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nancydrewwouldnever · 1 year

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Backstage Magazine Sept 22-28, 2011

Chris Evans Takes On a New Fight in 'Puncture'

By Jessica Gardner all photos by Jamie Painter Young

Five minutes with Chris Evans and you feel like you've known him your whole life. Considering his charming smile, lingering Boston accent (complete with the occasional curse word), and high-fives—and even a call to Mom to check a fact—it's easy to forget you're chatting with Captain America and not just an old friend from high school. Asked if he ever read Back Stage, he responds, "I got my first acting gig through Back Stage in New York. It was a short film called 'The Paper Boy.' My first real audition outside of, like, community theater, and I ended up getting it. I was walking to work one morning when I got the phone call from the writer-director, whose name was Eric Ogden. I remember walking down the street with my hand in the air [pumps his fist]. We filmed in upstate New York for two weeks. I still have a copy of it. My first job on a film ever." Community theater was a big part of life in the Evans household while he was growing up. Evans, his two sisters, and his brother, Scott (whom you might remember as Officer Oliver Fish from "One Life to Live"), grew up acting at a community children's theater called the Concord Youth Theatre. "Each of us must have done at least 15 to 20 shows there," Evans says. Their family was so connected to the theater that when Chris was around 18, his mother, Lisa, took over as artistic director, and she's been working there ever since.

Seeing his elder sister, Carly, onstage inspired Evans to be an actor. "Her play would end, and she'd get flowers and candy, and it just seemed like such a good time. She was having a ball and hanging out with her acting friends—it just looked awesome," he remembers. "I was like, 'I'll give this a shot.' " He started doing plays at the theater and going to acting camp in the summer. "I fell in love with that, too. I started doing plays year-round. I was always onstage." In his junior year of high school, Evans started thinking he might want to pursue acting professionally. He convinced his parents to let him move to New York City for the summer and take classes at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute. He also wrote casting offices and secured a summer internship with Bonnie Finnegan, who was casting "Spin City" at the time. "We got to go to the tapings every Friday for the show with Michael J. Fox, and I thought that was the coolest thing in the world," he says. At the end of the summer, his plan was to ask the two or three agents he was the most friendly with if he could read for them. "I was like, 'I know you know me as Chris from Bonnie's office, but I'm an actor—can you give me five minutes?' " One of the agencies was willing to let him read, so he did. The agency was interested in signing him, but it was the end of summer, and he had to go home to start senior year. "They said to me, 'You've got to get back [to New York] as soon as possible. Pilot season's in January.' So I went back and doubled up my classes and graduated early, in January. Went back to New York, got my agent, got the same internship with Bonnie, and I even got the same apartment."

Down the hall from Finnegan's office was casting director Marcia DeBonis, who one day asked Evans to come in and read for a pilot she was working on called "Get Real." Evans went in and nailed the audition, so the network sent him out to Los Angeles to test for it. "The first person I met in Los Angeles was Anne Hathaway," he remembers. "She was testing for it, too. We were both kids—she wasn't 'Anne Hathaway' then. I was 17, and she was pretty young, too." Because Evans was the only person there reading for his role, he was convinced he would get it. "I was like, 'I got this in the bag,' " he says. "But I didn't get the show. [Hathaway] did, but I didn't. It was so crushing to be that close that soon. My dad was out there with me, and I was so excited and then just so devastated. But then Warner Bros. said, 'Stick around—there's a couple of other shows you might be right for. We'll put you up for the week.' So I stuck around and auditioned, and I ended up getting a different pilot called 'Opposite Sex.' " The Fox show (which also starred Milo Ventimiglia) lasted only one season, but it was Evans' first break, and he stayed in Los Angeles. By age 20, he landed his first leading film role in the comedy spoof "Not Another Teen Movie" and hasn't stopped since. Gone Audition Gone "I'm pretty shitty at auditioning," Evans admits. "Auditioning is such a strange thing. It's like the opposite of acting. It's a strange environment. To act well, you need to be extremely comfortable. You need to be extremely in your skin. Even if you have to play someone nervous, you have to be neutral and let it come to you and listen. I get so nervous in auditions. My heart just pounds."

