saw someone on Reddit say Sam/Rebecca is WORSE than Rupert and Bex I'm going back to fucking bed

I just rewatched ep1 of the expanse for the first time since 2016 and wow. Holden is such a shithead! Naomi is so closed off and disengaged! Joe Miller is actually the worst! Avasarala only has 2 scenes, in the first she's lovingly playing with her grandson and in the second casually torturing a belter, like what??? Talk about character development.

Sometimes, I remember that Brian May dedicating "Love of My Life" to Freddie Mercury for the rest of his life is a thing that's real and has been his decision since the year after Freddie's death, and not just some fever dream I made up

my head is so louddd someone shock my brain

SHDJDJD you’re so chaotic

im the bane of my own existence

best club name so far in my agility trials mapping project: It’s My Fault Agility LLC

Can't believe that the fanfic I'm reading dropped a "glittering blue orbs" on me. I feel so betrayed.

that moment when grief turns into hate

"...You know what's funny? I'm kind of terrified to try dating other immortals."

She's eating a sandwich wrap and leaning against a wall. It's quite nice on the roof of this building, if lonely.

"I mean, it looks like I'm gonna live forever, but I'm still only 28. So I have everything and nothing in common with them. Most immortals are, like... centuries old, if not millenia, you know? I worry I won't bring anything new to the table, anything they haven't seen before. All I have is superpowers and anxiety about the future.

...But I'm scared to date other 20-somethings, too. Because it's fine that I'm only kind of aging now, but what about in ten years? Twenty? Will I get older, or have to like... fake getting older? If I have kids with somebody, will they inherit my... this?

...I don't know if yes or no scares me more with that one. What if I have a kid who wants to be mortal but isn't? ...What if they want to be immortal, but aren't? I... I don't know. I don't know the answer.

...maybe there isn't one, you know?"

She takes another bite of her wrap.

lmaoo! His hair! OMG. for the most part I can forget about it (his smile is that pretty), but there's this one scene where its so fuking jarring! Here look, I giffed it so you can see it! 🤣its so bad from the back/side views

Oh my god Friedrich baby your hair is a disaster 😂 Buddy. Babe. Dear. Bruh. Why did they have to do him like that??? What happened? Truly friend, you have been doing an excellent job at focusing in on his smile (I'm still not over that gif of yours where he is clearly eye fucking someone from across the room) instead of whatever is going on here

You really can't just make up nonsense words anymore man I'll say like scungling scrumbus or some shit and I'll find out later it's listed on urban dictionary as some variant of the ultimate tornado sloppy 4000

[I.D.: Screenshot of dialogue from Deltarune dialogue dump that says "Queen... Makes us buy trash for her." End I.D.]

Artifacts — ...and then there's this (Astral Spirits)

...and then there's this by Artifacts

Flautist Nicole Mitchell, cellist Tomeka Reid, and percussionist Mike Reed have each made their mark both as bandleader and as leaders in AACM (among other places). On their second album together as Artifacts, they not only combine their individual visions, but integrate ideas from the past to create one of the year's best jazz albums. Their debut paid tribute to the artists who came before them; ...and then there's this sticks to that same lineage, but brings the group's own songwriting for seven of the nine songs on the album, making continuity something to play with rather than to be beholden to.

The album maintains a certain sort of joy throughout. Partly this feeling comes from the groove of the record. Nothing ever plods, and even the slower numbers usually make sure to check “head-nodding” off the list. The trio, despite that groove, also never simply settles into the pocket while letting a few solos unfurl. In any other combo, Reid would be stealing the show, her cello providing an exceptional rhythmically quality even as she finds melodic runs (bowed passages, of course, offer less funk). As the band moves through various styles and highlights assorted ideas, she maintains a consistently attention-grabbing level of play. 

Reed and Reid interweave their work nicely, and Reed has the ability to find just the right texture for any song. On “Dedicated to Alvin Fielder,” he pulls as far back as possible, yet it's his tapping that centers the song, more tonally than rhythmically. The band shifts to “Blessed,” and he gets back to a steadier pulse, adding flourishes only as needed. These pieces provide nice moments of restraint, so that when he takes off on other numbers, the surges provide full effect. 

Mitchell can obviously move on her flute, and some of the album's most captivating moments come from her surprising lead parts, but she also pushes the tonal qualities of the instrument. “Dedicated to Alvin Fielder” finds her exploring sounds that seem to come from elsewhere, both deep and oddly phlegmy (but not phlegmatic). Muhal Richard Abrams' “Soprano Song” provides a startling contrast, with her spry melody flitting above her bandmates' urging. She turns it into a spiral just as Reed picks up his drumming, the two of them particularly finding ways to move the song forward without restricting it to a linear structure. 

The record closes with Roscoe Mitchell's “No Side Effects,” a reminder that Artifacts didn't take its name from something in the future (even if that's where they're pushing the rest of us). Each artist gets some time here, with Reid and Mitchell particularly exploring their curiosity in conversation. It's a notable way that they display what they've gained from their forerunners while constantly shaping their own unique artistry. Thinking about it that way might make ...and then there's this seem like a museum piece, but in reality it's anything but a simple installation. 

Justin Cober-Lake

Being someone who works in agriculture, livestock and animal feed...dealing with this whole ivermectin debacle is not what I signed up for.