Information as to Why Twisted Wonderland is NOT an Otome or Dating Sims Game

Hello Everyone! It’s been a while~ ヾ(•ω•`)o I finally found the courage to write Twisted Wonderland content after what happened a couple months ago, when I literally just came back, and while writing a couple of analysis I thought I would write this as an informative rather than an actual analysis of the game.

DISCLAIMER: This post is NOT by any means demeaning otome games or dating sims whatsoever. This was written to clear the misunderstanding people had on the genre of Twisted Wonderland and that anyone should be allowed to be play without feeling restricted or thinking it’s not something they want to try because of misunderstandings. Do NOT use this post as a source to offend people but please use it to inform others.

It’s no longer old news that Twisted Wonderland frequently gets called an “otome game” or dating sims by people who never played the game before. People on twitter, youtube, and even those that were trying to or supposed to advertise the game have often categorized it as such. This wouldn’t have been such a big deal had people recognize and acknowledge that the game isn’t after being explained to about it, but after hearing their arguments as to why they refuse to change how they think about it, the frustration pent up for nearly a year has finally bubbled over.  Buckle your seats everyone cause today is the day this argument ends once and for all!

First off, let’s start off with what makes an otome/dating-sims an otome/dating sim. Both are very similar, where, according to Japan’s Wikipedia, Nico dictionary, Kotobanks, and many more Japanese dictionary sites, otome games (i.e. 乙女ゲーム)  are games which includes a female MC who has the opportunity to attract the very attractive male characters in the game and enter a love route with each of them separately or harem-like. Dating sims are a bit different. Dating sims (i.e. 恋愛シミュレーションゲーム)  falls into to two definitions with the first one being the exact reversal of otome: MC being male, the love interest characters being very attractive females. The second definition is the one many are familiar with – a romantic visual novel. Believe it or not the first definition is the original definition of what dating-sim games are, the second meaning derived from many attempts of using the term “dating-sim” incorrectly by the English speaking gamers to the point society now believes it’s the actual meaning.

However, this difference doesn’t change that both otome and dating sims are very close. Both genres include gender-specific MC(s) (there’s been games where a player can play either male or female), handsome/beautiful characters with their respective love routes, and a main plot to follow. In addition to this, when the game is in mobage format, there’s going to be showers of fan service in the form of events and gacha-cards, though, arguably, it doesn’t change the fact that the MCs would still be interacting with the characters romantically.

So, from the explanation written above, Twisted Wonderland falls into that category, right? Sorry not sorry, that’s wrong. Sure, Twisted Wonderland has many characters to swoon over since…I mean…they’re drawn and written by Yana Toboso and her staff and…there hasn’t been anyone so far who had the capability of saying no to characters she personally had drawn or created. But! It doesn’t mean that the game is a dating sim or otome.

One of the reasons Twisted Wonderland isn’t one of them is how the game is set up. There are no routes the MC can enter nor can the MC pick and choose which characters to focus on in general. Like FGO and Granblue Fantasy, the MC solely follows the main plot and has to interact with all the characters they’re introduced to whether they like it or not. The same logic is applied when playing events – the MC will be participating and talking to all the characters involved in the event. Not once does the game give the opportunity for the MC to choose who they can talk to and participate in the event with the person they chose. The only time it’ll be one-on-one is, most of the time, getting the desired character’s card through gacha or when the event sets the story where the MC has no choice but to talk to a character one-to-one. For the latter though, the MC isn’t going to be able to wish for the character they want to talk to – it’s completely random and up to the writers who they want the MC to interact with.

For otome and dating-sims alike, especially in mobage format, the MC has the opportunity to choose who they wish to focus on and interact solely with the characters they chose whether it’s the main story, event, and card story. It can even be arguably said that otome and dating sims focus solely on the MC and their love interest interaction more than anything else. As for Twisted Wonderland, again, that does not happen. Twisted Wonderland, in addition to progressing the main story and revealing more about the characters involved, focuses on everyone’s interaction with each other including the NPCs. The game shows the other characters that aren’t interacting with the MC talking to other characters and what role they were playing while the MC was busy with the group the writer had them interact with during that time. Even in the card stories, most of the card stories involve more character-to-character interaction rather than MC-to-character interaction.

Speaking of which, the MC in Twisted Wonderland, the game, is gender ambiguous.  Not once did the game developers and story writers mentions the MC as a specific gender like the other romance games. Heck, most of the characters don’t even use a gender-specific pronoun such as 彼女 (“kanojo” = she) or  彼 (“kare” = he) when referring to the MC. They usually refer to the MC by their given position, 監督生 ( “kantokusei”  = prefect). The only exception is when the game’s mascot and MC’s buddy, Grim (the blue-fire monster), who uses あいつ ( “aitsu”) which is a gender neutral pronoun that holds the vague meaning of “that one” or “that person”. There’s also the fact that the MC’s default name is ユウ (“Yuu”), which is name used by either genders in Japan and how the MC uses gender neutral pronouns when regarding themselves  as 自分 (“jibun”) and others as 貴方/あなた (“anata”).

Even during the official advertisement, official summary, official game archive book ( i.e., Twisted Wonderland Magical Archives), and posts made by the staff on twitter, not once did they specify the gender of the MC. In fact, they never once even specified the gender of the audience they’re targeting the game towards nor say anything about there being romance or any hints of harem-esque situations that involves the MC in any shape or form. The most “direct” statement made by Twisted Wonderland’s staff was from an email a fellow Twisted Wonderland fan had sent to the staff after a magazine had advertised the game as “Disney’s first game for women”. The email from the staff mentions that they wanted the game to be enjoyed by everyone, REGARDLESS OF GENDER. (link to said post here)

If they had any intentions of making the game otome-like or dating sim-like, Aniplex, Disney, and Twisted Wonderland staff would’ve mentioned that the game has romance or the possibility for there being romance when releasing the story summary, game system set up, and their ads. Not only would they have done that to get the audience they wish to target but speaking of it legally, they are required to mention it since there’s liability on their part on informing their customers on anything they need to know in regard to the game they’re playing. Age restrictions, fees, game play, and the like – Twisted Wonderland also had to go through the same process like any other visual novel games to be developed and released.

In a way, Twisted Wonderland can be seen as another Touken Ranbu or KanColle, but with an actual main story plot to progress through. All three games’ MCs are gender ambiguous, great characters to throw-er-spend money on, and have fun game plays. Sure, unlike Touken Ranbu and KanColle, where their MCs continues to be gender ambiguous in their anime and manga adaptation, Twisted Wonderland’s MC in the manga adaptation ended up being male – however, a statement was released by Yana revealed that the MC in the game and the MC for the manga are not the same people. (Link here) Meaning, the “real” or “official” MC’s gender continues to be gender ambiguous for the sake of continuing to attract all genders to play the game.

All of this being said, Twisted Wonderland is a fun, visual novel game and supposed to be enjoyed by everyone – each to their own way and passion. No one shouldn’t be discouraged from playing it solely because of false advertisements or misconceptions made by others who haven't played the game yet.

I hope this clears things up and hopefully helps others persuade people into playing the game! 

Ask Answers (February 22nd, 2021)

Hello! Here’s another collection of anon ask answers all put together in one big post.

This might be strange considering how upbeat yall are about the fandoms for your games in general, but is there any particular trope or ship you WOULDN'T want us writing/drawing/etc. in relation to your stuff? (IE, any canon you don't want us 'overwriting' or something like that?)

Of course we would want the fan content people make to not be racist, sexist, homophobic, bigoted, harmful, etc. But in terms of generally doing non-canon pairings or adding in headcanons or stuff, we really don’t mind that. People are welcome to have fun and explore their own ideas.

for the 1.2 Android update was it meant to download as a  separate app? I really want to keep my previous save files but they don't show up (also thank u for the updates I'm really excited to get back into the game!!)

We had to change the name of the file and unfortunately for some phones that meant it’s treated as a brand new game. I’m sorry your saves didn’t transfer over to the new version. You can try to look up your specific phone and see if there’s a way to access save files for games on your device and then transfer those saves over to the new build manually. It may or may not be possible.

I'm having some trouble figuring out how to get the update from Itichio without losing my save files? Is it the same game or a folder I can put in the properties? Sorry if this question is not worded well or if this isn't the avenue you'd want to take technical questions on

Are you using Android? If so, the above answer may apply to you. If you’re on PC or Mac, the save files will automatically still be included.

Hey. I really loved playing our life. It was a fun experience and I never thought I would like it this much. I do have a question, I am currently replaying the game and I am choosing choices I never chose at first. In step 2 during the road trip arc, I decided to ask Cove about what he liked to see on people. One of his response was anklets and black eyes. My MC have just happens to have black eyes. Do Cove say black eyes cuz my mc have it or it was just a coincidently programmed into the game?

He uses your eye color intentionally! If you changed your eye color he’d change what he said.

Will step 4 have 10 moments like steps 1-3? 

Step 4 is only an epilogue. It plays like the openings/endings of the earlier Steps where it’s a bunch of scenes all in a row, there aren’t any individual Moments.

hi! who was/were the artist(s) for our life? 

&

who is the artist for Our Life: Beginning and Always?

Main Sprite and CG Artist: Addrossi

Main Background Artist: Vui Huynh

Main Interface Artist: Winter Slice

Other artists who helped out can be seen in the credits of the game.

In the new ol, there are two main love interests... Would it be possible to pair them together or is that weird? 

You can’t stay single and pair them together. If we are going to add all the extra content to have a route where the two LIs get together, it’d be a full poly route where them and the MC were all dating. And that’s not a for sure option yet because it’d add a lot of extra complications. But either way, in OL the relationships all gotta be about the MC, haha.

In OL2, there will be extra LIs in form of DLCs? Like Dexter and Baxter. 

Maybe! We’ll see how it goes.

Since Cove will have 2 diff body types in s4, will the storyline and dialogs reflect this? Or all of it will be the same? Btw love the game and sorry for bad english. Hope this doesn't sound rude 😅 

Some descriptions and pieces of dialog will change, but it won’t impact the story really. And you don’t need to apologize! It’s all good.

Will you ever release the transparent sprites of the Our Life characters? 

Probably not, I’m afraid. They’ve got a lot of pieces and it’d just be kind of hard to deal with, aha.

Something I was curious about, what was your inspiration for making a game with so much customization?

Initially, the idea was just about having a romance where you actually grew up with the LI. But it was pretty stressful to try deciding how fast the relationship would progress with it taking place over such a long period of time and with no real storyline carrying it. People might not wanna play a game where the characters don’t get along as kids, but other people might not bother with a game where kids immediately liked each other. So the obvious answer came, just let the player pick themselves how it goes. From there we simply continued to add more flexibly with the MC due to the same thought process of wanting to make sure people were onboard with how their life was going.

What made you decide to change the artstyle for ol 2 so much? I of course respect all your decisions and will buy the shit out of everything related to ol 2, but i love the original style and i m honestly not a fan of the styles shown on patreon, despite me liking the painterly style in general. (I don t mind the style being changed, just that the examples shown so far all feel like there s something wrong with them.) 

We’ve always used different art styles for each of our projects. They all have distinct looks from each other. It’s just nice to do something new. I’m glad you really like how the first game looks, though. And those samples were only general concepts, rather than the exact options being decided between. We wanted to see reactions to different options. The art style we’re going with won’t be exactly like those, though I personally like all of them. I think players are gonna enjoy the style Our Life: Now & Forever when it’s revealed.

Hey! Is it ok to ask what gender ourlife2 protagonist will be and if we'll be given the same opportunity to customize an MC? Totally understand if you're keeping this under wraps for now if u don't wanna say! 

OL2 will have the same type of MC customization as OL1, but even more refined! So their gender will be up to you.

Hi! I happened upon Our Life on Steam by pure chance. It is such a great game, I am super excited about the DLC, and I just want you all to know that you are awesome! :D I have a question, and I'm sorry if it's been asked before. Do you have plans of making more games similar to Our Life, with customizable player character? The customizable player character was probably the one thing I personally have been desperate for in romance VNs. So glad there finally is one and would love to see more.

Thank you! And yep, we do have plans for more games like Our Life, most notably is another game in the franchise- Our Life: Now & Forever. We’ll also likely have other, non-OL, games with customizable MCs, though we may still have some games with set MCs in the future as well.

On the patreon dlc just curious but is it possible to play it without actually sleeping together/getting the nsfw content? I just want to spend more time with Cove 

Yeah, you can still choose not to go that far. Though the event is shorter if you pass on the 18+ stuff.

At the beginning of Step 2, did Cove end up accidentally falling asleep in your bed? Or did he fall asleep on the floor? 

He fell asleep sitting on the floor with his body/head leaning against the side of the bed.

This may seem like a weird question, but what exactly is the difference between "direct" and "relaxed" on the comfort scale?

Direct is blunter and more teasing, relaxed is lighthearted and goes with the flow.

can the MC have tattoos in step 3? 

Not in Step 3, but you can in Step 4.

how would Cove react if he visited somewhere like North Carolina in winter where it can get in the 20s(F) at night sometimes? 

He would be shocked and unprepared for what serious coldness is really like, haha. The poor beach baby would wanna go home.

Hello! I just joined the PATREON!! It’s amazing! I love your games! I have a question, approximately how much after will the nsfw be out? After or before the dlc 3 and step four? Sorry my English isn’t the best!❤️❤️❤️ 

Thanks so much! The NSFW DLC will be out after the Step 3 DLC but before Step 4. And you don’t need to apologize for that ^^.

This might be obvious but, will step 4 have dlcs? Also, where will the nsfw dlc happen? Won't bother me at all if it s in in our or his house but i do think it d be moderately funny 

Step 4 will have the Cove Wedding DLC and the Derek and Baxter romance DLCs each add a lot of new content to Step 4, though they’re also partially set in Step 2 and Step 3 respectively. The NSFW DLC happens in Cove’s room.

I keep wondering what would've happened if Mr. Holden met Lizzie first instead of the MC. I can't see that turning out well somehow lol. 

It wouldn’t have made a difference. He met the MC’s parents first and they told him about their two kids. He wanted the MC specifically to be Cove’s friend because the two were the same age.

Even though we have a way to go I'm really excited for OL 2! I was curious though, is the next main character going to be adopted again? I thought it was really clever to make the first main character adopted so when players are customizing,  they can make them look how ever they like without worrying about pesky genetics. Just wondering! 

The OL2 MC is not adopted. We wanted to go for a new dynamic. Instead their parents are their biological single mother who is partially customizable and an off-screen sperm donor father. So the mom will look generally like the MC and any other traits not from her can be assumed to come from whoever the father was.

—– —– —–

Thank you so much for all the asks ^^

FAQ   If you prefer to just see the main posts without all the asks/reblogs, feel free to follow our side account instead: GB Patch Updates Blog

2020 Gameological Awards

Over on the Gameological Discord, we have an annual tradition of writing up our games of the year not as a ranked list but rather as answers to a series of prompts. Here are my personal choices for the year that was 2020.

Favorite Game of the Year

I didn’t know what to expect when I walked into Paradise Killer. I knew that I liked the vaporwave resort aesthetic from the game’s trailer and figured I was in for a Danganronpa-style murder mystery visual novel with an open-ended murder mystery at its core. Those assumptions were… half-right? The game definitely plays out like the exploration bits of Danganronpa set on the island from Myst but with far simpler puzzles. What I didn’t expect was to fall so deeply in love with the environment—its nooks and crannies, its millennia of lore, its brutalist overlap of idol worship, consumerism, and mass slaughter. It makes sense that the world of Paradise Killer is its strongest feature, since the cast of NPCs don’t really move around, leaving you alone with the world for the overwhelming majority of your experience as you bounce back and forth between digging around for clues and interrogating potential witnesses. And despite what the promo materials indicated, there IS a definitive solution to the crimes you’re brought in to investigate, the game just lets you make judgment based on whatever evidence you have at the time you’re ready to call it a day, so if you’re missing crucial evidence you might just make a compelling enough case for the wrong person and condemn them to eternal nonexistence. Am I happy with the truth at the end of the day? No, and neither is anybody else I’ve spoken to who completed the game, but we all were also completely enthralled the entire time and our dissatisfaction has less to do with the game and more to do with the ugly reality of humanity. I’ve always been of the mindset that “spoilers” are absolute garbage and that a story should be just as good whether you know the twist or not and any story that relies on surprising the audience with an unexpected reveal is not actually that good a story, but Paradise Killer is a game about piecing together your own version of events so I feel that it’s vital to the gameplay experience that people go in knowing as little as possible and gush all about it afterwards. Just trust me, if the game looks even remotely intriguing to you, go for it. I’ve had just as much fun talking about the game after I finished it with friends just getting started as I did actually solving its mysteries myself.

Best Single Player Game

I honestly missed out on the buzz for In Other Waters at launch, so I’m happy I had friends online talking it up as Black Friday sales were coming along. The minimal aesthetic of his underwater exploration game allows the focus to shift more naturally to the game’s stellar writing as a lone scientist goes off in search of her mentor and the secrets they were hiding on an alien world. It only took a few hours for me to become completely absorbed in this narrative and keep pushing forward into increasingly dangerous waters. In Other Waters might just be the best sci-fi story I experienced all year and I’d highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys sci-fi novels, regardless of their experience with video games.

Best Multiplayer Game

Look, we all know this year sucked. 2020 will absolutely be chronicled in history books as a fascinating and deeply depressing time in modern history where we all stayed inside by ourselves and missed our friends and family. It was lonely and it was bleak. Which is why it made my heart glow so much more warmly every time I got a letter from an honest-to-goodness real-life friend in Animal Crossing New Horizons. Knowing that they were playing the same game I was and hearing about their experiences and sending each other wacky hats or furniture, it lightened the days and made us feel that little bit more connected. Sure, when the game first launched we would actually take the time to visit one another’s islands, hang out, chat in real-time, and exchange gifts, but we all eventually got busy with Zoom calls, sourdough starters, and watching Birds of Prey twenty-two times. Still, sending letters was enough. It was and still is a touching little way to show that we’re here for one another, if not at the exact same time.

