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grigori77 · 3 months

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Critical Role, Campaign 3 Episode 87

A day late thanks to more unavoidable commitments, but we're here now at least ...

Matt wears a shirt to the table. Laura roasts him for it. DM derails the session HIMSELF before it even STARTS ...

A NordVPN Oscars skit? Both topical AND ridiculous. Way to ham it up, Marisha! XD "Oversized sweater enthusiast" Ashley Johnson? Cute ...

Ah yes, Daggerheart ... we shall see ...

Sam: "Doesn't he have to throw it to you?" Marisha (indignant): "Do I have to wait for permission from a man?"

Trouble there, Marisha? Game's starting ...

Oh yeah, the city! Oof ... here we go ...

Wow ... that roll was BALLS ... great start to the session ... and now they're in the middle of a storm ... of course they are ...

Group Stealth roll! Pass Without A Trace ... thanks, Ashton. Much better rolls this time, at least.

What the hell is THIS? Oh shit, it's the Mongolian blood worms! AAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!

Crap ... Ashton's exhausted! I forgot about that ... RUN, DIREWOLF FEARNE!!! RUN!!!

So ... are they, like, trapped now, then?

A tadpole? That's no tadpole ... yeah, don't fall for THIS SHIT, people! Travis: "It's an angler fish!" Yeah, definitely ...

FCG has TOTALLY given them away now ...

Travis' strange polar bear analogy ...

They're gonna chuck a piece of Berserker at it ... oh yeah, here we go. It's like piranhas! O.O Shit ...

Imogen tries to LEVITATE THE ROCK with them on it! Bloody hell ... argh ... weight based head maths ... great ...

Yeah ... no, the mayhem WILL begin shortly ...

They are now FLOATING THROUGH THE STORM on the rock ... no, seriously, DO NOT leave a trail of CHUM behind you! That is SO dumb ...

Playing baseball with body parts and Ashton's hammer ... yeah, that's definitely smart ...

NINE? Oh bollocks ... Laura, you may have just killed your friends ... but not quite ... phew ...

Touchdown ... and it collapses into pieces, like the Blues Brothers' car ... oof ...

Arguing the differences between Pass Without A Trace and Merge With Stone ... and it WORKS? Blimey ...

All right, where to go? Fearne guesses and leads the way ... Sam rolls 18 ... the storm subsides! Thank the gods ...

Crap! A Flare! Laudna grabs Imogen on instinct and anchors her ... Nice! And Chetney DOES NOT wolf out ...

Reaching out to Ira? Really? Oof ... FCG send a Message to the Nightmare King ... Contact! Yay! But he's still bloody creepy ...

He's such a tease! Damn it ... yeah, messaging doesn't WORK like that ...

Next move, then ... into the city or scout around? How to get in contact with the Volition?

Imogen sends a message to Zhesh ... Nice use of word limit! Persuasion check? Oooh ... 20! Sweet! It worked!

The Jagged Edge, in the Clutch? Looking for Jidoh, in search of "a contract"? Hmmmm ...

Mental ventriloquism? Sweet idea, Orym! That sounds pretty clever ...

Here we go, Fearne is going to turn herself into a Reiloran? Trippy ...

Masks? Hmmm ... Chetney doesn't have enough wood, though ...

Oh WHAT THE HELL, Sam? Surreal flask shenanigans this week ...

Ashley's dice chaos and the others make light ... also inadvertently make her lose track of WHAT SHE'S ACTUALLY DOING ... XD

Crap, busted! Look like a Reiloran QUICK Fearne ... FCG casts Engance Ability on her ... is it successful?

Okay, so what is THIS about? New race?

Trying out the clever ruse? Oh boy ... Travis is not confident ... Deception check? Roll good, Ashley ... 21! Nice ...

Fearne is pretending yo be THE FUCKING WILLMASTER? Fuck ... that is STUPID level ballsy ... this could backfire SO BADLY ...

Okay, I guess these guys aren't all that bright, they might have lucked out here.

That's a lot of Reilorans ... O.O

Tyren A? Okay ...

Guns? Really? Laura: "Fucking Percy!" Marisha: "GUNS have made it to the Moon!"

A game of questions? Interesting ... the tast of strawberries? Hmmm ... oh yeah, this guy ain't too bright either ...

Goodness, tis the Horn of Helm Hammeŕhand!

Speaky's Drip? Oh, it's between the Clutch and the Crumble? Useful ...

A neighbouring outpost is gutted and gone? Whoa ... so the Volition are SERIOUS ... Orym did well there.

Nat20 and Fearne's deception goes AMAZINGLY ... Nice going, girls! O.O

Turns out FCG could have been Ritually casting that all this time? That's embarrassing ...

Heading down to the city ... Martian Helm's Deep indeed ...

Time for a break!

Kids! Careful, Laudna ... oh, FCG's going instead. Ryndons? Oh, they're like mole-pigs? Cute ...

Wow, Letters really is a big hit with these kids. :3

Vateara and Caeluma Veteris? Hmmmm ...

Imogen gives them a goodberry each. Awwwwwwww ...

Ashley gets a Whispers! Ooooh ... cue more plugs from Samuel ...

"You're so small but so OLD." O.O Yes. Chetney is definitely very old indeed ...

THEY DON'T HAVE TOYS? ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?!!!

Yeah, Chetney has just BLOWN THEIR MINDS ... and also imparted important life lessons too. I'm loving this moment so much ... :3

Fuck ... has Chetney just birthed the legend of Santa Claus on Ruidus? Seriously?

The coming MOVE?

Aha! Now we know where the Jagged Edge is. Nice.

Bearne. LOL

Wow, we all just rolled BALKS on that stealth check, didn't we?

Oh, well THIS can't be good. Shit ... they've been spotted, haven't they?

Fearne says she's here for The Beating Heart ... persuasion check? Hmmmm ... oh, looks like she might be tanking this ...

Imogen tries to bring part of a nearby building down for a distraction ... meanwhile Fearne is clearly being ARRESTED ... crap ... do I smell a fight coming?

