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ggukkiedae · 3 years

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[vlive 210522] Seri’s Seritonin 🥝🐱

9pm kst

italics = english; seri answering questions!

the vlive starts with seri logging on and waving

she’s playing new rules in the background and staying quiet for the first two minutes

“moa! how are you all?”

she smiles and reads through the comments

she reads a few out loud and sees a few comments asking her to say i love you in different languages, to which she complies to

she turns off her music first and fixes herself in her chair

“bet you guys are wondering why i’m live today, huh? we’ll get to that in a bit. for now, let’s answer questions”

she looks through the comments carefully until she reads one out loud

Seriiiiiii! 5 Beomgyus or 5-year-old Beomgyu?

she laughs at this

“maybe a five year old bammie. he always makes a big deal of being older than me by a few months, so it would be good pay back”

she then pulls out her phone and scrolls through it before turning it towards the screen. it was a picture of beomgyu as a kid

“see this? he sent this to our groupchat the other day. tiny gyu is cute”

how are youuuuuu?

she claps her hands together and smiles at the live

“i’m doing great, thank you! i’ve been practicing harder, and i feel pretty good”

she scrolls through the comments again and takes a sip of her drink. she lightly mixes her drink around and places it back down

“you guys should try peach tea. it’s a godsend. oh, what’s this?”

shall we go on a date?

“you didn’t turn up at our last date”

she pouted a little and laughed

“i waited at the rooftop for a while, but you didn’t show up! but i guess we can go again because you’re moa”

she shifts a little and shakes her head amusedly at her own words

“do i sound like gyu?”

Hi Seri! I have a couple questions 😊 What has been your favorite era music wise and style wise? What hair style/color do you want to try? What's your current favorite song? What are you looking forward to most?

her eyes widened a little before she looks up trying to come up with answers to the series of questions

“oh, wow, i guess you could say i really liked our songs from the minisode album, but my favorite title track is run away for sure. actually, i take that back. i like the songs on dream chapter magic the most! in terms of style... dream chapter magic as well! i really like new rules’ styling especially”

a small smile makes its way to her face as she’s about to answer the last question from that comment

“right now, i’m really looking forward to our new album, and i hope you’ll like it as well! so far, the tracks are amazing!”

any plans for a comeback with the royals?

“i don’t know” she laughs and looks off camera “what do you think?”

yoonmi’s giggle can be heard while seri just laughed

“you exposed me! anyway, we’ll see when the three of us get an opportunity again” “you guys heard yoonmi”

seri takes the live and points it to the side, revealing the magenta-haired girl peacefully sitting in the dance studio near her while working on something on her laptop

“yoonmi is working on school stuff even if she just released a song yesterday” “responsibilities”

Seri baby are you aware that Seri sounds like berry? Therefore you are now berry Seri or Seri Berry 🤔

“oh, that’s cute! seri berry... i love it! i’m a berry now! i can replace strawberries, i don’t like strawberries”

she wrinkled her nose at the thought of the red berries as the sound of a chair moving came up. seri looked off camera and waved to, supposedly, yoonmi

“yoonmi has a meeting right now, so she’s off. anyway, back to our live”

Hiya Seri how are you liking the new building? What do you think has changed the most about you since you became an idol? And out of the members who do you think has changed most since you debuted?

“the new building is actually the best thing ever, i swear! there’s a lot of space, and the facilities are all high quality! honestly, i’m the only txt member who doesn’t get lost, so it’s pretty funny when the others have to ask for my help to walk around”

she then pressed her lips into a tight line while thinking about her next answer

“since becoming an idol... i think i became more confident. the others tell me this a lot. they say every comeback my stage presence gets better, and i look more comfortable? i also became a better dancer for sure. not the best yet, but i’m working on it. also maybe kai? first of all, he’s gotten way taller now. second, he’s been more mature. yes, he’s still our baby, but he handles things a lot more maturely now. sometimes he acts like he’s older than me as well”

hi bestieeeeeee! what do you think you’d be doing if you weren’t an idol?

“hey, bestie! musical theatre for sure!”

seri immediately perked up at this. she jumped back in her seat a little with the biggest grin while remembering her experiences

“i loved it back in school! honestly, my parents were pretty supportive about my involvement in theatre and my little brother kinda brags to his friends that his sister goes on stages to perform. it’s kinda cute”

would you consider acting? or maybe starring in a musical?

“oh for sure if i were given the chance!”

you dance amazingly! your artist of the month video with studio choom was absolutely perfect!!!!

“oh my god”

she covered her face and groaned before pulling out her phone and looking for the video on youtube. before pressing play, she looked back to the camera

“thank you, but i’m a little embarrassed about this. i wore red lipstick on stage for the first time after debut, and i showed a side of me that’s pretty different…”

she pressed play and watched the video, cringing at herself. it took a whole 20 seconds before she gave up and hid her phone behind her

“nope. nevermind, i can’t watch that. thank you, i’m glad you enjoyed it”

thoughts on the people you’re being shipped with? 👀

she burst into laughter upon reading this

“ah, yes. shipping. i see you guys on stan twitter with your little edits and headcanons and aus! honestly, it’s amusing. apparently most of you ship me with gyu and seungmin? and a few other people, too?”

she was quiet for a while like thinking about who moas shipped her with. she shook her head with and began talking again

“gyu... well, bammie’s my best friend, and i love him a lot. it’s been us from the very beginning, so i like to think we’ll be as close as ever until the end”

“seungmin is the bane of my existence”

she laughed at this before waving her hand

“kidding! he’s actually really nice, and i love hanging out with him, it just so happens our friendship is based on bickering. we do support each other though. seungmin, if you see this, you did well on love poem”

she then lit up as if just remembering something

“some of you guys ship me with chaeryoung! interesting considering you all see me as ryujin’s sibling, but please, i’m not worthy of the queen herself. i love chae with all my heart honestly she’s such a sweet child”

her phone buzzed and she glanced at it a little bit before turning back to the live

“perfect timing because hyunsuk just messaged me and some special ship mentions are hyunsuk and jeno oppa. i think it’s because i hang out with hyunsuk’s little siblings a lot. but jeno oppa? we just met earlier this year, it’s a little funny how apparently a lot of people ship us when we haven’t really shown our friendship much”

she typed something one her phone before chuckling and shutting it off once again. she looked through the comments until she found the topic she was looking for

What’s up with you and Dino? 👀👀👀

“ah, this. this brings me to the reason i went live. recently, you guys have seen me and dino oppa hanging out, right? well, we’re not dating. i wanted it to be a surprise, but he’s helping me with something for my birthday, and i agreed to do something with him for their youtube as well”

her phone rang, and she laughed before picking it up and putting it on speaker

“hello? you’re on speaker” “seri-yah! how dare you deny our relationship?” “oh? you’re watching?” “look up, stupid. i’m standing by the door”

she looked off camera and laughed

“yah! oppa, what are you doing here?” “miya told me you were gonna talk about the scandal, so i thought why not come early?”

dino appears next to seri in a mask and a hat. he nudged seri over to the side so they could both be centered on screen, making her raise her eyebrow at him

“meet my new dance partner” dino points towards seri whose eyes widen as soon as he said that

“they don’t know yet!” “you said we were working on two things together!” “but they didn’t know one of them is dance!” “might as well tell them so we can clear up this rumor before i get attacked by moas”

she sighed at him

“i’d get attacked by carats. anyway, fine. dino oppa’s helping me with a song, and he’s making me dance with him for a video. you can look forward to this in july”

dino adjusted his hat and leaned forward a little

“no need to panic, we’re not in a romantic relationship. she’s too tall for me”

“... you’re literally taller than me though?” “not by that much. if you wear heels, we’d be the same height, and i don’t think i’m up for that”

she playfully rolled her eyes

“looks like i’ve discussed what needed to be cleared up now. i’m single. single.” “yes, they get the point” “oh, would you just go already?”

she was pretending to push him away while he laughed at her failed attempts. he moved off camera but stays in the room

“no way, we’ve got to work the choreography out today”

“this is gonna be a while,” she muttered before smiling at the live once again “well, time for me to go. i’ve got a lot of work to do to be on par with a member of seventeen’s performance team”

dino’s groaning could be heard from the side

“this again?”

she laughed

“bye moa! hopefully that cleared things up, and hopefully you enjoyed this little tmi session”

-end-

#seri.live #seri.freeze #txt 6th member #txt female member #txt female addition #seri #yoon seri

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akp-1327 · 4 years

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dear diary // chapter three

Hey! Long time, no see! I am so, so, so sorry that this chapter is late. I’ve been having a bit of a busy time recently and haven’t had many opportunities to write/edit like usual. But now I have a looser schedule so updates to the series should go back to normal! 😄 I hope you are all doing okay wherever you are! :)

Find the series masterlist here to catch up on the previous chapter!

Word count: 4.6k

(*) Warnings: mentions of bankruptcy and emotional abuse

All I could see was red. The anger that flowed through my veins was terrifyingly smooth, leaving my entire body shaking. The news that my mom just told me, well, sobbed to me, left me in awe. In terrible, heart-wrenching, shocking...awe.

Sweetie, my mom’s sweet and clear voice bellowed through my memory, I’m so sorry. So, so, so sorry, darling.

“Charlotte, you need to calm down. Seriously. I don’t know what’s--” Leila said softly, her hands firm on my shaking shoulders.

At a time like this, I didn’t need her soothing me. I needed her to slap me out of this impending doom that I thought would tear me apart. I needed to get a grip on reality, to comprehend that this entire nightmare was actually happening.

“Leila, do you know what my mom just told me?” I huffed, throwing my phone onto the tidy bed that I had just made. Our first night in New York had started off amazingly, as if it was taken straight out of a movie; we met new and amazing people, found Leila’s wayward bag, explored the dorm building...

Then, when called my mom once we got back to our dorm...everything came crashing down like a colossal, teetering tower of Jenga blocks.

Leila scowled at me then, squeezing my shoulders harder. Her eyes, usually a coffee bean brown, looked inky black when her entire demeanor changed from confused to quite ticked off. I immediately regretted the tone I used, though there was no going back now.

“Does it look like I do? God, you can be so dense sometimes!” Leila stated, glaring right into my eyes with a look that sent a chill down my spine. “Something’s up and you need to tell me immediately.”

This wasn’t something that I thought I could even have the guts to say. But, sooner than I though, words started forming on the tip of my tongue at the speed of light; but one stood out in particular, one chilling me to the bone.

“Bankrupt.”

This set her back, making her hands falter a bit on my shoulders.

“What? Charlotte, I need deta--”

“The diner, Leila.”

The words slowly tore my heart into microscopic pieces. Every notable memory I had from my childhood took place at the diner. I could distinctly remember the scent of buttermilk pancake batter being mixed and the sounds of plates being stacked. I could remember the outside, the bright yellow paint standing out against the lifeless gray colors of the neighborhood that it’s surrounded by.

“T-The Golden Griddle?” Leila asked, confusion consuming her features once more. The intense look in her eyes slowly fizzled out and turned into pure fret. As she’d always been, Leila was not well-composed in these types of situations.

“Yes. There’s just too many complications with the building, too many expenses and so little money...” I sighed sadly. Tears welled in my eyes, though I didn’t need to show Leila that. And so, with a deep breath, I sniffled and shook my head to clear the emotions away. “My dad spent what he could to fix the cheaper things like the light fixtures and seats, but then he got carried away with fixing the rest of the bigger issues. It all added up over time, Leila. Now the diner...the diner doesn’t have anything left.”

The diner had so, so many issues for such a long time. The interior, for as long as I could remember, was small. There were only ten tables, half of those being booths that lined the walls, in total. The kitchen was also considerably compact for the amount of business that the diner would face. My parents always wanted to get around to renovate properly, but could never keep up with the overwhelming amounts of money spent on necessities like ingredients, napkins, utensils, advertisements...so DIY projects and repairs it was.

“But your parents still own it, right? They can bounce back?”

My heart yearned to be at home with my family. Why would I leave? God, I really am dense. Forget school, forget dreams. Home is where I should’ve been when that news was unveiled, not thousands of miles away.

“No. I guess the health inspector said that there were so many things with the building that set off a lot of red flags. He condemned it right on the spot.”

Leila’s eyebrow’s furrowed in thought. It was never easy for me to talk about these things - the serious things - with her. Of course, though, she knew almost everything about me; she knew that I was never the “open book” type and would always need a bit of encouragement to work my way up to talking things through. I’d rather sit and wallow in my misery than get help. The whole mindset had definitely not been ideal for anyone, but that was always the least of my worries.

The moment Leila looked back into my eyes was the moment she started to speak, her voice soft like it was before; again, I didn’t need to be sympathized, I needed to be able to see reason. This whole thing caught me completely off-guard.

Leila whispered, shaking her head, “How did this even happen?”

In high school, a very wise teacher of mine once said that there is no such thing as a stupid question, only stupid people who ask questions. However, by the looks of it, this was definitely an exception. Even with her ingenious, Leila had just asked one of the stupidest questions known to man.

She knew exactly how this happened, and has known for years. The Golden Griddle’s financial instability had never, ever been able to be kept secret in a town such as Ceder Cove, no matter how many times my parents tried.

“Oh, wait. Sorry.” Leila stammered, looking up at the ceiling to collect herself.

“It’s fine. I just can’t fathom what my parents are going through right now. Henry, too.” I sighed, stepping back from Leila and letting my shoulders deflate. I slowly sat on the edge of my bed and crossed my legs, my gaze trained on the aged wood floor. “Even if I should, I’m not calling my mom back with more details tonight. This...this is just too much for me to handle right now.”

Leila was silent and I looked up to see her scrolling through her phone.

Seriously? I cleared my throat to get her attention...but she didn’t even flinch.

“Leila. Are you even listening to me? Or...are you texting Skye?”

Leila’s eyes immediately averted from her phone to look at me. The smallest hint of a blush crept into her cheeks, though she played it off and rolled her eyes.

“Actually, Erin wants to take us shopping for the party next week when we’re available. Check your phone.” Leila stated, a defensive edge in her tone. I was the one to roll my eyes this time.

Now, let’s get this straight; I am not fond of parties. Leila had dragged me to each homecoming, each winter formal, and the two prom nights that we had. My date to prom both years, a guy named Harold Longhorn (a total snob), would not shut up about politics or the “oh-so-stupid” stock market. I only went with him because he said he’d tutor me for free with my AP Euro and AP Chem homework in collateral. Oh, and did I mention that his dad is a major entrepreneur in the Portland area? Wait, that’s unimportant; just like every single party I’ve ever been to in my life.

“Do I have to go? I’d rather stay here and reread Pride & Prejudice for the millionth time or something that I actually enjoy. Dancing the night away doesn’t sound as interesting to me as my daily dose of Mr. Darcy.”

Leila scoffed and looked over at me again, her eyebrow quirked in such a way that left me a bit uneasy.

“News flash, Charlotte Parker, but Mr. Darcy is fictitious and will not save you from this.” Leila scolded, though she was playful about it. “I’m not letting you stay here because you’re a college girl now and you need to socialize with people other than me!”

“Ughhhh,” I groaned, laying down onto my bed and turning away from her and burying my face into my pillow that sadly smelt like home, “you sound just like my mom!”

Leila burst out into laughter that sent a faint chill down my spine. Whatever her plans were, she knew I’d loathe them.

“I’m glad.”

August 10th, 2020

Dear Diary...

Okay. Sorry for the radio silence. Lots has happened over the course of a couple weeks that I need to get off my chest. As Scar would say, be prepared...

First off, NYU is amazing. I’ve already met lots of (!!) people, though 4 have become friends! Two girls, two guys: Skye, Erin, Rory, and Ajay. They’re all really down-to-earth and genuinely cool people that I’m getting along with!

Rory and Leila are really like two peas in a pod, and so are Skye and Leila. Leila is just a social butterfly, so she honestly gets along with everyone. Erin and Ajay, though, are more mellow and easy-going. Erin is so...laid back? Like she’s the type of person that you could spill your life story to. She’s just so, I don’t know... nonchalant? - definitely in a good way.

However, I feel more drawn to Ajay; we share similar interests and outlooks on life. He even saw my performance at Spotlite! He’s also a student director here at NYU, so if I do somehow wind up in the show, I’d probably work with him. It even helps that he’s kinda cute, but you didn’t hear that from me.

Overall, though, the campus is absolutely stunning and the view from our dorm window takes my breath away each and every morning.

Second, The Golden Griddle is doomed right now due to both bankruptcy and condemnation. My parents are all torn up about it, and to be blatantly honest, so am I. The diner has always been a home away from home, and now that I may have to face losing it forever...

Third, I HATE PARTIES. With a deep, burning passion.

Leila, if you’re reading this, then you can call me George Eacker: piss off because I’m watching this show - also known as Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist - now...well..when you’re at the party! There’s no way in hell that I’m stepping foot into anything resembling a disco or a dance or even, god forbid, a hoedown like that one during our sophomore year. Nope, nope, nope. Over my dead body.

All in all, I’m having a wonderful time settling into my new life in New York. Of course I miss home, but I also feel like it was time for me to spread my wings and learn to fly!

Alright. I gotta run. I’m going shopping. And, yes, it’s regrettably for this pointless party that I’m being forced to go to against my will.

Talk, er, write soon!

Charlotte :)

“Ooo, what’re you writing about?” Leila asked, barging back into our slightly messy dorm after finishing with her morning routine. I hastily closed my diary and forced a smile.

“Um, it’s just the address of my uncle’s new house! Mom said to write it down somewhere in case I lost my phone.”

Shoot. Thank God Leila wasn’t really paying much attention to catch how bad of an excuse that was; she just turned her back to me and scavenged through a pile of dirty clothes already heaped in the corner by her closet. It’s been six days since we’ve moved in. I still haven’t really organized nor have I gotten around to calling my parents or Henry with updates about the diner.