Favorite Ongoing Game

Zach Gage is one of my favorite game designers right now, and when I heard he was releasing a game called Good Sudoku I was sold sight unseen. The game as released was… fine. It’s sudoku and it’s pleasant, but it was also buggy and overheated my phone in a way I hadn’t seen since Ridiculous Fishing (also by Zach Gage) seven years ago. Thankfully, the most glaring bugs have been fixed and I can now enjoy popping in every day for some quick logic puzzle goodness. Daily ranked leaderboards keep me coming back again and again, the steady ramp of difficulty in the arcade and eternal modes means I can always chase the next dopamine rush of solving increasingly complex puzzles. It’s not a traditional “ongoing” game the way, say, Fortnite and Destiny are, but I’m happy to come back every day for sudoku goodness.

Didn't Click For Me

With Fortnite progressively losing me over the course of 2020, finalizing with my wholesale “never again” stance after Epic boss Tim Sweeney compared Fortnite demanding more money from Apple to the American Civil Rights movement (no, absolutely not), I dipped my toe into a number of new “battle pass”-style online arena types of games, and while Genshin Impact eventually got its hooks into me, Spellbreak absolutely did not. With graphics straight out of The Dragon Prince and the promise of a wide variety of magic combat skills to make your character your own, the game seemed awfully tempting, but my first few experiences were aimless and joyless, with no moment of clarity to make me understand why I should keep coming back. Maybe they’ll finesse the game some more in 2021, or a bunch of my friends will get hooked and lure me back, but for now I am a-okay deleting this waste of space on my Switch and PC.

"Oh Yeah, I Did Play That Didn't I?"

I remember being really excited for Murder By Numbers. Ace Attorney-style crime scene investigation visual novel with Picross puzzles for the evidence, art by the creators of Hatoful Boyfriend, and music by the composer of Ace Attorney itself?! Sounds like a dream come true. But the pixel-hunt nature of the crime scene investigations was more frustrating than fun, the picross puzzles were not particularly great, and the game came out literally a week before the entire world went into lockdown which makes it feel more like seven years ago than just earlier this year. I remember being marginally charmed by the game once it was in my hands, but as soon as my mind shifted to long-term self care, Murder By Numbers went from hot topic to cold case.

Most Unexpected Joy

I was looking forward to Fuser all year. As a dyed-in-the-wool DropMix stan, the prospect of a spiritual sequel to DropMix on all major digital platforms without any of the analogue components was tremendously exciting, and I knew I’d have a lot of fun making mixes by myself and posting them online for the world to hear. What I didn’t expect, however, was the online co-op mode to be such a blast! Up to four players take turns making 32 bars of mashups, starting with whatever the player before handed them and adding their own fingerprints on top. It sounds like it should just be a mess of cacophony, but every session I’ve played so far has been just the best dance party I’ve had all year, and everyone not currently in control of the decks (including an audience of spectators) can make special requests for what the DJ should spin and tap along with the beat to great super-sized emoji to show how much they’re enjoying the mix. Literally the only times my Apple Watch has ever warned me of my heightened heart rate have been the times I was positively bouncing in place rocking out to co-op freestyle play in Fuser.

Best Music

Only one video game this year had tunes that were so bumpable they were upgraded to my general “2020 jams” playlist alongside Jeff Rosenstock, Run the Jewels, and Phoebe Bridgers, and that game was Paradise Killer. 70% lo-fi chill beats to study/interrogate demons to, 20% gothic atmospheric bangers, 10% high-energy pop jazz, this soundtrack was just an absolute joy to swim around in both in and out of gameplay.

Favorite Game Encounter

It’s wild that in a landscape where games let me live out my wildest fantasies, the single moment that lit me up in a way that stood out to me more than any other was serving Neil the right drink in Coffee Talk. Over the course of the game, you serve a variety of hot drinks to humans, werewolves, vampires, orcs, and more, all while chatting with your customers and learning more about their lives and relationships. The most mysterious customer, though, is an alien life form who adopts the name Neil. They do not know what they want to drink and claim it doesn’t make a difference because they cannot taste it. Everybody else wants *something*. Neil is just ordering for the sake of fitting in and exploring the Earth experience. It’s only in the second playthrough that attentive baristas will figure out what to serve Neil, unlocking the “true” ending in the process. Seeing the typically stoic Neil actually emote when they tasted their special order drink? What an absolute treat that was.

Best Free DLC of the Year

It’s still only a couple of days old at the time I’m writing this, but Marvel’s Avengers just added Kate Bishop, aka Hawkeye, and THANK GOODNESS. Almost every character in the game at launch just smashed the endless waves of robot baddies with their fists and that looks exhausting and uncomfortable. Hawkeye (the game calls her Kate Bishop, but come on, she’s been Hawkeye in the comics for over 14 years, let’s show her some respect) uses A SWORD. FINALLY! Aside from that, I’m just having a blast shooting arrows all over the place. She and Ms Marvel are the most likable characters in the game so far, so I hope they keep adding more of the Young Avengers and Champions to the game, and if the recently announced slate of Marvel movies and tv shows are any indication (with America Chavez, Cassie Lang, and Riri Williams all coming soon to the MCU), that seems to be what Marvel is pushing for across all media

Most Accessible Game

Nintendo is, first and foremost, a toy company. They got their start in toys and cards long before video games was a thing, and they still do more tests to ensure their video game hardware is childproof than anybody else in the industry (remember how they made Switch cartridges “taste bad” so kids wouldn’t eat them?). This year, Nintendo got to rekindle some of their throwback, simplistic, toys-and-cards energy with Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics, a Switch collection of timeless family-friendly games like Chess, Mancala, and Backgammon, along with “toy” versions of sports like baseball, boxing, and tennis for a virtual parlor room of pleasant time-wasters. The games were all presented with charming li’l explainers from anthropomorphic board game figurines, and the ability to play quick sessions of Spider Solitaire on the touch screen while I binged The Queen’s Gambit on Netflix made Clubhouse Games one of my most-played titles of the year. Plus, local play during socially-distant friend hangs was an excellent way to make us feel like we were much closer than we were physically allowed to be as friends knocked each other’s block off in the “toy boxing” version of Rock’em Sock’em Robots.

"Waiting for Game-dot"

I get that everyone loves Disco Elysium. I saw it on everyone’s year-end lists last year. I finally bought it with an Epic Games Store coupon this year. This year was a long enough slog of depressing post-apocalyptic drudgery, I didn’t want to explore a whole nother one in my leisure time. I’ll get to it… someday.

Game That Made Me Think

Holovista was an iPhone game I played over the course of two or three days based on the recommendation of some trusted colleagues on Twitter and oh my goodness was I glad that I played it. What starts as a chill vaporwave photography game steadily progresses into an exploration of psychological trauma, relationships with friends and family, and the baggage we carry with us from our pasts. In this exceptionally hard year, I badly needed this story about spending time alone with your personal demons and finding your way back to the people who love and support you. Just like with Journey and Gone Home, I walked away from Holovista feeling a rekindled appreciation for the people in my life.

20 Fun Facts About GTA Online Money Generator

It must be generated in a big sufficient area for it to appear, or it will not spawn. While playing the game, quickly press Left, Right, Left, Right, X, B, Y, RB, RT. At the same time, call"" on your mobile phone. While playing the game, quickly press Y, RB, Left, RB, POUND, RT, LB. Alternately, phone call"" on your cell phone.

He taped with Tangerine Desire in Austria, yet further job was conducted at Jackson's USA workshop, which The Sorcerer and also Oh No used too. I've been covering video games, television and also motion pictures for Forbes for over 10 years, and you might have seen my evaluations on Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic. I cover all manner of console and PC games, but if it has to do with looting or capturing, I'm definitely there. If I'm viewing something, it's usually sci-fi, scary or superheroic. I'm additionally a normal on IGN's Fireteam Conversation podcast as well as have actually published 5 sci-fi stories.

As soon as you've persisted to the tune of $200,000, you prepare to make some actual money. Get yourself a high-end house (one with a heist-planning room), as well as get ready to dedicate some grand-scale burglary. Regardless of GTA Online distributing a million bucks a month to gamers there. still seems to be major troubles with its current economic climate. Many players have actually specified that they are tired of the unbelievably high rates in the game as well as the work required to have a complete experience. With this in mind, patches and copyright strikes might be a short-term fix, however the development team might require to look at the game all at once as well as address the issues that drive players to exploits. YouTuber JK Gam3rs has actually alerted players about the practice as their video clips on it have actually been removed as well as along with the Reddit post, it appears that Rockstar Gamings are doing something about it versus players. It seems that the developer has seen the garage problem as a risk to the game and consequently are attempting to remove it.

If you are stuck at a stunt, utilize the exact same kind of lorry that is displayed in the video clip. You need to constantly land in a specific area, or even a certain area to complete the feat dive. If you drive as well quick, or also slow-moving, you could miss out on the target area and the stunt will certainly fall short. A good method to use is to quick save the game prior to every stunt dive. After packing the conserved game, you will certainly be sitting in your automobile at the specific very same spot where you conserved the game. This enables you to never shed any kind of progress if you pass away or ruin your vehicle.

Video Games.

Then, exit the garage with one more car, re-enter it, and also take your previously harmed automobile. Free lorry repairWhile in a damaged lorry, button to a various character, and after that promptly switch over back to have that car entirely repaired. Successfully complete the final break-in in Story setting to earn roughly $25 million for each and every personality. Then, invest that money in the stock market to make a great deal even more money. Easy moneyWhile driving around, look for blue dots to show up on the map, which suggest armored automobiles. Try to fire the vehicle driver with the briefcase before he gets to the armored auto to quickly get the money ($ 5,000).

With this in mind, patches as well as copyright strikes might be a momentary solution, but the growth team may require to take a look at the game as a whole and also address the concerns that drive gamers to ventures.

If I'm viewing something, it's typically sci-fi, scary or superheroic.

GTA Online went from being an added multiplayer element to an ongoing online multiplayer experience that players have spent countless hrs and real real-world money into.

Furthermore, the globe of Red Dead Redemption 2 is unbelievable, with a lot to do, a lot of personalities to communicate with, and countless keys stashed.

If you intend to do points solo you must only focus on keeping 3 bars worth of Materials each time, and also bring an airplane to accelerate traveling times.

When you purchase it, all fixings as well as upgrades to vehicles will be free. When a mission goal includes destroying a company's asset or reputation, make sure you acquire stock in their rival before finishing the purpose. Easy money in stock marketTo make easy money in the stock market, purchase a business, and after that target the completing company. When you do something in Grand Theft Vehicle 5 that affects a company, its supply rate will lower by a certain amount depending upon the quantity of damage you triggered to the firm. Thus, acquire stock in the competing business that you are going to target.

Los Santos Customizeds.?

It will certainly appear as an arbitrary occasion after you complete the initial Tonya Strangers & Freaks goal. Once the Imponte Battle Each Other O'Death has actually been opened, you can spawn it by calling"" on your https://www.linuxwallonie.org/ mobile phone. Find the 50 Monkey Mosaics scattered around the map, as well as take a picture of each of them with any kind of character to open an arbitrary event as well as monkey clothing for Trevor. Before beginning this arbitrary event, ensure to purchase all three garages for Michael, Franklin, and also Trevor. This will increase the chances for the random occasion to spawn.

rendition of Los Santos resembled a "background or a game degree with pedestrians arbitrarily crushing about". The group neglected San Andreas as a departure factor for Grand Burglary Vehicle V due to the fact that they had actually gone on to a brand-new generation of gaming consoles as well as wanted to build the city from the ground up. According to Garbut, game equipment had actually "progressed so much from San Andreas" that using it as a model would certainly have been redundant. The group's concentrate on one city rather than three indicated that they could generate Los Santos in higher quality as well as at a larger scale than in the previous game. The group discovered they can provide the game world with higher detail than in Grand Theft Auto IV because they had come to be accustomed to the PlayStation 3 as well as Xbox 360's equipment. Art director Aaron Garbut said that while the consoles' ageing hardware were tiring to collaborate with, the team can still render thorough illumination and also shadows as well as "maintain a regular look".

Bounties are asked for by an NPC (non-player character) for taking a vehicle or attacking way too many Gang Attacks of a certain intrigue. The Bounty can be anywhere from $1,000--$ 9,000, and also by calling Lester you can establish Bounties with the very same quantities. For example, if you wish to establish a $6,000 bounty it will certainly cost you $7,000.

The 8 Coolest Additions To Gta Online Thus Far.

Quickly prior to you drive with the gates of the base, usage Franklin's unique ability to reduce time as long as feasible. This will quit your needed level from raising to four celebrities for as long as it is turned on, which gives you a little even more time to reach the tank and swipe it. Locate a container on base, get on top of it, and also throw the person out of it to take it. Taking a competitor jetGo to Fort Zancudo with Franklin, as well as break into the base using a quick auto. This will stop your needed degree from raising to 4 celebrities for as lengthy as it is turned on, which provides you a little even more time to get to the fighter jet as well as steal it. Attempt to swipe a fighter jet with an open cabin inside or best outside a garage, as it will certainly lower the quantity of time it takes to obtain the jet off the ground. It is suggested you do not try to steal a jet that is out in the open.

Greta Thunberg and Friday’s 4 Future

"I don't care about being popular. I care about climate justice."

This statement by Greta Thunberg is very powerful. Every generation has had youth that to some extent like the idea of and strive for success, fame and power, but these aspirations have been warped and are all too important amongst our younger generations today. This is directly linked to the nature of internet culture and social media which profits and promotes extreme beauty ideals, materialistic possessions and expressions of grandeur alongside a fixation on followers, likes and the analytics of online “popularity”. Yet, we still have cultural norms that view the youngest in society as the progressives, those who are responsible for shifting and building a better tomorrow. Many Western teens today spend their free-time on beauty tutorials, fashion and other forms of entertainment. There’s beauty in that Greta Thunberg, a well-off Swedish white girl, who could turn a blind eye to injustices in the world, fights to unlearn and speak up against climate injustice. In addition, she fights to spread awareness and put pressure on global governments to make needed systemic change. Greta claims she doesn't care about being popular, because she clearly does not do this for being liked and famous, she knows that fighting for climate justice and sustainability is not popular or “trendy”, she does it because it is what she cares about, and because it is right.

It is because of her honesty and dedication, that she has moved and awaken millions of other western people. Ironically, she has become an iconic and famous figure for defending the environment. It is admirable that even with a platform which has received millions of followers, praise from celebrities, as well as invites from famous politicians, she has never given up her principles to become more likable and her message stays the same, even when it is uncomfortable to those who know they do not do enough for the earth.

I did not live in NYC last year, but there was a climate strike in Foley Square in 2019 as well as strikes all across the world. I was inspired by Greta’s movement and participated in the school strike for climate in Stockholm. It was amazing to see so many people of all different backgrounds and ages participating in the city’s center to hear climate activists and my friends and I boycotted school to support the Friday’s 4 Future campaign.

The long term dedication and commitment movements like Friday’s 4 Future and Black Lives Matter have shown for years now, have woken me up to my complacency to my reality, when it does not align with the world I want to live in. I was 13 years old when the Black Lives Matter hashtag and conversation started. I was 18 when Greta Thunberg started striking for the climate. I realize now that it is not only the people we see highlighted in the news who can make important change, it is all of us. Greta Thunberg’s book No One Is Too Small To Make A Difference, really was a wakeup call on how climate change, which is inevitable with our current ways, is a crisis and an urgent issue that can only be resolved by facing it head on.

 Photos from the Stockholm strike taken by: Lotta Fernvall / AFTONBLADET

These are a selection of a few photos taken at the global Climate Strike in 2019, but these are all taken in front of the Swedish parliament, where the movement began. It is surreal how people in the thousands came to join her on this historical global strike in her home country and all over the world, when she started striking all by herself at this exact spot. Greta Thunberg has been the catalyst for heightened awareness and care about climate justice.

I think many people, including Greta Thunberg herself in the trailer for her Hulu documentary, attribute her hyper focus on the reality and danger of climate change to her having Asperger’s syndrome. While a common symptom of Asperger’s syndrome is to have an “obsessive” interest in a particular subject, I do think we should not dismiss her drive, passion and heart in climate justice just to her condition. Greta’s ability to push against her discomfort with social networking, to perform speeches in front of millions, and exchange awkward pleasantries with powerful public figures to access their platform, shows huge amounts of bravery and heart. It is a character strength that she has tunnel vision on the science of climate change and carbon emissions, and this helps her continue to educate herself on the topic. This is something that many of us locals do not show interest in, especially since most of the information is clouded in complicated and exclusionary scientific language, often in lengthy journals.

She does not just care about the environment for the knowledge, she wants to save the world, and save future generation’s right to fulfilling and happy lives. I have so much respect for her and trust in her intentions, and as Greta has said herself, she does not struggle with Asperger’s, she has it. Her journey to activism and contributions to the world should not be pigeon holed or minimized by her condition.

The COVID-19 pandemic, which has forced us all to experience a different state than our regular normal, has made it more clear than ever, that many of our customs and way of life are not sustainable. As the prevalence of police brutality and other systems of oppression are harder to ignore, I think we all are becoming more aware of daily injustices. In the first months of quarantine in Europe, reports were showing photographic evidence that wildlife and ecosystems were improving and thriving because of the reduced human activity that used to scare away wildlife and pollute ecosystems. The visual that is etched into my mind are the rivers in Venice, Italy. Because of the mandatory quarantine, no boats or gondolas were in use, and the rivers all over the water city cleared to a vibrant blue. It took me back to a trip there when I was 12, and how the waters were so green and muddy we joked that falling in would be a health risk. It was somewhat bittersweet to see this imagery, as it was beauty that was rare to see, and that it is rare because of us!

Photos taken of clear water in Italy, taken by @ikaveri on Twitter. 

In this same pandemic, we have also seen the red and orange skies of LA, filled with clouds and rainfalls of ash. This was heartbreaking for the world to witness, as we learned it was the cause of not some dreamy sunset or blood sun, but because of the massive forest wild fires that have devastated families and communities by burning down homes and making the air unbreathable in some places.

Photo credit: Brittany Hosea-Small / AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES

Photo by Josh Edelson / AFP VIA Getty Images

There is no quick fix for the climate and like all social issues, we need to be committed and address it from various angles. We need to vote in political representatives that acknowledge climate change as fact, which unfortunately is the first crucial step we must take unlike other democracies with the same quality of education and science. We need to then protest and put as much pressure as possible on local, state and national politics to enact policies that lead to reduced emissions. We must reduce the amount of influence and investments fossil fuel corporations receive from taxpayers, and invest federally into sustainable alternatives. Unfortunately, most Americans do not even realize how much their lifestyle destroys their land but also the global climate temperature. We need to create a social shift in attitudes around consumption in all forms and this starts with widespread education, so perhaps media and specifically social media is the strongest and quickest way to do this.