Fearne turns into a fly, only to be instantly BITTEN BY THE AVADON!!! Fuck ... a 22 to hit? Bloody hell ... back to Fearne again ... and now she's IN ITS MOUTH?!!! Fuck ...

Roll for Initiative? No shit!

Battlemap time! Lovely ...

Marisha has NO PLAN ... hmmm ... no, not a fireball! Bane instead ... Liam IMMEDIATELY does his regular impression ... 2 fails but one manages to resist it. Not bad ... now she hits the avadon with THREE ELDRITCH BLASTS? I thought she DIDN'T want to be loud ... 30 points of damage overall! Holy shit ...

Orym leaps in snd Hexes term as he jumps into the fight, then goes with a Goading attack on the Juggernaut ... hits every time! Nice ...

Said big bad attacks him and HITS!!! Laudna tries Silvery Barbs but she's OUT OF RANGE ... CRAP!!! He hits Orym THREE TIMES in a row ... oh my gods! Not the wee man! Oof ... 18, then 16 ... then a Crit for 32 points of damage altogether? Ouch! AND psychic damage in top of it? AAAAAAHHH! Orym BARELY catches himself short of getting knocked down ... O.O

FCG casts Banishment on the Juggernaut. Which it FAILS to resist, so it's just GONE!!! Phew ...

Again Imogen just fails to bring the chunk of building down ... instead pucks up 2 loose stones and tosses them at the Reilorans with her mind! Both hits! Nice ... 14 bludgeoning damage each!

Fearne is still bring CHEWED ... oof ... she shoits Scorching Rays at 3rd Level at POINT BLANK RANGE into its mouth! TWO NAT20S?!!! Wow ... 4D6 of damage DOUBLED!!! She gets the HDYWTDT!!! Yeah! She essentially just BLASTS HERSELF OUT OF IT!!! Nice!

The remaining avadon attacks FCG ... another Nat20? Ouch ... AND ANOTHER ONE!!! Argh! 21 plus 31 plus 16 points of damage! Fuck! And now he's grappled in its mouth!

The rider tries to impale Fearne with a spear ... Shield! Yes! Nice one! The other one tries too butt the Shield's still up! Oof ... so only partial damage, but she's still getting shoved about ...

Chetney wolfs out and charges ... Blood Maladict! Yeah! Shred shred shred ... 17 plus 21 in damage! Shred indeed! Oh, but the Juggernaut's back ... O.O

Ashton charges in and Rages ... what random shit this time? He goes Monochrome ... he hits the nearest fucker and goes Reckless with it ... HIT!!! This is gonna be BIG damage then ... BRUTAL Critical? Wow ... 26 for the first hit, 21 for the second ... HDYWTDT again! He flattens the guy's head INTO his body! O.O

Laudna casts Blight INTO Ashton's hammer? Oh that's like INSANELY cool ... splut Blight at the two remaining Reolorans ... and they both HIT!!! Oof ... 39 points of damage each? Fuck, she kills them ... HDYWTDT yet again! Bloody hell ... she just TORCHES him ...

Orym starts carving away at the Juggernaut ... a hit! And the second ... AND the third ... Action Surge ... he just KEEPS HITTING HIM OVER AND OVER!!! Orym is a killing MACHINE right now! It's still up, but hurting ... in the meantime whil it's down he pills a Bait snd Switch on Chetney.

The Juggernaut gets back up, looking AWFUL ... tries to flaten Orym on the spot ... MISSES!!! Orym gets a reaction ... and KILLS HIM!!! He guts the fucker ON THE SPOT ...

FCG casts SCRAMBLE the Dead on the avadon chewing him ... 18 points ... ALSO the HDYWTDT!!! Wow ... he uses harmonic resonance to essentially SHAKE IT APART ...

As they scramble to run, Chetney cuts all the heads off so NOBODY can question the corpses after. Lovely ...

Oh yeah ... what IS in the cart? A box? It's heavy ... they put it in the Hole. Then Imogen lifts the cart and PUTS IT ON TOP of one of the buildings ...

They're being watched? Laudna sends Pate to check it out ... looks like someone just living there, a civilian. Hmmmm ...

Oh, so this one's OLD? Okay ... so Pate just SCARES THE BEJEEZUS out of them. Effectively shutting them up, then ... very intimidating ...

To the Jagged Edge! Quickly now ... group deception check to pass unnoticed ...

There's a FAINT glow in the Scry ball ... so Otohan's not SUPER CLOSE, but in the city now. Great ...

FCG's homing in on Zhesh with Locate Creature ... a merchant district? Okay ...

Like writing in dreams? That's beautiful if haunting ...

This must be the place ...

These glass weapons sound absolutely BEAUTIFUL ...

Another one of the fuzzy guys, but really OLD ... he seems interesting ... so this is Jidoh ...

Yeah, DEFINITELY Insight Check ... and they BOTH get Whispers? Cool ...

A Reiloran Shrike? Hmmmm ... oh, but she has a scar on her face, yeah, I remember that ... this MUST BE Zhesh ...

So what DO they want?

Interesting ... she's making A POINT of speaking to them VOCALLY ...

Time for truth, clearly ... yes, clearly they DO have an ally here ...

The Overspoke? Hmmm ... looking for Earot ...

They do need somewhere to hide. Where to go?

300 gold for a glass scythe? Good deal.

They can stay in the cellar for no more than an hour ... ah, so a short rest, then ...

Laudna likes the little Dancer statue ... a persuasion check? 21 ... it's not for sale ... but she gives it as a GIFT?!!! Awwwww ... that's sweet ...

SHORT REST!!! Yes indeed ...

Looking in the box ... it's a Paragon's Call item! Hmmmm ... a magical lock ... oof ... yeah, best come back to that ...

FCG RITUALLY casts Telepathic Bond ...

So Orym can actually Druidcraft blueberries? That's adorable ... :3

If Chetney shows us his new toy, they all DIE. He insists ... hmmmm ...

These people NEED their help, it's true. But they need to be CAREFUL going about it ...

Capture as a TACTIC? I don't like it.

