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mooshs-crack-headcanons · 4 years

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Hello! Exciting to see a new writing blog!! Can I maybe request Shanks finding a young lady shipwrecked, saving her and kind of falling for her on first sight? Feeling is mutual, I'll leave the circumstances etc up to you!! Thank you so very much! And good luck with the writing!! I look forward to seeing all the things you come up with!!

*Rubs my greasy little man hands together*

I've been waiting for Shanks.

(I hope this turned out okay!)

The cheering and singing that came from the Red Force was echoing especially loud that night.

Shanks swore it could has been heard all over his territory in the New World.

The Yonko laughed out as he watched his crew dance before him, they all slurred the lyrics of old shanties as they swung their mugs of sake around.

All of them were pink in the face as the swayed side to side, some stomping their feet to the beat of the shantie the musician played, some others slammed down their mugs as the yelled to one another, and some laid passed out on deck.

Shanks got a kick out of all of it.

With moments like this, he realised all the talking about his crew being a bunch of party animals was true. And he wouldn't have it any other way.

He sat slumped back, chugging down another mug of whiskey before letting out a loud: "Woo!" as the familiar burning sensation shot down his throat. He slammed down the mug at the table beside him and let his legs cross in his seat.

"Oi Captain! Sing us one of your favorites, why don't 'ya?" One of his crew members piped up. Waving his one and only arm he gestured the offer away.

"Nah, maybe later."

He couldn't maintain his buzz with his voice occupied.

Benn came up and sat in the chair next to him, downing a small shot.

"You're awfully quiet tonight."

Shanks let out a laugh before wavering his hand.

"Been busy."

"Busy." The vice captain gave pause, looking at his captain's propped up drunk figure.

"You've been busy?"

"Yeah." Shanks motioned to his head, giving it a few taps.

"Big Yonko thoughts. They keep me super occupied, you know?"

Benn rolled his eyes as he went to go stand back up.

"Yeah, sure. Whatever you say, 'cap."

Shanks scoffed to himself.

Yeah right.

Truth be told, he really didn't know what was wrong with him?

Eh, maybe just a flunk.

His scar gave a little throb.

The Yonko immediately sat up to feel at it, his eyes frowned.

That has to be it.

He. Is planning something.

He ripped his mug from his side table, emptying it.

"Oi, Collins!"

The blonde recruit looked back, confused.

"Go get me some more, yeah?"

The blonde nodded his head before Dashing off.

Shanks sat back in his seat, feeling his scar still demand his attention.

A storm had to be coming.

"Hey! Shanks! You're not gonna believe this!" Yasopp yelled from the other side of the deck.

"What is it?"

"Wrecked Marine ship,"

Why the hell is there a Marine ship in his territory?

"And uh someone's on it!"

"Who?"

God, he doesn't want to deal with some struggling marine asshole today.

"A woman."

A woman?

Well women could still be a threat too.

"Is she armed?"

Shanks already pushed him out of his seat to make his way to the sniper.

"Doesn't look like it."

The Red Haired stood beside Yasopp and scanned for the said wrecked ship, which he found none.

"What are you talking about, Yasopp? I don't see any ship-"

Then his eyes found you.

"-wreck."

Oh goodness.

You were standing on a scrap piece of a Navy ship that floated directly next to the Red Force.

Oh god.

Your eyes stared right back at him and the sniper, the expression you made shown signs of determination, you seemed to stand your ground.

"Captain?"

You didn't seem like any marine.

"What do we do about her?"

She was most likely a civilian.

"Captain?"

Though the way your hair fell over your shoulders and swayed in the wind entranced him.

"Captain."

The small frown you made that scrunched up your face, he found adorable.

"Captain!" Yasopp slapped his shoulder, snapping out of his trance.

"Uh, what?"

Yasopp took a step back and dramatically pointed to you.

"WHAT DO WE DO ABOUT HER?!"

Shanks shook his head followed by a: "Yeah, oh right!" before looking back down at you.

"Hey! What's your name?!"

You took a step back, your lips fell back into a snarl.

"Hey now!" He gestured his one hand up to assure her.

"We're not going to harm you! Now please share with us your name!"

You looked at the red haired man with a questioning glare.

"If you're not a threat, show me you're not holding a weapon with your other hand!"

Uh….

"Do it!"

"Okay fine!"

Letting his coat slip off his other shoulder, he gave you full view of the severed arm that was tied up in a knot with his sleeve.

Instantly you were taken back and your frown faded.

"You give us a name now?"

You looked down at your feet before back up at him.

"(Name)."

(Name).

"What a lovely name, (Name)."

Heat flushed your cheeks.

"You wanna hitch a ride? It'd be better the block of wood you're on now."

You opened your mouth to find no words to come out, your heart thumped in your ears.

And that's how you started to travel with the Red Haired pirates.

That first night you found the farthest corner of the deck and stuck there. Every once and awhile crew members not realising where you came from came up to you to make small talk about other crewmates who you had no idea who they even were.

Shanks also came and sat with you for a while, asking what island you came from and where exactly they could drop you off.

You simply shook your head, and that was all I took for him to understand. His large hand clasped on your shoulder, telling you you could stay as long as you like.

That made you smile, as well as a small blush to appear on your cheeks. Then the Red Haired pirates chef came up and offered you a plate.

You stared at it, decided it would most likely be safe since these pirates haven't tried to kill you yet. So you quickly scarfed down the best meal you had in days.

More days passed by, and in that time you got to get along with the crew, Ben was nice meeting the gentle giant yet badass stereotype, Lucky Roo was also nice he'd offer you food frequently, and Yasopp was an asshole.

One night another party was held, there Shanks offered you to drink with him.

You never felt more alive.

Once you'd been on the ship for about a month, one night Shanks found you alone on deck and decided to ask you what he'd been curious about for a while now.

You looked back and greeted him with a smile, one that he returned.

As you two stood there looking out to sea, he decided no than never.

"(Name), how did you get on that marine ship?

You'll be honest the question caught you off guard. But this was Shanks after all. From the first moment the Red Haired Bastard looked at you, you were immediately attracted to him. But over time, you discovered that attraction was much more.

You wanted to be full out and honest with him.

You told him of your past, you came from a rich family who were wanting to marry off into nobility, but every time you refused. Your parents hated you, you were clearly their biggest disappointment; you shared no interest in the riches or nobility, refusing marriage proposals, and disagreeing with their opinions on the All Knowing Corrupted Assholes-oops correction: World Government.

But one day you couldn't continue refusing and they arranged you with a marine captain.

The same marine captain that was in charge of that ship.

You were to be married within a month-well technically last Wednesday, but with a dead fiance that was kind of hard now.

Pirates attacked a day before the Red Force arrived, they torched and murdered all on board.

Except you.

You hid in a barrel like a coward.

"A barrel?" Shanks laughed.

You put your hands to your hips. "Yeah a barrel. And if it wasn't for that barrel I'd be floating dead to be eaten by Sea Kings."

The Yonko looked to his bad arm. "Yeah, I should now. Damn thing's teeth hurt like hell."

You laughed before asking him about his arm, which he gladly shared with you.

Everything from Luffy, the strawhat, Foosha, Makino and the mayor, every word came out with such glee.

You leaned against the deck, your face propped in your hand as you hung on every word.

Once he first, his hand reflexively with to grab at his hat before remembering it hadn't been on his head for a long time.

The rest of the time he spent with you seemed to fly by in a matter of seconds, before he knew it you were leaning against him and his arm was around your waist.

He had to have you on his crew.

He looked down at you with a soft smile.

You sure were pulling at his heart strings weren't you?

#one piece #one piece/reader #mine #shanks #wooo #shanks/reader

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youngsamanda · 4 years

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Do you have any RP horror stories you’d be willing to share?

oh boy do i ! okay so starting off, let me just say that i started in the rpc like really young probably too young and at the time it was overwhelmingly adults or older teenagers. like i’m talking i was thirteen and most of the rpc was sixteen and over moving on ! i was in this huge and i mean like massive supernatural bio group back in 2014 - 2015 only because someone i was friends with on indie adminned it. basically they peer pressured me into joining, i didn’t like most of the characters and then intended to join they reserved said character for me but still accepted someone with the character like two hours after i reserved her so i was like whatever but they really wanted me in the group so i applied with a lily collins fc and the main admin for some reason had it out for me ? mind you i was fourteen turning fifteen when joining the group, this grown ass woman was like twenty three years old and would send me hate on anon (she forgot to put on anon once) become really hostile to me in the ooc blog and her characters were just so aggressive to mine even though we barely interacted. she was mad because i wouldn’t ship with her with my dylan o’brien fc (she was playing shelley hennig) and ships were not set but she was trying to force that as a thing ? even though my character had a boyfriend because he was bisexual and i offered exes but she like lost her mind at me about it especially when i’d interact with females in the group (again he had a boyfriend) and on top of that hated my lily collins fc because she was being shipped with a character hers had slept with. it was like a weird personal goal of hers to have her nina dobrev fuck like every man in the group and it wasn’t like i was impeding on a ship anywho moving on. my friend (who isn’t a friend of mine anymore) basically forced me to join this group to ship with them then didn’t want to ship with the character i specifically made for theirs like fc and everything was per their request and i didn’t care cause i just wanted to write so that was really annoying.

i ran a group that i was super proud of at the time but one of my co - admins decided to be kind of shady and one of the members was like actually harassing me, manipulating me, etc so we kicked them out of the group and a few of the members kind of placed blame on me because a grown man was harassing me. along with that i gave permission to one person to keep playing the skeleton they had in the group because the skeletons were sort of in depth and a bunch of people never asked me but asked my co-admin who barely contributed to the group and never ran it by me. by that point the person who had been my co-admin also quit rp so that felt pretty shitty. that same co-admin contributed to the group being cliquey as fuck and saw no problem with someone in the group making the same exact group, with the same plot, extremely similar skeletons and everything while still in the group and recruited a bunch of people they were cliquey with into their group so i let it die. oh ! and the same co-admin who i was friends with for over a year at that point was shit talking me with members through our mains ims because i wouldn’t let them do whatever they want and asked them to have requests go through the main and not their own blog because stuff would change and i and the other co-admin would never know it happened.