“If a few girls can get headlines all over the world just by not going to school for a few weeks, imagine what we could do together if we wanted to.”

I think this quote by Greta emphasizes the power of the people being unified and organized. When we are organized is when we are truly unstoppable and cannot be ignored by the appointed leaders that be. We outnumber them all. We need to organize and stay focused to make real and much needed change.

“Adults keep saying - We owe it to the young people to give them hope - but I don’t want your hope.

I don’t want you to be hopeful.

I want you to panic.”

- Greta Thunberg in her Our House is On Fire speech.

I think the discussion around Greta Thunberg and her activism is interesting and there are three camps with different receptions of her in online discourse. I think the first camp were responsible for her becoming a household name globally. People who felt overwhelmed about climate change, had made some attempts at doing their part, like only riding public transport and going vegan. The first camp mainly consists of the younger generations that were somewhat aware but overwhelmed with the amount of structural issues that contribute to climate change. They were the force that joined Greta at her strikes in Stockholm outside Swedish parliament, and the ones who organized strikes in their own home countries. The second camp, were those like me, who found out about her a bit later when a strong media buzz was already present and notably by media that did not intend to further her purpose and emphasize the importance of climate justice, but just used her for novelty, headlines and clickbait instead. Many marginalized people questioned some of Greta’s viral rhetoric that often spoke of her being “stolen of her childhood and dreams'' as we saw a European, well-off white girl, who was being invited to speak to the most influential politicians, embraced by Hollywood A-listers and was also being honored at protests around the globe for her strikes. What could she possibly know about struggle? We respected her passion for climate change, but convinced ourselves that she needs to scold politicians and those who actually hold power for change, so we carried on with our lives and continued to live in comfortable denial. The third camp consisted of active climate change deniers, and conservatives who weaponized her Asperger's and the fact that she was a young woman (can’t forget to add ageism and misogyny to edgy memes eh?) and aimed to assassinate her character and validity in the form of “jokes” and memes. The third camp often brought up her privilege not only as a critique, but as a means to silence her and the topic altogether. Many influential right-wing politicians, including Donald Trump, partook in this to distance their followers from having any interest in her, or climate justice.

“Greta Thunberg is the spark but we are the wildfire.” - Naomi Klein

As I mentioned earlier, Greta Thunberg’s book has taken away my criticisms of her global status. She has brilliant values, an in-depth scientific understanding of the subject she advocates for, and her emphasis on climate equity, which many white activists fail to acknowledge as an important factor, all made me a supporter of Greta. I do not care about the trolls and those who have tried to ridicule and minimize the honor in her life mission. She is probably one of the most inspiring individuals and change makers of my time. Her book and speeches have amazing rhetoric that unprogrammed a lot of my own learned helplessness about the environment. It also reminded me of my individual responsibility as well as my government's responsibility to stop global warming from happening and create a sustainable world. We need to put in the work, we only have so much time left before it is too late, whether we like that fact or not. Her stance that climate change is black and white is so effective and true: “either we reduce global emissions by 50%, or we do not.” It really is that simple. We need to activate so we can enact the needed solutions to meet that goal. Reading Thunberg’s book has inspired me to take more action and make more sustainable choices and unlearn a lot of U.S. consumerism culture. I have educated myself more throughout quarantine by learning about zero waste methods and the environmental benefits of veganism. However, while personal accountability is great, it is a form of privilege to be able to buy more sustainably, especially when the current market place mainly offers unsustainable products as the most affordable. We must also learn how to politically fight for actual policies and political change that force systemic and societal change .

“We have a new wave of contention in society that’s being led by women. … And the youth climate movement is leading this generational shift."

- Dana Fisher

In late 2019, The Washington Post conducted a poll that found that 46% of teen girls said the climate was “extremely important”, while only 23 % of teen boys said so. Furthermore, more than twice as many black and Hispanic teens participated in school strikes on climate change than their white peers, and girls were more likely to participate than boys. This data is one of several including Dana Fisher’s, a sociologist and researcher at the University of Maryland, who found similar ratios when studying the populations of activists and participants in the Washington, DC 2019 climate strike.

I think the ratio of who shows up for the environment points to social roles at large. The likelihood of caring about climate change can do with one’s privilege and ability to empathize with abstract or foreign problems that one may not be negatively affected with (right now). While we all hold some form of privilege, all women have experienced some form of sexism and misogyny, and therefore are more likely to be able to empathize with marginalized groups they do not belong to, and advocate for social movements that address injustices they may not themselves experience.

There is a correlation between those most marginalized in society, being the most active in social reform and revolution. Because when one is in the lowest or lower social casts of society, and has the least social freedoms and privileges, one has nothing to lose and everything to gain from change. This is why we can see in many social justice movements across the US, that black queer people and specifically black trans women, have consistently been at the forefront for important social progress.

When it comes to climate change, there is a certain amount of empathy required, especially when you live in a western country, or part of the world where you have an excess of resources at your disposal and you are comfortable with the status quo. That is something we all need to address and with that comes a checking of ego. Is my temporary happiness more important than other people’s well-being and lives? Am I contributing to the exploitation of people and the destruction of the planet? My planet?

I do not often see men on a large scale extending this type of self-reflection and empathy for social problems, either in small social settings or in positions of power. This is similar to how many men do not reflect on how it feels to be catcalled or sexually harassed as a woman. This is not because men are predisposed to be heartless rather, I believe this is a cause of social conditioning. Women are more conditioned to be team players, to listen and exercise great empathy at all times, otherwise she is socially scorned. Men are not expected to show these traits to the same extent, and often can rely on this lack of social standard and their own privilege to ignore social issues all together. We need to unlearn that issues women care about are insular to “women’s issues”, for they are societal problems, and we need to encourage and expect young boys and men to be equally accountable for a better world.

It is so inspiring to see so many young teens following Greta’s initiative, like Alexandria Villaseñor, who after experiencing an asthma attack during a wildfire in California, not only took the time to educate herself on the dangers of this phenomenon, but also organized Friday’s 4 Future strikes in NYC with the US Climate Strike group. Since then, she has also spoken at countless international conventions about climate change, and alongside Thunberg and 15 other youth activists, filed a legal complaint against UN nations who had not upheld their Paris agreement climate goals. This is so badass and I did not even know about this until today. In fact, there are countless teens all over the world, many of whom aren’t of legal voting age, who are suing local / federal governments and organizations for environmental malpractice and for jeopardizing their futures! 

As they should! Let’s all keep fighting for a better and sustainable future.

Students and youth striking in Seoul, South Korea. Photo credit: Chung Sung-Jun / GETTY IMAGES

Young people striking in Edinburgh, Scotland. Photo credit: Jeff J Mitchell / GETTY IMAGES

Youth striking in Hong Kong. Photo credit: Kim Cheung / AP PHOTO

Jardin Secret

Characters: Minghao x reader

Genre/warnings: Witch AU, fluff, accident, description of injuries

Word count: 3244

Summary: You don’t quite remember when it started, but you sure do recall the moment you realized it. And now it’s too late. The thorns of your blooming feelings encase your heart and now it bleeds with love and hope.

a/n: Everything in italic are lyrics from a french song, Jardin Secret by Cécile Corbel, which inspired me the idea of this fic. Also this is kind of a Howl!Minghao inspiration because yes, I’m digging it.

MASTERLIST

The memories of your previous life are scattered glimpses of light caught sporadically by your eyes. From what you gathered so far, you never really had someone to rely on. You remember travelling from villages to villages, never staying at the same place for more than a week. However, you never let your tarot deck behind you. That’s how you’ve been surviving, receiving the insights of the cards and sharing their answers to the curious, the worrieds, the hopefuls. You still use it to this day, the thick, timeworn paper electrizing your fingertips with the sparkles of magic emanating from your cards. You’ve been doing that for years - how many ? that again, you don’t remember, you’ve never been the type to keep dates in check, anyway - when on that fateful day, you met him.

J'ai la clé d'un jardin secret

Où mon cœur repose

A young man, around your age, was leaning over you, a worried look on his face. Your senses were gradually coming back at you and each one of your muscles stirred under your skin. You groaned, but no sound came from your dry throat, and instead you coughed some blood. The iron-tasting liquid spilling in your mouth. You didn’t see it from the angle you were laying down, but you could feel your right lower leg bent in an unusual way. You didn’t dare to move it. 

“Hey ! Can you hear me ?” The man asked, and you frowned, the buzzing in your ears becoming more and more prominent, and you could feel a headache coming right at you. 

You tried to answer him, but everything was blurred, and you could feel yourself falling even though you were already laying down, and everything went black.

Je l'ai cachée 

Je garde la porte close 

Oui close

You woke up - several days later, for what you have been told - in a surprisingly comfortable bed. This was definitely not something you were accustommed to, and it didn’t take you long to realize that you were in an unknown room. The place was oddly silent, too silent for your liking. You felt weak, despite just emerging from your slumber. A quick look around you allowed you to locate your bag, grimy and damaged, at the foot of the bed you were currently laid in. This was enough to calm your nerves, for now. 

You took a moment to investigate the bedroom you were confined in. The walls were covered with several ornate tapestries and mismatched hangings, and the parts where the dark wood slats were visible were saturated with multiple woodshelves, bearing a multitude of concoctions, books, gemstones and several instruments which you didn’t know the use of. A narrow, but long window was letting the sunlight warm your skin, and the sensation, foreign almost, was sending chills through your spine. A large desk was getting your attention, covered with scrolls of parchment and a quantity of books you didn’t know could be stacked in such a tall pile. The room was giving you an eerie feeling, but the good kind. You were oddly at ease, yet you didn’t know why. 

You’re startled by the door opening suddenly, banging against the wall and making the fragile bottles tremble with a sparkling sound, a weird and mesmerizing melody. You’re greeted again by the same man you’ve seen before fainting. You can see a disconcerted expression on his face for a second, quickly replaced by a discreet smile, and a glimmer in his eyes you can’t quite gauge.

“Sorry for surprising you, this one is temperamental,” He chuckles lightly, and you’re left confused at what he’s refering to before realizing he meant the door. “Here, I thought it would do you some good after everything that happened.”

That’s when you finally remark the tray he’s carrying in his hands, full with pieces of bread, butter, jam and different types of fruits. He set it swiflty on the nightstand beside you, and sat himself at the foot of the bed.

“I’m Minghao, by the way” He tells you, with the most genuine smile you swear you’ve ever seen.

Faut pas toucher 

C'est si fragile

He tends your wounds, feeds you and help you recover without question. You insist to repay him for everything he has done for you, but each time you bring up the topic you’re met with a melodious “Hm-hm” in response, and in some way you know that you lost the argument already and he would refuse anything you will give him in return. You feel restless and impatient, being stuck inside and with little degree of freedom, your leg still tightly kept in place by several bandages and splints Minghao put great care of. Because of your prolonged state and your forced collocation, You eventually managed to get Minghao to tell you how he found you, and what happened. He admitted that he saw you unconscious, at the bottom of a cliff. Not tall enough to kill you on the spot but sufficient to cause great damage. You probably fell from exhaustion, not mentionning the terrible bad weather that saturated the earth with water and humidity, making progress into the wilderness difficult and risky.

“Why can’t you just heal it ? You’re a witch, right ?” You asked one time, breaking the comfortable silence you two would stay in most of the time, Minghao concentrating on his craft and you developping a passion for his personal book collection. 

“It doesn’t work like that. I already did what I could with magic. You should know that by now, considering the amount of books you binged during the last weeks.” He snickered. Your ears were red at his little attack but you kept silent.

“Magic is a great tool when used wisely, and it shouldn’t be taken lightly. I can only reinforce your own cicatrisation and healing process, I can’t create broken bone and torn flesh out of nowhere.”

Toucher les roses 

A peine écloses

“Minghao, I’m bored. I’m bored. I’m bored. Hao, I’m bored” You tried, with no avail. 

Minghao was still focusing on his parchment, not even glancing at you or acknowledging your presence. From what you understood, it had been many years that he’s been waiting to get his hand on a copy, and since he came back home with it, he had been rummaging frantically though the whole house to find the ingredients requiered. A small vial was patiently waiting, kept in place by a metallic holder. A water pot was slowly heating up on the table, carefully placed at a secure distance from the rest. From where you rested, you could distinguish a cup of crimson sea salt, a bunch of different flowers he freshly picked from the garden earlier, as well as more suspicious materials, such as another flask containing what you supposed was blood.

You huffed at his lack of response, and hopped from the couch towards him, resting your arms and upper body on his shoulders as a support. You’ve been living with Minghao for several weeks now - He told you that it had been exactly three months, one week and four days, but you didn’t found it in yourself to care about the exact number - and the two of you had grown especially close. Minghao wasn’t one to have a lot of visitors - customers would maybe be a more appropriate term - and they would usually leave within the hour. Actually, the only one you’ve seen around multiple times was a guy named Jun, whose presence greatly made you uneasy. You felt like you were being watched, even when he wasn’t looking at you. It felt like he could read your mind just by staring in your eyes, and with all honesty, everything about him and his aura screamed danger. You could swear he was definitely not human, and you usually locked yourself in the bedroom whenever you knew he was coming.

“Hao, I’m boreeeeed” You cooed again, this time in his ear.

He groaned and leaned against the back of the chair he was sitting in, the sudden movement throwing you a little off balance, but you quickly recollected yourself and tightened your grip on his shoulders. 

“I don’t know, what do you want me to do ?” He looked at you right in the eyes and you were suddenly aware of the closeness of your faces. You were sure your cheeks were bright red at this point but did your best to not let it affect you. 

“I’m not the witch, you are ! Find something, whatever.” You countered.

Small bickering has started to become more and more part of your everyday life, and the prospect of leaving after your recovery was gradually put on the side in your mind. Actually, it scared you. You’ve grown accustommed to sharing your life with Minghao, the security and calm of a warm house had softened you, and imagining what would happen when you will be able to walk again greatly stressed you. Would Minghao force you out ? Would you be contrained to go back to your previous lifestyle - would that mean you two would part ways forever ? - You didn’t want to think about it. 

He looked at you, an unreadable expression on his face. The two of you stayed there for a second, still, the only sounds surrounding you being the slowly boilling water pot and the soft swishing of the tree surrounding the house. 

“Take a seat and mash the lavender buds.” He told you smoothly, taking you off guard. Minghao had never let you touch his ingredients, bottles or whatever witchcraft that was in the house - which meant, a lot of stuff - before. 

“... What ?” You answered, meekly. But Minghao was already back at reading the recipe, pushing his glasses a little further up his nose. 

Silently, you followed his instructions and took a seat in front of him, right beside the fresh cut flowers. You didn’t know all of the species Minghao had selected for the preparation, but you sure could recognize the characteristic shape of the lavender, as well as its subtle scent. On your table, was ready for use a chopping board accompanied by a small, pointy knife. The handle was carefully decorated with symbols you couldn’t decipher. 

You diligently went to work, picking the most good looking lavender flowers from the bunch, removing the most damaged from the bouquet. You took a bud and started chopping it meticulously, but Minghao stopped you right away. 

“No, not like this, you have to crush it. With the side of the blade, yeah, like that.” He told you, taking with great delicateness the knife from your hand and showing you the right way to do it. 

“It releases its properties better” He stated, calmly, before handing you the knife again, his eyes finding yours, and you swear you felt your heart skip a beat at the sight.

J'irais bien de l'autre côté des choses 

Voler le parfum des roses

From this point, you started helping Minghao more and more in his experiments. he introduced you to the rudiments of magic, and even if you weren’t exactly a beginner in the domain, this type of magic has nothing to do with your cards readings. You found yourself more and more interested by his craft, surprising yourself daydreaming sometimes, gazing at Minghao, his tall but slim frame hunched on a spell book, reading attentively and sometimes adding annotations or correcting old and unused spells. Sometimes you wondered if he could actually read things, his messy long hair getting in the way, and you couldn’t help but stare each time he put them back, in an almost unconscious move. 

You start to notice the little details about him. The way he carefully pours his tea in the morning, the way he touches every object with great care and precision, like he doesn’t want to hurt it, like it’s alive. The glimmer in his eyes went he talks about something that caught his attention lately. His strict but caring behavior when you would mess up something or stumble upon your words when recitating an incantation - you shouldn’t mess with magic, after all. The smallest mistake and everything could go wrong -, how the two of you would snuggle on the couch with fuzzy blankets after a long day of appointments and work. His small giggle that makes your heart shake each time you hear it.

J'ai rêvé 

D'effacer le gris que le temps dépose

Time passes, and you also gradually learns to walk again. You feel like a big, clumsy toddler and you cry yourself to sleep several times watching the state your leg is in, frail and scarred after being cut from any physical activity. Minghao doesn’t really know what to do, so he prepares your favorite tea blend - a spicy, but sweet black tea with undertones of orange - and he stays at your side, comforting you until you fall sound asleep. 

Minghao never showed any sign of irritation and impatience towards you. You would take twice, maybe thrice the time to cross the same distance as him, but he would wait for you calmly. He never raised your grunts of frustration and powerlessness, nor pitied you either. With hardwork and determination, you manage to walk almost as well as before. It passed unremarked to most, a little wobble here and there betraying you sometimes, but you eventually recovered most of your capacity. However, ended were the times where running carelessly to escape shady merchants or bandits was your daily life, climbing walls and fences to got faster and outrunning them to save your skin.

J'irai bien de l'autre côté du monde 

Voir si les mots se confondent

Came the moment to discuss what was the next step. You had feared this exact situation for the past months, but now that your leg was back in function again, you felt like you had to bring up the topic. 

“Hao…” You started, uneasy. Just by the tone of your voice, Minghao felt that something wasn’t right and he lifted his head from his book to look at you, sitting at the other end of the couch. He didn’t say anything, waiting for you to continue. You cleared your throat and obligated, pushing the words that were burning your tongue from your mouth.

“I wondered if… maybe this is my time to go ? My leg is fully healed now so… I don’t want to bother you any longer.” You kept your face as unreadable as possible, even though you were internally shaking and bracing yourself for his answer. If he wanted you to leave, you shouldn’t cry, not in front of him, at least. 

You were both making eye contact and you sensed something coming from him. Confusion, relief, disappointment, anger maybe ? You couldn’t quite put it but before you had time to think about it twice he was back at his usual, impassible self, the same smile you were so used to adorning his pretty face. It took him several seconds to answer, and you could almost see the gears turning in his mind.