Oh shit ... have they been busted? Somebody's here! Crap ... they're COMING!!!

And that's IT?!!! Seriously? Oof ... bloody cliffhangers ...

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erinmar13 · 7 months

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I have to tell you about the dream I had last night.

The underlying premise was that orcs were invading. The undercurrent of tension for this played throughout the dream, like a mix between helm’s deep and those scenes with pipping before the battle of the pelennor fields.

Anyway. Because of the impending invasion, everyone had been conscripted. So we everyone of acceptable age locally was gathered in, what I knew to be, my high school auditorium. (I haven’t been in HS in over 20 years and I live about 1200 miles away from my hometown)

Now the fun part…

Marisha Ray and Laura Bailey were there, and I spend the entirety of the events trying to make sure that the 3 of us stayed together in the same groups, to make sure we were assigned to the same battalion and deployed together, cuz we were all like besties.

Full on, it was “Laura” and “Marisha” not Laudna and Imogen or Beau and Jester or anything. EXCEPT. We were sitting in the auditorium waiting for the people to give out instructions and briefing and all that, and Marisha sneezes and blows her nose. The seating was me, Laura, a couple other people, and maybe an empty seat, then Marisha. We here her sneeze and blow her nose, and then the people between us react with horror and disgust. So Laura and I turn to look and Marisha has black ichor mucus like Laudna. Laura and I fall out laughing at these people’s reaction because this is apparently 100% normal to us, and almost a running joke.

Then we go through the schpiel and are moved to the next section where we are getting assigned ration packs and shit. We were all handed these packs that were packaged like MREs, but in a very Japanese snack food way in white plastic and minimal wording with lots of colorful pictures. Ashley Johnson was handing these out. She couldn’t fight like the rest of us cuz of her spine issues, so they gave her a clerical desk job. These ration packs were the size of MREs or bento boxes or whatever, but were supposed to hold the same kind of shit you get in D&D starting equipment packs.

We were instructed to keep a couple rations in our pockets in case we lost our packs, we’d at least have something. So I pull out these tiny little like, spam cans that were the size of like, a 4 pack now and later. Each was supposed to have a serving of meat in it. I shoved a chicken, a beef, and a pork one in my pockets.

Then someone realized that these ration packs were class based. Like, they were labelled “ranger” and “barbarian” and each was a little different based on class. They were supposed to be handed out according to your class, but Ashley had just been giving everyone whichever one was on top. So there was a whole thing with that and people trying to decide if they needed to collect and reassign packs and shit.

Meanwhile, I’m still trying to keep eyes on Laura and Marisha and to make sure the three of us sit close enough in each administrative step to stay assigned to the same group together. But during the kerfluffle with the ration packs, I realize that I need to go to my locker to collect something I had hidden/stashed there. I manage to do that, find some hidden compartment or something behind my locker and bring back…I think it was a jacket, like a duster or something. One my way back though, I realize that I can’t get through the hallways anymore because they have had construction crews trying to fortify the building by bolting in these huge steel girder buttresses in the halls, so now they are blocking my path.

I started to try to work my way through a maze of halls and tunnels, but then the alarm went off, so…I have no idea how that was gonna go.

#marisha ray #laura bailey #critical role #critrole #dnd #d&d #dreams

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bixbiboom · 2 years

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The weekly schedule is out!

✨ Tuesday, November 8th, 7pm PST: Generation Nord, a NORDVerse oneshot helmed by Sam Riegel for players Laura Bailey, Liam O’Brien, Aimee Carrero, Lou Wilson and Christian Navarro, streams on Twitch and YouTube.

✨ Thursday, November 10th, 7pm PST: Campaign 3, Episode 40 of Critical Role streams on Twitch and YouTube.

Check out the details »HERE«!

Also please be aware that daylight savings time ended in America over the weekend, so if you live outside of that area streams will be starting one hour later than they have been for you. Remember to check out »When Is Critical Role?« if you’re unsure of the scheduling.

#critical role #cr schedule

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tieflingkisser · 5 months

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Twitch Set To Lay Off Another 500 Employees, Total Count At Nearly 1,000

Employees found out via a news article

Today Bloomberg published a report saying that Twitch is set to lay off 500 employees, or around 35 percent of its workforce. The article, several Twitch employees have told Aftermath, is how they found out as well. This isn’t the first time. "People are freaking out and shocked we have to find out again via a news article," a Twitch employee (who was granted anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly) told Aftermath. As of this publishing, Twitch had yet to communicate anything about the layoffs to employees internally, according to multiple Twitch employees. The cuts could happen as soon as Wednesday, according to Bloomberg, and follow a slew of executive departures in recent months. These include chief product officer Tom Verrilli and chief content officer Laura Lee, the latter of whom was only at the company for a year. This comes after 400 job cuts in March of last year, as well as redundancies stemming from Twitch’s late-2023 announcement that it’s departing Korea entirely due to “prohibitively expensive” cost of operating in the region. Since longtime CEO Emmett Shear departed in March 2023 and Dan Clancy took the helm, Twitch has laid off nearly 1,000 workers in total.

#twitch #news

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theinsanecrayonbox · 3 months

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Sabretooth War part 3

Well…it’s better than the first two, and you know why I think that is

Lavalle seems to be helming this one. I went back to check Part 2 and yeah

Percy helmed the first two (and they had a diff artist interesting). So I’m wondering if they’re just gonna switch off issues.

Also

Arkady is once again Sir Not Appearing. Then again, almost all of these characters don’t appear in this issue, so idk what to make of this section anymore. But it’s weird right, that the rest of the X-Force cast AND the guest characters are here, but not him.

