#Andante the goat

[masked-alien-lesbian]

Stardew Valley Farmer x Penny

Oops....I'm on my Stardew Valley bs again. I just love Penny so much! So meet Ren, my farmer girl with her best friend Apollo and her girlfriend/fiancee/wife, Penny!

#I'm working on giving my wife #The kids she wants #But there's so much to do in this game #But she'll want for nothing #If I can help it #stardew valley #not choices #penny stardew valley #Penny x player #stardew farmer #Stardew farmer x penny #There's also Eggbert and Chick Flick the chickens #Lackie and Chocolate the cows #Andante the goat #And Vivace the horse #So far

[stardustshimmer]

Metronome is a soft-ripened fresh cheese made from pasteurized goat and cow's milk, made by Andante Dairy in California, United States. This pyramid shaped cheese with flat top has a typical tang of goat's milk. A firm texture near the edges with a pale yellow, creamy, smooth paste makes this cheese very special in taste. It has a typical yet subtle goaty tang and a melt-in-the-mouth taste that intensifies as the cheese ages.

Bro who woke up and decided to name a cheese after a metronome

#random asks #stardust's mystical mailbox #food mention

[natequarter]

Rules: pick a song for each letter of your url and tag that many people.

thanks for the tags from @jovienna @ginevralinton and @thelastplantagenet!

No Children by The Mountain Goats

Andante, Andante by ABBA

The Humours Of Whiskey by Colm R. McGuinness

Elle me dit by MIKA

Queen by Loren Gray

Under Pressure by Queen and David Bowie

Andalouse by Kendji Girac

Ruby by Kaiser Chiefs

Take Me To Church by Hozier

Empire by Beth Crowley

Riptide by Vance Joy

i'm lazy, so tagging anyone who wishes to join!

[silverbladexyz]

Music URL tag game!

Tagged by: @the-mourning-stars

Tags: @pixyys @ashthemadwriter @i-just-like-goats @chuuyasboner @nekokinax @angolicious @anyone else that wants to join

S: Stay with me- Sam Smith

I: I walk the line- Halsey

L: Lovely- Billie Eilish ft. Khalid

V: Valse Op 64. No. 2 - Frederic Chopin

E: Erlkonig - Franz Schubert

R: Reason Living- Bungou Stray Dogs Op 2

B: Bad Blood- Taylor Swift

L: La Campanella- Franz Liszt

A: Andante, Symphony No. 40- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

D: Dark Horse - Katy Perry

E: Everything I wanted- Billie Eilish

X: X & Y- Coldplay

Y: You & I- One Direction

Z: Zoom- Jessi

Btw I don’t listen to all of them, it’s just that I really couldn’t think of anything else lol

#silverbladexyz

[slam-dunkrai]

tag game time :~)

You can often tell a lot about a person by the music they listen to. Put your favourite playlist/music library on shuffle and list the first ten songs that come up, then tag ten people to do the same. No skipping!

got tagged in this one by @shadowtriad​; cheers as ever! using just my musicbee play history for this one because I’ve not gotten round to making a big favourites playlist and my entire music library includes stuff I’ve not gotten round to listening to yet. (entirely too much of it, in fact.)

anyway, the songs that came up:

#1: Héctor Lavoe - Hacha y Machete #2: The Mountain Goats - Peacocks #3: Prefab Sprout - Technique #4: Injury Reserve - Ground Zero #5: Portishead - Threads #6: MF DOOM - Kon Karne #7: Sparks - Eaten by the Monster of Love #8: Strapping Young Lad - Home Nucleonics (volume warning) #9: Béla Bartók - String Quartet No. 5, BB 110 (Sz.102) - 4. Andante #10: Magdalena Bay - Dawning of the Season

gonna actually tag people for once, but absolutely no pressure at all to do it, hehe. if you’d rather not be tagged in future, don’t hesitate to let me know! - @kewrhone @bayalexison @alparlaboratories​

#tag games #if you've sent me some of these and i've forgotten to do them sorry about that! my brain is swiss cheese. i appreciate the thought tho :) #also feel free to opt in and do this even if i didn't tag you

[drawing-way-outside-the-lines]

Luthais McKinney (Pronounced Luw-iy) *Supporting character

Voice Claim: (Dougray Scott) https://youtu.be/5TJ8nq2nwSw?t=14

Partner(s): Mathilda McKinney. Parents: Moira & Keir McKinney. Kids: Duncan, Finlay & Maighread (That he knows of, but quite possible has a bunch more) Siblings: Evander, Seonaid, Nathaira & Achaius. Age: Immortal but translates into late 30′s Birthday: He doesn’t know, so celebrates it whenever he feels like it. Height: 173cm (5.6ft) Body type: Slim but toned. Eye color: Extremely light blue, almost looks blind. Classification: Immortal/Demon. Known powers: Flash Step (The power to use bursts of speed to move faster than the eye can track, making it seem as if one has teleported.) Meteor Summoning (The power to summon or create meteors and have them crash down at the targets.) Meta Matter (The user can create, shape, manipulate, summon, destroy and customize all possible forms of matter, whether organic or inorganic, baryonic or non-baryonic, etc.) About: Confident, Disciplined, Articulate, Elegant, Intellectual, Dominant, Playful, Adaptable, Charming, Daring, Rational, Observant, Focused, Independent, Logical, Flirtatious, Reflective, Confidential and at times Flamboyant. ~ Has long wavy light copper toned hair. ~ Sexuality: Omnisexual. ~ From the Scottish side of the McKinney clan. ~ Speaks with a thick Scottish Accent. ~ Is very well spoken. ~ Is quite casual, don’t let the appearance fool you. ~ Rarely uses any of his powers, cause he knows there’s a fine line, and it will eventually draw his demon out. ~ Is an excellent cook. ~ Is an extremely naughty boy. ~ Rarely complains, and takes everything as it is. ~ Very skilled botanist. (An expert in or student of the scientific study of plants.) ~ Doesn’t like cats claims they piss on his plants. ~ Doesn’t like insects - another enemy of his plants!  ~ Smells like: Plants. ~ Likes to go to the Opera. He doesn’t like Opera, he just like to casually observe, hoping for someones head to pop. ~ Is an excellent horseback rider. ~ Very skilled at fencing. ~ Flirts with ANYONE. ~ Gets bored easily and moves on to next victim. ~ Hates rain, snow is even worse! ~ Once pretended to be French for a century, just because. ~ Doesn’t live with his wife, though he’s still married and cares for her. He’ll drop by once in a while to visit, and sometimes stays with her for weeks, months or years, to rekindle the romance and love. ~ Rarely speaks with his children although they are on great terms, he’s just not much of a family man. ~ Is often referred to as the ‘Vampire’ which makes him absolutely furious! ~ Don’t care much for traditions. ~ Dabbles in magic. ~ Is a very good listener. ~ Is often called Louie, by people close to him. ~ Collects skulls. Any kind, doesn’t matter. A skull is a skull. ~ Can be a bit of a sneaky person, that is hard to figure out. ~ Finds vegans one of the greatest entertainment sources. ~ Would never participate in any form of sport. ~ Can be a bit arrogant at times. ~ Loves: Sex, Mead, crystals, honey, shiny things, plants, cheese, sleeping, bathing in goats milk, sunflower seeds, lamb chops, garlic, Rosemary, Thyme, dark chocolate covered cherries, Bourbon, Peach wine, roasted duck, needlepoint and mani-pedicures. ~ His style is: Very formal but with some color and sassiness to it. ~ Is a very skilled piano and Cello player.

