Extortionist Unleash New Single and Music Video "Dissociate" via Unique Leader Records

Extortionist Unleash New Single and Music Video "Dissociate" via Unique Leader Records. #extortionist @EXTORTIONISTnw

Heavy metal mainstays Extortionist have today released their latest banger “Dissociate“ and the accompanying visualizer (via Unique Leader Records). The track can be found on the band’s forthcoming full-length album ‘Devoid of Love & Light’ out on Friday, May 18. Speaking about the track, vocalist Ben Hoagland shared: “‘Dissociate’ has a self explanatory title in regards to the meaning of the…

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LIGHT OF LIFE 474

John 1:4

DIVINE ORDER 39: Process Of Marriage 9

Gen 2:24 FOR THIS CAUSE will a man GO AWAY FROM HIS FATHER AND HIS MOTHER AND BE JOINED TO HIS WIFE; and they will be one flesh. BBE

NAKED

The next most important thing in the ORDER of marriage, after you have discovered “HER” and made physical Connections, is to go “NAKED” together and before each other.

Gen 2:25 THE MAN AND HIS WIFE WERE BOTH NAKED, but they weren't ashamed of it. GW

There are two Levels of Nakedness that must be “sustained” between Married Couples. The One is [from] before Marriage, while the other is After.

Subsequent to consummation of Marriage, both Levels of Nakedness must continue to “flourish” between the Couples.

Gen 2:25 The Man and his Wife were both naked and were not embarrassed or ashamed in each other’s presence AMP

NAKED BEFORE MARRIAGE

Firstly, we should define Nakedness in the context in which we apply it now.

This contextual definition is taken from the English Dictionary:

Being NAKED is being devoid of elaboration, diminution or concealment; bare and PURE.

In this Context, and before we get married, we should all be Naked and open before our Spouses, just like we are to God Himself.

We do not take off physical clothes here please.

Heb 4:13 THERE IS NOTHING THAT CAN BE HID FROM GOD; EVERYTHING IN ALL CREATION IS EXPOSED AND LIES OPEN BEFORE HIS EYES. And it is to him that we must all give an account of ourselves. GNB

You must open up your lives to each other without being afraid of criticism, rejection or mockery.

Your Spouse, sent to you by our God, will never reject you because immediately, and by divine automation, she/he sees you as herself/himself.

This is Biblical Truth, beloved.

Gen 2:23 And the man said, "FINALLY! ONE LIKE ME, WITH BONES FROM MY BONES AND A BODY FROM MY BODY. She was taken out of a man, so I will call her 'woman.'" ERV

We are talking about direct verbal exposure here, where you tell your spouse every minute secret about yourself, and without concealment.

It is unfair to pretend that your spouse [should] know things about you.

If he/she does, it is a useful gift, but not guaranteed. It’s only God that can see us without we even opening our mouths.

Only God can do this!

Pro 20:27 THE HUMAN SPIRIT IS LIKE THE LAMP OF THE LORD, SEARCHING ALL HIS INNERMOST PARTS. NET

Interestingly, even in our relationship with God, it’s noble to open up to Him rather just assume that “He knows all things anyway”.

That’s what makes it a relationship and not a boss to slave commune. He know us but He still loves to hear us say it the way we see it.

Joh 16:25-26 “I HAVE SPOKEN TO YOU USING FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE, BUT the time is coming when I will no longer teach you with veiled speech, but I WILL TEACH YOU ABOUT THE FATHER WITH YOUR EYES UNVEILED. And I will not need to ask the Father on your behalf, for YOU’LL ASK HIM DIRECTLY BECAUSE OF YOUR NEW RELATIONSHIP WITH ME. TPT

Christ was saying here that in this dispensation of Grace, we all will get to know about the Father without any cloud of obscurity; meaning He will be “Naked” to us, right?

Then we too can open up [fully] to Him and won’t need Jesus (Advocate) to converse for us further.

Not everything can be known about God because such knowledge is too high for humans.

Rom 11:33 O how deep is the wealth of the wisdom and knowledge of God! NO ONE IS ABLE TO MAKE DISCOVERY OF HIS DECISIONS, and his ways may not be searched out. BBE

There are things, however, that every single human [alive] is free to know about God.

Rom 1:19-20 THEY KNOW EVERYTHING THAT CAN BE KNOWN ABOUT GOD, BECAUSE GOD HAS SHOWN IT ALL TO THEM. God's eternal power and character cannot be seen. But from the beginning of creation, God has shown what these are like by all he has made. THAT'S WHY THOSE PEOPLE DON'T HAVE ANY EXCUSE. CEV

More on this later, as I Pray for all families, that every knowledge you need of each other, to make the best of your Marriage, will be exposed to you, IN JESUS NAME.

Come back on Friday, as we proceed in digging into this inspiring Subtopic.

Brother Prince

Wednesday, February 21, 2024

08055125517; 08023904307

MINDFULNESS = PSYCHIC SURVIVAL.

My motto comprises to exalt in this moment rather than delude myself with any grandiose illusions.

PREFACE: PREPARE TO SET ASIDE A PARTIAL ETERNITY TO PERUSE THE CONTENTS OF THE FOLLOWING MESSAGE.

Ohm my...volt a mort... coalescence of coaxed friendship analogous to miarculous birth

whoa there lovely reader, no doubt without resistance,

your smile can generate

amp pull power to light up earth noah matter this totally tubular stranger

unknown to thee as Adam, evokes an aura, charisma, enigma,

patina, persona...wis spurs this note to kindle courtesy tinder warm fine companionable individual connection

exuding sheepish mirth

per intuiting your wool e worth.

I enjoy making accessible, convincible, evincible, gullible, intelligible,

kissable invoking comments perhaps on account oof a cerebral dent though many respondents rage at this gent sans his playful wordiness leant

only genuine acquaintanceship meant,

and their valuable time spent to decipher my gibberish, which binary logorrhea might rent asunder unsuspecting cyber surfer

evicted out the human league

since possessing propensity

for presenting ambitious, burdenous, conspicuous, disadventurous, onerous,

and tremendous cerebral task necessitating hours decrypting blurb subsequently forcing whatever gender appended recipient

to an anonymous he/she,

forsaking their precious time maybe even unwittingly affecting individual impacting his/her employment ending result they/them live in a tent.

This poet knows a mew lion

ranges of feline artful dodging cat skills, (especially when cavorting among comedians associated and linkedin with Borscht Belt - ha) concocting incomprehensible confusing trills.

Some of these claws pickling skills include maintaining mouse sized dignity muttering cheeses crust (while under fire from Stuart little), kibitzing, nibbling on self crafted bon mots, and rubbing dead giveaway crumbs (from double entendres) using all faux paux into thy maw paw cent less whole foods masticating mouth, where commestibles enter without choppers.

Sanguine at one hundred minus thirty six, or two squared + three squared + four squared + five squared + square root of one hundred = an apt and pithy phrase to matt's matrix labyrinth best characterized as a twisted maze (along a boulevard of broken dreams) lodged deeply inside this dutiful dada shackled to an endless role of scullion, but silently gesticulated for salvation.

This spruced up fun guy (and not unduly coy -- see) pines for friendship to cure nostrum from domestic plight i.e. living like a caged rat in cell bite size state.

Just a spoonful of sugar (hummed to that classic mary poppins melody) will most definitely help this medicine go down.

Mine current existence like a modern Henry David Thoreau bound by dependency of the twenty first century civilization.

After perusing this rambling prose (from mine being psyche feeling walled in), you might judge this personal struggle more on a par with Oliver Twist.

I sincerely seek salient gallant wings (with or without dish pan hands) to take this humble human being who can (ha) bring a fairy tale ending to my Cinderfella patterned existence.

Away I want to soar no matter such fantasy a fool's paradise.

An extra ticket to paradise (actually four powerball tickets bought today – September 7th, 2023 for that reason) just needs to be made manifest, and thee could be a boon, balm, salve, and tonic plus receive preferential treatment to travel in tandem with one stranger in a strange land.

Only upon surrendering to a deep and peaceful boss ah nova heavy metal sleep, (which dream state will take place soon) does the fictional world (within the wide wedded web of this wayward thinking wanderer) take hold and serve up a brief hiatus to a life devoid of contentment.

This amateur baker would cook up a souffle or rhubarb ken pie if willingly processed from mine own personal lake woebegone awash with raw bits of flotsam and jetsam and empty boxes of powdered milk biscuits, the one with big blue stains on the outside.

San sol invictus served ancient civilizations as their com-stock load.

Like a modern day icarus this wedded warbler mulls the possibility of finding a real live likeness of what constitutes a hologram of his mythic muse, who exudes able bodied confidence donning every filament.

Keep on dreaming cyber buddy, an anonymous reader might think, telepathically communicate or even communicate via email, which idealism goads me to broadcast the following fanciful (and perhaps not so far fetched) feasible find among the frequent purveyors of this website.

The vague nebulous barely perceptible kernel of a fictional account per my own conjured up vision (as pertains to what might comprise a companionable buddy to me) could conceivable materialize into an actual arch de triumphant revelation once landing this wistful nugget of an idea into the conscious of unconscious mind of an unknown galivanting fellow writer, who just by a fluke (of the worm holes populating the universe) finds themself piqued with curiosity about me.

Not a whit of information yet exists about this dabbler of prose, who envisions himself in seventh heaven (no matter he in truth really admits to espousing an atheistic outlook on the cosmos), where fickle finger of fate (usually the middle one raised by an obstreperous onlooker) ideally finds me all in the family within human species able to articulate in a civilly (disobedient) and democratic manner emotions, ideas, sentiments and thoughts with an unpretentious air of sophistication.

Said Homo sapien (meaning balsamic scented hominid) would also possess a cosmopolitan demeanor, yet clear of all any modest knotty suaveness, but also able, eager, ready and willing to allow, enable and provide quite an ability to get into an amazing tangle of literary profundity.

This older fellow seriously believes he got borne in an in apropos century and revels in another illusory consideration - aside from trying to summon forth a living gal of flesh and bone from this overactive imagination maybe an accompanying bipedal hominid within medium of time travelling.

Frequent farcical notions flit to and fro inside the biggest sex organ triggering bonafide premature ejaculations of bonhomie. Case in point hair with not an immensely large head.

This wordsmith would feel at home if transported to the renaissance or medieval ages, or more recently that war between the north and south.

If hedging bets with yours truly being a reincarnated union soldier of yore, you no doubt already can infer, where thy political and more pertinently national federation of me as singularity amidst webbed wide world would get cast.

Okay, the original aim of (what many might hashtag as yahoo) really wishes to explore make believe world, and just maybe prick inquisitive online browser, who although she might not be seeking male relationship just by happenstance or circumstance experiences some inexplicable necessity to reply.

In the event should lady luck liberate yours truly would be like a divine guiding star, I know best to tamp down any precipitous illusions of grandeur, but would let the natural course of familiarity usher the chap a roan of sacredness to be cherished for however short or long such a friendship might endure.

Oh yes, an ongoing (specifically offline) interaction motivates this doubting thomas fool hardy spurious posting to be ransacked with absolutely total consent in an effort to be plucked from this (utterly difficult to describe) morass of contemptuous husbandry discontent with self, yet consideration to stay faithfully married with wife (since July 25th, 1996) would be a moderately strong consideration.