Evans thinks plenty of amazing actors aren't working because they can't audition well. "It's like those races in the Olympics," he says. "You could race 100 times, and the same guy's not going to win every time—it's just who's going to win that day. Everyone here is fast. Everyone here can run well. But who's going to run well today? I used to sit at these auditions and look around, and I know all these actors. I've seen them. Everyone here can act. No one here is a bad actor. But it's just a matter of who's going to act well in the next five minutes. If you're not going to, someone else is. I'm sure I've gotten parts where I wasn't the best man for the job; I just happened to have a really good audition that day. And the guy who was the right man for the job had a bad one. It's that type of uncertainty that makes acting such a crapshoot." The audition-gone-wrong story he recalls as being worst was meeting with Ben Affleck for "Gone Baby Gone." "I don't get starstruck," says Evans. "I'm fine. Especially Ben—he's a Boston guy, I should be fine. I walked in and I'm walking down the halls looking for this room, and as I passed a room I heard 'There he is.' In my head I was like, 'That's Ben.' I turned around and it was, and for some reason I instantly was nervous. I went in and shook his hand, and the first thing I said was 'Hey, how ya doing—am I gonna be okay where I parked?' And he said, 'Where'd you park?' And I said, 'At one of the meters.' And he said, 'Did you put money in it?' And I said, 'Yeah.' And he said, 'I think you'll be all right.' From that moment, I just wanted to get the f*** out of the room. I just wanted to be anywhere but there. I sat down with my heart beating out of my chest; I was so mortified that I started this meeting off that way. I started giving him one-word answers. They put me in a rocking chair, so I'm just rocking and twisting, just nervous. 'So, what was your last movie like?' 'Good.' 'What was it like to work with Danny Boyle?' 'Good.' I just wanted to get out of there. It was horrible, a complete disaster. So obviously, I did not get that job."

Character Choices In Evans' upcoming film "Puncture," a law drama based on a true story, he portrays Mike Weiss, lawyer and drug addict. This was Evans' first experience playing a role based on a real person. He spoke to the deceased Weiss' brother, father, college friends, and colleagues and even read the transcript of what was said at Weiss' funeral. "The problem is, I could tell you 100 stories about someone, but is that going to make you able to embody their speech pattern and posture and nuances?" he says. "It's not like I'm playing JFK, where you can watch videos and get cadence and inflection." Evans decided his best option was to tell Weiss' family and friends he would have to have some artistic license. He told everyone he would do his best, "but don't expect to see the Mike you know." Evans worked hard not to second-guess his character choices or worry about what Weiss' family and friends might think. "If you start second-guessing yourself, you're f***ed," he says. "The family and the friends couldn't have been more accommodating, but it was still pretty nerve-racking." He admits to being similarly nerve-racked when bringing beloved comic book characters Steve Rogers/Captain America and Johnny Storm/Human Torch to the screen. "Most times you make a film and you say, 'I hope it does well.' [With 'Captain America: The First Avenger' and 'Fantastic Four'] I knew people were going to go see them. There would be a response, positive or negative. There's this phenomenal built-in audience. There's going to be a huge opening weekend; there's going to be a shit ton of merchandise. That's intimidating." Evans realized the best way to approach playing a superhero was to try to get in the same headspace as all the fans. "To me, the fans are the most important—if they're not happy, you didn't do your job. So let's try and essentially become a fan. Try and understand what they understand. To see what they're expecting." For "Captain America: The First Avenger," Evans says he and director Joe Johnston read many comic books before coming together to create the film version of the Steve Rogers character.