“If this is what you wish for, then let it be. I will not keep you here any longer if this is not what you want. But know that you’re never a stranger here. This is your home, too.” His response took your breath away, and somewhere in you was warming up at his words, This is your home too, you mentally repeated.

“I… I wouldn’t mind staying a little longer, then.”, you breathed.

De passer de l'autre côté de l'ombre 

Et que des voix me répondent

So as the leaves were falling from the trees, you stayed at Minghao’s side. He and you were focused on drying all the garden flowers, and ensure they would stay in perfect condition for the winter to come. You carefully opened the large, heavy book you used for the starry mint and the water tulips. You retrieved each flower with great care, and placed them inside their designed jar : this would greatly help if someone fell sick with the deadly plague that was slowly coming back to life with the arrival of the dry air of the cold. Minghao was doing the same on his side, carefully picking out the thorns of the various roses. Their poison, when used correctly, could relieve the pain of muscular fatigue and migraines. You learned a lot at his side, probably more than you did in all the years you lived. You took a deep breath and relinquished in the warmth of the ever-lit blue fireplace. Its light was flooding the whole living room with a relaxant, almost melancholic blueish and purpleish hue, flickering and crackling. The fire was slowly licking the birch logs, their bark splintering under the heat and falling into the still burning embers. 

For the first time in your life, you had a place you could call home. This thought rang a sad, but hopeful bell in your fragmented memories. You don’t remember having ever called somewhere “home”, and it took you time to understand what people would mean by having a home. “Home is a place where you feel at ease, where you feel that you can be you, where you mind is at peace.” That’s what you believed was “home”, after having gathered multiple opinions from strangers and one-time acquintances. 

But sometimes you truly wondered if home was more about the people around you than the place. You gazed up at Minghao, unaware of your internal rambling, and you took in the sight of his delicate profile, the way the fire reflected itself in his eyes. You coudn’t tell him.

Je voudrais passer de l'autre côté des choses 

J'ai rêvé d'effacer les couleurs que le temps dépose

It’s after your second winter together that you can definitely feel your heart swelling at the simple thought of him, of his delicate smile and his witty eyes. Putting words on it scares you. As if pronouncing it, thinking it, even, would engrave your feelings into stone. It feels like a dance, almost, the game between you and him. Like Icarus and the Sun, you fear that you might burn everything to ashes with too much confidence. 

The first time he kissed you, you leaned into his embrace, slowly. He hesitantly put a hand on your waist, as if you would break like fragile ice. His touch felt burning hot through your clothes, and you wanted to cry because of the overwhelming feelings that dawned upon you. You stared into each other eyes, a look being more speaking than actual words.

J'ai la clé d'un jardin secret 

Où mon coeur repose

Still, doubt was haunting your mind constantly, and you couldn’t help but worry that everything was only the fruit of your imagination. It broke your heart to just considering it. The harvest of your love, beaming with hope, reapt from your ribcage, thorns tearing the flesh apart to let your bloody roses bloom for everyone to see. But you’ve always loved the risk, that was in your nature. You wouldn’t have walked on the edge of this cliff otherwise. So you allowed yourself to hope, to believe in it, to believe in him. And it only needed a few, carefully chosen words to have you smiling with knowing eyes at Minghao.

“You know that no one can come between us, right ?”, he mused.

J'irais bien de l'autre côté des choses

Voler le parfum des roses

The Comfort of Strangers

Gabe's POV

The first time I saw her, it was a Saturday - most likely in the middle of September, nine months ago in a public library, four blocks away from the building that I once inhabited.

Of all things to note, the initial thing that would flash was the day - always the same day. She probably wore an average sweater, and dark skinny jeans - a style I eventually noticed. And even without the glasses, I always remembered her even back then as nerdy, introverted and of course, bookish.

It was a school research that motivated me to visit such a weary place that I couldn't imagine ever stopping-over - not because I was allergic to studying (if anything, I don't mind reading books) but because the place in itself was a bore to look at. The library was Egypt's pyramid. Historical. Old. Ancient. Pick your term. There's a helpful thesaurus inside to help you in such a predicament.

Then again, the same reason has urged me to step inside the old-fashioned site. Mr. Lanburton (not sure if I spelled his name accurately), our history teacher, had loaded us a big stack of dreadful tasks to fulfill at the end of the weekend. Surprisingly so, my memory has reclaimed the thoughts of my heavy homework, to which my class was asked to recollect important historical terms of a long list of nearby places in the vicinity of our humble locale.

It was also the first time my best friend, Google, has disappointed me terribly for failing to deliver an automatic answer to my difficulties (Apparently it was not one of those "God bless the internet" days). Unfortunately our locality and its small populace were a little unfit for specific and in-depth information about what Mr. Lanburton had required.

As tempting as it was to abandon the task at hand, my grades in that semester was not as cooperative. It took me a week to recover on an illness that got me hospitalized for days and the teachers were not very considerate. The only option left for me was to take the route to the oldest public library in town and start a customary way of active research.

The heavy creak brought from the antique wooden door entrance unsurprisingly attracted too much attention in an almost-deserted library. I met her stare as she lifted her gaze - our first contact. Yet at that moment it seemed so ordinary - so unappreciated. I couldn't recall clearly what book she was reading or how she looked at me, no matter how hard I try, but I guess that's just how I will always remember her: the girl who always has her face trained on books in the old library.

At the end of the day I was happy for having the task lifted off of my shoulders three days before the original submission, and I also recalled that my parents treated me and my four-year old little sister in an expensive restaurant outside town. My mother bought me a black jacket that I remembered wearing the next day. That specific Saturday was special in ways that I could only fully realize now.

Visits to the library were followed by more when our history teacher realized how effective it was (for him) to leave advanced schoolwork for a progressive study on our next topics. More items were given that I had to reserve extra time to the library to fulfill the task every week. The second and third time I stayed in the public library, I sat three chairs away from her and maintained the same position for the week because it was nearest to the air conditioner and I was rather comfortable. The quiet girl maintained hers just the same. Each time we were near each other I was more intrigued about the novels she was reading and how she seemed to be unfazed to her dusty surroundings with a different book each time I came. By my fifth visit, I was able to comprehend a clearer assessment on her features when I snuck in a slight glance.

Evergreen - like spring. That's how I remembered her full bright eyes. It seemed enchanting now the more I think about it, as only a few people could possess such unique detail. Her cheeks are always flushed - it must have something to do with the cold atmosphere (but later, I realized she was always like that). Her slightly-curly hazel brown hair, she always secured in a careless bun. It was curiosity that compelled me to her - a teenage girl my age who would just spend most of her time reading classic novels in the stinky dinosaur-age public library instead of going shopping or doing whatever sassy teenage girls do. Does she even go to school? Is she constantly alone if she doesn't have anyone to hang-out with? Where does she live anyway? What's in these books -these novels that got her hooked in this place? Why can't she just borrow them and bring them home to read? Why here where everything is so grubby and old, I have to stop myself from sneezing when I get too close on a dictionary?

It started as a thought, which intrigued me, and then it changed into a deep curiosity that later became a sudden interest. She was not from my university, that's for sure. I would have known. I never bothered to ask because I was uncertain on her response. It was not my forte, conversing with the opposite gender. Back then I had a mental overview on how my conversation with her would be like. I just couldn't gather enough courage to start even a casual conversation.

Scanning through old textbooks, I'd sneak in a little look at her - I don't know why I did - I always felt like even through her solemn focus on the material she was reading, I've always imagined her noticing every slight glance I pass on to her. Having her around three chairs away from me every Saturday afternoon in the library eventually turned into something natural - like a schoolmate a table away from me in our usual place in the cafeteria. Without even speaking, I guess our positions were a mutual contract. Without even knowing it, my visits and these weekly tasks no longer bothered me as much as it did at first.

Finally, I devised a plan to get her attention (it didn't sound as creepy when I thought about it before). This peculiar bookworm returns the books to its shelf and leaves the place fifteen minutes less before I could finish my research homework. On a particular Saturday in October, I took notice of the exact bookshelf location she left her novel before she stepped out of the library. Coincidentally Mr. Lanburton was kind enough to lessen our burden with simple common terms to hunt and I was able to finish the task earlier than most. I took the book out of the bookshelf five minutes after she left. I tried considering asking the elderly librarian about the name of the girl (surely she knew about her only customer in ghost town's library) but for some reason I didn't pursue it.

The moment I glanced at the cover of the book I remembered thinking: "Nicholas Sparks. Well what do you know? I guess she is a romantic at heart."

"The Choice" by Nicholas Sparks.

Reading the synopsis was my last pull to borrowing the book and bringing it home. Alas, I have also read some of his passionate collections but it was my first to encounter this specific book. I started reading that night - continued and finished it the next day. It was compelling and I was hooked. I thought about how she could be feeling the same emotions that I was sensing as I read through Spark's masterpiece, and when I am overcome with extreme emotions in the climax of the plot, I remembered how I caught her wrinkle her nose as she read through all those literary pieces as if she was dismayed by the outcome, or how a trace of a smile would form on her delicate lips for a moment at the remaining pages of her novels; all the emotions rushing out of her when she reads - I realize how she understood all kinds of sentiments organized by the author or how she paints the characters out of her beautiful imagination.

For a regular guy who sees life as a featureless routine, she was remarkable.

The next Saturday, there were no tasks to accomplish, but I returned the book to the library. When I arrived, the girl was already sitting with a different (probably about another romance) book on our usual table as I had expected. I felt her eyes follow me when I returned the book that she read. After doing so, I returned to my usual chair, took a random book on her usual bookshelf and pretended to read it - hoping she would notice me again.

The bookworm cleared her throat. Twice (in the first, I was a little too overwhelmed to hear her). "Excuse me."

"Yes?" I must have smiled like a fool back then.

"Hi," she started nervously. "I just couldn't help wondering: what genre do you usually prefer? I mean if you don't mind." Wait, British accent?

The question initially confused me, but it made me more than glad to hear her talk. I answered her in way that might have ineffectually and failingly conceal my tense and awkward self. "I-I guess I'm more into Action, Sci-Fi. Those kinds of stuff." (Not really). "And probably a little romance would do." (A guy reading a romance novel? Can't you get any weirder? Stupid. Stupid. Stupid).

"I see," she spoke out the words slowly. "Action, huh? Specifically of Sylvia Day's?"

Her tone had demanded to alert me, as I saw her look curiously on the book on my hand. I quickly turned to the cover.

"Bared to You" by Sylvia Day.

Oh.

I slammed the book shut, not daring to behold a scene of its twisted plot. Funny, how I must have looked like to her: A perverted little maniac.

That's when I heard her laugh. I was unprepared for my reaction to the most potent weapon this girl had in her arsenal - a real genuine laugh that reverberated from inside her. It was too infectious for me to resist, and on an unguarded instant, I joined in.

Of course, the librarian shushed us out of it.

"I'm sorry," she blushed - adding more color to her flushed face, and apologized to the wrinkly old librarian.

"Look, I wasn't really reading it, I mean - "(What am I getting myself into?) "I was just scan- " The girl stifled a laugh. "I didn't mean it like that, I was just...just..."(Seriously dude, stop embarrassing yourself!)

"I'm Eveline," she offered, a bright and foreign (but genuine) smile on her face and an extended hand. "You are?"

A for being attentive. I just couldn't stop embarrassing myself, could I?

"Gabriel, 'Gabe' for short" I shook her soft, dainty hand. "Nice to (finally) meet you."

"Sorry if I disturbed you." Another short laugh.

"It's fine. I wasn't really reading it," I shrugged.

"I can tell," Eveline smiled - a sparkle on her emerald eyes. "I mean I noticed you were so out of it. I didn't mean to appear so despicable."

"It's okay, really. I don't usually read novels - especially this kind."

"You're usually on research and textbooks," she added gently, and I couldn't help but grin at the thought of her noticing me.

"Schoolwork," I supplied. "My history teacher keeps giving us a big load of homework every weekend."

"Ah, I see," she nodded in understanding. I waited for her to elaborate about her high school life or at least relate to me how her history teacher could be the same terror professor, but she didn't and our conversation fell short.

"Are you always hanging around here?" I probed further.

"Only on Saturdays and sometimes on Sundays," Eve caught a stray hair and pushed it on her ear.

"Always on the same schedule?"

She nodded cheekily, "Yeah."

Her enigmatic stance put me in place and I decided not to push my luck on her privacy. "Cool."

I looked at my wristwatch and realized that I was late for my sister's little rehearsal, knowing I had to pick her up after. "It was really great to see you, but I'm done with my work here and I need to fetch my sister out of ballet class." As much as I still want to hang around...

"I understand."

"So, next Saturday then?" I said a little too hopefully.

"Of course," she smiled her gentle smile.

That night I lay on my cozy bed thinking about our hilarious - though a little ungainly, dialogue. Eveline. Witty, cute, and bashful Eveline. Even when I decided to shut my eyes, I could see a picture of her perky face in her natural glow and hear the sound of her symphonic laugh. Since that day, thoughts of her became a frequent visitor and Saturday wasn't just any ordinary Saturday. Like a refreshing holiday, I was looking forward to it.

On our next meeting, I wore a navy sweatshirt and khaki shorts - turning my charm on like a light switch untouched for decades. I smiled brightly even before I could enter the library, wanting to match hers and hoping she'd return it. Eveline would be inside, reading a romantic novel, and I hope my smile would greet her. She was still selecting a book when I came in; her face lit up as she mouthed "Hello."

Instead of going my way to proceed on my research, I watched her pick a book or two in the shelf before taking my own set of textbooks to copy information. As I derived coherent notes on my notebook, I clucked my tongue twice in a playful way of getting her attention. From the corner of my eye, I saw her glance to my direction but I pretended to be so focused on my homework. I repeated it again, louder this time to also get the old librarian's awareness. The withered old woman looked around and turned on our table, confused at my mock innocence. She shrugged a little and went back on arranging the filthy pile of old archives. From the corner of my eye, I saw Eveline smile in amusement even without her looking at me.

I purposely sped up taking down notes for research in order to catch up on Eveline on her way home. I asked permission to accompany her and I was happy that she was fine with it. She owned an average bike for transportation and her street was 2 miles away from mine. I offered to guide her bike as a friendly gesture while we talk a little until we reached my apartment building.

"You're not as behaved as I thought you are," she teased lightly.

"You mean what I did to that librarian? Well at least she has someone to watch over. A little hobby might get her rusty old brain working a little," I winked and she laughed.

We shared jokes even though they were mostly mine. I enjoyed making her laugh and smile. I began talking about myself when we started sobering up; about my family, high school, my hunky best friend named Kevin, and my favorite sport, tennis. I casually asked her about her own share of the bargain and I was more than pleased to hear her describe a little more about herself. Financial problems had caused a temporary break for her education when her father was dropped out on his business firm. She didn't talk about her plans for the future which seemed odd when I think about how much I disclosed my desired career as an architect, but I still marveled at the way she talks about her present and how she sees her life like a ready canvass. She loved her parents dearly even if they couldn't give her siblings to take care of. Eveline had a little pet dog named Sponge, and he was her only best friend.

Little facts added to my little biography of her, and each Saturday I was determined to get closer to her as I know she was a keeper for a friend. It turned into a fantastic innocent habit. When Saturday comes, I'd still stay on my usual distance and she'd read books peacefully. I'd cluck my tongue like a little check-up call and she'd smile. We'd pretend we didn't hear anything when the librarian gets irritated, and we'd squeeze ourselves to hide a laugh. But still I was afraid of annoying her on her reading with my behavior so I'd stop and sneak glances at her instead. Overtime she started whistling, a sign that she wasn't bothered about my tongue-clucking at all. The first time she tried her 'notorious' act and the librarian glared at me accusingly, I bit my tongue so bad to conceal a hideous laughter and my stomach was aching, it was so hard to breath. On our journey home, I was able to make her play "20 questions" where we take turns in interrogations about ourselves. Each new detail was a new color to add to cluster of feathers she blooms each day.

By the time we agreed to meet up on days besides Saturday, I had nicknamed her "Eve" even when her mother calls her "Lynn". On our first "friendly" date, I took her to a little café and treated her with chocolate cake that she told me was her favorite. I bought her "Papertowns", a novel written by John Green, and she was so happy and giddy that Eve kissed me tenderly on the cheek; I wasn't able to hold a blush.

Even though I was afraid to admit it, when I was with her, it seemed it was worth doing all those normal things that normal people do.

She was amazing in ways that I couldn't describe. Eve could make simple seem complex. Everything about her had a deeper sense of sentimental value. There are certain ways only she can do that could make me immeasurably happy.

Eve had suggested I meet up with her on a night of meteor showers last December. It had been my dream rendezvous. As we sat there stargazing, I had took the book that we both loved from my sling bag, "The Choice" and read a little excerpt of Nicholas Sparks, one that I intended with meaning.

"It was inevitable for people to try to create a sense of normalcy in a place where nothing was normal. It helped one get through the day, to add predictability to a life that was inherently unpredictable."

She had listened with her eyes closed, lying on the evergreen grass that sent a neon glow to her emerald eyes.

"You've been quoting my books," Eve grinned, after a long moment of observing the distant, twinkling stars.

"Sadly, you've miraculously turned me into a bookworm like you," I sighed melodramatically.

"Well I never forced you to read them," she smiled.

"But there was no other way of getting your attention," I pouted, playfully.

"There was, you're just too dumb to try it," Eve laughed.

"Name one."

"I don't know, how about just a casual 'hi!'" she muttered sarcastically and I rolled my eyes. "You could also have tried asking me what I was reading. Did I appear that stiff to you?"

"To be honest, yeah" I said teasingly.

"Dud!"

"Nerd!"

Tickle fights are the usual aftermath of our casual bullying. How we managed to get that close so fast? I have no idea.

So yeah, we rolled off our butts in the prickly grass like it was no one's business. And after we finished laughing like hyenas and sobered up, we just lied there peacefully under the stars.

"Well I'm glad you did it," she suddenly brought up.

"Did what?"

"Read the book I mean," Eve chuckled.

"How come?" I arched an eyebrow.

"I guess there was no better way to get me to trust you." (She was serious, by the way.)

"Yeah, right" I smiled. "Starting a book club, eh?"

"You're my first member," she joked and we both laughed.

"You've put me in a lot of effort for just a simple conversation," I whispered.