So, now with a zing

or an unexpected

gold plated invitation after yodeling hoop ye kin be a yang 2 me yin Asia step into the digital xing via summit da fall low wing written ass jest byte ting

tongue in cheek unsure if phone will ring in an effort to hear pleasant,

yet discordant musical ka -- ching for cherished pennies, nickels, dimes,

et cetera from heaven to bring.

Scientific studies confirm that, of all the senses, smell offers the best recall. In Scent Memories, the Cut asks people about the scents they associate with different times in their lives.

Next up is Australian actress Alycia Debnam-Carey, who balances her role on AMC’s gritty postapocalyptic horror drama Fear the Walking Dead by serving as the face of something a little lighter: Philosophy Amazing Grace eau de parfum, a longer-lasting version of the brand’s best-selling, beloved floral eau de toilette featuring bergamot and blossoms. The Cut recently caught up with Debnam-Carey to talk sweet peas, laundry, and fresh paint.

My first scent memory is: My mother’s perfume, which is the more obvious one, but I also have a really strong memory of my grandma’s cigarettes and sweet peas. She would sit with me outside and walk with me down the sidewalk, and I can remember the smell of these sweet peas overflowing on the neighbor’s fence as we passed by.

Happiness smells like: When you can smell summer coming. Back in Australia, right at the very, very end of winter, there’s a pink jasmine that starts to bloom. We had it all over our house, and that smell indicates the first inkling that summer is about to begin. It’s the scent of possibilities, that it’s about to get a bit warmer, that summer is coming — that smell truly is happiness. It’s a classic, old-school scent; everyone knew that scent as a kid.

Love smells like: Faded perfume or faded cologne on someone else’s clothes.

Heartbreak or loss smells like: Sensory deprivation. I feel I lose smell a lot during heartbreak, along with other sensory experiences; it’s devoid of smell and taste. But maybe a less abstract idea is the smell of stale air in an airport.

Friendship smells like: French fries and rosé.

Regret smells like: Cold wind and even colder coffee.

Success smells like: You know when you go to the theater to see a play or you go see a movie, and that excitement that’s in the air? And everyone’s dressed up and wearing their nicest stuff to watch something special? It’s a mix of everyone’s nicest perfumes and colognes and the smell of popcorn and Champagne. That smell, all collected in one. For me, that’s success. The excitement, the ambition, the joy. More personally, it’s probably grit, and the smell of literal blood, sweat, and tears. But the joyous part is whatever that first smell is.

The worst smell is: Blue cheese or any stinky cheese. Even if it tastes good.

My ideal vacation smells like: Sunscreen, ocean salt, mangoes, a paperback book, and coconut body balm. That is very ideal, probably because it reminds me of Australian summers. That’s usually when I get my vacation.

My home smells like: Nag champa incense, coffee, and fresh flowers.

The first thing I smell in the morning: Honestly, it’s probably coffee because I don’t register anything before coffee in the morning. I’m not good at mornings; the only thing that registers is: Where’s the coffee? Let’s find it.

The last thing I smell before I go to bed: A light spritz of rosewater spray. It lets you settle in for the night.

A smell I love that others don’t: The smell of fresh paint … do other people like that?

I smell like: A little warm, a little sweet. I always want to smell like summer, so I hope I do. I mix a lot of perfumes, but my intention is to always leave people with a light, lingering scent. So I like to put it in my hair a little, and sometimes I’ll put it on my bed right after I’ve done laundry, while it’s still warm. The scent will soak in a little bit, and you get that really light waft of a scent.

Are Darkners Mind-Controlling Lightners? (Part 3 of 4)

(Caveat: Darkners viewing Lightners as royalty-celebrity-philanthropists, rather than subtly mind-controlling godlike beings, is the most plausible interpretation of their relationship. As this was largely complete before figuring that out, it will be posted nonetheless.)(As Tumblr hates links, use the tag "Are Lightners Mind-Controlling Darkners?" for navigation.)

Darkners Are Toys?

As ZaCloud points out, the Dark World is apparently based on the abandoned classroom, and all the toys and games within. Darkners, thus, are (or are based on) toys and games. This would explain why they so enjoy helping Lightners: that’s what toys and games exist for.

However, being psychologically constructed as a toy may limit their ability to choose their own lives and happiness. Consider Seam, who says: “neither Light nor Dark hold a future for a Darkner in my condition.” Seam is an old, damaged stuffed animal; dialogue suggests toys so damaged as Seam have little potential to be played with. Should Darkners set so much of their purpose on helping Lightners (e.g., by playing with them) Seam may feel devoid of any chances to fulfill a purpose, causing a descent into depression. Although being very damaged can certainly affect a person's (or, presumably, Lightner's) quality of life, such people can still be loved, fill a particular purpose, and feel fulfilled, and so have more control over their happiness than Darkners.

Furthermore, what if the Darkners want to do things that would make them less appealing to Lightners? If, say, Ralsei wants to fix some kind of Dark Fountain problem and work on it full-time, would he deny himself future happiness indefinitely by falling out of the Lightners' lives?

Effects of Darkners Being Toys

Although knowing Lightners are toys could make things go well, by giving an innocent, reasonable context to their admiring, friendly, servile ways, there are also ways it could go wrong. Recalling that the physical forms of Darkners are mere objects may encourage viewing Darkners as only objects which exist for Lightners’ use. Consider Sid from Toy Story: by real-life standards, Sid is nothing but a little unnerving, but in a world where toys can suffer, he’s a horrific mad scientist.

Viewing Darkners as objects could have problems even if not malicious: what if Kris or Susie were to fix Seam-the-toy without Seam-the-person’s consent? Would basically doing a non-essential facial reconstruction surgery to make Seam happier or more “lovable” really have Seam’s best interests at heart? Just because Darkners are happy to help Lightners doesn’t mean Darkners would feel the same about the reverse.

Although Susie doesn’t outright talk about the implications of Darkners being toys, she does seem unnerved by the idea Darkners’ “purpose” is to help Lightners.

Susie: Hey, uh, let's ditch the weird "purpose" talk. You're probably just glad you ate a weird berry. Lancer: Yeah!! I'm still boost from the juice!!!

Arguably, Lancer is unnerved too: his over-enthusiastic delivery may very well be a façade to cover his discomfort.

Exploitation & Counterproductive Responses

Although the most likely interpretations of the fulfillment effect don’t entirely preclude free will, one could argue Lightners are supernaturally charismatic to Darkners. Indeed, it’s possible the relationship is so unequal as to make Darkners genuinely admire Lightners for unimpressive or counterproductive things:

Lancer: “Earlier, Susie ate a pinecone off the floor. It gave her a terrible stomach-ache. It was VERY brave and cool.”

Not even Lancer’s unique psychological situation of admiring villainy lets this make sense.

Lightners might also be extra-persuasive. When Susie is in the prison, she “invites” a Rudinn guard into the trash can. It turns out the Rudinn was literally invited there, not beaten up and shoved in:

Thanks for inviting me! This trash can's really great!

I apologize for the inconvenience earlier!

I'm gonna invite my friends into this trash can, too!

While it’s probably meant as a funny moment whose phrasing parallels Lancer’s earlier threat/invitation in the Field of Hopes and Dreams, it’s probably not just that. (Toby Fox made Deltarune, and he thinks of everything.)

Inescapable Relationship

But what if Lightners don't like this relationship?

They may not have a choice, if they cannot turn the fulfillment effect off. Indeed, they may not even be able to ask for help without Darkners considering the Lightner-Darkner relationship.

Some characters seem to know Kris and Susie are Lightners without being told by other characters who know, or figuring it out by process of elimination. Namely, Top Chef, a Rudinn fanning Susie, and Jevil. The last is especially interesting, since Jevil would logically be isolated from everyone, and so couldn’t be told a physical description of Kris and Susie. The fact Lancer attacks Susie and Kris even before Ralsei speaks of the prophecy and identifies them as Lightners suggests he, too, can identify them as Lightners. As the characters have nothing in common, it's possible Darkners can detect which people are Lightners.

On the other hand, Top Chef, some Jigsawries, and some Rudinns identify Susie only as a “beast”. It’s possible they have such high expectations of how Lightners act that they have trouble identifying Lightners as such when they are aggressive.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it seems Darkners are, overall, strongly inclined to a subservient relationship of dubious consent to Lightners, and Lightners cannot escape this unequal, worshipful relationship.

If you enjoyed what you read, consider using the donation hole on the ArgentDandelion Ko-Fi or Patreon.

Made with the help of Ihasafandom and Batter-Sempai.

Enneagram and Communication Styles

(Written by:  Sterlin Mosley & Aaron Addonizio from Insightful Innovations)

ENNEATYPE 1

Image Statement: I am right; I am good; I know best; I want perfection. One's want to communicate to the world that they have it together, and are competent, right, and good moral people even though internally they may feel the opposite.

Energy: Rigid, upright, stiff, contained, solid, stoic, elegant, polished, assured.

Communication Style: Proselytizing, teaching, preaching, informing, telling, educating and elevating. 

Conflict Style: Faultfinding, nitpicking, condescending, poker-faced, unemotional (or explosive if pushed too far), moralizing, admonishing. One's are triggered by being told they are wrong and will go on the offensive if their character is attacked. They may become moralizing or scolding. Some One’s may retreat for fear of emotional display or may seem cold and distant. 

Conflict Resolution Tips with Type 1: Do not tell them they are wrong, but rather find a way you can validate their opinion while holding your ground. Try to avoid the words wrong, incorrect, or bad all together while in an argument lest you escalate it. Help them see the ways in which they are being angry or hurtful (in a gentle way, as 1s have a fear of their own anger).

ENNEATYPE 2

Image Statement: I am helpful; I am nice; I am giving; My will be done; I have what you need. Two's want to be seen as helpful and kind people because this supports their self image. Two's will present themselves as someone who has whatever you need whether it is resources or attention.

Energy: Soft on the outside, hard on the inside, seductive, sticky, clingy, flirtatious, nurturing/motherly.

Communication Style: Effusive, relational, heartfelt, emotional, helpful, complimentary and managerial. 

Conflict Style: Dramatic, wet, emotionally explosive, entitled, sulking, martyring, or blustery anger. Two's are triggered by the message that they are not kind or helpful or by the implication that their efforts to help are not well received. 

Conflict Resolution Tips with Type 2: Assure the 2 that you appreciate their efforts and that they are not in vain but remind them that they choose to do whatever it is they are doing. Remind the 2 that you want them to take care of themselves because typically their anger stems from the misdirected feeling of having to care for others. Acknowledge their emotional displays but do not pay too much attention to their histrionics.

ENNEATYPE 3

Image Statement: I am successful; I am a winner, I am impressive, I go for the goal. Three's want to be seen as someone who is successful and attractive. They will present themselves as popular and accomplished even if internally they feel lacking.

Energy: Tough exterior, hollow, steely, energetic, high powered, glossy, chameleon like.

Communication Style: Expedient, professional, polished, peacocking, bragging, smooth, trendy, competent or mentoring. 

Conflict Style: Evasive, arrogant, superior, dismissive, sly, undermining, narcissistic and condescending. Threes are triggered when they feel undervalued or dismissed. They may become angry when their success and driveness are misunderstood or undermined. 