"Steve Rogers is a tricky character to play because he doesn't have too much conflict," says Evans. "He's such a selfless person. There's very little that can rattle him. If [your character] doesn't have conflict, it's easy to become boring. It's nice [that in the upcoming film 'The Avengers'] he struggles a little bit. He struggles with being a fish out of water. He's from the '40s; he's from a different mentality. Today the world is text messaging and impersonal and selfishness, and in the '40s there was much more of a human connection and camaraderie among the country. It's an old-fashioned way of thinking. So I think he's struggling with trying to find his place in modern day." The Evans Method Although he studied for a summer at the Lee Strasberg Institute, Evans says he isn't sure that Strasberg is his "cup of tea." He believes that acting is an ever-evolving thing, and if you get stuck in one method or approach, you might get stagnant. He says Keanu Reeves, his co-star in "Street Kings," helped him put his method into words. He asked Reeves what his approach to acting was, and Reeves answered, "It's constantly changing." "I was like, 'That's a good answer,' " Evans says. "It's like art. You want to constantly change your style and find new things to spark your creativity and keep you excited about it." Evans is a fan of asking his fellow actors for their thoughts on acting. His friend Jonathan Tucker gave him his favorite advice: "Don't forget that the audience doesn't know what's coming next. It's very easy to forget when you're acting and you do the scene over and over again. Don't forget this is brand-new for the audience. You can push them in any direction because they don't know what's coming."

A favorite acting exercise of Evans', that he recommends all actors do, is to buy scripts of good films, work on a character's scene or monologue until you feel you've nailed the role, and then watch the movie to see how the actor did it. "It's like training with Michael Jordan in basketball," he says. "Go train with De Niro. Make your choices, and then watch Bob show you how to do it right. It's a real eye opener. The thing you'll learn is to not follow the words so closely. The words are not always the indication of the character. A lot of time, actors look at the words as clues as to who the character is and how the line should be said. But it's not always a direct link. If [casting directors] are going to audition 100 people for a role, the majority of the actors are going to use the words as indicators. Be different. Go another route. Take the dance somewhere unique. If nothing else, you'll stick in their mind." Outtakes - Raised in Sudbury, Mass. - Other films include "Cellular," "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World," and "The Losers" - In the final stages of auditions for "Not Another Teen Movie," the director brought Evans and co-star Chyler Leigh to Jennifer Coolidge's house to workshop their scenes: "[Coolidge] was so clever, funny, smart, and awesome. I felt so lucky." - On returning to the theater: "The stage, in my opinion, has the best actors. I'd love to get back to the stage, but it's a big commitment. You've got to find something you really want to do everyday for months and months. It's tricky." - Also starring opposite Anna Faris in the comedy "What's Your Number?," opening Sept. 30.

#interview #2011 #backstage magazine #chris evans

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bubblegum-blackwood · 1 month

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13 Books Tag Game

Tagged by @mothmage 🖤

1) The last book I read:

Ghost Of by Diana Khoi Nguyen. This is a book of poetry I read for my Intro to Poetry class - it deals heavily with grief, having been written in the aftermath of the death of the author's brother, and if you like free verse, concrete poems, or stream-of-consciousness-like verse, this would definitely be something to check out. Also Othello by William Shakespeare :3

2) A book I recommend:

If We Were Villains by ML Rio! It's about a bunch of theatre kids going to an arts conservatory to study Shakespeare. People fuck, people do drugs, people get murdered, and like half the cast is gay and repressed about it. The prose is really vivid, and overall, I'm just super impressed with the story and the characters Rio created!

3) A book that I couldn’t put down:

Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice. I know this is a Vampire Chronicles blog so that seems rather obvious but I truly was captivated by this book. Checking it out from the library was one of the best decisions I ever made.

4) A book I’ve read twice (or more):

I'm going to cheat for this one and do a play instead: Hamlet by William Shakespeare. I first read it in school in junior high, then again on my own my sophomore year of high school, and I've flipped through it several times since then. As much as I love other Shakespeare plays like Much Ado About Nothing and Twelfth Night and Romeo and Juliet, I never seem to run out of things to say about Hamlet. It's just so rich.

