

Doomguy spun around and ripped apart the jaw of a massive demonic bird-like beast that tried swooping in, using the upper beak to stab it in the skull while using the lower beak as a makeshift weapon.

Several more demons tried to rush him, and were immediately impaled with the sharp end of the beak.

The Marauder fired an energy projectile from his axe and flew towards Doomguy.

He threw the beak at the projectile, letting the beak and the demons stuck in it get cut in half as he charged the Marauder.

The Marauder charged and the wristblade and axe clashed against each other.

The Marauder brought out a shotgun and was about to fire before Doomguy headbutted him, and grabbed it from his hands.

He ripped the gun in half and threw it to the side, taking out one of the Marauder’s main weapons.

(VEGA) “Friendly portal inbound, we are dropping a weapon for you, Slayer.”

A blue portal appeared above Doomguy, and he raised his hand upwards and caught his super shotgun.

Finally having a gun again, Doomguy started to smile underneath his helmet.

The first Demon that tried to rush him got the barrel in its mouth, its head completely blowing apart into tiny chunks.

Reloading, he looked at the group of demons enclosing around his group. His shoulder cannon shot a grenade out behind him as he rushed to help.

Angelica and Balthus shattered the skull of a demonic beast with the force of their punch while Yuri was dodging swipes from several imps.

Sharon’s wires grabbed and wrapped around their necks as she pulled them over to her.

It tried clawing Sharon, but its head was immediately sliced off from the garrote going through its neck.

She continued smiling as she threw her knife at an imp’s head attacking Yuri, which he grabbed the dagger and drove it into mouth of the last imp.

Hapi and Constance closed the last portal with their magic before making it explode, the demons around it bursting into limbs with blood flying everywhere.

(Constance) “Such detestable creatures!”

(Hapi) “We keep killing but there’s so many!”

A flying demon was about to attack them from behind until it was grabbed out of the air by a hook.

The hook suddenly closed in with Doomguy flying towards it and ripping the beast in half with his wristblade.

(Hapi) “Teary, any chances of this fight finishing up soon?!”

He looked at Sharon and pointed at her wires.

(Sharon) “Oh, you require this? Of course, mister Slayer!”

He nodded in thanks as he held the wires firmly in his hands and turned to Hapi, gesturing towards the Marauder who was running towards them.

(VEGA) “Everyone, the last of the demonic forces are closing into your position, a defensive line would be recommended!”

Hapi ran ahead of Doomguy and readied her magic while Doomguy was catching up behind.

(Marauder) “A friend to the Slayer? Then allow me to open your eyes to this-”

Hapi interrupted him by shooting a fireball at him, which he reflected with his shield.

(Hapi) “Shut the hell up, would you?!”

The smoke disappearing, the Maruader took his chance and swung towards Hapi, only to be blasted in the chest by Doomguy who was now standing in front of her.

Wasting no time, Doomguy used Sharon’s wires and wrapped around its neck, and he kicked him towards Hapi.

Hapi used dark magic and blasted the Marauder upwards into the air.

Tugging the wires forcefully down, the Marauder went crashing down into the concrete, shooting up several bricks upon impact.

Using the wristblade to stab into his eyes, he used the wires to get him out of the hole, shot a grenade into it, then threw his body back.

Using his suit’s dash, he went over to Hapi and shielded her from the explosion that sent body parts and blood raining down on the arena.

No one was spared from a shower of gore that landed on them.

Yuri and Balthus looked slightly annoyed while Constance was screaming that so much bits of guts was on her.

Angelica made a noise that didn’t decide if it was a swear or sound of disgust while Sharon stood completely still, her smile not even twitching.

(Yuri) “Well...didn’t think a rabbit hunt would turn into a demonic invasion.”

(Balthus) “Sure was fun!”

(Constance) “UGH! HOW REPULSIVE! I MUST SHOWER AT LEAST 3 TIMES TO GET THIS SMELL OFF ME! AND MY DRESS IS RUINED!”

(Angelica) “Eugh, son of...Well, at least it’s over.”

(Sharon) “I would be happy to wash everyone’s clothes if they wish for it!”

Doomguy’s shoulders relaxed as he turned to Hapi.

There was only bits of blood on her, but she looked more annoyed than anything.

(Hapi) sigh “Finally that’s over with.”

(Constance )”H-HAPI?!”

Doomguy cocked his shotgun back and turned to the side, blasting a demonic beast that came charging in.

The blast sent skull and eye fragments scattering into the air as it stopped in its tracks, sliding across the bodies and debris.

(Hapi) “Thanks. Now, let’s go find Daisy, yeah?”

(VEGA) “Daisy is currently hiding in a small hole to your right.”

Doomguy nodded and motioned for Hapi to follow. Everyone else joined him.

[Life at Garreg Mach Monastery - Fire Emblem: Three Houses]

Doomguy emerged from the entrance of Garreg Mach alongside everyone else, while he held Daisy in his arms, softly petting her to calm her down.

Byleth passed by and stopped, looking at all of them.

(Byleth) “...Is...everything alright?”

They were absolutely soaked in blood and giblets, all of them standing awkwardly.

Doomguy nodded at Byleth.

(Hapi) “We’re uh, we’re fine thank you. Everything’s fine...How are you?”

(Yuri) “Hey, professor.”

(Balthus) “Pay no attention to our gut soaked rags, professor!”

(Angelica) “Yeah, don’t mind us.”

(Sharon) “Excuse us, we had a bit of a struggle down in Abyss.”

(Byleth) “I can see that.”

(Constance) “P-Please direct us to the baths, Professor Byleth.”

(Byleth) “...To your left, up the stairs.”

Everyone went towards the baths to get washed up.

...

Once everyone was finally washed up and went their separate ways, Hapi went with Doomguy to this room.

Doomguy set a small tea set down at the table and poured them a drink.

After a few minutes of silence as they ate some snacks, Hapi laid against her chair.

(Hapi) “Thanks, Teary. That hit the spot.”

Doomguy nodded as he drank the remainder of his tea.

He looked over at the cage where Daisy was resting comfortably.

(Hapi) “By the way, thanks for saving our butts there. Not that I had any doubt that you would’ve left us anyway.”

Doomguy didn’t say anything, but Hapi knew he would have said “No problem”. Or at least that’s what he gestured.

(Hapi) “...Ya know for being a person who never speaks, you’re a really nice guy.”

Doomguy tilted his head in confusion but she just chuckled.

(Hapi) “The scariest man alive serving tea and caring for a pet rabbit. I’m sure girls like me would just be swooning.”

Doomguy waved his hand dismissively.

(VEGA) “Perhaps we can get a dating site when we get back, Slayer?”

(Hayden) “As if.”

Doomguy punched the wall to signal to the both of them to shut up.

(Hapi) “I said that as a joke but now I’m pretty curious...”

Doomguy glared at her.

(Hapi) “Alright alright, forget what I said!”

She continued to chuckle as he sighed through his helmet. The two continued to sit in silence as his attention was brought over to Daisy.

Daisy was woken up by the sound but looking at Doomguy. He walked over to the cage and fed her small hay cube, which she nibbled off his hand.

Nodding in satisfaction, he went back to the table and enjoyed a quiet tea time with Hapi.

#fire emblem three houses imagines #fire emblem three houses headcanons #fe3h imagines #crossover #Doom AU #doomguy #doom slayer #hapi #yuri leclerc #balthus von albrecht #constance von nuvelle #angelica rogner #sharon kreuger #ashen wolves #doom #doom eternal #byleth

[lornaslibrary]

Top 5 7 Stephen King Books

Since Stephen King is my favourite author, and since I didn’t do my usual Stephen King recommendations post this year I thought I’d just tell you about my top favourite Stephen King books instead. I was aiming for a top 5, but I couldn’t decide between the 5th, 6th, and 7th, so have all three and consider this my official Stephen King recommendations post.

7. Revival

Revival is a must read for any fans of horror classics. It’s a mix of inspiration from Mary Shelley, Arthur Machen, and H.P. Lovecraft and it follows the main character from a young boy to a grown man as he investigates his former minister and his increasingly more dangerous experiments with electricity. Anyone who says Stephen King’s more recent work is nothing compared to his older novels hasn’t read Revival. It really does justice to the works it was inspired by.

6. Duma Key

The main reason I love Duma Key so much is because it does everything my GCSE English teacher said a horror novel couldn’t do. It’s set on a beach in Florida, as opposed to a creepy old house in the middle of the woods. It’s still a very creepy story of ghosts, paintings, and a dark family history.

5. Pet Sematary

Pet Sematary is one of King’s more sinister books. In my experience, it’s usually the one people find the most unsettling or straight up terrifying simply because it does something very taboo. Even King himself was unsettled with how dark the book was. It’s pretty indicative of the kind of horror novels I like, but I absolutely adore Pet Sematary. I’ve read it several times, once dressed as Church the cat for Halloween, and I’m so excited for the remake of the movie!!

4. Bag of Bones

Hands down the best ghost story I’ve ever read. Bag of Bones has everything I ever wanted; ghosts, a mystery, and a town with a dark history. I’ve reread it a few times now, and every time I’m just as enthralled and unsettled by the story as the first time.

3. The Stand

Definitely one of the most popular and well know of all of King’s books, and for a good reason. The stand deals with the after-effects of the apocalypse in a way no other book does. It poses questions of morality, fate, and the human race’s desperation for survival. Despite it dealing with so many different characters, every single one is fully fleshed out and has their own unique voice and motives and backstory and I ended up loving every single one of them, even the bad guys. It also includes King’s most famous villain, Randall Flagg, a.k.a. the man in black, who also plays a large role in The Dark Tower.

2. The Dark Tower

Yes, I am counting a full 7 book series as one book. A fairly underappreciated book series, although I think it’s getting a bit more recognition now due to the movie and plans of making a TV series. The Dark Tower is a mix of western and fantasy, inspired by Tolkien, and contains some of the best worldbuilding I’ve ever encountered in a fantasy series. It spans several different worlds and time periods, and every region they travel to has their own unique dialect and every time I reread the series I find myself talking in the same way as the people in whichever place the main characters are currently visiting.

One of the best things about The Dark Tower is the way it links all of Stephen King’s other books together. You don’t need to read the other books to understand the series, but it adds so much if you do. Not only does the series contain characters and references back to previous books, but other books also contain references to the series. Even books published after the series still contain references to The Dark Tower to keep the theme going. I’ve never read anything else like it.

1. Lisey’s Story

Probably one of his most underrated books, Lisey’s Story resonated with me in a way no other book ever has. I don’t even know why. When I try to explain how this book made me feel, my explanation always comes up short because I honestly don’t know. All I do know is that I read the entire second half of the book in one sitting, sobbed through all of it, and then went into a weird daze for the next three days where I couldn’t think about anything else. I don’t know why, all I can say is that Lisey’s Story affected me in a way no book had before and no book has since.

#booklr #Stephen King #book recommendations #my recommendations #top 5 #mine

[geminimoonbeamx]

Sweet Tooth: Part Two

A/N: Okay guys I’m SO into this story. I can’t wait for you guys to see what I have planned.

Word Count: 3k+

Warnings: Cursing. Like a motherfucker. Because this is a story about Lance Tucker. Mention of slight fat shaming. Drinking and driving (which is stupid, don’t even try kiddo’s)

Summary: Lance Tucker has come back to his hometown with his ego bruised and his look on life more tainted then ever. When he runs into Y/N; a vibrant plus size woman he went to high school with at her bakery ‘Cake Faced’, he leaves the shop with the taste of sugar on his lips and a hunger that has nothing to do with the cupcakes.

💘💘💘💘💘

It had all started a couple weeks ago.

When Courtney, your best friend of nearly two decades, had sashayed into the shop, a cup holder containing two Venti coffee’s in hand. She always did this, came and distracted you at some point in the day. She claimed if she didn’t you would get completely buried in your work and she’d never see your ass again. You defend yourself of course at the jab, but weakly. Because you knew she was probably(defiantly) right.

“Hey hooker” you greet from your place, adjusting the display in the window while the store seemed to have a quiet moment, only a few costumers scattered around the place. Your short frame was balanced on a step stool as you reached up high to

“Hello gorgeousness…Why don’t you come down from there before you brake your neck. Neck braces aren’t on trend this spring” She teases, because everyone whose ever met you knows how dangerously clumsy you are. You just huff and climb down. Courtney then hands you your drink and you give her an over exaggerated groan, holding your hand to your chest and telling her that she was too good to you before taking a sip of the sweet caffeine you had desperately needed.

Thank god for Courtney- that she knows you better then you know yourself. She took time out of her own day to come check on you and ask you how yours was going, yeah it wasn’t really out of her way seeing on how she worked up the street, but still. You appreciated her more then she’d ever know, even if she had ‘momed’ you since you guys we’re teenagers.

“So how has your day been?” She’s nibbling on a coconut cream pie scone. She claimed god himself had given you the recipe for them “It looks unusually dead in here”

“It’s been aright so far, nothing too exciting. The 4 o'clock rush hasn’t happened yet so I’ve just been fucking around. Yours? Your manager still harassing that new guy?” You guys end up sitting at one of the little tables, Shane assures you that he’s got who ever might come in.

“Yeah, Patty’s still earning herself one shiner of a Law Suit. Dirty ass old woman” Courtney shakes her head at the mention of her boss, the woman was a seventy year old former play boy bunny AND the dirtiest woman either of you had ever met. “But that’s whatever. I have some major gossip”

You can tell just by the tone of her voice that what she’s about to tell you is insanely juicy.

Fun fact, you never really grow out of gossiping. Thirty(well twenty nine) years old or not, when you live in a town as small as this one, it’s just a given that every one knows everyone’s business.

“Okay why didn’t you start out with that? Spill” You demand, leaning in closer to her, anticipating her next words.

“Okay so you know how Felix used to date Sarah whose best friends with Brooklyn?” She starts and you nod. Obviously “So I guess they’re sleeping together again. I know, big shocker, and Sarah told him that Brooklyn told her that Lance is moving back in with their mom” Courtney informs you of the tabgled drama between her coworker, his ex, and Brooklyn Tucker.

You gape at that for a moment. No way. Lance Tucker, Olympic gold medalist, LANce Tucker was moving back into his parents house. How?

“No way” You decide but she just chuckles and nods.

“Yes way, dude. I guess there was some huge scandal at that gym he worked at in California. Some coach got one of the girls pregnant or something? I don’t know all of those details but what I do know is Lance the mother fucker Tucker is moving home” Courtney cackles “How hilarious, right?”

Courtney was nice…to you. To everyone else she was a bit of a bitch.

“Hilarious isn’t the word I would use. Ironic though-” You cluck your tongue. Hadn’t he always hated this town? You remember even in middle school he had been so adamant about getting out of this “suburban shithole” and going somewhere he deemed worthy of him. Him and his shiny superstar ego.

“It’s fucking fitting I think. He was always such a giant dick. Now he’s living back with his mommy? Karma really is a vicious bitch. Ha” Courtney shakes her head with a smirk and you roll your eyes.

Yeah, he’d been a huge cocksucker to everyone- you included. But losing your dream? The one you’d spent years working on? You didn’t wish that upon anyone.