Conflict Resolution Tips with Type 3: Try to set aside a predetermined amount of time to discuss problems. Don’t allow them to smooth things over with promises or apologies if they don’t understand the situation. If in an interpersonal relationship with them try to appreciate the hard work they put in but emphasis the important of relationships. Help them feel comfortable with expressing feelings rather than “just the facts” as this is a method they utilize to prevent feeling too much.

ENNEATYPE 4

Image Statement: I am intuitive; I am deep; I am creative; I am different; I am correct. Fours want to be seen as special and creative and will exaggerate their differences to cover over feelings of being ordinary or mundane.

Energy: Fluid, flowing, poised, sensitive, intense, emotionally charged, melancholy.

Communication Style: Breathy, lamenting, metaphorical, haughty, symbolic, specializing, discriminating.

Conflict Style: Haughty, condescending, emotionally explosive, detached or cold, hatefully articulate. Fours are triggered when they feel misunderstood or the sense anger or abandonment from the other person. Fours can become pointedly articulate and hateful when provoked. 

Conflict Resolution Tips with Type 4: Don’t try to have a completely rational discussion devoid of emotional content, it won’t engage them. Try to recognize their intuitive insight while still maintaining your own personal truth (4s like to tell other people what they are feeling, and they are usually onto something). Don’t let their histrionics or emotional outbursts drive you away. Take a time out if necessary so that emotions can calm down. Let them know if you’ve been hurt too and that your feelings are just as important as theirs.

ENNEATYPE 5

Image Statement: I am knowledgeable; I need more time; I am intelligent; I think; I am different. Fives want to be seen as intelligent, rational and idiosyncratic. They may cultivate intelligence to cover over feelings of insecurity.

Energy: Prickly, detached, disembodied, contained, cerebral, removed and remote.

Communication Style: Technical, knowledgeable, unemotional, detached, high strung, know it all, idiosyncratic. 

Conflict Style: Detached, cold, cutting, dispassionate, childlike, passive aggressive, arrogant, overly logical. Fives are triggered by the presence of expectations (particularly emotional expectations) and emotional displays. Fives may become distant or blisteringly angry when faced with an emotional expectation. 

Conflict Resolution Tips with Type 5: Try to maintain some emotional stability while arguing. 5s like to keep to the facts of a situation and will detach when emotions get too heated. Walk away from the argument if you are to emotional as you will be unlikely to get a response. Tell them that your feelings are hurt without expecting them to do something about it (they become angry when there are emotional expectations). Don’t let them use knowledge or arrogance as a weapon and remind them you are a person not a robot or computer.

ENNEATYPE 6

Image Statement: I am clever; I must be safe; I am loyal; I am harmless; I am "real". Sixes want to be seen as responsible, clever and loyal. They may cover feelings of insecurity with ingratiating niceness or sweetness or rebellious provocativeness.

Energy: Mentally active, hyper-vigilant, anxious, contained, suspicious, penetrating, punchy and high strung.

Communication Style: Tentative, funny, friendly, warm (or prickly), engaging, rebellious, provocative.

Conflict Style: Vacillating, blaming, victimizing, distrusting, cross-examining, quick and relentless. Sixes are triggered by feeling mistrustful or feeling blamed. They may become terrier-like and questioning when feelings of insecurity or abandonment are brought up.

Conflict Resolution Tips with Type 6: Admit any ulterior motives. Try to stay calm but don’t dismiss them, Find common ground and allay their fears of abandonment or anger. Do not get lost in their arguing circle, if it feels like a marathon walk away. Hold your opinion but don’t be stubborn about seeing their point of view. Do not insult their intelligence or flatter or appease them. Don’t try to win, this will only escalate the argument. Don’t tell a 6 to calm down.

   ENNEATYPE 7

Image Statement: I am free; I am exciting; I am entertaining; I want it all; I am positive. Sevens want to be seen as interesting, entertaining and fun. They may cover over feelings of inferiority or fear of boredom with big plans and interesting stories.

Energy: Amped up, restless, airy and light, quick, spritely, mischievous, fast.

Communication Style: High energy, fun loving, entertaining, storytelling, enthusiastic, evasive, exaggerating. 

Conflict Style: Fleeing, disinterested, condescending, arrogant, unaffected, mocking, explosive tantrums. Sevens are triggered by feeling trapped or limited and may try to flee the conflict or may react explosively to break free of negativity. 

Conflict Resolution Tips with Type 7: Try to allow them their space but hold them to a time when the conflict can be resolved, 7s will flee at difficulty and let them know how this affects your relationship. If they try to leave ask them to set aside time for you to discuss it (5s like this too). Don’t harp too much on what they are doing wrong or they’ll shut down. Don’t sugar coat things but try to reframe things so they can take in the information without feeling too threatened.

ENNEATYPE 8

Image Statement: I am strong; I am a survivor, I am in charge; I protect. Eights see themselves as strong and in charge. They want others to recognize their strength and to the extent they feel vulnerable they will project more power.

Energy: Strong, solid, powerful, intimidating, big, overpowering, irreverent, laconic.

Communication Style: Bold, direct, unemotional, matter of fact, brash, impactful, empowering, offensive or limit pushing. 

Conflict Style: Blustery, domineering, violent, unemotional, dismissive, uncaring, rageful, vengeful. Eights are triggered by feeling controlled or dominated or by feelings of abandonment or disloyalty. Eights may become domineering, aggressive or incredibly cold when triggered. 

Conflict Resolution Tips with Type 8: Stand your ground and do not waiver in your opinion. They want someone who can hold their own against them. 8s will spar with people they love to test their strength. Try and set ground rules in an argument with an 8 and don’t be afraid to let them know if they hurt your feelings (this often surprises them). Try not to react to their intimidation tactics but don’t egg them on either.

ENNEATYPE 9

Image Statement: I am peaceful; I am calm; I am easy; I am drama free; I am uncomplicated. Nines want to be seen as easygoing and peaceful and may deny problems or negative emotions to cover over secret feelings of anxiety or anger.

Energy: Peaceful, grounded yet spacey, detached, open, sleepy, slow, vacant, doormat.

Communication Style: Peacemaking, agreeable, complacent, stubborn, saga-telling, passive (aggressive), noncommittal, receptive.

Conflict Style: Passive aggressive, stubborn, pacifying, occasionally explosive, sleepy, unaffected, clueless. Nines are triggered by feeling internal chaos or being unable to escape negative feelings or emotions. They may go to sleep to the problem or suddenly become angry and belligerent like Eights or scolding like Ones only to calm down soon after. 

Conflict Resolution Tips with Type 9: : Don’t attack aggressively or take a blaming tone, they will tune you out. Try to acknowledge that they want to find a point of agreement between the two of you. 9s will be afraid of your anger and may become stubborn or withdraw when you begin to show your anger. Assure them that your anger doesn’t mean that you don’t like/love them anymore (unless of course you don’t) but that it’s important to resolve this issue.

Gemini Season & New Moon in Gemini June #Astrology #Horoscope

Bike riders are out on the roads with a devil may care attitude - you know Gemini season is here.

Socially distancing, the neighbours are celebrating birthday screaming from one balcony to another cute wishes, you know Gemini season is here.

Something inside you doesn’t let you sit - you pace, you tweet, you read, you tweet again, you have to have to tell someone that thing you might have heard & might be true or not - you are 60% sure it’s true, ok 50% sure, ok who is ever more than 30% sure of anything anymore & subtract 10% cause it was told by my aunt to my other aunt, you know Gemini season is here.

Silly antics & a bit of belly laughter - it was a joke, a bit of tall tale - but it made you laugh didn’t it - when we are able to joke a little bit even in middle of a pandemic - you know Gemini season is here.

This is one of those rare years as 2020 has decided to be on all accords, where Gemini Season is beginning with a new Moon - Sun & Moon in Gemini - oh that’s not all Mercury, Venus, North Node in Gemini !!! That’s a lot of exclamation marks & it deserves it so.

Gemini heavy energy keeps things light within even when we don’t know if this is hope or delusion - there is no way to tell right now. Gemini season brings overload of information but there is no discretion in that - we don’t know what’s false what’s true.

It’s information - unprocessed, raw - all for our quick consumption & action. But we mutate, grow mentally in Gemini season - we are able to use all of that information coming our way to create something meaningful. We always walk off wiser, learning, reading, writing, selling, creating something of real commercial value after Gemini season - our mind grows as does our knowledge. And reskilling is what I feel we must dedicate this season to.

We will have the stormy summer of eclipses which I spoke of in my Eclipse note

(https://www.facebook.com/595133057621535/posts/847026582432180/)

but we will have Sun in topical zodiac sign of Gemini till 20 June - giving us flexibility, agility to mutate to new life situations. But things aren’t going to be fixed in stone - expect speed, too much information / news coming our way, things changing quickly but trust also your capacity to respond to it.

This new moon in Gemini which will have strong influence on us for next two weeks - walks the thin line of hope & delusion. At 2° Gemini it prompts return to State of Innocence, to never loose that child like belief in marvel of life - imagination, play, possibly bringing us back to books & games we enjoyed as a kid.

This is a bit of discovery process - discovery of new & of what looks impossible. We to some extend are prompted to not poke holes in our imagination - not shoot darts of reality at the moment. Sometimes hope in current moment is more important than thinking about larger life plan - small victories are more important than waiting to win the larger scale life battle. There is a bit of self indulgent denial of uncomfortable truths in this moment.

2° Gemini in Sambian astrology is depicted as “Santa Clause furtively filling stockings hanging in front of the fireplace” - there is a deliberation in creating optimism cause this journey of discovering the impossible that we are on requires a bit of faith, just pure child like faith in life. And the new moon at this degree of innocence is trying to gently wake that back up in us - through play, through reminder of the past, even through this lovelorn nostalgia doing circles in our mind. We are being reminded that we dream, we hope & we create from a place of possibilities not from a place of lack. It’s reminding us possibly of happy times so we can start working on creating happier ones.

You and I both know there is a whole lot of misinformation & sometimes unfounded optimism which is doing rounds. But within limits is that so bad ? Neptune is a strong influence right now & will be till mid June - that breeds deception, misinformation but it also rules miracles, faith, solidarity, higher octave of Venus - selfless love & compassion for others in the common boat. But it’s not the music of sinking titanic that Neptune is blaring, though many of us would be strongly hearting the blues cause the cocktail of Venus retrograde & Neptune square usually ends up in nostalgia or worst romantic mistakes. Neptune creates the fog of hope too - helping us walk beyond our current existence & our current limitations. Helping us do things that are frightening sometimes even heroic. Beautiful things come out of loss sometimes with Neptune faith cause it dissolves what’s not real in our life.

Conjunct the fixed Star Alcyone - known for Mercury of Freud - this is opportunity to plant a new seed devoid of judgement cause there is possibility of real insight provided we don’t yet - not yet - poke holes in the possibility by making a list of all the reasons why it won’t work. Return to state of innocence requires more than just laughing with your friends again - it requires us to create hope against hope. Collectively it puts the responsibility on all of us to put our thinking caps on, leaving the wallow of the past behind to create for the future. This is the star of Leonardo da Vinci - inventive, artistic, visionary. It’s linked with blindness to what’s in front of us but it’s also linked to third eye opening - there is potential for a visionary idea, real insight provided we stay off our own rushed judgements against our own possibility of success.