lastly, i’ve had even worse experiences but this stuck out completely and i didn’t want to make a big deal of it but who the fuck cares at this point ! all of these groups and people are still saying unnamed because i’m not about to be dragged into drama in the rpc of all things but basically i was in a supernatural group last year and was super excited about it ! i had multiple characters and everything was totally fine for a while but like two months in, they changed a bunch of rules without voting on it which is normally fine but it would completely fuck up the plot and ship i had for a character since the start of the group. so i expressed discomfort with them asking me to pretend this plot i had with my character (which wasn’t weird btw it was about supernatural species having too much of a power imbalance if certain ships got together?) never happened or do completely out of character things to explain it. i was told by the main admin to send my issues into the main because the ask the admin part of the ooc discord was not appropriate and it was late at night but i asked like five minutes after they posted in the chat. the main admin picked up one of the biggest plots for one of my characters and i had to make four different starters for her to reply to it. it was basically the admins mostly writing with each other and pretending like the rest of the group was cliquey when it really wasn’t because i was in it for like three months and never once had an issue with a member of the group other than the admins little clique. when i was on hiatus, when an ask was sent into the main about my fc they said check back in a few days because she might be re-opened which was rude ? at one point i played the only black character in the group and could barely get anyone to plot with him so i feel like that says a lot ! it was a whole thing about how they like only wanted to progress their own plots but not other peoples, like asked people not to keep going with character growth because it’d hinder their own or whatever bullshit. got mad at me when multiple people defended me and my friend because we didn’t feel like it was appropriate to godmod our characters who were literally doing nothing wrong but in progress of getting back together. the main admin like made most of the plots or plot drop shit around one of her characters which is like fine but it got so annoying that we had a gossip blog and it centered around the same six people. basically all of that happened, i felt uncomfortable in the group everyone i wrote with was leaving so i was like okay this is fine i’ll probably go but was on hiatus so i let the like last two days run up on my hiatus and left the ooc discord after. they ended up blocking me on the main, the admins personal blogs and their new revamped group which died in a few weeks. all i gotta say is that was the worst cliquey shit i’ve ever seen and the fact that they tried to make me feel bad because i didn’t want them godmodding me was completely ridiculous !

#rant over this took me so long to write #Anonymous

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cirquenuit-rp · 7 years

Photo

We welcome the following characters into the Cirque family. Under the cut, you will find the full apps of the accepted characters. Please, go over the checklist, refer to this post, and make sure to send in your blog to the main in under 24 hours!

Calliope Hunte [Ashley Moore] played by Eva

Fee Lavrouye [Ruth Negga] played by Marie

Kalila Shain [Gal Gadot] played by Maggie

Olivia Sergeant [Halston Sage] played by Jen

Penelope ‘Penny’ Arden [Shailene Woodley] played by Deja

Sanni Wirtanen [Dakota Fanning] played by Beth

Scout Hallow [Lily Collins] played by Ashleigh

Alexander Blake [Leonardo DiCaprio] played by Matt

Marcellus Leonard Dyer [Bill Skarsgard] played by Ro

Silas Nakamura [Sen Mitsuji] played by Bella

Trevor Dewitt [Logan Lerman] played by Joseph

Vicente ‘Vince’ Vega [Oscar Isaac] played by Frankie

Connie Stuart [Natalia Dyer] played by Bex

Character Name: Calliope Hunte Age: 28 Gender/Preferred Pronouns: She/her From: Speightstown, Barbados Time in the Cirque: 5 years Faceclaim: Ashley Moore Act or Job: Contortionist

About the Character:

Calliope comes from a long line of Voodoo Queens in Barbados. The practice can be traced several generations before her, and led her to actively practice the religion for her entire life.

She began learning contortion at around eight years old. It was unintentional, as she started out learning traditional dance before realizing her natural hyper-flexibility. Often times, she’d use it to scare her siblings and kids at school .

Calliope often communicated with spirits when she was a teenager, doing it so often she began to view herself as ‘Chosen’. Because of her religious practices, her mother and aunts that she lived with never saw the frequent communication as a threat and often encouraged it.

She joined the circus to flee her gang-ridden hometown at the request of her mother. She wanted Calliope to be as far away from the violence as possible and ushered her away to the circus in the dead of night. Calliope used her unconventional skills as a contortionist to hold her own against other performers.

She has dabbled in aerial silks during her time at the circus, and can often be found practicing her contortion combined with the aerial silks. It’s also a handy way to sneak away and have alone time between her shows.

Character Name: Fee Lavrouye Age: 35 Gender/Preferred Pronouns: female, she/her From: Marseille, France Time in the Cirque: 8 years Faceclaim: Ruth Negga Act or Job: Medic, also helps out with costuming and other misc. tasks

About the Character:

A seamstress in her youth, she became a medic accidentally: four faulty floorboards, five broken bones, no emergency care, and one girl with a needle and thread who could stop the bleeding.

She’s naturally maternal, especially to the acro girls who come to her tent all the time. She loves to chat with them and has become quite the storyteller.

She sings sea shanties, drinking songs, and other nonsense under her breath while she sews.

She has many little siblings back in Marseille, and still writes them all letters, the old fashioned way.

Before joining the Cirque, she made costumes for the Paris Opera Ballet. She left shortly after the medical incident.

Character Name: Kalila Shain Age: Thirty-three. Gender/Preferred Pronouns: Cis female/feminine pronouns From: London, England Time in the Cirque: Four years. Faceclaim: Gal Gadot Act or Job: Medic About the Character:

When Kalila was a child, she wanted to be a unicorn. Once her otherwise very supportive parents convinced her that it simply wasn’t biologically possible, she decided she’d rather be a ballerina instead.

Her dance career was derailed following a car accident as a young adult. She wasn’t too severely injured, and neither were any of her friends who were in the car at the time, but she realized that her body just couldn’t quite rebound the way she needed it to to keep pursuing a career in dance. So, she decided that if she couldn’t be a dancer, she’d be a doctor and fix people’s bodies instead.

Kalila wants to help people. When she danced, it was about providing people with some sort of escape from whatever they were going through, even if it was only for a few hours. Now, she can see someone at their worst and gently pull them back together.

Her career at the circus started not long after she received her medical degree. Something had always itched under her skin, pulling her away from her sheltered upbringing. Travelling with the circus has opened her eyes to new cultures that she might not have otherwise experienced, and opened her ears to the stories of those around her.

Although she’s compassionate with her patients, Kalila absolutely will not hold back if someone isn’t following her medical direction. She tends to be snarky with “repeat offenders” (usually the daredevils) who she thinks end up in the medical office too frequently.

Character Name: Olivia Sergeant Age: 23 Gender/Preferred Pronouns: cisfemale, she/her From: Napa Valley, California Time in the Cirque: two years Faceclaim: Halston Sage Act or Job: tech crew, lighting

About the Character:

After Olivia dropped out of college and couldn’t find the strength to tell her parents what she’d done, the circus found her. She was on track to graduate and go on to medical school but couldn’t stomach it, and seeing the opportunity for a new life she ran without looking back. She wrote her parents a letter as soon as she was out of town, but is using this time as a form of escape. She’s able to travel the world and think about what she really wanted from her life, all while in good company. Or at least that’s what she tells herself, after two years she feels just as unsure about her future, cementing her place with the troupe for the foreseeable future.

The Sergeants owned a winery and horse ranch. She never wanted for anything, and prior to this had never even held down a real job. It was a shock to her system when she had to suddenly go by someone else’s schedule and learn to budget her money. Even after all this time she can still get caught in a tricky financial situation after she’s spent her entire paycheck without thinking. It hasn’t resulting in any serious trouble yet, but it’s not something that she’s going to get under control any time soon.

Liv comes from a huge family, in terms of birth order she’s number four out of five. She was raised with three brothers and one much older sister, giving her the distinct ‘tomboy’ feeling that every little girl has when she spends all her time roughhousing with her brothers. Even when she was home she was continually lost in the shuffle of different activities, always watching her mother balance schedules and try to get everyone where they needed to be. The circus feels like home to her with all the rushing chaos and people, and she’d never thought she’d say it but thanks to her family she’s learned how to keep her cool and stay organized in this environment.

Originally she was going to sign on as a medic given her education, but there was an opening with the lighting crew and she jumped at the chance to learn a new skill set far away from the one she was running from. At first she was just another crew member but as time has gone on she’s slowly moved up the ranks and likes to think of herself as an assistant to the lighting board operator. When shows are particularly empty she’s even been allowed to run the board a few times- which she absolutely jumps at the chance to do.

She’s horrendous at keeping her own secrets but tries valiantly to keep other people’s. There’s something so genuine and bright about her that it’s hard to get mad even when it’s discovered that she’s spoiled something. She does make a big deal of apologizing, but she doesn’t often try to help clean up the messes she’s made, especially when they don’t directly affect her. A rule of thumb around the circus is not to tell Liv if there’s a surprise party being planned.

Character Name: Penelope “Penny” Arden Age: 25 Gender/Preferred Pronouns: She/Her From: Cartersville, Georgia Time in the Cirque: 4 months Faceclaim: Shailene Woodley Act or Job: Tightrope Walker About the Character:

Penny was a competitive gymnast throughout her adolescence, though she quit after her disgraceful failure in the US Olympic trials.

After her dreams of being an Olympian were crushed, Penelope conformed to the patterns and customs of her small town life. She married her high school sweetheart, worked as a waitress at her family’s restaurant, and almost considered starting a family.

On a whim and a desperate attempt to escape her now suffocating life, Penny ran away to join the circus– something she imagined only angsty teenagers did in old movies, not housewives in their mid-twenties. Surprisingly, though, she still had the talent and flexibility of her younger self and was able to perform well enough to score her place among the other distinguished acts of the Cirque.

Before joining the Cirque, Penny hadn’t travelled any farther than 20 miles from home. Now, she is overjoyed with her new freedom and takes every opportunity to explore the foreign city’s of The Cirque’s world tour. She collects souvenirs from each new location and her caravan is growing cramped with her findings.

Despite - or perhaps because of - her new freedom, Penny doesn’t plan to stay in the Cirque for long and is waiting for the right location where she can run off into the sunset.

Character Name: Sanni Wirtanen Age: 19 Gender/Preferred Pronouns: cis female, she/her pronouns From: Helsinki, Finland Time in the Cirque: 18 years Faceclaim: Dakota Fanning Act or Job: Shadow Theatre About the Character:

Born and raised in the Cirque de la Nuit by two performers from Finland, Sanni has a great relationship with her parents and no regrets about growing up in the circus.

Has tried her hand on mostly every act the circus has to offer but the only thing she is really good at is the trapeze.

Has been playing the accordion since she was five years old. Her accordion is her most prized possession and her favourite pastime.

