He is slowly taking over my backpack

Movie 8

As what seems to be the usual now, I have not been watching movies. Today I will review the taste sensation of a cookie. Why? well because recently I have been on a diet to just eat generally healthier to speed up my weight loss so I don’t have to work out everyday for several months. I am rearing my 1st month of running 6 days a week and I don't like it. Doing this has gotten me to appreciate the taste of sweets so much more. So I will savor over a cookie and let the drool spill onto this page describing the immaculate taste of something that contributes to bad health. The first bite is always the best, simply because it introduces you to the sounds of heaven. The taste rushes the dopamine to your brain, releasing a sensation of chocolate love, temporarily filling the holes in your heart with sweet sweet chocolate. The crunch of a good cookie empowers the cookie letting the brittle cookie break apart in your mouth faster than anyone can say “cookie lookie bookie cookie” 10,000 times (just to be safe). The scarcity and quality of chocolate overall affects the greatness of a cookie. If you have a chocolate chunk cookie with big high quality pieces of chocolate, you have won the lottery as that is one of the best cookies, if you have a easy bake cookies that crunch with lower quality chocolate with the perfect capitalist efficient chocolate usage you have got the standard cookie. Here the cookie tricks you into liking the chocolate simply because the scarcity of chocolate within the cookie suggests you to think that the chocolate is the best when actually its because it stands out from the rest of the cookie. Not to say these cookies are bad, they are wonderful with each bite but the CPB is low, (Chocolate Per Bite). These crunch bake sheet cookies are the best for milk simply because it allows for the crunch and the milk to coexist, as the milk will completely eliminate all crunch but as any sane person would when dipping a cookie you overbite the milk and get a little of normal cookie, balancing the wet drippy cookie and a little crunch allowing for the best of both worlds. The worst kind of chocolate cookies are ALL chocolate, unless perfected all chocolate cookies rush the chocolate taste, giving you too much of what you love. While similar to brownies in a sense while remaining very different, all chocolate cookies are the devil’s devil of cookies, as cookies are the devils food as you crave another after each bite, but these, are the devil’s devils cookies as you hate each bite but continue, torturing yourself for no reason other than your brain telling you “SUGAR!” as you pick up another cookie. A sugar cookie with no chocolate are the middle ground of cookie enjoyers, as everyone knows what it is, everyone thinks that they are just ok which is completely justifiable, but the sugar cookies with the fake frosting create battlefields. Personally I enjoy them, despite the fat filled frosting that makes you feel like crap, I think that they are good bad food. But these cookies create enemies, you either love them or hate them. Despite the wars over these cookies, the most controversial cookie in my opinion is the raisin cookies. Simply because raisin cookies are good, not as good as a chocolate chip cookie but still good. As you don't feel bad after eating one, you actual eat a raisin (which are good) and you can get them cheaper. I personally believe that if you don’t understand why these cookies are good then you are a child or not mentally grown. And if you reading this dont like raisin cookies despite reading these reasons, then be offended. I’m going to stand my ground. (Unless you are allergic or don't like cookies in general.) Some other cookies that I have not mentioned are, M&M cookies, Oreo cookies, Chocolate coated cookies, etc. Thanks for reading me rant about cookies.

Snow in Ul’dah

The streets of Ul’dah were not exactly the safest places for anyone. The Blades kept things sane of course but it was still a land of excess and cruelty where exploitation could be found around every corner. Yet it was hard to see that side of Ul’dah in the middle of the Starlight celebrations. The strange snowfall that had seemed to blanket all of Eorzea, combined with the decorations, made it look more like something out of a dream. Most of the merchants might have little time for the snowfall but the commonfolk seemed taken by the good cheer. As the Miqo’te walked through the streets she found herself having to duck out of the way of excited children running to and fro. More than once she had to weave out of the way of snowballs tossed in good cheer, and more than once she ended up getting a firm clump of snow in the back of the head, leaving her with the unpleasant-yet-somehow-enjoyable sensation of melting snow dripping down her back. Few places were so apparent as the back streets. Normally one avoided them in Ul’dah at their own peril but the fact that they were off the beaten trail meant that in the wake of a snowfall they became tiny wonderlands. The snow was cleared off the main streets quickly, too many merchants would complain otherwise. The back streets though? They remained piled high and as Yuti turned down one she found herself in a veritable garden of snowmen. It was a charming sight to see. Children of every race working together to create snowmen. You could see the differences. Most were the standard two-clumps-of-snow creations that were standard for Eorzeans but a few broke the norm. She saw one made of three successively larger balls of snow, one which was just a singular large smiling face, and more than a few which could just be described as ‘piles of mush.’ Not to mention the personality in each. She saw one young Miqo’te girl trying to fashion a snow-tail for her snow-catte and grumbling in frustration as it kept falling off and tiny Lalafell sitting on a larger Elezen boy’s shoulders to stick the tiny carrot nose in an oversized Sno-Roe. 