“Right, right. He moved a couple days ago. Though, with our plans today, are you ready to go? Erin and Skye are already waiting for us downstairs.” Leila said, grabbing her purse. I gave her a scowl and grabbed my own, sighing as I slung it on my shoulder.

“Ready as I’ll ever be, I guess. But I have one quick question,” I said, finally catching her attention, “why are you wearing those?”

My eyes went to the unscuffed black stilettos on her feet; they had to have been at least 5 inches tall. She laughed and instinctively brought one of her ankles up to rub it as if she’d been in pain. The stilettos were paired with a pair of skinny and holey whitewash jeans and a black Shinedown sweatshirt with a crow and a butterfly printed in white; from what I remember, that was one of the band’s songs.

“I’m wearing these to the party so I figured I’d break them in a little first. And I need to find a dress that looks good with them, so why not?”

“Fair warning, you might actually break something else before you walk a block in those death traps.” I teased, making her huff. This was obviously not something she wanted to hear, but let’s remember who was dragging me to this stupid party in the first place. My sarcasm comes with the territory!

“Jesus, you make it sound like I’m breaking a law! They’re just heels!” Leila laughed, shaking her head. Her hair had been in two Dutch braids, making her outfit even more unique. To each their own, I suppose.

“Just heels that might put you on crutches,” I mumbled, rolling my eyes as I slipped my (comfortable) light pink flip flops on. We headed down to the lobby and quickly spotted Erin, chatting with Rory and Ajay, and Skye standing a little off to the side.

“Ah, there you guys are!” Erin grinned, running over and leading us over to the group.

“I thought this was a girl trip?” I asked, playfully eyeing the guys. Ajay gave a tight-lipped smile and rolled his eyes.

“Oh, don’t worry, it is. We were just heading out to find Rory another outfit that he apparently needs because his six other ones aren’t enough.” Ajay explained, making direct eye contact with me. I could see the different blends of brown tinges in his eyes - the light from both the windows and the bulbs above hitting just the right angles - shimmer behind his glasses. I also noticed that he was wearing a simple green t-shirt and a pair of khaki shorts with black Nike’s.

Wait, what?

“I may have a slight obsession with shopping,” Rory said sheepishly, slowly creeping away from the group, “but I also need something fresh. I can’t be seen in the same maroon shirt that I wore to--”

Ajay’s groan interrupted him but he followed in Rory’s footsteps with a small shrug. “We’ll be going now. Have fun.”

I immediately felt myself missing his eyes. The brown sparkles that caught my own. Was it so wrong to find his eyes...gorgeous? Didn’t think so.

As they waved goodbye, Leila migrated from my side to Skye’s. The redhead looked particularly sad today, but let out the slightest trace of a smile when Leila started talking to her.

“So, where’re we going to go first, o’ wise Erin?” I asked, turning to her. She looked a bit lost in thought, a bit dazed when our eyes met, but I could tell she regained herself before she answered.

“Well, I thought we’d take a trip to The Shops today,” Erin said smugly, her hand resting on her hip, “we can take an Uber in case we want to make other stops along the way!”

Skye visibly revolted at the thought, her arms tightening around her chest and her glower intensifying. The way her blue eyes darkened was just a bit unsettling, too.

“Okay. Sounds good...” I sighed, gripping my leather purse strap a bit tighter.

“Sure,” Skye groaned, “good. Great. Grand. Just how I wanted to spend my day.”

The nearby mall, The Shops, had a wide array of stores that we buzzed in and out of, Erin and Leila eagerly leading the way.

“You know,” I said, looking over at Skye, “I really don’t understand why we need new clothes for this party.”

Skye shrugged. “Me neither. I never really had to get new clothes for the banquets that I went to as a kid with my parents.”

I instantly noticed that her hands were in tight fists at her sides.

“What do your parents do?” I asked, trying to keep her talking. I really wanted to get to know her better; she was still such a mystery and I was destined to change that.

Though, the bitter grimace she gave at the question was all the hint that I needed to know that I’d said something wrong, maybe even crossed a line.

“They do nothing but make a lot of money and prioritize themselves over anything else, even their own kids.”

Oh, wow. I blinked rapidly, willing my brain to say, something, anything, to break the agonizing silence building between us.

“Oh. I’m sorry I brought it up.” I stammered, though she shook her head.

“It’s okay. It’s just...not something I really like to talk about.” Skye sighed, almost ruefully. Despite my pending curiosity, I left the topic be.

“What’re you here in New York to do, Skye?” I asked instead, hoping to lighten her spirits a little. When she looked back over at me, she gave me a neutral expression.

“Graphics,” Skye stated, her tone firm and assured, “I want to be a graphics designer.”

“That’s really interesting. Have you designed anything yourself?”

Sadly, before I could hear her answer, Erin and Leila gasped in unison and pointed to a store. A quick glance at the shop name was enough to make me roll my eyes.

“Windsor! Yes!” Leila squealed, bolting into the store without a second thought. Erin rushed after her, gesturing for Skye and I to follow.

Several racks of dresses filled the store and even lined the walls, some popping with bright color and some glittering with infinite sparkle. I watched Leila pluck several dresses off their racks and fold them over her arm, shaking my head.

“Wow, look at this abomination.” Skye murmured, plucking a dress made of plastic (well, not literally, but basically) off the rack. It was a flamingo pink and looked like something a Barbie doll would wear. A laugh escaped her as she sifted through and pulled out the other options, the colors ranging from a vibrant cobalt to a neon yellow.

“I’ve always wanted to be Barbie disguised as a highlighter! Skye, how’d you know?” I giggled, taking a resembling green one off the same rack. My poor eyes ached at the sight of all the vivid colors.

“Pure intuition, obviously.” Skye responded, putting the dresses back on the rack. “Jeez, I could never wear any of these.”

I could agree; I would never be able to pull any of these off. Also, it didn’t help that they were so effervescent and looked severely uncomfortable. (I mean, how do you even move in that kind of material?)

“Me neither,” I said wistfully, plucking another dress off a nearby rack. It was a black sweetheart-necklined dress that cut off at (what I’d say) the knee. It had some lace detailing on the straps and a few sparkles scattered across both the bodice and the skirt. It wasn’t over-the-top, nor was it boring...

I held it up to Skye, making her jump back a little with surprise. I giggled and closed an eye, coming to a conclusion about how this dress would look incredible on her.

“Whoa, what’re--” Skye asked, her eyes widening. I smiled warmly and laid it over her arm.

“I think this is a good option for you, and I’m guessing your a 4?” I smirked, watching her gape in both confusion and amusement.

“How’d you...know?”

“Pure intuition, obviously.” I playfully mocked, making her crack a tiny smile. As we continued throughout the store, we came across a few more ridiculously bright options, thankfully not made out of a faux plastic.

About five minutes into our little exploration, I spotted a dress; it was a silvery mauve skater dress with a flowing skirt and spaghetti straps. By some sort of force, it spoke to me.

“That’s pretty,” Skye said, nodding in approval as I held it up, “ it definitely speaks ‘girl who can read minds’ to me.”

Oh jeez, she’s cool. She’s really cool.

“Perfect, it’s just what I’m looking for, then,” I joked, folding the dress over my arm and walking further into the store. Erin and Leila, practically having the time of their lives, had their arms brimming with dresses that ranged from super glittery to extremely bright. I could swear I could see a familiar highlighter yellow in Leila’s stack, but that could just be my mind playing tricks on me.

Speaking of Leila, I stifled a giggle as I watched her wobble around in her stilettos, grimacing whenever she walked too fast. Not to say I told you so, Leila, I thought, but...I told you so.

“Ladies!” Erin squealed, pointing back to the dressing room area with her free hand. “Let’s go try these on!”

“How about this masterpiece?” Leila giggled, sauntering out of the dressing room. Erin burst into laughter, Skye rolled her eyes, and I, well...

“Oh my God, Leila...” I playfully gagged, covering my eyes. Turns out that she really did pick out a highlighter dress to try on. After a few laughs, she turned around and changed into a royal blue dress with a deep V neckline. It was sparkly, sassy, and overall...very Leila.

“Wow, you look great, Skye!” I cheered, giving her two thumbs-up as she examined herself in the mirror. The dress was a perfect fit and she seemed to be comfortable in it. Her hands idly fiddled with the skirt, experimentally flicking it back and forth in thought.

“It seriously looks amazing on you!” Erin smiled, nodding with approval. Skye gave me a small, appreciative smile in the mirror.

I took a quick glance over at Leila and was met with her wide eyes and deep red cheeks.

“Charlotte, phew, you look hot!” Leila whistled, gesturing for me to spin around. I didn’t really gush over the “dream dress” as much as I had hoped. In fact, the more I looked at it, the more I disliked it.

“Maybe we can find a different color?” I said, looking back at Erin’s face; she definitely did not like it. She shot up out of her chair and came back a moment later with a similar option. It was the same style of dress but in a jade green shade instead. It was also not as shimmery, but more dull and had ruffles on the neckline.

I ducked back into the dressing room and quickly changed. With just a glance at myself now, I knew I found the one. I stepped back out and saw everyone’s face light up.

“Yup,” Erin said smugly as she crossed her legs, “that’s the one.”

Erin walked out in a tight-fitting midi white dress that popped against her flawless chocolate brown skin. It had a plunging V-neck and a small slit on the left side that climbed all the way up toward the middle of her thigh. Needless to say...she was killing it.

“Now I just need some hoops...” Erin mumbled as she examined herself. Leila looked over at me and just gaped.

“Stunning!” I said, and Erin gave me a warm and self-satisfied smile.

Finally, we were heading home in an Uber. But because of how long the shopping took, we decided to stop and get some ice cream from a local parlor; all after persuading the driver to wait for us with a hefty tip.

Erin munched on a mixture of raspberry and vanilla, Leila got creamsicle all over her face, Skye picked at her brownie swirl, and I delightfully ate two scoops of cake batter.

“So. Are you two excited about going to this party now?” Erin asked, eyeing Skye and I. At the same time, we both shook our heads.

“New dress, same feelings.” Skye sighed, looking down into her dish. I nodded in agreement only to hear a dramatic sigh from Leila.

“You two will have fun. We’ll find fun things for you guys!” Leila grinned, glancing at Erin. The two shared a look that, like all the times before, sent a chill down my spine.

“You guys can’t make us have fun.” Skye said, figuring her face was serious; but I looked over to see a teasing smirk on her face.

“Well, we can sure as hell try! Besides, what do you guys have against parties?” Erin said, her tone a bit more tame then it was before. My eyes averted from theirs, and without looking, I could tell Skye was doing the same.

Awkward silence wracked the table for what seemed like hours before Skye spoke up.

“You can thank my parents for being the pessimistic and narcissistic assholes that they are. My distaste originates from them.” Skye said, her teasing tone completely replaced with a hiss. She spoke in a mumbled tone, as if she wished she didn’t want to speak.

“I’ve just never been really...happy with the ones I’ve gone to in the past.” I added awkwardly. I thought about the one good party I went to...and of course it had to be from the diner. Emotions bubbled in my throat and were about to escape before Leila (thankfully) interjected with a disapproving groan.

Then, right after, all three of us got looks of unbridled hope and amusement from Erin.

“That’s going to change because, dearest freshmen, you’ve never experienced a party quite like a college party.”

And it can stay that way, I thought.

The rest of the ice cream was eaten alongside lighter conversation, and then, FINALLY, we were back in the dorms.

The afternoon flew as I decided to buckle down and unpack the remainder of my things. Leila went to hang out with Erin and Skye (without heels, if you were wondering) as I slaved away at stacking my t-shirts in my closet, that is until I got a knock at my door.

As soon as I opened it, I saw a familiar pair of gorgeous eyes lock onto mine.

“Hi, I know this is kinda weird,” Ajay said casually, “ but I have a question for you.”

I leaned against the door, praying I didn’t look like an uncoordinated mess. “It’s not weird at all, actually. Shoot.”

God, his eyes are just breathtaking in any and every way. Was it weird to be obsessing over an acquaintance’s eyes like this? Yes, I thought, yes it was.

“Well, since we really don’t want to go to the party, I was hoping we could try to get something out of it?”

What does he mean? If we didn’t want to go, what good would we be able to get out of it?

I tipped my head a bit to the side in curiosity and felt some of my blonde hair come loose from its bun.

“Let me escort you. To the party.”

Wait, was that an actual thing? An escort to a college party? No way. It sounded so childlike, almost like something an elementary kid would say.

“Hang on. Do you mean, like, as a date?” I asked, my tone packing more intensity than I had hoped. His eyes widened and he shook his head.

“No, no. I just want to get to know you better. I thought that this would be a better option than hunting you down in a huge mass of drunk people and ending up not being able to find you.” Ajay explained, a light smile tugging at his lips. “So...?”

Maybe spending the night with someone with the same ideals as me would make the night less dreadful, perhaps even fun. I barely gave the idea a thought before words left my mouth.

“Sure, Ajay, I’ll be your escort.”

#high school story class act #hssca #mc: charlotte parker #oc: leila maciel #skye crandall #erin ward #rory silva #ajay bhandari #choices stories you play #warnings: mentions of bankruptcy and emotional abuse #chapter three! 🥳

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cannot-decide-on-a-fandom · 5 years

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Please rant about your favorite characters from at least three fandoms. Tell me how wonderful your children are.

Okay, this is probably gonna be nonsensical, I'm just gonna ramble here. (Thanks for giving me the opportunity)

Alright, here we go

Haikyuu

Considering how much I've been talking about Haikyuu, there's no way I'm not taking this opportunity too. I've always said this series has some of the best character writing I've seen.

Suga

Normally I'd say if anyone disrespects my boy I'll fight them, but I've never seen anyone dislike Suga, because it's physically impossible. He's such an amazingly well rounded character. I mean, the fact that I think he's the most mischaracterised person in the anime compared to the manga and he is STILL amazing makes me so happy.

Yes, he's team mum, but one thing you can't rip out of my hands is that he's the mum who constantly plays stupid jokes on his adopted kids and messes with everyone. I'm pretty sure that's canon. He's the person who will see a couple of them hanging about outside the bathroom with water guns, waiting for somebody to come out to spray them, and he'd leave just to return with a bag of flour to throw over their heads too and make everything worse.

But let me tell you, despite that, this boy is practically still a child, barely 18, still a high schooler, and he is so damn supportive and kind and selfless. Not a single person on the team would be like they are without him.

He’s not a prodigy or anything of the sort, and as frustrated as he is by it, the last thing he'd ever want is to negatively impact the team even if it benefits him. But he still has so much pride and he teases everyone a lot, it’s so funny.

He is a big, eyeroll worthy dork half the time, but there’s not a single person who is better suited to be a team player, even if he’s off the court. I love him so much.

Yamaguchi

I’ve already went off on a rant about him, so I’ll keep this short.

This beautiful, gorgeous boy, the sweetest, purest thing in the entire universe, spent his childhood being bullied by others purely for things he couldn’t even really control, and he not even for a second shows resentment towards anyone he meets unless they earn it. He never makes any unfounded judgements about how people are even though him doing so and being nervous could easily be justified, but he is the most friendly person to everyone he meets. Until they need encouragement, which is when he’ll go off the rails for them.

He works so hard and so much and so desperately wants to play too, but the last thing he’d ever do is hurt anyone else’s chances. The line, and I’m gonna probably misquote, I’m sorry, “What besides pride do we need?” is still my favourite line of the series, and describes the entire situation so well. Even though he yelled it at Tsukki, it applies to him too. He’s scared, and worried, and feels guilty every time he messes up, but his desire to prove himself and be useful is so strong, it helps him grow and I am so equally proud of and inspired by him.

Also, freckles are adorable as hell, how can anyone hurt him because of that? Or any reason? I'll fight them.

Nishinoya

This is still the same fandom, right? Okay, let me be quick.

Noya is one of the most unpredictably written characters I know. He has all the traits of excitable comic relief, but he is so, so much more than that. He’s loud and hyper and kind of a dumbass who oggles at girls sometimes, but he’s also the best friend any person could wish for and he’s serious and encouraging, not for plot development but simply because that’s who he is. He is confident and self assured, but he’s also self critical, driven to improve, calming to everyone around him, supportive, selfless, and impulsive. He’s someone with who you can believe every word they say, because as nice as they are, they don’t lie. They’re open and blunt, and so willing to criticize everyone including themself without going too far because he doesn’t think any of that matters as long as people try and not give up. Yes, occasionally he may be a little bit on the frustrating side to the people around him, but he is the type of person you need in your life.

Someone who is instantly willing to yell at you, but also a shoulder to cry on, or a distraction, or simply somebody to have fun with. I love him dearly.

My Hero Academia

Let me do my 2 best boys

Kaminari

Kaminari is one of the most annoyingly misrepresented characters in this fandom. He’s always shown as the idiotic pervert, or at least one of those in any situation, but his actual character is so much more interesting, so why?

Yes, he’s an idiot sometimes. But it’s not because he has no intelligence or anything of the sort. Remember, he got into a prestigious high school with a really hard to pass written exam as well as practical one. As far as I can tell, he tries to act cool in typical ways, but he probably doesn’t think intelligence is any reason to look down on someone anyway, so it doesn’t matter to him. He’s shown he’s more then just the class clown, and as for the perverted side, he wants to see girls in cheerleading uniforms and swimsuits, sure, like a lot of people probably would, but while he may do stupid things sometimes in that regard too, the vast, vast majority of the time he is nothing but respectful and friendly. He’s friends with everyone in the class, including Bakugo and including the girls who he is supposedly always pervy towards. He is fun, non judgemental, and smarter than we give him credit for, and the fact that he has flaws make him more down to earth and understandable. He’s a flawed person, but dammit, he’s not a bad one.

Kirishima

Let’s just say, season 4 will be his season, but even before, he was amazing. I actually really thought I would hate him at first. See, I generally don’t like Bakugo's archetype, and even less so the best friend characters of people like him. I expect that it’s birds of a feather and all, but that only the main friend will get development and the other will mostly remain a jerk. So, when I kept seeing him shipped with Bakugo, I was concerned before getting to meet him properly. But my god, did he subvert all of my expectations.