Instead of becoming a trapeze artist or playing her accordion for the Cirque, Sanni opted to take over the shadow theatre as she finds it’s not as stressful or demanding. Quite picky with who she lets in on her little puppet troupe, she makes most puppets herself, rarely buying premade ones and refusing most gifts. Her stories, successful more often than not, are always improvised and she never bothers practicing them beforehand or writing them down. She only ever performs when she feels like it though.

Due to her parents insisting she gets a university degree, Sanni spent the last year studying economics in Helsinki. She quickly got fed up with how boring and static a student’s life can be though, which is why she ended up abruptly abandoning her studies at the end of her first year and suddenly returning home to the Cirque.

Character Name: Scout Hallow Age: 25 Gender/Preferred Pronouns: female; she/her From: Los Angeles, California Time in the Cirque: 3 years Faceclaim: Lily Collins Act or Job: Daredevil

About the Character:

Scout’s mother was obsessed with fame and did everything in her power to get Scout to become the star she never could.

But show business is harsh and Scout’s mother was an alcoholic with a pending drug problem. She managed to get Scout a job as backstage at a local show but Scout was too shy to perform herself.

But Scout’s mother quickly spiraled out of control and disappeared one day, leaving Scout to fend for herself. The people at the show took care of her until the show eventually got shut down. At that point, she became homeless and fell into a bad crowd.

Because of her mother’s influence, Scout has an eating disorder that she has had for most of her life. This is due to the fact that Scout has never felt like she was good enough for her mother, being more interested in “boy things” (as her mother put it.)

She eventually discovered the circus and has been a part of it ever since. She had secretly been doing potentially life-threatening acts, which only fueled her eating disorder more. For her audition, Scout perfected these daredevil acts and that is how she got into the circus in the first place.

Character Name: Alexander Blake Age: 36 Gender/Preferred Pronouns: Male From: Stratford Ontario Canada Time in the Cirque: Twenty-one years Faceclaim: Leonardo DiCaprio Act or Job: Puppet Master About the Character:

Alexander was born in a theatre town, with parents who were both well renowned stage actors. As such, performing has always been a part of his life, but he always felt like he was stuck in the shadow of his parents growing up, and that nothing he ever did would be good enough .

He took up puppeteering in his teens as a way to try and distinguish himself and set himself apart from his family legacy. He quickly discovered that it was his calling.

He ran away from home at the age of fifteen to join the circus (although he lied and claimed to be older at the time) He craved the adventure and excitement that was offered to him, and wanted to escape the pressures of trying to live up to the expectations everyone in his town had for him.

When the circus first arrives in a new town, Alexander will walk around the streets and listen to the sounds of the children playing. What he hears, he will often incorporate into his shows for the duration of the stay in that town. He also has conversations with the children after the show, and encourages them to come back, because he’ll incorporate those conversations into his show the next day.

Alexander was married to another cirque performer named Isabelle for four years, but she left two and half years ago, when a wealthy businessman came to the circus and took a liking to her.

Character Name: Marcellus Leonard Dyer Age: 26 Gender/Preferred Pronouns: Cis male, he/him From: Baltimore, Maryland Time in the Cirque: 2 years Faceclaim: Bill Skarsgard Act or Job: Tech Crew

About the Character:

Marcellus was the product of a rich, married couple that wasn’t suited to be parents of any kind. He was seen and treated more as an object rather than an actual person. His parents were highly abusive emotionally, mentally and physically. Yet, even then, Marcellus hardly acted out or against the way he was treated.

It became a common thing to see Marcellus as the aggressor for a lot of things. Fights and arguments are something he frequents in, but it’s always for a legitimate reason.

Marcellus has always had a soft spot for children. The childhood he had gone through was terrible, and he hates the thought of coming across another child that has gone, and might still be going, through a similar lifestyle. The quickest way to anger him is when the well-being of a child is toyed or messed with.

He never really considered himself as a traveling man, but when he heard that Cirque de la Nuit was in town he decided to check it out. His curiosity got the better of him and the promise of traveling became too tempting for him to pass up.

He’s still young, but he’s far more insightful and intuitive than most think. Marcellus certainly enjoys several earthly pleasures, but he takes his job seriously.

Character Name: Silas Nakamura Age: 26 Gender/Preferred Pronouns: Cis male, he/him From: Sapporo, Japan + New York, USA Time in the Cirque: 6 years Faceclaim: Sen Mitsuji Act or Job: Catering (Sous-chef)

About the Character:

Silas never knew his father. His mother raised him on the road, where she worked as the Magician’s Assistant for a traveling circus.

He always wanted to be a Daredevil, and his mother encouraged it. He trained for the stunts from a young age, and picked up skills such as knife-throwing and tightrope walking.

Shortly after he turned 18, his dreams were dashed by an accident. He fell off his motorbike and suffered major injury. Silas lost part of his right leg, as well as any hope of becoming a circus performer. After recovering from the accident, he left his mother’s circus.

19-year-old Silas went to New York. There, he lived from pay check to pay check, and became an expert at feeling bad for himself. The Cirque came to town looking to hire a new catering team. Silas didn’t know why, but he applied. They hired him based on his history with the traveling circus.

Over the years, Silas has worked his way up from kitchen boy, and earned himself a reputation for being callous. He easily comes across as moody, bitter and impatient, but those he is close to know him to be caring, dedicated and observant.

Character Name: Trevor Dewitt Age: 25 Gender/Preferred Pronouns: He/Him From: Sydney, Australia Time in the Cirque: 1 Year Faceclaim: Logan Lerman Act or Job: Tiger Tamer

About the Character:

Trevor is from a rich family, but he never talks about them. It’s speculated that he was disowned, although for some reason he still has a constant flow of money coming towards him. Some think that his family is apart of some crime syndicate. Every time someone asks him about his family, he makes something unrealistic up and leaves it at that.

He is extremely laid back, and almost comes off as lazy. Trevor constantly seems like he’s hiding a lot about himself. He holds himself in way that hints at the danger that lurks behind his kind smile. Still, he would rather sit out a fight than participate in one unless he deems it necessary.

He really loves animals, and makes sure the tigers he works with are always cared for properly. He would never harm the creatures and treats them with respect.

Trevor is pretty quiet. Not because he’s shy or anything, he just doesn’t want to put forth the effort of speaking. When he does speak though, his words are heavily accented and are usually dripping with sarcasm.

He has a claw mark on his right cheek from an accident during one of his earlier shows. Of course, he will proudly place the blame on himself when asked about it.

Character Name: Vicente ‘Vince’ Vega Age: 38 Gender/Preferred Pronouns: Male; he/him From: Cleveland, OH, USA Time in the Cirque: 12 years Faceclaim: Oscar Isaac Act or Job: Clown About the Character:

He joined a relatively small circus group when he was 22 in Lima, Ohio until he was scouted by William White of Cirque de la Nuit in Paris when he was 26. Finding the ringmaster’s offers to be appealing, and with a child he has to support, he then joined the group and has been with them since then.

He was 24 and had been touring with his former circus group in Europe when he met a stunning escort after one of his shows. A relationship sparked between them, though it wasn’t anything serious; merely short-lived trysts, however, it resulted into a pregnancy that he found out weeks after they’ve stopped seeing each other, as he had to leave the town.

To ease his conscience, he’s been sending the woman monthly checks to support her raising the child on her own, and has been doing so for the past 14 years. He’s tried, several times, to meet his daughter, Alyssa, whom he’s only been allowed to see pictures of (she bears a striking resemblance to him more than with her mother, a fact that bears a heavy weight in his chest), but has been denied visits from by the woman.

Vince comes from a wealthy family, an owner of several restaurant chains in Cleveland. He’d earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Business from Kent State University, as his parents had wished for him to continue their legacy. However their plans had been foiled when he, on impulse, decided to join the circus that happened to be in town some time after he’d graduated. He hasn’t spoken to them since.

On the cusp of forty and still gallivanting through cities and multiple partners, he takes the time, every now and then, to reflect on his life. Most days, he’s content with where he is, but he can’t help but feel like he’d missed out on a completely different life offered to him by the opportunities well within his reach. He is tinged with regret, though tries subvert the could-have-beens with the applause he receives.

Character Name: Connie Stuart Age: twenty-one Gender/Preferred Pronouns: she/her & they/them From: troy, new york Time in the Cirque: thirteen months Faceclaim: Natalia Dyer Act or Job: Catering About the Character:

Ask Connie where she’s from and she will lie. Troy, New York, is not real to her – it never was. She was born in New York City, and she will claim that’s where she grew up, not the tiny suburb where she doodled skylines on her window in expo markers. The city’s lights sparkled and reflected the girl’s own ambitions. It was perfect, but it was just a dream.

Her mother was her inspiration. While they had left the city to live elsewhere, Mrs. Stuart still went back weekly. She delivered wedding cakes to prominent events, and Connie never wanted to do anything but be like her mother. Days were spent in the kitchen, flour clouds abound, and sugar covering every bare inch of skin and every surface on the counter.

She was admitted to Le Cordon Bleu after . They excelled there; they staged at pâtisseries and boulangeries within the Paris city limits, and it was a dream. It was with a reluctance they moved back stateside, but that had been the agreement they had made with her parents. They could go to school in France and have the tuition paid by them, and then they would come back to work with her mother at the event planning and catering business she ran.

It was miserable being stateside. They hated the lack of control, they hated being under her mother’s thumb. They knew they were more talented than their mother and they rubbed that fact in their face every chance they got. They one-upped, and showed off. Finally, they were told they could leave.

Maybe the circus wasn’t the best decision, but they wanted to rebel. They wanted to prove they knew what was best for them. And it was fun, at the very least. They liked moving around, they liked the freedom they had in helping aid with the menus. It was much more their speed. Though they don’t plan on staying there forever, for now it’s enough for them.

#accepted #rp #rpg #lsrpg

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victakestaipei · 7 years

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WEEK 2 RECAP: “Gua Bao?” More like “Gua BOMB.”

So I have come to realize that during the weeks, my blog posts about my classes are going to be pretty repetitive. So to save you the few minutes of your life you’ll spend reading, I’ll just shorten it a bit...and skip to the food. We always do the same things in class. We take quizzes, read the text book, practice writing characters, and talk alot about a wide array of topics... (we actually get off topic alot... In one of the classes this week I ended up playing the song “Mr. Roboto” on my iphone because I made a reference about it... we have a new classmate and he’s from Japan and everyone wanted to hear the “Domo Arigato” part... ugh.. it’s a long story.)