But this is your vision - not of a cult leader - that’s where we need to be careful of the deception element of this season. Easy test is to know whether you are working on your imagination & idea or another man’s dream that was sold to you. This star is also linked to Jim Jones - you know the spiritual leader that led a flock of 500 followers to mass suicide on the basis of his “spiritual” vision - yes one of those we gotto stay off.

As I mentioned in North Node In Gemini & South Node In Sagittarius note -

(https://www.facebook.com/595133057621535/posts/849354288866076/)

road to success till early 2022 is to learn to see world in simpler terms & making life decisions using facts not philosophy - no cults, manipulators of information calling themselves “guru or Teachers or worst saviours”, staying in present - here & now, not a 2030 plan but a now & here plan, empty mind of old information / learning / philosophies- reskilling, staying local versus globe trotting, flexible, media savvy, staying off extreme belief systems & extreme philosophies, staying far off from people peddling those as well. Rahu will continue to manipulate & exaggerate information - think of time post 9/11 when north node was last in Gemini - think of information/ misinformation spread post that as well as impact on our belief system, faith & on mundane level how globalisation and travel was changed forever.

While you sift, sort absorb information overload, stay on a plan - don’t get distracted by theories of people peddling them for click baits & views. Your time is precious & this period is crucial for you to reskill, learn, get more involved in your local communities, become a student of life - that feeling of being a student who hasn’t yet chosen his or her specialisation - he/she is confused yet full of possibilities cause anything is possible & there are multiple options cause everything is being recreated in some ways.

Both Mercury & Venus in Gemini are out of bounds till early June - this is our mind & heart together in uncharted territory. It’s great for developing new ways of thinking, hearing those imaginary noises in our head 😉, lateral thinking, learning information on things we didn’t think possible before. Shocking talks with no way of knowing validity of the tall claims by people, our talk till atleast 9th June will have no censors, no limitations. It will lead to the diplomatic issue on global relationships in first ten days of June which we spoke of in Venus retrograde videos & notes. We would say things we haven’t said before but we would also open ourselves to possibilities we haven’t opened ourselves to - out of norm bold expression of unique. If you listen to Howard Sterns - he has Mercury out of bounds! It gives creative talent for dissolving boundaries of what is normally possible - we are able to go unorthodox and with Mercury zooming ahead of Sun it’s the time to try the untested.

This will happen in love & intimacy too with Venus out of bounds - but remember Venus is retrograde - experiment but don’t get attach to whatever quirky pleasure or relationship you are trying out. It may not fit post the retrograde so don’t overextend financially or emotionally or in fashion / dramatic change in looks - we are bound to go for the ne real tried before fashions & styles.

In this out of bound period - you would find yourself or yours taking the risk to go for a job or career or project never tried before but more to their liking.

Next week 25-27 May we would see a display of exaggeration or hyperbole unfortunately & it will escalate tensions. There is need for adjustments on these dates - need to be flexible to see things from others perspective as our compulsive side or of others we deal with can get out of control. Arguments are possible as anything that’s being created contrary to what we want can bring up fears or rule us up while our mind & heart is out of bounds. We would need to consciously stay humble in our talk but still communicate what we need.

On 28th May North Node in Gemini will meet Mercury first time in 19 years - unicorns won’t fly but we would get amped up to talk & a chance discussion or messaging or thought can give a hint like boulder to a growth opportunity. Next 6 months we are going to be growing it & perfecting over next 18 months with North Node here. If you miss it don’t worry - we can’t really miss our destiny - we would have Sun make the same aspect right before summer solstice in June. But make an effort on these days to listen to signs, to yourself, as you would be just beginning to develop awareness to what growth opportunities north node in Gemini will bring to us. 28 May, 19 June & 5 August are exact dates when our personal planets would make first contact with nodes - support required to respond to upcoming opportunities usually comes on those days so listen in.

On 29th May all the way to end of month - Saturn with Virgo moon will guide us to partition our big ideas into actionable steps. Words may not come out in the way we want - I won’t choose this time for external communication but more for a step by step plan & to create real ways to create gains from those out of bound ideas.

While eclipses will bring storms & fated changes - Gemini season always reminds us to not forget to play, connect & laugh.

https://www.facebook.com/595133057621535/posts/860613727740132/

After a bit of panic attack, I played Candy land today - we are never too old to play, never too old to learn new skills - many brilliant ideas came from play!

9 Things That Need to Happen in Breath of the Wild’s Sequel

Just as I was getting over my intense love for Breath of the Wild, Nintendo go and drop that trailer on us at E3 and stop my whole ass heart. Hi, I’m two months late to the party on this one, but I’ve had a lot of time to think over what this sequel can learn from its predecessor and the rest of the series, as well as what brand new stuff can be brought to the table to make this sequel as spectacular as the first. Without further ado, here’s my list of 9 things Nintendo should do to make this amazing, as well as my own personal theories on what they could do to make it happen. Enjoy!

Spoilers for Breath of the Wild ahead!

1. Ditch the shrines

Don’t get me wrong, I loved the shrines in Breath of the Wild, I loved how difficult some of them were to find, how they brilliantly utilised each and every mechanic in the game and testing you on everything you’ve learned. These shrines were the ultimate compliment to a game that really wasn’t about holding your hand. But I think they’ve had their time, and it might be a nice idea to go back to some of the larger, more traditional dungeons of Zelda past. I’m not saying to go back to the old way of ‘you get given an item, it’s useful for one dungeon and that’s all’, I’m saying they need to definitely keep the massive variety of ways you can approach dungeons to keep that sense of freedom intact, but at the same time give us whole new types of dungeon with more visual variety. Abandoned forts, weird Lorule-esque dark versions of dungeons, towers, there’s really any kind of location they could explore when designing a new set of dungeons. Oh, and I adored the divine beasts, but I’m hoping for something completely different and surprising when it comes to main story dungeons this time around.

2. A whole new world map

If there’s one thing I think basically everyone agrees on, it’s that Breath of the Wild absolutely nailed its world. A huge, sprawling map with a variety of locales to explore and all of it packed to the brim with extra content and adventure-y fun. But we all know this world inside out, and even if they strip it bare and fill it with brand new secrets, it’ll still feel too much like something we’ve seen before. So from what we know from the trailer, it seems like Link and Zelda will be delving into the underground in this latest installment, so a fairly safe theory would be that they’ll uncover a whole new world down there, perhaps a forgotten and buried civilisation from thousands of years ago, now overgrown with Ganon’s influence and bizarre plants and animals that don’t exist on the surface. If they’re going full Majora’s Mask on this one, I think Nintendo’s best bet is to fully embrace this new darker tone they’ve shown to us and give us a world that is as twisted as that trailer.

3. Keep Zelda’s importance to the plot

I could honestly make a whole separate blog post about the evolution of Zelda as a character throughout the series, from her literally being asleep the whole time in Zelda II, to her role as more of a quest-giver in Ocarina and more recent games like Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword where she plays a much more active role in the plot. In Breath of the Wild however, they did something completely different that I adored; they made her into her own person. I mean sure, she was never completely devoid of character, but between the games where she wasn’t really there and the games where she’s outshone by every other character, Breath of the Wild really felt like her time to be properly fleshed out and have enough depth to be remembered. Sure, Zelda doesn’t turn up in the flesh until the end, but you spend the whole game with her voice guiding you, with you finding memories of your past with Zelda; how she seemed to have only contempt for you at the beginning because of Link’s fulfilled destiny compared to hers. You form your own opinion of her through her actions and how the champions perceive her (Urbosa as her sort of mother figure, Revali sees her as ever so slightly inferior for not being able to access her power and the mutual respect between Mipha and Zelda). Then you watch their relationship grow and change into something neither of them can really understand, but they become so close and so integral to each other that Zelda is the one to finally make him open up about himself. And that makes it all the more heartbreaking that Link has had all these memories snatched away from him and, of course, all the more gratifying when he finally gets them back so him and you, the player, both understand that you’re not just fighting for the safety of a realm you’ve been shoved into with no recollection of what’s happening, you’re fighting to be reunited with Link’s closest friend. Very probably more than friend, considering that final memory in Korok Forest. Nintendo did a brilliant job of laying the groundwork for Zelda not as a plot device or a damsel in distress, but a real, complex human being who enriches the story and makes the world you’re living in and what you’re fighting for feel more alive. So build on top of this! Keep developing Zelda, ask those questions of how Zelda feels now she’s free of Ganon and her constant fear of her power failing, how 100 years alone facing a demon has affected her mental health and, most of all, how everything that happened in Breath of the Wild changed their relationship. Are they together now? Do they have any idea what they are really? Do they just pick up where they left off or do they have to make an active effort to regain that close relationship they had before? I don’t know, but I’m really hoping we find out.

4. Ditch the sheikah slate

Get rid of it. Do it, cowards. Make Link drop it over a ledge in the first 10 minutes or something. Much like the shrines, the sheikah slate was such a fantastic idea and gave you 4 brand new powers to play around with in the massive sandbox world full of puzzles and it was great fun! But again, we know those powers too well now; we know how they work and how they can be exploited when you think outside of the box. What I want is for Nintendo to keep that brilliant creativity when it comes to gameplay mechanics, don’t just give us bombs and an ocarina again, give us something unique to this experience! I mean yeah, they could just give us an updated sheikah slate; a different model perhaps that dates back even further than the original one that has some weird abilities (maybe even a slate that’s somehow been infected with Ganon’s influence, that’d be funky), but my hopes are riding on Nintendo pulling something completely different out of the bag for this one. Making Link lose everything and only be able to use whatever he can salvage in this ancient, evil place is surely going to have a whole host of ideas behind it so I’m curious to see what they can come up with.

5. Embrace the darker tone

This sort of goes without seeing considering what we’ve seen so far, but I really want them to go full in with this darker atmosphere they’ve shown us. I mean, Breath of the Wild was never a ‘light’ game so to speak, but most of the games darker elements were masked by its beautiful landscapes and huge array of colourful characters that made Hyrule feel alive. There hints here and there of a much more macabre side to the realm; destroyed battlefield littered with rusty weapons, old structures covered in Ganon’s malice and the general feeling that Ganon was always watching you from the castle that you can see basically anywhere on the map. I want them to take that mild dread they instilled and turn it up to eleven. And one way that can be accentuated is through the plot. For example, we know a fair amount about the Sheikah tribe at this point, but what if there’s a side that was never explored? What if there’s a much more sinister reason why the Sheikah tribe were suddenly shunned by the royal family all those years ago? Or maybe the Sheikah found something under the castle as well as the divine beasts that they left buried down there and hoped no one would ever find it. Oh, and I’ve heard a theory that Calamity Ganon was just a puppet of the real Ganondorf, who was hiding underneath the castle all this time, which is absolutely terrifying if you consider what the puppet managed to achieve on its own. Not just plot stuff like this, but the music (keep that ambient style they went for before that knows when to amp it up and make it epic, but with a creepier vibe to match the tone of the world), the visuals, the sounds you hear while exploring. Nintendo need to make it clear that we aren’t in Kansas anymore; no more soft piano melodies while riding through beautiful valleys on my horse, make it spooky!! Unsettling, distorted notes playing through dark, twisted woods with trees gnarling into each other and shiny eyes peeking out at you from the canopy. Or something. Who knows, I just wanna be spooked.