Anyways, story time. Geeze let’s see if I can remember because I read it last night but my phone refused to let me post about it, and this story does not have particularly great staying power…

We open on the Team X flashbacks as the previews told us. Savage and Camo call Vic out on not being a good leader

Wait he’s got metal bones again?? Would’ve been nice to have SEEN that happen instead of being TOLD about it. Also Savage knows Weapon X? I would’ve thought being Savageland lady her works might not have had one…huh. But wait, this is alternate reality adamantium; does it work the same, have the same poisoning effects, is that why Vic isn’t using his brain because the metals are rotting it away?? Is that where the adamantium coils came from? Did you melt some of alternate Red’s coils for your bones?? Boy what an uninteresting line of questions glad we skipped that story beat /sarcasm

Uh…what happened next…I think we followed Victor to bed?? Quinten’s head is in the jar like Headpool; it’s Orchis tech that apparently took a long time to learn how to use properly (again great job not showing us a good story). Vic takes a nap…Quinten makes a psychic call…to the Pit Gang

ARE YOU KIDDING ME! I was again JOKING about the whale jumping!! WHY is this a thing??? And oh look I was right, it doesn’t save the story.

Wait you guys had reality hopping too? HOW? WHY?? Yeah ok, we got screwed out of a whole miniseries for this gorefest didn’t we. Two boats reality hopping, earning character development, screwing up so many timelines, THAT’S an Exiles storyline, not…this. Argh.

Pit Gang is annoyed that they have to go back to work, but decide to do it anyways in a scene after the next bit, but I’m just summarizing it now because really, I don’t wanna focus on these guys longer than needed, they really are a distraction from the main focus.

Back with the SabreSquad, Savage and Camo are conspiring

Uhg gross. 1) that’s still a terrible retcon for Laura. 2) you actually are a clone because the respawn team made a second you (you) when the original you (Talon) was thought dead in the Vault, plus you have metal bones. 3) oh geeze they’re using alpha/beta/omega language, uh…not my fault (please don’t be my fault) (*I know it’s not really just laugh at the bit*)

Savage rips Laura’s jaw off, because we needed some ***sExY vIoLeNcE**{tm}. But hey, this and ripping into Camo earlier were the only gore fights this time, so it isn’t as bad as the others (so…Percy is the pointless gorehound…that seems to track). Oh and as a lady who suffers from scruff, Savage having some works fine for me; it was weird she was so smooth before, but I agree some with the tags that she needs some more muscle bulk and a bit of height.

Anyways, after torturing Laura it’s more conspiring to overthrow Victor time

1) No Camo you weren’t there when they fought Graydon, we have no idea where you came from. You might’ve been on the ship awaiting decapitation sure, but you didn’t escape and help beat up Graydon with the others. Lavalle wrote that part, how’d he forget?? 2) well we know from April solicits how this subplot will end, thanks marketing spoilers! 3) Pretty Boy really did have the braincell huh, cause this isn’t a good plan

We kinda bookend the issue with another Team X flashback as Vic is dreaming. He wakes up, Quinten head is also dreaming? It plays some sort of a map that Logan doesn’t like? Idk, but Vic is all “haha lemme derail what little plot there is and go do that instead next time” The End

Overall this issue was better than the previous 2, but it’s still not good. It very much feels like we cut out an important storyline just to do this, and yet now we are already bored of this and are cutting it short to switch to something else completely (gee I feel Ike I’ve said that about Percy storylines before). The flashbacks, though nice and will probably have a forced pay off eventually, feel out of place in this story format. There was less over the top gore and more focus on characterization so that’s good. But then we cut away focus for the Pit Gang and that kinda stalled things out; we already have too large of a cast of characters not getting enough focus (some completely forgotten) and this just adds yet another group that we’re not really gonna care about because they aren’t either of the title characters.

This whole thing is just confuzzling. Still gonna keep with it, but man, it’s still not going good.

#kp reads comics #kp rants about comics #sabretooth war #victor creed #sabretooth

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mandymoore · 5 months

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mandymooremm: When I think back to filming #drdeath (we started this time last year!), it’s a blurry pastiche of nursing a newborn in between shots, weekend zoom rehearsals with @ jennifermorrison, @ edgarramirez25 and @ ashleymichelh, endless belly laughs with @ robertcolonlugo, Andrea, @ arahstaines and our hair/makeup department and just reveling in the chaos and delight of living in NYC for a few months. We had the most fantastic crew across the board and fearless ladies at the helm: show runner @ ashleymichelh and director/executive producer @ jennifermorrison and director Laura Belsey. Also a special shoutout to the powerhouse @ itisijudyreyes1 for being the best friend a gal could hope for and @ curlycelly for her stellar talent and infectious joy. It was a honor to step in these waters together and here’s hoping there is much conversation around the perception of what it means to be labeled a victim and the shame/stigma that comes along with it (in Benita’s case) as well as accountability from those we intrinsically trust, from individuals to institutions. All episodes are streaming now on @ peacock.

#mandy moore #edgar ramirez #social media #2023 #december 22

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finishinglinepress · 6 months

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FLP POETRY BOOK OF THE DAY: Pacific Pieces by Magdalena Louise Hirt

On SALE now! Pre-order Price Guarantee: https://www.finishinglinepress.com/product/pacific-pieces-by-magdalena-louise-hirt/

Pacific Pieces drifts readers through the beginnings of what an undertaking like crossing the #Pacific #Ocean by #sailboat entails. The sequential poems written by Magdalena Hirt about her family of six and their adventures as they cross the Pacific Ocean is the first in a three-book series. Snug and squeezed into their Westerly 49, Selkie, they emerge from their hurricane hole in Rio Dulce, Guatemala, escape a possible pirate attack off the coast of Honduras, pass through the Panama Canal, experience the Galapagos with Covid, and survive twenty-three days at sea to reach the Marquesas. Poems give detailed bites, moments of moon and stars, terrifying defeat, friendship, love of open water with family, booby bird invasion, equator crossing, fog of Covid, environmental crisis, Dracula sunrises, gothic darkness, perfect breezes, huge swells, endless destinations, and the comfort of mountainous islands.

Magdalena Louise Hirt has a Master of Arts in English Literature from the University of Toledo and a Master of Letters from the University of Highlands and Islands for Scottish Highland and Islands Literature.