Anyway, let’s start from Tuesday I suppose:

So in class we had another one of those written dialogue quizzes, I got an A ((of course HEH)) and on the test from last week, I got a 94%! Feelin’ good. In the gym it was leg day, and I’m starting to incorporate more cardio daily, so I’ve been running on the treadmill at the end of my workouts. I want to drop weight and tone up while I’m out here so I figured this will help give me the extra kick that I need. I ran a mile in 7 minutes and 30 seconds... Or so I thought. I was super happy about the amount of time it took and how it didn’t even feel hard and how my knee actually wasn’t hurting for once in my life. BUT, I soon realized that I am a headass. I didn’t realize until later in the week that everything here is in kilometers, not miles. Meaning, that I didn’t actually run a mile in 7 minutes and 30 seconds, I ran 1 kilometer. Which is less than a mile... it’s actually 0.62 miles to be exact. What A BUZZ KILL!!!! I was on this “high” the whole rest of the day because I thought I was really wrecking shit, but really I’m just an idiot. A slow running idiot. lol.

For dinner Bunny and I went to this popular joint that she had heard about from a friend. I actually have heard of this place too, but didn’t realize it until after we had arrived and ordered our food. We went to this small hole-in-the-wall restaurant in the Gongguan night market where they serve the “Traditional Taiwanese Snack.” It’s called “Gua Bao.” It’s basically a pulled pork hamburger with veggies, pickles, grated peanuts in a peanut sauce, and cilantro... all in a steamed bun... you hold it and eat it like a hamburger, and it’s delicious!! It was only 55 NT (about $1.80 US). You could choose between lean meat, fatty meat, or a mix of the two. I went with the lean meat, and I’m glad that I did. The restaurant also offered an array of soups, but a lot of them featured pork intestines, and that's not really my type of party.

Wednesday:

I did back day at the gym today and ran another “mile”... SMH. That still gets me man. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.

For lunch, Jeannie, Bunny and I went to this potsticker place right across the street from campus. We’ve been there before and it was really good the first time, with each potsticker being 5 NT! (or about 17 cents). We each ordered 10 potstickers and a bowl of warm noodles, totalling to only 90 NT ($3 US). I chose 5 curry potstickers and 5 garden vegetable. The Curry flavored potstickers were by far the best potstickers I’ve had since I’ve been here (and that’s saying something). And for dinner, Bunny and I went BACK to the Gua Bao place (it was that good) but this time brought Nick along! We had a good time.

Thursday:

I had another dictation quiz and got another low A. Today was leg day yet again. Starting to see a pattern here? I’m proud to say that I’ve kept the routine/schedule that I talked about in my recap blog post from last week..

For our post-gym lunch, Bunny, Jeannie and I went to this Soy Sauce-Braised place. I can’t remember the name. *eyeroll*. But basically it’s a food stand on the street market by our university, and they lay out all the meats, and veggies and noodles on display, and you choose which ones you want, and they mix them all together and cook them in this super hot soy sauce soup... It’s pretty good. I was super excited about this food stand because they actually had VEGETABLES!!! You know how often I see vegetables here in Taiwan??? Never. I don’t think I’ve had a vegetarian semi-healthy meal since I’ve been here. And I’ve looked!!!!! Anyway, for my dish, I chose tofu, broccoli, cabbage, mushrooms, and udon noodles. I paid about $7.50 US which is a bit steeper than my usual meal, but I think that’s because I doubled up on the tofu. (hehe). Either way though that’s still what I spend on average at Cane’s back in the US, and it’s wayyyyy more food. I do have to say that I went a bit over the top. My food was a MOUNTAIN!!!! We also bought this watermelon slush drink to share that came in an actual watermelon! Presentation get’s an A+, and it was pretty refreshing.

After we ate we went to this store called “Jin Xin Fa” and bought tons of stationary (everything here is so cute and I desperately wanted to buy some cute planners for the upcoming school year). I also bought an extra long ethernet cord so that I could use my laptop in bed and have better internet, as well as a new phone charger...

For dinner I ended up cooking (reheating) left over lunch... but I made rice and added scrambled egg to it... As it turns out, my $7.50 lunch fed me and Bunny for dinner. As I mentioned in my blog post about my dorm a few weeks ago, we have a small kitchen area at the end of the hall. Bunny and I wanted to use the rice cooker, and we struggled at first. We had to put water between the bowl where the rice goes and the outer bowl?? Strange. Either way thought the rice came out perfectly. Bomb.com.

Friday:

For lunch, the three of us tried this Malaysian Curry place on the street market. It was on the second floor, and the interior looked like someone's home at first... My dish was 100 NT ( around 3-4$), and I ordered the Malaysian chicken curry and rice. It’s basically a filleted chicken cutlet fried in batter and served with a mound of rice, both covered in curry. And topped with potato wedges... THIS PLACE WAS SUPER GOOD I WILL BE BACK EVERY WEEK OH MY GOD. There is only one lady who works here, and she cooks all the dishes. I also think she lives here...? Not so sure. We spoke to her a bit after finishing our food, and she told us how 22 years ago she came to Taiwan, and she asked us where we're from and told us she's been to both Florida and New York before. She also showed us pictures of her 8 month old grandson who lives in Florida. Her daughter was born in Malaysia and currently lives in America as she's married to an American guy. She was the sweetest lady ever, gushing about her grandson and showing us all these videos. Such a lovely lady.

After lunch we did some shopping in the street market (clothing), I bought a shirt... and not much else because everything looked so small. When shopping one lady didn't let Jeannie use the dressing room to try on this outfit.... it seemed odd, and the lady didn’t seem to have a reason to not let her use the dressing room which was clearly there with the open curtain and no one inside. I think the lady who worked there was just a bitch. She was rude, and possibly racist?? I can’t tell you how many times I would walk into a shop (during the hour or so that we were walking around) and the ladies who work there would hover over me constantly. *eyeroll*. Figures.

We went home and I took a shower and relaxed before heading to Shilin Night market. I’ve been here before and posted a video, but in case you all forgot, it’s the biggest night market in Taipei and is pretty poppin on the weekends. Jeannie and I love to shop, so we had a ball!! Four of us went, it was Ada, Jeannie, Bunny and I. We spent a few hours shopping and walking around and eating the street food. I ate this pork bun sandwich, some French fries with a bunch of sauces on them (like mustard sauce, salt, pepper, etc), and tried the popular chicken fried steak.

squid on a stick^

We stayed at Shilin a few hours before parting ways... Jeannie and I went to meet up with some others at a bar and Bunny and Ada went home. This is around maybe 11:15pm... Jeannie and I met up with Nick at this open patio bar/hookah lounge. It was $20 (US) all you can drink. The bar was called K House and was located smack dab in the middle of the gay district off of Ximen station. Ximen station is also a very popular shopping area for the younger crowd, with a 5 story H&M and other popular stores. It took a while for Jeannie and I to find the bar, we put it in google maps and it took us to a completely different location. By the time we found it a lot of the people we were meeting up with were loose off the goose. Which makes sense since it was all you can drink and they'd been there a few hours already. We left the bar around 1, and headed to 7/11 and walked around town a bit after that. I was pretty lit. I slammed about 5 drinks in 30 minutes and was just chillen after that. I had two jack/cokes, 1 vodka/sprite, and 3 peach flavored drinks but I don't know what alcohol was in those..?? They were super good though!! My favorite, definitely. We were walking to another bar when I got super tired and decided to take an Uber home with Jeannie and another guy we met that night, his name is Collin. Collin goes to school at Carnegie Melon *ooooooooo snap*. I got into my dorm around 2:30-3am, and went to bed around 3:30. When Jeannie and I were walking with the group, Collin was telling us about how he had plans to go snorkeling the next day and he invited us to join the group on Facebook. I knocked out after showering when I got home, since I had to be up by 7:15 to make it to the meeting spot at 8am to go snorkel. I was exhAUSTED. Snorkeling should be worth the lack of sleep though.

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sheporbust · 7 years

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A Special Thanks

When I started looking at studying abroad, I saw several opportunities. The experience, the unique perspective, the knowledge obtained, building new friendships, and the a thrill of the unknown. What I didn’t expect was the amount of support and help that I’ve received, not just for studying in France but just my schooling in general. It’s been a year now since I left the comfort of gainful employment to better myself and be able to develop the tools to be better at my job, as a person, and in helping others. The following people and organisations are just a few who have helped me realize this, and they’re in no specific order and I will probably change this several times as new names and faces come to mind.

Camosun College - As a mature student who was absolutely rubbish in high school, who was told that post secondary education was an unlikely event, you allowed me to prove myself right and others wrong. I hope that my academic grades will prove your bet good several times over.

Matt Agbay and Larry Chung - Thank you for your continuous help and writing me glowing recommendations. Not only have you been amazing teachers, like all the others I have had the pleasure of studying under, but you have been patient enough with my constant harping in writing said recommendations.

Vivian Trinth - If you were paid $5.00 for every e-mail you have received from me and answered, you would probably be sleeping on a fair sum of money. Thank you for helping me through the process of studying abroad, answering my many, many questions, and alleviating my thousand and one different possibilities in making this possible.

Laura Collins, Clarissa Landry, and Haley Parkhill - It’s been a crazy year, and even though we have only known each other now for less than 6 months, you guys have opened your homes, your vehicles, your impressive moving skills, all to help me get through an unfortunate difficult time. Without any one of you, I shudder to think where I may be, only sure that wouldn’t be drinking tea and typing this in such comfort.

Darlene and Collins - Thank you for the tea (see above), and more importantly, for letting me into your home and family for the holiday season. You have been more kind to me, virtually a stranger, than I could ever imagine would be possible. I would be remiss, no matter how embarrassing it may be, to not mention how many times I’ve cried due to your random and very generous acts of kindness. More than I can count, which is troubling for an accounting student.

Leah Vininsky-Oakes and Oleg Mamontov - Juggling school and the naval reserves, you have been so kind in opening your homes and couches for me to sleep on. Without these, I have no idea how I would be able to stay as awake in class as I was. Although we have gone our separate ways, my gratitude still remains and I am still extremely grateful. Thank you.

Zodiac - The best dog ever. There for me when I was feeling sad and alone, although probably against her will. But she never seemed to complain.

INSEEC - Thank you for your partnership with Camosun to make this happen! I look forward to learning at your school, in your country, and from everyone I encounter along the way.

Elodie Anderson - Thank you for helping me with various European paperwork, especially the form I totally forgot about until you sent me a reminder. Although we have not formally met, I look forward to meeting you.

DECA and Camosun Business Study Group - Thanks to everyone who I have met in these two great clubs. It’s been a blast and I look forward to getting back and involved when I return.