“It is but how…sad” You bite your thumb nail as you mull it over.

“Sad? I mean I guess- But he’s such an asshole. Don’t you hate him?” Courtney hates you and your big bleeding heart sometimes. That guy didn’t deserve your sympathy.

“No, Court, I don’t hate him…anymore” you cant deny, there was a time when he had made you see red “He’s not my favorite person in the world. Of course not, but I don’t know. I’m an adult now-” Courtney scoffs hard at that and you fling a cupcake wrapper at her “I just don’t see the point in holding grudges anymore”

“Yeah okay” Courtney rolls her eyes as she gathers up her belongings “You keep telling yourself that, Mahatma Gandhi. Like you don’t still hate Carlos Vance for accidentally hitting you with a pencil in the 6th grade”

“He really almost blinded me and wasn’t even apologetic about it at all. Fuck him forever” You’re dead serious and it causes both of you to laugh.

“My breaks almost over, I have to run. We’re still on for Margarita’s with the girls this Friday, right?”

“Of course” You kiss each other on the cheek and you pack her another scone “for the road” before she’s hurrying out of the door. You give her reciting frame a fond smile, but continue to mull over her words. Lance was coming back. You stomach felt unsettled at that- and you hated it. You hadn’t even talked, or much less thought about him in years.

So why we’re you so…so weird about the idea of him moving back? It was stupid, really.

So you do what you did best, and buried your self in your work.

It really did help, too. Your mind is completely free of any thoughts of people you hadn’t seen in ages-

Until a few days ago.

When he had walked into your shop.

He was still the same. The way his presence seemed to fill up the entire room. That smirk and those expressive eye brows. And, because you’re not a hater, of course you’d noticed that he’d seemed to be even more in shape now then he was back in high school. His broad shoulders strained against the material of his track suit. Jeeze, he was still wearing those. Didn’t he know it was a different decade now?

So you’d taken him personally, helped him choose a cupcake and rang him up. Just being professional, you tell yourself. that was all it was.

You tried to ignore how…tired he looked. Not physically, really…but drained. His demeanor drained. It wasn’t your business, right? So you try to keep it cool, keep your self in check.

You never did have the best self control. When he’s going to leave, you call for him.

“Welcome home”

Simple words, but you hoped they might have a little impact.

His grin is still ridiculously bright and handsome, you note mentally.

Fuck. Fucking fuck.

It brings up old- feelings. Memories. Adolescent adoration and hate. It’s annoying, there’s no place for it in your adult life.

“He seems like a real winner” Shane had dead panned “Hot as hell though”

You laughed at your younger employee. You loved Shane, he’d been working for you since pretty much the moment you’d opened this place and even though he was five years your junior, he’d become a close friend “What you don’t remember Lace the mother fucker Tucker? Olympic gold medalist and grade A dick wad?”

“Nah, I remember him. That tight ass of his though, that slipped my memory”

You’d swatted Shane’s shoulder as you laughed. Little shit.

You hadn’t seen him after that, though. Not that you wanted to. Not that your eyes maybe scanned the shop for a tall head of dark hair…

You didn’t expect him to come back. Him and his athlete ways. Back in high school you remember him and his grueling diet he’d been on.

So you go about your routine, the comfortable one that you follow without even thinking about it. The one that included waking up at the crack of dawn, feeding your dog, watering your garden. Tending to the shop as though it was your child. Bullshitting with your friends.

The usual.

Your usual is broken, though, by one phone call.

It’s not even a bad phone call, so you don’t know why it throws you off so awfully. Why you feel overwhelmed and hot and near panicky as you sit at your kitchen table. But you know that you need to remedy it. With wine. Lots, and lots of wine.

Which you don’t seem to have in your house. How we’re you completely dry? What kind of blasphemy.

So you drag yourself out of your house, muttering about “fuck your life” and “Courtney’s the antichrist” because you knew that alcoholic bitch was the culprit, the wine bandit who had left you with no choice but to go to the store. At 10 O'clock. In a pair of tight leggings, an over sized sweater and ugg booties.

You’re walking lazily through the brightly lit isles of the grocery store on main street. You’ve found your wine, have it popped open, as you stress shop.

You figure you might as well get some ingredients. Plus, you needed new dish towels- and oh, we’re those Fourth of July decorations? Might as well grab em’ even though it was only Mid April.

You’re so engrossed in your task, that you don’t notice you’ve been being trailed.

Lance needed to get out of the house.

Living with his mother and sister- and Brooklyn’s two daughters was driving him nuts. Did he love them all? Yes, very much. Was he going out of his fucking mind at the overwhelming amount of female energy he was being force exposed to? Absolutely.

He was already apartment hunting.

So he’d go on drives, long ones that would take the edge off of- everything.

Re-explore this town that he seemed to know every corner of. Get to know the few parts that we’re new. But even that was getting boring.

So he decides that the only way to get through this night is drunk. Or at least buzzed. The liquor store is closed so the supermarket is the only option. Lance takes long legged strides into the all but empty store. It’s late, so no one is really there, but the one cashier working and Weird Wallace, the towns hermit who only came out at night to avoid all other human life.

Lance tips his head at the man as he makes a bee-line for the liquor section, intent on buying a twelve pack of beer and hopefully drinking everyone that night.

He doesn’t expect to see you. He catches the sight of you out of his peripheral vision. You have a wine bottle tilted all the way back, taking a gulp, before going back to your shopping.

What were you doing at the store at nearly eleven o'clock? Lance wonders with an amused grin.

He should just grab his beer and go home. That would be the smart thing to do- Buuuut, Lance really wasn’t as smart as he prided himself on being.

He’s not following you.

Not even.

He just happens to be going in the same direction as you.

Not creepy at all.

Okay- kind of creepy. Especially when you bend over to grab something off a bottom rack. Your leggings go sheer as they hug your large, round ass. He can see the outline of the little lace g string you have on and he cant help but bite his lip.

What a sight.

You always had, had a nice ass. Wide and grab-able. His fingers still itched to dig them selves into the doughy flesh.

“Well, fancy meeting you here”

The sound of his voice sends you snapping up straight fast, you almost loose your grip on the neck of the wine bottle as your heart pounds and a gasp rips it’s self from your throat. You spin on your heels to face him and he’s just standing there. In a track suit, that look- his signature smug smile gracing his features.

“Lance, you dick!” You hiss at him, holding your middle as you regain your breath “You scared the shit out of me!”

His icy eyes could make the queens guards quake in their tall black, fluffy hats. They’re so…predatory. And sharp. And beautiful.

And bold, they look you up and down unapologetically.

You swallow the rush of self consciousness that raises in your throat.

“Sorry, sugar” He doesn’t sound sorry at all “What are you doing out so late?”

“It’s not even eleven o'clock yet, Lance. It’s hardly late”

He likes your snark, It suits you. You’d never had that edge before “My mistake. It’s totally normal for people to be going shopping for-” he gazes into your shopping basket “Red, white and blue tiki torches and chardonnay in the middle of the night”

“Being normal is vastly overrated” You shrug and shift on your feet “What about you? You going to a kegger?”

He grins “Nah, I just needed a breather… you want to join me?” He holds up the case of beer in offering and you roll your eyes at him.

Hard.

“I’ll pass” you dismiss him easily, turning back to your cart “You have a good night though”

You had a sense of self preservation and you absolutely would not get drunk with the man. Randomly. On a Thursday night.

Lance’s eyebrows stich together at how easily you shrug him off and that part of him, the competitive athlete one, pushes him forward. Because he never gave up, on anything. Ever. And who we’re you to just turn your back on him?

“Really? You’d rather drink your bottle of wine alone?” He presses on, keeping up easily with you so you’re standing shoulder to shoulder(well not really because he has a good near foot on you) with him. You convince yourself that it doesn’t unnerve you.

“Yup” you pop the ‘p’ dramatically.

“That sounds like fun" His sarcastic bite makes you bite the inside of your cheek “I’m offering you company. A good time and…good beer”

“I’ve never really been a beer girl” the sound he makes in his throat at your words is cute. You cant deny that “So again, I’m pretty sure I’ll pass”

“And here I thought we we’re friends”

“Really?” You give him incredulous eyes. Was he serious?

“Yeah- I mean we had that art class senior year and we were partners and” Lance recalls how close the two of you had gotten, how many hours you’d spend laughing and bullshitting and wasn’t that friendship? “I just assumed we we’re still friends”

“Do you not even remember what you said to me?” You don’t mean to say it, you really don’t. But you’ve taken one too many gulps of wine. The look of confusion on his face feels like a slap to yours.

“No?” He starts “Should I?”

You scoff at him so intensely it’s almost painful before you’re off, wanting to put some distance between the two of you.

Why wont he let you?

“Y/N” Lance insists on being the biggest pain in the ass ever to walk the planet “What did I say?”

“Just leave me alone” You’re almost through at the check out isle, the cashier is taking their sweet time though. You’d always loved La'tecia. The elderly black woman kept you in stiches, but you needed her to hurry the hell up.

“No. What did I say?” He continues to push, keeping up with you easily. He was fitter, his legs longer. You couldn’t out run him if you tried.

When you don’t answer him he can feel his annoyance spike at your antics “Why don’t you quit being a child and tell me so I can say sorry- even if I don’t really mean it- and you can get the fuck over it”

Oh.

Hell.

No.

He did not just speak to you like that. Your teeth grit in an attempt to hold your temper. Even if the store was dead it was still a public place.

“You know what, Lance? First of all fuck you-” He opens his mouth and your finger slices the air in front of you as you hold it up “No, I’m talking right now. You keep your mouth shut and listen to me. You want to know what you said to me? You told me that I might be, and I quote, actually pretty cute if I lost some weight. That you bet all the guys would be after me if I worked on my fitness. And that killed high school me. But adult me, whose obviously doing a hellva lot better then you in life doesn’t care. So there’s nothing you need to say a meaningless sorry for. But we are not friends” You’re pretty composed during the entirety of your little rant. Until the end. You hiss those words at him.

La'tecia just minds her business, and you give her your card, eagerly.

Lance attempts to absorb your words, you’d never seen him at a loss for words. Yeah, he remembers that conversation…but you were totally twisting his words! It hadn’t even gone down like that.

“Y/N-” He starts. but your bags are in your cart and your off. He intends on following you again but-

“Uh-uh. Are you going to pay for those?” La'tecia’s cutting voice asks and he sighs and takes out his wallet.

“Let me tell you, boy. You’ve always been heard headed. And loud as hell. But I never thought you we’re cruel, even with all that nonsense everyone always spoke about you” She starts, looking him right in the eye as she speaks “You’re a grown man now. Act like it”

Lance feels personally attacked. How had this night taken this route? All he’d wanted was some beers.

“Thanks for your words of wisdom. You should consider a new profession? Therapy maybe? Counseling? Telling people where isle four is, is obviously getting to mediocre for you” He sarcastically pans at the woman before snatching his beer and his card and stalking off.

He doesn’t know why he’d expected to find you outside, the lot is empty. Your long gone. He reaches for one of the beers, wrenching open the box before popping the can open an chugging. The drive back home is spent with him stewing and going over things he hadn’t thought about in…well ever. How was he supposed to know that him stating a simple face back so long ago would make you hate him forever? Hah, no, you didn’t even hate him. As you said. You just didn’t care about him. At all.

Like no one did.

His knuckles are white around the steering wheel as he sits outside the front of his house for nearly half an hour. Wondering what the fuck had just happened.

Oh, how the mighty had fallen.

——————

@huntressxtimelady @i-had-a-life-once @zombiewerewolfqueen @spookyscaryscully @adyseesbeauty @geekyweed @maximum-effort-minimum-life @peacefulwriter88 @pegasusdragontiger @papi-chulo-bucky @yslbucky @iamwarrenspeace

Okay so one of my Aunts from my dads side of the family was just over and I knew I needed to write in La'tecia because I love bold black women. I’m sorry it got to moody, but for there to be any realism in this story Y/N needs to first call him on his shit. Give me some feed back! Let me know if you want to be tagged! Love you’s guys!

Part Three

Part Four

#Lance Tucker #lance tucker x reader #lance tuckerxreader #plus size reader #the bronze #bucky barnes x plus size reader #smut #angst #Lance Tucker smut #sebastian stan #chase collins #carter baizen #clay appuzzo

[therealblacksanta]

The History Of Santa

SANTA CLAUS: HOW A BEARDED BLACK BISHOP BORN IN TURKEY BECAME AMERICA’S FAVORITE WHITE SAINT Originally Written by Linda Ann Loschiavo, Special Thanks to The Turkish Times

His beard and reputation are world famous. Miracles ascribed to him are legendary. Youngsters ponder his whereabouts and travel agenda, especially in December, knowing he’s not afraid to fly and he’s never run out of money.   Born to wealthy parents in Patara, Turkey, when the population of Anatolia was mostly pagan, it’s said he took a special interest in three sisters. Too poor to have dowries, they were being forced into prostitution when, suddenly, three bags of gold were thrown down their chimneys, enough bait to attract husbands. The trio did not leave thank you notes behind, for the record, but anyone with a bulging sack of benevolence is bound to be popular. Faith and hope, St. Paul wrote to the Corinthians, are outweighed: “The greatest of these is charity.”   Love for others is what always drove him, this Turk named Nicholas, which means “people’s victory.”   Devoted to good works, Saint Nicholas [270-310] was once Bishop of Myra (“Myrrh”), a town now called Demre. Anatolia, the territory of modern Turkey, has been the heartland of human civilization since 7,000 BC.   Patara, to the west of Demre, had been visited by St. Paul and St. Luke in 55 AD on their way from Miletus to Jerusalem; perhaps from this early date, a Christian community was established at this major Roman Lycian port. Demre, a vital port on a dangerous part of the Turkish coastline, became part of the pilgrimage route from Venice and Constantinople to the Holy Land [Palestine].   This helped spread the cult of the saint, especially for seafarers who once worshiped the pagan god Poseidon.   In 392, the Edict of Theodosius ruled that Christianity would be the state religion of the Empire. Large scale destruction of classical statues and temples began, and locals constructed houses of worship like the much restored church of St. Nicholas at Myra (Demre), whose foundations date back to the late 4th-5th centuries. Rocked by a religious seesaw, this church was enlarged by the Emperor Justinian in the 6th century, then destroyed in an Arab-Muslim raid in 1034, but rebuilt by Constantine IX in 1043.   During the Crusades, Catholic merchants sailed to Muslim countries to acquire relics for their own parishes. In May of 1087, several well-financed Italian groups were bidding on the bones of St.Nicholas when a boatload of Barese businessmen stole the remains and rowed them back to Apulia. The pugliese, about to lose to the wealthier Venetians, knew they would have a major tourist attraction if they grabbed San Nicola.   The Cathedral built to honor the former bishop in Bari, Italy [in 1087] depicts the Turkish-born saint as a very dark-skinned, Middle Eastern male.   One of the most famous figures of Christendom, Nicholas is the patron saint of several countries including Russia, Greece, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Sicily, Loraine, etc.   When the feast of Saint Nicholas (December 6th) was prohibited after the Protestant reformation of the 16th century, this miracle-worker retained his popularity.   In 1664, when the Netherlanders relocated to New York [New Amsterdam], they carried their customs with them. Dutch youngsters awaited a visit from Sinter Klaas (Saint Nicholas) and presents he’d leave in their wooden shoes on the eve of December 5. As the appealing Dutch custom of celebrating the feast of Saint Nicholas by giving gifts to children spread throughout this nation, “Sinter Klaas” became “Santa Claus” in the United States.   This philanthropist, depicted as a white-bearded old man with a long caped coat [or sometimes in red Episcopal robes], remained a moralistic figure: rewarding good children or punishing unruly ones.   Washington Irving’s book — A History of New York, From the Beginning of the World to the End of the Dutch Dynasty, by Diedrich Knickerbocker — depicted Saint Nicholas as a European, Caucasian-featured figure in a broad-brimmed hat who smoked a long pipe, associating his character with the then-familiar Dutch patron saint of New Amster-am. An illustrated poem by John Pintart that portrayed a slim Saint Nicholas further distanced him from his Middle Eastern origins; no longer pictured on a donkey, he guided a sleigh drawn by one reindeer until 1821.   Drawing on sources and his imagination, another New Yorker, Reverend Clement Clark Moore created the Santa that Americans know. In 1833, “A Visit From Saint Nicholas” introduced Santa Claus for the first time as a kind, plump, jolly Caucasian elf greeting readers with his twinkling eyes, rosy cheeks, and dimples. Moore’s Saint Nicholas smoked a pipe, navigated an airborne sleigh pulled by eight tiny reindeer, and made his entrance via the chimney.   An enthusiastic house guest sent Moore’s poem to a local newspaper editor. Overnight, verses about a jolly old elf who piloted a reindeer-drawn sleigh began to be recited by families. After awhile, the Church urged Christians to merge this “children’s festival” with the Nativity. An Americanized Saint Nicholas, consequently, began making his housecalls during the night of December 24.   December 6th, if you’re motivated to be generous, especially to children who have lost a parent, give in to it.