One thing I hate so much is how people act like he finds Bakugo’s anger and rudeness endearing, or like he ignores it, but that is completely the opposite of him. He finds it frustrating, and it angers him and irritates him. The difference between him and others who are scared of him is that he doesn’t purely judge him based on that. He calls him out on his crap, but he also pays attention to him and treats him how he wants to be treated.

Outside of Bakugo, he is a complete angel. He is helpful and despite shining so bright is always immediately ready to get hurt for anyone, even if he doesn’t care about them. He’s great and vulnerable and so well written, I can’t wait to see season 4.

Marvel (specifically the MCU)

Let’s throw some live action in here.

Peter Parker/Spiderman

Okay, Spiderman as a character, specifically Peter Parker, will always be special to me. The original trilogy was the first time I watched Superhero movies and I fell in love with them.

But, and I say this knowing how amazing all previous castings were, Tom Holland’s iteration is easily my favourite. Not just because of his performance, but also with how he was written.

For the first time, we got a solo movie franchise not revolving around his uncle's death, and I am so glad. We got to see his character grow, effected purely by things other than that. It’s probably the closest to the comic books iteration we got (I haven’t read all of them, but enough) in terms of the character himself. He’s a kid. Cheeky and witty and smarter than just being able to build a suit (seriously, I so often hear people say “the MCU Spidey is terrible. He’s not as smart. He doesn’t build his own suit” like...have you even seen the films? He is smarter in so many different ways than just sawing together heavy duty Spandex.) But he’s hurt and broken in a lot of ways. He’s not in any way 2 dimensional and I really want to see more of him.

Wow that was long. Sorry.

#wow this was a lot #thanks for the ask :)#haikyuu #my hero academia #marvel

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idolish7rabbitchats · 6 years

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Ousaka Sougo: Virtual Art Expo Rabbit Chat Part 5

Tsumugi: Sougo-san, good work on yesterday’s “VAE”!

T: The fashion show and live were a huge success!

Sougo: Manager, good work.

T: I contacted you because I wanted to tell you my impressions of the event but... I'm sorry that it's delayed until next day...!

T: Are you alright on time right now?

S: I’m fine.

S: I just finished eating dinner. Today I was on duty with Iori-kun.

T: Good work on that!

T: So yesterday was the virtual cooking and today was the real cooking huh.

S: It would’ve been nice if we’d had the “Devil Pomme Berry” too though.

T: Everyone probably would have fainted from one bit… ><

S: I reduce the spice a lot when I make everyone’s food so it’s fine.

S: Also, I'm not making it alone.

T: T-That's right! You just said you were with Iori-san too!

S: When Iori-kun wasn't there, Yamato-san helped me.

S: We made mabo-tofu and it wasn't a difficult thing to cook, but it was helpful.

T: Mabo-tofu...

S: Yamato-san seasoned it for me too.

T: I-I see!

T: Yamato-san is nice!

T: [Bowing Kinako Stamp]

S: I'm sorry that we wandered from the subject. You were contacting me about the "VAE"s comments right.

T: Right..! I’m sorry as well!

T: Sogo-san enjoyed the virtual cooking, but how was the real “VAE”?

S: It was really stimulative, I learned a lot.

S: It's a rare opportunity to appear in an elaborate virtual effect event like "VAE," so I really appreciated it.

S: Because of this, I could perform both the fashion show and live in a fresh manner.

*T: What was your impression of the fashion show?

S: We made the united stage better than the rehearsal. I was really moved by the standing ovation at the end.

S: “VAE” was really amazingly hyped.

S: After the event ended, everyone was excited.

T: Because the audience’s cheers were also amazing! Even me, who was watching the stage from the wings, got goosebumps...!

S: Thanks to the audience who watched our stage. They smiled with enjoyment and reacted a lot.

S: That's why we could accomplished everything until the end with a really good mood.

T: That’s because Sougo-san and the others reached the audience with all your might!

S: Certainly, I can say that I did my best.

S: But, maybe that’s why. After the event ended, even though my body was exhausted, my head felt strangely clear.

S: But I fell asleep in the car ride home...

T: Oh yeah, Tamaki-san said something like that in his rabbit chat.

S: Eh

T: That Sougo-san was unusual, snoozing inside a car.

S: I see… You heard it from Tamaki-kun.

S: Without realizing it, I had fallen asleep leaning on Tamaki-kun’s shoulder. Because of that, Tamaki-kun’s clothes were wrinkled just a little bit.

S: I pulled his clothes to smooth the wrinkles out, but I made it worse so I felt bad...

T: It’s fine, Sougo-san.

T: Because Tamaki-san understood that Sougo-san was tired after the event!

S: Even so, it’s awkward.

S: I understand that Tamaki-kun won’t get mad but I feel bad about it...

S: I couldn't get over feeling bad, so I gave him a King Pudding as an apology.

T: Tamaki-san was happy because he could get a King Pudding!

S: Really?

T: Yes!

S: Then I’m glad.

S: [Bowing Kinako Stamp]

T: [Spoon Pudding Stamp]

S: I felt like one was too little to apologize with, so I promised to give him one week’s worth.

T: That’s a big service huh!

S: It’s just one a day though.

T: You don’t give it all to him at once?

S: Because if it expired, it would be a problem.

T: Certainly…!

T: [Nodding Kinako Stamp]

T: Sorry to make it so long after dinner!

T: Once again, good work on yesterday! Today’s your day off so please spend it relaxedly!

S: Yeah. Thanks.

S: I think Manager’s busy but please take it easy and rest occasionally too.

T: Yes! Thank you!

T: [Smiling Kinako Stamp]

V2:

S: Because of this, I could perform both the fashion show and live in a fresh manner.

T: What were your impressions of the live?

S: Not only about the PR song that all 12 people sang, but I was also glad that we could sing a techno-arrangement of our song. Our fans were excited too.

S: “VAE” was really amazingly hyped.

V3:

S: Because of this, I could perform both the fashion show and live in a fresh manner.

T: What were your impressions of the virtual art?

S: It felt like I’d entered a world of movies and games. The range of expression will expand from now on, so I want to check out "VAE" in the future.

S: “VAE” was really amazingly hyped.

#idolish7 #idolish seven #takanashi tsumugi #tsumugi takanashi #osaka sogo #sogo osaka #idol #rabbit chat #game #gaming #VAE #virtual art expo #translation #japanese #english #game app #idol game #rhythm game

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gg-astrology · 6 years

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APINK: Sun and Moon (Brief)

💞Hello! I wanted to get this out bc I just watched APINK’s ‘I’m so sick’ MV and I am so absolutely happy the queens came back!! It’s been too long since I’ve seen their faces 💞

💕disclaimer: i’m no expert on astrology but these are my interpretations of the signs and how they’re working based on my experiences with them. Everyone has different opinions and studies in astrology, all interpretation and experiences within the realm is valid. However feel free to make your own post or skip if you strongly disagree. There might be inaccuracy and difference in opinions. But the point of this post is to relate, entertain and have a fun time. I’m hoping to validate people with similar experiences and get people excited about the girls+ astrology. Also, since we don’t know most of their birth times, I’m using the standard 12.00pm💕

Park Chorong

March 3, 1991 - (Chungcheongbuk-do, South Korea) Pisces Sun/Libra Moon

Our ‘country girl’ leader 💕

She has such a lovely harmonious sun/moon aura about her

With Pisces Sun natives, they often come across as a little more dreamy and whimsical than any other sign out there.

There’s a softness to their face and general aura that appeals others to them, combined with her Libra moon, her ‘harmonious’ quality is amplified and enhances her beauty into looking very ‘traditionally pretty’ which benefits her greatly in landing many lead roles in MV and acting drama roles.

Pisces sun natives are very adaptable, they’re often very open-mind and have a soft sensitive side to them. Sometimes it’s detrimental since it makes them more prone to crying in unexpected situation.

Since her Pisces sun is in 2nd Decan ruled by the Moon/Cancer- she is very in-tune to other people’s emotions and often absorbs them into herself, this is part of Pisces self-suffering nature and a habit they have to relearn not to do.

Her emotionally intuitive ability is also another factor why she’d landed so many roles, Pisces/Cancer combination allows her to often feel/empathize with her characters/roles and often-- embodies it while playing the scene.

Pisces natives are adept at self-expression, artistry and bringing imagination to reality. They’re often artists or performers of some kind, since they’re traditionally ruled by Neptune and they weave between the realms of imagination and reality more freely than any other signs.

Often times they’re very compassionate and sympathetic of others around them, they have a deep love for humanity but this can also turn into an unsatisfied yearning for love from the world as well.

It all hangs onto a balance for Pisces sun natives, especially with her Libra moon combination. In order to gain some resemblance of control over her life, she has to learn how to do this healthily.

With a Libra Moon, there’s a strong need for mental stimuli and intimacy, but at the same time independence and freedom. Since her Libra moon is in 2nd decan ruled by Uranus/Aquarius, her need for partnership in her life to enrich her emotional satisfaction is kept in a restricted balance for her need for independence and partnership as well.

She might typically restrain herself from being ‘too romantic’ or ‘too overly attached’ to others because of Aquarius’s influence, often preferring a partnership that might start off a bit cooler and more cautious at first, but she does expect some romantic gestures and to be treated romantically at the same time.

Often times, people with Libra moon might not say what they want or how they feel, but they would expect their partner to know through telepathy/pay attention to them. This can be a problem since they’re not communicating well enough. And other people can’t understand what they want sometimes. They have to learn how to verbalize their need and not feel personally offended when someone doesn’t understand where they’re coming from.

Chorong with her ego/sense of self (Pisces Sun/Cancer Decan) and her emotions (Libra Moon/Aquarius Decan) might tend to swap these two placements. Since air-moon can be harder to deal with on an emotional level, and her sun is influenced by Cancer/Moon-- she might’ve confused her ego/sense (Sun) of self for her emotions, and her emotional response (Libra) for her sense of self sometimes.

Be sure to really scrutinize this inside of herself and work to try and separate the two, because it might’ve benefit her short-term, but long-term it can lead to her lashing out to people for not understanding her when she doesn’t even understand herself. She can easily lose her sense of self this way, especially if she feels like she’s emotionally dissatisfied with something no matter what she does about it.

Having a Libra moon can be very beneficial for someone, especially in an artistry career. Since Libra is ruled by Venus, people with Libra moon has a keen sense and intuition for aesthetic and harmonious quality in their environment. They won’t stop until everything is to their satisfaction or ‘feels right’ for them-- they’re adept home makers and workers in fields such as design, fine art, make up artistry, culinary etc.

Yoon Bomi August 13 1993 (Suwon, South Korea) Leo Sun/Gemini Moon

Our mood maker Bomi, it’s no wonder she’s the mood maker with this placement!

With a Sun in Leo and Moon in Gemini there’s a need for performance and self-expression in entertaining people. There’s also a sense of accomplishment in connecting to others around her and learning/striving to grow bigger through her network and performances.

Leo Sun natives can be shy, but there’s a sense of honorability to them that’s ingrained in their self-confidence. They sway people through just being themselves, and often people look up to them and respect them for standing up for themselves/others no matter the circumstances.

Bomi’s Leo Sun is particularly fiery considering it’s co-ruled by Mars/Aries. Unlike typical Leo Sun natives, Bomi’s much quicker to react to situation and often uses her influences to help those around her as well. If something is not to her standard/wrong she’ll immediately bring it up to attention and confront the situation.

Aries decan doesn’t like leaving things to ‘later’ -- they’d rather confront it now and often instigate activities between people around them. They’re the type to see a messy situation and go ‘ok, let’s handle this’ and gather everyone around them to see how to solve the problem.

Especially with a Gemini moon co-ruled by Libra/Venus, there’s a love for harmony and team-work here. Bomi’s emotions depends on harmonious environment, if something is wrong like tension between the members or tension between the staff- she’s the type to gather everyone and try to listen to all sides to get the real story before solving it.

Gemini moons are communicative, and although they can have short attention span they are often very entertaining to be around. Combined with her Leo Sun who’s ego is fueled by being able to perform and express oneself on stage. Bomi can go very far in the variety field and I’m glad she got the opportunity to explore this route in her career.

Since her Moon is fueling her Sun, her ability to communicate rapidly with multiple groups of people and come across harmoniously (Venus influence) amplifies her self-confidence and sense of self-expression (Leo Sun) -- she can tend to be a bit more competitive because everything in her chart is so reactive.

When air fuels the fire, the flame rises higher until it burns something. Bomi has to watch out that her sense of self-confidence doesn’t switch from Leo/Sun to Mars/Aries and that she doesn’t overdo the very delicate balance between Venus/Mars she has going on right now since her emotional response/coming across well can’t save her every time when her sun is involved.

Gemini moons also have a sense of not exactly knowing who they are inside since they’re rapidly moving from one group to another all the time.

Their sense of emotions/self can be tied to their groups of friends and the ‘persona’ they project when in front of these friends. Although she has a pretty healthy Sun/Ego so she might know who she is, often she can change her temper/emotions from one group to another and others might feel that she doesn’t treat others equally sometimes.

It’s not a big deal, but she has to look out not to get defensive or aggressive when confronted/criticized for her integrity sometimes.

Sure, her Leo sun might save her but it’s her Gemini moon that’s causing the problem here. As long as she acknowledges this part inside of herself and tries to accept who she is inside whilst taking the criticism constructively, it’ll project outward in a calmer manner and she’ll stop ‘putting up faces’ in front of people all the time.

It’ll help lessen the load on herself and other’s alot, and it’ll allow her Venus-influence to work better for her as well.

Jung Hye Rim (Eunji) August 18 1993 (Busan, South Korea) Leo Sun/Leo Moon

Our Happy Virus whom we love uwu

She has an amazing Leo Sun AND Moon in 3rd Decan. God knows she probably fights with Bomi alot, since they’re so amazingly similar.

Since her Sun and Moon is ruled by Leo, her sense of self is exemplified, she feels the most comfortable on stage when she can perform and give it her best shot. Rather than just acting or varieties, Eunji truly loves performing and singing.

She’s highly competitive as well, since they’re co-ruled by Mars/Aries. There’s this childish energy about her that endears the other members to her, her sense of self is so expressive and full of confidence it’s impossible not to like her.

Since her sun is also in her moon, they’re intimately linked towards one another. Leo Moon can tend to be abit more reserved, and they show the lighter trait of Leo Suns.

They’re sensitive people, who often gets their feelings hurt when others close to them criticize their integrity and sense of self-expression. They just want to make other people happy, and when they can’t they’re much harder on themselves than they are on others.

Often prone to sulking or lashing out (Mars-influence) they’re often impatient people who would rather solve everything now rather than wait until later or give anyone the cold shoulder.

The really good thing about her is, she’s pretty straight forward. There’s no ulterior motives or dirty tricks with her, she gives it as it is and works hard to solve a situation. If she needs to do something, she’ll get it done.

Leos are hard worker, sure they like to play hard work hard, but ultimately they want recognition and joy through their endeavors. They want to share that joy with others around them, that’s why Eunji being able to perform on stage and succeeding as an idol is so so good to her.

It’s no wonder that she’s known as the Happy Virus because her Leos really do bring joy to others around her. She’s honorable, dependable and calming-- she won’t be prone to lashing out aggressively or hanging out with people who will ultimately deceive her.

Often times Leos have such a strong sense of honor and chivalry that it might intimidate those around them, sure they’re chill and very laid back to be around (all fire signs are) but they absolutely won’t stand for things they deem ‘bad’. If there’s a difference in opinion, they are extremely hard headed and often so self-assured they make the other person question themselves until they shift over to their side instead. (Fixed sign)

(her section is abit short because I’m saving up to do an overview on her later on! )

Son Naeun February 10, 1994 (Seoul, South Korea) Aquarius Sun/Aquarius Moon

Our Aquarius queen!

God her beauty is understated, even with all the gossip about plastic surgery going around, Naeun’s chart has always had that emphasis on Venusian quality tied to her sense of self, so whether she choose to do it or not, it’s completely benefiting her anyways and if it makes her feel more comfortable with herself? That’s great!

In fact let’s just chat about this controversy for a little bit. Naeun has her Aquarius sun in the 3rd decan which is ruled by Libra/Venus. Although she has a unique look about her, an independent and strong women who takes pride in her individuality and freedom of self-expression. She has a keen sense on style and aesthetic that fits her. She knows what’s good for her. And often times, it’s not going to follow the trend. If she did have plastic surgery, it would’ve been contemplated over many times. Because if there’s anything an Aquarius hates more than anything it’s following the trend and being stamped as looking the ‘same as everyone else’. Naeun choosing to do it, she would’ve had full control and artistic direction on what exactly she wants and how it’s going to enhance her. It would’ve been progressive, she took a trope of looking exactly alike and flipped it on it’s head. And the result? Well the public fucking loves it. No matter what kind of press is happening, Naeun’s decision (IF she did the plastic surgery at all-- which to be fair? it’s not a big deal?) ultimately resulted in multiple people falling head over heels for her. That’s some fucking strong Aquarius/Libra influence right there.

She knows herself so fucking well it’s amazing. Aquarius are progressive thinkers, and she shows this. Outdated ideas just doesn’t have a place in her life, and if she could have it her way, in no ones life at all.

She’s so freeing to be around because she just stick it to the patriarchy, personal or social conditioning is lost on her once she fully realized her Aquarius potential. She could be a beauty queen, but why would she put herself in the box when she can be so much more? Gosh, she’s part of the reason why Apink probably survived to this day honestly.

With her moon in observant, she’s really fucking smart. Especially since it’s working in tandem with Mercury/Gemini (2nd Decan) -- she can easily let her feelings/opinions be heard and accepted by a large variety of people.

Air moons needs a lot of mental stimuli, particularly inside of themselves (Aquarius Moon) and then from the people around them (Gemini Decan) it becomes a cycle that they use to inform their ideas. Instead of being more in-tune with her emotions, she tends to have a harder time even slowing down to think about how she feels at all.