The Leonard Foundation - Thank you so much for the scholarship! It was absolutely mind blowing the amount I received, and it helped me so much. I also want to take a moment to extend a special thanks to Sally Tuckey, who has not only taken an interest in my schooling on behalf of The Leonard Foundation, but also personally, always showering me with more praise than I think is due, but is humbling none the less.

Irving K. Barber One World International Scholarship - Thank you for your financial support on this endeavor! It’s amazing that groups such as this exist to help support and encourage students to study abroad, to step outside their comfort zone, and most importantly to let them know that there are people who are behind them to help if they choose this path.

Harrison Nguyen - Thank you for providing me with a glowing character reference. I read it any time I want to know my strengths, as it is a detailed and in depth account of all I have achieved thus far. Most appreciative of all, it was written by someone else. Thank you.

The Canadian Armed Forces - Thank you for providing me with a career that allowed me to escape the one I was in. Without this opportunity, school would not have been a possibility, and I would most likely still be buried in debt. You provided me the means to escape all that, and gave me the tools and abilities to tackle any challenge that I set my mind to.

HMCS Victoria, Submariner’s Association of Canada, and all Canadian Submariners - Thank you for everything you have done for me. It is far to much for me to list, but you have shaped me more than I possibly thought possible. My time in the Navy, I am so thankful that I spent it on submarines.

Ben Scott - Thank you for helping me move my things into storage, not once, but twice! A person with a truck is a rare thing in Victoria, and you even fed me once. A starving college student never forgets food!

Jessica Friesen - Thank you for donating to my cause! There’s no better feeling than having someone believe in you when you can’t produce any real proof. I hope that my time here will pay off your blind investment 100 times over.

Brynn Jones - My best and oldest friend... I guess both in time we’ve been friends and your age hahaha. Thank you so much for helping me grow as a human, letting me crash at your place when I needed to get away, and for talking a drunken me out of calling the ambulance because I thought I was puking up blood that one time but it turned out to just be Pink. May this adventure lead to many more down the road!

There’s probably so many people I have forgotten, I really should have kept a list on hand and updated it. If I missed you or forgot a valuable contribution, please please please let me know so that I may add it here. I appreciate everything everyone has done to help get me here, and hopefully this blog can at least give you a bit of a laugh.

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andrewdburton · 4 years

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My travel and speaking schedule for 2020

It's that time of year! I've been sorting through speaking invitations and comparing event schedules to my personal plans. I now have a rough idea of where I'll be in 2020 — and when. (As I finalize details, I'll update this post to reflect any changes.)

This year, I'll be traveling much less than last.

In 2019, I was away from home something like 3-1/2 months out of twelve. That was too much. In 2020, I'm deliberately saying “no” to opportunities. Still, I enjoy meeting and connecting with other folks who want to improve their lives — and the lives of others. So, I've agreed to a handful of engagements.

Here are the highlights from my “money event” calendar for the next few months.

“Intro to FIRE” Project (March 31st)

Before I do any travel, I have to do some work.

At the moment, most of my energy and attention is devoted to a five-hour audio-only project that I'm writing for Audible and The Great Courses. They've recruited me to create an introduction to financial independence and early retirement. It'll contain ten half-hour lessons on topics ranging from purpose to profit.

My first deadline for this project was January 31st. I turned in half of the course (which totaled about 20,000 words) and am awaiting feedback. The final five lectures are due by March 31st. My aim is to finish these by March 25th, my birthday. (I'd love to have more review time for editing and other improvements.)

In early May, after a speaking gig in St. Louis, I'll fly to Virginia to record the course. I'm not sure when it'll be released, but I'll be sure to keep you updated.

Plutus Voices: Portland (April 16th)

Get Rich Slowly turns fourteen on April 15th. To celebrate, I'll be hosting a Plutus Voices event here in portland.

The Plutus Foundation is a financial-literacy non-profit for which I am a board member. Plutus Voices is “a series of learning and networking events for the financial media bringing attention to important topics”. The Phoenix event, for instance, discussed meeting the financial needs of underserved communities. In Denver, we discussed financial independence and women.

On April 16th (or perhaps the 15th), Luna Jaffe and I will co-host a Portland event during which we'll explore our changing relationships with money. We may or may not be joined by our pal, Dougls Tsoi.

We're in the initial planning stages for Plutus Voices: Portland. I'll post more info (such as time and location) when I have it.

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Financial Freedom Summit: St. Louis (May 1st to 3rd)

In early May, I'll fly to St. Louis for the first-ever Financial Freedom Summit. This event is “for anyone interested in pursuing financial freedom”, whether you're just starting you're journey toward F.I. or you've already reached early retirement.

Because this is the first FFS, I can't comment on what it'll be like. I have no idea. But it's being organized by some smart folks, so I'm hopeful that it will grow into an annual mecca for money nerds. I've agreed to speak in some limited capacity — possibly an on-stage Q&A about life after early retirement — but mostly I'm looking forward to hang out with readers and colleagues.

Camp Mustache: Seattle (May 22nd to 25th)

Several years ago, a group of Mr. Money Mustache readers got together at a retreat center outside Seattle over the long Memorial Day weekend. They've repeated this gathering every year since. This year, Camp Mustache tickets sold out in twenty seconds.

Camp Mustache is fun for a variety of reasons. It's low-key. It's egalitarian (meaning there are no “speakers” per se; anyone can present). And it's a place for like-minded folks to share their stories of extreme frugality and travel hacking. For me, it's an opportunity to spend time with people that I don't get to see as often as I'd like.

Chautauqua: Ecuador (August 29th to September 5th)

My big event for the year will be yet another money chautauqua.

In 2013, J.L. Collins from The Simple Path to Wealth partnered with Cheryl Reed to host the first-ever F.I. chautauqua, a week-long retreat for like-minded folks to discuss the path to financial freedom — and what comes after.

That year, I spoke for the first time about about the connection between money and meaning. Since then, I've returned to give the same presentation in 2014, 2016, and 2019. I'll do it again in 2020.

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Out of all the money events I'm a part of, the chautauquas (chautauquae?) are my favorite. They're intense. For an entire week, a group of twenty or thirty people spend nearly every waking moment together to talk about money. Each speaker gives a two- or three-hour presentation. Plus, we have hour-long meetings with interested attendees.

Today, there are two different chautauqua events.

The official J.L. Collins chautauqua hops around Europe. In 2018, it was held in Greece. Last year, we met in Portugal. This year, folks will fly to Croatia. From my experience, this event is targeted at folks who are “fatFIRE”, those who tend to have higher net worths and higher spending. It's deliberately designed as a “premium event”. Dates and speakers for this year's European F.I. chautauqua aren't out yet, but should be announced soon.

The Ecuador chautauqua tends to have a different focus. It's more geared toward the “leanFIRE” crowd. Presentations are often about the Big Picture rather than simply about wealth-building. And some years are barely about money at all. (In 2016, I hosted a week with Leo from Zen Habits and David from Raptitude. Not really a money event!)

For this year's Ecuador chautauqua, I'll once again be speaking about money and meaning. (This is my life mission, after all!) Right now, it looks like I may also cover the nuts and bolts of FIRE — the basics — but that's not certain yet. And, as always, Cheryl will present on happiness and well-being.

I'm excited to be joined by some of my favorite colleagues:

Piggy and Kitty from Bitches Get Riches, which is one of my favorite money blogs. (I love it so much that I send them money every month via Patreon.) The Bitches think they'll be speaking about “how to lift as you climb”. What should you do with your financial independence? Share the wealth, contribute to the success of others, and use your newfound power and autonomy to help others achieve the same.

Tanja Hester from Our Next Life. I just had dinner with Tanja and Mark last Saturday. She told me that she hopes to talk about using money for good, toward purposeful ends. But she'll probably cover more about life after FI rather than the journey itself.

Want to join us? You should book a spot for the Ecuador chautauqua today!

Note that Tanja will host another week in Ecuador. That event — from August 22nd to August 29th — is only for women.

Fincon: Los Angeles (September 30th to October 3rd)

No surprise that I'll be at this year's Fincon Expo, the annual convention for money media — not just bloggers, but newspaper columnists, television journalists, and more. This year, to celebrate its tenth year, Fincon will be held in Los Angeles. (Long Beach, to be precise.)

At this point, I have no plans to speak at Fincon, but that will probably change. I'm sure I'll end up on a panel, or moderating a panel, or participating in some other way. The Fincon folks have become my family. I love them. (And, in fact, I'm writing this while on a week-long ski trip with 25 other Finconners!)

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Other Possibilities

It's possible that I'll add other travel and/or speaking to my year, but it's unlikely. If I do anything else, it'll probably be to fly to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin to help remodel the caboose commune.

A few folks in the FI blogging crowd have begun to buy adjacent units from an old caboose hotel. The group currently owns three cabeese, and may soon add a fourth. Two of the cabeese need hard-core renovations, so we're hoping to get together for a work party. But whether I can join the fun is currently up in the air.

I may also be able to make it to one of the Camp FI retreats held across the U.S. I love these gatherings, but it's getting more and more difficult to justify the expense of traveling to them. If I can make it fit with other travel, I'm glad to go. (Camp FI is an outgrowth of Camp Mustache. It's generally held on holiday weekends at retreat centers around the U.S.)

Lastly, there's a small chance that I'll return to Europe this winter to re-visit the Christmas markets. My cousin Duane continues to defy the odds and beat his throat cancer (yay!). He's hinted that he'd like to repeat our trip from December 2018. I would too, and maybe Kim could join us this time. We'll see. I'm guessing that we'll start serious planning for this in October if it still seems appealing.

As always, I'm happy to meet with GRS readers when they find themselves in Portland — especially if they're able to come my direction. Now that I have office space in Lake Oswego, that makes a perfect meeting space. Let me know if you come to town! We can meet up for beer or coffee — or a dog walk.

The post My travel and speaking schedule for 2020 appeared first on Get Rich Slowly.

from Finance https://www.getrichslowly.org/my-travel-and-speaking-schedule/ via http://www.rssmix.com/

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allthingsjaneausten · 5 years

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Once upon a time, Pride and Prejudice was only set in England. 200 years later it is set pretty much everywhere. What could be special about this version (besides its very exotic location)? Well, I bring you the author herself to talk about her and her book. Dear readers,

This blog tagline is “Ramblings of a Jane Austen Addict” because that is all I claim to be. I am not a critic or even a reader that likes to write reviews (even though everyone should write a review on Amazon and/or Goodreads so other readers can find more amazing reads). What I really love is sharing and connecting like-minded people, even or maybe especially, if they live in different countries. That gives me a sense of accomplishment and the feeling that I can someday travel to those destinations. I would never imagine that Jane Austen would make me travel so far (literally and figuratively speaking), sometimes even without leaving my cozy couch. But she sure did. I have made many friends all over the world and met some in person already, thanks to the internet highway and the universal love for Jane, her novels and her beloved characters. Even the ones we love to hate! LOL!