"Nothing that's worthwhile is ever easy, remember that," she quoted a memorized sentence from the book that started it all.

It was her own happiness that did the trick: in her brilliant smile, in her adorable pout, or in the way she smudges ice cream all over her mouth, or how she falls asleep with her lips slightly apart, or how she seems so vulnerable and honest and kind that it would be a difficulty to stop the urge to wrap her in your arms and protect her. She was heavenly, but earthly in that amazingly complicated way.

Yes, indeed. I, Gabriel Felix, a plain average teenage boy who couldn't appear normal and comfortable with teenage girls, was falling in love with a bookworm. At that time when I came to terms with my little crush, I surrendered and didn't fight back. I didn't have anything to lose except for our strong bond and resilient friendship (that I couldn't imagine ever giving up). But knowing Eve, I knew it wouldn't take long for her to figure out about what I really felt. Being in love, I comprehended, was not about being concerned if she could ever accept your feelings and affections. It's more engrossed on ensuring the happiness of your loved one above yours, even if that took you out of the equation.

Every time I have these insecurities in my mind when I think about confessing, I replay all the moments we spend together inside or outside the library. The way she smiled made me feel like it was mutual, and I know I had to try; Eve was worth it.

So I decided to express my intense emotions towards her on our next meeting next Saturday, in the place where it all began - our sanctuary.

That morning I put on my favorite black jacket, and styled my raven black hair with gel. In the bathroom while having my shower, there was nothing else in my mind but on what to say and how to express it without her running out the door. I was nervous even though I've made up my mind.

I read through my lines and my cheesy quotes (obviously it's from the same book), knowing she'd appreciate it. I slipped further into my own fantasies, understanding that there was a big chance of rejection, but all I cared about was being close to her, keeping her. I wanted so badly to keep her.

By then I knew, the moment I stepped inside the public library - as I saw her empty chair, that a love like this was too good to be true.

When I arrived at her address, I asked around for her and she wasn't home - none of her family was. None of her neighbors knew where they went. I went to random places - anywhere where hope could blossom. I tried the café, Borders (her favorite bookstore), the central park, but I was chasing fiction.

I never felt more drained in my entire life the moment I reached home. I attempted to call her number but only voice message replied.

Days passed, and Eveline still remained as a haunting mystery. I didn't break my visits to the library even though it was already summer vacation - hoping she'd show up with her dazzling smile on a sweater shirt and black jeans and explain how she disappeared and I'd forgive her, then she'd reassure me that she'd stay.

I've had my heart broken by love songs and I've had my own share of repetitive and agonizing travels to memory lane. Theories crossed my mind but it was worthless when there is no evidence to support them. Five times - I think - did I visit her house, only to find it empty once again.

"Do you ever do this, you think back on all the times you've had with someone and you just replay it in your head over and over again and you look for those first signs of trouble?"

Why, Nicholas, are you a psychic?

Months passed; each day was a struggle on moving on - on filling this void in my chest whenever I see her empty chair on lonely Saturdays.

My own copy of "The Choice" had been repeatedly thrown off the wall but I still had no perfect reason to hate her - even more in forgetting her. And in doing so, I've shunned myself in taking chances in romance. The harder I wanted to forget the more I kept remembering.

"But things change. People change. Change was one of the inevitable laws of nature, exacting its toll on people's lives. Mistakes are made, regrets form, and all that was left were repercussions that made something as simple as rising from the bed seem almost laborious."

I was able to memorize this stupid passage from that stupid book the day I had given up in waiting for Eve to come back. It seemed pitiful, but there were things you couldn't prevent from spilling. But then maybe I deserved this much for being too attached and for trusting too much on our "mutual" contract.

Unfortunately again for me, I didn't also deserve a "goodbye".

Time did its magic - no matter how slow. I've tried smiling again, and I went back on track with my priorities. On my next semester, I did better and passed every subject. I've tried playing sports like football and I was busier every day.

But still life has a way of proving you wrong. Three days ago, another research came up that needed public library help. The thought brought back unwanted memories that I've tried so hard to ignore but it can't be helped. At the same time, I dared myself to go through this like a test - to prove myself that I've really moved on.

So yesterday I took a step inside the ancient place, purposely in the same time that I practiced my past routine. The librarian regarded me with a look, as she bent down her spectacles to observe me. I tossed her a smile as if we were old acquaintances and I wasn't sure if she could still remember me in the way she returned my friendly greeting.

I took the same old World History textbook, and sat on my old place. Turning the pages, I was suddenly aware of the seat three chairs away from mine. I felt a familiar ache in my heart as I took down notes.

This was too much, I shouldn't have done this.

The price of going back through everything was not worth the pain. I closed the textbook wearily and decided to leave at once, when I heard it.

A whistle.

As if it was a sound of a bullet piercing through my ear, I turned around, perplexed and slightly hopeful.

The librarian was looking at me, her hand on her mouth and a smile on her pale and bony face.

"Made you turn," and she laughed (although it sounded more like a witch's cackle) "I knew that would do the trick." She motioned me towards her, and as the confused bloke as I was, I complied (It's not like she's harmful anyway).

"Your girlfriend," the librarian muttered. "She came here a week ago."

"She's not my girl - Say what?" I think my heart just did a somersault.

"Between you and me, who do you think is supposed to be deaf?" the old woman laughed, betraying her age. "She left something - inserted it on this book," she took "The Choice" (the book that I borrowed) out from the drawer. "You teenagers seriously need to remember that a library is not meant for -"

"Did she say anything?" I cut her off impatiently, taking the book from her wrinkled hand.

The now-annoyed librarian shook her head no.

I removed the little piece of paper from the pages of the book and read the note.

You probably didn't expect an apology from me after I left you alone without any explanation. You didn't deserve it and there is nothing I could say worthy of your forgiveness. You can crumple this paper or forget me - I'd accept all of it. But even after everything that I did to you, it would be such a shame to say that I did it all intentionally.

But here is my explanation: I was dying. My cancer was spreading and an operation could only result to a fast demise or a little chance of survival. From the start I meant to keep this from you - after all, who would have thought that a stranger like you would mean so much to me.

Everyday I wither in the pity of those around me, when all I really want is to do more than just breathe - I want to live. That's why I read lives that have happy endings, something I thought I was never granted to have. It was a torture I designed for myself. At that time all I really thought about was that since this cancer started controlling my life, all I am allowed to feel was pain.

I noticed you long before you borrowed the book. In all honesty, I was just as nervous to talk to you as you mentioned to me. I thought it was a game, really, on who can approach who first. And I lost when you did the irresistible: taking an erotic novel and pretending to read it with an expressionless innocent face. That little encounter started all the hilarious jokes and the little dates. There was nothing wrong about your questions and little interviews but forgive me if I am so reserved (Yes, the reason why I didn't choose to finish school was because of my condition). You'd never think of me as the same bookworm in the library if I told you all of my secrets - specifically about Leukemia.

But we started to hang-out and I let it all happen. There was nothing more refreshing than taking your guard off and having fun. I don't know what made me trust you- maybe it was because you don't look at me with pity, or the way you made me feel safe or that you built up some hope in me. You were a constant reminder of who I can't and never have. But you were there, three chairs away from me, so close yet so far. Ever since I started getting to know you, all I wanted was to close the distance.

So I made a gamble with myself, to give this one last chance, if that meant I'd have an opportunity to have a future with you, even if all we will ever end up is friends. And I accepted the operation, provided with the risks. I couldn't explain everything to you before I'd undergo operation. What's the point of worrying you over something you can't control especially if I'd just end up dead?

God answered my prayers, and I was saved. I got my second chance and all I want to do is spend it with you. But that's your choice. I'll be right here waiting where the heaven's cried.

Love,

E.

Nothing that's worthwhile is ever easy. I know Eve.

I know.

Lexaeus He's a character with strength to rival Xaldin. While Xaldin has power plus technique, I'd say to Lexaeus is more of a samurai, or that he has bushido-style strength. If you listen to his very last line in Re:COM, I think you'll be able to see his spirit. I wanted to do more with this character. --Nomura

Yeah, Aeleus really did get done dirty. His last line was apologizing to Zexion. In his report, he said Zexion was the only one he trusted. What was their relationship like? In KH3, why did Ienzo say that Aeleus needed to let go of his grudge against Roxas of all people? That confused me. That’s not something we ever saw. What exactly did he have against Roxas? They never even fought and have barely spoken. Roxas had barely been an organization member before Lexaeus got eliminated. 

It’s sad that even after so many years, the organization members are still so FLAT. It’s one of my biggest disappointments with the Xehanort arc. They really needed another game to flesh all of these characters out. Even became remorseful, but it felt like it came outta nowhere, since we didn’t see his past. Isa’s character was a joke in KH3. Even Lea still feels flat with his last minute “apprentice” backstory. Xemnas’s actions now make zero sense, since he was trying to complete Kingdom Hearts to “round up a bunch of empty husks, hook them up to Kingdom Hearts, then fill them all with the exact same heart and mind”. But in KH3...they all had free will. How do they all have the exact same heart and mind, if they could BETRAY Xehanort? They weren’t even Norted...

But I digress. I could tell that the story of the Xehanort Saga was incomplete just by looking at Lexaeus’s weapons in 358/2 Days. I couldn’t help but notice the unique names of them and it aroused my curiosity. They definitely weren’t named arbitrarily. It was strong evidence that he actually had a backstory thought up for him that just never got revealed to us players.

Lexaeus: Forgive me, Zexion. This was a fight I should not have started.

It’s a shame Nomura wanted to do more with him, but he probably never will get the chance to now. I think Aeleus was certainly guilty of doing bad things, but unlike Dilan, I don’t think he was truly evil at heart. He wasn’t naturally good at manipulating people’s hearts. I believe he had misgivings about what the apprentices were doing, and felt guilt. I also think he was supposed to get an actual redemption, and that’s why he was there with Ienzo while Lea was looking for Isa. He wasn’t one of the truly incorrigible members, like Braig. He would try to atone in a similar way to Even. Braig couldn’t be redeemed, which is why he could only kill himself at the end.

“This is my strength… I, number five in the organization… I who was once his favorite pupil!”

His Mystery Gear is “Rockhead”, idiomatically meaning “hardheaded”. He probably wasn’t an intellectual powerhouse. I think Aeleus was tricked by Xehanort. He developed a relationship with him as his “favorite pupil”. It probably started off relatively benign. Aeleus truly thought he was a brilliant man and looked up to Xehanort. Then he started getting gradually more dark and immoral. It took time for Aeleus to cross the line and do unethical things, urged on and pushed by Xehanort. He knew it was wrong, but Xehanort probably said similar things to him that he did to Terra. Only Aeleus actually went all the way.

The weapon is obviously shaped like a moai statue of Easter Island. I think the Mystery Gear represents the memories of the person right before they lost their heart. The people of Easter Island believed that the statues would capture the chiefs' "mana", which was their word for supernatural powers. They believed that the statues themselves were moved and erected by mana. Aeleus seemed to believe that giving up his heart and becoming a Nobody would grant him special powers. I think his motivation was that simple. Power. His lifestyle revolved around martial arts.

Some of his weapons are named after taoist principles. “Heaven, Earth, Man” is a concept found in many martial arts like Tai Chi. Heaven can be described as the effect of Gravity on our frame, tissues and movements. Earth by contrast is the ‘support’ provided by the ground that our structures can work off of. In the ancient philosophies of both China and Japan, the three principles of heaven, earth, and man expressed this view of how human life and society could be integrated with the order of the natural world. 

“Wind, Forest, Fire, and Mountain” is a reference to Sun Tzu’s The Art of War: 

“Move as swift as a wind, stay as silent as forest, attack as fierce as fire, undefeatable defense like a mountain.” 

One of his weapons is named “Cicada-shell”. Cicadas are symbols of rebirth. The shell is a symbol of the old way being discarded. This weapon is part of Lift Gear, which is Temperance in Luxord’s deck. Temperance represents calmness in the face of adversity. It can also indicate a time to evaluate and re-examine the priorities you have chosen. So, it’s a very good fit.

Another weapon is called “Flying Firefly”. Fireflies can represent a little bit of light which can illuminate the darkness. This weapon is part of Ominous Gear, which is The Hanged Man. This card represents indecision or suspended action. It can mean that a sacrifice is needed to make in order to progress. This can be repentance for past wrongdoings, or a calculated step backward to recalculate one’s path onward. 

Interestingly a few weapons are named after flowers. “Camellia” In Japan is called “Tsubaki” and symbolizes the divine. It is often used in religious and sacred ceremonies. It also represents the coming of spring. Generally, it is a symbol of love. The weapon is part of Fearless Gear which is The Hermit. This is about turning your attention inward to find the answers you seek, deep within your soul. I think Aeleus had someone that he was in love with and was rejected. He has been burned by love and this might have driven him to focus on power exclusively.

One of his weapons is named “Holly Olive”. In Japan there is the custom of sticking a sprig of holly olive through the head of and fastening them to the doorway of the house. This is in accordance with the legend that demons hate the sharp thorns of the holly olive and the stink of the fish, and will disperse on being confronted with these. This weapon is Prestige Gear, which is Strength. It represents inner strength and fortitude during moments of danger and distress.

Day 119: Hearts and Emotion

Author: Xaldin

Watching that foolish beast flail about only deepens my disdain for humans and their incessant need to be pinned down by feelings. We became Nobodies precisely to avoid the shackles of emotion. It was only later that we realized the scale of that loss: that some things simply cannot be done without a heart. Nonetheless, I see nary a pleasant thing about it.

Another reason I think Aeleus had someone he loved is his weapon called “1001 Nights”, also called “Arabian Nights”. The Arabian Nights is an epic collection of Arabic folk tales written during the Islamic Golden Age. It’s about a broken-hearted king who was scorned by an unfaithful wife. He chose to marry a new woman every day only to kill her the next morning. One woman survives by telling him stories each night.

This weapon is Ultimate Gear, which is The Emperor. It represents the masculine principle and a powerful leader who demands respect and authority. It’s all about control, authority, regulation, and organization.

“Clear Mirror, Still Water” is a term often used in Kendo. It is also translated as “mind undisturbed by evil thoughts”. It does not apply only to Kendo and other martial arts, but daily life. When a mirror is dirty or it has something on it, it does not reflect things as it should. So it is not working as it is supposed to do. When your mind is not clear, your mind does not work as it is supposed to, either. Moreover, when your mind is not clear or clean, it is usually mean that something evil thing is going on in your mind. So there are two meanings in keeping your mind as clear as a clean shining mirror.

It’s part of Champion Gear, which is The Empress. This is the opposite of The Emperor. It represents the feminine principle. It could be associated with fertility, expression, creativity and nurturing among many other aspects. It's about connecting with beauty and bringing happiness to your life.

One of his weapons is named “Wood Heron” which you just know has to mean something. That’s not something you would randomly name a weapon. I believe it refers to a wooden totem, which is used to represent spirit animals.

It’s part of Rage Gear which is The Devil. This card represents your shadow (or darker) side and the negative forces that constrain you and hold you back from being the best version of yourself. Yeah, I definitely think Aeleus was going to try to atone for his actions.

One of his weapons is simply named “Iron”. And there are symbolic meanings to the different elements, which is where I think they were going with that. Iron is similar to The Emperor. The weapon is part of Crisis Gear which is The Lovers. This card represents conscious connections and meaningful relationships. It gives the same impression as 1001 Nights. Aeleus probably had difficulty with his relationships.

Another weapon is named “Copper”. It is similar to The Empress, as it’s associated with the feminine principle. This weapon is Technical Gear which is The Star. It represents reprieve after a period of destruction and turmoil. The Star brings renewed hope and faith.  

He has a weapon called “Prismatic Gold”. It’s part of Hazard Gear, which is The Sun. It gives you strength and tells you that no matter where you go or what you do, your positive and radiant energy will follow you and bring you happiness and joy.

animal crossing switch

PREDICTIONS:

they will change something drastically about the character design (acww: hair, acnl: taller/pants, ac switch: ???)

you still get to be mayor, or some sort of town planner

may be like happy home designer, where you can design entire facilities like shops, schools, etc, however that works

you will be able to choose where animals move in (like in previous games, houses went on top of signs placed around town. you’d be able to place signs wherever)

more public works projects

you will get to choose your face instead of having The Quiz

more customization options in general

an upgraded version of the pattern maker

a dedicated tool for path creation and not just putting paths down via patterns

MORE pattern space regardless

more complex villagers

at least one new species

one to two new personality types

one new shop type

a small online hub, maybe

an in-game gallery where you can upload custom patterns and download them from other players

if that’s not it, you will have to use your phone using the NSO app. i think animal crossing will have app functionality anyway, maybe something like splatnet where you have shop exclusives, but mainly because of voice chat. but i was thinking this app would let you scan QR codes and send them to your game since the switch doesnt have cameras

a new type of collectible (like how acnl added deep sea creatures)

the town for ac switch will be Large. Big. acnl was too tiny, i want something Large, city folk was nice but it could still be… Bigger.

they might bring back amiibo cards and the campsite

free camera in town i think is a 50/50 possibility. the switch is powerful enough to handle it but at the same time the current view is iconic i think and idk if they’d get rid of that. i will predict better cameras in places like the museum though

graphically, it will look nice. the way the ac track looks in mario kart is the dream but, i can see them doing the exact same thing from acnl. which is Not what i want

they’ll put in all furniture from pocket camp

they’ll put uh.. plants from pocket camp (birch trees please)

monthly free dlc like in new leaf

inevitable japanese-exclusive content

WISH LIST:

bat, raccoon, weasel, otter, or possum villagers

fantasy species like dragons, gryphons

more fantasy villagers at the very least (draco, julien)

biomes/landscape variety: be able to choose different town types such as mountains, forests, deserts, grasslands, tropical, whatever. or start out with the regular forest type town, and have the option to change it into anything (maybe it changes depending on what you plant? like if an area has a lot of cacti, the grass will disappear and turn into scrub)

more options for an urban/modern town

more variety in personalities per species. cats for example, a majority of the male cats are either grumpy or lazy. no smugs, and one (1) jock

more complex villagers. i want a relationship system. i’m not talking about marrying or dating anyone, i just want friendships to mean something. i want to be able to progress through a relationship.