Luthais’s tag Luthais’s house/home Luthais’s moodboard Handwriting/ask answer pic:

One song to describe him: Franz Liszt - Un Sospiro Personal Playlist: 1. Debussy - Rêverie 2. Chopin - Nocturne op.9 No.2 3. Rachmaninov - Prelude in C Sharp Minor 4. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Symphony No. 25 in G minor 5. Beethoven - Moonlight Sonata 6. Bach - Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major 7. Prokofiev - Dance of the Knights 8. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Piano Concerto No. 21 - Andante 9. Beethoven -  Silence 10. Claude Debussy: The Girl with the Flaxen Hair 11. Robert Schumann - Traumerei 12. Schubert - Serenade 13. Chopin - Spring Waltz (Mariage d'Amour) 14. Sergei Prokofiev - Crusaders In Pskov 15. Frédéric Chopin's "Raindrop" Prelude, Op 28, No. 15 16. Ludwig van Beethoven: Ode an die Freude 17. Johann Sebastian Bach - Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 (Allegro-Adagio) 18. Schubert - Ave Maria 19. Alexander Scriabin - Fantasy in B minor, Op. 28 20. Sergei Prokofiev - Battle On The Ice

#Luthais McKinney #immortal #supernatural #demon #Scottish demon #simographysup #ts3 #sims3 #sims 3 #simblr

[phoebe-fucking-bridgers]

Tag me

Rules: answer these 30 questions and then tag 20 people you'd like to get to know better.

Tagged by: @justawhitewall ty love!!

Name/nickname: mill, rebecca

Gender: nb

Star sign: libra

Height: like 5’6” - 5’7” I think

Time: just gone half seven

Birthday: October 11th

Favourite bands: led zeppelin, the mountain goats, joan jett & the blackhearts, the rolling stones, dorothy, the pretty reckless, crooked still, fleetwood mac, tears for fears

Favourite solo artists: lorde, phoebe bridgers, fiona apple, orville peck, nina simone, etta james, billie holiday, blondie

Song stuck in my head: andante, andante - abba

Last movie I watched: moulin rouge

Last show: the x files (hell yeah)

When did I create this blog: fuck knows maybe a couple of years ago? But I’ve been on here longer

What I post: video games, whatever shows I’m enjoying, writing stuff, basically anything that makes me laugh

Other blogs: I don’t have the energy for that kind of commitment in my life

Last thing I googled: ad noctum

Do I get asks: more than I answer lmao, usually for prompts and stuff I’m just bad at doing them sorry

Why I chose my url: it’s phoebe fucking bridgers babey, I liked the story behind her website name

Following: 54

Followers: 164

Average hours of sleep: anywhere between four and ten tbh

Lucky number: 6

Instruments: just guitar but it’d be nice to learn piano someday

What I am wearing: just pyjamas and a hoody . and a blanket (I’m getting nesh)

Dream trip: anywhere really, maybe back to iceland, or st petersburg, yellowstone, rome

Favourite food: ooh I prefer to cook but if I had to chose, pizza, veggie burgers, or a roast dinner, I eat olives out the jar so the bar really is on the floor

Nationality: bloody british

Last book I read: the princess bride

Top three fictional worlds I’d like to live in: most of the fictional worlds I like are pretty dark . . I honestly can’t think of one that’d be great, can I just say smth like stardew valley?

Favourite colour: blue

Tagging @moonshaunted @fantasmagoriam @campsearchlight @whaattheme @ultrastimpaks @shadowhrts @glutaminase @lady-tabris @imnotamosquito and idk whoever else wants to do it

#personal #thank you!! sorry I’m boring

[pentanguine]

Ask Meme #??

I suppose I have tagged myself from @overelegantstranger, because like everyone else I am bored and looking for distractions.

1. Nickname: I’ve never successfully had a nickname, probably because my name is already a nickname and it doesn’t lend itself to being further nicked. I go by Python on the internet, and I also feel attached to the name Eric, but no one actually calls me either of those things.

2. Zodiac sign: Capricorn. I am perpetually annoyed by the knowledge that astrology is entirely made up and I am, nevertheless, a very stereotypical Capricorn.

3. Height: 5’3”

4. Hogwarts house: Ravenclaw, with a healthy dose of Slytherin.

5. Last thing I googled: “cataloguer” I don’t know how to spell my own job title (technically my job title is “intern,” but cataloguer sounds fancier)

6. Favourite musicians: Coldplay, MCR, The Story So Far, Enter Shikari, The Spook School, The 1975, Julien Baker, The Mountain Goats, Creeper, Linkin Park, The Killers.

7. Song stuck in my head: Primadonna, by Marina and the Diamonds

8. Following now: 175, but I just went through them yesterday to see how many were still active and it’s only 43. So.

9. Followers: Between this and my main blog, I have exactly 1,000 followers. I’ll leave the distribution of those followers up to the imagination.

10. Do I get asks: No. Sometimes my friends ask me things when I reblog ask memes, but other than that it’s dead up in here.

11. Amount of sleep: Last night I got six hours of sleep because I stayed up absurdly late listening to Lady Gaga and talking about Minecraft and sourdough starters. Generally I manage about 8.

12. Lucky number: 17. I feel like it gets overlooked

13. What I’m wearing: Black owl socks, jean shorts, a black t-shirt

14. Dream job: Librarian. I’m not really picky about what kind—I think ideally I’d like to be a reference librarian at a university, but I’d also be happy working in circ, acquisitions, admin, really anything. Except children’s programming because I don’t really like children. I thought I was attached to the idea of an academic library, but I’ve been working in a special library the past seven months and have been enjoying the eclectic knowledge you get from working with very specific collections, so that’s also something I’m excited about now. Really, I’m just generally excited about this career path.

15. Dream trip: Literally anywhere. I’ve only been off work for a week and I’d kill to go to South Carolina just for the exotic gas prices.

16. Favourite food: Medium-rare steak, brown rice with butter, sautéed spinach, Devil’s Food chocolate cake. This is the meal I’ve had for my birthday every year in living memory, and it cannot be improved upon.

17. Instruments: I…took piano lessons for four years and can technically still read sheet music. It’s a halting, andante, mezzo-piano affair that really only gets dusted off around Christmas.

18. Languages: I’m a native English speaker, and I can read French pretty fluently, write French passably well, speak French conversationally, and understand spoken French if I have subtitles. I tried to teach myself Welsh in high school, which was unsuccessful, and then I moved onto learning Icelandic through Sigur Rós songs. This was also…mostly unsuccessful. I can’t speak Spanish, but with my knowledge of English and French I can usually get the gist of written Spanish.

19. Favourite song: Hunger Strike, by Temple of the Dog; It’s Not Living If It’s Not With You, by The 1975; Don Quixote, by Coldplay; The Kids From Yesterday, by MCR; Try To Be Hopeful, by The Spook School; In Bloom, by Neck Deep. I can never decide which one I love more than the others, but they’re all up there.

20. Random fact: I have an accident-prone cat with a missing tail, a missing toe, classic ear notches, a benign tumor on his cheek, a urinary tract disorder, FIV, and about half a life left. I also can’t float.

21. Aesthetic: Itinerant scholar/wizard wandering in the woods. Something eclectic, mysterious, reserved, prone to wearing black capes and emerging abruptly from the shadows covered in leaf litter.

#personal #anyone and everyone do feel free to tag yourselves

[allondonboy]

Medicine for the Soul (Ch 9)

Chapter 9 - Andante: tutti  (Ch 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)

very much tutti. 

bind responsibly folks. if you need information my tumblr is open or please contact your binding person of choice

thanks for your patience with this little fic, feedback is always welcomed

thanks as always to @jjeanmorreau

J’onn gives them a list of accompanists to work through. It’s long, with maybe twenty names, and Alex lets the list sit on top of their pile of music for a full week before having a closer look. The issue, they realise as their stomach twists, is that they have to be open with whoever they choose. They have to make themselves completely vulnerable with whoever is playing the concerto with them.