#the real black santa #christmas #santa claus #news

[tasiamarkoff]

Cuba

Grab a cuppa and get comfy. 

I just spent 10 days in Cuba with my mom and sister. Cuba is a fascinating country, full of friendly people and stark contrasts. We spent our first four nights in an apartment in Central Havana. This area is full of buildings so decrepit you would not think anyone could live there, but they do. 

People live here. Many occupied buildings are in worse shape than this one. 

Our apartment was on the 6th floor of a dilapidated building with a once-grand but now scary elevator that required an operator to run it. Sometimes no one was there so we had to use the chipped and cracked marble stairs with wobbly, ornate handrails. 

Our building in Central Havana. 

Our street. Most of Havana smells like diesel exhaust, stale cigarettes, and salty air. 

Most people were happy to let me point my camera at them. Occasionally they asked for payment. 

I am not above also taking stealth photos. 

Cuba is known for its vintage 1950s American cars. Many are better kept under the hood than on the outside, but some look like new. Most are Chevys but we also saw Plymouths, Pontiacs, and Fords. 

Drivers are proud of their cars and will tell you if they are “original” i.e. still have their gas engines. Most have been converted to diesel. 

Other forms of visitor transportation include bicitaxis (bike taxis), horse taxis, motorcycle taxis, and cocotaxis (open-air 3-wheelers that are round like coconuts). 

Horses are still a common form of transport for locals, even on the highways where traffic zooms past them at 90 kph. The first picture below (looking down from our second floor patio in Cienfuegos) shows a vendor who came down the street calling out his offerings, parked in front of our house, and sold produce to people who came out of their homes to see what he had. 

While there are some produce markets in buildings or under tents, street carts seem to be a primary source of produce. 

On our last day we walked by an unusually huge produce market, easily 10 times the size of any other we had seen. It also had meat and some dry goods. 

Of course, the beaches are lovely. This is Guanabo.

While swimming in the waves, my sister and I spotted a shack that looked empty and had no signage, but there were tables outside. We thought it was nothing until someone walked away holding a coconut with a straw in it. After fetching our mom, we investigated further and found a man with a pile of coconuts and a cooler inside. He hacked off the tops of 3 coconuts for us, inserted straws, and had us drink some of the water to make room for rum. Yum. 

We had great views from our Havana apartment. In one direction, the Malecon (waterfront road) and the sea; in the other, gritty Central Havana. 

Sunrise.

Sunset.

Calm day on the Malecon.

Wild day on the Malecon. On a day like this you will get wet if you walk on the ocean side.

An inhabited building.

Walking in Central Havana, you see apartment buildings with entrances like these. 

The blue symbol indicates a casa particular or private space for rent. Many Cubans rent space to tourists. You can get a room in someone’s house or an entire home. 

Che Guevara is everywhere. Does anyone else see a slight resemblance to Johnny Depp? 

Souvenir shop in a stairway in Old Havana. 

Near the center of this photo is a white Jesus statue that once, during Batista’s tenure, had its head split open by lightning. Locals took this as a sign that God was not pleased with Batista. 

Scenes from Central Havana. 

Near the Capitolio, a park-like paseo in the middle of a busy street. 

The ballet theater and Capitolio, the latter undergoing renovation. 

More old cars.

We visited a cemetery, the second largest in the world, apparently. I don’t know if that is based on acreage or... occupancy. 

In a former monastery in Old Havana, we found fun artwork, good coffee, and quiet live music.  

In Cienfuegos, we found a guarapo stand. Guarapo is freshly pressed sugar cane juice. We paid 1 peso in local money for each glass. Local pesos are worth 24 to the US dollar. Paper cups are rare in Cuba. Even at stands like these, you get a real glass and are expected to return it. 

Cakes for sale. 

Cockfighting is a popular “sport.” This guy was tied to a chair. 

Every neighborhood has at least one plaza with a memorial to someone, usually a general. 

75 cents for milk bread. 

The balcony off my room in Cienfuegos. 

Bread delivery. He called out as he pedaled and people came out to collect theirs. 

Intricate white painted woodwork on this restored house. 

Pina coladas are hit or miss in Cuba. This one was good. 

Mojitos were generally good, and some were great. Cubans make good rum. 

Teatro Tomas Terry, still in use, was built in 1889. 

Ceiling art. 

During a taxi ride from Cienfuegos to Trinidad, we stopped in a village where a man with a guitar approached to sing to us. He got a couple of pesos for the song and for letting me take his picture. 

Stray dogs are everywhere, from Havana to the smallest village. 

A place to rest along the road. 

Between Cienfuegos and Trinidad, we visited El Niche, a park with waterfalls, natural pools, and great views. 

View from the top of the trail, with palm tree graffiti. 

We swam here. 

I saw a few nails but most of the railings were tied on like this. 

Trash can made of giant leaves. 

At the top of the trail, a guide offered to take us on a secret trail to a cave that houses the source of the stream that leads to the waterfalls. He moved a fence post out of the way so we could go through, as my mom did here. 

The stream, where I was brave and tasted the fresh spring water. 

Then it was on to Trinidad, a well preserved (by Cuban standards) colonial town with uneven cobblestone streets, music everywhere, and a cocktail called the Trinidad Colonial. 

One of many street markets. 

A lot of the offerings are the same at many stalls, but this one offered hand dyed fabrics and bags. 

This kind of stuff is common. 

Super high ceiling in the sitting area of the former convent where we stayed in Trinidad. 

These are very much still a thing in Cuba. 

Our hosts had their own sitting area, complete with boom box and computer. 

These steps turn into Casa de la Musica at night, a live music venue with bars and a restaurant. 

Back in Havana, we visited an old (no longer in use) tobacco factory with a cigar store on the main level. 

Tobacco press. 

Overall, we had a great time and I would definitely go back. Adios, Cuba! 

[chiddicksfamilytree]

This is the fourth in my new series of blogs documenting the lives of my 2 x Great Grandparents and next up we have the very exotic sounding Nicolina Elizabeth Stampa.

Nicolina was the youngest of eight children born to Italian born Father Dominicio Stampa and Mary Hair, she was born on 14th May 1822 at High Calton, Edinburgh. She was baptised 25th June 1822 at St. Mary’s Cathedral in Edinburgh and she was actually baptised as Nicholasa, although on all other documentation she called herself Nicolina. Her parents are listed as Dominicio Stampa and Mary Hair.

1841 Census

At the time of the 1841 Census Nicolina is still living at home with her parents at Gayfield Place, St. Cuthberts, Edinburgh Midlothian. Her Father, Dominicio, aged 75, is listed as a Print Seller, Overseas Born (Known to be Como, in Italy) and Mary Stampa (nee Hair) is aged 55. Also listed are Nicolina’s siblings Caroline aged 30, George Stampa a Shopman, aged 20 and Francis Stampa a Carver and Gilder Journeyman, aged 20. Also listed is an Agnes Ghari, aged 20 years, who is a Cousin.

Nicolina’s first Marriage took place on 5th November 1849 at St. Cuthbert’s Church in Edinburgh, where she Married William McDonald, who was born in Ireland. At the time they were both listed as living at No.2 Hill Place, Edinburgh.  St. Cuthbert’s Church is actually a Church of Scotland Church and not a Catholic Church.

Nicolina and William had two children, Mary Stampa MacDonald, born 11th November 1850 in Edinburgh and Willimena Louisa MacDonald born 11th July 1852, again in Edinburgh.

1851 Census

Nicolina is listed with William McDonald and her Daughter Mary S. McDonald as living at 13, Hill Place,  St. Cuthbert’s in Edinburgh.

Sometime between 1851 and 1861, Nicolina’s first husband, William McDonald sadly dies, she is listed in 1861 as a Widow on the Census. Also between these dates, Nicolina gives birth to an illegitimate child named Jane Elizabeth Hide Stampa, born on 6th May 1860. We can make two possible assumptions from this, always a dangerous thing with Genealogy as we know! We can assume that William McDonald died prior to this birth, somewhere between 1851-1859 and we can have an educated guess that the surname of the illegitimate Father is likely to be Hide.

1861 Census

By the time of the 1861 Census, Nicolina had completely relocated from Edinburgh to       St. Pancras in London. Somewhere between the Birth of her illegitimate Daughter, Jane and the 1861 Census, Nicolina took the massive decision to move to London. One cannot say for certainty the reason behind the move, but by this time, both her parents had passed away, as well as two of her Brother’s, Francis Stampa and George Stampa.  Her Brother Louis and Sister Caroline also moved at the same time and they lived together at 28, Ponsford Terrace, St. Pancras, London. It might well have been her Brother Louis who first decided to move to London, either way the three siblings moved away and lived together.

Counted in the 1861 Census at 28, Ponsford Terrace, St. Pancras, London are Louis Stampa, Caroline Stampa, Nicolina Stampa, listed as a Widow and Dressmaker, Cousin Agnes Geary, along with, Nicolina’s two Daughter’s, Mary McDonald and Louisa McDonald. Noticeably  her illegitimate Daughter, Jane Elizabeth Hide Stampa is missing. I am as certain as I can be that she remained in Edinburgh with her Father, John Hide and his Wife Jane, she can be found here on the 1861 Census for St. Cuthbert’s Edinburgh.

1861 Census Jane Elizabeth Hide Stampa

On 3rd March 1862, Nicolina Married for a second time to,  Thomas Wootton, at the time he was 23 years old and she was 39 years old. They Married at St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Chapel in St. Pancras, London. Witnesses to the Marriage were Nicolina’s older Brother, Louis A. Stampa and Mary Cole, Louis and Mary were later Married in 1864. They both listed 28, Ponsford Terrace, St. Pancras, London as their address at the time of the Marriage.

The following year on 28th May 1863, their only child, William Tom Wootton was born. By this time the Family had moved to 106, Carlton Road, Kentish Town, London.

(Carlton Street, not Road, Kentish Town)

1871 Census

In 1871 Nicolina is living at 9, Platt Street, St. Pancras, London, at home with Nicolina are her husband Thomas Wootton, their Son, William Tom Wootton, also her children from her first Marriage, Mary S McDonald and Louisa W McDonald and her Sister Caroline Stampa.

(Platt Street)

1881 Census

By the time of the 1881 Census, the family had moved again to 23, Hadley Street, St. Pancras, London, living at home with Nicolina are Husband Thomas Wootton and Son William Tom Wootton, along with her Daughter from her first Marriage, Mary McDonald and Nicolina’s Sister, Mary Stampa. Nicolina’s occupation is listed as a Dressmaker. Also living at the same address is Boarder Frederick Somerset who was occupied as a Lead Glazier, the same occupation as William Tom Wootton.

(Hadley Street)

1891 Census

1891 Brought yet another move within the St. Pancras area, the family had moved to 3, Malden Road, St. Pancras, London. At home with Nicolina are her Husband Thomas Wootton and her Sister, Caroline Stampa. Nicolina’s occupation is listed as a Mantle Maker.

(Malden Road)

1901 Census

By 1901 Nicolina and Thomas Wootton have moved again within the Parish of St. Pancras, to 65, Mansfield Road, St. Pancras, London. By this time they are living alone, but living within the same building is Nicolina’s daughter from her first Marriage, Willimina McDonald, who by this time had married William A Jones.

(Mansfield Road)

For the latter part of Nicolina’s life, she lived at various addresses within short distances of each other, within the Parish of St. Pancras.

The Family lived about four miles north-west of the City of London in an area centered on North St. Pancras, which is north of the Regent’s Canal and the London and North Western Railway line and either side of the Hampstead Junction line. In fact, the houses of Hadley Street where they lived,  backed onto this line. The area would not have been very desirable owing to the great amounts of noise and air pollution issuing from the steam trains.

This was largely an industrial and commercial area developed between the 1840’s and 60’s when the development of estates rapidly destroyed the rustic middle-class atmosphere. The character of these estates was rapidly lowered by the development of the railways which filled the air with their smoke and steam and the constant clanking of shunting trains in the sidings. The roads too, were filled with traffic to and from the various rail depots and much of it still horse drawn.

The streets were crowded with small terraced houses each one measuring only about 12 to 16 feet wide by 20 to 40 feet deep and often the longest part of any house was only about twice the total length of its frontage. Most houses were built directly on or only several feet back from the pavement and their back yards were either non-existent or up to a size equal to that of the corresponding house. These cramped houses were well placed for the many local railway workers, one of whom was Henry Compton, a Railway Engine Driver, the future father-in-law of William Tom Wootton, who lived in nearby Haverstock Hill.

Within a radius of a quarter of a mile from Hadley Street there were no parks or green areas amongst the houses. However, there were 6 schools, 8 churches, 2 mission halls, 2 other halls, 2 post offices, 1 bank, 1 police station, 1 public bath and wash- house and 21 public houses!

1911 Electoral Register

I have been unable to find an entry in the 1911 Census for Nicolina, despite trying various searches.  However, she is listed in the 1911 Electoral Register, see the link below, as living on her own at 93, Mansfield Road, St. Pancras, London. Having checked the 1911 Census for this address it would appear that the enumerator stopped frustratingly at number 91!

St. Pancras Workhouse Admission Record

The next record that I have found for Nicolina is sadly her admission into the St. Pancras Infirmary on 29th January 1916, just before she sadly passed away. The address given was 117, Mansfield Road, St. Pancras, London and her next of kin was listed as her Daughter, Mrs. Jones of 65, Mansfield Road, St. Pancras, London.