This preamble is just to explain why I invited Soniah Kamal to stop by my blog and answer some questions instead of rambling on and bore everyone like Lady Catherine sitting on her “throne”. If you want a thorough review just follow the link below where Ilana Masad does a great job for npr.org book reviews (National Public Radio).

NPR Book Review

Q & A with Soniah Kamal

Tell us a little bit about yourself.

I was born in Karachi Pakistan, a city I have never lived in. At six months of age, my family moved to England where, I’m told, i guzzled down my first full bottle of milk. At nine years of age, we moved to Saudi Arabia where I attended an International School with a library which would make all the difference in my life. At sixteen, back to Pakistan for five years of patriarchal delight, but where I also first read Pride and Prejudice and decided that one day, if i could, i was going to reset the novel in Pakistan. A few years on, I attended college in the U.S., met a lovely man my final year, proposed to him, we married, and two decades later we are still here.

How was your first encounter with Jane? Was it a movie or a book?

When I was fourteen, My Aunt Helen gave me a gorgeous red and gold hardback copy of Pride and Prejudice (1977 edition, Purcell) with ‘color plate’ illustrations. It’s sits in my bookshelf to this day, surrounded by Austen’s works and books on her.

What’s your favorite novel? If it p&p what is your second?

Mansfield Park! It is Austen’s grimmest as she completely shreds all notions of functional families. Mrs. Norris may be a good Aunt to Maria Bertram but she is despicable to Fanny— so will the real Mrs. Norris please stand up? Also, though many readers find Fanny insipid, I think she’s a very brave and headstrong girl. She spurns Henry Crawford’s proposal and does not allow even the imposing Sir Thomas Bertram to dissuade her. The opening sentence of Unmarriageable is a nod to Mansfield Park. In fact, Unmarriageable contains nods to all six of Austen’s completed novels.

Darcy forever or you have another favorite hero?

Mr. Knightley. I respect him for not letting Emma get away with being rude to Ms. Bates, his friendship with Robert Martin, his kindness to Harriet by asking her to dance, his general decency. I’m not really a huge Darcy fan, though polluting the shades of Pemberley is very tempting.

How did you have the idea for Unmarriageable?

The moment I finished reading Pride and Prejudice for the first time at age sixteen, I knew I wanted to set it in Pakistan. I didn’t know then that what I was thinking of doing was called a parallel retelling (or that there were also variations and continuations). I was schooled in English in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia and the books I grew up on were novels by Enid Blyton, Judy Blume, S.E.Hinton etc. I wanted to read something where my own culture was reflected. However there were no stories set in Pakistan in English for kids that I was aware of and so it became second nature for me to convert what I was reading into ‘Pakistan’. So scones became samosas, ginger beer became mango juice, and boarding schools like Blyton’s St. Clares or Malory Towers relocated to the Murree Hills. Thus reading Pride and Prejudice and wanting to reset it in Pakistan was quite normal for me. I made myriad attempts over the years to write it but kept getting intimidated until, finally, I wrote the entire novel in a two month frenzy.

Colin or Matthew as Darcy? Colin Firth every single day forever and ever and ever.

Favorite adaptation, 1995 or 2005? 1995. It is sheer perfection— Mr. Collins’s creepy wave, Lady Catherine de Bourgh’s beaky nose, Mrs. Reynold’s no nonsense adoration of a young Darcy; there is not a single thing I wish were different except that would it have been double the time. I am, however, waiting to see if any remake, as enjoyable as they may be, can ever top 1995.

Tell us what your book is about. A story about five sisters, their friends, frenemies and enemies and too many marriage obsessed mothers, set in contemporary Pakistan where drinking chai seems the national pass time and eating good food a full fledged sport.

What’s the coolest thing that has happened to you since you started this Austen adventure?

Without a doubt narrating Unmarriageable for the audio version (sample). It will be, by far, one of the highlights of my life! When the audio rights first sold, I refused. Then, a year and a half later, Linda Korn, the executive producer at Penguin Random House Audio, asked me. She’d listened to my TEDx talk about being forbidden to pursue acting and my regrets at not rebelling, and she said that narrating the novel would be like coming full circle: acting and writing. I really appreciated this connection and decided to give it a go.

Soniah Kamal’s debut novel, An Isolated Incident, was a finalist for the Townsend Prize for Fiction and the Karachi Literature Festival-Embassy of France Prize. Her TEDx Talk is about regrets and second chances. Unmarriageable is her new book by Ballantine Books , an imprint by Random House, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York.

www.soniahkamal.com

Soniah on Twitter

GIVEAWAY

One hard copy of Unmarriageable by Soniah Kamal – USA addresses only

Please leave a comment at the end of this post to say why you want to win Unmarriageable.

Share this post on social media (and let us know where)

Send an e-mail to [email protected] so we can get in touch if you are the winner*

*ONLY THOSE WHO SEND AN E-MAIL WILL BE PARTICIPATING THE GIVEAWAY!

I would like to thank Soniah Kamal for her time and candid answers. It is such a pleasure and an honor having her here in my blog.

If you have not clicked on the TEDx Talk link above check out Soniah’s talk at Georgia State University below and learn more about her amazing journey.

youtube

Gook luck and best regards,

Yours,

Rita L. Watts

Unmarriageable by Soniah Kamal (GIVEAWAY) Once upon a time, Pride and Prejudice was only set in England. 200 years later it is set pretty much everywhere.

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themoneybuff-blog · 5 years

Text

Five lessons I learned while making a documentary film about FIRE

When J.D. decided to spend three weeks in Europe with his family, he asked a few people if they'd be interested in contributing articles during his absence. He even asked me! My name is Scott Rieckens, and I'm new to the world of smart money management. I'm new to the world of financial independence and early retirement. I'm new, but I've totally immersed myself in it. I've immersed myself so much, in fact, that I've spent the past eighteen months creating a feature film about FIRE. (FIRE is the clumsy abbreviation for financial independence/retire early. Basically, the FIRE movement is all about saving big so that you can choose to live however you want.) You've been in a unique position over the past year, J.D. said when I asked him what I should write about. You've had amazing access to a variety of people who think and write and teach about financial independence and early retirement. You've been able to hear what they think and say in private as well as public. What about sharing your biggest takeaways from this experience? Perfect! I can dish out everyone's dirty laundry and avoid posting those embarrassing stories on my own site. I'ts a win-win for me, really. J.D. is such a sucker. You ready? Let's go behind the scenes of the early retirement movement. Here are five things I learned while filming Playing with Fire. [embedded content] Lesson #1: The FIRE Movement Is Polarizing When I started down the rabbit hole of early retirement blogs and podcasts, I was swept up in the euphoria that many others have experienced: Holy moley, I'm going to retire in less than ten years! Coming from fifteen years of a spendy, financially-illiterate lifestyle, this was a huge revelation that gave me hope, joy, excitement, andbutterflies. Imagine the control over your life! Imagine the freedom! Think of all the ideas I will chase, the whims I can explore! Think of what this means for my family! Somehow, though, I missed the blog post or podcast episode that explained just how difficult it can be to live within the FIRE framework while the people around you wonder what the hell you're talking about. But I like my job.That sort of lifestyle sounds terrible.Are you joining a cult? These reactions dampened my enthusiasm. Nobody had warned me that there might be people who thought we were crazy for pursuing financial freedom. Now, as FIRE is spreading through the mass media, there's been push-back from unexpected corners. Financial guru Suze Orman says she hates the FIRE movement. The comments on articles and interviews around the web are often negative even hateful. I wasn't expecting that. How can something so positive be viewed with so much negativity? Since starting our project, the number-one thing we hear from early retirement folks is: I really hope this film makes it easier to share FIRE with my friends and family. Every time it comes up, things get weird and my already-socially-anxious-self gets all clammy. I can say unequivocally that we have the same hopes. Our society's relationship with money seems completely broken. When the best-selling vehicles are full-sized $60,000 trucks, yet 70% of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck, it seems the general population is managing money at a fifth-grade level. (And again, that used to be me before I found FIRE.) We've got a lot of work ahead of us.