And that involves coming out.

They haven’t bothered with declaring their pronouns to the rest of their academic year. It doesn’t affect how well they work in the lab because they never hang around long enough to have a conversation. They’re polite to the staff and the staff are polite back and somehow they’ve avoided any situation in which they hear themselves referred to in the third person. It’s a complete non-issue.

One-on-one, for an hour, maybe hours on end, is a different story.

Their accompanist will be the first time they’ve opened their social circle – even if it’s for the purely perfunctory purpose of entering a competition – since Maggie, and Maggie was definitely a special case of at-least-she’s-heard-the-terminology.

Before they know it, they’ve spiralled, and they crush up the list of names in a tight fist.

Lucy doesn’t really do affection and that’s probably one of the reasons they’re such good friends. There’s no time wasted with feelings when you can blurt what you’re thinking and know the other person will roll with it.

This is the one time Alex hesitates about talking to Lucy. The memory of Lucy coming out to them as bi plays itself on loop. It helps, knowing that Lucy was nervous about that. It makes it okay to be nervous about this.

Because they’ve done the reading and the research, and they have the back of a notebook full of evidence and analysis of their thought process, and they have a conclusion, underlined twice.

Non-binary.

It makes sense.

Lucy feels like the natural person to tell first. Secrets are part of her life, partly because so many people keep secrets from her, and if there’s one person Alex knows they can trust with this next jigsaw piece of their life, it’s her.

They’re still nervous, though.

What if Lucy is one of those people who can comprehend sexuality but not gender identity?

What if gay is okay, bi is fine, but this is a step too far?

What if their pronouns are where she draws the line in this friendship of over a decade?

Logically, there’s nothing in Lucy’s character that would result in the What Ifs becoming real. Alex has listened to enough of Lucy’s rants about how justice should be for all corners of the community to know that the chance of Lucy completely accepting them is greater than 95 %.

It’s then that Lucy pops up next to their shoulder with her bag on her back, waving a spare water bottle under Alex’s nose until they take it.

“Race ya,” is all she says in greeting before she takes off up the path with the grace of a mountain goat. Alex sighs and trudges after her.

It’s pure chance that Alex is walking past the practice room when its occupant stretches. Around their wrist is a woven bracelet in rainbow colours and another in what Alex knows with heart-stopping familiarity is the non-binary flag.

Alex pauses outside the ajar door. The person reveals themselves to be a pianist when they crack their knuckles and launch into a set of whirling scales. Alex stays outside for another half hour until the pianist stands, shovels their music into their bag and abruptly stops when they see Alex watching them.

“I need an accompanist,” says Alex bluntly. “How much do you charge?”

“Depends who it is,” the pianist says. They cross their arms and look Alex up and down. “What’s it for?”

“Concerto competition.” Alex doesn’t budge from the doorway.

The pianist nods. “Instrument?”

“Violin.”

“I’m Vasquez.” They hold out their hand and Alex shakes it firmly, and they can’t stop their eyes flicking down to Vasquez’s wrist.

“Alex. Danvers.”

“My card, Danvers. Now, I have class, if you don’t mind?”

Alex makes a mental note to get something to put their growing collection of business cards in as they take it and sidestep out of the way to let Vasquez past.

They don’t choose their moment. It just sort of happens as they near the top of the hill and pause for a snack.

“I want to start using they/them pronouns,” Alex says abruptly and Lucy keeps her eyes trained carefully on their face.

“Sure,” she says, an air of nonchalance about the word though it’s loaded with an invitation to expand.

“I’m non-binary,” offers Alex by way of explanation and Lucy’s gaze still doesn’t waver.

“That’s really cool, Al.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. I’m glad you figured out whatever was on your mind.”

“Wait – you knew?”

The corner of Lucy’s mouth twitches in a part-smirk, part-smile. “Crinkle.”

Alex repeats it under their breath with a scowl.

“Yeah, like that,” Lucy points. “I knew something was bothering you. I didn’t know it was gender-related.”

“And you’re okay with it?”

Lucy smiles properly now, eyes soft and Alex feels like they’ve just been hugged. “I’m fine with it. You know, we’ve been through some tough shit together. It’ll take more than an identity crisis to get rid of me.”

Alex exhales loudly. “Thanks.”

“Thanks yourself.” Lucy digs into her bag and chucks Alex a bag of trail mix. “Who else knows?”

“Just you.” Alex watches her out of the corner of their eye. A flicker of confusion, then pride, passes over Lucy’s face.

“Did you want to have a play through now?” Vasquez waves them into their apartment and shuts the door, leading them through to a room at the back of the house which, Alex sees now, houses a gleaming upright piano, music stacked in piles all around the room. Alex fidgets with the strap over their shoulder.

“I only really came to give you this.” They hold out the accompaniment. Vasquez takes it and sits on the piano stool, kicking their feet out as they open it up. “Markings are inside.”

“Finally, a musician who knows what they’re doing,” Vasquez mutters and spins to lift up the lid and fold the music out in front of them. They wiggle their fingers and quickly play the first couple of measures with their right hand. Making a pleased noise in the back of their throat, they turn back to Alex who has their eyes closed, and coughs quietly. Alex’s eyes fly open.

“I’ve got a couple of hours free just now. You can put your case there.” Vasquez points to their rather large windowsill. “I’ll get a stand.”

Free of having to make the decision themselves, Alex does as instructed and takes a series of deep breaths as they apply resin to their bow, trying desperately to calm the panic that did its best to overcome them every time they even thought of playing in front of someone new.

“Have you thought about telling Kara? And your parents?”

“Kara yes, Mom and Dad no.” Alex sighs.

“From what I know about Kara, I don’t think she’ll have an issue with it,” says Lucy carefully.

“Is it fair to her for me to tell her, though?”

“Is it fair to you to not?”

“But can I ask her to keep it a secret? I mean, you know what she’s like with secrets, Lucy.”

“She’s okay with important stuff. You want to tell her at some point, right?”

“Yeah.” Alex sighs again and rubs their forehead. “I don’t like keeping things from her. But I don’t want to spook her.”

“Spook her?”

“I don’t want her to think that I’m not me anymore. I am still me.”

“She’ll know that, Alex.”

“How will she? She still has nightmares about the family she’s already lost. I can’t go to her and say ‘hey, the sister you thought you knew, the one who promised to protect you and love you no matter what? Well, she’s not who you thought she was.’”

“You said it yourself. You’re the same person.”

“Yes, but she doesn’t know that.” Frustration leaks into Alex’s voice and they hunch further into themselves. “She doesn’t know that I’ll still protect her and love her. She doesn’t know that I’m not abandoning her.”

“Give Kara some credit,” says Lucy. “She’s not going to think you’re abandoning her.”

“No? Lucy, she thinks I know everything. Not – not school stuff, not smart stuff, but she thinks I know everything about how this world works. So how can I confess that I am just as baffled by it, by my own mind as any other human being?”

“Alex,” breathes Lucy. Alex knows then that she’s seen straight through them. “None of this makes you weak.”

“I know, but…” Alex struggles for a moment. “The one thing I’ve always been able to rely on is my mind, and now I’m doubting everything I’ve ever known about myself and that is fucking scary.”

“But it’s also okay. Kara will get it. Doubting yourself is part of being human.”