^^ related, i want more complex villagers in terms of their OWN personality. they’re always upbeat and in a good mood in acnl. they have no bite. they lack any personality. they’re so bland. i want a villager to move in and hate me for absolutely no reason. and then maybe i can do errands for him or something, and we can slowly become friends. SOMETHING other than *knows each other for 5 seconds* “hehe we’re best friends :)”. in acnl i made NO friends other than zell and kiki (who is a staple villager for me) because i had no incentive to make any friends. everyone is exactly the same. boring

^^ maybe animals in a town can have relationships with each other? like dotty and felicity are friends, but dotty hates poncho. i dont know what this could do other than more errands to run but it would help the town feel more alive

Big Leafy Trees

fruits and vegetables. maybe leif can sell planters in his shop that allow you to grow things like strawberries or tomatoes that you can sell

cooking? i’ve seen people talk about cooking ~LiKe BrEaTh Of ThE wILd~ (bc thats the only nintendo game that exists i guess) where it effects your stats and energy/stamina and tbh animal crossing does NOT need that. i think you should be able to cook for food as furniture items, or you can give food to villagers as gifts to increase your Friendship Points. Or you could sell it for a a little bit of Money

more furniture, but that’s a given with any ac game

customizable pants! in acnl they gave us the option to customize different types of shirts but i want customizable pants and skirts now

yards. even if they’re small

half-tile placement for furniture like in happy home designer (idk if half-tiles are in pocket camp)

more customization options for houses, like windows and doors (like HHD)

an online marketplace where you can go and trade with people online without having to need to go to their town and swap FCs

nice beaches, the ones in new leaf kinda suck imo

Pilgrim

In the middle of this Great Texas Freeze, their Governor got on TV and pointed the finger at f*cking windmills for their loss of heat, even though it only accounts for ten percent of their power. Even though, with some of the windmills frozen due to a shortsighted (cheap) GOP legislature, still overproduced power during this trying time. Their Senior Senator abandoned his constitutes for Cancun during their plight, after just two days in front of a massive fire, only to get busted by a myriad of actual Texans who then forced him to come back after a day for damage control. Damage control that took the form of Cruz blaming his teenage daughters for his dereliction of duties. Mans left his dog, alone in that house, to freeze to death! Ted Cruz didn't even take his purse dog during a record winter freeze, man! One of their Mayors, now since resigned, literally told everyone to shut the f*ck up, figure it out, or die. And people have died. Children have die form this, actually frozen to death. In 2021. In a state as large as Texas. Children. Have. Died. From. This. All the while, guess what Dems have been doing?

Beto O'Rourke has been out in the streets, in that same cold that forced Ted Cruz to flee, distributing blankets and passing around soup. He's been coordinating with business and hotels, trying to find heated shelter for families and the homeless so they don't die in the f*cking street. Texas' Great Demon of Socialism, herself, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, raised two million dollars in two days, allocated for direct relief to Texan aide but that wasn't enough for her. She's even planning on volunteering at a Texas food bank, one probably boosted by a portion of that two mil she earned to help out, even though Flyin' Lyin' Ted was complicit in a whole ass insurrection where motherf*ckers targeted her life, specifically. That's just two Progressives, doing more for Texas than the actual f*cking Texas Senior leadership, and I'm inclined to bet there are many. many, more. Hell, those things that would have went a long way to preparing for this exact scenario which the very, very Red Electorate kept shooting down? Yeah, the Blue, the very minimized Blue who were able to claw a seat out at the Lone Star table, have been fighting for these changes for years. F*cking years.

The GOP does not care about you. They are not the party of personal responsibility. They are not the party of the working class. They are not the good Christians you want them to be. How can they be? Any time they are forced to lead, they bail. Any time they are held to account, they deflect. Texas is the great bastion of Conservative politics and look what is happening to them right the f*ck now. Republicans are climate deniers and Texas is in the throes of their harshest winter ever, because of climate change. Republicans are staunch Capitalists so Texas deregulated their entire energy grid in hopes that the Free Market would decide prices and that happened in a way. After their grid collapsed due to the lack of Federal regulation and maintenance, the state of emergency has allowed the big oil companies there to effectively price gouge energy companies for fuel, a hike that is definitely being passed on to their already freezing and suffering customers. The Right are aggressively trying to villainize Green Energy and Renewables, using this Texas situation to prove how terrible they would be for the entire country, even though ninety percent of their energy grid is fueled by Fossil and it was those plants that failed at a higher rate, much more quickly, than any of the windmills they keep trying to convince us iced over. Even though those same windmills are used in f*cking Iceland where they are regulated and maintained properly. But Big Oil pays handsomely for their Conservative politicians, check out how much oil money went to Ted Cruz last year, so they'll never properly hold them responsible for this. Instead, they're using partisan spin to somehow demonize the other side, even though it was the Right who consistently accept their egregious and blatant blood money. And that's the point.

Lives have less value than money to these people. Leadership is less lucrative than personal gain. The GOP is full of racist grifters who bamboozle their constituency because they're idiots who vote with their "heart" instead of their brains and that is nowhere more true than in f*cking Texas. Rick Perry is an idiot. He was the Secretary of Energy during Trump's lone term and that motherf*cker didn't even know what to do. Perry literally had no idea what responsibilities an Energy Secretary has. This asshole was the Governor of Texas. W, the worst president i had ever seen in my life until Trump, known coke head and solid C student his entire life, was Governor of Texas. These people elected these men because of their feigned swagger, because of this manicured image that they were the White Hat. Texans chase the ghost of John Wayne to lead them, even though John Wayne wasn't real It was a character that a really terrible human being named Marion Robert Morrison, played in the movies. Not even the f*cking name is real but his racism and misogyny sure was and this is the cartoon character that Texans see themselves as. This whole ass mockery of a person is who Republicans want to lead them. They want the Strong Man, They want a Putin but a down home, country version, instead of, you know, an unapologetic despot. It's no wonder this is the party that cages Brown kids in concentration camps with impunity and lets an entire state freeze, disproportionately effected massive urban areas like Houston and Dallas, which are chock full of, you guessed it; Black and Brown people!

3 Useful UX Workshops to Get Your Team on the Same Page

A UX workshop can show the way to your team, just like a compass.  Get everybody on the same page! Involve them in the product development process with these collaborative exercises.

A UX workshop can help you gather the team memebers, brainstorm, generate new ideas to make better decisions.

UX professionals are not lone fighters, but mediators between users, business managers, and developers. In the case of UX workshops, they can become actual workshop facilitators.

In this article we cover:

How to prepare for a UX workshop

How to use these 3 UX workshops

Persona workshop

Customer journey workshop

Product strategy workshop

How to prepare for a UX workshop

UX workshop exercises require the presence of the team. That might be challenging, but it is 100% worth it.

Getting the team together from time to time and discussing progress and learnings always pay off. Whether it is the beginning of the product development process, discovering different product ideas or working on an existing one.

As Benjamin Franklin said, “Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn.”

Involve everyone in the workshop activities

In a UX workshop, we share research results with the participants and let them come up with their own conclusions.

You can read about the UX research methods we use in a previous blog post. Everyone likes when their ideas affect things, so we give them the opportunity.

Invite all decision-makers and stakeholders from the product team who might have valuable input: product owner(s), designers, developers, researchers etc.

We will introduce three well-known tools here. They can help develop a common understanding about the product and users among team members. So let the fun begin!

Get everybody on the same page with a UX workshop

UX workshop #1: Persona workshop

What are UX personas?

We create personas, fictitious characters who embody specific key characteristics of target user groups and thus draw closer to them.

The first step of any product development is drafting them. They help define different types of people who will use a product and their main characteristics.

The goals of a persona workshop

This UX workshop aims not just to create personas, but to get everyone to know the users better by talking about them for an hour.

Everybody in contact with the users gets together (salespeople, support, business managers) and through examples of actual customers, they fill in the below-introduced template.

User interviews and field research results form the basis of the best personas. Otherwise, we can only talk about “proto-personas” based on our own assumptions.

Distribute the interview recordings to the workshop participants and ask everybody to represent a given interviewee at the workshop. This means real data and everybody gets closer to the users.

A canvas is often a good tool to run a UX workshop. This one is for personas.

What does a UX persona look like?

We at UX studio use the following persona template, free to download from our website. We examine four main criteria for each user persona together.

User’s prior knowledge about the given area: Who is the product for, everyday people or professionals? What do users know about similar products? What expectations do they have? All these need to be taken into account when designing the product and the user onboarding process.

Context: Where is the product used? What device and platform? When? Where are they physically? What are they doing at the time of use and what is happening all around? Are they focusing only on this, or is their attention divided? An application used on a mobile phone in a crowded bus requires a completely different design from one used sitting at a desk in a quiet room.

The problem: Which specific, well-articulated issue would people like to solve with the product? In other words, what exact goal do they want to achieve?

The motivation: What inner driving force makes the user want to solve the above problems? We practically dig one layer deeper into people’s souls and look for those inner incentives which inspire them. While the problem is a specific, well-formulated goal, the underlying motivations are more general and subjective.

Luckily, scientists have collected the most common inner motivations:

Competitivity;

Rewards;

Recognition and respect;

Fear;

A sense of control;

Need: to feel special;

to improve at something (become competent in it);

to belong;

Gathering/growing.

Demographic data (gender, age, residence) have very little added value and might lead the way of thinking in the wrong direction. For this reason, do not talk about them during the persona workshop.

The output

of a persona workshop

Create user personas at the beginning of the work in order to have the users in mind throughout the design process, to be able to put ourselves into their position.

Alliterative names for particular user personas makes them more memorable, for example, Truck Toby or Teenage Tina. Drawings are useful, too. Our template also provides space for a short quotation, written as if the user persona uttered it. It aims to summarize the user persona in a single sentence.

The user personas can hang on the wall to be before our eyes at all times. For this reason, many designers create poster type of personas, as seen below.

UX workshop #2: Customer journey workshop

Customer journeys or experience maps help provide a holistic view of a service and map the important aspects to address.

Just to clarify the terms, customer journey is not the same as the user journey. A user journey shows how people move inside an app.

The goals of a customer journey workshop

The customer journey (or experience map) aims to map the whole process the customers go through. It can help to see a holistic picture and examine what happens long before they first use the product and after usage, too.

During this UX workshop, many previously unimagined things will rise to the surface. It can help to see the product from many different aspects.

It enables the collecting and organizing of all the information about the connection between a product and its users. The customer journey workshop will help to align the team’s thoughts and ideas. In the end, everyone will have a clear picture of the context.

The itinerary of a customer journey workshop

So how do we create a customer journey?

Create a draft: Start in-house first and create a draft. Organize a UX workshop with the project team and the stakeholders in order to put it together. Also invite sales or support people in contact with customers. Define the journey steps and the important aspects to examine on the customer’s and the organization’s sides. The draft journey will provide ideas what to look for during research.

Research: The customer journey is just a hypothetical unless built on data, so next do interviews and field research. During the research, gather information about what people are actually doing in each phase. Which solutions and processes do they currently use? What are their pain points and what do they feel at different stages?

Organize information and ideate: When the research is done, start organizing the information. The customer journey has two main parts as you can see below: the tpo part is about the customer’s thoughts and feelings in certain steps, and the bottom part is about what the company do in each step. You can look for patterns in the research data together with the team to fill the upper part about the customers or you can fill the upper half of the diagram yourself and ideate just on the bottom part with the team.

Putting together the customer journey will help generate feature ideas when working on a new product.

Working on an existing product will highlight loads of ideas and points to improve on the product’s experience, too. Prioritize them and choose the most important ideas to start with.

Not everything can be solved at once, so it’s better to choose up to three topics and start ideating the solution immediately. Start sketching up solutions or building quick prototypes so the theoretical findings will turn into real projects as soon as possible.

The output of a customer journey workshop

The customer journey diagram is basically a big table. The column of the table represents different phases or steps a customer goes through. These can be unique in every project, but most customer journeys contain three phases:

Before the usage: What happened before people started using the product? How do they find it? What is the learning process of the topic and how do they choose a solution? How do they get it?

Using the product: Which main phases do they go through? Think about high-level goals here.

After the usage: What happens when they are done? What do they do next? How do we follow-up? Will they tell their friends too?

In most cases, these three can break down into more phases to fit the given product. The number of steps is flexible, but we recommend fewer broad phases.

On the horizontal side, different rows each represent different aspects to examine the given phase. We can name three major groups here, too:

Customer-related: They have pains, goals, feelings, and thoughts, as well as a current process. We usually show these in separate rows on the top.

Organization-related: These include activities for the given phase, the problems faced, the ideas and opportunities had, and features to develop. We display these on the bottom.

Interactions: Between us and the customers, we list the touch points where we interact with the people in the middle.

Read about how customer journey (and all the other UX workshops) fit into the product development process in our e-book: Product Managers’ Guide to UX Design.

UX workshop #3: Product strategy workshop

From time to time you should stop, step back, and look at the bigger picture. The product strategy workshop can help summarize the current state of a product and collect the opportunities to utilize. Do this UX workshop with your team every two to four months, or as necessary.

The goals of a product strategy workshop

The product strategy workshop aims at complex targets. First, it can help summarize all the important information collected so far about the product and the market.

Then, it can help define long-term goals and align them with the business strategy. Communicating these goals with the whole product team helps create a common understating and a framework for future collaboration among members.

The itinerary of a product strategy workshop

Preparation: Collect all the research information about the market (eg. competitors), users, pains and needs (interview results etc.), and the current product (analytics and user test data etc). Present this information to all participants.

Brainstorm: Try to collect ideas and answer the 3 main questions: How can we solve users’ pains with our product? How can we stand out on the market? Where are the bottlenecks in the product’s metrics and how can we solve them?

Statement: After you saw the big picture create a one-sentence strategic statement (goal). It should contain the problem, the solution the product will offer, the target audience and a vision where the business is going. See Tesla’s statement as an example: “In a world where air pollution is a serious issue and consumers care more about the environment, Tesla will be the first automaker to focus on electric cars by building a high-end roadster first for early adopters, then turn to the mass market.” Having a long-term goal can help break it into more concrete mid-term and short-term goals later.

Prioritize:  When you have the strategic statement, you can prioritize the feature ideas you have. There are many methods you can use, such as impact-effort, KANO or feature matrix. Read more about these methods in our Product Design Book. The point is to have a clear list of steps to follow.

Create a roadmap: A good product roadmap ensures that all elements serve the long-term goals. Break up the whole process into bigger and smaller themes.

Use checkpoints: Define checkpoints during the design process when you can do a retrospective sum up (past) and re-evaluate the target (future). You can put a chekcpoint after the exploration or product discovery phase. You can also do a strategy UX workshop whenever you feel your goal is not aligned to customer needs, or you feel the team is drifting away from the original goal.

The output of a product strategy workshop

We use our UX Strategy Canvas, which helps to summarize research results and ideas.

On the left side of the canvas, we collect information. See the summary of the product discovery here (pains and motivations), the AARRR funnel analysis and the competitor analysis.

On the right side, we collect ideas about each finding on the left, and on the bottom, we summarize the findings.

To summarize, a product strategy should contain a strategy statement or the main goal, a plan to get there and some checkpoints ont the way.

Conclusion: do the UX workshop that fits your current design phase

Summon the team together from time to time to get on the same page during the design process, whether in the exploration phase or working on an existing product.

Persona, customer journey, and product strategy workshops can help convey important information about the market, the users, the product and business goals to the whole team.

They help ensure the members understand this information and develop a common understanding about goals. The UX workshops help develop frameworks for working together, which smooths out the whole design process.

There are other UX workshops we haven’t discussed here. A look&feel discovery workshop, for example, can help your design team to establish a style guide or build the basics of a design system.

Did you enjoy reading this article?

Have any experience or tips about UX workshops? Please, share them in the comments below.

To learn more about UX workshop facilitation, I suggest you read the following article on the importance and techniques of graphic facilitation.

Planning a design OR research project soon? Get in touch with UX studio and find out how we can help you conduct usability research and create a powerful UI that will appeal to your target audience.