Lesson #2: The FIRE Movement Is Here to Stay As part of this project, my wife (Taylor) and I had a chance to share an afternoon with Vicki Robin, author of Your Money or Your Life, the 1992 classic that has inspired many Get Rich Slowly readers. We were beside ourselves with excitement. We first heard about Vicki Robin on the Mad Fientist podcast, where Brandon introduced her as one of the founders of the Financial Independence movement.Like J.D., Vicki wants people to devote themselves to their own potential and to a finding a purpose greater than chasing things. I assumed that she would be well-versed in all things FIRE. Instead, I learned that she had only recently discovered the newfound resurgence of interest in her previous life's work. So when we met with her, she was still assessing her place in all this, and whether she had the energy or desire to jump back in. She had aspired to use the concept of financial independence as a means to halt rampant consumerism and, in turn, improve our relationship with the environment, our community, and ourselves. Clearly, despite her decades of work, those goals hadn't come to fruition. Throughout the day, Taylor and I had been talking about the FIRE movement. But Robin challenged our assumptions. She reminded us that a movement is defined as a group of people working together to advance their shared political, social, or artistic ideas. Robin wasn't convinced that anyone was really working together in the financial independence community, or that real change had taken place. Instead, she believed we have a collection of bloggers (and other media figures) indirectly competing against each other for views, clicks, and subscribers. There existed little coordination just a handful of loosely organized events with major paywalls and/or a small number of tickets available. Since our conversation, however, the winds of change have blown in. People are starting to coordinate. FIRE is growing up, gaining popularity, and those in the lead are starting to work together. Look no further than the united response to Suze Orman's wildly condescending and inaccurate rant on Paula Pant's Afford Anything podcast.Look at our own project, the Playing with Fire documentary. We've enjoyed participation from everyone we've asked within the FIRE community (including Vicki, who has updated YMOYL and spent time and energy contributing to the community).Look at Tanja Hester's CentsPositive retreat for women.Look at the CampFI retreats held all over the country. Or the ChooseFI Facebook Page that continues to flourish. Or the FI subreddit, which has nearly half a million subscribers. That's just the tip of the iceberg. J.D. bought back Get Rich Slowly and continues to drop knowledge bombs. Mr. Money Mustache's keynote talks remind us that we all have the power to be rich, happy, and change the world. And J.L. Collins' talk at Google regarding the simple path to wealth is more popular than Oprah's talk at Google. (By a factor of ten!) I believe that this is just the beginning. The internet age presents an opportunity to easily organize, inspire, educate, and stick. When Vicki Robin first appeared on Oprah, millions of people watched. But Oprah didn't have a YouTube channel. And daily talk shows didn't broadcast re-runs. Robin enjoyed a brief burst of interest from that appearance, but she had to continue working to get coverage. She estimates she's conducted over 2,000 interviews in her lifetime. That's a mountain of work to get her message across! Fortunately, we've learned her effort wasn't in vain. She was just ahead of her time. Lesson #3: The FIRE Movement Embraces an Abundance Mindset When I set out to raise money to make Playing with Fire, I had one nagging worry. How was I going to get a bunch of frugal people to cough up their hard-earned, hard-saved dinero to support a film that covered the mechanics that they are already so well-versed in? Funny enough, the team at Kickstarter felt the same way. Below is a response I received from them hours before I hit the launch button to our now wildly-successful Kickstarter campaign. I'm excited to see how you get along and how in hell you manage to get FIRE fanatics to unnecessarily give away their hard-earned, hard-protected cash. But watching the trailer I looked at my colleague and said: I want to see this film. So hopefully that's everyone's response and bingo, film funded. My heart and the Kickstarter team's hearts were in the right place. We were half kidding, but seriously curious. Would this work? Does frugal equal cheap? Nope. Turns out that frugal is not the same as cheap. In fact, from my perspective, it seems like frugality facilitates excessive generosity. Brad Barrett from ChooseFI considers himself a valuist, he ensures whatever he accumulates or devotes his time to will bring him value. So we consider the overwhelming success of the Kickstarter as a sign that this community values the work we are doing, and the stories and perspectives we aim to share. An obvious observation in hindsight! It costs money to make movies, but money is merely a tool. Time is the ultimate non-renewable resource.And when I first kicked off this project, my inbox was inundated with offers of time, expertise, places to stay, stories, etc. to support this film. I've welled up with tears more than once over the past few months, overcome with emotion as the generosity continues to pour in. The FIRE community has been sharing their most precious resource time since day one. Imagine the impact the community could have if all this generosity were organized with greater clarity and intention! J.D.'s Note: Over the past couple of years, I've noticed the same thing: The FIRE community has an amazing abundance mindset. The folks I meet are the most generous, sharing people I've ever met. It's mind-boggling, actually, how much people are willing to give and without the expectation of any sort of return. Lesson #4: Once You See the FIRE Framework, You Can't Unsee It I used to feel bad about myself. When it came to investing acumen, and general understanding of personal finances, I was lost. It was so bad, that I'd sweep anything financial under the proverbial rug. Luckily, my parents were raised frugal and instilled the fear of debt into me at an early age. I respected debt and stayed away from the most egregious debt mistakes one can make. But, like so many, I had the idea that financial skill was something complex, something beyond my ability to understand. I excused myself from the task altogether. Boy, did that cost me! If Taylor and I had known what we knownow when we graduated from high school, we'd be retired today. Once we got past the sunk-cost fallacy, we picked ourselves up by the britches and realized something fairly profound. The secret to financial success is simple: Spend less than you earn and invest the rest. Duh. Although this fundamental financial truth is obvious to me now, I'd been blind to it before. But once you see it, you can't un-see it. It's not as complex as I had once believed, and with a changed belief system in place, new possibilities were born. Taylor and I have started looking for other aspects of our life where we can apply this lesson. What other seemingly complex issues do we avoid in our daily lives? Are there simple solutions to these problems that have perhaps been overlooked? We've found that taking the emotion out of our arguments is easier if we think about conflict resolution more simply. Assume your partner isn't out to get you. Give them the benefit of the doubt. Less conflict ensues! How simple?! [J.D.'s note: Preach! This is one of my personal mantras: Always give the other person the benefit of the doubt.] The more we crush complexity, the more we can simplify and enjoy our lives. Lesson #5: Get Rich Slowly HQ Is Pretty Darn Cool Okay, this final lesson isn't really about FIRE. It's more meant for long-time Get Rich Slowly fans who want a glimpse behind the scenes at GRS HQ. The Playing with Fire crew visited J.D. and Kim last February on a typical gloomy Portland morning. Grey skies and misty rain set the tone as we drove over gravel roads and beautiful rolling hills, the perfect kind of day to sink into your couch and read a good book. We were greeted by warm smiles and open doors, and a few friendly-looking but apparently murderous animals who all share a roof. [J.D.'s note: It's true. Our three cats and one dog make up a murderous crew that wreaks havoc on the local rodent population.] First, we drank coffee and shot a scene in Kim and J.D.'s living room. Here, J.D. and I are both taking photos of the same scene from opposite sides of the room:

After we cut, the crew tore down to reset for a sit-down interview with JD in his office, the shed that serves as Get Rich Slowly world headquarters. Apparently, this peach-colored shedquarters is built from cocktails and dreams. It contains J.D.'s collection of books, comics, and personal-finance paraphernalia from thirteen years of writing about money. It also contains several bottles of whisky. Most of all, the shedquarters reflects J.D.'s love for learning, collecting, and enjoying. For me, it was a literal FIRE library mecca. Thrift: A Cylcopedia first caught my eye, but then I was distracted by an old copy of Your Money or Your Life. Then a stack of books about the history of retirement. Then a collection of Malcolm Gladwell hardbacks. Then a well-worn copy of J.D.'s own Your Money: The Missing Manual. [J.D.'s note: True story. I refer to my own book all of the time. Although it's gradually growing outdated, it's my most-used reference book.]

If I'd had my way, I would have brought a six-pack of pale ale and spent the rest of the afternoon soaking up knowledge and J.D. vibes. But alas, we had to head to another shoot on the schedule. Perhaps Taylor and I will make a pilgrimage back to J.D.'s FIRE library sometime next year once our lives have settled down. Final Thoughts These are just a few of the many life lessons I've learned on this journey over the past two years. But I just realized that I didn't indulge in the promised FIRE gossip! That's because there isn't any. These folks are a bunch of nerds. They're money nerds, just like you. Sure, when they're together, they talk about frugality. They give each other tips on shopping for quality clothes at thrift stores. They discuss what they'd do with a $100,000 windfall. They dream about which new car to buy while they continue to drive twenty-year-old Hondas. They practice house hacking and building Roth IRA conversion ladders. They argue about whether a SEP or Solo 401(k) is best. They debate whether it's better to rent or buy your home. But they are also traveling across the country (and the world) to meet up and chat. They talk philosophy, the latest side hustle they've embarked on. They enjoy delicious meals at fancy restaurants (when I'm paying) and they drink an awful lot of beer and wine. They go for epic hikes and take long dips in ice cold water according to the methods of Wim Hof. The people I've met while working on this project are supportive, generous, and delightful souls, trying to squeeze the most out of this one wild and precious life. They've figured out that spending time playing board games with your friends and family is far more beneficial than preparing for tomorrow's board meeting. And they cook up plans to create their own FIRE-centric cities. Basically, they are the most interesting damn people I've ever met. Now, I find I'm part of this cult. If you're not careful, you'll get sucked in too. For my money, drinking the FIRE-flavored kool-aid has never been more appealing.

Author: Scott Rieckens Scott Rieckens is an Emmy-nominated film/video producer, serial entrepreneur, and author. Scott has spent his career as a storyteller connecting people with ideas. Along the way, Scott's work has generated millions of views through a feature-length documentary, multiple televisions series, short films, and a diverse range of commercial projects. Now, Scott has created Playing with FIRE, which explores the growing community of frugal-minded folks choosing a path to financial independence and early retirement. https://www.getrichslowly.org/making-fire-documentary/

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writerinthedarkabyss · 6 years

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all the 'lets get personal' qs plz?!

Did you mean this post? If so, well damn alright people, buckle up.

1: 6 of the songs you listen to most?

This changes every week but right now on my phone it says, 1)If I Had A Million by Fink 2)Drive by Oh Wonder 3)In The Air Tonight by Phil Collins 4)Rollercoaster by The Bleachers 5)P.I.M.P by 50 Cent 6)Falling by Opia

2: If you could meet anyone on this earth, who would it be?

My Great Grandmother on my mom/s side. I’ve heard so much about her and I always wanted to meet her.

3: Grab the book nearest to you, turn to page 23, give meline 17.

It may or may not be my Phonetics textbook. “Fricatives are sounds made with a small opening, allowing the air to escape...”

4: What do you think about most?

In all honesty, lately I’ve been thinking about my decisions and if I’m doing things in a way that’s going to help me in the future or am I just wasting my life and time.

5: What does your latest text message from someone else say?

“Depends you got the answer to a good stress relief, or to my anthropology homework?”

6: Do you sleep with or without clothes on?

Most of the time, I sleep with them on.

7: What’s your strangest talent?

I don’t know if this counts but I can put both legs behind my head without struggling.

8: Girls… (finish the sentence); Boys… (finish the sentence)

Girls rule, boys drool. No just kidding.

9: Ever had a poem or song written about you?

Not that I know of, although I’ve written poems and sons about people.

10: When is the last time you played the air guitar?

A couple of days ago, I think?

11: Do you have any strange phobias?

Nope, just your average, everyday ones.

12: Ever stuck a foreign object up your nose?

Uhh, no.

13: What’s your religion?

I’m an Atheist.

14: If you are outside, what are you most likely doing?

Trying to get back inside. No, uhm, probably reading or writing.

15: Do you prefer to be behind the camera or in front of it?

Behind the camera usually,

16: Simple but extremely complex. Favorite band?

Oh god, there’s too many and they change all the time. But for right now Fink, The 1975, Bleachers, Blink 182, Oh Wonder.

17: What was the last lie you told?

This Wednesday, I might have told my mom that class was cancelled but I really didn’t want to go to that class.

18: Do you believe in karma?

Yes, I do.

19: What does your URL mean?

I do a lot of my best writing at night, and “writerinthedark” was already taken. Also my header is from one of my ultime favorite and underrated shows called Farscape. It was something said to the one of the main characters in the show and it holds so much meaning.

20: What is your greatest weakness; your greatest strength?

21: Who is your celebrity crush?

Uhm, I might be jumping on the bandwagon Noah Centineo. But honestly he’s been my crush long before TATBILB. He was my MCM since The Fosters.

22: Have you ever gone skinny dipping?

Haha nope.

23: How do you vent your anger?

I usually write it out. Either in the form of literal venting or a story/poem.