“Oh yeah, Kara will get that,” snorts Alex. Lucy sticks her tongue out and some of the tension seeps out of Alex’s shoulders.

“Not my fault you have an alien for a sister. Some of us have flawed humans instead, thank God.”

Alex is silent for a moment. When they speak again, they can’t stop the panic clinging to their words.

“Lucy, how do I tell her I don’t want to be called her sister?”

They don’t hear Lucy’s reply the first time she gives it. They force their eyes to refocus on Lucy whose hand is squeezing their shoulder tight.

“You don’t have to stop being her sister. Gender neutral language is there if you want to use it, but you don’t have to.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever been her sister,” says Alex. They stare at Lucy, who is still watching them with more patience than they’ve ever seen her exhibit. Their heart continues to pound. “Ever since she arrived, we’ve always been the Danvers sisters. People have taken us as a package deal. The Danvers Sisters, who should come with a warning. Y’know. All that stuff. A unit. But I don’t think I’ve ever felt like a sister, exactly. It’s not a wrong description, just not the best fit. So maybe sibling is.”

Being around Vasquez is comfortable. There’s no personal information exchanged at any of their meetings. They interact for the music only, and it’s freeing.

Alex doesn’t bring up gender, and neither does Vasquez, though Alex suspects they have an inkling. Alex runs into Vasquez’s girlfriend as they’re leaving a rehearsal one evening and they shake her hand with a tight smile.

They know for sure that Vasquez knows after their first attempt at playing while binding. It’s only then that Alex realises how long their break from the violin had been. By the time they’d found both the courage and the funds to buy their first binder, their violin had to have been collecting dust for a matter of years, so they hadn’t thought twice about scheduling a two-hour practice with Vasquez on a binding day.

Alex plays for half an hour before their side twinges and their bow stutters on the strings. Vasquez waits patiently for them to stretch and they continue, fingers hammering away, barely making it to the end of the movement before they have to stretch again. They think nothing of it until they enter a fast passage and the number of breaths they’re taking isn’t getting them the amount of air they need and they stop abruptly.

Their heart is pounding and their head starting to swim a little, and Alex takes three stumbling steps to the side to put down their violin and lean against the wall, breathing as deeply as possible and feeling more claustrophobic than they’ve ever felt in their life.

“Bathroom?” they manage to squeeze out, and Vasquez points them to it without a word. They fumble with their shirt buttons and grip the hem of their binder as tightly as they can, peeling it up until they can take an unrestricted breath in. They begin to relax, binder still tangled around their shoulders, arms around their head, and give two hefty coughs.

“You have to learn to breathe with the music.”

Alex frowns as they take in these new instructions. “Why?”

“Think of this piece, any piece, as a series of musical sentences. It makes no sense if you play it without phrasing those sentences, just as it makes no sense to perform a play in a monotonous voice.”

Alex doesn’t look convinced.

Eventually, Alex pulls their binder off. They stay in the bathroom, sat on the closed lid of the toilet, running the material through their fingers as they work out an escape plan.

Vasquez comes to the rescue when they knock, and Alex realises how long they’ve been in there.

“Danvers, all okay?”

“Yeah,” they reply shortly. Embarrassment runs up their neck, red.

“Do you want to borrow a baggy hoodie?”

Alex sits up a bit. “Please.” They listen as footsteps retreat and then return, and they pop the lock on the door to crack it open. Vasquez’s hand dangles a deep blue, almost unfairly soft-looking hoodie where they think Alex’s hands are and Alex takes it, gratefully.

As they pull it on and fold their binder into a small enough wad to stuff in their back pocket, Alex concedes to themselves that Maggie’s point, made as she set up in another bar, about meeting other people in the community being useful and nice might have been a good one.

“Have you ever watched a really, really good orchestra play? Have you noticed that before they start, everyone takes a deep breath, together? String players, percussionists, the conductor, as well as the musicians who need to actually blow into their instruments. That’s because it’s part of the music.”

Alex did the research before they bought the binder. They know the risks, the safety concerns, and as much as they hate it, they take a week’s break from binding while their ribs recover and they get their confidence in their playing back. It’s okay for the days when they don’t mind their chest not being so flat. It’s okay for lab days, where they’ve long made their peace with the fact that an eight-hour lab session followed by another five in the library is several hours’ binding too many – and anyway, their lab coat covers most of what they want to hide. The other days?

They’re hell.

There’s no reason, absolutely no reason at all why they should feel like this.

But they do.

It’s unsettling.

Both in how it just appears and how it feels, the sensation of something being not quite right and yet they can’t put their finger on what.

The dysphoria sets in early one morning before they’ve even properly woken up, and for the first time, Alex seriously contemplates skipping classes to hide under their duvet. Instead, they bundle up in far too many layers for the weather with their favourite beanie and jeans and brave the unsuspecting lecture theatre.

They barely last the day. As soon as their last lecture finishes, they’re rushing back to change into their baggy shorts and two-sizes-too-big hoodie. It’s the wrong size by accident, but when they wear it and slouch a little, it’s almost as good as their binder, and brings with it a sense of relief that nearly makes Alex cry.

Rao.

It’s

dysphoria.

And

and suddenly that makes so much sense because if there is one feeling that characterises discomfort or distress at the mismatch between what Eliza says and what their heart feels then this is it, this is it,

it’s dysphoria.

But having the label for this godawful feeling that they’ve had before doesn’t help and if anything, it makes it worse because there is nothing they can do.

Nothing.

So they go for a run.

They bind.

They contemplate, just for a moment, pulling out their violin but no, no, bad, bad idea.

They bind and they wear their favourite jeans that hide their hips and their favourite beanie that makes their jaw look sharper and their favourite shirt that hugs their shoulders and their hoodie, their faithful hoodie.

Their mind is fogged up and numb. It lingers for days, and they know Lucy has noticed now because Alex is not quite as sharp with their comebacks as they usually are, they’re not as bothered about the mud on the floor or the noise Lucy makes coming in early in the morning.

Maggie notices, and Alex fights the instinct to push her away and hide.

Instead, they try to do their best to explain. Maggie tries to understand. They’re sure they botch the explanation of what’s wrong amid disgusted mumbles about silhouettes and reflections and clothes that don’t hang the way they should.

It’s just one of those things, they suppose, that’s hard to understand if you’ve never experienced it.

Nevertheless, the discomfort sits on the back of their tongue and they curl up on their bed with the latest edition of Nature – the one piece of post Eliza is never late at sending on – and retreat behind the familiar shield of science. It helps, the tiniest bit.

Gone is the unease they’d felt at the idea of grieving in the room they shared with Lucy. In its place is the terror at being anywhere outside the room where they could be seen, and it completely slips their mind that they’re meant to be meeting Maggie at the library.

“Danvers?”

No.

No no no no Maggie can’t see them like this, no. Telling her about it and seeing her react to them as this wreck are two completely different things.

“Al, you in there?”

There’s scraping of keys in the lock and Alex wonders just for a second when they gave Maggie a key (and how they had a key to give her) but then two of their three favourite people are pouring through the door and the concern isn’t just on Lucy’s face but on Maggie’s too.

Concern, and not disgust.

Alex’s initial reaction is to dart off their bed and stand awkwardly by their desk, hand in their hair as though everything is fine.

They ignore the exchanged look that means Maggie and Lucy have seen right through them.

“Hey, guys,” they say. “Good day? How’re you both doing? Everything’s good here.”

“Cut it out, Alex.” They can tell Maggie means business in that take-no-shit way of hers. She folds her arms and shifts her weight onto one leg and eyeballs them, hard. “What can I do? To help you?”

Alex shrugs and folds their own arms.

“What do you usually do?”

