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#yall get a birthday prompt cuz of it!
auratusaria · 1 year
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Prompt No. 35
Hero lazily plopped down onto their sofa face first. Their shoes were messily left by the doorway, they were just as lazy to open the lights of their apartment.
Today was beyond boring. Crime rates were surprisingly low, aside from the occasional pickpocketing, there wasn't much to do for a hero to be called to the scene. They were just stuck in the office doing paperwork for the entire day and they spent most of that time sleeping on their desk.
Hero groaned with a small pout decorating their face. Normally it's a cause for concern whenever criminals suddenly became quiet but somehow, they never felt any dread from today.
It was all so peaceful.
It was nice though...
Hero let out a loud sigh as they sat up. It was only then did they notice their bedroom. They were certain the door was closed when they left earlier today, in fact, the lights shouldn't have been on as well.
Their guard was up while they stood, taking cautious steps towards their bedroom and leaning their back on the wall just beside the door. Hero slightly poked their head to peek inside only to flinch back when their vision was block by a familiar face.
It was Villain.
"Look who's here." The criminal wore their signature smirk.
The do-gooder frowned, "What are you doing here? How did you even find this place?"
Villain's smirk was replaced with a wide grin, "We're next door neighbours."
"WHAT?!"
"Anyway!" Villain loudly clapped their hands before grabbing Hero's wrist, "Come in! Come in!"
"Wait! I have so many questions!" Despite their protests, Hero was pulled inside the room.
Their sight was greeted by several colourful balloons with strings tied on it, a banner that reads 'HAPPY BIRTHDAY' was hung on the wall by the bed, a small table was placed at the center of the room with beautifully decorated cake, it was their favourite flavor.
Sidekick and Right Hand stood side by side together as they pulled the string of party poppers, confetti flew around everywhere.
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY HERO!" The two chorused while Villain clapped and cheered.
The do-gooder stood with mouth agape and eyes wide.
Right, it's my birthday today...
Sidekick let out a soft chuckle, "You're always so forgetful of your own birthday, Hero!"
"Well, I'm mostly busy--"
"Aha!" Villain placed their hands on their hips, "You can't use that excuse today!"
"Was it your doing that the city was so peaceful?" Hero raised an eyebrow at them.
"You better be grateful for it! It's a special gift that can only happen once a year!" Villain dramatically sighed, "It was so hard to get all those no good people to behave, yaknow!"
"You're one of those no good people!"
"But I!" Villain proudly puffed up their chest as they placed a hand to it in a dramatic manner, "Easily behaved!"
Right Hand leaned towards Hero's ear, "I had to keep encouraging them by the way..."
"Hey! I heard that!"
Hero snickered, though it slowly turned into genuine laughter. The three merely stood and stared.
"Thanks, you guys!"
This is... the best birthday I ever had.
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qeyond · 1 year
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Blog is 18+
Note this is a side blog so if you ever get a reply from some weirdo named @sucktacular, it's just me lol.
My art: #q art
Personal posts/rambles: #qeyond sucks
Music related head-canons: #q music
(archived Ko-Fi info below, currently not drawing but will let yall know when I get back into it <3)
Ko-Fi: Sucktacular (ARCHIVED - INACTIVE AT THE MOMENT - PLEASE IGNORE)
For a limited time, if you send a min. $5 (usd) or $20+ (usd) donation I will draw you any Death Note related prompt you'd like! More info under the cut.
Min. $5 donation:
1-2 char max
Max waist length
Clean lines
Black & white lines
Chibi or non-chibi (artists choice)
$20+ donation:
1-3 char max
Max full body
Clean lines
Shading and/or coloring
Your choice of line colors (b&w, gradient, or flat color)
Your choice of chibi or non-chibi
NO: Visual NSFW (unsure? no harm in asking!), backgrounds.
YES: Gore/blood/death/killing, weed, clothed butts, text-based nsfw (eg. character says something saucy to another)
If you're unsure, there's no harm at all in asking!
INFO:
Include note with donation of prompt you'd like OR send here (Tumblr) with kofi info.