PRAISE FOR Pacific Pieces by Magdalena Louise Hirt

Magdelena Hirt‘s Pacific Pieces builds on her previous chapbooks, creating a rare chronicle of a family’s life at sea. But this is not your usual logbook. “My rhythm is slight bounce / of the hull, motor-push, / current sway, dolphin play, / depth-watcher, lighthouse,” writes Hirt. With this lyric movement of push and sway, caution and play, Pacific Pieces carries us from Guatemala through the Panama Canal, around the Galapagos Islands and finally across the Pacific. There is danger here, on both land and water—from a bout with COVID to a spinnaker down. But the poet and her crew keep faith “in instruments and shipwright / hands,” and, always, in the expanse of sky and water. The abiding theme here is one of presence, and how a life at sea hones the attention to a fine point: “The point? What’s the point? Being now. / Living as the earth lives—in movement.”

–Laura Donnelly, author of Midwest Gothic

“The middle of nowhere is the center of everywhere” is a line from a French Polynesian poem, the closing poem in Maggie Hirt‘s arresting work, Pacific Pieces. After we’ve prevailed one harrowing experience after another in this third chapbook, we most certainly realize what life’s like without, shall we say, any landmarks. We are indeed in the center of everywhere aboard the sailboat that serves as full-time home for her, her husband, and their remarkable children. Describing each member of this family as embodying courage is an understatement. Again and again they encounter the forewarned yet unpredictable: upsurges of tumultuous waves, weather that can change before one can make adequate preparation, risks of tumbling overboard into seas populated by poisonous jellyfish, sharks, any deadly denizen happy to enjoy a flailing limb, of course Covid, and even pirates. Hirt not only takes her turns at the helm, but also fulfills her callings as mother, nurse, cook, and “mate” ready to take over or serve as enabler under any emergency. Somehow she works in the time to compose poems that reveal an artistry that creates the feeling of one event after another in tones, lines, timings, structures, fragments, and rhythms that evoke the experience they/we survive. Stunning is the poise of presence that comes through in each poem’s voice. Read Pacific Pieces with suspense and admiration, wondering through each poem how this family prevails over the pandemic in the Pacific, nowhere and everywhere.

–Jack Ridl, author of Practicing to Walk Like a Heron, named by ForeWords Review as co-recipient of the nation’s finest collection of poetry for 2013.

The sea is life’s rhythm throughout the sequences of poems that shape Pacific Pieces. On these waters “the wind puts the otherworld to sleep,” and “seductive night moves” weave their “pre-dawn secrets.” Those luminous secrets might be the trailing lights of a ghost ship, magical phosphorescence, dwindling stars, or the ladder of the Panama Canal “ushering the next step/ the next world.”

In these fine and ever-alert poems, Maggie Hirt continues her family’s journey, degree-by-degree, around the world. Lifting and falling with the seas, kids clamped in life jackets, a dead bird caught in the sail’s rigging, blue-footed boobies, the Southern Cross, but always “this labyrinth of water…water everywhere, so much blue.” These are substantial, uniquely informed and alert poems.

–Joel Lipman, 2022 Axon Creative Fellow, University of Toledo

Please share/please repost #flpauthor #preorder #AwesomeCoverArt #poetry #read #poetrybook #poems

#poetry #flp authors #preorder #flp #poets on tumblr #american poets #finishing line press #small press #ocean #sailing

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glitter-troublewind · 2 years

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sagittarius sun aries moon: tyra banks , mark twain

sagittarius sun taurus moon: jamie foxx , lucy liu , christina aguilera

sagittarius sun gemini moon: billy idol , edith piaf , jake gyllenhaal

sagittarius sun cancer moon: taylor swift , jonah hill

sagittarius sun leo moon: amanda seyfried, annie murphy

sagittarius sun virgo moon: zoe kravitz, steve buscemi , nicki minaj

sagittarius sun libra moon: jay z , anna nicole smith , jenna dewan

sagittarius sun scorpio moon: steven spielberg , bette midler, miley cyrus

sagittarius sun sagittarius moon: marisa tomei , peter facinelli

sagittarius sun capricorn moon: judi dench , brad pitt , snooki

sagittarius sun aquarius moon: britney spears , billie eilish

sagittarius sun pisces moon: ben stiller, chadwick boseman , rita ora

capricorn sun aries moon: nicholas sparks , meghan trainor capricorn sun gemini moon: jim carey capricorn sun cancer moon: janis joplin , kate middleton , ll cool j capricorn sun leo moon: diane sawyer capricorn sun libra moon: humphrey bogart , bradley cooper , jude law , chet baker

capricorn sun scorpio moon: kate moss , kit harrington , alex turner capricorn sun sagittarius moon: dave grohl capricorn sun capricorn moon: craig robinson capricorn sun aquarius moon: carey grant , holly madison

capricorn sun pisces moon: martin luther king , michelle obama , taye diggs , j.r.r. tolkien

aquarius sun aries moon: anton chekhov, chris rock

aquarius sun taurus moon: christian bale , j. cole

aquarius sun gemini moon: james spader

aquarius sun cancer moon: django reinherdt , zhang ziyi , wilmer valderrama

aquarius sun leo moon: megan thee stallion , maluma

aquarius sun virgo moon: john travolta

aquarius sun libra moon: harry styles , preity zinta , evan peters

aquarius sun scorpio moon: the weekend

aquarius sun sagittarius moon: jennifer aniston , justin timberlake

aquarius sun capricorn moon: emma roberts

aquarius sun aquarius moon: ed helms

aquarius sun pisces moon: sam cooke , isla fisher

pisces sun aries moon: rihanna , sophie turner

pisces sun taurus moon: rob lowe , kelly bishop

pisces sun cancer moon: liza menelli , drew barrymore

pisces sun gemini moon: lauren graham , olivia wilde , simone biles

pisces sun leo moon: queen latifah , dakota fanning , chris martin ,lily collins

pisces sun virgo moon: jenna fischer , steve irwin , chelsea handler

pisces sun libra moon: lupita nyongo , justin bieber

pisces sun scorpio moon: quincy jones , tyler the creator , laura prepon , elizabeth taylor

pisces sun sagittarius moon: sharon stone , vanessa williams , kristin davis , camila cabello

pisces sun capricorn moon: timbaland , rashida jones , jennifer love hewitt

pisces sun aquarius moon: glenn close , john frusciante , carrie underwood , millie bobby brown

pisces sun pisces moon: grimes , catherine o'hara , brittany snow

#sagittarius sun #aquarius #moon signs #sun moon combos #moon sign celebs #celebs astrology #signs as

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tellthemeerkatsitsfine · 8 months

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In the last twelve months, I’ve been lucky enough to be able to see/hear a bunch of 2023 Edinburgh comedy hours. I’ve enjoyed following the process over a year, going from early WIPs, to previews, to stuff done in Edinburgh, to post-Edinburgh tours. A fascinating yearly cycle that we don’t have in North America, but I wish we did.