St. Pancras Workhouse Discharge Record

Sadly within a month of admission to the infirmary, Nicolina passed away and this is also recorded in the St. Pancras Infirmary records as a discharge, rather a harsh way of recording that somebody has died.

Further information regarding the Workhouse and Infirmary at St. Pancras can be found on Peter Higginbothams Workhouse website Here

Nicolina died 12th December 1916 and her cause of Death was recorded as Senile Dementia/Influenza Bronchitis.

Informant at Nicolina Wootton’s death was her daughter L.Jones of 65, Mansfield Road, St. Pancras, London

Her body was brought from St. Pancras House, Pancras Road. It is likely that this was the former name for St. Pancras Hospital situated in St. Pancras Gardens between St. Pancras Way and the Regent’s Canal.

She was buried on 16th December 1916 at St. Mary’s Cemetery, Kensal Green London, Grave Number 12154.

Nicolina was a devout Catholic throughout her life and my Second cousin, Carol Barber, is in possession of Nicolina’s actual Rosary Beads, seen in the pictures below.

    Special thanks to “Cousins” Carol and Eleanor for their contributions to Nicolina’s story.

  The Life and Times of Nicolina Elizabeth Stampa This is the fourth in my new series of blogs documenting the lives of my 2 x Great Grandparents and next up we have the very exotic sounding Nicolina Elizabeth Stampa.

#Ancestry #Blog #Family History #Genealogy #Italy #London #Scotland #St. Pancras

[wikitopx]

Auvergne’s capital is dominated by volcanic peaks to the north, west, and south, in a setting that will give you goosebumps.

If you go by car, the first landmark you'll see below is the church, made of jet black flint and like no other church in the country. Clermont-Ferrand is crammed with engaging history, and is a young and convivial university city, with a pedigree for learning that goes back to Blaise Pascal. The city is also the home of Michelin, which is famed for a lot more than just tires, as you’ll discover at the L’Aventure Michelin a new museum showing how an iconic French brand came to be. Discover the best things to do in Clermont-Ferrand.

[toc]

1. Basilique Notre-Dame-du-Port

The most revered of the romanesque churches of Auvergne, this basilica was first founded in the 6th century but rebuilt some 500 years later. Don't be entered without seeing the geometric mosaic pictures on the outer walls of the chapel and the chapel radiating, made of sandstone and volcanic rock.

You may need some form of interpretation but it’s well worth going slow and observing the capitals between the chancel and ambulatory, as each one is full of symbolism and tells its own story.

These carvings are the best-preserved romanesque art in the region and show bible episodes like the assumption and Adam and Eve being expelled from paradise, as well as medieval allegorical images.

2. Puy-de-Dôme

Soaring just a few kilometers west of Clermont-Ferrand, there’s no excuse not to add this titanic 1,465-metre volcano to your plans.

The good news is that you don’t need to be an outdoor adventurer to get the best out of the Puy-de-Dôme: Road traffic is forbidden but there is a high-speed rail line that serves the summit at all times of the year and will take you there in just 20 minutes, with departures never 40 minutes seasons and 20 minutes in the summer.

At the top of the grass, you can choose to be dazzled by the scenery, get a table at the restaurant or explore the ruins of the Roman Mercury Temple, located on the Roman road that is still used as the route of the people. Long walk.

3. L’Aventure Michelin

This wonderful museum of Michelin origins, present and future will also tell you much about modern Clermont-Ferrand. That's because Michelin is the largest employer in the city and has developed whole districts for its workers.

You will see how Bibendum (Michelin Man) was born and will be guided through all the innovations that the company has introduced, such as the first detachable tires and famous guides.

4. Clermont-Ferrand Cathedral

No Clermont-Ferrand church is missing, especially because its black lava rock allows you to easily identify it from the slopes outside the city. It was built in the 13th century and was influenced by the gothic cathedrals of northern France, though it wouldn’t be completed for many hundreds of years.

In the 19th-century the master restorer Viollet-Le-Duc laid out plans for the final touches, including the western spires, which rise to 108 meters.

There are lots of flourishes that are from the medieval era though, like the 13th-century red and blue stained glass windows and marvelous frescos in the crypt, sacristy, and ambulatory from between the 12th and 15th centuries.

5. Old Montferrand

Clermont-Ferrand, consisting of two medieval cities, actually has two old quarters. Montferrand is a few kilometers northeast of the church and is best discovered under your steam when you see churches, palaces, an old church, villas made from Volvic lava and lots of The house has a wooden frame from the middle ages onwards.

Make sure you pass the Roman Maison de l KhanElephant, from the 13th century on the streets of Rue Kléber. Montferrand was a purpose-built bastide town built in the 12th century and had hostility to its neighbor Clermont until they were forced to merge in the 17th century.

It was not a happy marriage either, because Montferrand proposed independence four times, the last time was in 1911!

6. Old Clermont

On the streets around the church, you have to keep your eyes open because there are all sorts of great buildings and historical surprises.

One of them is on the Rue des Chaussetiers: Hôtel Savaron is a 16th-century renaissance castle with a beautifully carved courtyard of Savoron peak in the lintel above the entrance and three floors of a covered walkway.

The Place de la Victoire next to the church is a place with cafes and restaurants, where friends meet in the evening.

7. Musée d’Art Roger-Quilliot (MARQ)

Part of the former Ursuline Monastery in Montferrand, the city's art museum is named after a former mayor. The museum opened in 1992, with a modern three-storey skylight, lit by a glass roof.

In the medieval chambers, there are many intriguing artifacts such as a Roman wooden sculpture of the Virgin and the God of the Batman Usson and the capital from local churches.

In the renaissance area, there is furniture, sculpture and a painting by the first Dutch artist Cornelis Engebrechtsz. Then in the Grande Galerie, you’ll be struck by the richness of 19th-century French art, with contributions by Delacroix, Gustave Doré and Camille Claudel.

8. Place de Jaude

Clermont-Ferrand’s main square was completely revitalized ten years ago at great expense, around the time the city introduced its new tram system.

Place de Jaude is almost completely car-free and is ringed with fountains, laurel, tulip, and American sweetgum trees, and as you’d hope there are many places to take the weight off and order a coffee.

Get a photo of the bronze equestrian statue of the Gaulish leader Vercingetorix which was shaped by Bartholdi, who made the Statue of Liberty. Also, check out the northern part of the square, which is made of basalt and has 250 red and yellow diodes representing the movement of the lava.

9. Muséum d’Histoire Naturelle Henri-Lecoq

You may not have heard of the French botanist, Henri-Lecoq, but he was referenced by Darwin in the Origins of Spec, and throughout his life, he had a collection of 80,000 specimens. From around the world contains all groups of mollusks. Lecoq works at Clermont-Ferrand, where he is the dean of the City of Science Faculty.

The Museum of Natural History is located in his mansion and now has hundreds of thousands of minerals, insects, fossils and plant specimens. Those mollusks are still here, but if you’re impressed by the volcanic activity in Auvergne there’s an array of igneous rocks that might pique your interest.

10. Jardin Lecoq

Also in homage to Henri Lecoq is this soothing public garden plotted in the English style, so with sinuous paths, shrubs, and rolling lawns. It’s a botanical garden too, with 25,000 varieties of season plants putting on a spectacle of color and scent in spring and summer.

There are also 300 different trees and the whole environment is kept in the shape of a ship by a busy group of gardeners. The pond has a bridge over it and a stall with a cafe, while those with children can take them to the playground if they need something fun after going around the city.

More ideals for you: Top 10 things to do in Olbia, Italy

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Did People in Medieval Times Really Not Bathe?

There are a variety of commonly held ideas about what it was like to live in Medieval times in Europe from a hygienic standpoint- from the idea that people chucked the contents of their chamber pots out their windows on to the streets to that they rarely, if ever, bothered to bathe. But is any of this actually true?

As to the former question, be sure and check out our article Did People in the Middle Ages Really Throw Fecal Matter Out of Their Windows? Moving on to bathing habits, to begin with, when dealing with diverse cultures spanning a large area and time frame like "medieval times"- generally considered to be from around the 5th to the 15th centuries- there is not going to be a definitive, one-size fits all answer.

But that's not very interesting, so let's go ahead and give it our best college try, shall we?

It turns out that humans during medieval times were just as keen as humans now to not stink, nor have dirt and grime on themselves. Thus, in the general case, it would seem that, contrary to popular belief, they still had some basic hygienic practices. Towards this end, we know definitively from surviving texts that people did bathe in some form reasonably regularly, generally varying based on their circumstances.

For example, it appears at the minimum washing one's face, hands, and cleaning one's teeth was extremely commonly done each morning. On the note of teeth, beyond rags, cleaning twigs were also used. The general method here was to chew one end of a twig for a time, then once it was properly mashed up, use that end as a sort of tooth brush. In fact, in some cases, while they didn't know it at the time, the twigs or roots used actually contained antibacterial substances, perhaps why certain plants became so popular for this purpose as people observed the effects, even if they didn't understand why they worked so well at cleaning the mouth and teeth.

Moving on to washing hands, beyond doing so during a morning body scrub down from a basin, they were also usually washed again before and after eating. Remember, this was a time before widespread use of utensils, and the fork at one point was actually viewed as sinful to use anyway for hilarious reasons we'll get into in the Bonus Facts later.

Beyond eating with one's hands, particularly those of lower classes also often ate and drank from the same containers as well. From this, it should come as no surprise that getting your hands clean before eating was considered good manners, and cleaning the fingers after was also something of a necessity to get remnants of food off.

Moving back to bathing, at least during medieval times, while some medical professionals did advise against doing it excessively, many others extolled the benefits of bathing regularly at keeping one healthy. For example, Italian physician Magninius Mediolanesis, who functioned as a court physician as well as for a time Regent master at the University of Paris, in the 14th century notes,

The bath cleans the external body parts of dirt left behind from exercise on the outside of the body... if any of the waste products of third digestion are left under the skin that were not resolved by exercise and massage, these will be resolved by the bath.

He also recommended bathing as a means to cure or ease discomfort, such as for the elderly and women who are pregnant.

Of course, when talking full body baths, only the reasonably well off at this point could actually afford to own a bath of some sort and to supply it with hot water, so most relied on bath houses, rivers, lakes, hot springs, etc. Thus, poorest of the poor who could not afford to go to a bath house are generally thought to have had extremely poor hygiene during the winter months, outside of washing using basins.

But for the rest, bath houses were common, particularly after the 11th century when crusaders, who had become accustomed to such and the excellent hygiene habits of Muslim and Jewish peoples, popularized and regularly frequented these establishments not just for bathing purposes, but also to socialize.

In fact, if we fast forward to the 15th century, bathing and eating at bath houses were often combined. As noted in the book: Clean: A History of Personal Hygiene and Purity, by Virginia Smith:

By the fifteenth-century, bath feasting in many town bathhouses seems to have been as common as going out to a restaurant was to become four centuries later. German bath etchings from the fifteenth century often feature the town bathhouse, with a long row of bathing couples eating a meal naked in bathtubs, often several to a tub, with other couples seen smiling in beds in the mid-distance.

While this might seem a little odd at first glance through a modern lens, consider that many people today enjoy soaking in a hot tub or pool with their friends while drinking alcoholic beverages, which is not too dissimilar to these former bath house practices, except now usually featuring skimpy bathing suits.

Going back to bath houses, given that many were connected to bakeries in order to use heat from their ovens to warm the water, let's face it, there's no way one could sit there in the water smelling freshly baked bread and not develop a voracious appetite.

And speaking of voracious appetites, given that many bath houses were not gender divided and featured naked, now clean people having a good time together, it should also come as no surprise that bath houses were known to be places to go to have a REALLY good time...

For those without a non-paid partner, these establishments were also frequently places to find or engage the services of exceptionally good smelling prostitutes.

As you might have guessed from all this, many church groups looked down on bath houses for that reason. For example, consider this excerpt from an 11th century minister known as Burchard of Worms,

If thou, being a married man, hast shamed the nakedness of any woman, as, I say, her breasts and her shameful parts- if thou hast, thou shalt do penance for five days on bread and water. But if thou art not married, two days on bread and water.

Hast thou washed thyself in the bath with thy wife and other women and seen them nude, and they thee? If thou hast, thou shouldst fast for three days on bread and water.

However, contrary to popular belief, on the whole at this time, it doesn't seem as if most church organizations had a big problem with the bathing itself, just the perceived immorality exhibited at many bath houses. For example, 6th century Pope Gregory I is known to have encouraged Christians to bathe regularly. And, as alluded to, Muslim and Jewish groups were likewise known to be even more fastidious than their Christian brethren about keeping clean.

As for the Christian church in Europe, to solve the issue of a whole lot of nakedness and lovin' taking place at bath houses, it became relatively common for bath houses to be built by the various church groups themselves near monasteries. The difference between these bath houses and the other variety was that they were a whole lot less fun... Specifically, separating areas for men and women, instead of mixing them.

Further demonstrating that most church organizations did not really have anything against the act of bathing itself, many monasteries actually piped water into their own, sometimes elaborate baths, and even required the clergy to bathe before many events. For example, at Westminster Abbey, they required their monks to bathe for Christmas, Easter, at the end of June and at the end of September. This doesn't mean, however, that the monks weren't bathing elsewise, just that they were required to do so during these periods. In fact, evidence seems to indicate they bathed much more frequently than that, as they seem to have employed a bath-attendant year round at that Abbey.

So if people during medieval times actually did bathe reasonably frequently, where did the perception that they did not come from? This came about thanks to the latter end of this period and beyond where people really did start bathing less.

As to why, to begin with, around the mid-14th century about 60% of the European population died within about seven years or so- not too dissimilar to "The Snap", but in this case because of the Black Death. This saw the former popular practice of people communing in bath houses together start to become decidedly less popular for a time, though it seems to have picked back up after.

Things went the other way again around the early 16th century when diseases like Syphilis were rearing their ugly heads in Europe. Around this same time, a popular notion arose in some regions of Europe that water could carry disease into the body through the pores in the skin, especially hot water.

It wasn't just diseases from the water itself they were worried about. They also felt that with the pores widened after a bath, this resulted in infections of the air having easier access to the body. Hence, bathing, particularly at bathhouses, became connected with the spread of diseases.

Of course, given countless people were all bathing together in the same warm water, sharing food, and even sometimes having sex, this probably did genuinely invite the spread of disease at these establishments. Further, even in home baths water still was commonly shared with many people, as hauling it all in was no small task, and even much more work and cost if choosing to heat it up as well.

Thus, the popularity of bath houses began to significantly decline around when Syphilis was making the rounds. As noted by Dutch philosopher Erasmus in 1526,

Twenty-five years ago, nothing was more fashionable in Brabant than the public baths. Today there are none... the new plague has taught us to avoid them.

But, again, then, as now, people tended to not like to stink if they could help it. Thus, without the bath houses around or as popular, many began mostly relying on the age old method of washing using a basin and the like as a primary means to keep clean, as well as, when weather permitted, taking dips in lakes and rivers.