Unlike Libra’s influence that often knows how they feel compared to Gemini/Aquarius counterpart, Naeun probably has to sit down and think about how she feels for a few days before she can even begin to properly form sentences to describe what it is she’s feeling if at all. It can be taxing for reactive signs like Eunji or emotional sign like Chorong to deal with this-- but since all the members have such strong Fire-Air going for them, it’s most likely that the mood of the team usually isn’t so dependent on heavier substantial emotional talks between the members.

It’s very action oriented, and socially oriented. She’s very good at getting people to help her or understand what she wants.

Naeun probably uses her Aquarius influence on alot of things, mostly Aquarius energy can be as determined as Eunji or Bomi. But unlike how competitive they are, Naeun’s Aquarius is so fixed and argumentative it probably won’t back down from an argument unless she really has to apologize.

Also Aquarians are so fucking intelligent. Naeun knowing Chinese and being able to land multiple roles in dramas and MVs isn’t a fluke or charm. It’s her intellect and coming across professionally (see: Hoseok, Seulgi).

She’s such a strong independent women inside, that people often underestimate her constantly. But she uses that vice to the best of her abilities and turn it around into being so impressed by her-- they had to hire her. She’s not a fool.

Kim Namjoo April 15, 1995 (Seoul, South Korea) Aries Sun/Libra Moon

My beautiful girl Namjoo 💞

God Namjoo calling herself ‘beyonce’ is such an Aries/Libra mood honestly.

Aries sun has this childish, youthful charm to them. They’re energizing to be around, even when they’re not doing anything at all. Often times they’re pretty laid back people around close friends/families, they love activities since it enriches their ego/life-- but they love doing activities with a group of close friends instead of larger associates.

Aries sun are so endearing because they’re so honest and forth-wright with you, if they think something is wrong they’ll say it. Often they’re very supportive and feels ‘fired up’ when they hear wrong-doings that happens to others around them.

Sure they can be abit ‘me’ centered, but it doesn’t harm anyone. In fact that’s how they come across as a bit ‘dramatic’ -- if you just let them be, they’ll eventually solve itself. With Namjoo being 2nd youngest, she probably takes this opportunity to use the ‘2nd youngest’ card on the unnies alot.

Namjoo’s Aries moon is tied to the 3rd decan which is ruled by Jupiter/Sagittarius. Most likely, her ‘tantrums’ have some limit to them. She can appear to be so wise and a stabilizing advice giver in private to the unnies.

Sagittarius influence makes the Aries energy calmer, it’s really good balance since Sagittarius are abit more introverted than Leos/Aries as well. She might be tired, a bit more light hearted, cracks jokes and enjoy calming time with the members alot more behind close doors.

Combined her Aries sun with her Libra moon, it’s no wonder she’s good at impersonation. Aries sun doesn’t have the same qualms or shyness that Leo possesses, they have no shame (Sagittarius decan) - in fact, her Libra moon is influenced by Aquarius which makes her want to stand out. Being able to do impersonations? No problems. Making a fool of herself? As long as it’s not at her expense (too badly) she’s fine with it too. She’s all in for the sake of entertainment, in and out of the industry honestly.

Having a Libra moon makes one really adaptable to others around them, honestly it’s kind of like Chorong but inverse? She’s sometimes confused about what she wants but she won’t push it on others. Outwardly she’s sure, calm and confident. She takes pride on her intellect and she’s not afraid to show it off (being more fluent in Chinese than even Naeun) but inside she might be abit more unsure of who she really is. Often times she’s most comfortable when someone is with her, likes hanging out in groups or other people-- her Sun is so healthy it balances her out pretty well.

Not really prone to thinking much about stuff? She’s made entirely out of Air and Fire placement that are healthy for her. She doesn’t really have anything much to worry about when push comes to shove-- she’ll come through it well enough with minimal burns too.

Oh Hayoung July 19 1996 (Seoul, South Korea) Cancer Sun/Virgo Moon

Our maknae of the group!

Ok so you know how she’s good at guessing/intuition? It’s because of her sun-- her Cancer Sun (Moon ruled) is influenced by Neptune/Pisces which have dominion over the subconscious/intuition.

It’s similar to Chorong, but Hayoung can show this better because of her Virgo moon. She knows herself and she knows how to showcase stuff about herself-- it feeds her self-confidence/ego better because she has streamlined communication between her head and her heart.

With Cancer Sun influenced by Neptune/Pisces, she feels the guess inside her soul sometimes. It becomes sort of a six sense, something she can feel palpably in her being instead of just ‘guessing’ or ‘feeling out’ the guess. This is because it’s in her sun, the core of her being, her hard wire. You sometimes don’t have to feel/know your sun to know it’s there, but ultimately it’s a part of you that makes you work like you.

Her mature appearance is all due to that Cancer/Virgo influence. If you think about it like this, her Cancer sun rules her face and her Virgo moon rules her eyes. Your sun/moon comes through on your face no matter what sign it’s in.

Cancers are nurturers of the zodiacs, they’re called ‘the mum’ because their sister sign Capricorn is ‘the dad’ -- it’s all gender-bull to be honest I don’t even like that stuff, but its based on the idea that Cancer rules the 4th house which talks about the home, family life and often childhood/mothers/women in our life. Hayoung has that feminine caring look about her, and her Virgo moon adds the maturity to her face.

With Virgo moons it can be one of the harder placement to have since earth-signs moon tends to take on their experience and show their age through whatever it is on their face. Capricorns often have that sober look in their face/eyes because of this. With Virgos-- they’re hard workers. They’ve been through alot, but ultimately they’re not downtrodden by the world yet. They’re mature and sophisticated women, they’re classy and simple-- an elegant classic. Combined with her Cancer appearance it makes her look like a reliable and older lady who has her life together.

This doesn’t necessarily mean it’s true. In fact, Virgo moons often have to face hardship on their own. Virgo wants to do good for the world, they’re a mercury sign and they’re more communicative than any other earth sign out there. Often times Hayoung probably brings up good practical solution, has alot more patience and listens to her unnies before suggesting a good solution to all their problems. She’s the ONLY person in the team who has an earth-sign in her Sun/Moon-- and that affects the overall dynamic and temperament of others a lot.

Since everyone else is either ruled by Air or Fire, having an earth moon can be slower moving and stabilizing for the whole team. The unnies probably adore her, because she has this sense of stability in her? It brings security and stead fastness, if someone (Naeun/Chorong) needs to be with someone she’ll be there. If someone needs someone to supervise them or check their ideas (Eunji/Bomi) she’s the person to go to. There’s something just so dependable in earth-sign moons it really helps settle the external environment around them.

With this said, it can be hard on the person who has the Virgo moon themselves. Virgos are notoriously self-decrepitating and harsh on themselves. If they feel like they aren’t accepted or validated by the world or people close to them, they become cripplingly vulnerable to themselves.

They often need to be reassured that they’re appreciated by others, that their work has paid off and that their efforts are working out the way they want it to work.

They’re tireless workers, and often times they won’t stop until they reach that emotional satisfaction where they’re like ‘ok now let’s see the results’-- they need it to be overwhelmingly positive.

She has to watch out not to overwork herself or place too much pressure on herself this way since it can do more harm than good. Moderation and regulation is the key here, as well as learning how to enjoy the lighter things in life -- her unnies can teach her that.

💞 Sorry this is short and not really?? detailed?? I know the quality has dropped a little these past few days but I promise I’ll get it back up again soon! I got this out super fast because I wanted to post the MV for them too! I think I’ll be doing things like this more, as in posting MV and then a post about the group’s astrology to help promote them. Their new song is a BOP and I love it! I have a few other things lined up right now. If you’re here for BTS -- I’ll probably be posting someone’s natal chart reading next so stay tuned for that! I also have a few Sun and Moons series to do as well as Irene’s overview post. Hopefully I’ll be able to finish them soon, but thanks for tuning in! 💞

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hissingaspinthegrass · 7 years

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Because this verse is amazing and @scorofthemanor has been so great lately <3

She’s in a whirl winded state; the past thirty hours have been nothing she could ever imagine, and win or lose, she still, they still won. Raging Fire has won their first Grammy, and those who’ve called them sellouts, are probably burning their vinyl from the roof tops.

They get invited to talk shows, get invited to people who normally wouldn’t even look at them, get invited to the high snobbery world of Hollywood. But when she’s set to do a one-on-one talk show with a prestigious talk show host, her mind starts racing and she’s so out of her element it’s awkward, she feels.

In the past four days they’ve been to all types of talking events, but this time, it’s just her, and she feels her heart swell, rise and fall, and she nervously rakes her hand through her carefully styled locks.

She’s never quite sure if this is an opportunity to ask about her music career, or rather, a chance to jab at her dating life. Butneverthekess, her breathing pauses, and she finds herself being told five minutes.

She looks down at her phone as it dings:

Between sets, you’ll do great Alana <3

She smiles, then looks down at another text, this time a swarm of them.

Don’t worry Laney, you’ll do great hey ask if shes single or no of hot single ladies wanting to interview me if u no what i mean ;) snag me those craft table food things. Scors had these things with little chocolate chips and it was heaven.

She snorts, then takes a breath.

“Two minutes Miss Potter.”

Its funny now how she’s a wanted guest, she’s suddenly considered Miss Potter and prior it was nothing of the sort. Instead, sometimes she was referred to as her dead name, or just “hey band” or anything of the sort. But now with a Grammy, suddenly they were considered with class. Of course, to the mainstream that is,

She smooths at her dress, picking at the stray hairs that had popped out of her delicate done braid.

The audience roars when she walks on stage, but she knows very well it’s because they have signs that say applause and silent. She can’t tell if the people in attendance are her fans, or Scor’s fans, or even just mums who love the show.

Taking a seat, Allie gives a smile, and reaches out to shake hands of the host.

“Is it Allie or Alana?” The host starts out.”Because I’ve seen both. Some credits say Allie, some Alana, and some--” Allie winces. She knows what could be dug up through their old youtube videos. While she transitioned early into the band days,there’s always a few who like to remind her about the band’s very early videos.

“Allie,” she replies. “I go by Allie. Scorpius-” Allie pauses when there’s some cheers and giggles. “Calls me Alana, the band prefers Laney for some bizarre reason, but I go by Allie.”

“Allie, right.Allie, how does it feel to have your bands first Grammy? Or well, three I should say.”

“Good.It’s really good.” Allie laughs awkwardly. “It’s crazy. We’ve been doing this band thing for years, and the lads--the others in the band- and I always work so hard. It’s good to to have something to show. Like hey, Mum, yeah, see, I told you it would all work out.” Allie laughs again. “You kind of get to prove to your third year english teacher that yeah, see, told you people like my writing. My poetry doesn’t suck that much.”

“Your poetry was bad?”

“My english teacher didn’t like my writing. But then, she didn’t like me. I was a bit of a troublesome child.”

“Did your--” The host gestures to her appearance. “Have anything to do with it?”

“My self expression? Well, maybe. But I started going by Allie when I was seven. By the time I was nine I was dressing how I dress, aside from school, and I transitioned by fifteen. We started doing covers on youtube and local shows at fourteen, so there’s very few videos of me actually using my dead name. And that was only because of legal reasons.”

There’s a silence in the crowd, and then a “Does Scorpius know?”

“Yes. Of course he knows.”

The host shifts herself, and then nods, trying to get back to topic. “So, while we’re on the topic, you and Scorpius--?” Allie waits for the words. While talking about her state of being was not unusual on these shows, she did get tired of it. And the band will groan when they see the video. However, talking about Scorpius wasn’t unusual either. “You and Scorpius looked absolutely ravishing the other night.” She waits for the but, but it doesn’t come, and her smile grows bigger.

“Really? Thanks. Thank you.” She’s beaming, now. “Ry’s dad--the drummer-- he’s the owner of the label, well brand. And I know I wear a lot of black on stage,” Allie chuckles. “But pink’s my favourite colour. It always has been. We were both so excited and it was his idea to match his bowtie to my dress."

Allie waits, and then the topic of her boyfriend comes up again.

“I think we all want to know, the Grammy award winning song of the year, and best rock song, Bonnie and Clyde, it’ about Scorpius isn’t it? And that blue boy in the wig in the music video is him, isn’t it?”

“Well, I write about what’s true. We as a band, write about our experiences, and our emotions, and for there not to be songs about important people in our life would be preposterous. But yes, Bonnie and Clyde is about us. I grew up in this punk world or freedom of expression and sticking it to the man, and here’s this squeaky clean looking boy, who is amazingly talented but has yet to leave that safety of his bubble. It was so rejuvenating to see someone enter this community I’d come to know and love. And the song is about our adventures into these new worlds together. Having fun, breaking rules, and doing it together.”

“Well I can say it’s safe to assume after that music video, we all want a relationship like that.”

“As a couple in an industry that’s crossing over, we try our hardest to just enjoy whatever time we have. He has his filming thing, I have tour. It makes Bonnie and Clyde moments all more special.”

“Is that why you were recording this album in California?”

“Well, we recorded our first album in a tiny flat in London. Ry’s sister and her roommate let us stay there while we walked to the studio every day for weeks. We had only had enough money for two weeks recording time from Ry’s dad and no real record label. So a much of our stuff on our first record was about slumming about in London and y’know, anarchy of living on your own and all the rebelling we did, still do, and believe in. Despite many of us, Dyl excluded, coming from wealthy backgrounds, we did not get that lavish handout when it came to our music career. Ry’s dad was the only one who gave us money for the recording studio, on the condition that his clothes be featured on the album and he gets credit. We were like, done, deal, yeah, and then we went to live in the flat of his sister and her roommate who were great, but I’m sure she was glad when we left. We’re kind of a mess. After that, I think everyone was hoping we’d get the band thing out of our system but then we just kind of took off and somehow I made enough problems to get on tabloids because we did riots and those sort of things. We grabbed attention, and then kind of opened for large bands and ended up getting signed right before the TCA’s.”

“And thats how you met Scorpius, correct?”

“Yeah, we had been to LA before, but just work stuff really. And we did a few other award shows, so I knew who he was, but that was our first time interacting. It was a few months after that we started to record, and right before that our management rented out a mansion in LA for a few months for us to work out of. It was really cool. So it was more for work reasons, but being close to Disney wasn’t so horrible.” Allie blushes.”I mean, the four of us prior had never been to LA for long periods of time, so this was really neat. I got to surf which I love, and we did the sights and it was the best thing. The experience was just so much more relaxed and we got to have fun. We had fun the first time, but this, it was like a large party. Organized chaos. We weren’t in little bunks so I could have my closet and we could just go out and come back. We had jam sessions and honestly we documented so much of it on instagram it’s just amazing. Of course, when you have a house that large suddenly you accumulate people. For the most part, it was just us, some sound recording people, and occasionally someone from management making sure we get our shit done.Scor, too, sometimes. But in the middle of our second month my dad calls and says that he’s got some time off and they’re going to California for vacation and so we had to entertain my family while working.”

“Isn’t that when the rumors started?”

“Huh, oh!” Allie shakes her head. She’s learned to ignore some of the rumors about cheating. “The blue haired boy? My brother--god brother--.The other boy was my older brother, Jamie. My family met Scorpius, too, and my sister watches his show so she was very excited. And well, honestly, my family visit was just a typical family vacation thing. It’s no different from when we went on trips together,” she laughs.

“Did they like Scorpius?”

“Yeah. “

“I heard you tried acting recently, how was that?”

Alana’s face is bright red. “I can’t reveal too much, but Scorpius had managed to get the band on the show for an episode. We’re not like, a big part, but he got us on the show. We do a performance, and I have like one scene with him and we couldn’t stop laughing. They’ll probably cut it out. But i got to get my hair and makeup done, and I never get that so it was really fun. We’re all so used to life on a tour bus and days where we get pampered are just so amusing to me. They’re not really into that sort of thing so having to get hair and makeup done was so funny to watch. Actually, the morning before the Grammys the band and I went to one of those really fancy salons and spas as insisted by our management and got treatment and that in its self should be documented forever.”

“Was Scorpius with you?”

“No, it was a band only. Scorpius and I got ready elsewhere.”

The host looks at the audience, then at Allie, taking a sip of her coffee mug. “Has Scorpius been on tour? You’ve mentioned how messy it is?”

“He flies out to some shows and he’s done the bus thing a few times. We’ve got a large couch in the back of the bus in our chillout zone and anyone with a guest gets banished back there. Except parents, they get banished to a hotel and we usually go with them. Mums especially. They really like to try and clean everything, and my Gran rearranged everything and cut everyone’s hair once when she visited the bus so we’ve agreed no parents.“

The host chuckled.”Well Allie dear, we’re almost out of time. Your band did fantastic and you and Scorpius looked absolutely dashing. As for all of you--” The host calls out,” you’ve all got a copy of the album with the Grammy award winning song of the year, Bonnie and Clyde and Raging Fire starts their headlinging US tour this summer, tickets go on sale Friday.” The crowd cheers as Allie tugs at her braid. The music dies down and Allie sees the host give her a smile.”You did wonderful. And I hope we werent too pressing.”

“No, I just normally have others with me.Thank you,” Allie says, grabbing her bottle of water.

“And please tell your drummer to stop atting me on twitter.”

Allie laughs, “Thank you. And I will.”

She looks down and smiles once more with relief.

#v: teenage anarchist

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ultraericthered · 4 years

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Anime Update 49

Dragon Ball - Despite my instinctive reaction to Man Wolf being to think he came in late for Fortuneteller Baba’s mini-tournament so he had to settle with this one, it was pretty clever to have him hold a grudge against Roshi/Jackie Chun for blowing up the moon in the last Budokai as a way to make the fight more personal than just Roshi fighting a total throwaway for an entire episode despite the tone of the fight and exchanges being comical. And the cure to his werewolfism being to replicate the full moon with Krillin’s shiny bald head? Totally the absurdity that only Toriyama could pull off.