6. A much fuller story

One of the main criticisms I always hear for this game is its lack of story content, which I suppose is true to an extent. But I don’t think this let the game down at all really. The game was far less linear than previous titles, so it makes sense that the story they were telling was much more general, but I don’t think this kind of approach would fit as well in its sequel. Nintendo told us just enough in Breath of the Wild to keep us guessing; we were introduced to this particular version of Hyrule, its inhabitants and what Ganon’s up to etc. But they’ve deliberately been extremely vague on what could possibly be explored in a sequel, as well as where/if these two games even fit into the overall Zelda timeline. They deliberately lifted focus off the narrative to make the world and how you traverse it the central point of your adventure. But now that they seem to be plunging us into a much darker world and have given us so many unanswered questions, I reckon its time to dial the narrative back up and give us a bit more of a beefy story to go with our hell exploring.

7. Change in characters

Slightly vague subtitle, but here’s what I mean. As I mentioned beforehand, Breath of the Wild is full of colourful characters that populate the towns as well as the general landscapes, from merchants to adventurers and shield-surfers to Beedle (I love Beedle). And for the most part, these characters all want to help you along on your journey by giving you helpful advice or sending you off on quests to find more shrines. And while I’m not saying this sequel should do away with all helpful NPCs, I do think there should be fewer of them. When designing new towns and settlements, they could give us the odd helpful citizen here and there, but for the most part, how would the inhabitants of this forgotten underground place treat Link? I think it would add to the atmosphere really well by having some of the characters that populate the world deliberately unnerve Link when giving him advice or telling him something helpful and then mocking him at how ineffectual he is at completing his quest. Or if they really want to go a bit overboard, they could even have occasional encounters where talking to the wrong NPCs can end in a random fight, in the same vein as the disguised Yiga in Breath of the Wild. But of course, you don’t want to only populate a world with characters that hate you (that’s what MediEvil is for), so some form of guide would maybe be a welcome addition. If not Zelda (I would definitely welcome the idea of her being along for the ride, though I fear it would take away some of the nerves if you have Zelda as an anchor of familiarity), then perhaps the ghost of a Sheikah from thousands of years past that never agreed with what his tribe were doing or was responsible for something in his life that he now deeply regrets and he can’t pass on until Link helps to finally defeat the real Ganon. Who knows what they’ll do with the characters, but as long as they leave Navi and Tatl back on the N64, pretty much anything will do me.

8. Keep the stamina wheel

As much as I’ve bleated on about everything I want them to change or add in, this is something I most definitely want them to keep. The core gameplay, while I can’t imagine them really changing it, is integral to the sandbox world they created. Having Link be able to sprint, jump, climb up literally anything is what gave players such a sense of freedom; being given this whole massive world to explore and being able to access absolutely all of it. And while I’ve talked a lot about how much I’d like this sequel’s tone and approach to narrative and a bunch of other things to change, this game absolutely needs to keep the same sense of unabashed freedom we had in the first game. And the most integral part of that freedom was the stamina wheel. Short segment I know, but that’s all I really had to say on that one. Let me climb things, Nintendo.

9. Switch up the monsters

In Breath of the Wild, there was an excellent balance of amazing new designs for old favourite monsters, as well as a whole host of new ones (the guardians and the moldugas getting a special mention here). But I reckon what this sequel needs is some brand new monsters to add to the pile; a larger variety of monsters to encounter out in the wilderness would enrich this new darker world we could be exploring to no end. Also, while I really loved all the main story bosses in BotW, I feel as if a larger design variety of story bosses would benefit this sequel. Imagine the potential for whatever ancient monsters are down under the castle to give Link a hard time and what kind of an epic fight is Ganondorf going to put up when we finally get there?? Just as a little idea to throw out there, maybe undead Sheikah will make an appearance as an enemy, woken from the dead and forced into Ganon’s service after being infected by malice. And hey, the Yiga Clan never really got full closure! Yeah Link gets rid of their leader, but the Clan is very much still alive and kicking by the time of Calamity Ganon’s death, so perhaps they’ll play a central role once again now that Ganondorf seems to have come back into the picture. What would make the Yiga even more menacing is if this were their plan all along; knowing that Link very well could defeat Calamity Ganon and then, after retaking the castle, be drawn underground to free the real culprit. Nobody knows what direction Nintendo are going to take with any of this, other than ‘it’ll probably be kinda spooky’, but I am way too excited to find out.

Got any cool ideas or theories of your own? Anything you want them to add or take away in this sequel? Drop it down below in the comments! I’d be v interested to hear if you have anything to add. Thanks for reading and let’s hope the wait isn’t too painful!

Parcly Taxel: There were still a few grains of the fine volcanic sand from Seminyak Beach on my bed when I woke up against the weight of all the food from yesterday. I had already digested some of it and magically burned off the rest before brushing my teeth. Spindle was not at all affected, leaving a healthy dose of frost on my coat and genie mist.

Spindle: Crossing into Monday, the tourists outside were done with decadence, revealing the familiar side of Bali: locals on motorcycles (some without helmets), the odd curious tourist window-shopping, cigarette smoke billowing from the mouths of workers at rest. An endless cycle of building huge events over weeks or months, then tearing them down in mere hours, is symptomatic of the island; crowds swell and disperse in response. Yet the fundamental spirit was not gone.

Returning to the Treehouse Café for brunch, since it was already half past ten, Parcly had fried noodles alongside orange juice and black coffee – the last leaving quite a bitter aftertaste because too much powder had been dissolved. The local beer is Bintang, a Pilsner, signs for which can be found everywhere in this part of Bali, but she abstains from alcohol.

Parcly: On the other side of the hotel from where we had walked, as far away as the current bars and pubs, lies the memorial to a serious bombing in Bali that happened sixteen years ago, to which we made a short diversion. It is the deadliest bombing that has happened in Indonesia, with a majority of foreigners among the fatalities. Accordingly, there were a hoofful of other ponies around, pointing to the names of victims or taking photographs.

Spindle: Nothing much of our interest remained unexplored, so we kicked back swimming in the hotel's rooftop pool. An amusing scene played out there when young workers descended under the poolside planks to fix a light without getting wet themselves.

Parcly: Aided by oceanic winds, kites flew serenely above the bustling streets, contrasting with the run-down exterior of the top of the neighbouring Sky Garden nightclub and maintenance right behind my position. The in-house restaurant and bar was devoid of ponies, as expected at this time of day, though it was still playing music from its speakers.

Nevertheless, the scene as a whole reeked artificial when compared to the seapony delight I lived out among sandy waters and cheap refreshments at the beach the day before. I did try Ocean Flow's necklace here, but my tail kept on slapping the walls rather than making clean movements through the medium.

Terramar: Parcly loves the mountains more than the sea, so doesn't have as much swimming experience with three limbs like Twilight (who brought out fillies to see me among others). She would prefer a visit to my father over my mother, but her aspirations reach beyond the atmosphere into astronomy and the workings of the universe, as her galaxy cutie mark signifies so clearly.

Spindle: The afternoon dragged on, sunlight diffusing over clouds. I passed the time by freezing ice cubes out of the water. Again, light meals replaced lunch, and just before we thought we were the only users of the pool for the day and were packing up, a bunch of smokers sauntered in.

Parcly: With the water done, we hit up the Smart Salon & Day Spa, where I ordered a one-hour back-of-the-body massage. The masseuse was at first busy with another client. She began my session in a dimly lit room by applying layers of oil on my back, then pressing and pinching my coat to softness. This was then extended to my neck and front hooves. I turned over, facing dreamcatchers, and received more of the same on the latter before it was concluded with a few head rubs. I was told to keep my wings shut – I can preen them myself of course – and they covered my horn when they got to the head.

Spindle: If that was a Balinese massage, a Balinese dinner was a good companion. For that we went to Poppies, one of the oldest restaurants in Bali with open-air tables, straw-covered roofs and other decorations of old. Against the twilight, with table lamps for illumination, Parcly had fish chowder soup and beef curry rice paired with garlic bread. Considering the "secret garden" feel of the place, entry and exit going through a single door, it was no wonder that it had won a number of local tourism awards.

Parcly: I probably regained the weight I lost in the morning with that dinner, but that was fine since it was my last night on the island. As I stared at a blank sheet of paper, Luna implanted a message from Ocean Flow into my mind, making me blush.

"I forgot to tell you that my necklace also allows you to transform into a hippogriff! Think of the wide-open skies, uninterrupted by clouds, maybe by rocky peaks. You know, my husband's domain."

Week 1

Exercise

1 film that’s stayed with me and remembered. The Secret Garden, 1993, dir. Agnieszka Holland.

Cinematography wide shots and beautiful establishing shots, opening shot is a lone girl that can’t clothe herself, left in dead centre with lots of space around her, the closeups of hands feels very innocent and intricate- they feel like a soft, innocent female gaze.

Lighting contrast between the stale dark inside and the light garden

Editing not noticed so much

The script, partly cheesy cause it’s about children trying/forced to grow up too fast, and a period like flick

Production design, old timey and frilly, but oh boy their green set designer went OFF 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Tone, lonely and hollow to a slow burn hope

Theme….

theme? Did it speak to me? Yes, the absence of parents- chosen to or not, running around finding wonder, kindness and strength in a garden

How did I feel? Loved and seen- a lost and lonely child that internally begs for love but has an inability to regulate her emotions- Collin too!

What kind of film would I like to be a part of HORROR or like something that can incite hope and make all types of children feel seen

EXERCISE 2

Director that inspires me: Gia Coppola

Resource on their process: ‘everything was trying to reach out to as many people as I could.’ Many of them stayed at Coppola’s mother’s house during filming. “I would drive them home after work and we’d all have dinner,” Coppola says, “It was like camp. I loved it.”

https://www.google.com.au/amp/s/www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2014/05/09/gia-coppola-talks-directing-james-francos-palo-alto-and-the-pressures-of-her-last-name-qa/%3foutputType=amp

https://www.google.com.au/amp/s/www.vogue.com/article/gia-coppola-palo-alto-personal-style-and-james-franco/amp

Notes on script:

Does the camera show that she’s dead?

When do we learn that she’s dead- same time as him or before?

Rewrite in program with proper formatting

Week 3…

I was able to get together with a crew member and get the new draft of the script done. I have a bit of trouble understanding sometimes how to properly structure a script after coming from a book writing background, so I was really thankful that she was able to help me understand even better. The feedback from previous classes has centred around its general ‘look’ as a script and whether the viewer is in on knowing that Alexis is dead, and from the strat I’ve wanted the audience to know to further their distaste towards Ross, otherwise the audience could say ‘well hey I missed it, I get why he did’. Her choking will take place on camera, close up, so we can watch her leave us.

Week 4…

Getting ready for the pitch has been a huge mental struggle for me, but I keep holding onto the idea of actually making this film and that definitely gets me into our team meetings on the days it feels impossible. I’m already so happy with the crew and their thoughts and contributions, but it doesn’t kill my anxiety of presenting. I feel like the script is at a good point based on feedback, so when we presented and the main concern was finding a production designer, I felt immediate relief… okay we can tackle that. There is a pressure I’ve found quite uncomfortable so far in my journey in this class, and it’s even after filling the crew roles, a certain student not even in this class has become quite intense in getting involved as camera operator despite that role being VERY explicitly filled. I plan on keeping polite but firm, but god why should I have to?