To further get around the stink problem, people who could afford it took to frequently changing their linen undergarments, as well as rubbing themselves down with freshly clean linen or scented rags. Various perfumes were also used, as well as the practice of wearing small bags containing fragrant herbs. Herbs, such as salvia officinalis, bay leaves, and hyssop, were also commonly rubbed under the armpits and elsewhere for use as a deodorant.

That said, while most still bathed occasionally, just less frequently than before, it does appear that some, even among the nobility, really did forgo full body bathing at this point.

For example, one Russian ambassador to France noted, "His Majesty [Louis XIV] stunk like a wild animal." Russians were not so finicky about bathing and tended to bathe regularly even after their European brethren had largely abandoned bath houses. King Louis XIV's stench seems to have come from the fact that his physicians advised him to bathe as infrequently as possible to maintain good health. He also stated he found the act of bathing disturbing. Because of this, he is said to have only bathed in a bath twice in his lifetime.

Another in this "gruesome two-some" class among the aristocracy was Queen Isabel I of Spain who claimed that she had taken a full body bath only twice in her lifetime, when she was first born and when she got married. Of course, in both cases, they are perhaps forgetting many times servants perhaps bathed them as children. And given certain moral attitudes of the day, particularly in the case of Isabel, it may be that they were just saying they didn't ever bathe, rather than this actually being the case.

Whatever the case, amazingly, these post-medieval time attitudes against regular full body bathing in certain pockets of Europe lingered among some groups until around the mid-19th century.

But to sum up, there doesn't actually ever seem to be a time in recorded history that people are known to have ceased bathing in some form altogether, with the record for the least hygienic not going to our ultra distant ancestors like medieval peoples or those before, but to our more recent ones, with the abandoning of better hygiene by some groups around the 16th century and beyond thanks to widespread disease and the development of more prudish attitudes.

But even then, with exceptions, most people seemed to have not enjoyed being dirty and took steps to keep as clean and freshly smelling as possible given their circumstances. While they certainly weren't anywhere close to as hygienic as our modern selves who enjoy hot, running water, cheap soaps, etc., on the whole, they were not covered in dirt and grime as is so often depicted by Hollywood.

If you liked this article, you might also enjoy:

What Happened to Dead Bodies After Big Battles Throughout History?

How Exactly Did One Become an Executioner in Medieval Times?

Did People Ever Really Put Crocodiles In Moats?

Were Chastity Belts Ever Actually Used in Medieval Times?

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NIGERIA ARE MOURNING HER PEOPLE ON DAILY BASES

On a sunny day in January 2010, in a small town in Kuru Karama, Plateau State, a Muslim mother watched helplessly

as Christian men bludgeoned and hacked to death her two young children. About the same time, in a nearby village in Fan district, a Fulani pastoralist witnessed farmers from the Berom ethnic group—his neighbours—burn his house and kill his uncle. A year later, Berom residents in Fan district witnessed former Fulani neighbours kill Berom women and children in a murderous night raid.

In April 2011, a Christian man in the Northern part of neighbouring Kaduna State saw Muslims from nearby villages surround his village and kill two of his Christian neighbours and set fire to their church and homes. That same month, some 200 kilometres to the south, in the town of Zonkwa, a Muslim secondary school student, from the Hausa ethnic group, witnessed her history teacher, a Christian, murder her father.

In each of these cases, the witnesses knew the perpetrators of these crimes, but none of the perpetrators has been brought to justice…

The foregoing are the opening paragraphs in the executive summary of a chilling 146-page report released on 12th December 2013 by the United States-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) on the orgy of bloodshed in Kaduna and Plateau States which, by the publication’s account, had claimed about 3,000 lives within a period of three years. Titled “Leave Everything to God: Accountability for Inter-Communal Violence in Plateau and Kaduna States, Nigeria”, the authorities, at all levels, were indicted for “taking no meaningful steps to address underlying grievances” or bring to justice those responsible for what the report described as “tit-for-tat killings” with victims targeted for extermination, “often in horrific circumstances”.

That report—which also contains useful recommendations—is instructive against the background of the mass burial last week in Makurdi, Benue State capital, of 73 persons who were gruesomely murdered by suspected herdsmen on New Year day. “For several years, these attackers have turned our beautiful and endowed land into their killing fields and the main reason has been the clashes between herdsmen and farmers, but these attacks have intensified with alarming devastation since 2011”, said Governor Samuel Ortom who vowed not to repeal the anti-grazing law that is believed to have precipitated the violence.

Unfortunately, at a time we ought to be looking for ways to restore law and order to that troubled section of our country, so many people are stoking the fire while the call for restructuring, especially at a period like this, completely misses the point. For sure, the system is creaking beneath all of us and we need to fix it but even at that, restructuring will not resolve the conflicts that are making neighbours turn daggers against one another. And to the extent that various peoples, regardless of their ethnicity or religion, will still have to live together, even in a proper federation, we must begin to look for the positives in our diversity.

I am quite aware that there are times when we may have to take sides in conflict situations since, as the late Nobel Laureate and Holocaust survivor, Elie Wiesel warned, neutrality only helps the oppressor. But there are also times that call for statesmanship. When the lives of innocent citizens are involved, it pays for those who call themselves leaders, at all levels, to be circumspect. It is all the more important given that there is a class dimension to the perennial violence between herdsmen and farmers in the Middle Belt that we conveniently choose to ignore and may account for why the problem festers.

Has anybody ever wondered why in most of the killings over the years, what we are usually regaled with are numbers rather than names? That is because it is the poor of our society, those whose names command no attention and have no Facebook or Twitter accounts—expendables fit only for mass burials—that are mostly the victims of this violence while those supplying the AK-47 and other deadly weapons are secured in the knowledge that they, and members of their immediate families, are far away from the theatres of war. And that nobody would ever try to fish them out for punishment.

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Therefore, spreading hate and incitements on social media can only worsen an already bad situation, especially when what started as an economy/ecology problem has now assumed ethnic and religious dimensions with old grievances and ancient prejudices being exhumed. Yet, what saddens the most is that at times like this when you need good people to stand up as voices of reason, nobody—save for people like Abubakar Dangiwa Umar—wants to be identified as either a ‘coward’ or a ‘traitor’ by the various publics we have created out of the mismanagement of our diversity. But the greater challenge is that the Nigerian state is gradually losing the capacity for its primary responsibility: security of lives and property.

In the 2013 tragedy in Kaduna and Plateau States as recorded by HRW, for instance, many of the victims of the violence were reportedly shot, burned alive or macheted based on ethnic or religious identity. Witnesses came forward to “tell their stories, compiled list of the dead and identified the attackers, but in most cases, nothing was done” said Daniel Bekele, the then African Director for HRW who added rather poignantly: “the authorities may have forgotten these killings, but communities haven’t. In the absence of justice, residents have resorted to violence to avenge their losses.”

What is glaring from that is a failure of leadership, especially at the national level. “Nigerian authorities can and should take urgent steps to ensure that the perpetrators of communal violence, including mass murder, are investigated and prosecuted, and that victims are provided restitution or compensation for their enormous losses,” HRW wrote in 2013. Of course, no such thing happened and I will be surprised if the victims of the current Benue massacre get any justice. Besides, in a milieu where the security agencies are often accused of either taking sides or not responding to distress calls at the appropriate time, it is difficult to end what has become a spiral of revenge killings. That perhaps explains why today, grieving families have lost faith not only in the capacity of the system to give them justice but also in the ability of the authorities to address the crisis in a holistic manner.

Aloof and distant, it came as no surprise that President Muhammadu Buhari could not foresee any trouble the moment the anti-grazing law was being enacted in Benue State. Had he intervened at that point by calling a meeting of all the critical stakeholders in the state, including the governor, so that a compromise could be reached by way of short, medium and long term solutions, perhaps we will not be where we are today. But he waited until everything exploded in his face before belatedly agreeing to a meeting where he was begging for peace “in the name of God”.

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Notwithstanding, I consider the accusation of partisanship against the president unfair. While he may be suffering the consequences of his past indiscretion—when, as a former military leader, he led a sectional team to Oyo State on behalf of his Fulani kinsmen—there is nothing to suggest he is complicit in the current ethno-religious violence in Benue State. What he has not done, which unfortunately is quite in character with his style, is to provide the much-needed leadership that will help resolve the crisis not only in Benue but in other theatres, including Zamfara State where both the protagonists and antagonists are Hausa, Fulani and animists and where several deaths have been recorded in recent months. And we should never forget the 347 Shiite members, including women and children, who were killed and buried in shallow graves following the 12th December 2015 clash with the military authorities in Zaria, Kaduna State, even when those unfortunate victims would most likely be Hausa and Fulani, and definitely Muslims. In that tragedy too,

On Tuesday, the Senate gave the Inspector General of Police, Mr Ibrahim Idris, a 14-day ultimatum to apprehend the perpetrators of the Benue pogrom and bring them to justice. But it is futile expecting anything from Idris whose first response on 6th January was that “it is a communal crisis” before admonishing that “we should be praying for Nigerians to learn to live in peace with one another”.

Meanwhile, men of the Department of State Service (DSS) that you expect to be professional are more concerned with monitoring and chasing about some political pastors preaching against President Buhari’s second term aspiration with regime protection, rather than national security, as their main preoccupation. Here, let me offer a quick word: The primary responsibility of the security forces is to protect the citizenry and defend their basic freedoms. Harassment of clerics of any known faith is a direct invitation to sectarian conflict.

The question now is: What is the way forward in the still-fresh Benue tragedy?

While the proposed ‘Cattle Colonies’ will not address the challenge, given the mutual ethnic and religious suspicions that have been thrown up, I also believe that Ranching, which remains the only enduring solution, will require enormous resources, attitudinal change and take a while to institute. But the most important thing now is to bring down the temperature/heat in Benue and other states in the Middle Belt and that will not happen until the authorities rein in the Miyetti Allah men who are rationalising anarchy and vowing to take the law into their own hands.

Indeed, that the Miyetti Allah threats are being condoned calls to question the neutrality of the security agencies that are headed, as it were, only by people from a section of the country. As an aside, such insensitivity in critical appointments serves only to fuel the kind of animosity that would make it difficult for any leader to build trust and inclusiveness in a plural society. That, sadly, is the way of the current administration.

Since the primary responsibility of a functioning state is to protect the lives and livelihoods of all citizens, it should worry President Buhari that Nigeria is fast becoming a funeral home under his watch.

However, within a few years, my path had crossed that of Dr Frederick Fasheun and Chief Ganiyu Adams, the two men leading separate factions of the organisation, such that when, in 2005, I was invited by the former to be the reviewer at the launch of his biography, I had to call the latter to inform him ahead so I would not get caught in the crossfire of what was, at the time, a violent antagonism between the duo. Yet despite my disagreement with the OPC politics that sees ethnic relations in a diverse society like Nigeria’s as a zero-sum game, I have over the years developed with Adams a friendship that is based essentially on mutual respect.

What particularly fascinates me about the 47-year old Adams is that for a man who started out with little education (he left secondary school in form three to go into carpentry), the profundity of his thoughts and his capacity to analyse complex socio-political issues are quite extraordinary; regardless of whether or not you agree with him. Even before he went back to school to earn a first degree, Adams had immersed himself in the history of Yoruba culture and people, and could engage you intellectually on any aspect. And from my encounters with him in recent years, it was also always obvious that he is both an ambitious man and a good student of power; which then explains why he has risen rather rapidly within so short a period despite where he is coming from.

However, to better appreciate his trajectory, I implore readers to find a very entertaining 2005 journal article by Oxford University Professor, Wale Adebanwi, entitled “The Carpenter’s Revolt: Youth, Violence and the Reinvention of Culture in Nigeria”. Published by the Cambridge University Press, Adebanwi concludes partly in the paper that, “What is particularly interesting in the context of the OPC, however, is not only the way in which the concept of culture is entwined with an interplay between tradition and modernity, but the way in which political entrepreneurs such as OPC leaders employ this in the trajectory of their political/cultural projects.”

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Even though I promised Adams that I would be at the palace of the Alafin of Oyo last Saturday for his installation, I could not make the occasion. But he knows I wish him well. And all factors considered, I believe Adams is a perfect fit for the title of Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland.

Oye a m’ori o!

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Austin’s New Restaurant Openings (2) added to Google Docs

Austin’s New Restaurant Openings (2)

Keeping track of every brand new restaurant and bar in Austin is enough to make you a little dizzy. Which is why we put together this guide to all the new restaurants and bars that seem like they have the most potential. Although keep in mind, for the ones we haven’t tried, we make no promises. Go forth and be a pioneer.

We’ll be regularly updating this guide, and adding a note whenever we review a spot, or add it to our guide to the best new restaurants in Austin, the Hit List.

May  Nicolai McCrary Hold Out Brewing $$$$ 1208 W 4th St

The highly anticipated Holdout Brewery from the folks that brought you Little Brother, Brew & Brew, and Better Half recently opened their doors for takeout, with a limited menu of smash burgers, hot dogs, and canned beer. They share a large outdoor patio with sister restaurant and bar, Better Half, so you’ll be able to order from both menus when operations eventually start to pick back up.

Yoru Sushi $$$$ 207 San Jacinto Blvd Ste 202

Yoru Sushi quietly opened up for business in early May to dine-in and takeout customers. Their menu focuses mostly on sushi, with a wide range of nigiri and sashimi options, including a chef’s choice omakase. There’s also a few less traditional offerings as well, like tapioca duck fat fries and sushi nachos

Fowl Mouth $$$$ 8504 South Congress Ave

The chicken-focused food truck, Fowl Mouth, recently opened at The Far Out Lounge near Slaughter and I-35. The menu has a variety of wings and tenders, but the star of the show here appears to be the fried chicken sandwich, topped with shaved kale and jalapeño aioli. Most of the menu can be made vegan as well.

April  Raphael Brion Steamies Dumplings $ $ $ $ Chinese  in  Highland $$$$ 6929 Airport Blvd Ste 148 Not

Rated

Yet

Steamies has been selling handmade Chinese dumplings at local farmers’ markets for a couple of years now (both frozen and cooked), and they recently opened a brick-and-mortar restaurant in the Highland neighborhood during the lockdown. For the time being, everything comes frozen with easy-to-execute cooking instructions. There are a variety of wontons, soup dumplings, barbecue pork buns, and potstickers.

 Nicolai McCrary Pho MPH $$$$ 4616 Triangle Ave STE 203

Pho MPH is a new Vietnamese restaurant in the Triangle that had its grand opening just days before the city went into hibernation. They’re currently operating for dine-in and takeout, serving a variety of Vietnamese staples, like pho and banh mi, as well as poke bowls and boba tea.

 Nicolai McCrary Dear Diary $$$$ 1212 Chicon Street #103

The new vegan coffee shop, Dear Diary, opened its doors for takeout and delivery in mid-April, near 12th and Chicon. Currently, they’re selling a variety of coffee beverages and plant-based pastries and sandwiches. Eventually, they aim to operate as a creative space, with abundant outlets and a communal diary.

Wanderlust Wine Company $$$$ 610 N Interstate Hwy 35

The idea at Wanderlust Winery was to open as a bar with self-serve wine on tap, though parts of that are unfortunately on hold. Instead, they’re temporarily operating as a virtual wine class with a limited selection of bottles for pickup at their storefront near I-35 and 6th St. We’re excited to see what self-service wine on tap looks like, but in the meantime we’ll keep learning about wine.