24: Do you have a collection of anything?

I have a collection of pennies since Canada no longer uses them. I also have about fifteen candles and 150 books, if that counts as a collection?

25: Do you prefer talking on the phone or video chattingonline?

Video chatting my friends 100%

26: Are you happy with the person you’ve become?

Most days, I like who I am now.

27: What’s a sound you hate; sound you love?

Nails on a chalkboard and crunching snow are awful. I love the sound of crackling fire and rain.

28: What’s your biggest “what if”?

What if that thing when I was 6 didn’t happen.

29: Do you believe in ghosts? How about aliens?

Yep, ghosts have to be real. Too big of a global phenomenon for them to not exist. The same sot of thing with Aliens. While I don’ believe that they’re little green men. Do you know how big the entire universe is? I find it very difficult to believe that we are the only planet it the entire universe that holds intelligent lifeforms

30: Stick your right arm out; what do you touch first? Dothe same with your left arm.

My right arm I‘m touching one of my candles and in my left arm I’m touching my soft body pillow.

31: Smell the air. What do you smell?

Black cherry incense stick that I lit earlier.

32: What’s the worst place you have ever been to?

The depths of my mind at three am during a panic attack.

33: Choose: East Coast or West Coast?

I’m an East Coast girl.

34: Most attractive singer of your opposite gender?

Uhm, I’m drawing a blank right now.

35: To you, what is the meaning of life?

To be happy and leave it in better shape than you found it.

36: Define Art.

Ahh, getting flashbacks to my Philosophy of Art class. To me, art is anything that someone creates with either and emotional or political message behind it.

37: Do you believe in luck?

Yes

38: What’s the weather like right now?

It’s finally autumn my favorite season which means it’s raining and cool enough for a sweater right now.

39: What time is it?

It is currently 11:47pm.

40: Do you drive? If so, have you ever crashed?

I don’t drive yet.

41: What was the last book you read?

For pleasure, I reread “Foxfire: Confessions of a Girl Gang in the 1950′s” by Carol Joyce Oates, which is one of my all time favorite books. But the actual last book I read was Chapter 4 of “The Sounds of Language: An Introduction to Phonetics” for my Phonetics class.

42: Do you like the smell of gasoline?

Nope, I hate it. Although my mother ans brother like it a lot.

43: Do you have any nicknames?

Cat, Katie, kitty, freak, KitKat

44: What was the last film you saw?

If we’re talking at home, than it was “Serenity”. If we’re talking movie theaters than it was “Little Italy”.

45: What’s the worst injury you’ve ever had?

I don’t seriously injure myself a lot, I mostly get bruised and little cuts but there was once when I sprained three ligaments in my knee and was on a cane (because I’m a klutz and fell on the crutches they gave me) for three weeks.

46: Have you ever caught a butterfly?

No, I don’t think so.

47: Do you have any obsessions right now?

Not that I can think of.

48: What’s your sexual orientation?

I’m cis and straight.

49: Ever had a rumour spread about you?

Yep, quite a lot actually.

50: Do you believe in magic?

Hell yeah.

51: Do you tend to hold grudges against people who have doneyou wrong?

For the most part no. Life is too short for that shit.

52: What is your astrological sign?

I am the first day of Virgo.

53: Do you save money or spend it?

I try to save it but I usually spend it,

54: What’s the last thing you purchased?

Prime example, I just bought my mom and I matching cat pajamas.

55: Love or lust?

Love.

56: In a relationship?

Actually yeah, two months today.

57: How many relationships have you had?

Okay, if we’re talking “relationships” like “something more than friends” then 6.If we’re talking actual relationships 3.

58: Can you touch your nose with your tongue?

Nope, I have a really short tongue,

59: Where were you yesterday?

Downtown at school, my boyfriends, my house.

60: Is there anything pink within 10 feet of you?

Yep, there’s quite a few pink items in my room.

61: Are you wearing socks right now?

Yep, it’s a little chilly

62: What’s your favourite animal?

Kittens :)

63: What is your secret weapon to get someone to like you?

Use any insecurity that I mention to you in confidence and it will ruin me.

64: Where is your best friend?

All the way across the country for the next four months. :( She’s visiting her boyfriend but I miss her.

65: Give me your top 5 favourite blogs on Tumblr

I can’t, there’s too many.

66: What is your heritage?

I am British and Quebecois.

67: What were you doing last night at 12AM?

Watching reruns of “White Collar” with my boyfriend of the couch.

68: What do you think is Satan’s last name?

He has too many.

69: Biggest turn ons?

Back muscles, being engaged and interested in conversations, making me laugh, knowing that I’m someone you want to spend your time with.

70: Are you the kind of friend you would want to have as afriend?

I think so. I always try to treat and act towards others the way I’d want to be treated,

71: You are walking down the street on your way to work.There is a dog drowning in the canal on the side of the street. Your boss hastold you if you are late one more time you get fired. What do you do?

I get fired. Puppy is way more important to me.

72: You are at the doctor’s office and she has just informedyou that you have approximately one month to live. a) Do you tellanyone/everyone you are going to die? b) What do you do with your remainingdays? c) Would you be afraid?

I wouldn’t tell anyone right away. Maybe a week before I’d let other know what’s happening so they could have time to process. I would do as many things on my bucket list as I could. But mostly I’d try and spend as much time I have left with the people I love. I would absolutely be afraid. I spent a little while not wanting to live. Now though, now I don’t want to die, I still have so much I want to do.

73: You can only have one of these things; trust or love.

Love, I believe that if you love someone and they love you, trust is already in the equation.

74: What’s a song that always makes you happy when you hearit?

2000′s throwbacks are my go to happy songs because they just make me want to move and sing along.

75: What are the last four digits in your cell phone number?

0024

76: In your opinion, what makes a great relationship?

Trust, honesty, friendship. Being able to make the other person laugh and making them feel and feeling as though you want to spend your time with them.

77: How can I win your heart?

By listening to me and sharing your stupid or deep or random thoughts. Make me feel like I’m important to you and that I make you happy and you’re interested in all parts of my life, not just the good things.

78: Can insanity bring on more creativity?

Honestly, I feel the most creative when I am holding on to a powerful emotion. I don’t know about insanity, although I can see why people would think that. You’d let go of your inner critic and self doubt in yourself or your work and just create.

79: What is the single best decision you have made in yourlife so far?

Staying alive.

80: What size shoes do you wear?

I’m a size 8 in shoes.

81: What would you want to be written on your tombstone?

Ya dumb bitch I honestly don’t know.

82: What is your favourite word?

For some reason all I can think of is pumpernickel.

83: Give me the first thing that comes to mind when you hearthe word; heart.

Soul.

84: What is a saying you say a lot?

“Fuck a duck” thanks mom.

85: What’s the last song you listened to?

Promise by Ben Howard just finished playing.

86: Basic question; what’s your favourite colour/colours?

Royal purple and dark blue,

87: What is your current desktop picture?

A picture of my dream book room.

88: If you could press a button and make anyone in the worldinstantaneously explode, who would it be?

I can only pick one person??

89: What would be a question you’d be afraid to tell thetruth on?

The secret I’ve never said to anyone.

90: Turn offs?

Being unhygienic, talking down to others, arrogance

91: You accidentally eat some radioactive vegetables. Theywere good, and what’s even cooler is that they endow you with the super-powerof your choice! What is that power?

Either telepathy or invisibility.

92: where are your parents from?

My father is from Quebec and my mother is from England.

93: You can erase any horrible experience from your past.What will it be?

The thing that still makes me uncomfortable.

94: You have the opportunity to sleep with themusic-celebrity of your choice. Who would it be?

Wow, I really don’t know.

95: You just got a free plane ticket to anywhere. You haveto depart right now. Where are you gonna go?

At the moment, I’d pay for another ticket and go to Kelowna with my mom so she can finally go back there,

96: Do you have any relatives in jail?

Not that I know of.

97: Have you ever thrown up in the car?

Yep, it was not one of my proudest or best moments.

98: Ever been on a plane?

Once, when I was very little.

99: If the whole world were listening to you right now, whatwould you say.

I’d quote the Doctor, “Never be cruel, never be cowardly... Remember hate is always foolish, love is always wise. Always try to be nice but never fail to be kind.”

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valeriebielbooks · 7 years

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June Writers’ Forum

In my journey through the steps of independent publishing, refining my writing skills, and most recently completing a successful agent search, I’ve come across some excellent information, tips, tools, and shortcuts that I think would be beneficial to any writer. Once a month, I’ll share the “best of” information and news from the publishing industry as well as feature other authors and writing instructors with tips to share. I am incredibly thankful for the assistance and advice given to me from writing and publishing professionals and am happy pay that forward. On a professional level, I also use my publicity and editorial skills to aid other authors through my company Lost Lake Press.

Book Events

Oh, there are some fabulous bookish happenings in southern Wisconsin in July!

July 12 – Adriana Trigiani at 7 pm at the Sharon Lynne Wilson Center for the Arts, 19805 West Capitol Drive, Brookfield, WI

Here's the link for more information and to get tickets. This event is brought to you through a literary collaboration by Books & Company in Oconomowoc, Boswell Books in Milwaukee, and the Sharon Lynne Wilson Center for the Arts. (If you haven’t read Trigiani’s best-selling books, you’re missing out. She’s a fabulous writer.)

At a Room of One’s Own in Madison

July 21 at 7 pm – Paul Selig, Author of The Book of Truth. He is considered one of the foremost spiritual channels in the world today and his acclaimed books including I Am the Word and The Book of Mastery teach a clear & practical prescription for personal growth. Deepak Chopra recently described Paul's teachings as "authentic, straightforward truth, straight from the sourcefield."

July 24 at 6 pm – Jim Taranto, Author of Ars Botanica, will read and discuss his book of grief and love, written as letters to his unborn child.

Mystery to Me Bookstore in Madison has a July schedule packed with fabulous events.

July 1 & 2 - Marcie Colleen (Super Happy Bears picture book author) will be at the Monona Terrace.

July 8 – More kids’ fun with Claymates by Lauren Eldridge.

July 13 – Doug Moe interviews Dave Watson about his book Walkabout Undone

July 15 – Dean Robbins will read from his novel Margaret and the Moon which celebrates Margaret Hamilton’s contribution to the NASA space program.

July 15 – 8 pm – Ticketed event at the Barrymore Theater featuring comedian Tig Notaro as she discusses her novel I’m Just a Person. (You may remember her from the set she did on having cancer.) For tickets/more info click here.

Please let me know of any upcoming book releases or events that you’d like featured in the Writers’ Forum!