MUST be Death Note related (original series, LABB, A-Kira, musical, drama, movies, fic-based, etc.) Please note I have NOT seen the musical/drama yet so more detail in those prompts will help me bring it to life!
$20+ prompts: I will allow Wammy House OC's! You gotta give me visual ref or lots of written details tho lol. Links are welcome.
Min. $5 prompts vary in quality.
Everyone gets a bounding box (square/rectangle background)
If I really like your prompt I might make it a full body, allow more characters, color/shade, or add backgrounds/detailed items!
I'm very bias of course so prompts with Beyond Birthday or B + Naomi Misora may get those extra details I mentioned.
May try new techniques with prompts, but basic style will be the same.
Note that I say "shading and/or coloring" cuz I actually like to shade more than color even tho it takes longer, so just keep that in mind for whatever it's worth lol.
Finished pieces will be posted here and I'll tag you if you include your Tumblr handle.
You're more than welcome to use finished art as a profile picture or banner on Tumblr or other sites, just please include credit back to me.
Please DO NOT repost my art. I may be lenient on this rule, especially if it was YOUR paid prompt, but please ask before hand. I have Twitter and Instagram, but I'm not as active. Feel free to ask me to upload if I haven't already so you can share on those sites. :3
Please DO NOT edit or filter my art. :( If you wanna color my line art feel free to ask!
You CAN reference my art/concepts for fanfics or your own art, but please DO NOT trace. :( You obviously don't need to credit me for using concepts, that's up to you, but I'd always love to see what you made! :D
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ravenouscultleader780 · 8 months
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COTL Status Update(8-19-23) Hello Cultist, Man has this week been a good for a great week for is COTL Fans esp for the game celebrating its 1st birthday/Anniversary or Lambiversary as the Devs called it 😀
Anyways, I sadly missed the art prompts but I decided to vote on which follower I wanted and I voted for skunk but Turns out the Seal Follower Won oh well it was fun while it lasted.. but by the end of its birthday week we're getting a small but incredible update for the game : A Crossover Update with Don't Starve x Cotl!
THIS HAS ME AND EVERYONE IN THE FANDOM SO HYPED AND ITS COMING ON 8-21-23(on a Monday to be exact!) Which is awesome cuz I wonder what it could mean and that also means we could possibly get even future crossovers with the game in the near future.
And bonus update, the devs are still working on the second update which is turning good so far on their end and I'm still just as a mega hyped for it and shows how much the devs care so much ant the games fandom, through our arts, aus, vids,animations and so much more! I really hope they see this post cuz all I wanna ty for giving us this game in a time where I loved it concept since the very start announcement back in 2022 and still do along with helping get inspo for my art!
Along with other trailers that happened, and birthdays of some other games and movies and shows I grew up loving ❤️ celebrating their own decade old birthdays along with cotl's 1st birthday feels so special to me to live long enough to see and proud to be a dedicated fan and storyteller with my au which I'm still trying to draw in the og artsyle with my own twist but I still practicing . Lol
Anyways just wanted to update what I've been feeling recently regarding cotl's 1st 🎂
Later yall
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thehomierobbstark · 5 years
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Let’s Talk About Sex II
Chapter 1 Intermission Chapter 3
Pairing: Erik Killmonger x Reader [#TeamErikDon’tDateWhiteChicks]
Prompt: Aight, so iOKnoW bout yall but… I got some mad ‘fears’ about sex 😂😂😂. I got so many questions, so many horrible imaginations, so many embarrassing ass scenarios I’ve thought of in my head about what might happen when I finally do the do. Basically, ya girl been thankin (thinking) too much, and I done fucked around and thought up this shit.
A/N:  First off, I wanna say thank you soooo muchhhh to all the fantastic comments you all left on part one. I’m so glad yall were able to relate and enjoy what I thought was a really weird and unusual “fear” I had. I’m absolutely horrible with responding to comments on my stories because I’m such an anxious and awkward human but I read and honestly appreciate all the funny sweet ass comments n feedback yall leave me n I’ll start working on that some more because I don’t show how much I really appreciate and love you all enough.
