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theonceoverthinker · 6 years

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OUAT 3X01 - The Heart of the Truest Believer

Finally, I can start Season 3! It’s been so long that I can HEART-ly believe it!

...Did you miss the puns? I missed the puns. I don’t think Emma did, because I’m just hanging on by a thread!

(Ha! Snuck two in!)

Anyway, let’s get under the cut and see what this episode has to offer!

Press Release Emma, Mary Margaret, David, Regina, Mr. Gold and Hook enter Neverland to search for a kidnapped Henry, they’re greeted by a school of not-to-friendly mermaids who threaten to end their search before it begins; Henry finds himself on the run from the Lost Boys with another escapee from Peter Pan’s encampment; and Neal, recovering from his wounds, travels through the Enchanted Forest with Mulan in an attempt to learn the fates of Emma and Henry.

General Thoughts - Characters/Stories/Themes and Their Effectiveness Neverland Seas ”I blame you.” Yeah, I disagree, Emma. For one thing, this plays a pretty small part of the overall story. For another, while they tried to convince her of what to do, it was Emma’s ultimate decision to do it. As she says, “We’re the same age. We have equal amounts of wisdom.” For a third, their decision, while endangering Henry, saved Regina. For a fourth, the only people’s faults for Henry’s capture are Greg and Tamara. *sighs* Look, I get Emma’s grief and worry, but this writing direction doesn’t feel genuine for her to deflect blaming Snow and David. It feels like a conflict was thrown in so that there would be more of a disconnect between her and her family. I love Emma, but I can admit when a scene makes her completely unsympathetic despite the framing telling me otherwise, and this is a prime example. And here’s the thing: This never comes up again! Emma doesn’t apologize to them. This moment is utterly pointless!

The importance of teamwork is the big theme of this segment and once we get over that hiccup of a scene as I just mentioned, it’s delivered incredibly effectively. The conflicts between the characters, both internal and external, are incredibly real and no one is holding back. And the twist of those conflicts causing the storm is handled well! Rumple presents the bare essence of the theme, about Emma’s lack of belief, and because he chooses to go off on his own, the narrative has him fail by putting him into a traumatising position, whereas Emma’s belief in their abilities as a team and, in correlation with Rumple’s speech, herself, allows for the rest of the Nevengers to succeed.

Neverland Island So I have a nice bit to say about this segment, but it all applies to my “Favorite Dynamics” segment, so you’ll see that down there!

Enchanted Forest There’s not really much to be said about the story other than I liked it. That’s not to say that I didn’t like it or I didn’t appreciate the characters re-introduced or the interactions between them, but it was rather simple and that just doesn’t leave me a lot to talk about in terms of a breakdown of themes of major character actions. Still, the pacing was nice and the story was engaging!

Insights - Stream of Consciousness -So I didn’t realize that Emma giving birth to Henry was the first scene of the season. For some reason, I was under the impression that it happened at the start of “Coming Home,” but I honestly love it being here. Immediately, you get the sense that this arc was well planned so that it could return to this moment at the end of “Coming Home.”

-Also, I love that flicker of light as Emma gives birth! Such a special part of Emma’s life -- one filled with both joy and misery as she decides to give Henry away -- deserves the magical treatment!

-I seriously got choked up as Emma denied her chance at being Henry’s mother from the start. There’s so much love for him from the start and while it’s causing her so much pain, she’s doing what she thinks is best for him. And the gentle and yet powerful way the theme plays in the background just kills me. Swan Believer forever!

-Damn, what a cool way to go back to the present! We’re put right in the action, not missing a minute of the adventure.

-I will NEVER get over how much I love hearing Killian say “Neverland.” Whether in “The Crocodile” or here, Colin puts so much energy into the word, encompassing the danger and adventure to be found there.

-”It’s a good thing you guys don’t ask any questions.” My sentiments exactly, Henry!

-”More time than I care to remember trying to leave this place to kill Rumplestiltskin.” This provides some interesting insight into Killian’s character. It implies (to me) that he devised his Dreamshade plan with quite a few years to spare before his escape, whereas I always assumed that the planning took most of the time and that the escape was just a pinch of time towards the end.

-”Villains don’t get happy endings.” It’s incredible that this line, said by a character that left so little of an impression, is what follows Regina, Rumple, and Killian throughout basically the rest of the series.

-”That’s a great use of our time. A wardrobe change.” To be fair, Killian, Rumple’s not going to be in fighting shape sporting a Calvin Klein suit. This...honestly weird ass outfit makes the most sense.

-”You don’t believe in your parents, you don’t believe in magic, or even yourself.” Talk about a kickass line of foreshadowing of all that she’s going to overcome by the end of this arc!

-”When have you ever taken a real leap of faith?” Give it about a half hour, Rumple!

-So I must say, it’s funny that a lack of evidence is brought up as such a big story element here, but once Tink enters the picture, it’s her need for evidence as to the safety of their voyage back that secures it. A bit of dissonance, but nothing too severe.

-I love how Rumple spins his cane as he disappears. Rumple is the most beautifully extra person across the realms.

-I probably should’ve discussed this last time, but I love the design for the Lost Boys. They give off this air of being lost souls and their numbers stand to make them very intimidating.

-So going off of Greg’s death as well as the events of “Awake,” I’m gonna say that a shadow rip doesn’t necessitate death unless the shadow ripper wants it to mean death.

-”No time for questions.” I like that subtle line that’s in tune with Greg and Tamara’s line of no asking questions, foreshadowing the revelation about him.

-Damn! JMO is strong!

-The dialogue in the scene with Neal, Mulan, Aurora, and Phillip flows so naturally!

-”How long was he with you?” ”Long enough for me to know that I miss him, too.” I normally don’t make timeline jokes, but...come onnnnn!

-”I will not be capsized by fish.” This may be my new favorite David line.

-Also, any pretense that murder leaves any long-lasting effects of Snow and David go the fuck away when David tries to kill mermaids.

-Why didn’t Regina get rid of them earlier?

-”If Pan wants you, he WILL get you.” This line is delivered so well. Pan is not only just barely holding out from outright bragging, but is trying to deteriorate Henry’s belief and seeing that it isn’t working, cementing his part to play in Pan’s ploy.

-”Lead the way.” Am I the only one humming “Follow the Leader?”

-I like how, until Rumple enchants her, Tamara physically can’t talk. Very realistic.

-You know, everyone talks about heart colors when it comes to Rumple, Regina, Snow, and Killian, but does anyone notice how Tamara’s heart was pretty freakin’ red when Gold crushed it?