Yuti smiled to herself as she watched the children playing. Snow, in Ul’dah of all places? Who would have thought? It was a Starlight miracle for certain. She knew it had its downsides. A lot of these children lived outdoors or even on the streets. The snow made it hard on them. She knew that there were wonderful people like Tyr here or Frost in Gridania who would do everything they could to help the little ones out, but it put a slight damper on the joy of the snow. Still, children were strong. In these eyes of these playing tots she saw not fear of the oncoming cold but joy at the fun it brought with it. Yet she couldn’t help but frown as she saw one of them sitting alone. A small Rean girl of about ten summers with dark black hair that stood out against her pale scales. She was sniffling and crying, her kneels pulled up to her chin. There were tears rolling down her cheeks and judging from the light dusting of snow atop and around her she’d been sitting there for a while.  Yuti walked over and took a seat next to her, pulling her own knees up into a similar position. She didn’t say anything. Just sat there. Moments stretched out. Almost a full two minutes passed before the Auri girl spoke. “Go away.” Two simple words but they were what Yuti had been waiting for. She spoke in a soft but polite voice in response. “N-no thank you. W-why are you crying?” The Auri girl frowned and scooted a bit away. However she couldn’t move far without leaving her little snow pile and so it was an entirely perfunctory gesture. She returned her head to her knees but annoyance and frustration had replaced her despairing expression and the tears at least had stopped rolling down her cheeks for the moment. The two sat in silence together for almost ten minutes before the Auri girl spoke. “I want to go home but I can’t,” she said in a tiny voice. Yuti turned her head lightly so she could rest it on her knees, gazing over at the young girl. “A-and why not?” The Auri was quiet again before she spoke. “Mommy says we’re going back to her home but I don’t want to. I’ve never been to Mommy’s home. I grew up here. I don’t want to go to her home. Everyone I know is here. ” Yuti hummed a little at that. “A-and where is your mother’s home?” The Auri girl seemed to curl in on herself. “Is Doma. Mommy grew up there and now she wants to go home. I never went to Doma. I don’t want to. It isn’t here.” She picked up a clump of snow and tossed it imprecisely to splatter against the opposite wall. “It’s far away and it’s weird and they don’t even really have Starlight there.” Another toss. “I don’t care about Doma. I want to stay here. My best friend is here.” Yuti could understand the issue. Doma and Ala Mhigo both suffered from a generational divide. Even those born before the fall weren’t necessarily old enough to have much memory of the way things were before. It had been a problem during the war where there were plenty of ‘traitors’ in both Doma and Ala Mhigo who were little more than people who grew up without the same sense of loyalty to their homeland, or merely those who didn’t consider it worth fighting for. The loss of country and culture certainly can have that impact. It’s hard for anyone, but especially for a child, to find solace in an idea from before their birth in the wake of leaving behind friends and family.

 “I know the f-feeling,” she said quietly. “A-and I came from somewhere else too. Eorzea is m-my home now and I wouldn’t want to leave it either.” It was true too. She certainly had memories and nostalgia for her home island but Eorzea was her true home, even if she’d lived there less of her life. She couldn’t imagine having grown up in Eorzea and being asked to leave it for a strange homeland.  A part of her wanted desperately to find the girl’s mother and argue with her. Yet she didn’t know the full story. The woman might have family who survived the occupations or might have someone waiting for her or might simply be dead-set on returning home. A woman who’d lost her childhood home having the chance to return could have a thousand justifications. A random Miqo’te arguing out of emotion would hold little sway there. The Auri girl nodded her head and looked down again, her expression dejected and unhappy. She was staring off into the distance and it was clear Yuti’s words had just confirmed the sad feelings in her heart. She had clearly been hoping for something more than empathy. 

“B-but do you want to know a secret?” The Auri girl gave a sort of halfhearted shrug and grabbed another clump of snow. It was clear whatever secret Yuti had didn’t hold much sway with her. She reached her hand back and tossed the handful of snow towards the opposite wall. As the girl tossed another clump of snow, Yuti raised her hand and lightly caught it with her conjury. Snow, after all, was mostly water anyway. She gave a little wiggle of her fingers, manipulating the snow carefully. There wasn’t a lot, just a handful, but it was enough to make a remarkably tiny featureless snow-person, which settled slowly onto the ground.  The Au Ra’s eyes widened and she looked up at Yuti quickly. The Miqo’te was grinning a little at her, eyes sparkling lightly. “We live in a world of magic. You may have to go but that doesn’t mean you have to stay gone. D-Doma is far across the sea but you know what? I went there just the other day and came back. S-so did a friend of mine. Someday you will be able to too.” She reached into a pouch at her side and pulled out two little pearls. “A-and even when you’re gone you can still communicate. J-just give this to your friend and it’ll be like you’re never apart.”  The Auri girl reached out hesitantly as Yuti held both pearls in the palm of her hand. She’d lived in Ul’dah long enough to be hesitant about any stranger offering anything for free. Her hand hovered for a moment and then quickly darted in, grabbing both pearls in a single swift movement. She fidgeted with them for a minute and then lightly affixed one to her horn, giving it a nervous little tap to check it was in place. “I still don’t wanna go though,” she said quietly. “Even if I can talk to people and come back someday, I don’t want to go. There are Garleans there and monsters and I won’t have any friends and...” the Auri girl began to panic, tears welling up in her eyes, a tremble of panic starting in her body. Yuti moved quickly, scooting and and resting her head against the Au Ra’s, wrapping a comforting arm around her. The Auri flinched but didn’t pull away, sniffling softly. “W-what’s your name?” Yuti asked quietly. The young Au Ra looked up at her, blinking her teary eyes.”Ushi.” Yuti’s smile warmed. “Well, Ushi, I’m Yuti. It’s v-very nice to meet you. A-and I can’t say anything about Garleans or Monsters... b-but you absolutely will have at least one friend. I v-visit there all the time, and my linkshell frequency is in that pearl I gave you. If you n-need anything, g-give me a call and I’ll come as soon as I can, okay?” The Auri girl looked confused, her hand quickly darting up to the pearl at her horn before looking at Yuti in confusion. “You will? Why?” she asked, a hint of the Ul’dah suspicion in her voice. Yuti winked. “B-because I like having friends too and I k-know what it’s like not to.” The Auri hesitated before nodding her head slowly. Yuti gave her another little squeeze and slid back, scooting away. The two sat in silence for a few moments before Ushi spoke again. “Do... you want to make a snowman?”  “I would love to.”