5) A book on my TBR:

Ohhhh soooo many sdljkfklfjasklfsjlkjfskl. But my friend gifted me Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M Danforth for my birthday and I figure I should get around to it at some point 😅

6) A book I’ve put down:

A year or two ago, my mother came home from Target with Ramses the Damned: The Reign of Osiris by Anne and Christopher Rice, because she saw our goth mom's name and figured I'd appreciate it since I like the Vampire Chronicles. It's not the first in the series, and I was having a hard time connecting to these random new characters, so I closed the book after a few pages and it's been sitting untouched on my bookshelf ever since 😅

7) A book on my wish list:

Every year for my birthday and Christmas I ask for one or two Shakespeare plays because I want to collect the full set (of all the ones I'm interested in LOL). Next on the list is The Comedy of Errors.

8) A favorite book from childhood:

Ummmm I'm trying to think. I have an abridged version of Little Women by Louisa May Alcott that I read several times in fifth and sixth grade, so I'll go with that. (hilariously, I remember almost nothing about the plot of the book now)

9) A book you would give to a friend:

I'll go with Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen because that is currently the book that I have been badgering my bestie to read lol

10) A book of poetry or lyrics that you own

The aforementioned Ghost Of but also Girl's Guide to Leaving by Laura Villareal, also something I read for my poetry class, and also something I would totally recommend!

11) A nonfiction book you own:

So many, mostly for school. Gender: Ideas, Interactions, Institutions by Lisa Wade and Myra Marx Feree (3rd edition) is something I bought for my sociology of gender class a few semesters ago, and I would highly recommend! It is very enlightening and full of interesting facts.

12) What are you currently reading:

Blood Canticle by Anne Rice! It's wacky as fuck but you know what, I'm actually enjoying myself. I just haven't gotten very far because I'm super busy with school this semester so I haven't had as much time to read for pleasure sadtoad.jpg

13) What are you planning on reading next?

The next play my Shakespeare class is reading is The Taming of the Shrew, so I guess technically that sfdasffasdf. For VC, I'll move on to Prince Lestat after finishing BCan.

tagging: @fofoqueirah @hekateinhell @covenofthearticulate @dorianslayyy and @leslutdepointedulac

#vc #tag game

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aliengoth3 · 11 months

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Idk how Priscilla fans can justify her taking her granddaughter to court and trying to contest her daughter’s will. Not to mention how she acts like she was the love of Elvis’s life and erases other women like Ann Margret from his story. She also acts like she’s his grieving widow even though she divorced him and lived with Marco Garibaldi for 22 years and had a son with him..

Yeah tell me about it

The fact that never got married again because we all know she wanted to keep the "Presley" surname even tho it's not hers, not since they divorced.

People use the excuse of "but she's Lisa's mom/she gave him Lisa/she saved Graceland/she took care of his legacy" way too often. I don't hate her, hating is not my thing, but I also don't get how she can have so many things supporting her, especially after basically saying he raped her in her book (which I really really hope it never happened. If it did I'm really sorry for her, if it didn't she is a dramatic liar)

I'm gonna attach a comment I read on Instagram under a video of Lisa saying how much she suffered from people taking advantage of his name after his death and writing books about him just for money and clout.

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fictionalcharacterlovetimes · 1 year

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Welcome!

This is the selfship blog of @projectdivamegamix. My name is Atticus, I'm 18 years old, and I mostly use he/him. I am trans and queer. I have a thing for strange fictional men (and women but usually men).

Other Stuff You Need To Know:

I share some F/Os, but not all. I will list which ones I do and don't in the F/O list section of this post.

I don't gush a lot! I'm trying to do it more on here because tbh I really want people to appreciate my ships (lmao).

I'm not always super active. Sometimes I'll come on here, post an imagine, and then disappear for a couple months. There's no consistency.

I like having friends! Please don't hesitate to send me an ask or something if you wanna talk.

I have an IRL partner, which is partially why I'm less active than I used to be.

I shouldn't have to say this but I know some people wanna hear it: I am deeply critical of all media my F/Os come from.

DNI:

Proship/Comship

TERFs (I'm literally trans. Why are you here.)

If you share the F/Os that I specifically say I do not share.