-Did no one read “Lord of the Flies?” Get the conch shell away from your enemies!

-”Filet the bitch.” I’m starting to think that all of my favorite character lines in this show have to do with aquatic life.

-”We need to think this through.” Emma, that why they’re shouting at each other. They’re discussing the matter.

-Okay, so I’m not the biggest Robin Sr. fan (And I’m hoping that this rewatch changes that for the better), but this was a solid entrance. It feels iconic, plays to the character’s power and good nature, and the more neutral yet noble tone that the scene requires plays well to Sean’s strengths.

-”See these markings? He was keeping track of me growing.” Awwwww!!! Papafire moment! That was necessary and beautiful!

-I just realized, this is our intro to blood magic! Cool!

-”I ruined YOUR life?” Regina, please. I thought we were past that…

-”Don’t call my wife a slag!” Yeah, Killian. You deserved the fuck outta that punch.

-I love the music that plays during the flying sequence! It’s gorgeous, distinct, and whimsical!

-CAPTAIN CHARMING BROMANCE!!! We have taken off!

-So I’m guessing that Rumple has encountered Felix at least one or two times.

-”Each of us have been too busy being at each other’s throats to be believers.” Those things aren’t correlated.

-”We need to do this the right way.” “No, we don’t. We just need to succeed.” YESSSS! Emma! That is my girl! She gets her tactics from her mama!!

-”It’s easier to get people to hate something than to believe.” That’s...incredibly accurate.

Arcs - How Are These Storylines Progressing? Everyone Working Together AND The Mission to Save Henry- ”It’s time for all of us to believe, not in magic, but in each other.” Emma’s speech took a sentence to get going, but once it did, DAMN did it get good! Now, as one gleams from this episode, these two arcs are one and the same. The only way Henry is saved is by working together, and this episode completely captures why that’s so important.

Emma Accepting Her Parents - This second-part-of-an-arc got off to SUCH a weak start, and that’s frustrating because I KNOW it gets better from here. But what I said above does apply.

Greg and Tamara - “We don’t ask questions. We just believe in our cause.” Holy crap. Tamara and Greg went from being two pretty intelligent and well designed villains into being total morons. I will say, part of me is glad that they did because if not, their conflict would’ve been way too close to a science vs. religion debate for comfort. But they also die here. To be honest, if anyone but Rumple was to find one of them, I’d rather it have been Greg who got the additional moments of life to speak and allow for Henry to get away. His story, well, was actually a story, whereas Tamara’s connection to Neal is loose at best.

Killian’s Redemption - Killian’s redemption takes an honest-to-goodness step forward. He’s acting on his decision to care about someone other than himself (And that shows through the two people aboard the ship that can stand him), but still has quite a bit of his verbal firepower and contempt (Towards David and Rumple) that reminds us of his villainous past and that his redemption won’t be all sunshine and rainbows.

Rumple’s Redemption - Rumple takes what is a realistic step back, though I’m not even certain I should call it a step back. Despite being his Rumple-y self, the narrative makes it very clear that his decision to dessert the group and chastise them beforehand are made on behalf of the mission to save Henry. And as we see the personal trials he’s already taken on in this pursuit with the confrontation with Pan’s minion, there’s so much power that grows with these decisions.

Regina’s Redemption - Regina also takes a step back into some of her more vicious tendencies: hating on Snow, defaulting to magic and violence for all her solutions. I personally like this because while there’s an understanding that these people are family, the anger and resentment between Regina and them is still present and in the heat of the moment, Regina won’t forget it. I will say, the Regina Blames the World trope is back and it still annoys me, though slightly less so here because the framing wasn’t going for sympathy in that moment.

Favorite Dynamic Henry and Pan. Pan’s dynamic with Henry sets up perfectly the kind of monster he will be for the rest of the season. He’s an incredible manipulator and plans out everything he says in order to activate Henry’s belief just when he needs to. Look at the way he set up the pixie dust and how that moment pays off! It’s makes for a triumphant moment that becomes terrifying in hindsight. But what makes this dynamic work so well is how it is set up. In the few minutes we see before Pan’s disguised appearance, Neverland has shown itself to be a cruel place. The location itself is darkly lit and the two villains of the previous season are violently murdered. Because of that, we as an audience clutch to Pan just as Henry does and because of that, for the first time, our belief causes suffering as the deception is exposed.

Writer Adam and Eddy, as usual start up the season! And I honestly like it. A lot of it is good! I’d compare it to the Season 1 finale where it’s a good mix of story and character moments (And just like in the Season 1 finale, has a completely pointless and aggravating moment, but thankfully, this one doesn’t mean a lot)! I feel like the characters were put in a solid place where they have room to grow and are put somewhere that keeps them intimate and gives them opportunities for great dynamics!

Rating 9/10. This episode is a great way to start off the season! The settings and themes have been set up well, and the characters are in good form! It’s exciting and adventurous, but nerve racking all the same. It makes me super excited for what’s to come!

Flip My Ship - The Home of All Things “Shippy Goodness” Captain Swan - Look, season 2 was not Captain Swan’s golden time for shipping (For me, at least), but Season 3 is here and they are glorious! Killian is incredibly respectful of Emma, comforts her over her worries, addresses underlying grief she has for Baelfire, and supports her as she prepares for Neverland’s horrors. It’s honestly amazing! Also, Emma and Killian are sailing the Roger together during the storm!! They’re working together and it is the BEST!!! Ship of dreams...quite literally! Swanfire - And don’t think I forgot about Swanfire! Both Emma’s grief and Neal’s devotion to getting back to her is such a big presence in this episode. “Tell Emma I’m alive, and that I love her.” Letting Emma know that he’s both okay and loves her is Neal’s main priority and that’s just incredible! And I loved Neal’s scene with Mulan as he discusses his regrets leaving Emma. <3

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Woohoo! Season 3 is off to a solid start and I can’t wait to take the rest of Peter Pan’s Flight! Thank you for reading and to the fine folks at @watchingfairytales!

Next time...I don’t know. Reader, help me out, cause I’m lost...girl… ;)

See you guys then!

Season 3 Total (9/220)

Writer’s Scores: Adam and Eddy (9/60)

Operation Rewatch Archives

#ouat #once upon a time #watching fairytales #ouat 3x01 #ouat rewatch #jenna watches ouat

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sockablock · 6 years

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From Where We Came (Ch. 1)

I couldn’t stop thinking about backstories and now I think I’m going to do a whole thing for the whole party, so here’s Jester first cause she has the most revealed ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ thanks for reading!