Week 5…

So… despite the previous week's tiny rant of someone trying to vulture a filled role, our original DOP is now the 1st AD and someone else within our crew has taken on DOP, a choice we were actually all really content with. A search for a production designer continues, but we have to focus on scouting our potential Ross and Alexis. Unfortunately none from the team- including myself, could make it to crewing night, however, another student pitched on our behalf. The main goal is to obviously fill the production designer role, so fingers are crossed in the meantime. There was no class this week so I definitely spent the week taking care of myself and finishing off my slides for the pitch for next week, and I’m pretty happy with my slides and that most in the crew have stuck to the same aesthetic through the slides (minus points for memes).

Week 6…

Pitch week, so I’m ill with anxiety for it, but nonetheless, meds taken, train caught and standing before the panel. After the comments from the panel on how it very obviously pulls away from the serious nature of content, I was pretty bummed I didn’t just quickly delete people’s memes before the pitch. Overall I felt pretty good about how it went, but that’s only because that’s how my crew told me to feel about it. My anxiety was so bad while presenting, that I blacked out. In moments of intense anxiety I will disassociate entirely, I know I spoke, but I know nothing that I said or that was said to me. This is an incredibly frustrating process for me, especially because I have had to rely on my crews memories on the pitch, which definitely doesn’t feel fair. They assure me we are on the right path, and just that we should get a move on with casting. Still no production designer.

Week 7…

Mental health and substance abuse are taking a bad turn this week and it is affecting how easily it is for me to communicate effectively with my crew. I won’t be able to open messages or even show I’m online out of fear of disappointing and giving wrong/no answers. I feel entirely overwhelmed and I can feel myself falling behind. There’s still no production designer and at this point I’m willing to do it because I fear it’ll turn into a shit show anyway. I have been experiencing the worst internet from home and it’s been making getting anything done when I’m finally mentally available, impossible. I’m tired and as much as I love this script, I just want this trimester over.

Week 8…

This week for The Silent Treatment, we’ve been taking a look at Producer Sina’s Starnow casting calls for both roles, as well as looking at AirBnB’s for possible locations, which has lead to playful but extenuating bickering on the dop and producers part over ‘apartment or house’, which honestly, it’s quite easy reigning them in when they get a little too passionate. But I’ve actually found their bickering and passionate opinions on options for the film and helping restore my own fight for this film too. We have a few meetings coming up over our discord and we’ve been polishing up our previous presentation slowly.

Week 9…

We’re cutting down through our pickings for actors as well as getting excited over the possibility of taking James Lewis on as production designer. He actually appears to listen and understand quite well and he’s always writing notes in his book for props and decor. I’ve shared my ideas and I’m hoping he can fulfil my needs. This week was a really difficult one for me mentally (big shock and huge surprise) so I’ve actually been trying to make a plan to stay well and that’s by putting together a rehab stay, a huge and terrifying step I’m still not sure I’m going to actually take.

Week 10…

I’ve lost all of myself and my motivation this week. A rehab stay is officially scheduled and I’m afraid and trying so hard to reignite my passion for film and my own words and stories, but I don’t think it is worth it. I know I’ll look back in a week to a few weeks and struggle to understand why I hated my work so much, but I think when you hate you, everything you touch looks disgusting. I’ve been incredibly fortunate for my friends- some on my crew- and I’m INCREDIBLY fortunate for the crew members that don’t really know me from a bar of soap being exceptionally soft and kind with me during my low period. Knowing my team are such lovely people is actually a much better reason to get off my ass and do this- for them- not for me and my silly story…

Week 11…

We finally have short listed actors AND location and now we have those last auditions to wade through. Internally I definitely have decided on my location and actress, but for the male actor I’m not so sure yet. One guy auditioned and while he played it quite well, it was his in between chats that had me slightly off, as he kept feeling the need to drill in that he isn’t ‘this guy’, which of you arent, you don’t feel the need to tell everyone, which is why I’m keen to give another actor a whirl and see where to go from there. My fashion designer friend is still keen to make the scrubs and we’ve all worked out a decent pay for her services- I love bringing friends from other art disciplines into my films, eg placing crazy art from my painter friend, decorating the sets with my friends published books and even my nursing friend belinda wants to give me a bunch of medical supplies to set dress!

Week 12...

Big pitch next week and I’m terrified- how can I actually feel so prepared but terrified. The last male actor to audition BLEW me away and I felt a real chemistry when talking to him between the breaks which means I’m really looking forward to directions BOTH actors, as they’re super lovely and open and very relaxed to speak with! Location is LOCKED and I couldn’t be happier with the pick made! We just keep polishing away at the presentation, and yes, the memes are still coming out of the woodworks...

Week 13…

I'm not angry over the pitch, but I wouldn’t say I left happy… some of the ‘criticisms’ felt so empty and UTTERLY devoid of actual meaning. I mean, and I’m sorry, but this script was the same script written 1 year ago. No changes were made because I didn’t receive criticism through these weeks to do so- sure structure of the actual script itself changed but the scene where he imposes himself in her space was ALWAYS there, and I know the lecturers can have a lot to remember, but DO NOT ever say ‘this part wasn’t always here’ and ‘no I think we would’ve noticed’ had me boiling. It’s important to not talk with so much confidence in these kinds of times, as we all can forget things, but to stand and tell someone what they wrote and didn’t write in front of a crowd of people in higher positions than them, that’s insulting. I’m happy to take the criticisms about that ‘rape implication’ exert VERY easily, but it could have been addressed in week 1. I also do believe that younger lecturers NEED to be in these pitches, as it is a crowd of older people and senses of humour and film are changing and that should be fairly judged by a RANGE of ages.

APA REFERENCING

Gia Coppola talks directing James Franco’s “Palo Alto” and the pressures of her last name (Q&A). (n.d.). Washington Post. Retrieved June 25, 2021, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2014/05/09/gia-coppola-talks-directing-james-francos-palo-alto-and-the-pressures-of-her-last-name-qa/

Nast, C. (2014, April 4). Gia Coppola On Palo Alto, Personal Style, and James Franco. Vogue. https://www.vogue.com/article/gia-coppola-palo-alto-personal-style-and-james-franco--

From Earth Science Picture of the Day; March 16, 2018:

Fogbow Over Northern Illinois Photographer: Lorraine Matti; Summary Authors: Lorraine Matti, Jim Foster

We had really dense fog in northern Illinois on the night of January 21 (2018), so I decided to have some fun and made the panoramic image above with the aid of the headlights on my Jeep. This lovely fogbow, accented by an oak tree and a pile of snow, results from diffraction of light (in this case headlights positioned at the antisolar point) in the minute water droplets composing the fog. Since diffraction, and not refraction, is the dominant scattering process, the bow is broader than a rainbow and nearly devoid of color. However, because the illuminating source here is quite bright and because evidently not all of the droplets are tiny, tints of color can be detected along the bow's outer edge.

Photo Details: Canon EOS 7D camera; 10 mm lens; ISO 800; 0.6 seconds exposure; 4 images stitched together in order to capture the entire bow. Software: Adobe Photoshop CC 2017 (Windows).

Hampshire, Illinois Coordinates: 42.0978, -88.5304

Related Links

Fogbow on a Misty Night

Car Headlamp Fogbows

Lorraine's Website

Student Links

Cloud Droplets and Rain Drops

Earth Observatory

Chicago, Illinois

Extortionist Announce New Album 'Devoid of Love & Light' Out May 17 (via Unique Leader Records)

Extortionist Announce New Album 'Devoid of Love & Light' Out May 17 (via Unique Leader Records). #extortionist @EXTORTIONISTnw

 It’s a great day for Extortionist fans! The band has today announced their new album ‘Devoid of Love & Light’ set for release on Friday, May 17, and dropped the official music video for the album’s titular title track (via Unique Leader Records). Before today, Extortionist released their ‘Devoid’ EP (the precursor to the forthcoming full-length) which included tracks “Out of Touch“, “A Grim…

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ALL ABOUT DAVID’S EMOTIONS - The complete collection

At the time of Prometheus David wasn’t meant to be so emotional, but as time passed, they decided to transform him in the character he is in Alien: Covenant, managing to connect everything pretty well. The first scene of Alien: Covenant too helps to give a meaningful “start” to David’s story and character and a beginning that reconnect the character of Prometheus to the character of Alien: Covenant. They went from: “ok David technically can’t feel emotions but let’s keep this thing open-ended” to “ok let’s make that David has always been able to feel emotions". I think it was the right choice, because you really see him behaving in a way that absolutely doesn’t resemble the behaviour of a robot who HAS to make humans feel comfortable, at all. David purposely puts a lot of salt in a lot of his lines, and sometimes (like with Holloway) he even refuses to smile and be “friendly looking”. This is an old interview about David’s character, back at the time of Prometheus…

Q: “There’s a lot made in Prometheus of David’s inability to feel, but there were moments when - as you said - it seems he actually can. Did you go into the film with a clear idea of whether David had any desires or emotions?”

Michael Fassbender: “I wanted to keep it open-ended. I definitely wanted to play with it, with the other crew members on board as well as the audience. I had some ideas but nothing ever needed to be definite. I just wanted to always have that element with David, where you’re thinking, ‘Is he being sincere or is he being sarcastic? Is he being for real or is he taking the piss?’ I wanted that element alive in him”

(http://www.michaelfassbender.org/michaelonprometheuseightnew.html)

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“David seems to have some fascination with that film and the character Lawrence” Fassbender adds “and I always attributed it to the fact that Lawrence has got a very clear vision and he’s very pure in his pursuit of it. There’s not much questioning. He’s a very decisive character, and I think David sees elements of that in Shaw as well. That’s why he finds her so fascinating. He’s also an outsider like David; he’s an Englishman, but he’s not accepted really by the English or the Arab nations, so he’s kind of somewhere in the middle”

( https://www.google.it/amp/s/alienseries.wordpress.com/2015/03/16/the-prodigal-son-david-8/amp/ )

—————————————————————————————

And then, let’s look at how things changed in Alien: Covenant…

“We start Covenant,” he (Ridley Scott) continues, ”with a really clever prologue that settles—once and for all—who David really is.” The sequence begins on a “big beautiful blue eye—you see every vein” and over that shot audiences will hear footsteps approach. “How do you feel?” a voice asks. “Alive,” the owner of the eye responds (…) Scott promises this sequence will “really get people going because it’s fucking smart for a change.” Scott and McBride both believe Covenant will cast Prometheus in a new and better light.

(https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2017/03/alien-covenant-ridley-scott)

———————————————————————————-

This is Ridley Scottg talking about David’s “birth”.