However, I see why it’s difficult to maintain. A lot of the shows I’ve seen/heard run together in my mind, so many variations on similar concepts, taken in so close together. It can be really hard for any one comedian to distinguish themself. I feel like I understand better than ever why people make such a big deal about USPs and stuff. They really are all just competing to find some tiny bit of ground that everyone else hasn’t covered a million times before. And if they do find any, they’re not allowed to stick with it for more than a year because that’s called recycling material, so they’ve got to walk across Scotland or some shit just to have something new to say. I think you get fewer comedians walking across a country for material in North America, where they don’t have to write a new hour every year and then have it directly compete against the new hours by every single other comedian in the country.

But I always enjoy a good competition, so I’ve liked getting to hear the different entries this year, compare them, root for them like sports teams. I already posted, at the end of August this year, that I felt like my favourite team had just won the championship when the 2023 Edinburgh award went to Ahir Shah’s show Ends, which was the one I’d rated the highest out of all the ones I’ve heard. I still think it’s the best 2023 stand-up show I’ve heard. Honourable mentions go to:

Adam Kay’s Undoctored, Andrew O’Neill’s Geburah, Paul Foot’s Dissolve, Ian Smith’s Crushing, Pierre Novellie’s Why Are You Laughing?, Laura Davis’ Well Don’t Just Stand There Dancing, Milo Edwards’ Sentimental, Robin Ince’s MELONs, Tom Ballard’s It Is I, Zoe Coombs Marr’s The Opener, and I’d probably have Mark Watson’s Search on this list if I weren’t currently mad at him. Daniel Kitson’s First Thing doesn’t count as stand-up, but obviously that too.

I made that list by going through my spreadsheet of stand-up shows I’ve seen/heard, sorting it by year, and picking out the ones I really really liked from the 2023 section. But that also showed me some 2022 shows that I have marked as 2023 on my spreadsheet, because I've heard a version of it from 2023. And I can’t end that list without giving honourable mentions to the best of those as well: Grace Petrie’s Butch Ado About Nothing, Josie Long’s Re-Enchantment, Hari Kondabolu’s Vacation Baby (I’m actually not sure when this one started, but it was released on YouTube in April 2023 so I’m guessing it was performed in 2022), Mae Martin’s SAP (see note about Hari Kondabolu), Paul Foot’s Swan Power, James Acaster’s Heckler’s Welcome, Huge Davies’ The Carpark, and Shelf’s Hair. Frankie Boyle’s Lap of Shame would probably be on this list, if I’d actually heard it during its first run, rather than hearing it after I saw the last New World Order season so I’d heard most of the jokes before.

Okay, now that I’ve done that, I can’t go on with this post without going through the 2022 section of my stand-up list and naming my favourites of the 2022 shows of which I actually heard a version from 2022: John-Luke Roberts’ A World Just Like Our Own But…, Rhod Gilbert’s The Book of John, Kiri Pritchard McLean’s Home Truths, Mark Watson’s This Can’t Be It (that one started in 2021, but it was performed at the 2022 Edinburgh Festival so counts as a 2022 show), Tim Key’s Mulberry (I think that may actually be a 2021 show as well, not sure when it started), Nick Helm’s What Have We Become, Sam Campbell’s Companion, Daniel Kitson’s Outside, Nish Kumar’s Your Power Your Control.

Also, I need to mention that Nish Kumar didn’t do a proper Edinburgh hour in 2023, just messed around with WIP stuff, but from having heard some of the stuff he’s messing around with at the moment, I can already say I think he’s building toward a good shot at my favourite show of 2024. Also, Andy Zaltzman has just announced that he’s preparing to soon do new stand-up for the first time in a bunch of years, and I think the last new show he did may have been his absolutely brilliant 2019 year in review, so I can’t wait to hear that (hopefully they’ll release some of it on The Bugle, they’ve done that before).

Stewart Lee’s Basic Lee needs to be on my list of favourite entries in the 2022/2023 season, even though I’m also a little bit mad at him these days.

Anyway, this post wasn’t even supposed to be about that. It was supposed to be about the show I’ve just heard, but then I got caught up in talking about how it fits into my hobby of following the competitions for the best Edinburgh hour like it’s a sports championship. Any time I have the chance to see or hear something that was nominated for the main Edinburgh award in any year, I like to do that. Because whether or not it ends up being good, I find it interesting to learn what gets considered good by those standards.

In 2023, I’ve heard a few of the shows that were nominated. Ahir Shah’s Ends was absolutely incredible and I thought entirely deserved to win. Ian Smith’s Crushing was streamed on NextUp, and I thought it was great. Really well written and well delivered, definitely deserved to be nominated even if I didn’t think it was better than the one that won (he was on The Bugle a few weeks ago, getting affectionately mocked by Andy Zaltzman for being the Edinburgh Comedy Award loser, though by the end even Andy had to drop that long enough to acknowledge that getting nominated is impressive and he did well).

NextUp also streamed Phil Ellis’ show, which… I don’t get it. I don’t mean I don’t get why it was nominated (though that’s also true), I mean I literally did not understand the show. Maybe it’s the sort of thing that’s only funny if you’re in the room. I kept wondering when it was going to start being funny. It is clearly a type of comedy that I do not get.