Word Count: 1,606

From Where We Came (Ch. 1)

Jester sits in her room, alone.

Out the western bay window, she can see ships and boats bobbing on the gleaming waves of what Mother calls the Lucidian Ocean. Mother knows the names of everything, even of things that Jester has never seen before. Sometimes, when Mother has a chance, she lets Jester climb into her lap and together, they test out the names of all they can see in Jester’s view of Nicodranas, from the big domed temple of the Storm Lord, to the little pastry shop right along the coast. Jester has tried the pastries from there many times; when she is good Mother will bring her doughnuts and cakes, along with gifts from “the beach.” There are many things to find on the beach, according to Mother, especially during her long walks with the people that like to come and take her away from the house. Jester’s bureau sports a growing assortment of these presents, sometimes giant clam shells or spiraling conches or obsidian mussels or bone-white starfish. Jester loves collecting the things Mother brings, and hopes one day, she can walk along the sand and find them herself.

Until that happens, though, Jester will settle for giggling from up, up in her room, out the window at beautiful carriages and the tiny shapes of sailors and merchants and make up stories about them through the glass. She wonders if all people are so tiny like these, and if she and her Mother are the only big people there are. She will have to ask Mother this, when she comes to visit again.

But sometimes—and Jester calls these the bad days—Mother won’t come see her for a very, very long time.

This happens more as Jester gets older, as Mother starts forcing Jester to read all of the books that sit untouched on her desk, as Mother tells her to practice her singing and her painting, as Mother starts yelling at her and hurting her for being too loud, too disruptive, I can’t do my work with you around all the time, Jester!

You must be quiet, she says with steely eyes. Nobody can know you are here.

Jester doesn’t like the men and ladies that take up Mother’s time. But Mother insists that they are very nice people, and more than that, they give her all the money that lets Jester have nice things. And Jester—whose entire life is a smiling Mother who brings her beautiful dresses and lacy ribbons and shiny rings and gave her the silk sheets and the glittering inkwell and lovely toys and the huge bay window and one, gorgeous room—understands.

So she keeps quiet. And everything, for a very long time, continues to be quiet.

Jester sits in her room, alone.

Now she is much older, or at least she thinks so, and asks Mother again and again when she will be allowed to leave her room. Mother never really gives her an answer to this, but always tells Jester, one day.

Jester decides that today will be that day. Or rather, tonight will be that night.

She has been preparing for this moment. She’s practiced sneaking around the house, though she sticks to the upstairs hallway that holds hers and her mother’s room. The carpets are plush and a deep red so dark and rich it invokes a very specific feeling that Jester isn’t quite mature enough to understand yet. There are marble and silver statues lining the corridor that Jester ducks behind any time she hears footsteps coming from downstairs, or from behind her mother’s door. She sometimes musters up enough bravery to peek down the staircase, past the poles of the ornate banister, but she has never before been able to convince herself to take a step. She knows that down below, there’s a beautiful golden chandelier, smooth tiles, but nothing else.

Dreaming of the world outside her room, Jester squeezes stuffed animals beneath her blanket in a tiefling-shaped bundle. Then she moves to the wardrobe. She knows, from things that Mother says sometimes, that not everybody will be alright with her horns and her tail. They are jealous, she assumes, but she is wise enough to know that jealousy can be a dangerous thing. So she pulls her nicest blue cloak over her head, and tucks her tail into her skirt even though it’s kind of uncomfortable. She slips on some brown boots and ties her little pouch onto her belt. She listens at the wall and can her hear mother in the middle of a song, one of Jester’s favorites, a slow and sad melody about a girl lost at sea. This song means her mother is right now showing off to a new client, and since it is evening, she will be busy for hours.

She snuffs out her candles, and slips out the door.

Jester sits in her room, alone. There are tears running down her face. It is dark.

The first hour had been wonderful, better than anything she could ever have dreamed up herself. The glowing strings of lights between the colorful buildings had looked like stars, and there were people—huge, tall people!—milling about and laughing and smiling at every corner. She had bought a doughnut off a man who looked very confused about the five gold she had paid him, and was told by a nice lady that her dress was pretty. She had stopped and smelled huge red flowers growing by the side of a building, and had watched golden birds flit across the evening sky. A nice stranger in a long cloak like hers pointed her towards “the beach” when she asked, and she skipped along the cobblestone path, under the faint warm glow of the streetlights, until she got there.

It went wrong, so very wrong, when she was caught fixing a merchant’s cart. She thought it would be funny if she mixed around the trinkets and shiny baubles he had lying around. She wasn’t stealing, she was just trying to make him laugh. But the man, hornless and tail-less, had not believed her. She could remember the anger in his eyes, the way he called her “little devil,” and the fear that churned in her chest when he picked up a large wooden stick from behind his stall and started moving closer. For a moment, his tangled black hair was beautiful deep red curls and his clenched teeth were pointed and the stick was a candlestick and Mother was very, very angry with Jester and she didn’t mean to do it, she just tripped in her room and please mother I promise I’ll be good I’m sorry I’ll be quiet—

—and now Jester refuses to let a sound escape her. Her cloak is lying on the bed, ripped. It had gotten caught on something as she was running back to her room, from the scary man and his scary friends and something else pounding in her tired little heart.

She wants to try and comfort herself with a song, but knows that if she wakes anybody up next door, Mother really will be angry with her. She can never know that Jester had been outside her room, let alone outside the house. So Jester buries her face into a stuffed owlbear and shakes in the quiet.

And then a warm hand gently touches her on the shoulder. She almost flinches away, hard, but the gesture is so comforting and so peaceful that she finds herself relaxing slightly.

And then she hears a voice, lilting and calm, echoing in the back of her mind.

It wasn’t your fault, Jester.

She looks around, holding the owlbear close to her chest. “…hello?” She whispers as quietly as she dares.

Hello, Jester.

Her voice is barely a breath on the wind. “How do you know my name?”

I know a lot of things. I am a god.

Growing excitement makes her voice quiver. “A god?” she asks. “Like the Storm Lord or the Dawnfather or the Annoying Mistress or the—”

She breaks off when the stranger starts chuckling. Oh, that’s a good one. I’ll remember that one. No, I’m not a god like they are. And before Jester can get disappointed the voice says, I’m a different kind of god. I’m not looking for servants or worshippers. I’m just looking for a friend. And you seem to be someone who might also want a friend.