Love Live Sunshine! - Finished off the series with the movie, Over The Rainbow. If the original School Idol Movie could be described as “unnecessarily necessary” given how its preceding show had ended, then this one’s “obligatorily arbitrary.” Unlike the first Love Live!, Sunshine’s ending already felt perfect. The curtain closed on it and everything. But since µ's got their big movie, giving Aqours one too was kind of an obligation. That said, it’s a really damn solid movie and just as perfect a capper for Aqours’ story, giving us a glimpse of what lies ahead for them in their lives, actually paying off the amount of time and focus given to the Third Years in the second season better than that season itself did by the end, introducing a cool new character in You’s cousin Tsuki (who’s hilariously mistaken for a boy at first, the horror!), sending Saint Snow’s idol career off on a high note, and assuring that audience that Aqours is forever. Some of the stuff that really stands out about the movie even feel like they’re addressing some of the previous movie’s weaker points. For instance remember how µ's went to America for the movie’s first half hour only to be back in Japan for the remainder of it, which seemed like a big wasted opportunity? In this movie, Aqours having their own thrilling adventure in Italy takes up its entire midsection. And y’know how A-RISE, in the movie just like in the series, got done dirty and majorly shafted in spite of their cool factor and potential? Saint Snow plays a big part in this movie, to the point where the movie’s climax is all about helping the sisters so that Leah can move on with a new idol career of her own, and they get to perform a classic Saint Snow heavy metal number in awesome looking soldier outfits. While I liked A-RISE, I freaking love Saint Snow and am so glad to see they received the development and closure they deserved. And speaking of closure, two other things that stood out to me was just how amazingly mature, wiser and more responsible Chika had grown (Honoka had her own growth, but a lot of her best qualities were apparent from the start, whereas Chika’s Perfect Leader status was something she needed to grow into) but still retaining all that makes her so lovable and endearing, and how just as the last movie evolved School Idols to a new level, this movie went as far as to lay the groundwork for evolving Love Live itself with the personal Love Live that Aqours and Saint Snow put on - no longer does it have to be a competition arranged by powers-that-be to judge, glorify, and whore out new idols. The power and control of such events can be in the hands of the idols themselves, which in times of social distancing would be very fortuitous! Thanks a bunch, Aqours and Saint Snow!

Some parts didn’t really work so well. Like, aside from a great opening number, a show stealing Third Year trio song just like the last movie had, and that amazing Saint Snow duet, the song and dance numbers of this movie didn’t stand out and are eclipsed by many from the series itself. The plot with Mari’s mother trying to force her daughter into an arranged marriage feels kind of half-baked by the time it’s resolved, especially since we’re not allowed to so much as see the dude Mari’s supposed to get engaged to or know anything about him, name included. And the First Years got shortchanged except Ruby somewhat (only when regarding Leah) - there’s even a part where Yoshiko finally gets bored with her Fallen Angel routine and decides to be Regular Angel Yohane only to end up going back to a Fallen Angel after literally falling off a balcony ledge and out of a tree - its sole purpose is for a feather from Yohane to become what leads Mari’s mother to the girls’ current location. Did we really need to go that excessive and ultimately pointless just for that? Really?

But when the girls got another look at their old school, held their first 6 member concert at their new one, the credits rolled and the movie ended, I was feeling it. I love these girls and all of their wonderful stories, and I’m going to miss watching them so fucking much. Love Live Sunshine was overall an improvement on its own predecessor, and if both series proved anything to me, it’s that I’m going to be in Idol Hell for many years to come as long as these anime are made.

My-Otome - So from what I can recall of this one, it felt a great deal stranger than the past few episodes, starting off with Nina continuing to be Kuudere in her roommate relationship with Arika, which leads to Arika gleefully revealing Nina’s most embarrassing secret to her classmates, but then out of nowhere it turns its focus to a curse placed in the water (including the swimming pool) by crazy Maki-Maki girl. I personally liked Shiho as a character in My-HiME despite her clinginess and that shit she pulled in the second half that had disastrous consequences for Takumi. But this series’ Shiho is just so shamelessly devious, so unhinged in what a spiteful elitist brat she is and entertaining every moment she’s on screen that I honestly prefer her to her HiME counterpart by far. Just as enjoyable is again good ol’ Mashiro, who has a brief stint as a pool lifeguard in this one and uses her position to mercilessly troll Arika some more. But the single most hilarious part, oddly enough, was the moment where the true danger in the episode emerged. Someone (either Tomoe or her lackey) swapped the salt bags out for sugar bags, and when all that is dumped into the pool water, the invisible creatures mutate into one large, freakish, clearly visible creature, and the freakout from all the girls present there was just priceless. As were all of Nao’s scenes, and how she and Shiho play off one another. All in all, it was fun.

Assassination Classroom - This show has just been getting more and more engaging by the episode. It entertained me from the start, but it’s really been picking up steam after its first 10 or so episodes. Not to say that this one was an enjoyable watch, though. Quite the opposite, it managed to be engaging because of its far less than enjoyable set-up. I really like Karasuma so I of course appreciated the focus given to him here, but...then we have his old military acquaintance, Takaoka. To put it bluntly, this guy just made me retch throughout the whole episode. Gakuho is a very real type of evil authority figure but he’s such a Magnificent Bastard that I enjoy how much he scares me. Shiro is clearly a despicable individual hiding beneath that white cloak, but he’s very par the course Anime Villain-esque. Takaoka is an abusive, domineering, sadistic monster hiding beneath a Good Dad facade; he is absolutely vile and horrifying in a way people in real life actually can be, which is the last sort of person you’d ever want to let near children. He disturbed me greatly, but that made him a great counterpart to Karasuma, who’s acknowledged to be E Class’ true Team Dad. Nagisa S. also got a lot cooler and more interesting as a character than he’d been in a while here, with him owning Takaoka with the real knife he gave him and making him fear for his life being super satisfying. And then Karasuma also owns Takaoka when he refuses to accept his loss. And then, as icing on the cake, when he threatens to beat down Karasuma and all the kids of E Class, the principal himself, Gakuho fucking Asano, comes and owns him, shoving a termination paper down his throat as he gives him the axe for his violent and unstable behavior. And yes, I’ll admit it - I fucking applauded the man for that. After Takaoka is gone, after all the dark and disturbing unpleasantness in the episode, ending it on a comedic note of Korosensei (who sat most of this one out) just going totally feral was also a much appreciated touch of levity.

Vinland Saga - The epic continues as Thorfinn not only learns the truth about his father being a war deserter while also exhibiting some very troubling views and behavior that make him seem like he’s got bloodlust and even sees him severely injuring one of the other kids he was playing with, but Thors’ old comrade in arms Floki (Thors and Floki, like Thor and Loki, ha ha) comes to port with his crew of special soldier vikings, bringing news of the conflict with England, the recent massacre (which is how the episode opened, by the way - naked Norsemen getting killed by British knights during their Saturday bath time!), and the invasion plans. Poor Thors really wanted to leave the life of war and slaughter behind but now he’s implicitly threatened by Floki into rejoining his old crew. The scene that most stood out to me was the father-son talk where Thorfinn finds his father’s old armor and weaponry stashed away, and Thors tells his son that he has no enemies and should not wish for any to fight and kill, which Thorfinn rather distressingly doesn’t take well. And then at the very end we see that Floki plots to have Thors killed for his pacifist stance, talking to a man named Askeladd who he wants to carry out the job. Oh, now things will be getting REAL good.

March Comes In Like A Lion - Have continued watching this and have arrived at a pretty startling conclusion. Know how School Live! was “dark slice-of-life” due to it being a horror series with the school life stuff as a front that gets deconstructed? Well this series doesn’t have a school life side to it (yet anyway) - it’s purely slice-of-life...it’s just that the life in question tends to go to some really, REALLY dark places. I mean, good lord. One episode section gives backstory on Rei’s most prominent Shogi rival, Nikaidou, and how he suffers from a chronic illness that effects him terribly when he’s playing Shogi in immense heat but he’ll still keep on going because he wants to beat his rival that badly, and by the end he’s learned nothing and will continue killing himself just to win a game against Rei. The very next has the Kawamoto sisters honoring their deceased mother and grandmother in a really weird way but managing to stay positive...until Hina goes off all alone just to bawl her eyes out over how much she yearns for her whole family back. And then there’s Rei’s backstory with his biological parents dying when he was still little, how he was adopted by the Shogi-obsessed Masachika Kouda (voiced by Cam Clarke, surprisingly enough), and the life he lived in the Kouda household that led to so much emotional pressure, abuse and depression for that whole family, him included. This shit is so heavy, so unsettling, and all so...believable. And that’s really the main draw here, isn’t it? It’s like you really want to look away from this boy’s largely crapsack life but you just can’t, it’s so compelling. In a way, Rei is all of us. Sure, his experiences may differ from many people’s, but the way he feels, thinks, processes and reacts is all too common and all too human. In short, this dark slice-of-life is a slow burn so far, but it has successfully fascinated me into wanting to keep with it. And that’s the mark of a true anime masterstroke.

Not that it’s all dreary doom and gloom, though. The parts with the Kawamoto sisters tend to lighten the mood considerably, especially Hina being a precious ball of sunshine and energy who’s such such a silly, unrestrained adorkable mess of a girl that I just can’t help but utterly adore her for it. And Nikaidou, illness and unsettling dedication to his Shogi rivalry aside, is usually pretty hilarious in his bombast.

Mobile Fighter G Gundam - The battle on Lantau Island reached its truly breathtaking finish, and in many ways this felt like the big finish that the show was soaring towards for all this time. Schwarz fully discloses the truth about who he is (a DG Cell-created copy of Kyoji’s mind and soul inhabiting the body of the late Schwarz Bruder, Neo Sweden’s Gundam Fighter), and reveals to Domon what really happened with their parents, Kyoji and the Dark Gundam, so in a sense, Domon and Kyoji have their true brotherly reunion at last in a moment that moved me to tears with how openly emotional and overwhelmed Domon was...and that made it all the more crushing that in order to destroy the Dark Gundam for real, Domon had to end his brother’s life (with both the copy and the original merging into one in his passing, which was a really cool animation effect). This brotherly love was nicely mirrored with Rain’s care and concern for the brainwashed, out of control Allenby, who she’s clearly come to love like a kid sister. Much as I enjoy Wong as a character, he’s a thoroughly despicable scumbag, especially with his predatory approach towards Allenby and the mental abuse he puts her through, which made it cathartic to watch him get hoist by his own petard when Allenby inside the Walter Gundam executes him point blank with a laser blast through a window. And last, there’s the part I was just not emotionally prepared for - the final battle between Domon and Master Asia, the full revelation of why Master aligned himself with the Dark Gundam and turned to evil, and finally, Master Asia passing away in his pupil’s arms. The battle itself was epic to the extreme, I could fully understand how badly Master had been effected by the experiences he’d had, why he came to the conclusion he did and what he sought to achieve even when the means involved mass genocide and were inexcusably wrong (as even he himself saw as he lay dying), and that death scene...again, I was moved to tears in a way I’ve not been by anime in quite a while. I loved Master Asia, largely due to how much he always loved Domon like a son no matter how much he might have tried to suppress those feelings, so losing him so soon after losing Kyoji was as hard for me as it was for Domon. Neo Japan has won the Gundam Fight, but at what cost?

It really is amazing how emotionally sincere and seriously engaging this show has gotten by this point given how unashamedly corny and silly it regularly is. With the Gundam Fight over and everything seemingly taken care of, it’s time to head into the four episode grand finale event. The final moment we’ve been waiting for, next week!

Angel Beats! - Continuing from where last week left off, we have, in my honest opinion, the absolute strongest episode in the entire show. Episode 6, “Family Matter.” Operation....START!

- A big part of what made this the series’ best episode is all the powerful themes running through its narrative events and character moments, and if I had to cite a single core theme of the episode it would be Battlefront’s Reckoning. Basically, our main cast facing the consequences of their ignoble actions, which was due to come since the very first episode. The situations that Yurippe and her pawns, Otonashi, and even Kanade land themselves in over the course of this episode, which is building off of the very end of last one, is all in some ways their own fault, so it lies upon them to set things right.

- The opening scene is hilarious in how anticlimactic it feels coming off of where we left off. Battlefront served a whole night in detention off-screen and are now free to go, with a lot of them complaining about how hard that was for them. We also get insightful remarks about how Naoi is proving already to be a far stricter and more ruthless enemy in the president position than Angel ever was, and some more delightful Hinata-Yui banter as well when Yui volunteers to try and seduce Naoi into surrender. Oh, Yui.

- Yurippe shows once again what a smart motherfucker she is, at least among all the other morons in Battlefront. Her proposal on how to deal with Naoi’s newly instated regime is to test the waters of how bad it could get and to what lengths Naoi will go in trying to quell any insolence and disobedient behavior in classes. On top of giving her lackeys licence to goof off in class under this reasoning, she gives Otonashi a special one-way communication device for later use.

- The SSS Brigade’s antics in class are amusing (I especially for some reason crack up at just the way Yui walks to the door whenever she has to take a fake bathroom break, and Naoi finally being someone with enough sense to try and confiscate the big ass lethal weapon that Noda is carrying around with him in school every day), but the episode hints at a darker turn when we see that in private, Naoi is far from disciplined himself - he’s a cruel bully who uses his position as a free pass to torment and beat down students weaker than him. He’s not an NPC, and this is supposedly how he balances his school life out so that he won’t pass on in peaceful fulfillment.

- When Otonashi finds himself together with Kanade after class, he finally - FINALLY - takes some damn initiative and asks her to come eat Mapo Tofu with him in the cafeteria. I’ll admit that I don’t ship these characters as a romantic pairing at all, but I do buy their close connection and how they bond as friends - the awkward big brother-little sister type chemistry they share is pretty cute. Kanade herself is also very cute and funny here, particularly when she expresses bewilderment over how she apparently likes very spicy Mapo Tofu, as though the spiciness of it had never occurred to her, and how when Naoi catches them eating outside of lunch hours and orders them to be imprisoned for it, she very rapidly eats up the rest of the Mapo Tofu before complying, much to Otonashi’s surprise.

- Rather than take Kanade and Otonashi to the detention room, Naoi has them thrown into a specially designed holding cell. This is obviously because Kanade has her own programmed powers that would allow her to escape detention easily were she put there, so Naoi thought well ahead. Makes me wonder how long he was desiring to take Kanade’s position for himself. Kanade continues with her nonchalant, monotone humor by deciding to just take a nap right there and then, which continues to frustrate Otonashi to no end.

- After the eyecatch, we enter the second act and there’s a notable tonal whiplash that occurs immediately. Yurippe makes a call to Otonashi on the communication device she’d given him earlier, which as she planned, is still on him while he’s in prison with Kanade. She gives Otonashi the details on what she’s found out about Naoi and on what the situation outside is right now - she’s leading Battlefront into battle against Naoi and the Student Council. She describes it as a horrible battle the likes of which they’ve never faced before and that Naoi is using the normal students that follow him as human shields and hostages as he guns down the SSS members one by one. Their forces are dwindling, so they’re going to need their former enemy Kanade to come to their aid and turn the tides. I’m positive that this “tell, don’t show” approach to this battle was due to a limitation from the episode count imposed on the studio and thus how they only had so much time in a single episode to clear this part of the story. But it’s so fucking effective and works really, really well in building up the tension and suspense, and selling the stakes of the situation to the audience without actually showing them anything. The thunder heard outside, the dimming lights inside the room, Yuri’s tone and what she’s describing, the split second shot of Naoi and his troops executing their enemies in the rain that we get later...all of it paints a picture in the viewer’s head of what’s going on, and their imagination filling in the blanks makes this part grimmer, scarier, and more brutal than anything that could’ve been shown outright.

- When Otonashi gets Kanade up and tries to get her to help get them out of the prison room, we’re finally given details from Kanade’s side of things that explains both why Battlefront saw her as a lethal adversary who was obliterating people and why she’s so introverted and emotionally closed off as she is. At first whenever she got other dead high school students involved in school life and club activities, she befriended them and they all had fun together...but it always ended up fulfilling her friends enough for them to pass on, leaving her behind, all alone again. And again. And again. Apparently she can’t pass on until some very specific unfinished business of her’s is finally finished, so she had to go through this quite a lot until she eventually adopted an impersonal approach to being Student Council President and socially distanced herself from others. And this is why she never tried to communicate properly with Battlefront, leaving them to their assumptions about her being an angel of God that they needed to take down. Even Otonashi finds himself in disbelief about how needless this conflict between Angel and Battlefront had always been, and how if he’d gone with Kanade when he had the chance after he first arrived in Purgatory, things might have gone so much differently. It’s such a strangely powerful little moment for him.

- Kanade provides literally the only levity in this super bleak, joke free second act with her matter-of-fact awkward dorkiness regarding all of her handsonic updates, including a super large one that resembles a flower to make it look “cute.” Otonashi also has another great moment of initiative and actual brilliance with how he thinks to use Kanade’s handsonic transformations to break the door down.

- The episode’s climax out in the rain. DAMN. This had to be the most shockingly, drastically tonally different sequence in the show at this point. When I first watched this episode I got chills with how Yurippe built this up in her earlier call, but even after that I was so stunned at what I was watching when the episode got to this climax. Naoi and his mooks have completely massacred Battlefront, dead bodies are lying flat on the ground as it continues to rain, Kanade calls forth her handsonic in preparation for attacking Naoi...and then Naoi says “You’d dare defy me? I’m God!” Which leads to Naoi espousing his twisted beliefs and rhetoric regarding life and death - he believes that the amount of suffering a human being endures in life dictates how their soul evolves and ascends in the life beyond, that their suffering grants everyone the right to become God after they’ve passed away, and since he’s the only one who’s realized this secret, he has become God of this purgatorial realm and thus is entitled to doing whatever he wants with his power. Which includes “freeing” others of the pain they carry with them from their physical lives, as he prepares to demonstrate using the fallen Yurippe as an example. The way he grabs the beaten down Battlefront leader, likens Iwasawa’s earlier passing to being freed of life’s pain, reveals he’s taught himself hypnotism, and starts to hypnotize Yurippe into a false sense of inner peace just HURTS to watch. It’s so shudder-inducing and Naoi is just such a sadistic, evil person that you just want someone to throttle him...which Otonashi thankfully does!