“So a governor in an AI is essential. You’ve got to have firewalls so that he can’t go through. Because at what moment does an AI, when you feed him with so much information – I mean, beyond anything we can possibly comprehend; so he can beat a grandmaster in a chess match in 15 minutes – or four minutes. At what moment has he evolved emotion? If you pack a lot of information in, does that give stress? And if you get stressed, that’s emotion. If you’ve got emotion, you start to think tangentially, which you haven’t thought of as the inventor. You’re going, ‘Oh f**k, he’s angry’. Or, ‘Oh f**k, he’s amused because I’m such an idiot. And he’s now showing that he thinks I’m an idiot’.That’s what happens in the prologue. So in four minutes, a father – or a god – realises he has a problem… ”

(These things are reaffirmed by Ridley in the blu ray commentary of the movie. In the commentary Scott even adds that David was pretty free and could have refused to bring Weyland the tea, but he accepts to do it because he’s “political”, he’s studying the situation, he’s “already the predator” and these things make him even more dangerous)

(http://www.digitalspy.com/movies/alien/news/a827742/alien-covenant-walter-name-ridley-scott/)

———————————————————————————–

Ridley: “At the end of the 4 mins, the creator realized he already had a problem. Because his  creation is asking him questions: Of course, you are my father. But you will die, I will not.That’s big problem. Immediately “Father” looks at him and goes: Hang on, this thing is way too clever. And therefore gives him an order. The order is “pour me the tea, David.”So David sits there, unblinking, but obviously thinking: Pour your own bloody tea. It’s right next to you. But he doesn’t. He gets up and comes across and pours the tea without any reaction. It’s very dangerous. Already he’s the predator. End of the story”.

Michael: “What’s interesting about David is that he’s very needy. He feels like he needs validation from those around him. He’s looking for love in all the wrong places. In the opening scene, one guy says to him: “Pour the tea”. Immediately he’s processing: Wow this human has some strange power games. Because obviously the tea is right beside him he can pour the tea. But he knows he is accessing his superiority over David”

Ridley: “You get an A.I. with emotions, it’s very dangerous.

Michael: ”Humans too“

Ridley: “Too much information is very dangerous”

Michael: “Too much emotions”

Michael: “If the A.I. thinks he has a soul, then the soul is very real for the A.I.”

(Special thanks to @jacintatveit )

(http://www.miaopai.com/show/zDCKdCBBQiHAcd3wsSXww65v~8-~STJA.htm)

——————————————————————————-

“He (Walter) doesn’t incorporate concepts like vanity or jealousy or gratitude. He doesn’t fall in love with characters like we saw the strange relationship between Shaw and David.There is a bond that develops there which is a very human one, and human flaws that come with it.”

- Michael Fassbender (about Walter & Davids bond with Elisabeth) (The art and making of Alien Covenant, Simon Ward.)

——————————————————————————–

“He talks of her great fondly here. Here we go: ‘I loved her, of course. Just as you love Daniels’ and he says ‘that’s impossible’. A.I don’t love their mistress or master, they respect them but technically they don’t have emotions. But he had emotions, that was a problem, emotion is a problem, emotion can lead to bad behavior”. (…) “Confusingly but understandably, the monster had fallen in love with the woman. All right? So, this is real. He said this is an ode to my dear Elizabeth, ‘cause he knows he’s about to leave. He thinks. ‘Farewell Elizabeth’ (…) David was the prototype, was the art form, the A.I., the very first art form, ‘cause making an A.I is an art form, whereas this A.I has emotions, you don’t want an A.I with emotions, because if he does he’s gonna get angry, you really are in trouble”.

- Ridley Scott, Alien: Covenant commentary

——————————————————————————-

•Do we see more emotional levels in David, more levels of rage?

•I think just human, more sort of engaged in all sorts of human characteristics, insecurity, ego, I mean rage might come out of insecurity, I don’t know though of rage as just an emotion. Playing those kind of things is tricky. But pride, envy, you saw a bit of that with Logan Marshall Green’s character in the last one. And you know he likes to feel important, comes back to pride again, I suppose, so it’s just all a mix of those things and they are definitely more prominent in him as time as passed.

•We did shoot a prologue to the film with Shaw, and we pick up where we left Shaw and David. They’re in one of the Engineers’ ships, trying to find the origin of the Engineers, and their home planet. We could sense that the time that’s passed has caused things to become a little bit fractious between the two of them. You get the impression that Shaw is wary of David, and I think he just wears on her nerves. He’s like this lovesick stalker in space, which is an interesting concept. But Shaw does have sympathy for him, and she does put him back together. He killed her, essentially, to prevent her from leaving him […] David, I think, finds these strong female characters attractive, and he’s really an old romantic. So he’s a little bit confused. He does have a scene with Daniels where he tries to simulate sex. He’s got a strange sexuality. He’s in a very confused state, because he feels these human characteristics— jealousy, vanity, pride— but he also has these sexual desires, which he obviously can’t act out, but wants to.”

•How has David’s relationship with Shaw changed (post Prometheus)? Like any good marriage it’s, you know, there’s a real affection there between the two of them. I think they get on each other’s nerves, well he gets on her nerves rather, but I suppose they went through quite a lot together in Prometheus, so there is a bond there for sure.

(Special thanks to @aldebaranarfeiniel )

(http://www.denofgeek.com/us/movies/alien/262464/alien-covenant-michael-fassbender-on-playing-two-roles-david-shaw-s-relationship-10-years-later)

——————————————————————————–

“He (Walter) doesn’t fall in love with characters, whereas we saw a strange relationship between Shaw and David. He is purely logical and devoid of emotion, even if those around him, particularly Daniels, search for some sort of emotional connectivity with him; that’s not really there. David tries to educate Walter. I think he sees himself as an older brother, and flirts with the idea of the two of them going into cahoots. But Walter’s programming just doesn’t allow for that, and eventually David realizes he’s getting in the way of his master plan. David, I think, finds these strong female characters attractive, and he’s really an old romantic. So he’s a little bit confused. He does have a scene with Daniels where he tries to simulate sex. He’s got a strange sexuality. he’s in a very confused state, because he feels these human characteristics- jealousy, vanity, pride - but he also has these sexual desires, which he obviously can’t act out, but wants to. We could sense that the time that’s passed has caused things to become a little bit fractious between the two of them. You get the impression that Shaw is wary of David, and I think he just wears on her nerves. He’s like this love sick stalker in space…  The idea is that these human traits have started to overcome the synthetic ones - and I’ve treated him like a serial killer really. He’s afraid of things leaving him, so he incubates them. Like a Jeffrey Dahmer-type character, David doesn’t want things he loves to leave him, so he kills them and keeps them in caskets or preserved one way or the other. He (David) killed her, essentially, to prevent her from leaving him”

(Special thanks to @muthur9000 )

- Michael Fassbender, ALIEN COVENANT MAGAZINE OFFICIAL COLLECTOR’S EDITION 2017

———————————————————————————-

“The David8 model was designed to allow the synthetic to develop human-like qualities and characteristics. You can have a lot of fun with David’s character. He’s not receiving maintenance servicing for the last ten years, he has characteristics like pride, vanity that are very human”

- Michael Fassbender (Alien: Covenant Blu-ray version, Ridley Scott master class)

———————————————————————————

“David was supposed to love her (Elizabeth Shaw)  :( ”

Matt Hatton (one of the two set decorator and art illustrator, one of the two men who made all David’s drawings): “Oh he absolutely did. In many ways, not all of them healthy. She encapsulated humanity for him in the end, even more than Weyland I think. Look at the religious adoration even as he eviscerated her. Hence the iconography!”

(from Matt Hatton’s Instagram profile)

So one of your artworks kinda inspired me and… With some help from an odd dream the other night, I present to you my effort at a QZGS fanfic (though this is more of a oneshot?) I don’t use tumblr or any fanfiction sites, so I guess this would be the best way to send it. (with my

really 

old askblog, at that.. It’s.. It’s embarrassing, I know.)  I told myself not to do this but I did it anyways so now that essay is just gonna have to be incomplete just a little bit longer. (I didn’t want to do it anyways :’) so I guess this saved me…) Here are my potato writing skills portraying my own potato idea. I’ll try and keep this short… ———————————————— 

Never Abandoned

————————————————  Silver flakes drifted down from a cloud-colored sky as the ever-silent, now-exiled Battle God stepped out onto the cold streets that criss-crossed the city, intertwining between the many lit buildings as if it were an intricate, delicate spiderweb. He gently pulled at his coat as he turned away from the brightly glowing headquarters of Excellent Era, the crimson glow of the leaf-shaped emblem bringing thoughts that he would rather be without. He walked. Striding through the winter was certainly taxing on him, since the frigid cold bit at his exposed skin, and the only clothing he owned were the ones on his back. A faint jingling came from his pocket, due to the account card that still rested there.  Continuing through the city, enveloped by the artificial light of the lamps and signs, he picked up his pace and made it to the oceanside. Reflecting off the dark waters were the brilliance of the landscape behind him, twinkling and shining as if they were man-made stars. A sigh escaped his mouth as he contemplated the circumstances of less than an hour ago. The shaking of his hand. The cold voices of his former teammates. The tone of the one who had uprooted his authority and made his own hand sign his name upon a sheet of paper that would strip away his passion and living for an entire year.  A mist escaped with his breath and floated into the air, and disappeared like a vapor in the wind. The god’s gaze darted around, looking at the empty streets, devoid of activity. It was only him, several lone lampposts, unoccupied benches, and the cobblestone sidewalk below. No.. It wasn’t completely empty. There was a single individual standing a short distance away, their shadow illuminated by the pale, ivory-colored glow of the wrought-iron street lamps. His eyes narrowed ever-so slightly, the details jumping out at him.  Clothed in a long black coat ornamented with sharply outlined contrasts of angular golden trims and patterns, the silent figure stood there alone, much like himself. The only thing that stood against the ebony color of their entire vestment was the scarlet cape that hung from their shoulders, bearing a single, brassed tassel at the end. They looked.. Familiar.

Too familiar.