Jester’s eyes widen. “I do!” she says just a little bit louder than she intended, “I want one really badly. Will you be mine? I have lots of toys and books that we can share, and oh, I can tell you all about today! It was very, very cool, mostly.”

I’d like that, says the voice.

“What should I call you, if we’re going to be friends?”

How about…the Traveler?

Jester beams, though she still isn’t sure where to look. “It is very nice to meet you, the Traveler,” she says quietly. “Would you like to hear about the flowers I saw today?”

Why don’t you show me? A breeze suddenly stirs through the room, and a little, leather-bound sketchbook that had been lying on Jester’s desk briefly flies open. A charcoal stick rolls off a nearby shelf, and bumps into it.

I hear you’re a very good artist, says the Traveler.

“I am!” Jester whispers excitedly.

She rushes over to the desk, dragging a cushioned stool to the space on her right so her new friend can watch her draw. And as her charcoal darts across the blank pages, for the first time in a very, very long time, Jester sits in her room. And she is not alone.

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kkojin-blog · 6 years

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lord of the flies | mock trials

hi everyone!! i played jack merridew in my senior year mock trial, and i had a really hard time figuring out how to answer anything because there is literally no sources on the internet to even slightly help jack defend himself. there is a few, yes, but they’re mostly written by sixth graders or the opposition, so i decided to help all the jack merridews and the defence team lawyers of the world by posting everything i wrote, answered and behaved as jack. i should probably announce right away that my team did not win the mock trial, but that was because the character witnesses we had besides me were not prepared to be cross-examined, so this is also a friendly reminder to tell your buddies to pick up their slack!! jack can’t do it by himself.

Direct examination:

1) Summarize your childhood.

I was born to a rich family who often spoiled me with materialistic luxuries, and sent me to a PEDAGOGIC education facility on top of the additive tutoring classes, however, due to my diligence in my work, I did not have a single friend, as a friend would have “tainted the teaching” as my mother used to state- i did not have much of a social life, at least until i became leader of choir.

2) Why did you leave Ralph’s tribe?

I left Ralph’s tribe because his way of leadership wasn’t fun at the time.

(rules (make this! make that! collect fruit!, meetings.)

3) What was it like under Ralph’s leadership?

Ralph was rather drab as he listened to mostly piggy’s ideas. (conch, uhh, rules, uhh, can i get a number 15, burger king foot lettuce

4) What happened on the night of Simon’s death?

At the start we had prepared meat to be eaten. I supplied even Ralph himself with meat. Nobody objected the meal, except probably andrew, and after the feast we did our dance and we saw a dark figure moving in the bushes. Alarmed, we attacked. Afterwards, we found it was Simon.

5) Why did you become chief?

I became chief because the lifestyle I offered was more appealing to the boys than Ralph’s. No prepubescent boy wants to spend his time lugging around materials for huts or picking coconuts off trees.

6) What was it like when you arrived to the island?

It was unUSUAL, like it would be, for any one of the boys. I doubt anyone wanted to crash-land onto some mysterious island. ← this is a really weak answer idk

7) How did you start to feel after spending some time on the island?

I felt better about the situation. It was clear that we needed someone to lead, so I offered to do so.

8) Can you tell us about the events leading up to Piggy’s death?

We had taken piggy’s glasses because we needed them to start a cooking fire to feed the tribe. Afterwards, Ralph’s group came to come get them back. After some heated conversation, Roger got too riled up and triggered the lever that fell onto Piggy and the conch.

9) How did you adjust after you returned back to civilization?

(something along the lines of: when i got back to civilization, the presence of adults and rules led me to return to my civilized self)

I did go to an approved school, after I saw the contrast of myself at home and on the island, which I did continue until I was a young man. After the island, I can safely say that I did return to my old self. (say that without the governing of laws or adults we had all descend into savagery?)

( it helps so so much to memorize your affidavit. )

Affidavit:

SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED KINGDOM

LONDON, ENGLAND

GREAT BRITAIN )

)

Plaintiff, )

)

vs. )

)

JACK MERRIDEW, )

)

Defendant. )

_____________________)

For a verdict of Innocence

Hello, my name is one I’m sure you’re all familiar with; Jack Merridew. I am the accused of this case, for which brings me to a type of desolation but which I acknowledge fully. For the purpose of the court, I have been asked to prepare a small insight into my life, prior to arriving on the island, and after the incidents that befell upon all of us.

I’ll begin as early as my memory allows; I was a promising child, born to a affluent family. My parents were good to me, and I had a sheltered childhood where I did not have much chance to experience the outside world; they carried me into my adolescence, for which I respect them deeply. I always did well in school, attended tutoring classes to refine my skills, most of which required me to be very focused, which broadened my book smarts, but restricted crucial knowledge of basic human behaviour. And most importantly; I always got high grades in choir, which eventually found me to become the leader of the school choir. I had to order the other boys to do tasks often, which was quite a different experience than I was used to, and I figured I was good at it after some time.

Naturally, when we arrived on the island, due to the fact I had already had experience leading, which Ralph did not, I felt it was necessary to appoint me as the group’s leader. I felt unsettled when I did not originally gain power, because I then believed I had all the traits necessary of a leader. Arguably, when I did obtain leadership, I was a leader of questionable practices. Perhaps this was because I was so used to the laws and order of the society I had been groomed into that I became overwhelmed when I suddenly had to create my own. On the island, we were forced to take actions in our own hands, and make decisions for the group instead of the individual, which sometimes doesn’t parallel with what’s ethical. After my experience on the island, I pleaded my parents to send me to an approved school so I could forget the island in sort of skewed way, to which I attended until I was a young adult. Now I exist as a quiet young teacher, working in the same area I had grown up in-- London, that is-- I teach history and also instruct a single after school music class. As I aged, I felt a growing sense of remorse towards those wronged on the island, but not once did I ever feel as if I was indebted to them nor their families.

In my experience leading the boys of the island, I had to experience many tragedies that I feel sorrowful towards but not liable for... I am mainly being blamed for the situations because of my position of power over the other boys, which I understand. As an eyewitness of the events that came upon the island, I feel responsibility to give my truth to the story.

During my time on the island, I was subjected to many unfamiliar situations. for instance, the death of the child with the mulberry birthmark, the first tragedy to come about. The child died, presumably from the fire that had accidentally devastated a small part of the island while we attempted to make signal fire. This is where my questions arose for the usefulness of the signal fire that Ralph pushed so insistently began.