Aphobes of any kind (Ace- or Arophobic.)

Fandom blogs who don't selfship (unless it's your main and you have a selfship side (which is what I do)).

Major Tags

🎀 | general || stuff that fits all of my f/os or none of my f/os

🎀 | funny stuff || exactly what it says on the tin (memes, posts, whatever)

🎀 | community/events || posts from others in the community/about the community or event announcements!

🎀 | creativity || art, writing, etc, mine or otherwise

🎀 | gushing || me being absolutely feral about my f/os (romantic or otherwise)

🎀 | venting for all it's worth || vent tag, which i'm hoping i won't have to use much

🎀 | your f/o loves queue!! || queue tag

Anyways, now for the good stuff.

F/O List

Major Romantic F/Os

Howl Jenkins - Howl's Moving Castle (Movie)

Boyfriend (I share him with Sophie) (September 9, 2023)

I am okay with sharing him.

Tagged with 🐦.

Goro Akechi - Persona 5 (Royal)

Boyfriend (March 2023)

I am okay with sharing him.

Tagged with 🪶.

Rinko Shirokane - BanG Dream!

Wife (June 12, 2023)

I am NOT okay with sharing her.

Tagged with 🎹.

Minor Romantic F/Os

Yusuke Kitagawa - Persona 5 (Royal)

Boyfriend (November 2022)

I am okay with sharing him.

Tagged with 🦊.

Platonic F/Os (there's a lot of these so strap in)

Yukina Minato - BanG Dream!

Tagged with 🌹.

Lisa Imai - BanG Dream!

Ultimate bestie tbh

fun fact! I also majorly ship her with Yukina. Do Not Separate Them

Tagged with 🍪.

Sayo Hikawa - BanG Dream!

Tagged with 🌿.

Ako Udagawa - BanG Dream!

I can't find a better quality gif...

Tagged with 😈.

Eve Wakamiya - BanG Dream!

Another ultimate bestie, albeit a recent one

Tagged with 🥷.

Himari Uehara - BanG Dream!

Childhood friend-ish dynamic

I also struggled to find a decent gif of her

Tagged with 🪷.

Saki Tenma - Project Sekai

Tagged with 🛏️.

Mizuki Akiyama - Project Sekai

Also childhood friends

Tagged with 🎀.

Kanade Yoisaki - Project Sekai

Tagged with 🖥️.

Emu Otori - Project Sekai

Tagged with 🍬.

Ryuji Sakamoto - Persona 5 (Royal)

Tagged with ☠️.

Ann Takamaki - Persona 5 (Royal)

I definitely didn't forget her surname while typing this

Tagged with 🦋.

Familial F/Os

Rin Kagamine - Vocaloid

Younger sister.

Tagged with 🍊.

Len Kagamine - Vocaloid

Younger brother.

Tagged with 🍌.

Miku Hatsune - Vocaloid

Younger sister.

Tagged with 🥗.

MEIKO - Vocaloid

Mom

Tagged with 🔴.

Alright, that's way longer than I thought this would get. Congrats if you read through all of it /gen.

#pinned post

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mrlancer · 1 year

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My Favorite Books of 2022

I think I did decently well at reading in 2022 and the book I'm reading now, I'm not anticipating finishing before the end of the year (it's The Stand by Stephen King), so now is the best time to post about my favorite books of the year.

This year, I read 80 books. 27 of those were the manga Blue Exorcist, and I'm never sure about whether to really count those in my book count, but I am going to count them as 1 big book for the purpose of this list! So, that takes me down to like 54 books.

So, let's go through my list each month, and pick out favorite book(s) from each month! Maybe I won't have a favorite from some months...

Bold means it was a good I really enjoyed! I

I'm going to hide the list under a keep reading line because otherwise this post might be too long for some people!