Also.... if you wanna know what happened back in the car in part one... here’s a lil sum sum. I’m not saying thats what happened, but I’m saying it was close...(ish)...
[Link is NSFW turn down that brightness n volume peeps]
Warnings: (This one I’ll put here cuz I feel it’s important) There’s a little bit of breathing/breath issues that happen at the end (non life-threatening), and if this is something that makes you anxious/ feel like you can’t breathe I want you to know upfront. It was written in the vein of comedy and it doesn’t go too into detail, but I don’t want you being surprised and having a panic or anxiety attack yourself if this affects you.
Rest of the warnings are at the bottom 👇🏿👇🏿👇🏿.
This is for all my lil cute ass black gorditas out there rockin back fat, belly rolls and thick ass thighs that touch!!  x Reader is always gon be black, chubby, and sassy.
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You sit there looking dumbfounded, lips still smushed together from the vice-like grip he had around your mouth. It was actually the sexiest thing to you when he snatched you up like this, and your eyes flicked down to his forearm to sneak a peek at his constricted muscles. The small raised bumps decorating his skin had you wanting to lick your lips and run your fingers up and down that strong ass ribbed arm of hi- fuck.
The game hadn’t even started and already he had you feeling some typa way from just a firm grasp on your jaw.
Okay, focus Y/N.
You really didn’t want to lose this stupid bet again. I mean, this nigga was so petty, he was actually keeping score on his damn phone.  You wanted to try and one-up him at least one last time, but his foul ass mouth and the hungry stare he was giving you had you wanting to say ‘fuck it’ and rip both your clothes off right now.
Your tongue rolls around in your mouth as you take a few seconds to think (and breathe), ultimately deciding that the only way you’d be able to end this would be by  changing your approach. You were going to have to make Erik moan before you did.
Pulling your face from his hand, you lean back in his lap, opening up your body to bait him.  He eyes you cautiously, and you sigh, boredly, making a gesture with your hands as if to say, ‘well, get on with it’.
He smacks his lips before placing them at the top of your sternum, mumbling against your skin.
“Girl, don’t act like you don’t want this tongue. Ol’ dramatic ass…”
To further accentuate his point, he flicks his tongue a few times before pressing it to you and sliding it down the middle of your chest, pressing a wet kiss into you once he reaches the valley of your breasts. His hands push under your tank top up from the back, palming your smooth, chocolate brown skin, and he digs his fingernails right into your sides as he grips your love handles.
“Mmmm, God I love your body so much, Y/N,” he tells you, and you whimper, both at the deep rumble that comes from his chest and the little stutter your heart makes when he says it.
Not a single time in your life had anyone ever told you that before, but not a single part of you doubted the truth behind his confession. He really was the one for you.
He dips his head lower to give soft bites to your clothed tummy before hiking up the thin material to reveal the cute black and white diamond jaguar belly button stud he’d bought for you on his birthday.
“This all mines, baby? This right here?” he asks you, giving soft pecks to your middle, fingers digging deeper into you as his eyes flick up to yours. You’d been so distracted by the view you had of Erik’s plump lips loving all over you, you completely forgot all about your plan.  As you look down into the brown pools he had for eyes, you swear you could see a hint of malice lurking somewhere behind them.
With every grope, squeeze, and rough breath he took, the sensitivity between your thighs continued to grow.  It was a double edged sword at this point, but you felt your breaths start to become short and clipped, so you roll your hips and grind hard against his lap with all of your weight.
You hear his groan catch in his throat as he almost slips up, and he slaps your ass with a heavy hand in retaliation, the sound bouncing off the walls around you. Your grip on his shoulders tightens at the sharp pain, and you try again, this time reaching down to grind your palm into his crotch, finally feeling how rock solid he is.
He pulls his mouth from you right as you make contact, and for a second, you think you finally best him at his own game when he twists his body and shifts your positions, slamming your back onto the sofa. You land softly but hear the air whoosh out of the cushions around you, and your heart rate speeds up, loving how aggressive he’s finally being with your body. You look down to see him get eye to eye with your navel, body wedged between your thick thighs.