The second death was Simon’s. Simon’s passing was the result of ignorance on our parts. We believed he was the beast, we had limited vision due to the darkness of night and Simon was crawling through the bush, where we could not possibly see. Simon’s death, although a terrible occurrence, was not murder; we simply had no idea. Finally, the death of Piggy heeds a similar answer; we hadn’t the simplest clue that he was to die, as Roger pulled the lever and Piggy, without his specs, could not spot the boulder in time to move out of the way. Although we had nicked Piggy’s specs, We had no idea that this would have been the cause of his untimely demise, therefore I cannot claim responsibility for something that was not my doing.

Character Sketch:

Parent’s names:

Mother (Anne Taylor Merridew, maiden name Millar)

Father (William Merridew)

School attended prior to the island : Westminster Abbey Choir School (London)

School attended post-island : St Peter’s school (York)

Age on the island: 14

Age now: 24

Past residence: Monck street, house no. 12

Current: Tufton street, house no. 102

I am playing Jack Merridew, a fictional main character from Lord of the Flies. In the novel, Jack is portrayed as a very hard-headed, aggressive young leader with a lot of spite built up in him for Ralph and some of the other boys on the island. He preys on weakness, and dislikes societal order. For my own entertainment purposes, I have distinctly chosen Jack to hide this side of him and have the appearance of a very reasonable, calm man who wants nothing but resolve between himself and the families that feel wronged by him.

I intend to play Jack to have very indifferent behaviour. I’ll make it so that Jack appears to be very analytical and calculating, conscious of his own actions, but on the inside he actually doesn’t care that much for the deaths of the two boys, because they are seen as an irrelevance to him, especially since he doesn’t think their deaths were caused by him. Jack will be quite sure of himself, but not cocky, as he wants to appear as if he’s had a huge humbling from the island, although he perhaps really hasn’t changed that much, aside from being more discreet about his callous ways.

Jack will have some quirks, like blinking when he is faced with a question that he knows he can answer perfectly, and he will have a tendency to smile and stare directly at those prosecuting him to show his confidence, especially if they’re asking him a question he doesn’t think he can answer, so he doesn’t show his nervousness. Jack, deep-down, may have more insecurities than the other boys. He needs reassurance and safety, and without it he feels like he’s walking blind.

pointers:

+ be vague in your answering, but not too vague. the only thing they could object to during my cross-examination was my contempt of court, e.g: dancing around the subject, not answering and adding a bunch of random things to the answer, like; “it was a beautiful day, the sun was out--” i’m a writer so i had to try really hard not to do this.

+ do not show nervousness. it’s really hard to be confident on the stand, but you should try your best. there is usually a reason that the teacher chooses you to be jack!

+ at the end of the day, remember that this is just a class project. i probably had ten million panic attacks the days leading up to the mock trial, and that’s not ok. if you need someone to give you peace of mind, my message box is open!!

#lord of the flies #lotf #jack merridew #lord of the flies mock trial #mock trial #school #education #ralph #simon

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twobrokewriters · 7 years

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Hetalia: Self-Image (Russia x America

Author: Admin Sunny

This is a short piece I wrote a while back and abandoned for a while, then recently came back to and finished. I’m still working on Level Up!, and I’ll post the next chapters when they’re done.

“Are you ready to go, Ivan??” the eager American asked. In typical fashion, Alfred was wearing red sunglasses on top of his head, and American flag patterned swim trunks.

“Go where?” Ivan shyly asked, looking up from his book. Alfred couldn't read the Russian writing on the cover but it depicted a young boy, covered in grass and dirt, and clad in a badly tattered school uniform, holding a conch shell to the sky.

“To the beach, of course!” Alfred ran over and snatched the book out of his hands. “What do you THINK we were going to do, go to the moon??”

“I just wanted to read is all, Fedya…” The Russian made a grab for his book again, but Alfred held it just out of his reach.

“Come on and get dressed so we can go,” Alfred commanded. “The waves won't be THIS sick all day!”

Ivan sat there, fuming.

“That's because you're in my lap,” he said. Alfred was leaning onto Ivan, one knee in his lap and the other leg on the floor.

“Oh,” he said, and got off of him.

Ivan got up, acted like he was going to take a step towards the stairs, then snatched his book out of Alfred’s hand and ran onto the back patio.

“That's not fair, Ivan!” he shouted, and burst the back door open. “I just wanted to go somewhere and have fun with you! Why are you being such a stick in the mud??”

“I'm not a stick in the mud,” Ivan corrected him. “I just don't want to go to the beach…”

Alfred took the book from his hands again. “Quit reading and tell me why you're being so boring!” he demanded. Alfred had decided was going to take Ivan to the beach, whether he liked it or not.

“Alfred, I'm sorry, but I just would rather not go. If we can go someplace else, then I will consider. Otherwise, give me back my book, because I still have yet to find out if someone kills Jack!”

“Oh God,” Alfred spat. “If you don't come on, I'm going to spoil the ending.”

“You wouldn't,” Ivan said.

Alfred opened the book and smirked. “Everyone wants to throw Jack into the ocean, then aliens touch down on the island,” he said. “Then they abduct Jack but nobody else. After they try to put his brain in the conch, they settle for ripping him apart atom by atom. And these aliens are giant bugs. That's why it's called Lord of the Flies!! Because their king orders Jack's atoms scattered on their planet. Oh, and everyone else dies in a massive nuclear explosion. The end!” Alfred hadn't ever read Lord of the Flies, not had he seen more than a few seconds of the movie when it was on TV once, but he figured Ivan wouldn't be able to tell.

Ivan glared at him. “Aliens? Really?” He sighed. “I know that's not what happens, but I'm still not going with you!”

“Why not??” Alfred implored once more.

“Because!” he spat. Ivan finally gave up on getting his book back, and sat in the patio chair, fuming.

“Because what??” Alfred begged of him. “Quit giving me ambiguous answers!”

“There's no way I'm putting on a stupid looking swimsuit just to sit out there in the heat and sand and thrash around in lukewarm saltwater while everyone else points and laughs and goes ‘Look at that stupid fat guy!!!’” Ivan sighed in exasperation. “Does that explain it enough for you?”

Alfred stopped. “That's...that's why you didn't want to go?” he weakly asked.

“That's why,” Ivan affirmed, staring down at the way his stomach made a bulge in his coat. He attempted to flatten it out with his hands but every time he removed them, the offending bulge bounced back to its original position. “Look at me, I’m hideous! I look like a giant baby!”

“Babies are cute,” Alfred pointed out.