“None of that’s working,” Alex grits out. “I – it – usually I can work my way through this but it’s not working, and I don’t know why.”

They slowly slip back onto their bed. Lucy and Maggie settle either side of them. The three sit in silence until Maggie gives a deep sigh, squeezing Alex’s knee.

“I have a friend – from my own support group, you really should give them a try – who’s dating someone non-binary. I can see if they’d be willing to meet you, or we could meet up the four of us, or something. It’s got to be better than this, right?”

She has a point. And even though they can think of very few things worse than having to talk about feelings with a stranger - even a stranger vetted by Maggie – the prospect of someone understanding what this feels like is quite attractive.

***

It turns out to be the thing that helps most in perhaps the most surprising way, because this non-binary acquaintance is actually Vasquez.

They didn’t know Maggie and Vasquez’s girlfriend knew each other.

Vasquez didn’t know that Maggie and Alex knew each other either, apparently.

Maggie goes to introduce Alex to Vasquez and Erin and sees the nods of recognition the three of them share.

Somehow Vasquez knows them well enough to let them take the lead and Alex stumbles through an explanation because gender and music in the same space? Unchartered, unsettling territory. Maggie, thankfully, doesn’t press it, but with the furrow in her brow, Alex can see her marking it as a conversation for later.

Maggie and Erin head for the pool table while Vasquez settles opposite Alex at the booth. Alex can sense it coming – and it’s hard to not bolt, but they trust Maggie and they trust Vasquez to a point and if Maggie thinks this could help them, then, well. It’s worth a try, they reckon. In their head, they nod decisively, and they sit a little taller.

“Alright, Danvers?” says Vasquez casually and Alex nods again, leaning back and taking a sip of lukewarm beer. Vasquez leans closer, clearly not one to beat around the bush. “Erin said that Maggie said you wanted to meet more people like us.”

Alex stiffens despite themselves.

“I’m part of a group who do game nights and trips to the movies, stuff like that. It’s a group where none of us are cis.”

Impossibly, Alex stiffens more.

“You don’t have to make any proper commitment,” continues Vasquez as they study the collection of beer mats on the table, avoiding eye contact that Alex doesn’t want to make. “I can let you know when we’re meeting and you can decide on a case by case basis, if you’d like.”

Alex gives a shrug. They want it to be dismissive, but it ends up more curious.

“And listen. This kind of chat isn’t my forte either, but I know what it’s like to feel alone with…stuff like this, and I want you to know that I’m here for you as much or as little as you want me to be. It doesn’t change anything that happens musically between us. And we never have to speak about this again.”

“Sounds great,” manages Alex. Vasquez’s eyes twinkle at them in a relieved smirk.

“What do you say we go and show them how to really play pool?”

Alex gratefully follows them to where their girlfriends are setting up a new game. Alex leans into Maggie’s side and wraps an arm around her waist, leaning down to whispers a ‘thank you’ in her ear. Maggie squeezes their hand briefly and hip checks them as she hands them her cue.

***

“Why do you not talk about your music?”

It comes out of the blue as they walk hand-in-hand to Maggie’s room. Alex sighs.

“It’s not a criticism,” clarifies Maggie. “You’re intensely private about it, even with me. Even with Lucy.”

“Are you not?”

“How could I? I play in public more than anything else. I guess, I don’t have the luxury of privacy when it comes to music.”

Alex chews their lip. “Kara…and my mom. They’ve been the priority since Dad died, y’know? It never ends well if I express any sort of opinion at home and I think,” they say slowly, “that part of me still feels ashamed that I’m doing something that lets me be angry at the universe for taking Dad.”

Maggie hms beside them. “I’m sorry, Alex.”

“Oh, it’s, eh,” dismisses Alex.

“No.” Maggie spins them so she can look up seriously into Alex’s eyes. “The days of you pushing down your feelings are officially over, Alex.”

Alex doesn’t know what to do with that, so they just kiss her.

#nb!alex #sanvers #sanvers au #sanvers fic #alex danvers #medicine for the soul #my fic #i appear to have lost the ability to put in page breaks #hm #hey ho #enjoy?

[its-better-than-an-opera]

so @snusmmumrikken tagged me for the spell your url in song titles thing which didn’t take me forever at all thanks buddy ♥ I’m tagging @mariuspondmercy and @butts-of-the-barricade if you feel like spending your time on this :D

I: Iris -  Goo Goo Dolls T: This Side of Paradise - Hayley Kiyoko S: Somebody to Love - Queen B: Brick by Boring Brick - Paramore E: Everywhere  - Fleetwood Mac T: The Only Living Boy in New York - Simon & Garfunkel T: This Year - The Mountain Goats E: Easy - Faith No More R: Rescue Me - Bell Book & Candle T: Take Me to Church - Hozier H: Heroes  - David Bowie A: All This And Heaven Too - Florence & The Machine N: Nowhere Fast - The Smiths A: Andante, Andante -  Abba  N: Nur Geträumt - Nena O: On my Own - Les Misérables P: Pompeii - Bastille E: Englishman in New York - Sting R: Romantic Comedy - Stars A: ABC Café/Red and Black - Les Misérables

#These were the worst letters for this sdkfbdsfk #but ayy i actually got red&black aka my url in there #i'd recommend listening to all of these artists btw they're all amazing #tag thing

[everymovie2020]

Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (2018)

Date watched:  3 August 2018

Yeah, so… embarrassingly I cried all the way through this, so… good thing I saw it by myself in a mostly empty movie theatre, that's for sure!

I don't even really know how to review this because I was always going to love it. It is a musical filled with ABBA, what's not to like?  Well I guess if you don't like ABBA you could probably find a few things.

Dave Grohl gets it.

The basic plot (a lady I work with said there is no plot but I assure you, there's a plot) is that in 2018 Sophie (Amanda Seyfried) has finally turned the dilapidated villa into a luxury hotel in honour of Donna (Meryl Streep), who passed away the previous year though we're not told how.  Sam (Pierce Brosnan) is still living in a cottage on the island and I guess playing full time dad to Sophie; Harry (Colin Firth) is away on business in Tokyo and Bill (Stellan Skarsgard) is attending an awards show. So they can't come to the big opening.

But Tanya and Rosie (Christine Baranski and Julie Walters) are able to attend, and any time Donna is mentioned Rosie starts crying which had the inadvertent effect of making ME cry, so that was great.

Then we flash back to the 70s, and here is where I complain about the timeline.

This is how it goes in the movie:

1979 – Donna meets the boys and falls pregnant

2008 – first movie happens

2018 – second movie happens 10 years after the first movie

But Sophie is only TWENTY in the first movie.

IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE.

I am trying not to let the janky timeline bother me but IT DOES.

This is how it SHOULD go:

1969 – Donna meets the boys and falls pregnant

1989 – first movie is set

1999 – second movie is set

Why? I will tell you why.  The first movie clearly shows them all as hippies, and that was in the late 60s, not the late 70s.  The late 70s were disco.  Also, the song Our Last Summer, sung by Colin Firth in the original movie, is about the Summer of Love, which was in the SIXTIES.

So it should be the sixties, then first movie late 80s, second movie late 90s.

IT BOTHERS ME ON A FUNDAMENTAL LEVEL.

This is literally my only complaint about both movies – the timeline is SO GODDAMN WRONG. IT'S ANNOYING.

Anyway!

In 1979 Donna (Lily James) takes off on her own on an adventure because she is fearless and strong and seriously such a FUCKING DELIGHT.  I have never enjoyed Lily James until this movie but I am fucking SOLD NOW.  SHE IS SO GOOD.