“…so you really was just tryna play me, huh…” he mutters, face pressed back against your tummy. He starts scratching his head up and down against your soft skin, tongue leaving wet trails as he nuzzles into you, and your mind swirls so much from the sensation it doesn’t even register that he’s asked you a question.
Right as you begin to undulate your hips, he drags his face up your body and pushes your shirt all the way up, stopping to give a sharp bite to the inside of your breast.
“Answer me,” he growls, and pulls at your skin, letting his teeth scrape against your flesh as it releases from his mouth. Your back arches into him, fingers digging into his braids trying to both pull him away from you and push him closer, and he takes your nipple in between his teeth, flicking it with his tongue.
You’re sputtering at this point, not even sure what it is you’re trying to say, just knowing  you’d say whatever you needed to get some relief from his mouth.
“Shit… yesyesyes..” you hiss, hoping its was he wants to hear.
“Yeah? You was tryna play me little girl? Is that watchu saying?” He slurps the other nipple into his mouth as he wraps one of your thighs around him, smacking the side of it. Shit. Wrong answer.
You try to take deep breaths to calm yourself down, but he grinds himself into you roughly, and your mind goes blank again.
You have no idea how long its been since he started, but you were sure it had to have been longer than 45 seconds by now. The more he mercilessly rubbed himself against you, the closer you got to letting out some ungodly sound you weren’t even aware you could make.
It was obvious at this point that this freaky bastard was trying to get back at you for ruining his pants the other week, but you had no idea that Erik wanted to do more than just ruin yours; he wanted you to ruin the couch, too.
Erik’s heavy breathing is deep in your ear as he circles his hips, grinding into you at a delicious angle, and you grab on to his shoulders for leverage as you try and ride out the wave of pleasure that runs through you. When you catch a reasonable amount of breath, you reach down to try and push at his pelvis, hoping he’ll let you have a break.
He laughs, grabbing your throat and turning your head to face him.
“Nah, we not stopping till you give me all my moans. I want to hear every single one of them.”
You bite down on your lip hard, burying your face into his shoulder as you try one last time not to break. Erik stops grinding and reaches down between your spread legs, smoothing his hand against your crotch before reeling back and giving you a sharp pop.  Your hips jump up in response and the first sound leaves your lips: a weak cry that falls short of its potential.
Erik’s fingers rub firmly against you through the spandex material, smoothing out the slight stinging the slap left behind.
“Nuh -uh, you gon have to do better than that baby. Where my moan at, huh?” He talks into your neck, sucking into your skin.
He spreads your legs wider, sliding down your body until he’s eye to eye with your rapidly soaking center. He rests his head on your thigh against the couch while he slides the other one to hang off the side.
Taking one finger, he lazily runs the tip up your slit, circling your clit lightly before dragging it back down to his starting point.
He repeats this for about 2 minutes, teasing you with just the right amount of pressure to keep you at a standstill in your orgasm.  Letting out a whimper, you try and plead with him.
“Baby… please,” you whisper, fingers digging into his wrist to try and pull him closer, “f- feels… so good… harder…”
“Then stop playin games and give me what I want.” He grunts, pressing kisses into the underside of your leg.
You moan louder this time, nodding your head as you push your hips up to rub against him. He finally starts caressing you with all four fingers again, and you can feel the heat from your center start to radiate out. He feels it too, and he curses, leaning down to press a firm kiss there.
“Fuck baby, I can taste you through the fabric .Thats how wet you are. Take this shit off.” He growls, nipping at the skin inside your thigh.
You do as he says, reaching down to shimmy out of the tight shorts. As soon as they’re off, he flips your legs up, pushing your knees as he slides in place ready for his meal, and he gives a deep groan as soon as he see’s the thong you’ve got on.
Rubbing his nose up and down your slit, he hums into you, sticking his tongue out to poke and lap at the wet material still blocking his access.