January

Dune Messiah -Frank Herbert

A Game of Thrones - George R.R. Martin

Memoirs and Misinformation - Dana Vachon and Jim Carrey

February

Mergers and Acquisitions - Dana Vachon

March

A Long Way to a Small Angry Planet - Becky Chambers

Everyone In This Room Will Someday Be Dead - Emily Austin

Diary of a Bookseller - Shaun Bythell

Call Me By Your Name - Andre Aciman

The Song of Achilles - Madeline Miller

April

I read nothing

May

A Clash of Kings - George R.R. Martin

Almond - Sohn Won-pyung

Human Acts - Hang Kang

Love in the Big City - Sang Young Park

June

Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism - Amanda Montell

Kindred - Octavia E. Butler

July

Blue Exorcist 1-27 - Kazue Kato

Children of Dune - Frank Herbert

Mindhunter: Inside the FBI's Serial Crime Unit - John E. Douglas

Hamnet - Maggie O'Farrell

Columbine - Dave Cullen

August

The Witches: Salem 1692 - Stacy Schiff

Get A Life Chloe Brown - Talia Hibbert

Alias Grace - Margaret Atwood

A Man Called Ove - Fredrik Backman

Shadow and Bone - Leigh Bardugo

The Benefits of Being an Octopus - Ann Braden

Siege and Storm - Leigh Bardugo

World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War - Max Brooks

September

The Plague - Albert Camus

Ruin and Rising - Leigh Bardugo

I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki - Baek Se-hee

Cursed Bunny - Bora Chung

Crying in H Mart- Michelle Zauner

Shoko's Smile - Choi Eunyoung

I'm Glad My Mom Died - Jennette McCurdy

October

IT - Stephen King

Mexican Gothic - Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Know My Name - Chanel Miller

The Last Magician - Lisa Maxwell

The Cat Who Saved Books - Sosuke Natsukawa

November

Carrie - Stephen King

It Ends With Us - Colleen Hoover

The Final Revival of Opal and Nev - Dawnie Walton

They Both Die At The End - Adam Silvera

A Wizard of Earthsea - Ursula K. Le Guin

Salem's Lot - Stephen King

Tokyo Ueno Station - Yu Miri

The Tombs of Atuan - Ursula K. Le Guin

The Devil All The Time - Donald Ray Pollock

December

Circe - Madeline Miller

Babel - R.F. Kuang

Taaqtumi: An Anthology of Arctic Horror Stories - Aviaq Johnston, et al

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo - Taylor Jenkins Reid

Hell Of A Book - Jason Mott

Picking an actual favorite from these is too hard. I read so many great books this year, and obviously some months I read better than others. Actually, I would probably bold more than I have, but I felt bad about bolding more than like 2 per month, though I did do that in like September.

There were only really like 5 or 6 that I didn't really like, but pushed my way through.

I'm quietly aiming for 100 books next year, but I'm not gonna force myself for that, because whenever I aim for goals like that, it just takes the fun out of reading, so I'm going to set my goal at like 5 books and anything more than that is going to be a win for me!

#books #reading #favorite books #best reading #books I liked this year #booklr #text post #personal #goals #book #read #this year #2022

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boomadley · 2 years

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EVEN NOW THERE IS HOPE: THE CASE FOR GERRI SUPREMACY IN EP 9 - Part 2

Welcome back to my Ted Talk on how Gerri is actually in a prime position to triumph in some way in Ep 9, based on how often and easily Logan loses to Women Of A Certain Age.

Okay it's time for part 2 - Recurring Roles!

LADY CAROLINE COLLINGWOOD - NO EGGY PEGGS FOR YOU, LOGAN

Okay, I know that technically, she has lost a lot in her interactions with Logan, like, her marriage, her kids - but here's the thing, DID SHE LOSE??

Caroline may claim that she's the victim, but goddam if she doesn't draw blood every time she's even mentioned in conversation. There's a reason Roman makes digs at mom for Logan's amusement - because Caroline and her emotional scorched earth lives rent free in Logan's mind. And his bank balance. She's sitting pretty in her ancestral estate while he has to open the divorce agreement to sweet talk her into solidifying his position in the proxy fight. Over lunch, she's got twenty million more dollars and her kids at Christmas, which is the limit for how much she wants them to actually be in her life. She maneouvres for Logan to come to her house for not one, but TWO weddings. This Bitch eats dead birds and bullets as a light lunch, and yes, she should have had dogs instead. But thank god she didn't.