So she meets Harry in Paris and they bang, then she takes off for Greece where she first encounters Bill (but they don't bang then).  Then she meets Sam on the island and they fall in love after only a week; there's a fantastic scene of her singing The Name of the Game and being chased by a goat; then she discovers that Sam has a fiancée back in America.  And she's mad, and he takes off, and that's when BILL comes back into the picture.  And young Bill is SERIOUSLY HOT.

Here's the thing that made me sad, though –as is established in the first movie, Rosie and Bill eventually get together.  In the sequel, they showed Rosie seeing/meeting him for the first time and she falls in love at first sight but steps aside for Donna.

And it just broke my heart a little bit.  I'd thought the first time she'd ever seen Bill was in the first movie, but it turns out she fell in love with him all those years ago.  Poor Rosie!  Why couldn't Rosie catch the guy? #justiceforrosie

Anyway, we then flash forward the future and a huge storm hits the island basically destroys all of their party preparations, but in the meanwhile both Harry and Bill are making arrangements to get to the island, and – oh I forgot to mention Sky and Sophie are on the outs so he's flying back for the party as well – they pick up Sky and a bunch of happy Greek people and set sail for the island to the tune of Dancing Queen and I FUCKING BAWLED LIKE A BABY.

Seriously, I have tears in my eyes just thinking about it.  Is there something wrong with me?  That's not a sad scene! Thank god I saw it by myself because I just could not have lived with the embarrassment of crying all the way through a SUPER HAPPY MOVIE.

So they all make it to the island, Sky and Sophie reunite, Sophie discovers she's pregnant – in the past Donna discovers she's pregnant as well – they have the party, Cher turns up (how old is she meant to be in this anyway?), she stumbles across Andy Garcia who it turns out is her long lost love Fernando (I like what they did there), so they sing Fernando, and then it flashes forward a year and Sophie has had the baby and then she sings a duet with a ghostly Meryl Streep and I'm not joking when I say that I had tears literally streaming down my cheeks during that entire scene.

Like, FUCK.

You've got two whole movies showing how fucking amazing Donna is, and then she's dead, but Ghost Donna comes back to sing a duet with Sophie and I can't even think about it or listen to the song because I'll be done for again.

So I mean yeah obviously I loved it although… hopefully by the time I do a re-watch I will have toughened up a bit, because jeez.  It tapped into so many emotions that I have and I was just not expecting it.

Favourite song highlights include When I Kissed the Teacher, Andante Andante, The Name of the Game, Angel Eyes, Mamma Mia, Dancing Queen and Super Trouper, and obviously the dead Donna and Sophie duet which I'm not even going to look up the name of lest I start crying at my desk at work.

But like how great was Lily James?  Was not expecting to be so blown away!  I've just never been that impressed but it's like throw her in some flares and some cheesecloth and I'm like IN LOVE or something.

10/10.

#mamma mia! here we go again #mamma mia! #movies #movie review #musical #2018 #meryl streep #lily james #christine baranski #jessica keenan wynn #julie walters #alexa davies #amanda seyfried #cher #andy garcia #dominic cooper #pierce brosnan #jeremy irvine #stellan skarsgard #josh dylan #colin firth #hugh skinner #abba #i fucking loved it #i want to watch it again without the tears though

[smallgoods-cheeseshop]

We love Petaluma, CA-based, Andante Dairy cheeses. Originally making cheese for Thomas Keller, Cheesemaker, Soyoung Scanlan products are exquisitely crafted from French goat cheese recipes. Acapella, has a fine layer of ash covering its bloomy rind. It’s soft and creamery just under the rind and transforms into a more traditional flakey, goat cheese paste towards the center. .⠀ .⠀ For the best in American-made cheeses and cured meats, shop at our new cheese shop & cafe (Link in bio for email news on that). ⠀ ⠀ Shop: 7524 La Jolla Blvd, La Jolla ⠀ .⠀ #americancheeseshop #cacheeseguild #cacheesetrail #goatcheese #bloomyrind #supportamericandairy #farmsfirst #visitsd ⠀ #smallgoods #realamericancheese #americancheesesociety #sandiegocheese #smallgoods_ #mylajolla #cheeseplate #lajollacheeseshop #cheese #ilovecheese https://ift.tt/2U44isl

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[brianhowlett]

Say goat Cheese duet from Andante dairy Absolutely one of my favorite cheese makers. You can experience luxury with almost zero effort knowing what’s available from your local suppliers. @andante_dairy @oliversmarket #delicious #lunch #lettuces #raw #goatcheese #cheese #crackers #foodphotography (at Oliver's Market-Stony Point) https://www.instagram.com/p/B5D-_P0n4GQ/?igshid=1sxv6rrrx67zc

#delicious #lunch #lettuces #raw #goatcheese #cheese #crackers #foodphotography

[juniorformulamotorsport]

Friday, 12th July 2019 – Porto, Day 2

Friday morning saw Lynne creak into action rather late, but in good time for our first activity of the day. I’d already been out to try and purchase some yogurt for her because she insists it’s needed to kick start her digestion. I’d found a lot of lovely buildings, but despite Google Maps insisting there was a supermarket at the destination it had sent me to, there really wasn’t. I’d given up and returned to the Intercontinental where the staff in the restaurant let me have a yogurt for free (we were on a room only booking so breakfast was meant to be €25 per person which was part of the reason I’d gone out to hunt for fermented dairy products – we didn’t actually want breakfast proper because of our plans for the day).

We had always intended to skip breakfast because we were booked on a food tour of Porto, starting at 10:00 and lasting around 3.5 hours. Our experience of food tours so far (in Helsinki and Krakow) had taught us that it’s best to arrive hungry for this sort of endeavour. This one, the Vintage Food Tour, with the lovely and very knowledgeable Maria from Taste Porto would prove to be no exception. First, however, we’d ordered a pair of Porto cards, including the Andante card that gives you access to Porto’s public transport network. The cost was €33 each for four days so it wasn’t exactly expensive even if we didn’t use it in all the places it was valid (which wouldn’t be possible in 4 days unless you rushed in and out of everywhere and I’d rather not do that, unlike some people).

First we walked up to the cathedral where, after a couple of false starts, we finally located the Tourist Information office, and were soon in possession of the cards as well as a very useful city map.

From there we walked back down the hill to get to our rendezvous point. We met over by the Mercado do Bolhão (which apparently means big bubble because it’s on the site of a small creek that’s now underground, and that used to produce lots of bubbles). The neoclassic building that’s on the site now was built in 1914 and provides the main market in town. It’s currently undergoing a full refurbishment, and most of the traders have been moved to a massive all nearby for the duration while the art deco building is restored to its former glory. It had apparently fallen into a bit of a state of disrepair, but a massive grant from the EU coupled with local money means it will stage a come back. When it does I’d like to see it because I’m sure it will be glorious once again. It’s been classified as a Property of Patrimonial Interest since 2006, and a Monument of Public Interest since 2013. They started the work in 2018 and it’s supposed to be complete in 2020. The traders are apparently looking forward to returning because they’ll be back in the open in the courtyard area after 2 years inside. Work does seem to be progressing nicely, at least from the outside…

After the 8 of us on the tour had introduced ourselves to each other Maria walked us to the first destination on the tour, the Mercearia do Bolhão, an utterly wonderful old-style grocery shop selling food and drink, but also with a small household cleaning section. There’s a bakery section as well but that’s been moved to a second building a handful of doors down.