“You lucky you got on Daddy’s favorite panties right now otherwise this shit would be in pieces.” (You’d found them one day while shopping online for a rave, and as soon as Erik saw them he begged you to get them. He was so glad to finally see them being put to good use.)
“I’ve been waiting to taste this pussy for so long baby. Can Daddy taste you, princess?”
You huff out a whine as your eyes roll to the back of your head, and you throw your head back, trying to get yourself together.
Erik was about to make it past the panty barrier, something he’d never done before, and you needed a second to prepare yourself mentally for what was about to happen.
To say you were excited would be the understatement of the century, but even so, just a touch of nervousness still came with it.
By the fourth month of dating, you’d grown used to Erik shoving his hand down your pants any chance he got, always eager to rub you to orgasm, public or private spaces be damned. But those magic fingers of his working your clit was something you never got used to, and they always had you clutching the nearest shoulder, table, or seat edge for dear life as you’d flood your underwear with your juices.
If he could do all that with just his fingers, the thought of what that mouth could do  once combined had you already trying to close your legs and shield you from him.
He was having absolutely none of it, shoving your knees back up to your chest before wrapping one of your arms around them, making you hold them back.
“Nah, Daddy’s through with being nice. Move again and I’mma have seven course meal, keep playing wit me.”
Your clit twitches at his statement and you clutch your legs together and hold them, determined now to stop messing with this demon of a man. It was all fun and games until you remembered you had places to be the next day, and that the ability to walk would be appreciated.
“Pull em to the side.” He commands, and his eyes are laser focused now on your pussy. You do it, hooking your fingers around the crotch before pulling them off to the left, revealing your pretty pink bud and flower. Erik makes the most erotic sound you’ve ever heard come out of him, and it prompts you to pull at the hood of your clit, revealing even further its erect posture.
He wastes no time accepting the invitation and dives right in, sucking your clit into his mouth while his tongue dances all around it. Whatever inhibitions you had that were keeping you meek and quiet a few minutes ago all flew directly out the window, and you bucked your hips wildly as your moans spilled unfiltered from your lips. You sounded like an underpaid pornstar the way you gasped in between wails, but if Erik didn’t seem to mind, then you wouldn’t give a fuck.
You had more important things on your plate right now, like trying to figure out how you were going to get Erik off of yours.  He was devouring you like a starved animal, and you highly doubted that he’d be done with you after just one orgasm.
With all the attention on your clit, your first one came roaring in minutes, and you lifted up from the couch as all your muscles clench, cumming hard.  
After cleaning up his mess, he decides to move further south for a second helping, attacking you with his tongue.  With both hands spreading your cheeks wide, he covers your pussy with his entire mouth, his wide tongue reaching as far as it can into you as he sucks at your clit again.
You’re chanting encouraging praises now, your free hand pushing him into you as you try and ride against his face with your hips.  As your second orgasm comes you feel your insides push out, and Erik removes his tongue just in time to see your wetness gush out of you, and he laps it all up, not giving you any time to recover.
Your legs are twitching now from the overstimulation, but you’re still ready for him, eager for him to continue.
Introducing a finger, he gently pokes and prods at your entrance before slowly sliding it in, licking up any nectar that leaks out of you.
You already had the conversation (during one horny, smoke-filled night) about how you never were one for fingering yourself, and always preferred clitoral stimulation instead (which is why Erik’s fingers all but stayed glued there). You always felt like you were never able to get the right angle for it to work, even when you used the vibrating dildo you’d specifically bought for g-spot stimulation.
So when he started to finger fuck you, at the most you expected a feel good feeling, with occasional spikes of pleasure.
What you got was a ripple of sensation, and once his expert finger immediately found your g-spot, you felt yourself squeeze tightly, and he inserted another one, giving you a few slow pumps to loosen you back up. You felt fuller than you’d ever felt, desperate to hold on to every moment of his fingers moving in and out of you. Every single stroke felt better than the last, and there wasn’t a single part of it you weren’t enjoying.
With your free hand you weakly tried to push him in further, your own thumb playing with your clit as you watched his fingers disappear again and again inside of you.