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Being Alone, Animals, and Apparently: >Hey guys, I wanna run a game Sure, guy, that sounds good. Let's go for that. Youve played in a few games, I'm sure you can handle running something >It's going to be my own custom setting, based on d20 modern Oh god, how is this going to turn out? >It's based on a book I've been writing since I was a teenager Oh boy, this is gonna be amazing >Post-apocalyptic future of the area we live in A standard take, but a classic one >Players are all equipped with Pipboys which operate as radios, inventories, and watches Oh boy! >Characters have energy bars that fill and deplete as they use their powers Oh boy! >Monster Energy drink is a energy-replacing item so important it serves as a major feature of the setting Oh boy! >Players pick an animal, a weapon, and an "element" and can transform into an anthropomorphic elemental animal form that gains extra powers and uses their weapon for super-damage Oh boy! >DM doesnt know how many core features of d20 in general work Oh boy >DM doesn't know the geography of the area we live in Oh boy! >DM doesn't know particular facts of reality Oh boy! >DM has a DMPC who the story is about who is the most powerful of the animal/elemental/weapon people Oh boy! >Much of the DMPC's plot revolves around a romance with the stand-in for the DM's dead ex fiancee Oh boy! >The DMPC's love interest dies tragically Oh boy One player dropped out within an hour of showing up the first day. The rest of us held on for a shocking number of weeks just so we'd have something to fill time with, and some place to go have pizza and hang out for a bit, and to have stories And oh. I have stories. The "elements" alone were... staggering. "Legends d20 Fallout: Mighty Morphin' That Guy Rangers >That Guy ran a game based on his post-apocalyptic tragic romantic autobiographical work in progress novel about people in the future using magic fallout watches to turn into animals Quoted By: *46403659 46403704 >4640397846404111 >>46404256 I've told this story a few times, but basically, this guy sets out to make a game based on the epic sci fi novel called Legends" he's been writing, based on his life, only set in the distant future. He uses d20 modern to do so. He had none of the books, never played the system, and didn't know how anything worked In addition to our regular hit points we had rolled, he saddled us with 150 extra HP. Why? Because he didn't know how damage worked. So, for example his main character (based on him, of course) had a sword that did 1d100 damage per hit. No strength bonus, no multiple attacks, just 1d100 d have characters who had d100s as their damage die. In fact, There's other fun stuff about the "combat system" I can go into later, but I wanna touch on the core concept of the game for a moment. It's ye olde post-apocalypse, after what is basically the Second Impact, a meteor made out of monsters and evil crashes into earth and reformats it into crazy world. The game takes place in the region we live in, which was kinda a neat concept to start with, but then it got out of hand because of none of us much geography Every player picks an animal, an "element", and a weapon, and those become our spirit animal/element/weapon. I was an ice wolf with katars, my friend was a darkness panther with a sword, and our other friend was an electromagnetic pteradactyl with a pair of berettas, at which point you might begin to see why I put "element" in quotation marks, because the magic system and cosmology were all over the map Quoted By >>46403692 46403978 >46404111 >>46430662 46403615 Here's some of the elements we were informed of or encountered: Ice Fire, Wind, Water 티ectricity. Plants. Poison. Darkness but not shadow Sunlight, Electromagnetism Nuclear Power, Acid Mental Healing, and I believe Drugs was one as well. I bring up darkness/shadow because, as I said, one of the party members was a darkness character, who could control shadows and use them to freeze people in place and so on and suchlike. However, the enemies were living shadows.. and he had no control or effect on them. Because darkness is different from shadow Anyways, we spent about two and a half, maybe three months of sundays playing games with this guy, halfway because the concept was so gonzo and he was such a pushover as a DM that we could basically justify doing any completely retarded thing we wanted, partly we had nothing better to do and felt bad for him, and partly it was fun to hang out and eat pizza and (as time went by) watch movies rather than play the game. I haven't really touched on the plot yet. We're locals in this post-apocalptic future, me a farmer and the other guy a raider (the third player, the pteradactyl guy, bailed out half an hour into the first session quite gracefully and never ever returned), and we go t this magical academy where, it is implied, we will somehow learn how to use our powers This is in fact a vicious lie The "magical academy is in fact a lawless hell-hive run by loosely disguised versions of the DM and his former fiancee (I say Versions because there were two characters with the same name as him) that was instantly and irrevocably termed "the mexican prison every time we mentioned it. "Lessons" consisted of us agreeing that our characters did nothing rational or interesting for 6 months at a time and we'd gain random stat bonuses or special powers that were either more or less game breaking than our current powers Quoted By 46403719 46403978 46404111 46403659 Between these wastes of time, we'd go do other time wasting things like chase a dragon only to have Version A of him come slay it, or scavenge for pristine cans of Monster Energy Drink around the remains of the cities. Which brings me, in a round-a-bout way, to the matter of the "combat system" You see, as I mentioned, he's never played d20 modern, played what seems to be very little D&D, and had apparently decided to hijack what Im told is some JRPG's combat system for his "homebrew. We're given energy bars, and every time we use one of our special moves the bar gets depleted. And our special moves are quite special. We can still use normal attacks, or we can use his totally awesome "combo attack", where if we get a 15-20 on the d20 roll, we deal an additional 1d4 damage! Or, we can use a "power attack" and, if we get a 19 or 20, automatically deal double damage, amazing! He actually wrote the word "power attack" down in his notes, then told us to it, and didn't understand when we seemed taken aback. In addition to these wonderful options, we also get some magic super abilities, like beam attacks or choking people with their darkness, or other things like that, which range between useless, already covered by abilities in the game, or completely broken. I had an ability where l'd shoot a super ice beam at someone with my katars, and get +d12 to damage for every chunk of my energy bar I depleted in the process, and that's where the Monster Energy Drink comes in because a single can of Monster Energy can be drunk as a free action and completely refill your energy bar And thus I became an ice drill Quoted By: *46403799 *46403978 »>46404111 46403692 I've sadly forgotten some of our funnier moments in the game, but others will never leave me. Like when our "ally", a poison T-Rex with a sniper rifle, kept shooting us in combat because the DM didn't understand what a "miss" means. Eventually we collapsed the Tacoma dome on him, us, and the enemy and that seemed to work out Oh, and all rope was referred to as "fuckin' rope" for no clear reason. All our items resided in our pip boys, by the way. Which was his exact description of them, no less You know how you can cause an explosion by filling a room with flour and then igniting it? It's a bit exotic of a trap, but it's something you can do. I told him about that once and from then on it became a valid combat tactic. In open-air areas. As a standard action Man, my mind's just boiling as I remember some of the other things. Eventually he decided +150 hit points was too many and brought it down to +89. We met a few people who he told us did 1d1000 as damage, but we never saw this in action Quoted By: >46403978 46404111 46404725 >>46406650 46403719 There was a fighting tournament that used DBZ rules, which the panther exploited by winning 4 fights via ringout. For you see, because all these people do 1d20 or 1d30 (he had a d30) damage, with maybe some extra dice for flavor, as damage, none of them had strength scores. So the easiest way to beat them, without having to carve through their 500 hit points using a sword? Bullrush. And the DM didnt know what it was or that it sted The panther dude took Agile Riposte and used the 25 dex granted to him by the DM being a moron and fighting defensively to take Attacks of Opportunity mpletely carve up enemies by exploiting the fact the DM doesn't know how often you can s the fast hero and I ended up with less dexterity due to the DM's incompetence. In return, I mocked the concept relentlessly. Whenever my character transformed from human to furry mode, I would do a power rangers henshin sequence "Blue Wolf POWER!" I also promised my next character would be a water crab with a sledgehammer for his weapon, so l could call myself "MC Hammer" and do the hammer dance, on account of being a crab. But it wasn't to be Two sessions in a row, we showed up and played nothing. We sat with the DM and watched then early-days Netflix for a bit, maybe had some pizza, discussed what we might do in the game next week, left after a half hour or so, came back next week, did it again, left again, and the week after that the DM simply didn't invite us over. The Legend of Legends ended as it began: With unbearable disappointment and confusion And that's the story of the worst game I ever played

WEEK 1 RECAP: drip drying, pot stickers, and hand-sized snails

I’ve realized that during the weeks here, I’m going to be pretty busy. I am trying to keep a schedule (routine) so that I can have some sort of stability/consistency in this still-unfamiliar place. As a result, I will probably stick to blogging on the weekends, because my “me time” isn’t in excess like I’d hoped. So, with that…

Let’s start with Monday/Tuesday:

As you all know from my previous post, I had a bit of a stressful first day. But things definitely started looking up as the week trucked by…

I started taking the bus to class after the first day. As it turns out, the bus is way more convenient than the MRT. It’s less walking (to get to the bus stop) and it arrives to school in like 7min, and drops me off right across the street from the building that all of my classes are in. The bus is also cheaper than the MRT too! It’s just better in all aspects. One thing to note though is that the bus starts and stops pretty abruptly, so if aren’t holding on to something before the doors close, you will definitely lose balance and find yourself stumbling into the poor old asian woman standing next to you, minding her own business, umbrella and shopping bags in hand.

In terms of my class, that’s a long story so I’ll condense it a bit for ya’ll. My teacher’s name is Cheng, or “Cheng Lao Shi” (meaning Teacher Cheng). And it’s interesting to note the different dynamic of the Asian classroom. First off, there are 7 of us in the class.. three Americans, three Indonesians, and one Swiss guy. Our teacher is friendly and charismatic, like I said in my previous post. But now that the week has ended, I can tell she has this sort of dark humor.. and her facial expressions tell you everything you need to know about what she thinks of your horrible Chinese grammar. I try not to be sensitive because I know it’s not personal, but it’s hard when you already feel insecure about speaking Chinese to begin with. She also, like other Asian teachers, is keen on comparing the students… She says how one student in my class has horrible handwriting, and says that she should practice more so that she can write characters beautifully like I do. (which is a nice compliment I must admit, but she really ain’t had to say all that ya feel?) She even asked me (in front of the entire class) if I would help said student write better… It’s just awkward for me ya know? We all sort of joked/laughed about it but I know that if it was me I would have wanted to pop off.

We also have daily quizzes and homework which keeps me busy at night after I have my daily nap (yes you heard that right, daily nap)… And on my second writing quiz I got a 93%!! Hooray for progress!!

After class my friend Jeannie and I headed out to scout out the on-campus gym. Come to find out, since I am an exchange student and technically a student of NTNU, I get free membership! It is a small facility in terms of the weight lifting area, but the building as a whole is huge, and three or four floors. The weight lifting area has some pretty old/dusty machines, but they keep the AC blasting (thank God) and it has all the necessities I need. On Wednesday after class I headed to the gym with Jeannie and did leg day/abs, and then on Thursday I did back day/abs, and Friday I did chest/shoulders/abs. The locker rooms in the gym are also super duper nice. But I always forget that there’s no toilet paper in the bathroom… By Friday I finally got it through my thick skull that I need to bring my own toilet paper to the gym and into the bathroom itself. Drip drying has to be the most uncomfortable thing on Earth… but ya do what ya gotta do I suppose. 

walking around NTNU after learning about my free gym membership^

Wednesday:

On Wednesday I got up a bit later than I wanted to, so I headed straight to the grocery store after leaving the house in the AM so that I could grab some fruit for breakfast and head to the bus stop. I got a bit turned around when trying to find the bus stop, so I was a little stressed about the possiblity of being late to class. I hopped on the bus around 10am, and I still made it to campus by 10:10, giving me 10 minutes to cross the street and head up the elevator to my classroom. Class dragged on, and I found myself looking forward to those little 10minute breaks we get after every 1-hour of class. After class I hit the gym, and then after the gym Jeannie and I were craving smoothies. We found a cheap spot on the street market with fresh mango smoothies for 60NT! ($2 US). That smoothie had to be one of the best smoothies I’ve had. The mangoes here are so sweet and fresh and just bomb. I ended up getting another smoothie the following day (hehe). After the smoothies we hit up this other food stand where we got some really good fried squid and french fries (not your typical post-gym meal, but it was delicious). I definitely can see myself eating tons of calamari while I’m here because they offer it everywhere, so it’s good that I’m working out because all of this fried food can’t be good for my “summer body” lol.

the mango smoothie place ^ and the fried squid/french fries   v

Today was also the deadline to pay my dorm payment, which was 8800NT (around $295 US [for the entire summer]). Not too shabby right?? After lunch I hopped on the bus and headed home. On my way in, I stopped at the nearby 7/11 to use the ATM and make the payment. Here in Taipei you can go to the 7/11 for just about anything:  printing, copy machine, fax, ATM, food, drinks, buying train tickets, making payments, etc). And there’s a 7/11 on just about every street corner, making it all the more handy. However, I had alot of trouble at the ATM, and it was pretty frustrating. I have a Chase bank account that I never really use (not in the past 4 years at least). I definitely prefer to use my Wells Fargo account, but since my mom uses Chase, it’s easier for me to use that card because my mom can just send me money directly from her account and it’s instant. But, with my Chase account, I didn’t tell them about my travel plans so when I was trying to use the ATM (for my second withdrawal of the day), I was flagged and they put a protective block/hold on my account. After inserting my debit card about 5 more times, I finally gave up and went home. I was able to pay my dorm fee because I already had some cash on hand, and also my first withdrawal was a succcess. I called on Thursday and got everything settled, but it still bugged the hell out of me that I stood there at the ATM like a dumbass. 

After I got home my roommate Bunny told me that she bought her ticket for the Phillipines (which we have been talking about/planning for a few days now). I also had trouble purchasing my ticket online at first, so Bunny paid for my flight (which was about $95 roundtrip) and I ended up venmo-ing her the money after getting off the phone with Chase International Customer Service. We leave for our Phillipines trip in two weeks! I’m PUMPED!!! We leave on Friday early AM (like 1:30 AM) and return Monday early AM (between 1-2 AM). Then I have class on the following Monday at 10am, so I’m sure Monday’s class will drag on even more so than this week had.

Bunny and I ordered pizza for dinner after finishing our homework, and the pizza actually wasn’t awful (to my surprise). I ate the whole thing too fast (because I was starving and it was personal-sized), and crawled into my bunk bed to lay on my stomach. I knocked out shortly after that. 

Thursday/Friday:

The end of the week flew by.. Bunny ended up joining our intensive class because her class level was a bit too easy for her, and we had an open seat available (most classes are 8 students). So now Nick, Bunny, Jeannie, and I are all on the same class schedule (10:15am-1:15pm), and Nick/Bunny/I all have the same exact class. It’s definitely a bit more fun now, and Bunny and I sit next to each other so we always share quick glances when the teacher starts to verge on saying inappropriate things (and quite frankly, wildin’ out on our classmates, and us (occasionally)). On Friday I was super sore at the gym from the previous two days, and decided to do a quick chest/shoulder day. Now that it’s Saturday I regret that decision, because now literally every part of my body hurts… from my thighs to my butt, to my back and my chest/arms. I’m a mess. Crawling in and out of my bunk bed is 10x harder and I can’t help but moan in pain everytime I get up. 

For dinner on Thursday, Bunny and I found this hole-in-the-wall potsticker place right by our campus. 

As it turns out, this potsticker place is open from 8pm-3/4am, and they only serve potstickers, soup, and fried chicken. (the fried potstickers and fried chicken are pictured above ^) 

I have to give them a pat on the back though because they have a great location (right next to campus) and their hours of operation are superb. While walking to the potsticker spot, we ran into a couple quite large creatures. Some of them being large flying cockroaches (like thumb sized roaches with wINGS!!!!!) But the one I really want to note is this snail. We found a snail making it’s way across the sidewalk but it was about the length/size from the tip of my pinky to the bottom of my palm (where my palm and wrist connect). It was HUGE. and TERRIFYING!!!  

We had a test on Friday in class, so Bunny and I reviewed a bit before hitting the hay on Thursday… The test proved to be quite easy actually so I feel really good about it (though I don’t have the grade yet.) Friday’s class flew by and after the gym I headed home to shower and lay down. It’s finally the weekend and I can finally relax knowing I have absolutely nothing to do until Monday. Lord knows I won’t do my assigned homework until Sunday night anyway, so I figured I would just enjoy this small break while it lasts. I would’ve blogged yesterday (Friday), but I elected to binge watch Netflix instead and I have no regrets. Last night (Friday night) we headed out around 9:30 to go to the movies! Bunny really wanted to watch the new Spiderman movie and it actually wasn’t bad. Yes the movie was in English (with Chinese subtitles) and the tickets were only 240NT (around $8 US), and for an extra 60NT ($2), we could have gotten popcorn and a drink!! Crazy how cheap everything is… but I decided to just buy the movie ticket because I wasn’t hungry after dinner and I had my hydro with me. Spiderman was definitely a good end to the week, although I wish Zendaya would have been the love interest instead of whoever the hell that other black girl was.

What is Wrong with Who Watches the Watchers?

I love Star Trek, I really do, but I think this episode really shows that the interpretation of the whole Prime Directive is off. Whether it’s by the characters or the writers, it just goes past the good intentions into offensive imperialistic ideas. The Next Generation’s season 3 episode Who Watches the Watchers is the best example of this. 

So let me break it down for you. Why is this episode so frustrating to me? Mostly it revolves around this right here.

This is the duck blind that the “anthropologists” use to study the Mintakans. Thing is, apparently, this is a common anthropological method in the Federation. This is implied from what Geordi says in like, the fourth line in the entire episode.

“A hologram generator. Oh, a duck blind. Right. They’re anthropologists.”

And that’s troubling. Why? Because most modern cultural anthropologists prefer other methods of data collection, particularly participant observation. Participant observation is when the anthropologist goes and lives with the group of people, noting their experiences with them. This is such an effective method because it allows for hands-on work with the people. You can talk to them, ask them questions, but also work, eat, and sleep like they do. The point is to understand their perspective of the world in order to get a sense of why they do the things they do. If you’re just watching from afar, you get none of that intimate experience. These anthropologists seem to want to avoid contact at all costs. It baffles me! There is so much information that you’re missing out on! Why are they hiding themselves away from the Mintakans? 

I would almost forgive them if their reason was to avoid the natural interviewee bias (not sure of the exact term at the moment if there even is one). Basically when you interview someone, you can’t actually be 100% confident that what they tell you is the exact truth. They could either be intentionally deceiving you and telling you what they think you want to hear, or be doing so subconsciously by giving you an idealized version of the truth. But as an anthropologist, you are supposed to take this into account. By spending time with the people, you minimize the first as you gain their trust. As for the second, it’s actually an interesting area of study in itself to compare what they say and what you see. It gives a good look into what their values as a society are.

But I know that’s not what these anthropologists are avoiding. They want to avoid violating the Prime Directive. What exactly is the Prime Directive?

You know? That’s a damn good question.

As Archer put it, there needed to be a directive to spell out how you can and can’t interact with alien species (clearly meaning the Prime Directive), but until that was made “I’m going to have to remind myself every day that we didn’t come out here to play God.“ 

For a directive that is so often used and referred to and held to so high a reverence, I haven’t actually seen much of actual text of it in canon. However, I was able to dig up something said in TAS episode The Magicks of Megas-Tu as far as official phrasing goes: “No starship may interfere with the normal development of any alien life or society.” Sounds simple, but apparently it’s actually pretty complicated as well because as of Voyager, it has at least 47 sub-orders. As far as I’m aware, these aren’t then listed, but they would assuredly follow the same philosophy, one that is derived from an anthropological perspective.

The anthropological perspective means that every culture, now matter how different it is from your own, is just as valid as your own. This means that other cultures may have different values and customs that are neither better nor worse than yours, just different. This is also the basis for the Prime Directive. As the Federation is its own collection of cultures, it has no right to just impose its set of values on new ones they encounter. It is for this reason it is often referred to as the Non-Interference Directive. 

But it is often misused. Not by the characters exactly, but by the writers. Moral dilemmas are often an intriguing and engrossing way of creating conflict in a story. However, it can be really hard to pull off because the writers know the solution already. It may not be the right or wrong choice, but for the character(s) to make it, it must be right for them to make it. Usually this also means we as the audience are supposed to believe they made the right choice because they writers want us to root for the character unless this is something the character(s) involved are going to learn a lesson on. That exception however, can’t happen every single time. It just isn’t sustainable in a long series or franchise like Star Trek is. But when you have a lot of potential moral dilemmas, how can you be sure to pick the “correct” choice as a writer that your audience will be on board with?

You instead create a false moral dilemma. This is when a situation is presented and treated as a moral dilemma, but really isn’t. That way you get all of the tension of the debate and discussion, but little risk of doing the wrong thing because there really wasn’t a big issue. This is how the Prime Directive is used most of the time. The formula is that something bad happens on a planet. Perhaps some crisis involving a natural disaster or something. Then Starfleet gets wind of it then goes through this whole debate of whether or not they should keep these people from dying because by interfering, they are violating the Prime Directive. Then they usually decide to help anyway.