“A really, really, really ugly baby,” Ivan sighed, intensely staring at his stomach and thighs, as if he could make the fat disappear by thinking about it. “Be honest with yourself, I’m hideous. There is literally nothing about me that another guy doesn’t do much better than I could- especially looking attractive. I simply don’t get why you’d want me, of all people, to be your boyfriend.”

“I can’t stand to hear you talk that way about yourself! God, you must have no idea what you look like!” Alfred cried, in utter disbelief at how much Ivan despised himself. “Do you even know how many shades of purple your eyes are?? That sparkling, vibrant violet light that’s always there? And don’t even get me started on how cute your smile is, or the way your nose is perfectly shaped... And how could I forget to mention your hair? I can just hardly keep myself from…” Alfred trailed off as he bent over and ran his fingers through Ivan’s fair, soft hair. His hands dropped back to his sides with a sigh. “You just can’t see it how I can. Even the stuff you hate about yourself is cute! Your face is so adorably round and I just love the way your cheeks feel on my lips. There’s nothing quite like the softness of your arms around me, or how laying my head on your stomach feels like a pillow... You think they’re flaws but I think they make you just that much more perfect.”

Ivan blushed, as he always did when Alfred said nice things about him. He never liked being complimented because somewhere deep inside, he thought that the other person was being sarcastic, or he just plain didn’t believe them. With his trust issues, it was a bit of both in this case. As much as he loved Alfred, he still worried like crazy that he wasn’t good enough for him.

“Ivan, do you even know how cute that is??” Alfred cried. “Your cheeks are this really cute shade of pink!!” Without another moment’s thought, Alfred found himself almost jumping into Ivan’s lap and planting kisses all over Ivan’s face until his cheeks were fuschia and Alfred was sure there wasn’t a single spot on Ivan’s face he hadn’t kissed.

“You need to shut up with this self-hate talk,” Alfred said. “Cause whatever your reason for hating yourself is, it's lame.”

“Ah….” was all Ivan could say in response. That was pretty cute, what Alfred was doing. Particularly what he was just doing right now, how he was snuggling into his arms and laying his head on his stomach to prove his point.

Ivan probably wouldn’t ever love himself nearly as much as Alfred loved him. He couldn’t see why Alfred loved him but it was then that Ivan realized he didn’t really need a reason. He loved Alfred too, and that was that. He put his book on the table and pulled Alfred up onto his lap so he could get comfortable. It felt so right to both of them, just sitting there in silence on the patio, holding onto each other, the immense love they felt for each other doing all the talking for them.

“So, how about it?” Alfred finally asked a while later. “You wanna go put on your swimsuit and we’ll go to the beach?”

“But what about-” Ivan started.

Alfred cut him off with a look. “Ivan, I swear to God, if you’re going to say something about how you’re going to look stupid on the beach in your swimsuit….”

Ivan decided it would be wise to not finish that sentence- he didn’t want to find out what Alfred was going to do about his negative self-talk the hard way.

“Listen, Ivan, I guarantee you nobody on the beach is going to be laughing at you,” Alfred said, getting up off of his lap. He stood up tall with his chin up like he always did when he wanted to say something really important. “And what the crap should you care about what some strangers think about you?? I bet a million bucks that you’re never going to see any of these people again. There’s no way you’ll be able to impress everyone. That’s just the cold, hard truth. There are always going to be a bunch of butt-wipes who won’t like you no matter how far you bend over backwards to win their admiration. I can’t understand why there’d be anyone out there who doesn’t like you, but that doesn’t change the fact that those stubborn idiots exist. And in my opinion, it’s more important what people you know and care about think of you rather than what people you don’t know think. You don’t need to hang around the people who don’t like you for the wonderful, sweet person you are, Ivan. Why would you go and find more negativity? I’d say we’ve both got plenty of negativity in our lives without purposely trying to find out what a bunch of strangers we don’t care about think about our bodies. You may look different from them, but that doesn’t mean you’re ugly. In my opinion, being fat isn’t ugly, judging people based on their appearances is ugly! Wouldn’t you agree?”

Ivan knew he was right. It was kind of silly for him to be worried about what people he didn’t know thought about him. He couldn’t help but giggle a little bit. “It’s none of their business what my health matters are!” he snorted. A wide smile covered the Russian’s face- it may have been silly that this concept hadn’t occurred to him before, but that didn’t change the fact that he felt liberated. It might hurt to get stared at awkwardly at the time on the beach, as people always did, but Ivan knew that once they got in the car and went home, that moment would be over. Never again would he have to deal with those exact same people and their negativity again. Ivan hugged his boyfriend tightly.

Alfred returned the hug, feeling like he could just melt into those soft folds on Ivan’s torso. They separated from each other, and Ivan stood up.

“I guess I can go look for my swim trunks and a plain shirt,” he said. “I know they’re up there somewhere.”

“Well, let’s not waste any time!” Alfred cried out happily, opening the door for Ivan. “We’ve only got so much sunlight!”

#axis powers hetalia #hetalia #aph hetalia #aph russia #aph america #america x russia #rusame #ivan braginsky #alfred f jones #chubby russia #hetalia fanfiction #fanfic writing #fanfiction #short fiction #tags are really hard #admin sunny #sunny writes

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writings-kalelculver · 7 years

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Gender Theory--Ralph & Jack

Prompt: Using gender theory, write an essay on the notions of sexuality as depicted [or not] in the novel.

Sexuality is a normal phenomenon for the human experience. Most everyone experiences sexual desire at least once in their life. It is normal to want to experience, and to further explore those feelings. Sexuality is a spectrum that has been split up among its terms such as homosexual and heterosexual. These words, and others such as “male and female are likewise constructed and shaped distinctions that are subject to constant change” (Bressler 225). Much like these terms, human behavior changes over time as well; one hardly remains the same person that they once were a few years ago.

In Lord of the Flies, British boys who are marooned on an island in the Pacific Ocean are still have their humanity, and experience these new emotions as they go through puberty. However, these British schoolboys, who have just evacuated from an atomic war zone, choose to explore these new array of emotions in an unconventional manner.

There are suppressed sexual tensions in Lord of the Flies. These tensions can be found in the symbolism, and the boys’ actions. Ralph and Jack are the two foremost characters. They are able to manipulate, and to rein over the rest of the boys, of which they are able to split into two groups. Ralph is known for the conch shell he found, and Jack is known for his hunting. These are two symbols that control the leaders of each group: feminine and masculine. The conch is a symbol of law and order, however, it is desired among the boys because it gives them the power to speak at meetings. This desire for the conch can be compared to lust. Jack on the other hand is the most masculine character in the novel. Jack craves power, he is violent and aggressive. He becomes obsessed with hunting, and its savagery enables him to control the group.