You had been stifling your breath and holding it in for a little too long, and short gasps of breath were all you could take since regular breathing was now out the window.
You felt something start to turn at the back of your pussy, and your back arches up from the couch as it starts to come. Your body begins to shake, and you want to warn him, prepare him of the absolute mess that you’re about to make, but your unable to do anything other than screw your eyes shut and clutch the cushions.
Erik uses this opportunity to move to the side of you, pushing down on your lower abdomen with one hand as he continues to pummel into you with the other one.  You can feel everything in this position, and somehow your body seizes up even tighter, your muscles starting to ache from their hold.
You open your eyes just in time to see Erik spit a long string of saliva that lands right on your clit, and the evil smirk you see when you look up at Erik makes you come unraveled.
Your hips lift up as your core starts to jerk, spurts of liquid streaming out of you and landing all over Erik and the couch, getting everywhere. You feel your face contort and scrunch into what you can only imagine is the ugliest fucking face, and you don’t even realize your screaming until you stop to take a breath, feeling the soreness collect in the back of your throat.
He keeps pumping you, milking you for everything you have, and it takes you clawing at his forearm and accidentally scratching him for him to stop.
You collapse onto your back as he sucks in a breath, moaning at the stinging pain from the scratch before finally pulling his fingers out of you, slurping them into his mouth and catching the drips down his wrist.
You struggle to will yourself back to some form consciousness as you lay there, spent, silently thanking god because you were about three pumps away from having an actual asthma attack.
It was absolutely fucking ridiculous that you were really about to go into respiratory shock over getting fingered, and a small part of you was beginning to wonder if this whole sex thing was gonna work for your lungs.
Had common sense not flown the cuckoos nest that was your brain, you probably would have had the sense to tap out from this session a couple minutes ago to catch your breath.
Unfortunately, the Dumb Bitch Disease you’d contracted at the tender age of 12 decided to make a fierce comeback, and it had you unknowingly ready to die right here on Erik’s couch for a nut.
The coroner might have been able to call you a stupid ass bitch once they received your dead body, but dammit they couldn’t call you a weak one.
Erik finishes cleaning his fingers as you try to revive yourself, and he pulls off his soaked shirt, tossing it over the back of the couch.
Seeing the wet stains still painted around his mouth and the way his pecks jump as he moves makes your breaths go shallow, and you feel yourself start to hyperventilate again.
When he pulls down his pants, his thick, veiny member emerges with a bounce, and its like you can feel the weight of it, even across the couch in your half dead position.  
Your mouth drops open as it starts to water, and you simultaneously start to take in hiccups of breath, your lungs still struggling to breath normally. At the exact wrong time you decide to swallow, and now you’re coughing, chest heaving from the quick jerks you couldn’t control as you sit there and choke on your own spit. This night was quickly turning out to be one of the most mortifying you’d ever had.
Erik stops and peers down at you, the most confused and wild look painting his face.
“….Uhh …baby… you OK?”
You want to wave him off to keep him from worrying, but you’re too busy patting your chest as you finally stop coughing. You try your voice and open your mouth to say something, but all that comes out is a ragged breath that drags out of your lungs, and you sound like a middle aged chain smoker.
“Oh my god… girl are you bout to have a damn asthma attack?!”
“No I’m *gasp* fine I’m just *wheeze* trying to *choke* catch my breath.”
“Really baby. Why you breathin so heavy then.”
“Cuz I’m fucking *wheeze* fat nigga now *struggle* leave me alone.”
He pulls back up his pants and gets off the couch entirely, pacing at the foot of it while you try (and fail) to gather your breath. He would rub at your chest to help soothe you, but he figured he’d already done enough damage so far. He watches you cautiously as he pulls out his phone, fingers moving over the dial pad ready to press send on ‘911’.
“Your lungs sound like a damn bagpipe babe, I’m calling the paramedics.”