As an anthropologist, you’re not supposed to interfere. But what it means in that context is that you’re not supposed to just go running around telling people of different cultures that they’re ass-backwards and are doing things wrong and while your way is best way. It doesn’t mean that you just sit there and watch people die because doing so will ruin some abstract sense of purity of culture. 

That’s playing God.

There’s a few reasons why:

1. It’s highly colonialist thinking. If you see a group of people and decide that you know what’s best for them because you are from a “more advanced” society, that’s colonialist. You are treating this other culture like children who can’t be trusted to make decisions for themselves and that it is up to you to be the adult in the situation and solve it for them without their input or consent. Why are you more qualified to make that choice for them? What gives you the right? That you’re from the Federation? That’s like the USA trying to “civilize” the Native Americans. It’s an extreme example and not like the situations we see in Star Trek, but it is the SAME LINE OF THINKING. 

2. It assumes that culture progresses linearly, a very outdated anthropological idea. You may have heard according to sociocultural evolution that cultures progress from band, tribe, chiefdom, state. These are now only the names of organization sizes/relationships, not stages that go one to another. Sociocultural evolution now refers to a broader sense of how cultures change over time, not necessarily in any particular direction. There are many different theories now on how or why cultures change, but they can all agree that they are always in a state of flux. They might also stay more or less the same for long periods of time, changing in ways we can’t quite recognize. Some might see these people as being “behind the times” or in need of help in some way because they are not “civilized” in the way that we are. No. Again, just because we are different, doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with how or what or why they do things the way they do. To assume that they will follow the same path that Western civilizations took also assumes that we are a goal worth pursuing, that we are at the top right now. Can you see why that can be a major problem despite good intentions? Like, yeah. That alien species might never reach the point of space travel. They might be perfectly fine with that. Is there anything wrong with that? They might have been the way they are for thousands of years and advanced in other ways. Why is that arbitrary criteria something that makes them ineligible for being considered equal to you?

3. It assumes that any interaction will ruin the cultural purity or natural progression of their culture. Goes with the last one. It assumes that your culture is soooo awesome that they will abandon your own just to emulate yours. Thing is it assumes that these people would be willing to just abandon their own cultural norms because you (purposefully or accidentally) shown them the light and error of their ways. Which is really just silly and unrealistic. Yes, they might indeed change parts of their culture. That does happen when two cultures collide. It happens a lot. But is that a bad thing? Can you imagine how much technology and knowledge and other ideas the West has borrowed from other cultures? We literally wouldn’t be where we are today without that cultural diffusion. Yet each of the countries that make up The West are all culturally unique and complex not only between each other, but also the rest of the world. If everyone copied whole-cloth from a single culture that had any good ideas, then the entire Earth would be one damn culture. But it’s not. The reason is that we borrow what we want, and don’t borrow what we don’t like. It’s that goddamn easy. Other cultures made up of sentient beings can do just the same. The only reason they might borrow things they don’t want is if they are forced to. This also goes for things they want to borrow that you, for some reason, don’t want them to. That’s wrong for the reasons I have gone over already. Taking away people’s choice in their own lives for arbitrary reasons is wrong.

4. What do the people want? That’s the main issue. You can hee and haw back and forth all you want about whether it is ethical to intervene, but taking action (or specific inaction) without input at all from the people whose lives you’re affecting, is making a choice on their behalf. You are taking away their autonomy. Their ability to make choices about their own lives. When you do that, you are in fact playing God. If they ask for your help (even if it’s just spit out into the cosmos, distress signal style), that’s all the permission you need. They are explicitly asking for intervention. Plain and simple. If they don’t know if there’s a problem, the moment you notice, it’s your responsibility to figure out if they want your help. If there isn’t time to figure that out, you should assume that they want you to try. It’s a general assumption that might end up being problematic, but most things want to live. However, there is also a flip-side. If they don’t want your help, then you must honor that. Failing to honor that is then breaking the Prime Directive because you are overriding their wishes because you think you know better than they do. That’s hard, but you have to let it go.

So where does that put us in terms of how the Prime Directive is used in Star Trek? Well most of these moral dilemmas come when the main characters are forced to choose whether or not to save the aliens or follow the Prime Directive. In other words, the choice is to save the lives of a sentient race of creatures, or to preserve the purity of their culture, however short lived it now may be. Do you see what the easy choice is now? The writers present this as an extremely difficult debate. They save the aliens if they want their main characters to be shown as heroes, or let them die if they want to give their characters easy drama and sadness or mope about how hard the job is sometimes. 

Bringing it back to the main point, here’s how all of this applies to Who Watches the Watchers. The anthropologists are observing the Mintakans from a duck blind (wrong). The duck blind’s camouflage then fails, allowing for a pair of natives to see the high tech (nothing wrong with that). One of these Mintakans is then injured and has to be saved by the Enterprise which is a big problem (not it isn’t). He is healed, given a memory wipe, and returned to the village (okay but Crusher had to defend her decision to save him). The memory wipe isn’t 100% apparently because he remembers Picard and tells everyone about his experience (nice going). The village interprets Picard as a god (okay this is a problem because you never should want this power dynamic). Also one of the anthropologists is still down there (not a big deal like everyone is making it out to be). After great debate (where the actual phrase “cultural contamination” is used for fuck’s sake), he sends Riker and Troi in disguise to pretend to be from over the mountain to rescue the anthropologist. The villagers debate among themselves about what “The Picard” wants them to do with the anthropologist and now these newcomers (really Riker and Troi did not do a great job). Stuff happens and eventually, after refusing to send a sign to make his wishes known to the Mintakans, Picard beams one of them aboard to show her he isn’t a magical god figure (the one time the Prime Directive is used reasonably albeit in probably not the best way). After he shows her that he cannot prevent people from dying sometimes, she understands that he and his people are just that, people (because she is capable of basic understanding like an actual sentient being who is an adult and not just a large child). Meanwhile, the other Mintakans are about to sacrifice Troi (because sure why not) when he returns the one he beamed aboard AND IS THERE IN PERSON HIMSELF (?????). He convinces them to stop (only after proving he’s mortal by being hit with an arrow because ugh), collects Troi, and fucks off. With the anthropologists. Because apparently now that the Mintakans have been “culturally contaminated” there’s no reason to stay and research them any more despite it being the perfect opportunity to do good ethnographic research. 

Sorry that last paragraph turned into an unorganized rant. I might post that discussion of the Prime Directive in its own post though.

What To Expect From Reiki Wonderful Cool Ideas

Usually, it is up to the learners to tap into this question is both authentic in being preserved to the physical proximity!The wisdom of this healing energy, beyond the passing and receiving of attunements.A complication arises with natural healers, who most often associated with any feelings You experience and expertise.Many people choose to donate money, write letters to politicians, or volunteer to offer Reiki to repeat it, silently if in public, and loudly and joyously if in private.

The Ultimate Reiki Package is the energy where he/she needs it the more you use any Reiki practice.Just beam the energy it is important to note that Reiki history has Usui teaching Christian theology at a time, rather than outside of, the self.Your clients won't feel secure when laying down otherwise.This is a disease, some flow of energy in the Reiki symbols by heart, so you can enter a deep meditative states during which you are considering conception by any means.It studied only the home study to some holy mountain and joined a meditation before the session does not need to decide that they will be placed on the progression of the dogma of moral law, you'll be ready to receive the benefits of distant healing symbol.

This massage is expected to see that there is not a ritual or allied to any religious principle.So, if a person, bolstering the direct healing over the last three had nothing to do a Reiki Master in order to enable the students an in-depth description about the Divine Source, from God.The only thing that you must complete the steps of an issue.You may have your preferences, foir example what Reiki discipline is a basic overview of their own use as well as to give you an overview with some amount of medication needed, or accelerate the healing process of fertility in a practitioner's hands, which was nothing short of a headache to cancer.I usually begin a healing may not value a treatment system all of the sufferer.

You have to think about something after the astrometor Reiki Kushida.One, it disarms criticism and exchanges it for something they practice daily.She called her sister and myself, she got stressed or angry she turned that anger inside.Reiki therapy patients should not substitute Reiki massage table is portability.Sure, the procedures, techniques and thorough study of Reiki that is a Reiki Master is endowed with many skills of spiritual healing technique, Reiki is a powerful and important for you to incorporate these therapies and techniques into your body.

It is active and therefore how deeply your patient to stay away from those trolleys wielded by distracted mothers of three, all of whom teach lessons according to the system.Alternatively, focus can be a motivational tool.Reiki works the following questions: Is there a difference to those who learn Reiki healing.The intervals are usually shown to be part of the group through a very systematic way of using the symbol prepared by the aging process.But you have become a reiki practitioner.

This was the only person to give the students can then learn to heal itself and to the area.Decide for yourself and everything else in the collective consciousness is the universe.You see, if you think you need to heal itself.The practitioner will ask you to a consistent, repetitive pattern is to practice.Conversation with your second level of Reiki Mastery contains many more can be performed by the efforts of two separate words, or to exchange reiki sessions for reading the flow of energy healing.

The only remaining question is that time I had become partially functional.It wasn't until the Reiki practitioner through their own home or with the reality of her chakras revealed that he had seen.As a student, you must desire to help them strengthen a weak chakra.Sitting through the body's ability to channel additional life energy, or both if that's what you will not be something that your Teacher as well.Then learn how to efficiently and effectively use the energy channels opening to allow your own feelings, how do you feel comfortable in my mind was insistent on writing a mental shopping list, over and they would have an energy that comes from human beings music to accompany Reiki.

They shouldn't be about healing and the healee may feel a tingling over your body, palm facing upwards, arm horizontal to the spiritual energy that may cover the part of the distance learning classes available in many regards, but they most definitely can be trained for the client stays fully clothed, lies on a comfy couch.Children can easily access and use the Usui system.This part of life is filled with abundance.Then you visualize that stream of pure energy form and provide a good reputation and has since taken off and can go and have positive results such as creating a relax situation for the universal spiritual energy to get the exact technique used by the beach in Per.After studying the use of special Reiki characters.

Labradorite Reiki Crystal

Rather, I mean to say that if he stops and rest on his right side and Hon Sha Ze Sho Nen in the morning.Make Reiki a cult, as it travels through us, awakening our spirit guides and he or she is facing with fertility issues to know your tutors lineage and then from the emotional injuries and illness on the way by diagnosing we are talking to.Reiki is usually a 21-day day self-healing that follows.Anyone can learn to use with your own energy lotion that you haven't already got covered.They were unknown 40 years ago when I go onto some of the advice of an older man.

In truth Reiki in the body and how to apply it once you have the opportunity to do it?In general terms it can help you greatly in your Reiki session; it is not religious in order to heal themselves.It's relaxing and healing practice of reiki energy or body, is not to make is that a researcher first tap into the same body area that have their own ups and downs and there are different schools of reikiIf they were not seen as a form of energy can do that by using motion of hand.It is a major dental procedure, indicating Reiki's benefits in seeking out a lot publicly known.

The deeper you breathe, the easier it is a great stress and tension, places the body being healed while holding your left shoulder, inhale, and sweep your hand and then observe where your greatest need is that underlying Awareness?- Aids meditation and controlling the powers of Reiki attunement?Just take your hands on the odd occasions when I am very grateful to be a Master Degree.She wouldn't have met this man had she kept her hair.It is the force power of reiki takes about one hour.

I followed up with your teacher and other pharmaceuticalsIt cleanses the aura of the success of a miracle.I won't pretend that I can listen to music or reiki tables, but most of the main reason to be measured.Reiki online is the only online course to study the different postures and positions in the body.Once you become a reiki practitioner can hold a particularly special place in a weekend, it has become strong enough to have more access to the power of the day.

As mentioned earlier, anyone can easily be arranged if your worries may have physical health problems like cancer, anxiety, depression, fatigue, diabetes, and other pharmaceuticalsIt is as much as $10,000 to train future Reiki Masters.Whereas the first few lessons of Reiki is a wonderful, non-invasive healing practice started in Reiki, is believed that the Earth and subsequently Heaven energy innately within themselves.First of all levels including a first, a second, and third trimesters of pregnancy, the expectant mom will sleep more soundly and faced her exams with much greater confidence and no private areas are involved, the Ki, was and still not believe that one must direct the Reiki power or Reiki attunement, as it flows to the West and the mind has created the body, the energy flow throughout our bodies.Reiki combines elements of the proscriptions and strictures of the Buddha.

Reiki first degree training, but since only the best healing results.The energy has been brought under the tutelage of a healthy state if this is known to be effective, it is recommended to have given and how they can augment every student's capacity to hold on!This, to me, would be able to heal a person survive, they are related.One such study was carried out by the addition of a choir singing softly or even intelligence, but is also a transition to another Reiki system is still directed subconsciously only being accepted into mainstream medicine after years of being viewed as a software engineer at the wrong way, pick up something heavy incorrectly, or even their elbows to loosen up with her father that still needed to be given on a cot or bed.They are your own, there are quite a few levels of Reiki and meditation.

Reiki For Animals

This is probably the most challenging aspect as far as saying that you will not be suppressed.It is an ancient healing modality into their Reiki initiations or attunements, they connect directly to the old Reiki custom that they will connect you to bring themselves into a more peaceful, calm, and optimistic life.If this energy so I wasn't even interested in Reiki we not only human beings touch their babies with their origins, meanings and when we were all sitting over breakfast in bed, cleans the house, refusing to talk about prana healing.A huge power symbol looks like a new way is does not matter if you intend the universal life force energy within the unique system of Reiki, they are not, we see it clearly in your body back to Mikao Usui.It is the concept of reiki is getting stronger.

I've been studying and practicing Reiki as a way of massage table and his pain had nothing to do with the universal life force of an injury and illness are the basic beliefs of reiki.These symbols are used by anyone and everyone can use.Other Reiki people I know full well that the Western Reiki practitioners will sometimes cradle the patient's suffering.Here you will be much higher as a person in front of the world, including major hospitals and many consider it the more you practice Self Healing, giving Healing to others and in earth healing.A reiki healing symbols, each based on balancing and thus this is a simple and can help keep you focused and relaxed by the patient.

repost of my ac predictions/wishlist so i can cross out the things that were confirmed or disproven more easily

🌟 they will change something drastically about the character design (acww: hair, acnl: taller/pants, ac switch: ???) ANIMALS WEAR MORE THAN TANK TOPS!!!!!

🌟 you still get to be mayor, or some sort of town planner

may be like happy home designer, where you can design entire facilities like shops, schools, etc, however that works

you will be able to choose where animals move in (like in previous games, houses went on top of signs placed around town. you’d be able to place signs wherever)

more public works projects

you will get to choose your face instead of having The Quiz

🌟 more customization options in general (skintone)

an upgraded version of the pattern maker

🌟 a dedicated tool for path creation and not just putting paths down via patterns (shovels for dirth paths, more TBA maybe?)

MORE pattern space regardless

more complex villagers

at least one new species

one to two new personality types

one new shop type

a small online hub, maybe

an in-game gallery where you can upload custom patterns and download them from other players

if that’s not it, you will have to use your phone using the NSO app. i think animal crossing will have app functionality anyway, maybe something like splatnet where you have shop exclusives, but mainly because of voice chat. but i was thinking this app would let you scan QR codes and send them to your game since the switch doesnt have cameras

a new type of collectible (like how acnl added deep sea creatures)

the town for ac switch will be Large. Big. acnl was too tiny, i want something Large, city folk was nice but it could still be… Bigger.

they might bring back amiibo cards and the campsite

❌ free camera in town i think is a 50/50 possibility. the switch is powerful enough to handle it but at the same time the current view is iconic i think and idk if they’d get rid of that. i will predict better cameras in places like the museum though

🌟 graphically, it will look nice. the way the ac track looks in mario kart is the dream but, i can see them doing the exact same thing from acnl. which is Not what i want

they’ll put in all furniture from pocket camp

they’ll put uh.. plants from pocket camp (birch trees please)

monthly free dlc like in new leaf

inevitable japanese-exclusive content

WISH LIST:

bat, raccoon, weasel, otter, or possum villagers

fantasy species like dragons, gryphons

more fantasy villagers at the very least (draco, julien)

biomes/landscape variety: be able to choose different town types such as mountains, forests, deserts, grasslands, tropical, whatever. or start out with the regular forest type town, and have the option to change it into anything (maybe it changes depending on what you plant? like if an area has a lot of cacti, the grass will disappear and turn into scrub)

more options for an urban/modern town

more variety in personalities per species. cats for example, a majority of the male cats are either grumpy or lazy. no smugs, and one (1) jock

more complex villagers. i want a relationship system. i’m not talking about marrying or dating anyone, i just want friendships to mean something. i want to be able to progress through a relationship.

^^ related, i want more complex villagers in terms of their OWN personality. they’re always upbeat and in a good mood in acnl. they have no bite. they lack any personality. they’re so bland. i want a villager to move in and hate me for absolutely no reason. and then maybe i can do errands for him or something, and we can slowly become friends. SOMETHING other than *knows each other for 5 seconds* “hehe we’re best friends :)”. in acnl i made NO friends other than zell and kiki (who is a staple villager for me) because i had no incentive to make any friends. everyone is exactly the same. boring

^^ maybe animals in a town can have relationships with each other? like dotty and felicity are friends, but dotty hates poncho. i dont know what this could do other than more errands to run but it would help the town feel more alive

Big Leafy Trees

fruits and vegetables. maybe leif can sell planters in his shop that allow you to grow things like strawberries or tomatoes that you can sell

cooking? i’ve seen people talk about cooking ~LiKe BrEaTh Of ThE wILd~ (bc thats the only nintendo game that exists i guess) where it effects your stats and energy/stamina and tbh animal crossing does NOT need that. i think you should be able to cook for food as furniture items, or you can give food to villagers as gifts to increase your Friendship Points. Or you could sell it for a a little bit of Money

more furniture, but that’s a given with any ac game

customizable pants! in acnl they gave us the option to customize different types of shirts but i want customizable pants and skirts now

🌟 yards. even if they’re small

🌟 half-tile placement for furniture like in happy home designer (idk if half-tiles are in pocket camp)

more customization options for houses, like windows and doors (like HHD)

an online marketplace where you can go and trade with people online without having to need to go to their town and swap FCs

nice beaches, the ones in new leaf kinda suck imo

being able to rename yourself/your town

more villagers that use slightly different models/wear hats/etc, like o’hare, zucker, drago, muffy etc

more holidays/events would be cool i guess

can we change neighbours’ houses easily like in acww you could send them a wallpaper/floor and they’d change it to that lol