House Of Three Gorges $$$$ 8557 Research Blvd Suite 144

House of Three Gorges has been open for takeout and delivery for a couple of months, with an extensive menu of classic Sichuan dishes, ranging from popular items like chongqing chicken and beef with broccoli, to less common specialties like Sichuan fish with pickled mustard greens or Yangtze sauteed pork intestines. They’re located near 183 and Ohlen, in the same shopping center as Din Ho and Ramen Tatsu-Ya.

The following restaurants were added to our Openings Guide before the Shelter-In-Place order went into effect. As the current situation is constantly changing, we encourage you to call before visiting.

March  Raphael Brion Bummer Burrito $ $ $ $ Bar Food ,  Southwestern ,  Burritos  in  Rainey Street $$$$ 89 Rainey St Not

Rated

Yet

There’s a new trailer on Rainey Street from the people behind Better Half called Bummer Burrito, and it’s conveniently parked right next to their tiny all-day cafe/bar Little Brother. As you might guess from the name, the trailer serves burritos, including a breakfast burrito, and one with chili cheese Fritos and nacho cheese.

 Sip Pho Sip Pho $$$$ 512 W 29th St, Austin, TX 78705

Just north of campus, Sip Pho is a new fast-casual Vietnamese restaurant in an impressive new space with vaulted ceilings. It’s by the same people who run Pho Please on East Riverside, and they’re serving dishes like pho, bun bo hue, vermicelli bowls, and banh mi.

February  Jackie Klusmeyer The Mockingbird $$$$ 600 W 2nd St

The latest project to open in the new Austin Proper Hotel downtown - The Mockingbird - is from the people behind restaurants like June’s, Elizabeth Street Cafe, and Swedish Hill. The Mockingbird is a counter-service café serving coffee, pastries, falafel, and rotisserie chicken, a more informal counterpart to The Peacock in the hotel that opened back in January. It’s currently only open for breakfast and lunch.

 Richard Casteel Reunión 19 $$$$ 1700 E 2nd St

Reunión 19 is a new Mexican restaurant over on the East Side. The chef is from Los Angeles, and the menu reads more West-Coast-inspired than most Mexican spots in town, with dishes like aguachile, tuna tostadas, and mulitas. They’re also really committing to tacos, as you can tell from their phone number - (512) 455-TACO (8226) - and the very subtle #TACOLOVER light fixture in the dining room.

 Julia Keim LoLo $ $ $ $ Wine Bar  in  East Austin $$$$ 1504 E 6th St

LoLo is a new wine bar on East 6th St. Technically it’s Austin’s first wine bar totally dedicated to natural wine, and it’s from the people behind Hotel Vegas and Volstead Lounge. Part of the bar is a bottle shop for purchase to go, and the wine list is affordable, with glasses starting at $10 and bottles starting in the $30s. There’s a big backyard patio with picnic tables.

We checked out LoLo and added it to our Hit List.

January  Raphael Brion Taco Bronco $ $ $ $ Tacos ,  Mexican ,  Tex-Mex  in  East Austin ,  Mueller $$$$ 3220 Manor Rd Not

Rated

Yet

Located in the shady backyard of Batch Craft Beer & Kolaches is Taco Bronco, a new food truck from the team behind Micklethwait Craft Meats, one of the best barbecue spots in town. It’s a taco truck with a barbecue bent, so homemade corn and flour tortillas meet brisket, smoked boar sausage, carnitas, and barbacoa. Batch’s brewhouse is nearly up-and-running, and they’ve already started serving their own beers.

We checked out Taco Bronco and added it to our Hit List.

 Honest Mary’s Honest Mary’s $ $ $ $ Vegetarian ,  Vegan ,  Fast Food  in  Rosedale $$$$ 4800 Burnet Rd Not

Rated

Yet

The next time you need a quick thing that’s also healthy, remember there’s a new location of the fast-casual grain bowl restaurant Honest Mary’s in Central Austin (the first was out in the Arboretum). You can choose your components in a Chipotle-like method, or if you’re paralyzed by choice like some of us are, there are “signature bowls” where everything is picked out for you. Most everything is locally-sourced, and there’s cold brew, beer, wine, and kombucha, all on tap.

 Bruce Malone Bouldin Acres $$$$ 2027 S Lamar Blvd

Down on the corner of South Lamar and Oltorf is Bouldin Acres, a beer garden with food trucks (including a new location of one of Austin’s best taco trucks, Pueblo Viejo. Formerly a two-acre car dealership, it’s basically an adult amusement park, with live music, two pickleball courts, and every backyard bar game imaginable, including corn hole, giant chess, giant Jenga, and giant Connect 4. It’s pet-friendly and kid-friendly.

Beerburg Brewing Company $$$$ 13476 Fitzhugh Rd

Out in the Hill Country – and literally down the road from Jester King – is the new brewery Beerburg Brewing Company. The founder used to be the head brewer at the now-shuttered Uncle Billy’s. There’s a beer hall with a full kitchen serving tacos, sandwiches, and more, as well as a fenced-in dog park.

 James Johnson TenTen $$$$ 501 W 6th St

Tenten is a sleek-looking sushi restaurant downtown from the people behind the recently-opened lounge Devil May Care. There’s also sake, cocktails, and grilled meats and vegetables.

Taqueria Guadalajara $$$$ 9207 N Lamar Blvd

After a very extensive year-long remodel, the North Lamar location of the always-busy Mexican/Tex-Mex diner Taqueria Guadalajara finally reopened. Give the Rundberg Running Man (the guy often found on the corner of Rundberg and Lamar running, rapping, and dancing) a high-five on your way out.

Little Deli & Pizzeria $$$$ 1804 Briarcliff Blvd

Little Deli, the popular Crestview pizza restaurant and sandwich shop, opened a new location in the very pizza-starved neighborhood of Windsor Park.

 Rayo Landeros Hopsquad Brewing Co. $$$$ 2307 Kramer Ln

There’s a new addition to north Austin’s brewery district: Hopsquad Brewing Co. Located in a former warehouse with rollup windows up on Braker Lane, the huge brewery space is full of beer garden tables and, as a bonus, it’s super dog-friendly, inside and out. Beers on tap include Austin-themed varieties including Comtesse De Duval Saison and Dutchess of Oltorf Roggenbier. Also outside is the new food truck Tsuke Honten.

 Raphael Brion Tsuke Honten $$$$ 2307 Kramer Ln

In Hopsquad Brewing Co.’s parking lot, you’ll find the food truck Tsuke Honten with Japanese-style bites. Sort of in a soft launch, they’re currently serving small dishes like garlic chicken wings, chili prawns, and short rib skewers. Soon they plan on launching an 11-course/$29 per person omakase.

 Matt Harrington The Peacock Mediterranean Grill $ $ $ $ Greek ,  Mediterranean ,  Middle Eastern ,  Turkish ,  Lebanese  in  Downtown Austin $$$$ 600 W 2nd St Not

Rated

Yet

The people behind June’s, Elizabeth Street Cafe, and Swedish Hill are rolling out a series of projects in the new Austin Proper Hotel downtown. Up first is The Peacock Mediterranean Grill, an all-day Israeli and Turkish-inspired restaurant and bar. There’s also Goldie’s Sunken Bar, but that’s for hotel guests only at the moment.

We checked out The Peacock and added it to our Hit List.

december  Raphael Brion Julie Myrtille Bakery $$$$ 1023 Springdale Rd Building 1D

After drawing crowds at farmers markets all over Austin, there’s now a Julie Myrtille Bakery brick-and-mortar over in the East Austin development Springdale General. There are pastries, cookies, and macarons, as well as more lunch-y type options like croissant sandwiches and super-butter quiches. the hours are limited for now, 10am-12pm.

 Julia Keim / Giant Noise Hestia $ $ $ $ American ,  Steaks ,  Vegetarian ,  Dessert  in  Downtown Austin $$$$ 607 W 3rd St Not

Rated

Yet

Hestia is a new restaurant downtown from the people behind Emmer & Rye, with a menu primarily focused on stuff coming off the grill. Other than larger grilled dishes, there are also crudos and a separate snack menu with small dishes ranging from $3-$16.

We checked out Hestia and added it to our Hit List.

 Raphael Brion Franklin Barbecue’s Tacos & Coffee $ $ $ $ Tacos ,  Tex-Mex ,  BBQ  in  East Austin $$$$ 900 E 11th St 8.5 /10

The meat whisperers over at Franklin Barbecue opened a trailer serving coffee and breakfast tacos on flour tortillas. There are options like the house-made sausage, chorizo, and the legendary brisket, chopped up and cooked on a flattop.

We checked out the trailer and put it on our Hit List.

Barbecue by John Mueller $$$$ 109 W Davilla St

Beer and barbecue are a pretty perfect combo. John Mueller of the Mueller barbecue dynasty opened up shop at Granger City Brewing Company. Order a flight of beers alongside all the smoked meats, including his epic beef ribs, and maybe most importantly, his legendary cheesy squash.

November  Julia Keim / Giant Noise Kalimotxo $ $ $ $ Spanish  in  Downtown Austin $$$$ 607 W 3rd St Suite 105 Not

Rated

Yet

Kalimotxo is the new Spanish-inspired bar in front of Hestia from the people behind Emmer & Rye. It serves Basque-style pintxos - similar to tapas - and small plates.

We checked out Kalimotxo and put it on our Hit List.

 Troublemaker Troublemaker $$$$ 1209 E 7th St

The new bar and record shop Troublemaker serves San Diego-style burritos, and they’re pretty sensational for a late-night snack: carne asada, french fries, pico, and guacamole, all wrapped up in a house-made flour tortilla. On weekends there’s a breakfast burrito and a Bloody Mary bar.

 Garrett White Central Machine Works $ $ $ $ Bar Food ,  Burgers ,  Pizza  in  East Austin $$$$ 4824 E Cesar Chavez St Not

Rated

Yet

Housed in a historic warehouse space, Central Machine Works is a massive new beer hall, brewery, and live music venue in East Austin. There’s also an enormous outdoor beer garden and a full bar. The menu is simple, beer-friendly food like pretzels, cheeseburgers, and pizza.

October  The Meteor The Meteor $$$$ 2110 S Congress Ave

The Meteor is a lot of things: it’s a bike shop, an all-day cafe, a Roman-style pizzeria in which you pay by the pound, and a natural wine shop, all in a charming space on South Congress.

via The Infatuation Feed https://www.theinfatuation.com/austin/guides/austin-new-restaurant-openings Nhà hàng Hương Sen chuyên buffet hải sản cao cấp✅ Tổ chức tiệc cưới✅ Hội nghị, hội thảo✅ Tiệc lưu động✅ Sự kiện mang tầm cỡ quốc gia 52 Phố Miếu Đầm, Mễ Trì, Nam Từ Liêm, Hà Nội http://huongsen.vn/ 0904988999 http://huongsen.vn/to-chuc-tiec-hoi-nghi/ https://trello.com/userhuongsen

Created May 13, 2020 at 05:38AM /huong sen View Google Doc Nhà hàng Hương Sen chuyên buffet hải sản cao cấp✅ Tổ chức tiệc cưới✅ Hội nghị, hội thảo✅ Tiệc lưu động✅ Sự kiện mang tầm cỡ quốc gia 52 Phố Miếu Đầm, Mễ Trì, Nam Từ Liêm, Hà Nội http://huongsen.vn/ 0904988999 http://huongsen.vn/to-chuc-tiec-hoi-nghi/ https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1xa6sRugRZk4MDSyctcqusGYBv1lXYkrF

[everettwilkinson]

CHANGES TO THE TAX BILL: Today at noon, just before we sit down w/ WAYS AND MEANS CHAIRMAN KEVIN BRADY — TRUMP/PUTIN could meet in Asia — Details from Katy Tur and Tony Dokoupil’s secret wedding — B’DAY: RACHEL ADLER

IT’S FRIDAY! BUZZ … WITH A CAVEAT — There’s been a push in the Capitol in the last 24 hours to include a repeal of the individual mandate in the House Republican tax bill. We snickered in the speaker’s lobby when North Carolina Rep. Mark Meadows said there’s an “overwhelming consensus” to gut the health care law as part of tax reform, but since then, we’ve heard it from a bunch of other lawmakers, and sources in Republican leadership aren’t shooting it down all together.

Let’s be honest: Republicans need as much revenue as they can get, since they’re slashing taxes so drastically, and repealing the individual mandate gives them $400 billion more to play with. Stay tuned.

Story Continued Below

— ALSO: The chairman’s mark — additional fixes to the tax bill — will be out by noon today ahead of the Monday markup.

— ISSUES WE KEEP HEARING ABOUT IN THE CAPITOL: Mortgage interest deduction dropping from $1 million to $500k … Property tax deduction at $10,000 … Elimination of the second-home mortgage interest deduction (big for vacation communities) … Pass-through rules.

**SUBSCRIBE to Playbook: http://politi.co/2lQswbh

TRUTH BOMB, from New Jersey Republican Rep. Tom MacArthur, who seems to be relishing his wheeling-and-dealing role in just about everything these days: He told us in the speaker’s lobby yesterday he doesn’t “care what anyone says,” Republican leaders will be willing to negotiate if they don’t have the votes. He’s right. They are, in fact, negotiating.

FOR WHAT IT’S WORTH: HOUSE REPUBLICANS met around 5:30 yesterday evening to discuss the tax bill, and leaders were heartened by the positivity in the room. Over BBQ Bus grub — the smell wafted into the hallways — leaders heard a steady stream of generally positive feedback about the bill. … WHAT TO WATCH OUT FOR: Lawmakers are going home today, and they will hear from businesses and constituents about this bill over the weekend. Will the dynamic shift when folks trickle back into town Monday?

— FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: AMERICAN ACTION NETWORK is committing to spend another $8 million to push House Republicans’ tax reform bill. The group is launching a $1 million radio campaign in 49 districts today as part of the effort.

WANT TO KNOW MORE? TUNE IN OR COME ON DOWN! — WAYS AND MEANS CHAIRMAN KEVIN BRADY will sit down with us live after he drops his chairman’s mark at noon today. WHERE: Newseum (555 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW. Enter on 6th Street, between Pennsylvania Avenue and C Street) DOORS OPEN: 11:30 a.m. TUNE IN: C-SPAN is carrying the program live. RSVP http://bit.ly/politicobrady

AROUND THE TAX REFORM HORN …

— LANDMINE ALERT — WSJ’s Heather Gillers: “Bonds issued for projects that benefit private businesses would no longer receive preferential tax treatment under the proposal put forward Thursday by congressional Republicans. The measure would eliminate nearly $40 billion in subsidies over the next decade, according to a summary of the plan.

“While so-called private activity bonds have drawn criticism for diverting public money to private projects, they have also been used to attract economic development to disaster areas and build affordable housing.