I’ve also heard Kieran Hodgson’s Big in Scotland, and I think I did get that one, but I also don’t see why it was on the nomination list. It was pretty good, I enjoyed it. But when listing the best stand-up shows I’ve heard from 2023, it wouldn’t occur to me to include that one. It was well written and well put together. It had a good underlying message about romanticization of Scotland, and an interesting take on the subject. It wasn’t all that funny. It just didn’t seem special, it’s one of those shows that gets lost in the blur of all the other hours like it in my mind.

Anyway, I’ve just heard another show that was nominated but did not win that award this year, currently on a post-Edinburgh tour, Ania Magliano’s I Can’t Believe You’ve Done This. And that is what this post is actually supposed to be about. I wrote all that other stuff because I was trying to say that this is another one that rises above the blur of hours with a theme, I think it’s going to stick in my mind and should be added the list of shows I liked best from 2023. I definitely see why this one got nominated.

I normally drop spoilers liberally on this blog, and only occasionally remember to add a “spoiler alert” a few words before the actual spoiler, as I operate under the assumption that if you want to avoid spoilers for a show, you shouldn’t read my post about it. But as this one is still touring, I’ll try to avoid going into too much detail about the actual content. Spoiler alert: it’s got more depth than it appears to at first. Surely that’s not too big a thing to reveal, as that’s the case with every Edinburgh show ever made (well, every Edinburgh show tries to do that, not all succeed).

I just thought it came together really really well. All these different stories and observations, connected fairly loosely but you can see the way they all relate to something central. There was a theme, a quite serious one but covered with the lightest possible touch, and it worked. A lot of the individual bits were funny, the way they connected was satisfying, the message was resonant and felt earned by the end.

What I’d meant to say at the beginning of this post was I’ve heard a lot of Edinburgh hours, and most of them have some theme or other, and it often feels like they started with a few stories, found some tenuous thing that links them, then made that their theme and contrived a few other stories that could possibly fit around it. That doesn’t always make for a bad show, but I find it often makes for an un-memorable one.

This rose above that so nicely. It felt like everything was in it because it was something she actually wanted to say, not just because she needed to fill an hour. And not every bit was of deep importance to the world (though a few were), but every bit was funny and/or well observed enough to be worth wanting to say anyway. Nothing felt tacked on.

People make jokes about an Edinburgh hour with a sad bit at the end, which this sort of had. But the sad bit was also sort of there underlying the whole thing, but also, it never took a break from the humour to cover that. I’m always impressed with a show that manages to blend the funny bits and the sad bits not by going back and forth between them, but by doing both at the same time. Ania Magliano managed to be funny about the serious stuff, nothing felt compartmentalized away from comedy.

Also, she seems to be 24 years old. What the fuck? No one should be allowed to be that good at anything when they’re 24 years old. No one should be able to craft things that well, to express themselves that clearly, to cover their topics with that much nuance.

I’m pleased to say she was a Footlights member, though. Normally I wouldn’t be glad add yet another person to my List of Footlights Comedians I Very Much Like, because there are too many people on that list already, given that I am supposed to be a socialist who does not glorify the elite classes of society. But I also dislike that my List of Footlights Comedians I Very Much Like is almost entirely a list of white guys (with some exceptions, all due respect to the reigning Edinburgh champ Ahir Shah, also Perkins and Toksvig, and I might have added Ayoade’s name here if I were not currently mad at him), so at least I’ve diversified now!

Anyway, add one to my list of things that are done well in this world. And this one is not by a man whom I have reason to be mad at. Hooray for diversity!

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ilyasorokinn · 2 years

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game winner ― artturi lehkonen

note: i don't really have anything to say. i'm just really proud of all of them. artturi, you deserve a big forehead kiss. summary: artturi, the winner. warnings: alcohol consumption word count: 637 words

you decided that, even though you were in a different city, you would still go along with your routine. you weren't superstitious at all, but playoffs were no time to play around.

you got ready the same way you would at home. you got to the arena at the same time you normally would. and of course, grabbed your snack before puck drop.

the game started out strong with cale scoring in the 1st period, 3 minutes in. but after the 2nd period was when you started to get worried. 3 goals in one period weren't very promising.

by 2nd intermission, you were on your second beer. you had been texting a few of the girls throughout the game.

when 3rd period came around, you were ready to throw up. goal after goal was getting called. you cheered when the avs got goals and deflated back in your seat when the oilers got goals.

you tried to distract yourself during intermission but your mind was very much present and running 1000 miles a minute.

when ot started, your leg was bouncing the entire time.

the puck dropped and it was tossed from player to player before helm passed it to cale who got it in front of the net, and artturi was the one to get it into the net.

your reaction time was a little slow, but when he skated over and jumped into the arms of his teammate, that's when you knew it was over.

the crowd was mostly oilers but there were some avs fans, so you cheered with them.

after the game, you face timed maddie, nak's girlfriend, who was crying, "oh, don't cry."

"i can't help it." she laughed, "was it magical?"

"it was." you nodded, "their hotdogs aren't as good but i ate it."

"well come home and we'll get all the hotdogs you want."

"tomorrow." you smiled.

she smiled, "tomorow." you blew a kiss, she blew one back and you hung up.

you waited for artturi to come out of the locker room, scrolling through your phone and reading all the tweets and messages.

he was one of the first to come out and when he saw you, he all but ran over to you and hugged you tight, lifting you off the ground a little.

"my winner." you hummed, pulling away and cupping his face, "i'm so proud of you."

he smiled at your words, "are you getting deja vu? or is it just me?"

"no, i'm getting it. me sitting in the stands watching you score the game-winning overtime goal, winning it for your team and sending you into the next round. nope, sounds about right."

he laughed, "i'm glad you were here."

"i'm glad i was, too." you kissed him.

"so, did you eat your hotdog?"

"i did. wasn't as good as it was at home, but i still ate it."

"how much beer?"

"2." you answered shyly, "what? it was stressful."