- Otonashi’s Big Damn Hero moment of throttling Naoi and screaming in his face about how he’s got no right to trivialize the lives people have lived, the pain they endured, and the feelings, memories and experiences they carved into their souls and carried with them even in their passing on to the afterlife, honestly his finest moment in the series (and also a big moment for Yurippe’s character, just look at her as she observes the enemy getting beaten by Otonashi’s compassion), segues into us seeing Naoi’s own dark past when Otonashi asks him “Wasn’t your life the real deal too?” And as much as I’d been hating Naoi for his attitude and deeds, his backstory is just painfully bleak and heartbreaking in a way that nothing in this show had been before now, what with the tragic loss of his brother and how he had to take the burden of his abusive father’s disciplinary training and high expectations in his place without ever once being acknowledged for being a good son and his own person before Naoi Sr. passed away and left Ayato imprisoned in a life that seemed meant for his deceased brother until he literally worked himself to death...it made me feel so bad for the guy and it was done so well.

- The ending to this episode is one of the most beautiful scenes in the story, though also one of the most alarmingly abrupt places to end an episode. A tearful Otonashi wraps his arms around a sad, confused Naoi. “You’re the one who worked hard! You’re the one who struggled and lived your life! It’s you who I’m embracing right now - only you. There is no one else!” It’s then that Naoi realizes that all he’d wanted all along was to be acknowledged as a true existence of his own. Naoi sheds tears that fall down upon the wet ground as sunlight starts to shine down upon the campus. The screen fades to white and that’s how it ends. The somber “Brave Song” plays us out from a somber ending to a very heavy episode. I was left almost without any words, not even on my mind, after I finished this one for the first time. This is by and large a comedy anime, but the places it will go...so dark and dramatic, yet ultimately uplifting and sincere.

- The way that ending scene was framed, though, was kind of a huge mislead since I and I bet everyone else watching assumed Naoi was “obliterated” in the end, able to pass on because he finally was acknowledged. So his presence at the very start of the next episode comes off as a jarring surprise ‘cause really, how is he still around?

- Once I got my thoughts together after I first finished the episode, what dawned on me was “Wait a minute, that all happened in a single episode? That whole Naoi conflict that was last episode’s cliffhanger is over THAT fast, just like that?” By this point, however, I’d read up on the series’ production history, so having that in mind made it super clear to me what the deal actually was here - in the original vision for the anime, this would’ve been episode 13. Jun Maeda designed his narrative to fit within a series constructed with two distinct halves, the first half being all about Battlefront VS Angel and the Student Council, and the second half being all about everything that follows off of that conflict’s resolution which includes Otonashi recovering his lost memories and leading all the characters to the story’s true underlining point and message: the great value of life and the spiritual importance of the soul moving on to Heaven. In the one cours show it ended up becoming, it’s still every bit that 2 half story but now the first half is episodes 1 to 6, the second half is episodes 8 to 13, with episode 7 standing as the middle-of-the-road episode that transitions us from one to the other. Otonashi recalls nothing of his past and is mostly a passive follower/observer in one half but remembers more and gets a bit more proactive in the other half. Kanade is the antagonist in one half but then one of the main protagonists in the other. Battlefront and Ayato Naoi are bad guys in one half but good guys in the other. One half is bigger on the comedy and lighter on the drama and deep, thematic spiritual core messages but the other half is the reverse. It’s a very strong narrative but when the first half with the Battlefront VS Student Council ends in just episode 6, you really do feel like it was not supposed to arrive at this point this soon and from that point on, the feeling of the story burning off plot points as it rushes to get to its big climax in a very limited, compressed space in which to do so will become prrrretty glaring.

- The next episode preview has Otonashi whining “No way! I can’t pass on like this!”, but that’s irrelevant for now since Angel Beats! will go on break for next week, which is to be a very special occasion...

Still, though. Perfectly done episode, easily my favorite in the series

#Anime Update

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speakingmyself · 5 years

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Let Us Shine: Stanning BTS and Dancing in the Rain

Originally published on Medium on May 14, 2019

Recently I had the awesome opportunity to be a guest on my amazing friend Lindsay’s podcast, “I’ll Be There for You.” The focus of this particular podcast is to invite indivduals to speak about something in pop culture that helped them through a hard time. It was no question that I would talk about boy bands. I stanned N’Sync before stanning was a word. Years later, I had a One Direction era. A big one. And while that didn’t necessarily go the way I thought it would (I had way too much optimism in that “short hiatus” talk), I have no regrets.

Fast forward to November 2017. The American Music Awards are airing soon and I’m seeing ads about the “biggest K-pop boy band” performing. Naturally, I had to see what that was about. I watched in awe as 7 guys did incredible choreography and sang an amazingly catchy song…all live. I was impressed, confused, and interested. So I quickly fell down the rabbit hole. I learned their names, their personalities, their roles. I watched the music videos, listened to the albums, watched the Run episodes and random tv and award show appearances, and read so many lyric translations. And before I knew it, I was hooked.

I talk about the journey into BTS in the podcast so won’t go too far into that here but needless to say, I’m so, so glad I found this group. From the start, I was so drawn to the idea of a group of 7 very different and remarkably talented guys who were the underdogs. They came from the small company, they sang and rapped about things that could be considered taboo while I found them relatable. They’ve learned from their mistakes, have grown into true artists, and stayed unbelievably humble along the way. Every day, I am proud to be a fan.

Concerts have always been a major part of my life, as can be evidenced by the list I’ve been keeping since 9th grade of every artist I’ve ever seen live. BTS is #120 and I’ve seen them 4 times in 8 months, all here in Chicago. I don’t have any ARMY friends here. I’m so lucky that one of my great friends, who happens to live out of town, asked me about BTS soon after I became a fan and got hooked right there with me. The concerts provided us opportunities to reunite and hang out all while having the most amazing weekends.

The two shows from the Love Yourself tour in October were awesome. I was so struck by the diversity of the crowd and the way the fans turned the evening concert into a full day event. It was so amazing to see the dancing I love so much be performed live, along with absolutely amazing vocals and rapping of songs I’ve grown so attached to. And the antics and silly moments were unforgettable. But this past weekend at Soldier Field…I don’t know how anything can beat that.

As you probably know, the first of the Love Yourself: Speak Yourself shows here in Chicago was absolutely freezing. The rain stopped before the show began but in true Chicago fashion, despite it being mid-May, it was COLD. But it was amazing. To see “Not Today” performed live was a dream come true for me as that song was my anthem when I was in the hospital about 15 months ago for a heart procedure. To hear Make It Right and Mikrokosmos in the encore was an emotional rollercoaster that I couldn’t really prepare myself for. It was amazing and worth not being able to feel my toes.

And then there was Sunday. The rain didn’t let up, the wind was blowing, and I was nervous. I convinced myself they’d go easier on the dancing to avoid any slipping and maybe they’d just really have a hard time in the rain. As Namjoon said, in their 6 years of performing, this had never happened before! But holy crap was I wrong, these guys gave it their ALL. Despite Jungkook not flying during Euphoria (which was absolutely the right and perfect choice), they performed to their absolute best ability and put on the best concert I’ve seen since I went to my first concert 20 years ago.

Everything was perfect. It feels like a dream. And my friend and I were so, so lucky to have seats really close to the side of the main stage so at some point, each boy came over to wave to our section and for the first time, I could see their faces and features not through a screen. That part still doesn’t feel real. I have appreciated and loved this band for a year and a half and to finally really see them meant so much. It’s honestly hard to put into words.

It rained the whole show. The whole damn show. And it was magical. The fireworks, the ARMY bombs and phones lighting the sky, all while hearing the songs that remind me to love myself, to stand up for myself, and to be proud of how far I’ve come….the only word to describe it really is that it was beautiful. Hearing the boys thank us and say how it was a night they’d never forget meant so much. It felt like 60,000 fans and 7 boys from Korea all experienced something so special together, something that we all will remember forever.

It’s been two days and I’m still processing it. I took photos and filmed videos but also told myself to put the phone down and take it all in. I looked around this massive stadium that serves as a cultural landmark in the city I’ve lived in my whole life and I felt so accepted and understood. I got emotional as we all sang “You’ve got me” and “I’ve got you” because even though we all are strangers, we are all in this fandom experience together. Many of us have had experiences where we’ve had to defend our love of this band and this music. Others like myself have had to say that age doesn’t mean you can’t be a fan. We all have our own stories to tell and our own lives we are living but we have this major thing in common. We’ve been positively impacted by the music and the people of BTS.

The pop-up store has since closed and I am no longer seeing ARMYs on the street in BTS and BT21 gear. But there is still so much more to come and to enjoy with this band and I cannot wait to be a witness to it. Whether it’s watching the upcoming appearances on my tv, following the concerts on twitter, or watching Youtube videos on my phone on my commute to work, I cannot wait for what’s to come. I cannot wait to continue to find reasons to love this band and to be a part of this fandom. Thank you BTS, for encouraging me to speak myself and love myself, and for giving me the most incredible concert experience on Sunday night. I purple you.

#bts #bangtan #speak yourself tour

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jdrespling · 5 years

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Headbangers Con Survival Guide

What’s shakin folks? Anthony here again with another killer review coming to you from the FIRST EVER HEADBANGERS CON. Did you say Con? Yes, that is not a misprint. On the evening of November 9th Chris 51 and his crew of metal heads hit the Bossanova Ballroom with one thing on their minds…..METAL. Not only was it successful, but this guy is still feeling the high of being in a room with so many great musicians and people. Never in my existence did I ever think idbe chatting with some of the industry’s leading musicians and some of the greats as well. People like David Ellefson, Dirk Verbeuren from MEGADEATH! Aaron Patrick from All That Remains, Carla & Heidi of the Butcher Babies, Morgan Rose of Sevendust, Corey Glover from Living Color and of course we can not forget our gracious host Chris 51.

You know though for my first time having the pleasure to doing an event like this it went amazingly well. So as the night started to wind down we got a performance from the one and ONLY STRYPER! Man, these guys can still kick a beat and hold their own. Tonight, will always be one of the greatest nights of my life. One of my favorite moments about tonight. I look over in the corner because I was looking around for shots and photo ops, and I noticed Dirk Verbeuren with his head down and drawing on something, so I wanted to be nosy and walked over and started talking to this lovely young woman named Elizabeth Engel from a non-profit organization called RYFO. They help struggling musicians. She had asked Dirk to draw her a T-Shirt design for her organization and he didn’t even hesitate and did it on the spot. That totally blew me away, here he is supposed to be partaking on the festivities but decides to help this organization out. I got fucking goose bumps. Don’t believe me see the pics. Dirk again you are a hell of a drummer and human being, thank you. But I also believe that tonight I was apart of METAL HISTORY! When im wheeling my old ass in a wheelchair going to the 25th annual Headbangers con and its my 25th then I will reference this article and I will rest my case! so tonight I say good day and ill have more tomorrow

Sometimes you can’t help but be a bit giddy. Start to ask yourself who are you going to meet today? What am I going to do? First I’m going to sit in and hear some stories from Eddie Ojeda of Twisted Sister. Did you know that when Twisted Sister first got signed not only were they signed to a UK label, but people thought they were from Europe? Wow, I had no idea. Also, Eddie has a line of Twisted Hot Sauces, that are amazing, so I bought three. I walked around and went over to the exhibit hall to check out the merch booths. Then I went back for the Butcher Babies Heidi and Carla. I bet you didn’t know that one of Heidi’s influences is Slipknot well specifically Corey Taylor and her favorite song is the New National Fucking Anthem SURFACING!!! One of my personal favorites as well. Then Carla is a grief counselor and she is a big fan of the immortal PANTERA! As the day wrapped up from elbowing with Rock Gods, Chris 51 had some special entertainment planned. Hyro The Hero and Soil. To be honest I think Portland is still ringing from that show. As you go to a Con or an event that spans over a couple days you can’t help but wonder what you missed or what you lucked out of. Between panels and signing’s, it can be overwhelming. So, I suggest you find a map or the list of events and plan your weekend. Sunday was here and well I didn’t want it to end, its like that favorite moment that you want to live over and over again. Today I was going to sit in on the Burton C Bell panel well because I like Fear Factory. Jose Mangin our host took the stage. I learned a lot about Burton and Fear Factory. Did you know that their name was taken from a Demo tape they got in Europe? One of their first gigs was in a back yard and Dino kept getting shocked because they weren’t grounded properly. Then we sang Happy Birthday to the one and only David Ellefson. As the day closes and the con is packing up you can’t help but feel saddened and a bit down. So, I got to get a book signed by David Ellefson, and I got a post card signed by Derek Riggs the creator of Iron Maiden’s Eddie. Plus, I don’t know if you all know this, but I am a huge star wars nut and bought a really cool book. I wanted to also see what some of these great artists had to say about headbangers con.

Carla Harvey (Butcher Babies)

EE: Just out of curiosity would you do another Headbangers Con

Carla: Oh of course its been a blast it’s very impressive for the first year for the first Head Bangers Con. I think these kind of things should be a staple everywhere around the country don’t you?

EE: I totally agree

EE: Now, would you change anything?

Carla: Would I change anything, I think this is a great example of what a Head Bangers con should be. There’s nothing that I would change, really nothing. There are so many great people here, the fans have all been awesome and the vendors as well. Maybe have them all in one room so we don’t have to walk around as much.

EE: Was it overwhelming to be in the room with so many of the greats like Burton C Bell, David Ellefson?

Carla: WE have been lucky enough to be in the business for over a decade now and a lot of these people we idolized in our youth have become friends over the years, this is more like a family reunion than anything.

EE: Now I have one important question for you sir, would you attend another Head Bangers Con? (Ron Keel)

RK: I would do it in a heartbeat this has been a fantastic event I’m really glad to be apart of it, and um we have made some new friends seen some old friends and just keep this thing going if Chris Fitty One wants me back for Con number 2 ill be there!

EE: Are you having a good time?

RK: I am absolutely having a blast loving the Rock Star treatment. And a great event for the fans and artists as well!

Nathan Hunt (Shamans Harvest)

EE: how are you doing this morning?

NH: Well I need a lot of coffee especially after last night….

EE: I bet its been a wild weekend.

EE: So the major question is would you do another Head Bangers Con?

NH: Fuck yeah!

EE: Tell me a little bit about your experience this weekend?

NH: Anytime your around like-minded people you know that passion for music it’s always going to be a good weekend.

EE: does it feel like a family reunion?

NH: yes its definitely got that family reunion vibe we all got fucked up Friday, and I chilled yesterday and ordered pizza.

EE: Are you having a good time?

NH: Most definitely I am, learning a lot of shit, with Jose on the stage grinding away.

Davey Grahs (POP EVIL)

EE: The million dollar question is, would you be apart of another Head Bangers Con?

DG: OH Hell yeah, hell yeah this has been great!

EE: What is your thoughts on the concept of having a con for metal heads like us?

DG: I love it I don’t know why we haven’t had anything like this before or sooner

EE: What’s next for Pop Evil

DG: well we have a Canadian tour kicking off next week, then a US run and end it in Europe.

Dirk Verbeuren (MEGADEATH)

EE: Curious, would you be apart of another Head Bangers Con?

DV: absolutely I would this has been a total blast, and ah I think it will only get better since this is the first edition after all.

EE: Where do you think the next location will be?

DV: I am rooting for Los Angeles because it is closer to my house and I like sleeping in my own bed. Lol no I think L.A would be a be a better place because there are a lot of conventions there and its very busy there is a lot of people in the metal scene that would definitely dig things like this so.

Jose Mangin (Sirius Xm Radio)

EE: So Would you be involved with another Head Bangers Con?

JM: Oh My God of course that is a no brainer, I would never miss something that’s as cool as a gathering of us metal fans and to able to help be a leader for it, a voice for it, it’s an honor to be here. If I saw one dude wearing a metal shirt that’s all I need, but I see a ton of people with big hearts for metal ill never miss this again.

EE: You have done panels for the last two days, right at this moment what is your favorite so far?

JM: I mean dude, Megadeath is one of my all time favorite bands and just always talking to someone of his stature (David Ellefson) it freaks me out because I have been such a long time fan.

EE: Do you still get the giggles when you do interviews?

JM: Always , Always I never take this job, this position this life I have for granted it’s a huge responsibility. But First and foremost I am a FAN.

EE: One last question What would you tell Chris 51 right now?

JM: Dude, I would say thank you for getting all of us head bangers together. Thank you and lets do it again!

Corey Glover (Living Color)

EE: Would you do another Con like this?

CG: Absolutely in a heartbeat I would do it tomorrow, yeah this is fun this is great.

EE: Do you think this is going to open bigger doors and open people’s eyes?

CG: I do I think that as a band, to connect to your audience and the people who appreciate what you do is hard to do at a show, if your really working you only have about a half an hour to meet and greet your fans but its only hi and that’s it. This I get you talk to people all day and that we don’t get to do on a daily basis. Plus the fans can ask specific questions that you don’t get the opportunity to ask at a meet and greet. It like what kind of pick are you using why did you do this instead of that. That is when I feel more connected to my fans.

Burton C Bell (Fear Factory)

EE: Would you do another metal Con and Why

BB: Yes and because its FUCKING FUN AS HELL!

EE: is there anything that really stood out for you this weekend?

BB: Umm just the Family vibe

EE: I have been hearing that a lot from people

BB: and that’s what this is it’s a celebration of the genre intrinsically even if you are a musician or not.

Then I got to see the new Fear Factory album cover…. He hehe…..