“Abolishing private activity bonds could also set back President Donald Trump’s goal of attracting private investment in U.S. infrastructure, several analysts said. Private activity bonds have helped finance infrastructure projects around the country from roads to bridges to airports. This week, San Francisco International Airport issued $179 million of private activity bonds for renovations to help accommodate a growing number of passengers.” http://on.wsj.com/2zhC44i

— “GOP unity (for now) on House tax plan,” by Brian Faler: “Even before the legislation was formally unveiled, one of the most powerful groups in conservative circles, Americans for Prosperity, warned that plans to slap a tax on imports from U.S. companies that move jobs abroad ‘has the potential to derail much-needed reform.’ That was followed by denunciations from the influential National Federation of Independent Business, a small business lobby; the National Association of Home Builders; Independent Sector, which represents charities; the National Farmers Union; and even the American Institute of Architects.” http://politi.co/2xP2YNs

— NANCY COOK: “House tax bill falls short of Ivanka Trump’s ask on child tax credit”: “Ivanka Trump doesn’t always get what she wants. The House Republican tax plan unveiled on Thursday includes one of Trump’s pet issues — the child tax credit — but expands it less generously than the White House senior adviser and first daughter had hoped.” http://politi.co/2h8VUIo

SCOOP: BLOOMBERG’S JOHN MCCORMICK: “An issue advocacy group aligned with Donald Trump plans to spend about $1 million on ads promoting the Republican tax proposal and will feature the president’s first campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, as its pitchman.” https://bloom.bg/2A2k4rO

— WSJ: “Heirs, Some Business Owners Are Winners in Tax Plan” http://on.wsj.com/2A2wyjt

— NYT: “Who Wins and Who Loses from the Republican Tax Plan,” by NYT’s Alan Rappeport: “[Winners]: Business … Multinational corporations … Some middle class families … The rich and their families … Hedge funds and other general partners … [Losers]: The real estate industry … The sick … Charities … University endowments … Rare disease sufferers … The deficit … Tesla (and electric car owners).” http://nyti.ms/2xTx2Ym

— BROKEN PROMISES?: “‘Major, Major’ Tax Cut May Not Be in Store for Middle Class,” by NYT’s Jim Tankersley: “[T]he myriad changes in the code would actually raise taxes on nearly 13 million tax filers who earn $100,000 a year or less, according to preliminary calculations using the open-source economic modeling software TaxBrain. Those changes also include limits on, or the elimination of, what might be called tax breaks for middle-class aspirers. The bill would no longer allow Americans to deduct interest on student loans they took out to attend college. It would limit mortgage interest deductions to $500,000 on newly purchased homes, a provision that would hit middle-class teachers or office workers looking to buy starter houses in high-priced, economically vibrant areas such as New York City and Silicon Valley.” http://nyti.ms/2zada4R

BEHIND THE SCENES — K STREET HUDDLE — The U.S. Chamber of Commerce huddled with more than 30 top trade association CEOs Thursday afternoon hours after the House unveiled its tax legislation to discuss a path forward on the business community’s top priorities, including tax reform and renegotiating NAFTA. Chair of the Council of Economic Advisors Kevin Hassett discussed the economic impact of tax reform on the American economy. Tom Donohue led the meeting.

— CHECK OUT Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld’s handy chart comparing the 2014 Camp Tax Act, the June GOP blueprint, the September “Big 6” framework and the House Republican bill http://politi.co/2hBr20l

SEUNG MIN KIM on the SENATE: “Senate littered with tax reform land mines”: “The fanfare surrounding the House GOP tax plan on Thursday masked a brewing storm in the other chamber. Senate Republicans will have to sway a host of GOP swing votes as they try to jam through their own tax overhaul with almost no margin for error. Fiscal hawks are squawking about how tax legislation could balloon the deficit. Moderates like Sen. Susan Collins of Maine are worried tax cuts will disproportionately favor the rich. Even an Obamacare-related row could bubble up and trip up passage.

“While a small handful of Democrats might get on board, it’s more likely Republicans will have to go it alone — meaning they can lose just two GOP votes before their tax bill tanks. Here’s a look at the groups of Republican senators that Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and the Senate’s chief tax writers will have to satisfy to get a bill through their chamber: The deficit hawks: Bob Corker, John McCain, Jeff Flake … The moderates: Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski … The perennial leadership headaches: Rand Paul and Ron Johnson … The demanding conservatives: Mike Lee, Tom Cotton, Ted Cruz.” http://politi.co/2lKeCI3

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THE NEXT SHOE TO DROP — “Female lawmakers allege harassment by colleagues in House,” by AP’s Erica Weiner and Juliet Linderman: “‘When I was a very new member of Congress in my early 30s, there was a more senior member who outright propositioned me, who was married, and despite trying to laugh it off and brush it aside it, would repeat. And I would avoid that member,’ said Rep. Linda Sanchez, D-Calif. She added that she would warn other new female members about the lawmaker in question, but she declined to identify him, while saying he remains in Congress.

“‘I just don’t think it would be helpful’ to call the lawmaker out by name, Sanchez said. ‘The problem is, as a member there’s no HR department you can go to, there’s nobody you can turn to. Ultimately they’re employed by their constituents.’” http://bit.ly/2zeKnOC Other members quoted include Rep. Jackie Speier (D-Calif.), former Rep. Mary Bono (R-Calif.) and former Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.)

TRUMP’S FRIDAY — Trump is leaving this morning for Hickam Air Force Base in Hawaii. This afternoon he will join a United States Pacific Command briefing and participate in a tour of the USS Arizona Memorial en route to Asia.

— NYT, A7: “Trump Heads to Asia With an Ambitious Agenda but Little to Offer,” by Mark Landler: “President Trump departs on his first trip to Asia on Friday weakened and scandal-scarred, ready to face off against newly empowered Chinese and Japanese leaders in a region increasingly determined to set its course without American direction.

“The White House is framing the trip as a chance for Mr. Trump to showcase his budding personal relationships with President Xi Jinping of China and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan — a forceful world leader pressing his peers to negotiate fairer trade deals with the United States and to intensify the pressure on nuclear-armed North Korea.

“But Mr. Trump’s erratic statecraft, compounded by the shadow of the Russia investigation, leaves him in a questionable position to extract concessions from Mr. Xi or even allies like Japan and South Korea. The South Koreans may actually draw closer to the Chinese after settling a dispute this week over the rollout of an American antimissile system.

“On the eve of the trip, White House aides also have a more basic concern: putting the 71-year-old president through a grueling 11-day, five-nation marathon that they originally conceived as two separate trips before Mr. Trump opted to do it all at once.” http://nyti.ms/2hAb8TV

— Trump told talk radio host Larry O’Connor: “The saddest thing is that because I’m the president of the United States, I’m not supposed to be involved with the Justice Department … I am not supposed to be involved with the FBI.” The full program http://bit.ly/2A1PjDC

–@alivitali: “Trump tells @IngrahamAngle ‘we may have a meeting with Putin’ while in Asia. … Trump, asked about vacancies at State, tells Fox: ‘I’m the only one that matters b/c…that’s what the policy is going to be.’”

****** A message from BP: Our largest oil and gas pipeline network spans 4,700 miles across America – enough to stretch from Chicago to London. Watch this short video for more on our U.S. footprint. ******

REP. LAMAR SMITH (R-TEXAS) announced he is not running for re-election in his San Antonio-and-Austin area seat. Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) also announced this week he wouldn’t run again for his Dallas-area seat. Twenty-six Republicans have either resigned, are resigning, retiring or not seeking re-election to their seat this congress.

SCOOP — CNBC’S KAYLA TAUSCHE — “Here are the corporate dealmakers joining Trump in China”: “An attendance list submitted to China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs for a state banquet held in honor of Trump’s November visit included Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein, Qualcomm CEO Steve Mollenkopf, Cheniere Energy CEO Jack Fusco and Air Products CEO Seifollah Ghasemi. Division heads from Boeing and General Electric were also included.” http://cnb.cx/2iXdGPw

— HAVE BLANKFEIN AND TRUMP MENDED FENCES?: TRUMP ran an ad during the campaign featuring Blankfein in a not-so-positive light. http://bit.ly/2ir5zGX … BLANKFEIN has thrown some broadsides that seemed to be aimed at Trump: June 9: “Just landed from China, trying to catch up…. How did ‘infrastructure week’ go?” … Aug. 14: “Lincoln: ‘A house divided against itself cannot stand.’ Isolate those who try to separate us. No equivalence w/ those who bring us together.” … Aug. 21: “Wish the moon wasn’t the only thing casting a shadow across the country. We got through one, we’ll get through the other. #SolarEclipse2017” … Sept. 5: “Immigration is a complex issue but I wouldn’t deport a kid who was brought here and only knows America. Congress must address. #DACA”.

FOR YOUR RADAR — “McMaster may move Afghanistan envoy position to White House,” by Nahal Toosi: “Aides to President Donald Trump have considered reviving an office the administration shut down months ago that was dedicated to resolving the conflict in Afghanistan, a sign that Trump’s policy there remains unsettled. Multiple sources said that senior Trump aides have discussed resurrecting the Office of the Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, which was previously based in the State Department, as a White House-based operation. … Already, some prominent names are being floated for the special envoy position, including former U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad.” http://politi.co/2A2Zvf3

RUSSIA WATCH — NYT A1, “Trump and Sessions Denied Knowing About Russian Contacts. Records Suggest Otherwise,” by Mike Schmidt, Matt Apuzzo and Scott Shane: “Standing before reporters in February, President Trump said unequivocally that he knew of nobody from his campaign who was in contact with Russians during the election. Attorney General Jeff Sessions has told the Senate the same thing. Court documents unsealed this week cast doubt on both statements and raised the possibility that Mr. Sessions could be called back to Congress for further questioning. … Records in that case show that George Papadopoulos, a foreign policy adviser, had frequent discussions with Russians in 2016 and trumpeted his connections in front of Mr. Trump and Mr. Sessions. … [T]he court documents represent the first concrete evidence that Mr. Trump was personally told about ties between a campaign adviser and Russian officials.” http://nyti.ms/2gZO6Fm

— “Carter Page testifies he told Sessions about Russia trip,” by CNN’s Manu Raju and Jeremy Herb: “Former Trump foreign policy adviser Carter Page privately testified Thursday that he mentioned to Jeff Sessions he was traveling to Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign — as new questions emerge about the attorney general’s comments to Congress about Russia and the Trump campaign. During more than six hours of closed-door testimony, Page said that he informed Sessions about his coming July 2016 trip to Russia, which Page told CNN was unconnected to his campaign role. Page described the conversation to CNN after he finished talking to the House intelligence committee.” http://cnn.it/2zga6pM

— “Senate Democrats want to grill Sessions again after Papadopoulos plea deal,” by Elana Schor: “Senate Democrats said Thursday they want to grill Attorney General Jeff Sessions again after new twists in the federal probe into any Russian ties to President Donald Trump’s campaign, but a person familiar with his interactions said the former Republican senator didn’t know the extent of ex-campaign adviser George Papadopoulos’ conversations with Kremlin-linked individuals. Sessions faces mounting calls to clarify his testimony before the Senate following the unveiling Monday of a plea deal by Papadopoulos in special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of Russia’s interference in the 2016 election.” http://politi.co/2gYnogf

HMM — @TwitterGov at 8:05 p.m.: “Earlier today @realdonaldtrump’s account was inadvertently deactivated due to human error by a Twitter employee. The account was down for 11 minutes, and has since been restored. We are continuing to investigate and are taking steps to prevent this from happening again. … at 10 p.m.: “Through our investigation we have learned that this was done by a Twitter customer support employee who did this on the employee’s last day. We are conducting a full internal review.”

THE EXPANDING PROBE: “Mueller grand jury investigating Vin Weber, 2nd top D.C. lobbyist,” by AP’s Desmond Butler: “FBI agents working for Mueller are asking witnesses about meetings between [Rick] Gates, [Tony] Podesta and [Vin] Weber to discuss the lobbying work in detail and any communication with representatives of a pro-Russian Ukrainian political party, according to two people familiar with the interviews who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the investigation. ‘There were questions about how much Podesta and Vin Weber were involved. There was a lot of interest there,’ one of them said. FBI agents also expressed interest in the law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, which produced a 2012 report used to justify the jailing of an opposition politician in Ukraine.” http://strib.mn/2lLWrBw

K STREET FILES — “Podesta Group labors to remake itself after founder’s exit,” by Theo Meyer: “Days after Tony Podesta shook Washington by stepping down as chairman of his namesake lobbying firm, the Podesta Group is laboring to remake itself as some staffers and clients eye the exits. … Sources familiar with the situation at the Podesta Group said on Monday that the firm would relaunch quickly. Four days after Podesta stepped down from the firm he founded, though, that has not happened. Eight Podesta Group staffers who spoke on condition of anonymity said the firm is hustling to hang on to as many clients as possible as it struggles to hammer out what it will look like without its founder.

“Two of the firm’s highest-paying clients, Oracle and Wells Fargo, are leaving, even as others wait to see how things shake out. … Paul Brathwaite, a Podesta Group principal whose clients include Airbnb, Samsung and T-Mobile, sent an email to clients on Wednesday saying he was leaving to start his own firm, Federal Street Strategies. … Lobbyists who plan to remain at Podesta Group said many staffers there are optimistic about starting fresh and that most of the firm’s clients are sticking with them — or at least waiting to see how the firm revamps. Five clients — including BAE Systems, BP and Lockheed Martin — confirmed to POLITICO that they’re staying with the firm.” http://politi.co/2h0jQtS

PHOTO DU JOUR: President Donald Trump, accompanied by House Speaker Paul Ryan and House Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady, holds an example of what a new tax form may look like during a meeting on tax policy with Republican lawmakers in the Cabinet Room of the White House on Nov. 2. | Evan Vucci/AP Photo

IVANKA ABROAD — “Ivanka Trump nods to ‘womenomics’ in Japan,” by CNN’s Betsy Klein in Tokyo: “Ivanka Trump arrived in Tokyo Thursday for a very brief trip to speak about women’s participation in the economy at the World Assembly of Women … Trump, who attended the event at the invitation of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe … [and] will have dinner with Abe Friday evening. … She spoke about women in Japan who have inspired her, praised Abe’s paid family leave policy, and also referenced Abe’s ‘womenomics’ movement, which has implemented policies for increased women’s participation to achieve economic growth.” http://cnn.it/2zaWFrn

— NYT’S MOTOKO RICH in TOKYO: “As the president might say, the room was half full. Ivanka Trump, the president’s daughter and adviser, was the much-heralded guest at a government-sponsored conference on women’s empowerment in Tokyo on Friday, just two days before President Trump’s scheduled arrival here on his first stop of an Asia tour. Yet Ms. Trump spoke to a room with so many empty seats that ushers hustled to move audience members forward several rows in the minutes before she walked to the podium.” http://nyti.ms/2A1w1yg

–PER IAN KULLGREN: “Rep. Mimi Walters (R-Calif.) introduced a bill [on Thursday] that would shield businesses from state and local paid leave laws if they voluntarily provided a certain amount of time off and workplace benefits. The legislation would offer an incentive for businesses to give paid family leave and flexible work options to employees — a substitute for more stringent proposals from the White House and Democrats in Congress.”