"i didn't say anything." he laughed, "now let's go celebrate." he threw his arms around your shoulders.

after celebrating for a few hours, you made your way back to the hotel. although you had partied for a few hours, you were still pretty sober.

maddie called while you were getting ready for bed. she was taking care of your dog while you were out of town, "hi, cc." you laughed when her dog's face came into frame.

"scooch." maddie pushed the dog out of the way so your dog could get into frame.

"hi, stevie." you greeted. your dog's head popped up and was sniffing the phone. he whined when he realized you weren't there.

"stevie?" artturi popped into the bathroom. stevie's head popped up once again, but he realized you still weren't there.

"oh, i'm sorry, bud. we're coming home tomorrow." stevie barked happily.

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add yourself to my taglist!

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olehistorian · 2 years

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Downton Abbey' star Phyllis Logan sees 'great love' in Elsie-Carson romance

By Karen Butler

JULY 5, 2022 / 3:00 AM

1/5'Downton Abbey' star Phyllis Logan sees 'great love' in Elsie-Carson romance.

NEW YORK, July 5 (UPI) -- Phyllis Logan says her housekeeper character Elsie's new marriage to Mr. Carson is going well in Downton Abbey: A New Era, even though the snooty former butler is in the South of France with their employer for most of the movie.

"They get on each other's nerves like all married couples from time to time, but there is a great love there. She knows what a curmudgeon he can be, but, even withstanding that, she loves him," Logan told UPI in a recent Zoom interview.

"They are just settling in," she added. "It's like they've been married for years. It's all comparatively recent, their wedding, but they've known each other so well being butler and housekeeper ... and always had time for each other -- having a wee sherry and discussing the day's business, which was lovely.

"I love those scenes because it meant they could slightly take off their housekeeper and butler hats and show themselves as human beings."

Set for DVD release Tuesday, the movie is set in 1928 and finds Lord Robert Crawley (Hugh Bonneville), steward of the cash-strapped titular British estate, making the difficult decision to accept a lucrative financial offer to allow a Hollywood film production to shoot at Downton. This is much to the chagrin of most of his family, but excites the household staff.

At the same time, Robert's ailing mother, Lady Violet (Maggie Smith), inherits a villa in the South of France from a mysterious man, prompting Robert, his wife Countess Cora (Elizabeth McGovern), who has secrets of her own, their daughter, Lady Edith (Laura Carmichael), and their son-in-law, Branson (Allen Leech), to head out on holiday to inspect the new property.

That leaves Lady Mary (Michelle Dockery) and Elsie (Phyllis Logan) at Downton's helm.

To get the fussy Carson out of the way so the filmmakers may get on with their work, the women concoct a ruse and convince him that Robert desperately needs him on this trip.

Logan categorized the plot as a "bit of subterfuge."

"Lady Mary suggests it because I say Mr. Carson is going to make trouble. He's not going to countenance a film crew -- a bunch of vagabond actors who are stealing the silverware," she laughed.

"She thinks Lady Mary is going to have to get rid of him, not through homicide, of course. So, she says, 'Well, he's going to have to go to France.' That will get him out of the way," Logan added.

"Robert needs a stalwart to help go through the trauma of a holiday abroad. Carson buys that, and off he goes, leaving us to have fun with the movie stars."

Protective of the estate but not quite as steadfast as Carson is, Elsie found the film company, including fictional screen icons Guy Dexter (Dominic West) and Myran Dalgleish (Laura Haddock), to be a major disruption to the household.

But Elsie, as always, was able to rise to the occasion, stepping "into the breach to save the day" when needed, Logan said.

"In the beginning, she might seem slightly fazed by all these theatrical types just wandering about the place," she admitted.

"She was a bit overwhelmed to start with, but she quickly caught on to how to deal with these people and got quite actually interested in the making of [the film] and got quite excited along with the younger members of the staff like Anna (Joanne Froggatt) and Daisy (Sophie McShera), who were thrilled to see their idols from the magazines and movies.

"She wasn't impressed to begin with, but I think Dominic West won her over."

Logan doesn't know if there will be another Downton story to tell, but she is all in if there is one, just as long as it doesn't jump too far into the future.

"I love doing it. I love all the people. I love the character that I play. It's just one of life's great gifts that we've been given," she said.

"Some of us who are senior members of the cast, we'd probably be long dead if we leap forward too far. We could keep it to a year or a couple of years."

The actress said she is grateful to the viewers who made the franchise a global success.

"They are the most loyal bunch of fans you could ever wish for," Logan said.

"Ultimately, it's they who enabled a second film to be made because enough of them went to see [ the first] and loved it enough. The studio felt, 'Well, it's popular still, there's an appetite still, why don't we do another?'"

Logan said she is is pleased to put A New Era out in the world at a time when so many people are trying to resume some normalcy after the coronavirus pandemic.

"It is just a real joy with a touch of sadness, of course, but that's what life's about, isn't it? It is a real, feel-good, walk-out-of-the-thing-with-a-big-smile-on-your-face [movie]," she said.

Bookending A New Era are heartwarming group scenes with the whole cast turning out for one beloved character's joyous wedding and another's tearjerker of a funeral.

"It was just wonderful to kick the whole event off with that wedding when we were all there at the same time, which doesn't happen a lot within the filming," Logan said.

About that mournful sendoff at the end, she added, "You need to have a heart of stone not to be affected by that."

Logan and some of her castmates were crestfallen to read the script and see they would be staying at Downton while others headed off to France.

"We were all a bit [disappointed,] to tell the truth, but then we were having so much fun doing the stuff we were doing. Having seen it on film, it looks stunning and they all came back [from France] with raging tans," she recalled.

Not that the British cohort didn't enjoy themselves in between filming scenes. Because the movie was made during the COVID-19 pandemic, most of the cast members found themselves blissfully isolated together in posher quarters than they are used to.

"We stayed in this gorgeous hotel near the castle. Normally, it's just Maggie Smith who gets to stay in the place," Logan dished. "We were given a wing of the thing to be kept separate from the other residents or visitors. We had our own garden and dining areas. It was like going on holiday with your pals."

#downton abbey #phyllis logan #elsie hughes #interview #Downton abbey a new era

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