This last weekend was not only the time of my life but I have to say very eye-opening. From all the Vendors like The Star Wars Store, Rogue Toys, Period Panties, Terasyne Amps, ROCKSTAR clothing, Morbid Empire, Metal Yoga, Paradise Harley Davidson, Rose City Vapors, and all the tattoo artists. I can’t forget to mention Toxic Zombie, Cryptamnesia, M.I.R.P, YesterdazeNews Bob Williams Photography you my friend my hats off. You all made me feel very welcome into the fold and I can not wait to shoot side by side and work with you all again. Plus Jose Mangin from Sirius Xm Radio. Brother never lose that passion, I love listening to you on the radio and enjoyed watching you on stage during the panels.

This weekend couldn’t have been possible if it wasn’t for the great works by Chris 51 and Morgan Rose. You two started a domino effect that will hopefully last for generations. You gave the metal fans a place where we can be as one and feel like we are family.

Chris and Morgan, I personally can not thank you enough for showing this world what metal is and is always going to be. I am anxiously waiting for the news of the next one.

So guys that’s all I am going to say, if you missed out on all the wonderful panels, and your favorite artists. I am truly sorry you missed a HEAD BANGING WEEKEND!!

Thanks again for reading and enjoying what I had to say

Remember Keep it real and keep it METAL!

I’ll catch you on the flipside!

HeadBangers Con Portland 2018 Review Headbangers Con Survival Guide What’s shakin folks? Anthony here again with another killer review coming to you from the FIRST EVER HEADBANGERS CON.

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lilysbook · 7 years

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Ramblings: Reflection

My 3 weeks of freedom is coming to an end in 3 more days.

The first week was filled with apprehension and anxiety as I busied myself with the thoughts of finding a part-time job right away before my internship officially starts. It seems that I had forgotten how tough it was to get a job. I sent several resumes and even had an interview however time was a cruel factor. After a few half-hearted attempt in securing a job, I realise that I would not get this opportunity again in the near future. The opportunity to just do nothing. To rest and relax after 3 years of monotonous and toxic environment, I can afford to rest for a mere 3 weeks, can’t I? So rest and relax I did.

In the second week, there were news of EXO’s grand comeback, and EXO’s official SNS were created. Rumors about teaser (and eventually official news of the teasers) started to arise. SM dropped individual teasers at 12am KST each night for their title track.

It was the beginning of my fangirl experience in comebacks. I was on twitter 24/7 and I think that I am an annoyance to my non-EXO twitter stans who had to see all my fangirling EXO tweets, so I am a little sorry about that. As this was my first comeback experience (EXO was my first ever kpop group I am obsessed with), I had no idea what to expect. So, I stayed up every night to wait for the new teaser alongside my twitter timeline that became frenzied every night an hour before it was released. The experience was in a word... fun. I had a sense of comradeship with my fellow EXO-Ls (although I don’t have any common mutuals -- I usually tweet and talk to myself loll). But I had a great time reading, liking and retweeting. The best part was 5 minutes before the teaser. Everyone in the timeline was filled with anticipation and excitement so it’s so easy to fall into the delirium as well.

Kai was the first member in the teaser. Even though I had been excited just a minute before, when the teaser opened with the catchy tune, my heart dropped. Kai had dreads. Disappointment mixed with adoration. Kai looked so cute as always but he had dreads. My stand on it is that it is cultural appropriation and that it is not right for those not in the African culture to have it. Some don’t share my view but I think it is still wrong. He had dreads during the Wolf era as well and he did not like it so why now? Many (including me) defended him saying that the stylist/SM were the ones who forced it upon him. However, now we know that Kai was the one who requested for the hairstyle which disappointed me even more. He needs to be educated about this and some EXO-Ls had planned to do so. Hope that the message will reach him and he will be more knowledgeable about it and hopefully he would stopped wearing that hairstyle.

Baekhyun was next. The first thing that I did was to laugh at his hairstyle. But as time goes by, I think he pulls off the mullet really well. I fell in love right away with the song in his teaser, Forever. Kyungsoo’s line “Don’t break my soul...” was a clincher.

There were many theories of whose teaser it will be the following night. Some said it was in alphabetical order, some said it followed the old songs order, some said it was the appearance in the teaser of the previous member. The last theory proved to be right (well, only for the first few nights). Chanyeol was the one to appear in the teaser. I loved his cotton candy hair. I love any hair that is bright. Chanyeol look so handsome in the teaser. The song Chill was awesome too.

Sehun came next and he looks good as always. He had grown on me over time. I always look forward to him when he is in variety shows. He has that natural entertainment sense. Anyway, he was amazingly badass in the teaser. His chest was covered with tattoos and his gaze was intense. I was like, woahhhh the maknae has grown up!

The next night was Suho. I love Suho and his awkwardness. But there were no traces of awkwardness in his teaser. He looks dashing even in the various weirdly-styled outfit and his centre-parted mob of hair; both fits him perfectly. Suho is very princely and he has that royal aura surrounding him. As expected, that is our leader with high ranked visuals.

We were left with my top 3 biases: Kyungsoo, Xiumin, Chen & Lay. I know now that Lay is not in the comeback, but back then, I still had that tiny hope that he would appear the last night or something. Anyways, I was still so grateful and happy that SM saved my favourite boys for the last.

The next night was Xiumin. Wow. I was so speechless by his ethereal beauty. Is Minseok even real? As I have posted often here on Tumblr (LOL), Xiumin is my bias wrecker. I just can’t keep my eyes of him in the teaser. He has that gentle and feminine look that I adore so much, yet he is manly (do I make sense?). He is just so so beautiful. His eyes is his best feature. With his black comma hairstyle, (let’s face it he can dye his hair in any colour and he still look gorgeous) he was the most good-looking out of all the members by far. Of course, EXO has no visual hole (everyone is so very extremely handsome) and this is just my personal opinion anyways. Xiumin is just so underrated sometimes and I just want to shake everyone and tell them to look at that beauty and talent and intelligent human being and stop sleeping on him. His vocal is one of the top in EXO but he was still overlooked. I’m so glad that SM gave him more chance to shine with Young and Free and also The War album. So proud of you my darling, beautiful Minseok.

Chen came next. Different from the other nights, I watched the teaser late because I was not home. The first thing when I got data was to check who was next HAHA. This level of dedication (or obsession) surprise even me. Anyway, it was the vocalist who slays high notes in EXO, Chen. I like Chen’s personality. He even bleached his hair for the first time just for this album. That is dedication. I always like idols with blonde hair as I find them good-looking and Jongdae was no exception. he looks so good in the teaser.

And then who do we have left? Yes, it is my ult bias in EXO, D.O, Do Kyungsoo. Out of all the members, I like his voice the most (yes I may be slightly biased). I like everything about him. I like that he is shy outside, but his stage presence is amazing. I like that he is passionate about both his singing and acting. I like that he is a man of few words, but when he talks, everyone cracks up. I like that even though he is physically small, he is a manly man. I like his smile, I like his hair. I like his loyalty because even though he has acting commitments, he drops everything for EXO. I like him so so much. In the teaser, he smiled so gently, it feels like he is my boyfriend. In this album, I like that he has a lot of parts because i like his singing voice. You know how you like someone and you like everything about them but you cannot also point out specifically what you like about them because you are afraid you will miss out on something? Yeah, that’s how I feel about Kyungsoo. I just... like him as a person. I admire him so much.

Even though I have biases in EXO, I love each and every member too. They are talented and popular, yet they remain humble and polite and down-to-earth. They were met with so many challenges but even so, they are still one. Their gratitude towards the fans are what made us EXO-Ls stay and what makes them still relevant imo. I hope Lay will join them in the repackage album!!!

I love stanning EXO.

Anyway, the group teaser of Kokobop was released night after Kyungsoo’s and then the MV the day after. I love the song. I love the whole The War album. I love how EXO feels so excited about this album because they were involved in the making thus making them attached to it. The MV itself needed some time to get used to because there were slight drug references in it. The first time I watched, I had already picked up on the not-so-subtle cues that they were high on drugs lol (don’t do drugs kids). But I may have overreacted and think too much as well. I don’t know. Baekhyun explained they were aliens sent to Earth (in reference to previous MVs). The filmography was amazing though.

They then had Vlive and everyone was so funny and cute omg especially Kyungsoo’s freestyle dance to Touch It. HAHAHA that ahjussi. The most exciting schedule that they have and that I am looking forward to would be their appearance in Knowing brothers. I am a Knowing Brothers maniac so having two of my faves set of people meet is the best thing a fangirl can get.

Their first live performance of Kokobop was just tonight and it was amazing. The dance, the vocal, the visual were top notch. I like the starting and the dance break part the best.

And they performed The Eve too. Wow. It has a sensuous feeling to it. HAHA. I am barely explaining it but the whole album is that way so yeah. (I want to see this live lol. I attended Exor’dium concert where they performed Artificial Love and woah what an incredible experience).

Anyway, my point of this entry (before I could stop myself from writing an essay about EXO) was that EXO unintentionally became my project during these 3 weeks break. I experienced how it was like becoming a full-time fangirl and it was an amazing and fun experience. I foresee myself not having the luxury of committing this much time and effort in the future due to internship and work commitment hence these 3 weeks had been an enriching and novel experience in its’ own way. I believe that everything happened for a reason. EXO’s comeback just happened to be at the time where I have no commitment and for that, I am utterly grateful.

I will be cherishing my last 3 days and giving full support towards my boys whose rival is their 2016 self (as wisely said by Minseok). I will be like them and constantly try to improve myself as well.

This had been really fun. I will miss this feeling.

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the-christian-walk · 7 years

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YOUR SINS ARE FORGIVEN

Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to [email protected]. In Christ, Mark

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** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

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** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Jesus stepped into a boat, crossed over and came to His own town. Some men brought to Him a paralyzed man, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the man, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.”

At this, some of the teachers of the law said to themselves, “This fellow is blaspheming!”

Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said, “Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your hearts? Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So He said to the paralyzed man, “Get up, take your mat and go home.” Then the man got up and went home.

When the crowd saw this, they were filled with awe; and they praised God, who had given such authority to man.

Matthew 9:1-8

A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that He had come home.

They gathered in such large numbers that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and He preached the word to them. Some men came, bringing to him a paralyzed man, carried by four of them. Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus by digging through it and then lowered the mat the man was lying on. When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralyzed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”

Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, “Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

Immediately Jesus knew in His spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and He said to them, “Why are you thinking these things? Which is easier: to say to this paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’? But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So He said to the man, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all.

This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!”

Mark 2:1-12

One day Jesus was teaching, and Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there. They had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal the sick. Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus.

When Jesus saw their faith, He said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”

The Pharisees and the teachers of the law began thinking to themselves, “Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemy? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

Jesus knew what they were thinking and asked, “Why are you thinking these things in your hearts? Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So He said to the paralyzed man, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” Immediately he stood up in front of them, took what he had been lying on and went home praising God.

Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God. They were filled with awe and said, “We have seen remarkable things today.”

Luke 5:17-26

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

As we have seen over the past week’s worth of devotions, Jesus was extremely busy, proactive in His ministry as He taught, healed the afflicted, and drove out evil spirits. His acts were so miraculous that more and more people came to hear Him speak and witness His amazing acts of power.

In today’s scripture passage, we find the Jewish religious authorities, the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, showing up to see what was going on, to see for themselves what they were hearing about the Galilean who was teaching with special authority and performing such incredible feats. I’m going to focus in on Luke’s account but will inject and incorporate any distinctions from Matthew and Mark into the devotion as needed. Look again at these verses from Luke 5:

The Pharisees and the teachers of the law began thinking to themselves, “Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemy? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God. They were filled with awe and said, “We have seen remarkable things today.” Luke 5:17-26

If you only read Matthew’s account of this event and read that Jesus entered a boat, crossed over, and “came to His own town”, you may interpret that as meaning He was in Nazareth but Mark’s rendition quickly clears up that misunderstanding by letting us know that Jesus was indeed in Capernaum, the city on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, the place where He was calling home for the time being. It was there that the particulars of this event took place.

It started like other gatherings with Jesus, especially of late. The scriptures tell us He was teaching and preaching to a very large audience composed of people from “every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem”. As mentioned prior, the Pharisees and teachers of the law were among those in attendance.

Now although Jesus was teaching and preaching, the scriptures tell us that Jesus had the power of the Lord upon Him so as to heal the sick. This came into play when a group of men entered the scene, four of them carrying a “paralyzed man on a mat”. Unable to “take him into the house to lay him before Jesus”, the men got creative, going onto the roof and digging a hole in it before lowering the man “into the middle of the crowd” and “right in front of Jesus”.

Jesus was so impressed with the faith the men showed, a faith that believed Jesus possessed the power to heal the paralyzed man, that He blessed the man in two ways, not one.

You see, everyone watching expected Jesus to simply speak a word or two and amazingly heal the man. But He did much more than that, making a statement that left people bewildered and the Jewish religious authorities judgmental.

What did Jesus say?

Simply:

“Friend, your sins are forgiven.”

God’s word tells us that the Pharisees and the teachers of the law began to think internally about the gravity of Jesus’ words. In their eyes and spiritual understanding, only God could forgive sins and they certainly didn’t see Jesus as one with God (even though He was) thus all they could think was Jesus committed blasphemy with what He said.

Well, these Jewish religious leaders were about to discover another astounding talent that Jesus possessed, the power to read minds and hearts. For the Pharisees and teachers of the law had barely finished thoughts they believed were done in secret when Jesus calls them out asking:

“Why are you thinking these things in your hearts? Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.”

And with that, He commanded the paralyzed man to:

“Get up, take your mat and go home.”

And that’s just what the man did, immediately standing up before the crowd of onlookers, picking up his man, and left the scene to return him, praising God all the way. So did the crowd who were buzzing with amazement and praise themselves from what they had witnessed.

You see, the paralyzed man had not just been healed. He had his sins forgiven, pardoned by the only One (Jesus) who could save Him.

Today, Jesus is still forgiving people of their sins, pardoning them when they place their faith in Him. In fact He tells us Himself that He is the only way to God the Father (John 14:6). This is because only sin can separate us from God and if someone rejects Jesus, then they reject the forgiveness of their sins. They willfully bypass the opportunity to be washed white as snow by His blood. And they willingly turn their backs on being justified which simply means being changed in such a way that they will appear to be without sin when they stand before God on judgment day.

If you have yet to receive Jesus as Savior, I pray that you will choose to do so right here and right now. Don’t miss your opportunity to be forgiven of your sins.

If you are in Christ, rejoice and be glad today and every day for you are pardoned and assured salvation, guaranteed eternal life when this temporary life ends. Now and forever, praise the Lord for His incredible mercy and grace and love, a love that doesn’t want us to perish but rather to have the chance to live with God and Jesus forever.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to [email protected]

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dutterman · 7 years

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2016 Favorite Performances

Patti Smith

This was a show I had anticipated for the past couple of years as Patti Smith has been touring, performing her Horses album in its entirety to celebrate its 40 year release. I bought these tickets in February for a December 30th date in Chicago, which also happened to be Patti Smith’s 70th birthday. This was my second time going to the Riviera. I had initially managed a second row seat, but ended up moving back a little way, still quite far up. I was totally blown away and inspired like I thought I would be. They started the show performing Horses with a Gloria reprise at the end before playing other favorites and covers, including Power To The People which featured Michael Stipe and Patti Smith’s daughter making a guest appearance. This was definitely a bucket-list concert for me and ever grateful to have seen Patti Smith perform live.

Metric

This year, Metric had released their Pagans In Vegas album, their first since 2012’s Synthetica. I last saw Metric at Lollapalooza in 2012, so I was super excited to see them again as they are one of my all-time favorite bands. This was a totally breathtaking 2 hour performance featuring music from their last three albums although they opened up with IOU! A few of the songs were intro’d with teasers of songs from their first album. I was second row for this show, center stage.

Thelma And The Sleaze

I grew up listening to a lot of hard rock music in the 1970s. One of my favorite bands growing up was Heart. The lineup of Heart in the 70s is still my very favorite with such amazing guitar work. One of my fondest memories of Heart is their live cover of Kike Dee’s “I’ve Got The Music In Me”. I’ve seen Thelma And The Sleaze quite a few times the past couple of years. Thelma and the Sleaze is the conceptual brainwork of guitarist Lauren Gilbert, known to a lot as “LG”. This outstanding band, fronted by LG has this Alison Moss sultry stage-presence and Angus Young authority, combined with a comedic wit like that of Bette Midler. “I’ve Got The Music In Me” comes to mind when I see LG perform live. What was really spectacular about seeing them this year was their 29 day, 31 show tour of Nashville, entitled the “Kandyland Tour” in which they played a show every day for the month of February. I was fortunate to catch one of those shows at the Mayday Brewery in Murfreesboro. The other great thing this year was them going on a month-long tour with Eagles of Death Metal, in which they played to some bigger audiences and was actually a dream of Chase’s (the drummer) to play The Vogue one day. It was also indicative of a hard-working band making a breakthrough to larger audiences. A documentary has been created detailing the Kandyland Tour and will be available soon.

Belly

I never got to see Belly perform live when they first came out. The only band I went to see perform in the 90s were Rush and Primus, so I was super excited when it was announced that Belly would perform a reunion tour. Belly’s two albums are two that really stuck with me from the 90s alternative bands and still listen to them to this day. The band was absolutely spot on and had a very exciting crowd. They split the show into two sets. The funny thing was that Morrissey was playing night one of Riot Fest that night, and they thanked the crowd for weighing their options.

Mr Clit & The Pink Cigarettes

This is the band that I saw the most times this year! They were a new favorite of mine in 2015 and still are a whole lot of fun to watch. One of the more fascinating things about this band is wondering what outfits or costumes they’re going to wear. I actually tried to dress up as Davey in one of the shows this year, which my alter-ego sidekick Ramona Rabbid came with me (that’s another story). Their setlist also tends to be as unpredictable as their stage costumes. Mr Clit & The Pink Cigarettes puts on a very intense and highly entertaining 30 minutes of a totally unpredictable setlist and really gets the crowd going.