“Erik *wheeze*, I swear to god if you call somebody…” You couldn’t think of anything worse right now than having to explain yourself to a room full of officers and EMT’s that the reason they were summoned at 7:00 on a Friday night was because you got too hot and bothered and forgot how to perform the simple task of respiration. The thought alone got you to finally focus, concentrating on the rhythm of your breaths as they grew slower.
“You can’t even breathe right now baby! What I’m gon do, just sit here and watch you suffocate?!”
“Ain’t nobody suffocating, omg.” You were finally able to form full sentences.  “Look, just go in the bathroom and get my inhaler.” See? All you needed was a minute.
“You had that here the WHOLE TIME and you ain’t say nothin!?”
“Erik please…”
After a lingering look, he stalks off into the direction of the bathroom, releasing a frustrated groan at how not serious you were taking this.
“I can’t fucking believe my fucking girlfriend really out here ready to die for the dick and all I did was pull my pants down.”
“Hush boy and bring back a washcloth!” You yell after him, already knowing you’re gonna be paying for that when he gets back.
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Warnings: Fluff, SMUT, Humor,
Here’s to all my asthmatic bitches out there 🥂for not only shall we live by the dick, we shall die by the dick😂😂
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apexart-journal · 3 years
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Tasha Dougé, Day 7
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Good Morning.  I was legit trying to finish these posts since this the weekend.  However, technology made that quite difficult.  I clearly have been taking a bunch of pictures and completely filled my phone up.  If this has happened to you before, the “no space” window that comes up is more than a nuisance.  I was not able to create these images or anything else without freeing up space.  That is what I’ve been doing for the past couple of days.  But that is in the past and we are here now.  Here is what happened on day 7.
I was supposed to leave the apartment by 11am, but it was more like 11:30ish.  (The schedule did say a late morning.)  The directions said to take the R to City Hall and then catch the free Downtown Connection shuttle that stops at Murray and Broadway.  I searched and roamed the area looking for a bus stop and found nothing.  I walked up to the booth behind the gate at City Hall.  One of the cops approached me and asked if I needed help.  I asked if he knew where to catch the free Downtown Connection bus.  Surprised, but not really, he had no clue what I was talking about.  Then he proceeded to tell me that he had worked there for 10 years and that he never saw the bus or heard of it.  Did he just put me is the tourist box?!?  Oh heck NO!!  I had to let him know that I AM a native New Yorker.  I told him that I was given instructions and that the bus existed (even though, I was starting to feel like I was on a wild goose chase).  He was absolutely useless to me at this point.  I texted Abbie (the fellowship Program Director) saying that there was no Downtown Connection bus.  No response...and none needed.  The good Lord and Ancestors must have felt my rising frustration because it that moment of arrrrggggghhhh, the bus/van showed up in all of its Firetruck Red Realness with the words Downtown Connection written in white across the side.  Thank You and Thank Goodness!!  Unfortunately because I had to make a quick dash across the street to catch it and I didn’t have the opportunity to show the cop the bus really exists.  10 years at the same post and he missed this big red vehicle.  My thoughts on that would be a whole other post.  So I am going to leave that right there and move forward because the day got back on track.
During the ride to my next destination, I was asking myself why didn’t I know about this bus?  You can be a native and still not know a hell of a lot and that has been confirmed through this whole journey.  The stops are not clear or marked, so if you don’t know or have the map, you will miss it.  I got off my stop and walked to the Irish Hunger Memorial.  As I approached it, it just looks like an area of grasslands.  I felt like Stonehenge was nearby.  However, when you walk around, it reveals itself to be so much more.  Words, stories, and history line the walls and there was a voice sharing them overhead.  I had no idea about the Great Irish Hunger, in which about one million starved to death between 1845 - 1852 due to policies imposed by the British.  No words.  The memorial also speaks to hunger and famine on a global scale.  I wanted to learn more, but the app is unavailable for android users.  RUDE.  After a walk throughout the whole space, my Samsung and I grabbed something to eat and went to the park to reflect.  