MICHELLE ANNE VANDERHOVEN - IF WE'RE GOING TO BE REAL, LOGAN, THEN SAY HELLO TO MY LITTLE FRIENDS THE FBI

You mess with the bull, you get the horns. Michelle rattles him enough in that first phone call that he fucks off to Sarajevo. Try to poke this particular bear and she can have you 'bending over'* and giving up all your files to a coordinated team of enthusiastic law enforcement officials.

*You thought talking to her was beneath you the first time round, but look up, that's Michelle and the rule of law above you, you misogynist fuck. "Bending over". "Spreading on the first date". "Dropping your panties" Fuck you.

LISA ARTHUR - I'M NEVER GONNA BE YOUR DJ LOGAN

We sure don't get enough of Lisa Arthur but do you need more when this woman has the power to rattle Logan without even being in the same global hemisphere? So, you want Lisa's credibility...well get in fucking line. First of all, you're not a good fit and never will be so you don't even get a phone call back. Second, oh sorry, didn't you hear? she's representing your son. Thirdly, sure she told Kendall that she couldn't 'get' an FBI raid, but somehow it happened anyway. Odds are it was Michelle Anne who brought it on, but fuck it, i'm giving them both the credit.

Granted, Lisa is young to be in this category, but her eyewear alone bump her up into Power Woman status, and the effect she has on Logan speaks for itself.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS

SUSAN VARDY - SHE PROBABLY GOT A PEABODY AWARD FOR HER COVERAGE OF YOU.

Guess they're a bit more real now that they're on national television, aren't they LOGAN??

SPECIAL MENTION: MOTHER AND ROSE - THE ACHILLES HEEL

None of us know what happened there, and sure, Rose was certainly a young girl and not a middle aged woman, but these two names are so tinged with dread that no one even utters their names anymore. Witness how cunningly the kids trick Rhea into toasting their memories. Every single person in that room knows exactly how deep Rhea just stumbled. We may never know the back story there, but there is no question that mother and sis and whatever happened there is the Eternal Wound that Logan carries.

SO! On to Part 3 for my summation. Stay with me, I promise this comes back to Gerri...

#succession hbo #succession season 3 #gerri kellman #gerri #j smith cameron #roman x gerri #romangerri #roman #logan roy #marcia roy #nan pierce #rhea jarrell #succession #i will cut off your fucking hands if you hurt gerri you piece of shit

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lucasbarr · 3 years

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Hello💜👋 from one "could have been amazing if spn was better" character lover to another

Emma and Magda could either love or hate each other instantly.💜

I am in the camp that Emma would like everyone at first. Mostly because they’re def parallels of the boys. Magda the physic who things she’s the devil and Emma the half-monster who didn’t have a childhood would get along great! It astonishes me like Magda remembers her life before being confined to the basement. I think Emma would help her to remember that time, come out of her shell.

I definitely would love for Sam to take Magda in and but if she hadn’t of had a living family member they would have taken her to Jody’s. Mostly because Sam and Dean don’t really have child rearing experience. However, if we’re going by my personal supernatural AU which I shall now dub…Uh… familynatural? Uh yea so I’m calling it familynatural now because I’m unoriginal lol…anyways…Magda gains a lot of family when Sam & Dean take her in.

More under the cut because this got long

So familynatural…

This is definitely going to be similar to @milfcodeddean’s babiesnatural which you should definitely check out! Except I am keeping everyone their canon ages and Kevin, Emma, Benny, & Charlie don’t die. Sorry Lisa & Nora…but your getting fridged for the greater good of TFW’s happiness 🥶

By the time Magda would roll around Dean & Benny would have Bobby John (age 6), Ben (age 18), and Emma (age 20). Ideally, they are based out of Lebanon and live in the bunker with Charlie and Cas. Kevin (age 21) is in Princeton getting a dual degree in the Classics (thanks to being a prophet!) and Conputer Engineering.