Inside we were presented with a selection of local goodies, including a lovely selection of cheese, crackers, quince paste and a local sausage. We nibbled our way through these (Maria told us she’d be disappointed if we didn’t eat everything and explained that the locals have very big appetites). The cheese was especially good, made with milk from cows, goats and sheep. It was soft, creamy and had a slightly pungent finish where you could clearly detect the goat’s milk flavour. The crackers were slightly sweet with a good crunch, and the quince paste was grainier than the sort I’m used to, but went perfectly with the cheese. Apparently having both together is known as Romeo and Juliet!

From here we walked towards the famous Porto café, the Majestic Café, which is a terrific looking place complete with smartly-uniformed waiters. It’s also a complete tourist trap, and charges around €5 a coffee. The locals don’t go there, and as this was a tour to show us where the locals do go, Maria walked us along to the second café owned by the same people, the Guarany Café, close to our hotel on the Avenida dos Aliados. Here coffee costs around €1, and breakfast is €15 instead of €30. We sat down and had a coffee each, a very strong but smooth blend, preferred by the locals. The café itself is also lovely, but has the advantage of not being rammed with tourists. Apparently there are a number of regulars including a local poet in his 90s know who comes in every morning for a coffee and to read the newspapers. Apparently the original owners made their money in Brazil and then returned in the 1930s to open this café. Its website also provides a good example of something we would continue to experience all the time we were in Porto, with translations into English having quite obviously never been anywhere near a native English speaker before being committed to print/the internet. It was enough to make my inner editor weep!

Fortified by coffee, our next stop was at the magnificent São Bento station, where we had a brief run through the history of Porto and of Portugal and an opportunity to admire the 20,000 tiles that make up the decoration of the main hall. The station is the main starting point for train journeys through the Douro valley, and it is also the terminus of a number of local lines. Like our hotel, it too was once a convent, with the last nun only dying a number of years after the first train service ran! The tiles date from 1905–1916, and depict scenes from Portugal’s history, including the entry into Porto of King John I and Philippa of Lancaster to celebrate their wedding. There are also scenes of local life, including a cattle fair and a pilgrim camp (Porto is on one of the many routes to Santiago de Compostela and thus sees a lot of pilgrims walking the path even now – we saw quite a few walkers with the pilgrim sign of a scallop shell hanging from their rucksacks), along with scenes showing vineyards, the grape harvest, wine shipment down the Douro and work in a watermill. As Maria pointed out, all the work seems to be being done by the women.

From the station we headed up the hill back towards the cathedral where we stopped off at a shop selling canned fish. This was not the madly touristic version either, but rather somewhere very civilised that is run by the associated of tinned fish producers with intent to promote their products. There was a table waiting for us in Loja das Conservas (other branches are available, including in Macau, which I wish I’d known sooner), with a bottle of wine, crackers and two different types of tinned fish to try, one the obvious sardines, the other needlefish. Both were very tasty indeed, once I’d recovered from trying a drop or two of the chilli sauce known as “the bastard” and my tongue stopped throbbing! In addition to hundreds of different types of fish in tins, with all sorts of sauces, they also sell some purely fun things including these dangly sardines, and I’d really recommend a visit. We were all given a 5% discount voucher to use in the shop, and Lynne and I decided we’d come back later and collect some supplies. The vinho verde served alongside the fish was also very good.

From here we went to Ö Tascö, a very modern looking restaurant in what we were now beginning to realise was the standard Porto building with a very narrow facade at the front but that go back for forever, very much like Belgian buildings. I asked if it was for the same reason (the wider the building the more tax you paid) and was told that yes, that was indeed the case. Here we were offered more wine along with some petischos, salt cod fritters and some Alheira sausages, apparently also known as Jewish sausages. These are sausages made of meat (veal, duck, chicken quail or rabbit) and bread, usually along with alho (garlic) which is where the name comes from. Apparently they were invented by the Jews of Portugal in 1497 when they were given a choice between being expelled from the country or converting to Christianity. The conversos who secretly retained their beliefs avoided eating pork but where at risk because they didn’t have sausages (containing pork) hanging up in their smokehouses and so, to avoid the Inquisition noticing, they started making sausages from other meats. They are tasty, with a texture that’s very mushy, and are very filling. The cod fritters were a model of lightness in comparison!

After a second glass of wine the conversation was very animated, and we all seemed to be getting on very well. We were in even better form by the time we reached Taxca, a pub rather than a restaurant, where we drank an espadal wine, a sparkling, light rose, kept in a cask and served from a pump and produced in the vinho verde region. With it we had a typical snack, a hefty serving of presunto ham in a bread roll. Maria reckoned this was the sort of place she and her friends would come to at the start of a night out to get things off to a good start. The hams are hanging up above the bar, and the menu is a pair of metal plaques with the words cut out of them, fastened to the wall. Presumably it doesn’t change very often!

  Now we were full of food we were ready for the final stage of the tour. Stopping off at a bakery for some sweet treats, we headed on to a port and wine shop, Touriga (named after one of the many grapes used to make port), where we would have a short session on port, and a tasting of three different ports along with the treats. We had the good fortune to try a 10-year old white, a 2013 late bottled vintage, and a 10-year old tawny.

The went perfectly with the sweets, a tiny almond tart, and a sticky brigadeiro (a Brazilian ball of chocolate and condensed milk and butter formed into a ball and coated in chocolate sprinkles). And half an hour later we realised that a) we were going to have to buy some port and b) we weren’t going to make it to our scheduled tasting at Graham’s port house by 14:15 because it was 14:15 and we’d gone way over the scheduled time. We didn’t care; we’d been having fun. We cared even less when Maria called Graham’s and rescheduled it for us for the following day. She apologised for the overrun, but we’d really enjoyed it and really, really wouldn’t have wanted to rush off.

Before we left the shop we ordered a case of the wines we’d tried (6 of the white, 6 of the tawny) and arranged to have them shipped home for a very reasonable extra €37. The American on the tour were disappointed to find they’d have to pay €173 to ship 12 bottles and instead planned to bury them in their suitcases. I do hope it all survives the trip back to Michigan. Ours arrived 6 days later, safely packed, and with a lovely note thanking us for supporting small wine producers. I suggest the pleasure will be all ours! We’d had a fabulous food tour, and I could see why the Guardian ranked Taste Porto’s tours as among the best anywhere.

It was now around 3pm. We dropped some things off at the hotel, and then decided it was too stick to do anything productive so we’d join a bus tour to take a look at the Atlantic coast. It was a hop on hop off tour but we couldn’t raise the energy to hop off so we stayed put on the top level, letting the breeze cool us off, and watching the world go by. I do have to say that I’ve been on better tours with the same company. The commentary was almost inaudible even with the volume turned up full blast, and had clearly been read by someone with only a passing familiarity with English. It was, however, also considerably cheaper than in most European countries at €15 for 2 days. And we got to sit down for an hour or so, which was by now very welcome!

At the end of the tour we hopped off and went and peered into the MacDonalds, to see if we’d been told the truth. We most certainly had!

I’m pretty sure there are no MacDonalds anywhere else that are quite so spectacular on the inside…

Or the outside! We didn’t need any prompting not to stay though. Maria had recommended a gelateria close by, and as it was a sticky day we figured what the hell, we’d have one and then go back to the hotel to get cleaned up before dinner. The 1927 Gelateria Portuense is brilliant. It’s a tiny place, tucked away down a sidestreet, and it serves the most fabulous gelato. By the time we got there, they’d started to run out of several flavours, but they still had the pistachio left, enough for a single portion, so Lynne had that and I had the mango, and we swapped spoonfuls. It was definitely among the best ice cream or gelato I’ve ever eaten. They also do a tasting selecton where you can have 6 small tubs of different flavours for €7 which seemed like a bargain for that quality level.