I was given some prompts.  How has it been away from my apt/studio, have I thought about my art, what has my mindset been around the activities, what has surprised me and such?  Being away from home and the studio has been fine.  But baby, there have definitely been times where it was difficult to turn off the things that were inspiring me to make art.  I have quite a few things waiting for me in the parking lot.  Staten Island was a surprise for me and has piqued my curiosity for sure.  Thus far, this journey hasn’t taught me anything new about NYC.  Rather, it has affirmed that there is so much that NYC has to offer and that there is always something more to learn.  I love this place.  Now off to the Empire State Building.
I think the last time I was here, I was in elementary school.  Yall, do the math cuz I’m 40 now.  Lol.  This time was different.  Not only am I much older and can appreciate it more, I was gifted with an executive pass for the day.  That meant I got to skip lines and walk down red carpets.  To be clear, there weren’t that many people there.  There was one group that tried to follow me onto the red carpet and I had to let them know it was for executive pass holders only.  It felt like a VIP moment, but there wasn’t a lot of glitz and glam.  When I reached the exhibitions, I noticed that the express lane was a bit watered down.  Nothing but pictures on the wall.  However, the other side was rich and robust with sketches, history, 3D models and interactive components.  I asked the attendant to make sure my assessment was correct and they confirmed my suspicions.  So with that, I ditched the express lane and fully submerged myself in all of ESB’s glory.  There was so much to take in, but the piece on teamwork really stood out.  The placard read, “TEAMWORK: The high-altitude rivet teams performed dangerous work and fully relied upon one another to get the job done.  If a member were absent, the team would not work.”  Wow and more WOW!  Think about that for a sec.  Imagine what work culture would be like now if this was still held up to be true.  Indispensable where?  The level of value one would feel is beyond what our current society knows.  It makes sense as to why and how the Empire State Building was built in record time. Trust and value were core the vision.  And to know I would have missed this if I stayed on the express lane.  It makes me think about the quote, “If you want to go fast, go alone; but if you want to go far, go together.”  Together, lets continue with upward and forward.  That was floor 80.  Next stops are floors 86 & 102.   
The view is spectacular from the 86 floor.  Aside from the view outside, the view inside is just as spectacular.  That is thanks to the artistry of renowned artist Stephen Wiltshire.  In 2017, he took at 45 minute helicopter ride around the city and in five days drew the landscape, including the ESB, from memory.  And he did that in front of a live audience in the Observatory.  The walls are now lined with the replica of his work.  Come through with the Black Excellence!  The only thing that could top that is the top of the Empire State Building.  I have never been and this is where the Executive pass came through.  Others would have to upgrade their tickets.  So this was a perk.  In a flash, I went from 86 to 102 and it makes a world of difference.  Listen folks.  For my 30th birthday, I jumped out a plane.  15,000 feet above ground and I wasn’t nervous at all.  However, that wasn’t the case here.  There is something about heights and stillness that always reminds you that you are in a ménage-à-trois with gravity.  I eased my way to the edge and stared out in awe and wonder and gratitude.  In awe of what has been made and the people who made it, in wonder of the person(s) with the vision to dream of such a marvel, and gratitude to be in a position to take it all in and question. 
Shoutout to attendants Alfredo, Sophia and Jere.  It was a pleasure talking to them and sharing laughs.  They are there to guide us, but they have stories too.  And now they are a part of mine. I told Sophia if I decide to go bungee-jumping, that I would come back and tell her all about it.  Visiting the Empire State Building reminded me that as a native NYer, I should carve out time to relish in all the marvels she has to offer.  I got you NYC.  Note:  The opening of the ESB happened on May 30th and Patti LaBelle was born May 24.  That means I am in good Gemini company. 
Last but not least, Trivia and Karaoke!  If you know me, then you know.  I love trivia and I legit have my own Karaoke mic.  This was a fundraiser for CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities.  Teams had already been established, but I learned a lot from the trivia and the Karaoke contest was hilarious.  I appreciated the trivia that spoke the connection to other communities, including Black communities.  There was a wealth of resources shared in the chat and I was able to tie what I learned from the Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA) to the conversation.  It felt great to apply what I have learned in real time.  It only affirms for me how much of this process I have taken in.  
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