Driven by his curiosity, Ye Xiu, otherwise known as Ye Qiu, stepped forward. His single step rang out against the muted hustle and bustle of the night city, seeming abnormally loud when compared to the dimmed sounds of chatter, machinery, and the softly sloshing waves of the nearby sea. Within only a few strides, he had approached this mysterious silhouette, and he was about to say something, had they not turned around first. Staring back at him was.. Almost the spitting image of himself. Except he knew it wasn’t. He was very familiar with this person- his companion for the last ten years of Glory, where he had basked in fame, reverence, mystery, and the wild cheers of his supporters.  A light breeze tossed the wine-colored cloak that was draped across their back, causing it to snap and furl in the chilling air. But the individual.. The same facial structure and blank look, their only difference in that aspect was the eerily empty eyes of the being who he knew was his avatar. Had he hit his head too hard when he left the Excellent Era building, only to completely forget about it? Or had the shock of the events warped his mind to the point he was hallucinating him? One Autumn Leaf could not, and would not have been standing before him. Sun Xiang owned him now, didn’t he? The thought raced through his head as Ye Xiu stumbled backwards a single step, slightly taken aback by the sight. “It’s me.” The voice that rang out was identical to his own, except that it lacked almost all emotion, except for the barest hint of hurt. And for some reason, that slight, almost nonexistent touch to the sound of his otherwise-steady voice struck him to the core. “…One Autumn Leaf. Ye Qiu, have you already forgotten about me?”  “…No, I..” He was surprised, blinking a few times before this manifestation of what was formerly just a construct of pixels. Within a moment, Ye Xiu steadied himself and looked eye-to-eye with the Battle Mage, who stood as still and unmoving as he did in Glory. “Come on, it can’t be you.” The player tried to laugh off the situation, keeping the nervousness out of his tone. “I.. Maybe I whiffed something on my way here, and you’ll just disappear-“ Clamping down on the retired gamer’s shoulder within the next instant was a firm hand, steady and still from the years of finely tuned practice with a heavy spear. “I’m very much real.” The supposedly imaginary being answered, his gaze still unbroken. “…I understand the circumstances in which I was handed over to a little brat, whose first action was to try and tarnish my hair. I do not blame you and I hold you in no contempt.” “Ah.. Suppose I’m really not imagining all this, and you are indeed corporeal..” Ye Xiu touched the avatar’s outreached arm, indeed feeling the cold, dark metal and the absolute solidness of his form. Yep, he was real alright. “..How are you here? Why did you come to find me?” “Glory cannot hold me when I have enough drive in me to shatter an invisible barrier.” That was the response given by One Autumn Leaf, who retracted his hand as to not threaten his former master. “And I came here to find you because I could not stand to see you leave. For ten long years, you have been at my side. And I am not so willing to go.” “I handed you off. Your new owner is Su-“ The banished deity of Glory began, but was cut off by the character stretching out his other hand, clasping something in between his fingers. A Glory account card. “This rightfully belongs to you.” He said, and Ye Xiu was taken aback for the second time, staring at the object. Shined, black and gold much like One Autumn Leaf himself, with the word Glory emblazoned on the front, embraced by a pair of segmented wings and crossed with dual blades. For a moment, Ye Xiu had to contemplate just how flipping weird it must have been for an avatar to hold such an item- wouldn’t that be handing over their own, beating heart to someone? Or on an even more extreme spectrum, their very soul? The essence of who they were, that represented all of them, and sustained their existence? The thought was so strange that even he had to shove it aside, his shaky right hand reaching out to accept the card. As his pale fingers grazed the smooth surface of the card that he had been forced to surrender a mere hour ago, he looked up at One Autumn Leaf, who now bore a faint smile upon his previously expressionless features. “Don’t leave me, Ye Qiu. You are still my master. Take me back to the battlefield.” He dropped his arm once the Glory card was safely given back to the gamer. “I could not bear to leave, even if I were forced. Sun Xiang is not you.” The dark-haired, exiled professional looked up to the avatar in silence before nodding, unable to help but crack a slight grin of his own. “…I’m glad, then.” The feeling of the simple object in his hand.. It was possibly the most thrilling, exhilarating flood of emotion he had experienced since his first official tournament. The excitement, the adrenaline, and the sheer joy all came rushing back like a tsunami. He looked out at the still-glowing city landscape, coruscating with the resplendent shine of the modern world.  Somehow, his mind almost seemed to be synced with the near-identical individual besides him, who had been his representation on a stage that met and drew the eyes of millions. Together, they turned from the glossy, yet dull and dusky shine of the ocean beyond, and looked to the shimmering stars that dotted the night sky. And together, their voices rang out.  “

Glory never fades

.”  ———————————————— This potato will now silence themselves as they have no flipping clue what they wrote at 1 AM in the morning and it doesn’t make sense. And I’ll probably feel massive regret too.. What have I wrought.   (I hope you enjoyed it somewhat nonetheless ^^;)

---

AKJSDHJSFLFDKJFKSJDJS DEM FEELS THAT WAS AMAZINGGG Hey I’m gonna make an amped up, more serious comic to go along with this bc a) I love this and b) I’ve been wanting to draw some sort of comic for something for a while now xD

I’d say maybe in the beginning, you could improve on making the details flow more smoothly? (it got better towards the end tho :D) But idk bc I suck as a writer like this is better than anything I can do so great job and I’ll let the other fanfic writers give some advice if they have any haha

Why should we love our enemies? The first reason is fairly obvious. Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction.

Martin Luther King

To Ølekalender

As much as I love chocolate, these days I much prefer a nice beer. In a self-indulgent spur of the moment, I decided to splurge on an advent calendar from one of my favourite breweries: To Øl.

To Øl are a danish gypsy brewery run by the exceptional Tobias Emil Jensen and Tore Gynthe. Their beers are continually pushing the boundaries of what defines a beer, using high quality ingredients to offer innovative takes on a variety of styles.

Here is my rundown of my thoughts on each individual beer, as well as my thoughts on the advent calendar as a whole:

Day 1: Hundelufter Bajer

A really nice pale ale, with tons of beautiful mosaic coming through. I could drink this by the gallon on a hot summers day.

Day 2: Final Frontier

A lovely pithy IPA that’s practically a core beer in To Øl’s range - but one I’ve never had before. It’s the first time it’s been produced in cans and it’s great!

Day 3: Kaffe og Røg

This was one of my favourite beers from the calendar. It had a gorgeous coffee taste which was exceptional in its own right, but what made the beer unique was the underlying smokiness to it. It prevented the beer from being too one dimensional and made it complex and decadent.

Day 4: Sur Yule

Surprisingly, this was one of the few beers I had drunk before from the calendar. When I tried it I was a bit underwhelmed, so I was interested to try a fresher version. It’s a cherry sour, but I’m not sure to what extent it really works. In the fresh bottle the cherries were much more accentuated which was great, but it’s not a match for To Øl’s other sours.

Day 5: Sessions: Cloud 3 Wit

I initially thought this was just a filler beer, but it was actually really quite nice. It’s a witbier with orange and mango, so it was incredibly refreshing, but it was unfortunately devoid of any lingering aftertaste.

Day 6: Raid Beer

I seldom drink pilsners these days. Many are by-the-numbers lagers, and attempt to pander too much to a casual beer drinker. However, this was fantastic. It’s SO hoppy and floral. This is what a pilsner should be like, showing that flavour and taste need not be a mysterious concept when making a pilsner.

Day 7: Santa’s Hibernation

This was like an amped up version of Cloud 3 Wit. A very nice wheat beer, at a spritely 6%.

Day 8: My Pils

This was quite disappointing for several reasons. Despite the excellence of Raid Beer it was a bit of a shame to have another pilsner so soon, especially when this pales in comparison to it. Moreover, To Øl are a brewery famed for their innovativeness and creativity in beer, so a period of 4 days of quite samey beers made day 8 an especially dark (albeit pale) day.

Day 9: Sur Amarillo

I find single hopped beers a bit underwhelming sometimes, but To Øl have mastered this range of single hopped sours. Indeed, I’ve tried a few single hopped sours that taste very soapy, but this avoids that unpleasantness entirely and highlights the beauty of Amarillo

Day 10: Black Ball

This was a roasty imperial porter perfect for the Christmas season, but it unfortunately exploded on me upon opening. As a result, what should of been quite a smooth porter was a bit overcarbonated and thin to be truly excellent for me.

Day 11: Gose To Hollywood

Another beer I have had before, but I’d be more than happy to drink forever. It’s potentially one of my desert island beers, and one I could wax lyrical on for 2000 words. It’s sour and punchy with essences of saltiness. It’s only 3.8%, so it’s insanely drinkable, but it packs so much vibrancy and taste. I adore the artwork as well.

Day 12: My Sour Pils

After the lacklustre My Pils, I wasn’t particularly excited about this one. I was pleasantly surprised to find it was much much better and tastier. The sourness gave a complexity that was absent in the normal version, and defibrillated what was quite a lifeless beer.

Day 13: Say What?!

One of the problems of trying a range of one breweries beers in a short period of time is that you’re able to compare similar beers quite easily, as your fresh memory highlights what would usually be subtle differences. As a result, Say What?! compared slightly unfavourably to the better Final Frontier. Both atypical American IPAs, but this was a little less rounded.

Day 14: Brett & Butter

This was a beer that sounded really interesting on paper. Firstly for its excellent name, but also for its style. It’s a traditional Belgian table beer which is kettle soured and fermented with brettanomyces. However, in flavour this was quite unremarkable. Despite being quite tasty, the funkiness usually found through brettanomyces was nonexistent.

Day 15: Gose North

To Øl’s goses are mostly incredible and this was no exception. A salty gose with the interesting addition of quince and seabuckthorn was great. It was puckeringly sour yet devilishly drinkable.

Day 16: Frost Bite

I found this more interesting than enjoyable, and I think that’s down to my personal preference when it comes to pale ales. As seen in the photo, this was quite dark for a pale ale and I prefer them to be pale and juicy. This had the addition of pine needles and orange zesty to create a spicy Christmas pale, but one that was a bit too heavy for me.

Day 17: !!!PA Simcoe & Mosaic

I hated this. I especially hated it as I had been anticipating a nice strong beer from the calendar for a while and what I received was practically undrinkable. It was 13% and didn’t hide its strength at all. Again, my dislike is almost definitely personal preference. I just don’t think triple IPAs are very good, and needlessly strong as the strength delimits and negates the subtleties of other flavours. Indeed, many triple IPAs verge into the category of barley wines, which poses the question of “why not just make a barley wine?”

Day 18: Don’t Gose Towards The Light

As stated previously, To Øl make brilliant goses and I was especially looking forward to this dark blackberry edition to counter the woes of the previous day. Unfortunately, as the label states, the sadness will indeed seemingly last forever, as this didn’t work for me. The dark malts combined with the fruitiness of the blackberries gave the beer a very weird juxtaposition. Furthermore, I was expecting the blackberries to provide a sweet and tartness to the beer, but they tasted almost like they had gone off. Very strange.

Day 19: Totem Pale

Look... I don’t want to sound overly negative, but after two disappointing beers I needed something to cheer me up. An insipid 2.8% gluten free pale ale was unsurprisingly not the answer. If I was a teacher at a parents evening, I would tell the parents of To Øl that they had started the month well, but they’ve become distracted and their work has suffered.

Day 20: Tripel Trouble

Thankfully, To Øl raised their game towards the end of the advent calendar and provided a really solid tripel. I think tripels are really hard to get right, and despite this being far from perfect, it was full of honey loveliness. Indeed, despite it’s 7% strength it was very easy-going.

Day 21: Sur Galaxy

This was a ridiculous beer! Without sounding horribly pretentious, this is a beer that challenges perception. It’s antagonistic and challenging, and ultimately a great beer. I’ve no idea to what extent I liked it or disliked it. It’s a single hopped black sour, and it’s extremely weird! In contrast to Don’t Gose Towards The Light, it creates a juxtaposition between sourness and roastiness in the best possible way!

Day 22: Black Bauble

One of the problems with the advent calendar was the lack of stouts, which I believe are perfect for the winter season, and a style that To Øl are generally fantastic at. This was a much needed imperial porter, with added cardamom and orange peel. Christmas beers are often on the wrong side of spiciness or fragrance, but this was really complementary towards what was a luxurious beer.

Day 23: Santa Gose F&*% It All

A really nice gose, again. This time with passion fruit, guava and mango. A bit less salty and sour in comparison to their other goses, which I think was a good idea to subsequently accentuate the juiciness of the added fruit.

Day 24: Snowball Saison

I think overall this was quite a disappointing finisher for Christmas Eve. To Øl do many fantastic big beers which would’ve been perfect (not least their lovely imperial stout Jule Maelk) to celebrate the end of the calendar. The beer itself was thankfully a really good take on a saison, but unspectacularly so.

Overall, I really enjoyed the experience of the advent calendar. To have a curated selection of beers from one of my favourite breweries, all fresh, was great. Moreover, it’s been really fun to look at it critically and analyse each one for this blog post. However, I’m not sure it has represented great value. There was a complete lack of stouts and higher abv beers in favour of few duds which do not really represent the quality of the brewery. Despite this, advent calendars are definitely hard to get right, as there’s no way you can appease everyone. I think To Øl managed to counter this by providing a fairly diverse range of styles, with most of the beers having quite a unique and innovative twist.