THE MESS ON SOUTH CAPITOL STREET — “DNC fires its top fundraiser: The committee’s slow fundraising has been a serious problem for the party since the 2016 election,” by Gabe Debenedetti: “The [DNC] dismissed its top fundraiser Thursday after just five months on the job, two Democrats familiar with the move told POLITICO. Emily Mellencamp Smith, the party’s finance director, was let go in a shake-up of the party’s senior leadership designed to energize the party’s fundraising.” http://politi.co/2iXb5VJ

CLICKER — ANTHONY SCARAMUCCI talking forgiveness at Liberty University http://bit.ly/2z9xohl

MEDIAWATCH — “David Corn investigated for inappropriate workplace behavior,” by Michael Calderone: “Mother Jones magazine’s editor and chief executive acknowledged on Thursday that they investigated Washington bureau chief David Corn for inappropriate workplace behavior three years ago, warning him about touching female staffers and insensitive descriptions of sexual violence, and would now probe the allegations further in light of two emails written by former staffers in 2014 and 2015 and obtained by POLITICO. One of the emails, written in 2015 by a former staffer outlining concerns she had heard from other women in the Washington office, said Corn, now 58, made ‘rape jokes,’ ‘regularly gave [several women] unwelcome shoulder rubs and engaged in uninvited touching of their legs, arms, backs, and waists,’ and ‘made inappropriate comments about women’s sexuality and anatomy.’

“The other email, from 2014, was by a former female staffer who claimed that Corn ‘came up behind me and put his hands and arms around my body in a way that felt sexual and domineering.’ CEO Monika Bauerlein and editor-in-chief Clara Jeffery said they had not seen these emails, which were shared several years ago between colleagues and union representatives. But the magazine’s leaders acknowledged dealing with allegations of inappropriate touching and comments around the time the emails were written, and said they believe Corn has stopped those behaviors. Corn, in a statement to POLITICO, said that neither his comments nor his touching of colleagues was in any way sexual.” http://politi.co/2zvmumA

— JOSH DAWSEY is leaving POLITICO to join the Washington Post’s White House team.

LAURA NAHMIAS and JIMMY VIELKIND in New York Playbook: “Yesterday, DNAinfo and Gothamist owner Joe Ricketts, the billionaire founder of TD Ameritrade, summarily shut down his local news sites, wiping any trace of them from the internet, a week after his employees voted to unionize. The unionization was a move he opposed, and reporters and employees of both sites immediately cried foul, calling the move an act of retaliation for their union organization effort. … [T]he reporters’ work — thousands of reported pieces — vanished, in an instant. An official at DNAinfo told the New York Times those articles would eventually be archived online. … 115 employees at DNAinfo and Gothamist … lost their jobs.” NYT story on the shut down, which includes DCist http://nyti.ms/2yqvLMP

— “Gawker fans could bring the site back to life,” by Page Six’s Oli Coleman: http://pge.sx/2h0zwND

— FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: JULIE PACE, AP’s Washington bureau chief, will interview Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, Tuesday in the next installment of AP’s “Newsmakers” interview series.

SPOTTED at Washingtonian’s luncheon at the Watergate Hotel celebrating their “Most Powerful Women in Washington” list: Rep. Barbara Comstock (R-Va.), Kellyanne Conway, Dawn Sweeney, Julie Pace, former Rep. Jane Harman (D-Calif.) and Sara Fagen … Treasury chief of staff Eli Miller last night in the lobby of the St. Regis.

–British actor Gary Oldman, Chuck Todd, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, Rep. Joe Crowley (D-N.Y.), and director Joe Wright joined a discussion and screening last night of Oldman and Wright’s new movie “Darkest Hour” at the Navy Memorial’s Burke Theater hosted by Comcast NBCUniversal. Trailer http://bit.ly/2z9wa5J

SPOTTED: Reps. Charlie Dent (R-Pa.), Denny Heck (D-Wash.), Derek Kilmer (D-Wash.), Carol Shea-Porter (D-N.H.), and Jason Smith (R-Mo.), Frank Luntz, Dave Weigel, Mark Memoli, Alex Burgos, Todd Flournoy.

TRANSITIONS — Anu Rangappa has joined D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser’s administration as director of communications. She previously was at the Kolar Strategy Group and is a DNC and Dewey Street Group alum.

SUNDAY SO FAR — CBS’ “Face the Nation”: former chief White House photographer Pete Souza, author of the new book “Obama: An Intimate Portrait” … Michael Lewis. Political panel: Jamelle Bouie, Susan Page and Ramesh Ponnuru

— “Fox News Sunday”: Panel: Karl Rove, Rachael Bade, Jason Riley, Juan Williams. Power Player: Mark Cuban

— ABC’s “This Week”: Panel: Charles Blow, Sara Fagen, Marc Lotter, and Julie Pace

ENGAGED – MATT MOWERS, chief of staff for PEPFAR at State and a Trump campaign and Christie alum, on Thursday proposed to CASSIE SPODAK, a video producer for CNN Politics. They’re spending a long weekend in New Hampshire, where they first met. He proposed on Lake Winnipesaukee in Meredith. (h/t Ryan Williams)

HERE’S TO MAGIC!! — NBC’S KATY TUR and CBS’S TONY DOKOUPIL ELOPE! — Katy and Tony escaped to Utah last week, where they stood on a 165-million-year-old rock (suspended in air) and got married. “It was just us,” Katy told us. “Our vows included the phrase ‘marred provocatively’ and the line ‘I thought this would be temporary.’” Their first dance was to the Beach Boys “God Only Knows.” Next summer, Katy and Tony will celebrate with friends at a “big messy boozy party.” NOTE FOR TONY: Katy wants a pool party. She’ll settle for a Soul Shakedown Party. But it’s Party Time. WHAT SOME OF US ARE ASKING: Will we see Tony at the Garden in December?

HAPPY FOURTH ANNIVERSARY to Ben and Ashley Chang

BIRTHWEEK (was yesterday): Politico’s Eli Okun

BIRTHDAY OF THE DAY: Katie Packer Beeson, founding partner of Burning Glass Consulting, MSNBC contributor and GWU professor. A fun fact about Katie: “Both of my parents were born and raised in Great Britain during WW2. Their influence shapes my worldview every single day.” Read her Playbook Plus Q&A: http://politi.co/2gYBrCD

BIRTHDAYS: Stu Rosenberg … Charlie Hurt … CAA’s Rachel Adler … Michael Dukakis is 84 … Anna Wintour … NYT’s James Kanter … Dennis Miller is 64 … O. Kay Henderson … former Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-Calif.) is 8-0 … Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-HI) is 7-0 … Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-Wash.) is 39 … Christie Stephenson, comms director for SEIU Local 509 … Evelyn Nieves … Phyllis Cuttino of the Pew Charitable Trusts (hat tip: Jon Haber) … Jared Rizzi … Jeff Brownlee, research and communications strategist at In Pursuit Of … Paul Brathwaite is 47. He’s celebrating by going to dinner and the Wizards/Cavs game (h/t wife Sonya) … Erica Moody … Anne Sjostrom … Gabby Adler … Amie Kershner … Quentin Fulks, deputy campaign manager at JB Pritzker for Governor … Matthew Kirincic … Katie Cook Romano … Bob Van Heuvelen … Kelli Kedis Ogborn, former DARPA congressional liaison and president of H.S Dracones consulting (h/t Ed Cash) … Robin Gray, DC-based communications manager for Exelon (h/t Bill McQuillen) …

… Kam Mumtaz, comms director for the NFL … Rowan Morris, VP at Guggenheim Partners and a Goldman Sachs alum, is 32 … Anne Mahlum, founder/owner and CEO of solidcore, celebrating by opening their 6th studio in Navy Yard tomorrow on the company’s 4th anniversary (h/t Justine DiGiglio-Cifarelli) … Brian Babcock-Lumish … Mindi Walker … Chris Falls … Politico’s Anthony Adragna, Ryan Hendrixson and Renuka Rayasam … Ben Kirshner … Christian Haines … Pearce Godwin … Julian Baird Gewirtz … Liz Rolnik … Joe Cohen (h/t Nadia Szold) … David Case … Raphaella Baek … Caroline Michelman … Texas-based GOP ad maker Vinny Minchillo is 56 … Clay Wertheimer … Elizabeth Summers … David Case … Matthew Coudert Jr. … Jack McLaughlin … Carly Burns … Amy Rosenbaum … Scout Tufankjian … Heidi Peterson … Shawn Rusterholz … Christie Findlay … Kevin McVicker … Richard Hudson … Mark Helmke … Robina Suwol … John Damian Butts is 47 … Rocco A. Mazza … Jeff Hutcheson … Barb Bichelmeyer (h/ts Teresa Vilmain)

SUBSCRIBE to the Playbook family: POLITICO Playbook http://politi.co/2lQswbh … Playbook Power Briefing http://politi.co/2xuOiqh … New York Playbook http://politi.co/1ON8bqW … Florida Playbook http://politi.co/1OypFe9 … New Jersey Playbook http://politi.co/1HLKltF … Massachusetts Playbook http://politi.co/1Nhtq5v … Illinois Playbook http://politi.co/1N7u5sb … California Playbook http://politi.co/2bLvcPl … London Playbook http://politi.co/2xfDPuK … Brussels Playbook http://politi.co/1FZeLcw … All our political and policy tipsheets http://politi.co/1M75UbX

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[coffeebeans-evergreens-blog]

A Werl-wind career

Imagine going to Southeast Polk for 70 years. The thought sounds pretty miserable to most students, but that’s exactly what teachers Jeff and Malaura Werling have enjoyed doing throughout their teaching career. English teacher and drama director, Mrs. Werling has 35 years under her belt and math teacher Mr. Werling has a total of 40 years. Together they have a grand total of 75 years of teaching experience, 70 of those at Southeast Polk alone. Now, after around 70 years of teaching at Southeast Polk, they have decided to retire.

“I’ve been eligible for 6 years. This is my 6th year I could have retired,” said Mr. Werling. “We were kind of waiting till my wife was ready to retire. She could have retired 2 years ago and we just kind of said, okay it’s time. Things are shifting in teaching, it’s always shifting, but there are some things that are coming down the pipe that we aren’t really interested in getting into.”

Both agreed that a sum of 75 years of teaching was a satisfying number on which to depart.

Southeast Polk has played a huge part of the Werlings’ life. Around 30 years ago in 1986, the Werlings met and got to know each other. Mr. Werling had already been working at SEP for around 9 years. At the time, Mrs. Werling was Ms. Martens and it was the start of her first year teaching at SEP.

“The first time I saw him, it was the first day when teachers come back for workshops. We were all in the auditorium of what is now the Jr. High and we had a guest speaker,” said Mrs. Werling. “This guest speaker was a very short man and he was trying to pull down the overhead screen which he could not do. So a murmur goes through the teachers; ‘Get Jeff Werling’. So my husband goes up onto the stage and he’s the tallest man I’ve probably ever seen and he pulls down the overhead screen while everybody laughs because this presenter is really short. And I think tall men are attractive and so I thought, he’s cute.”

At this time, Mrs. Werling shared a room with another English teacher who was good friends with Mr. Werling.

“He would come in all the time and talk to the other teacher. He would come in and talk to her all the time so I thought they were pretty good friends, and then he would talk to me a little bit while he was there. I was usually busy at my desk doing something,” said Mrs. Werling.

Little did Mrs. Werling know, Mr. Werling actually entered her room as often as he did in order to talk to her.

“Well the first time I saw her I thought, ‘wow she’s really pretty’ and I really wanted to get to know her. She shared a room with another English teacher. I would swing in there after school or during break time and she was always under the impression that I was talking to the other teacher because we knew each other, but I was always trying to talk to her too,” said Mr. Werling.  “It took me a long time to work up the courage to even ask her out.”

With time, Mr. Werling did ask her out. In the middle of Hyvee. They were both going down different aisles until they finally met in one where Mr. Werling asked.

“It ended up being a double date with a former college friend of mine who was coming to town. That was our first date, a pick-up line at Hyvee, I guess,” said Mr. Werling.

They kept their relationship a secret for the entire year. Neither one of them wanted students or other faculty to feel uncomfortable if the relationship didn’t work out. Rumors of the couple began to unravel as the school year went on and students slowly began to figure it out.

“After we had been dating for a year, we got engaged, exactly on the anniversary of our first date on October 17, 1986. Then we got engaged October 17, 1987,” said Mrs. Werling.

The couple didn’t announce their relationship officially until after they got engaged. Mr. Werling proposed at the ballet at the Civic Center. They married on June 17, 1988 and have had one son since who is now 21 years old.

Both Mr. and Mrs. Werling admitted that one of the things they will miss most about teaching is the students.

“Some days they keep you young and other days they make you old,” said Mr. Werling. “I could teach forever. It’s the outside stuff that drive teachers out. The pressure, the having to answer all the emails and keeping moodle up to date and all the extra stuff that you have to do. It is a lot harder to be a teacher now than it was when I started and I thought it was hard then.”

Mrs. Werling claimed that some of her best memories at SEP has been directing the school plays as the drama director. Some of her favorite productions she has directed were A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Importance of Being Earnest.

“It feels like having 2 full time jobs because not only is it planning rehearsal, working with [students] in rehearsal, but outside of rehearsal there’s a responsibility toward getting all the lumber, paint, props and the sets built, so there’s a lot of outside organization so it feels almost like another full time position when we are working on the show,” she said.

While Mrs. Werling acted as the drama director, Mr. Werling coached basketball and golf for several years during his teaching career. He gave up being a basketball coach after nine years, because he decided he only wanted to teach.

“It really worked out well because right when I got out of basketball coaching that’s when my wife came to Southeast Polk, because if I had been a coach I probably never would have seen her, so I had the time to pursue her,” he said.

When they both began teaching at SEP things were much different than now. Grades 7-12 were all kept in what is now the Jr. High. Many students the Werlings taught as kids have grown up to pursue teaching and teach at SEP alongside them.

Both are excited for their new phase in life retirement will take them on. They plan to continue renovating their 1926 house, travel, and eventually come back as substitutes.They are also excited for the flexibility they will have in retirement.

Mrs. Werling wrote in her letter of resignation; “The best part of everyday is, of course, the opportunity to work with students. As we continue to assess progress and collect data I want to remember the boundless capacity of students to question and challenge us, to bring humor and surprise into a classroom, to display kindness to others, and to shine and thrive in ways that we still strive to document and measure accurately within the confines of our systems. I have greatly appreciated the opportunity to have been a faculty member of Southeast Polk High School, and I will fondly remember these days as I look forward to life’s next adventure.”

This piece is my favorite article that I wrote this year. It is also the one I am most proud of. I put in a lot of time to write this article and design the page and I did it all on my own. At first I was hesitant to take on this challenge because it would be my first Feature article, but once I did I dived right in. Before this article I thought feature articles would be difficult to write. I worried I wouldn’t have enough information, but it turned out I had too much. I had so many good stories from the Werlings I wanted to include it all. I am usually extremely nervous to do interviews, but once I sat down and began them I was at ease and I enjoyed hearing what they had to say. This piece was my last article of this school year and I am so proud of how it turned out. I was able to challenge myself to do something outside of my comfort zone, write a feature article that I really cared about, design the page all on my own, and become comfortable with interviewing. I’m so happy that I took on this challenge and I know it benefited me as a writer.