These British boys are not older than twelve, and with Ralph and Jack as leaders’ recklessness arises causing the death of three children, several pigs, and along with an island engulfed in flames. There is passion hidden behind these conflicts between the two leaders. This hidden passion distracts both boys from leading each group, consequently resulting in pain and suffering. Ralph and Jack’s relationship is animalistic in nature, “in many species members of the pair lead a separate life” (Beauvoir, 1949), which also accounts for the boy’s downfall since they are no longer united.

After Ralph was voted chief the boys had their first homoerotic encounter, “[Jack’s] grey shorts were sticking to him with sweat. Ralph glanced at them admiringly” (Golding 23). Children are innocent beings. This may seem just like boyish curiosity, but the next interaction between the two indicates that there is something more. Jack then notices that Ralph is looking, which cause Ralph to lose his train of thought, and needing more time to “think things out” (Golding 23). This interaction, though brief, can be explained by Freud’s genital phase, “at which point the sexes become differentiated” (Beauvoir, 1949). However, there are no woman on the island, and there are no girls around the age of twelve on the island either; which so happens to be the age that puberty starts to begin. The raging hormones that are responsible for puberty will soon kick in. Curiosity by nature is then forced, and Ralph cannot understand why he must be away from Jack to gather his thoughts.

Emotions start to cloud Ralph and Jack’s judgement; the boy with the mulberry birthmark is soon lost at the mountain top. It is presumed that he died in the fire due to negligence among leadership. This foreshadows the devastating trials that the two will face, and causes the other boys to suffer as well. These are same emotions that start to isolate them from the rest of the group as well. Still, the boys are able to bond over this loss, “Ralph [had] found himself alone on a limb with Jack and they grinned at each other, sharing this burden” (Golding 39). For this grin to have take place is uncanny to say the least since it happens after a devastating event, highlighting that there was chemistry between the two suppressed by homophobia of the twentieth century.

The devastation and further destruction that is on its way is a metaphor for the suppression of homosexual tendencies. During the night of the storm, Jack retreats into the forest with a small group of boys after being humiliated by Ralph. Later at night there is a feast and dance. Events earlier in the day triggers the fierce chant, “Kill the beast! Cut his throat! Spill his blood!” and “out of the terror [rises] another desire, thick, urgent, blind” (Golding 152). The passion that was felt by Ralph had evolved into fiery lust that consumes them all except a choirboy named Simon. At this time Simon made his way back to the group after the pig head on a stake spoke to him. During his return “Simon was crying out something about a dead man on a hill” (Golding 152). At this point the other boys do not see him as Simon, but rather the beast. Their lust filled chant now turns into, “Kill the beast! Cut his throat! Spill his blood! Do him in” (Golding 152)! Simon is then murdered by the group. “The taboo against homosexual behaviour (at least among equals) is almost universally a far stronger force than the impulse and tends to effect a rechannelling of the libido into violence” (Millett, 1968). This comes shortly after Jack and the hunters killed a nursing pig, which allowed Jack to prove his masculinity while hiding his inverted emotions. Just like killing the nursing pig allowed Jack to prove his masculinity, participating in the murder of Simon allowed Ralph to reestablish his masculinity as leader to the group, and this also allows for the most feminine character, Piggy, to prove himself as one of the boys. Acts like this are not uncommon, “this association of sexuality and violence is a particularly militaristic habit of mind” (Millett, 1968). It is clear that the boys have now forgotten their upbringing in a civilized society, and now their natural instincts have taken over.

Ralph is the elected chief, but is later betrayed by Jack and his hunters (choirboys). Piggy and the littluns particularly listened to him and the rules, “They obeyed the summons of the conch, partly because Ralph blew it, and he was big enough to be a link with the adult world of authority” (Golding 59). Ralph tries to hold the group together along with Piggy, who is the voice of reason. They both try to pull the group back together when Jack continues to allow his and the hunter’s animalistic instincts get out of control. He tries to do this not only with Jack, but with the rest of the group with the conch. He conch is the symbol of civilization, law and order, and authority. This is a symbol that Jack despises because if he is brought back to reality with the rules of a functioning society, he must face his true emotions as well. By ignoring what the conch stands for and the rules of the conch, he can further disassociate himself and his emotions from the situation, and from Ralph as well until the animalistic instincts evolves into pure savagery.

Hunting is a manly sport; man is up against a beast that must be slain. In Jack’s eyes hunting is more than this, and it is more than a way to make sure that he and the others do not starve. Hunting for Jack is a spiritual journey. It is a way that he can relieve his stress, and to forget about his suppression of his sexuality. Adults have their vices such as drugs, alcohol, gambling, and sex to relieve stress, anger, and to forget the pain that haunts their very lives. With Jack being on a deserted island he has no access to drugs, alcohol, and casinos. His sexual desires are being suppressed. He is not yet willing to give in to his homosexual tendencies. As a way of coping with his sexual desires, Jack hunts. The thrill of the chase is orgasmic to him. That’s why when the first pig got away he was upset, and could barely interact with the other boys. Later on Jack and his hunters are successful in the slaying of a nursing pig. Jack not only initiates the attack for food, but proves to the others that he is a man since this act symbolizes heterosexual intercourse. This is because boys are more likely to be destructive and violent, which means the slaying of the nursing pig would not only provide more food, but also provide Jack with more power and status of being a real man.

Jack devotes a lot of his time getting ready for hunting because he thinks that the pigs do not smell him, but see his pink face. As a result, Jack smears clay on his face and calls it his “dazzle paint” because “[he’s] trying to look like something else” (Golding 63). This form of expression allows for Jack to relinquish his anger and stress to a point where he is a shell of him former self, and his animalistic instincts have taken over. His killing of animals is his alternative passion on the island since he cannot and will not allow himself to have Ralph a romantic way. That would be a form of demasculinization of himself in front of the other boys, especially his hunters. Jack will stop at nothing to prove to his hunters what kind of man he is. He even commands them to kill Ralph with fire. This would allow Jack to further disconnect from his feelings by burning the one person that evokes his passion, and is the center of his current reality. The current reality is what Jack wants to escape from, and create his own. The death of Piggy is caused by this. Jack does not stop Roger from throwing the bolder at Piggy and the conch. Jack did not want to go back to civilization, which would cause him to confront his emotions, and would force him to accept his lust for Ralph. With the death of Piggy and the destruction of the conch, the voice of reason no longer existed, and law and order would cease to exist causing the savage reality to continue on.