Now decidedly sticky as well as sweaty we retreated back to the hotel for a pre-dinner shower and a drink before going out for dinner (we had a bottle of the white port from the tour to hand and intended to enjoy it).

Travel 2019 – Porto, Day 2 Friday, 12th July 2019 - Porto, Day 2 Friday morning saw Lynne creak into action rather late, but in good time for our first activity of the day.

#1927 Gelateria Portuense #2019 #Andante Card #Ö Tascö #Bars #Coffees #Cooking #Drink #Europe #Food #Food and Drink #Guarany Café #Hospitality #Hotels #Ice Creams #Intercontinental #Loja das Conservas #Lunches #Majestic Café #Mercado do Bolhão #Mercearia do Bolhão #Porto #Porto Card #Portugal #Pubs #Restaurants #São Bento Station #Taste Porto #Taxca #Teas

[taubc]

15 ASSOCIATIONS.  for your muse.

tagged:  @royalworn, binary is perfect. ❤︎ tagging:  @fletschte , @daturida , @batoushoujo , @kuinkuki , @auxjardins , @diamondhortensia , @ everyone who hasn’t filled this out yet.

ANIMAL(S)

eagles  -  pride / power / size / devouring other birds while they sit top of the food chain.

hawks  -  keen and just as strong.

doves  -  an emblem for peace / pure / superficial.

*griffin  -  monster. ( from the wiki ) according to Stephen Friar's New Dictionary of Heraldry, a griffin's claw was believed to have medicinal properties and one of its feathers could restore sight to the blind.

COLOUR(S)

dove-grey  /  sterile, hospital, laboratory white  /  blacks of all shades  /  deep carmine-red  /  wine-red  /  champagne-beiges

MONTH(S)

December ( birth month ).

SONG(S)

Yutaka Yamada - Taube Panama Fleets - Cloudburst Evening Calm (yuunagi) - Yoshida Brothers Noc. in E-flat major op.9 no.2 Andante - Frédéric Chopin Ilaria Graziano - Monochrome

NUMBER(S)

2  -  second born / a second thought / second place. 25  -  birthdate.

DAY OR NIGHT

both, and neither. dawn  -  early,  stars are fading slowly away as the sun rises.  dusk  -  approaching night and into the late hours.

PLANT(S)

white roses  -  devotion and silence. primroses  -  desperation, for something better. hydrangea  -  pride. ( orange ) tiger lilies  -  wealth and confidence.

SMELL(S)

clean, sterile.  /  faint perfumes, faint blood.  /  ghoul, for those with the sharpest senses.

GEMSTONE(S)

(dec.) zircon  - in the colours of the skies. (dec.) tanzanite  - “the workaholic’s stone” (dec.) turquoise  - promotes leadership, a good amulet for those who work in the law, or for local or central government.

SEASON(S)

rainy season  /  fall - autumn  /  winter.

PLACE(S)

Tokyo  /  Berlin  /  cities with tall skyscrapers  /  tall forests  /  alleyways  /  echoing hallways  /  laboratories  /  quiet koi ponds

FOOD(S)

flesh. colorful, aesthetically pleasing dishes served on fine dinnerware that smells as divine as it tastes.

ASTRO-SIGN

( western )  capricorn, goat.  the animal who climbs to the tops where the air is fresh. the top, the children of Saturn - god of gods. pride and crown-wearers. 

  ELEMENT(S)

sign-element: earth, grounded - stuff of mountains for only the strong to perch.  /  air.

DRINK(S)

black coffee, never cream or sugar  /  water  /  wine-infused with blood more

#iv. heavy rain‚ reigning.

[thejoshcraig]

The Hightened Series 4/20 Opulent Takeover

Come join us on April 20th, 2019 for the next installment of The Hightened Series, an enhanced sensory experience combining cannabis and the art of fine dining. Enjoy exquisite, sun-grown flower from Humboldt County’s own Humboldt Farms. Focus will be bringing the heat with their beautifully made concentrates. Try them out with artisanal made Topstone vaporizers. Wind down with a little CBD from premier producer Select before sitting down to the elegantly crafted cuisine from Opulent Chef. Throughout the evening relax to a soundscape musical accompaniment created by The Josh Craig. Come meet the farmer, the hash maker, and the chef to experience the most forward thinking, unexplored, crop to kitchen concept of what fine dining is becoming now that cannabis is at the forefront. 




For event details and ticket purchases click this link: Ticketleap




Humboldt Farms

Humboldt Farms is California's leading and trusted source for quality cannabis. We are committed to nurturing the body and soul and inspiring the mind by providing the world's best sun-grown flowers and highest quality Cannabis products from the wild and beautiful, Humboldt County, California. At Humboldt Farms, we believe in the principle of CHOOSING KINDLY — for ourselves, our communities and our shared Earth. We aim to restore the health of the planet, to deepen the connection between us and the natural world, to cultivate meaningful relationships and to expand the human experience. 

IG: @humfarms

www.humfarms.com




Focus Concentrates

Focus concentrates is an award winning boutique concentrates company specializing in diamonds swimming in terpene rich sauce. Everything is made from 100% organically sources materials. Find yours.

IG: @focusconcentrates 




Topstone Vaporizers

Cannabis concentrates' most discerning tastemaker. Topstone offers patented vaporizer design, crafted in New England. Topstone is your home-base for cultivating health, wellness, and balance with the help of concentrates. A vaporizer that fits in seamlessly at home. No throttling. No plastic. No blow torch. With Topstone, simply touch the button to heat and see the glass chamber fill with vapor as you inhale. Finesse your dose however you like it. Simple.  

IG: @topstone.projects

www.topstoneprojects.com




Select 

Select holds their oil to the highest standards, with the most stringent & progressive testing in the industry. Through thoughtful terpene preservation and cannabinoid retention they are able to produce unmatched oil, superior in quality and potency.

IG: @select_cbd

www.selectoil.com




Opulent Chef

Executive Chef, Michael Magallanes, founded Opulent Chef with the understanding that the idea of opulence in modern restaurants has been redefined from its traditional meaning of truffles and caviar overly used on every dish, to using both common and unexplored ingredients with exceptional skill in preparation, creating an uncommon deliciousness on the plate. Cannabis, for him, falls into the category of an unexplored ingredient. Using his exceptional skill in preparing cannabis, his showcased artful creations exude an uncommon deliciousness on the plate. Come witness this magnificent gestalt shift that fine dining is undergoing powered by Opulent Chef.

IG: @opulentchef

www.opulentchef.com 




The Josh Craig

Josh describes his musical style as "honest and risk-taking...I developed my style by doing everything everyone told me not to do with music and chose what ultimately worked best for me." His sounds flow in complement to the ingredients and cannabis pairing of each course.

IG: @thejoshcraig

www.thejoshcraig.com




Sample Menu*

Sesame Doufu, Sichuan Pepper, Scallion

Beet Merengue, Andante Goat Cheese, Pickled Blueberry




Asparagus, Hawthorn Berry, Green Strawberry, Hazelnut, Hen Yolk, Nasturtium 







Sweet Potato, Turnip, Allium, Coffee, Pepitas, Ginseng Jus




Chicken Roulade, Green Garlic, King Trumpet, Wheatberries, Seeds, Cherry




Cotton Cheesecake, Blueberry, Sablé, Chantilly 




*Please note that this is not the final menu and dietary restrictions/preferences will only be accommodated if advanced notice of 3 days has been given. Thank you.

#Dinner #Opulent Takeover #Hightened Series #Topstone Projects #Opulent Chef #Humboldt Farms #Focus Concentrates #Select CBD #San Francisco #California #420