Boner City

I actually happened to be introduced to this band via Abby from Mr Clit and ended up getting to see them perform live for the first time at the Wilterfest in Cincinatti. I have since seen them two other times and will see them again in Louisville toward the end of January 2017 alongside one of my local favorites, Dope Sweater. Boner City is a fast-paced, non-stop punk ride that takes the crowd with them.

Well Hung Heart

I saw this amazing band in Indianapolis with a really stacked local lineup and to me is the best overall show of the entire year. Well Hung Heart is a hard rock band with an amazing guitar player and blue-haired bundle of energy singer who has one of the most powerful voices I’ve ever heard. Robin Davey’s guitar playing is among the best I’ve ever seen and seems to have a diverse genre background. Greta’s singing is very powerful, yet tender at times and is able to fire up the audience.

Gazebos

I saw this band on a moment’s notice when I decided to see Shannon and the Clams on a show-day decision. This band has an early 80s rock/pop sound about them that would remind you of a cross between Blondie and The Pretenders. Shannon Perry has a really interesting voice and her on-stage performance makes you think she’s had a background in theater. TV Coahran masters that guitar style and even reminded me of Pete Townsend with his one-piece jumpsuit.

SERVICE

SERVICE is a new band in Indianapolis with a line up consisting of veteran members from various well-known bands. The first show I saw with them was a very intense start-to-finish 6 song set that just left you totally blown away. Additionally, the performance was recorded and turned out really well. Jilly is an amazing vocalist and performer with her screeching and sternness. She is usually all over the stage and in the audience. Matt plays some incredibly complex guitar and makes some pretty incredible sounds. Sharlene plays both guitar and keyboards along with background vocals and typically sits in on drums for the last song of their set. Johhny and Russel round out the band on bass and drums. Saw these guys on a couple of other dates and hope to catch them again in 2017.

Butthole

Butthole was a pleasant surprise the first time I saw them at part of LG’s Bitchfest show. They are a hilariously talented group who puts on an energetic and entertaining show similar to what I get out of the B-52s. They are a lot like a art-ounk band, much like some of my other favorite art-punk bands like Boner City, The Christmas Bride and Mr. Clit & The Pink Cigarettes.

Powell

This is a highly talented band that plays very tight. These guys are all brothers, so it’s no wonder that they are so tight and talented as they’ve been playing together for years. This was punk rock night, but after listening to their album (and hearing their cover of the Beatles’ “Heavy”), I knew there was more to them than the hard rock show they put on. Just overall a very professional sounding band that puts on a good show.

Wolf Alice

Just got into this band this past year. Sort of 90s alternative with not as much edge. Caught them at Lollapalooza for a quick, but effective 45 minute set. These guys sound great and have amazing songs and have a great fan following.

Killmama

Got to see this amazing band from Florida at Punk Rock Night Indianapolis get things going in a big way. Sophie plays drums and sings soulful southern blues. Rob has amazing raw guitar sound and really reminds me a lot of Rodger Fisher from the early Heart days. The cool thing about their shows is that they bring on a guest drummer out of the audience to play drums on their song Bad Rep

Moseley

I was really glad to catch this all-women power trio again this year. They played a couple of regional dates and was able to catch them in Chicago during Lollapalooza. I also go to see them open up the show for Stone Cold Cherry at Marathon Music Works in Nashville.

Dope Sweater

Dope Sweater is a highly energetic punk band local to Terre Haute. Originally starting out as a two-piece band nearly two years ago, Anthony and Austin have grown the band to four members and have gone on a few regional shows. Hailing from the Sweater Lounge, Dope Sweater started a great and loyal following that has spilled over. Dope Sweater plays like on the verge of rattling apart and destroying the whole thing. Their music roots and influence seem a lot more deeply rooted than what I typically see in punk bands. Dope Sweater really charges the crowd and pulls the best out of them and leaves people in shock.

Dasher

I happened to catch Dasher opening up for Aka Nayo and Screaming Females. This local band from Bloomington is primarily the concept of Kylee K, front-woman on drums and vocals. She had a prior incarnation of the band in Atlanta before relocating to Bloomington in the past year. Like Screaming Females, Dasher plays a very loud set, and doing so, Kylee has to play the drums very hard to be heard. The guitar work of this band is very hauntingly amazing. For an opening band, they can really serve to get the crowd really wound up. They recently had the opportunity to open for Coathangers in their home state of Georgia.

Eliot Bigger

This band is an amazingly talented and well-versed band. Eliot Bigger’s guitar work is among the best I’ve ever seen and really remind me of a cross between Toto and Supertramp. Backed by a very solid bass and drums, their songs revolve around progressive rock breakdowns and change-ups that demand your full attention. Combine that with the flawless mastery of guitar work and you’ll walk away from this band stunned.

Some Kind Of Nightmare

Some Kind Of Nightmare is a punk band based out of San Diego who tours nearly non-stop. Originally hailing from Ohio, Chy and Molly quit their full-time jobs and decided to tour full-time. They have traveled cross the country several times over since they took on the punk rock road life. Molly over the past year has been a tremendous source of inspiration as she successfully overcame a bout of breast cancer and has been advocating, particularly with the younger audiences to be mindful of their bodies and their health. Some Kind Of Nightmare plays a highly intense, start-to-finish show and are highly polished in perfecting their live show. You walk away from this band feeling charged and inspired.

War On Women

Screaming Females

Overall Shows List

1/2/16 Johnny Vomit, The Dockers, Mr. Clit & The Pink Cigarettes, ASD (5th Quarter Lounge) 1/7/16 Riot Shield, Pickwick Commons, Ares, Fight To Remain (Cruft House Terradise) 1/9/16 Black Cat Rebellion, Werewolf with a Shotgun, Dead Set Ready, Misunderstood (Melody Inn) 1/15/15 Veles, Dope Sweater, Bad Fiction, Laser Boogie Suicide (Sweater Lounge, WTH) 1/23/16 The Nerve (Stephens Inn) 1/30/16 The Flying Jacksons (The Verve) 2/12/16 Carter, Soft Bodies, Sallow, Isidro, Thelma And The Sleaze (Mayday Brewery Murfreesboro) 2/13/16 Well Hung Heart, Mr. Clit & The Pink Cigarettes, KillMama, Think Tank (Melody Inn PRN) 2/26/16 The Ragbirds (The Verve) 2/27/16 Dope Sweater, Phallic Tendrils, Four Percent (Sweater Lounge WTH) 2/27/16 There Are Ghosts, Memetics, Mr. Clit & The Pink Cigarettes (State Street Pub) 2/28/16 Mariahill, Rebuild & Rebound, Welcome Home, Rest Assured, Riot Shield (Terradise White House) 3/5/16 Metric w/ Joywave (Egyptian Room Indianapolis) 3/5/16 The Lickers, The Yavin 4 (Melody Inn PRN) 3/7/16 Chad Hates George, Stufy The Sidekick, Chatterbox and the Latter Day Satanists, 4 Percent, Dope Sweater (Terre Haute) 3/10/16 Killmama, Ramona Deflowered, We Should Leave This Tree (St Louis) 3/19/16 Charles Walker Band (The Verve) 3/25/16 Punkfest 2016 Day 1: Dear Darla, Enstrangers, The Functional Citizens, Bare Knuckle Hooligans, Hell’s Orphans, Think Tank, The Elixirs, The Slappies, Dangerbird, Stackhouse (5th Quarter) 3/26/16 Gazebos, NoBunny, Shannon and the Clams (Off Broadway St Louis) 4/1/16 Moseley, Black Stone Cherry, Devour The Day (Marathon Music Works Nashville) 4/8/16 Weakness, Birdie Hearse, Mr. Clit & The Pink Cigarettes, Hot Tramps (The Comet Cincinatti) 4/9/16 The Fuck Off And Dies, Worriers, The Lippies (Blueberry Hill St Louis) 4/15/16 Rush Archives, Van Wholen (The Walnut Room Denver) 4/23/16 Sidewalk Chalk (The Verve) 4/29/16 The Nerve (The Verve) 4/30/16 Hannah Aldridge (The Verve) 5/5/16 Thelma And The Sleaze, Black Tar Heroines, Eshe Bhairavi (Hangar 9 Carbondale) 5/6/16 Dope Sweater, Mr. Clit & The Pink Cigarettes, The Transylvania Hell Sounds, Jig, The Orchard Keepers (Hoosier Dome) 5/14/16 Pop Up Safety Baby (Juggerland Studios Rosedale) 5/14/16 SERVICE, Open Sex Duo, Caldwell/Tester (State Street Pub Indy) 5/21/16 Joey Ramone Birthday Bash with Parasites, Think Tank, The Whoremones (PRN Indy) 5/25/16 Screaming Females, Aye Nako, Dasher (The Bishop Bloomington) 5/27/16 Eagles Of Death Metal, Thelma And The Sleaze (The Vogue Indianapolis) 6/4/16 Dope Sweater, Video Grave, We Got None, Darkle (Sweater Lounge) 6/4/16 Stackhouse, Tiger Sex, Public Animal Number Nine (Punk Rock Night Indy) 6/11/16 HTTP Prodigy (spoken word), Meeker, Unnatural Selection, We Got None, The Wichita Massacre (TH) 6/21/16 Worriers, Mikey Erg, Fraidykat, Junior July, Mannequin, TBA, Serious Shit (The Void Bloomington) 6/23/16 Subject To Change, Max Grogan, Meeker, We Got None, Better Off Blind, Aaron Norris, Pop Up Safety Baby (A Place In Time WTH) 6/25/16 Amuse, Metric Units, Misunderstood, Ego Slip (Hi-Fi Indy) 7/1/16 Ross Hickam, Anthony Cottom, When All Kept Echoing, We Got None, Unnatural Selection, Dope Sweater (Couch Studios TH) 7/2/16 manners, please, Pillars, Chemical Envy, Goblin King (Bent Rail Brewery Indy) 7/2/16 Mr Clit & The Pink Cigarettes, Flamingo Nosebleed, City Mouse, Special Victims Unit (PRN Indy) 7/9/16 Dope Sweater, Lucy Furr, South Side Flea Market, The 4% (Sweater Lounge) 7/12/16 Daikaiju, Mr. Clit & The Pink Cigarettes, Phunkbot, AnnFrankDux, Bad Fiction (Hoosier Dome) 7/22/16 – 7/24/16 Plan-It-X Fest: Dakota Floyd, Double Jinx, Ugly Lovers, The Ancient Gods, Crescent Ulmer, Dog Years, Julia Eff, Sir Deja Doog and the Caskettes, The Minor Kind, Corn Palace, Drawing Water, Amy O, Terror Pigeon, Nice Try, Dogbreth, Your Heart Breaks, Ghost Mice, Super Famicom, Mitch The Champ, Cutting Room Floor, Garrett Walters, Amy Bruce Spaceshow, Femignome, Cottontail, Wet Brain, Madeline Adams, CALYX, Nutter, Nostradogmus, Junior July, The Homewreckers, Full Sun, Little Waist, Dasher, Toys That Kill, Shellshag, The Max Levine Ensemble (Stable Studios Spencer)

Lollapalooza July 28-31 Autolux, Cloves, Melanie Martinez, Wavves, Daughter, Last Shadow Puppets, Haelos, Modern Baseball, The Struts, Alessia Cara, Wolf Alice, The Strumbellas, Chairlift, The Joy Formidable, The Front Bottoms, Big Grams, Jane’s Addiction, Red Hot Chili Peppers, FIDLAR, Halsey, Silversun Pickups, HAIM, Die Antwoord (Chicago)

7/29/16 Moseley, The Dirty Creeps, Mr Russia (Red Line Tap Chicago) 8/5/16 900 Bars, Potential?, Aaron Norris, Cloud Gavin, Native Tongue, Bottlerocket Platoon (Couch Studios) 8/7/16 Trash Can, Some Kind Of Nightmare, Misunderstood, The Slappies (Melody Inn Indy) 8/12/16 Stackhouse, The Orchard Keepers, Heartland Heretics (5th Quarter Lounge) 8/18/16 SERVICE, LUNG, SPANDRELS (Melody Inn Indy) 8/19/16 Cup Check, Unnatural Selection, Subject To Change, Safe Bet, Bedrooms, Riot Shield, From Cities Above (Couch Studios) 8/28/16 LG+Friends, Butthole, Reality Something, Helen of Coi (Meal Ticket Nashville) 9/2/16 manners, please, Modern Motion, Eliot Bigger, There Are Ghosts (Melody Inn Indy) 9/3/16 Some Kind Of Nightmare, Rest Assured, Subject To Change, Dope Sweater, Welcome Home, Steven Deeds (Terradise Cruft House) 9/8/16 SERVICE, The Icks, Yonatan Gat (The Hi-Fi Indy) 9/9/16 Clint Breeze & The Groove, Scanlines, Eliot Bigger (White Rabbit Cabaret) 9/17/16 Belly (Vic Theater Chicago) 9/18/16 RiotFest Day Three, Juliette Lewis and the Licks, War On Women, Deftones (Chicago) 9/23/16 222 WitFest: Hammered with Jesus, K.L.A.N., Saint Pickle, Lazy Ass Destroyer, Tiger Sex, EVOLVE, Mr Clit & The Pink Cigarettes, Vampire Weekend At Bernie’s, Boner City (Witler on the 8s Cincinatti) 9/30/16 Jesus Crust, Videograve, Dope Sweater, Lucy Furr, Small Arms Fire (Hoosier Dome Indy) 10/1/16 db Cooper (Verve) 10/2/16 Rewinder, Mr Clit & The Pink Cigarettes (Thunderbird Indy) 10/7/16 Dead Party, Plans (Couch Studios) 10/16/16 Pravada, SERVICE, Matthais Young (Indy CD & Vinyl) 10/20/16 Boner City, The Christmas Bride, Tycoon$ Of Teen (Kaiju Louisville) 10/22/16 Better Off Blind, David Goodier, Rafael from House Cats, Pop Up Safety Baby (Garage Fest TH) 10/23/16 Mal Blum, Full Sun, Wylie, Bloodlines (The Void Bloomington) 10/28/16 Aaron Norris, From Cities Above, Beyond The Grid, Unnatural Selection, (Couch Studios TH) 10/28/16 Rocky Horror Picture Show 8:00 (Community Theater Terre Haute) 10/29/16 Mr Clit & The Pink Cigarettes, Dope Sweater, Video Grave, Process My Office, Dana Skully (Dream Fortress) 11/4/16 Chloe Greenberg, Monty & Patrick, Kendall Lynn Murphy (Couch Studios TH) 11/11/16 Dead Party, Pop Up Safety Baby (Veterans Day) 11/12/16 Heartland Heretics, Orchard Keepers, Powell (Punk Rock Night Indy) 11/19/16 Sky So Dark, Dasher (The Void Bloomington) 11/20/16 Barb Wire Dolls, The Lickers, Smokes (Melody Inn Indy) 11/23/16 Pop Up Safety Baby, Bear Foote Jackson, The Nerve (The Verve) 12/2/16 Thelma and The Sleaze, Evan P. Donohue, Teddy and the Rough Riders, Quichenight (Charlie Bob’s Nashville) 12/4/16 Some Kind Of Nightmare, Dead Party, Misunderstood, Unholy UFO (Couch Studios) 12/9/16 Arcadia, Ripped From The Roots (The FOXHOLE) 12/15/16 Bathroom Laws, Blood Planet, Tycoon$ of Teen, Beach Daze, Ghost Teeth (Spinelli’s Louisville) 12/30/16 Patti Smith (Riviera Theater Chicago)

261 Total bands

Most Impressive Guitar Work (more than one guitar player)

War On Women Eliot Bigger Full Sun

Most Entertaining

Butthole Mr Clit & The Pink Cigarettes Fuck Off And Dies Boner City The Christmas Brides The Ragbirds Daikaiju Joywave Phunkbot

Favorite Band Vocals

Greta Valenti (Well Hung Heart) Sophie P (Killmama) Ivy Miller (Special Victims Unit) Amanda Pavel (Think Tank) Princess Jesus (Sky So Dark)

Favorite Singer/Songwriter

Hannah Aldridge Spandrels Monty Hack Chloe Greenberg Garrett Walters Stufy

Favorite Duos

Pop Up Safety Baby Killmama Lung Ripped From The Roots Sheepish

Hardest Working Bands

Barb Wire Dolls Some Kind of Nightmare Thelma and the Sleaze

Most Watched Bands

Mr Clit & The Pink Cigarettes Dope Sweater Thelma And The Sleaze Some Kind Of Nightmare Moseley SERVICE

Favorite Drummers

Michael Coffey (Pop Up Safety Baby) Evan Tanner (War On Women) William Boswell (Phunkbot) Abby Hairston (Moseley) Kylee Kimbrough (Dasher)

Favorite Guitarist

Robin Davey (Well Hung Heart)

Most impressive Bass

Wet Brain Orchard Keepers Pop Up Safety Baby Phunkbot

Best Cover Song

HAIM – I Would Die 4 U (Prince) Tycoon$ of Teen – River Deep, Mountain High (Tina Turner) Powell – She’s So Heavy (The Beatles) Evan P Donahue – Send My A Postcard (Shocking Blue) Gazebos – There Are Worse Things I Could Do (Grease)

Favorite Overall Show

Well Hung Heart, Mr Clit & The Pink Cigarettes, Think Tank, Killmama No Bunny, Gazebos, Shannon and the Clams Metric, Joywave Daikaiju, Mr. Clit & The Pink Cigarettes, Phunkbot, AnnFrankDux, Bad Fiction Boner City, Tycoon$ of Teen, The Christmas Bride

2016 Top Live Shows 2016 Favorite Performances Patti Smith This was a show I had anticipated for the past couple of years as Patti Smith has been touring, performing her Horses album in its entirety to celebrate its 40 year release.

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