Ralph and Jack have different approaches to leadership. Ralph is the leader that the group needs. He wants what is best for the group, even if what is best is unpopular. The unpopularity is a result of the lack of discipline that has yet to enrich the lives of the children because they happen to be so young. Ralph obeys the rules of the conch and he expects the others to do so as well. His leadership style is civil and lacks cruelty, unlike Jack’s leadership regime. Jack leads with pure masculinity, this results in threats and intimidation. Along with this Jack knows what the other boys want, and what the other boys want is to have fun. He also disregards the rules of the conch that Ralph has put into place as chief. When the boys chant, “A fire! Make a fire!” He decided to take control, forgetting the conch, and yelled, “Come on! Follow me” (Golding 38)! Jack is a boy of action, however, his action needed to be complimented with the levelheadedness of Ralph’s leadership style as well. Both of their methods needed each other in order to be employed properly. However, this is not the case because Ralph and Jack are distracted by the underlying tension and desires between them.

Ralph and Jack are polar opposites that cannot work together for the overall benefit of the group. With ineffective leadership, twentieth century ideals, and in a life or death situation, it is clear that the romance between Ralph and Jack would not have flourished in Lord of the Flies. Their relationship had too much tension from the start, even if the romantic undertones are taken out of the equation. Jack had been the leader of the choir before they had even landed on the island. When Ralph was elected chief it took some of Jack’s masculinity away. Some of Jack’s pride is restored when he once again has control over his choirboys as hunters. He then uses that to take total control away from Ralph with his tribe of savages. This attributes to pride; Jack had to take away everything that was given to Ralph. This is because Jack was already insecure with his masculinity, and this not only damaged his masculinity, but it also made him question his sexuality as well. Perhaps if the boys were older it could have worked. Regardless their situation could possibly be too dire for any romance to take flight.

Work Cited

Beauvoir, Simone. "The Second Sex." Marxists Internet Archive. Web. 01 Dec. 2016

Bressler, Charles E. Literary Criticism: An Introduction to Theory and Practice. 5th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1999. Print

Golding, William. Lord of the Flies. Penguin Books: (1954). pgs. Print.

Millett, Kate. “Theory of Sexual Politics.” 1969. Web. 01 Dec. 2016

#lord of the flies #gender theory #writing #Original Work #lgbtq #patriarchy

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cardboardhogs · 7 years

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I grew up in Texas and snow is not a normal thing for me. When i was 9 we had a huge blizzard in San Antonio, 14″ to be exact. It was absolutely nuts…as a kid though, fantastic! It was a freakish event that i will never forget. Rafik and I missed a couple days of school and had the greatest time ever. We watched Chris Marrou tell us about the school closures and hoped it would never end! Our days were filled with bags of sugar to fuel the moments in between epic snowball fights and a rudimentary snow man construction site. It was the greatest of times for every kid in town.

When we were able (forced) to go back to school, our classrooms had so many leaks that we were huddled en masse in the schools gym. A very large, crowded and noisy gym. A gym on the edge of child anarchy. It was one conch away from being a snowy version of Lord of the Flies. The teachers were on edge trying to keep us all in line for the couple of days. We were being taught in a prefabricated building not suited for long division or lessons on social studies. But they did it and they were the real MVP’s that week.

But now…

I’m a tall adult that likes collecting things like cards and books and also likes rap music. I also like familiarity and something i can depend on…surprises don’t work well for me. For the last month or so, my part of Portland has had 3 different weekends of snow…g’darn freakin’ snow!!! Now, don’t get me wrong, snow is cool when you go to it and are able to look at it and touch it. But when it comes to you as an unwanted guest, it’s a bit of an annoyance. We haven’t have had a ruler lengths of snow, but enough to shut the city down a couple of days and keep me from work. It’s also made my snow driving (sliding) skills ratchet up a tick or two.

All the snow that i was surrounded by made me cave and pick up a box of cards with snow flakes on them. Subliminal marketing. Well done Topps, you got me. Now, let’s see what you gave me Topps.

One of the first things i noticed about these cards is the streaking on the card fronts. Half of the cards in the blaster box contained the streaking. Maybe the other bloggers have already touched on this and as usual, i’m late to the party, but it seems that the quality of these cards may have been left to be what they are. Not super upset about it, but a little disappointed with these…especially the Kershaw card.

Another thing that was very noticeable is the large amount of white space, most notably on the landscape cards. Guess that’s the Topps blizzard parallel…? Seems like a little gradient or transparency could have been a savior for Nick’s card.

These cards were awesome in their original issue and Ricky Bones seems to be dressed appropriately for this card, while Mike Trout is attempting to catch a tiny little snowflake. Is snow flake one or two words? snowflake snow flake…

Dickey Flakes should be a cereal, f’real.

Please let me digress a bit here. Not sure if you have heard of Krampus, I hadn’t until about two weeks ago. He’s an incredibly evil Germanic character created to scare the shit out of bad kids…to be honest, i saw a video of him and was a tad scared. We used the Krampus tactic over the holidays to keep our little snowflake/snow flake in line. For the most part it worked…but i feel guilty about it in hindsight. I would point out the window, similar to what Carlos Correa is doing and say “I SEE KRAMPUS!!” and my child of 51 months would run off terrified, similar to what Jed Lowrie is doing. The things parents to do get done what they want to get done the way they want it to get done. Not my best parenting story…but sadly, it yielded the result i was looking for.

We now begin the bumpy snowflake portion of the blog post with a couple winners. Dexter and Kris. It’s a shame Ernie Banks didn’t get to see these guys win the title. RIP #14.

If the card on the left was Steve rather than Nori Aoki, the hair on this pair would be most epic. But it’s just Jacob and Nori.

My game used memorabilia card was Adam Jones which is pretty cool. I really like Adam and often wonder what his career would have been like if the Mariners kept him..also wonder what would the Mariners could have done with his dependability over the incredibly fragile Erik Bedard…hindsight is 50/50 man..

So that’s my highlights from a Wal-Mart box of snowflake cards. Rumor has it we may get some more snow in the next few days up here…remember that we are all snowflakes/snow flakes and nobody is like us…even though those Adam Jones cards are pretty much the same thing.

We’re all a snowflake… I grew up in Texas and snow is not a normal thing for me. When i was 9 we had a huge blizzard in San Antonio, 14" to be exact.

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