He and Charlie will have modernized, as best they can, the tech in the bunker. Do you remember that tablet she made that Sam was jealous of (in Pac-Man fever I think)? Yeah, the whole bunker would have that kinda tech. But since it’s magical it would kinda be held together with spell-o-tape and glue until Rowena arrives and offers her help.

Yes this is also Charlie/Rowena too mostly because I think they’d be cute and so did the writer thats why cut their scene it was too powerful They would be so cute together! Honestly, while I don’t think Cyrus would consider them his moms…I think they would take charge of making sure he doesn’t get into mischief.

Then we have Sam & Eileen who have Rosie Holt (age 10), Jesse Turner (age 18), Jacob Pond (age 16) and then Krissy, Aidan, & Josephine (ages 17-18). I am a staunch believer that Krissy should have been Sam-coded (and had the better relationship with him) because he was the one she had the most initial contact with! But that’s a rant for another time…

I also secretly love Sam/Amy so in this AU Dean doesn’t kill her…another hunter does. Like, Sam tracks her down like last time and he spares her. But instead let’s say he runs into Martin or someone and they take her out and him and Dean save Jacob…who he finds out it secretly his…boom

Then they’d have Magda, who I think is 16 in S12? And I think she’d be a bit overwhelmed by the family she’d be coming into to say the least. She would go from having an older brother to having a younger sister, younger brother, and two older sister and brother. Not to mention all the cousins’ she’d have…

It would be an adjustment period to say the least…especially considering the youngest amongst them is Cas’ daughter Tanya who is three-years old. Yes I am subscribing to @8daysuntiltheapocalypseiguess’s secret Cas takes Tanya AU!

Cas also has Claire who he sees as his own kid but I think like canon they’d be not very close. I do think Jody, Alex, Ann’s Claire do visit. Also this is Jody/Linda, the most underrated ship so Linda lives in Sioux Falls with them and Kevin is a wayward sister! Also speaking of wayward sisters…Missouri doesn’t die but Patience still gets disowned so she lives with her grandmother (who for these purposes was the one to live in Sioux Falls). And they also rehabilitate Dark Kaia who goes by the name Maia!

And since Donna is single…I’ve always her shipped her with Gabriel. I mean, I think they would crack each other up! They have similar senses of humor and I think Gabriel would get a kick out of scaring Doug with his angelic powers.

But Uh…yeah this AU also features two de-aged characters (in a sense) Amara and Jack. Dean would raise Amara with Benny and Cas would raise Jack with Kelly. Though I think in this AU, Kelly and Cas would be QTPs. In this AU, for me, Cas is Aromantic Asexual (because I might be projecting a bit) and Kelly would be Biromantic Demisexual. So the two of them have Jack (newborn) and Tanya (3 year old). It they are living every minute of it.

By the time the final rolls around, Sam would be together with Eileen. The two of them would become the heads of the hunting community, opening the bunker to all (a la the Roadhouse). Rosie, Jesse, and Magda, would be great siblings to Dean Jr…who we are naming James Dean “JD” Winchester. I also think they’d have a daughter named Lillian Maura.

Rosie, I think, would want a normal life and follow in her father’s footsteps and become a lawyer. Magda would train her powers so that she could no longer hurt people. I think she would maybe study folklore and become a professor! Maybe come a hunter resource (a la Pamela) being on the fringe of hunting.

Dean and Benny would open a place like Sonny’s for monster kids. Jacob, Emma, Jesse, would probably help out at this place. Jacob and Jesse I see being entrenched in hunting, taking up that life as their job. Jacob, I think, would be their scout for monster kids. Emma would probably go with him to help convince the kids to comfort them. I think Jesse would maybe become a Latin scholar and maybe work with the church as a Pastor Jim type character.

Krissy, I think, would follow in Dean’s footsteps as a hunter, as would Aidan and Josephine. I think Ben would be the ‘Alex’ of the group and want a normal life outside of hunting. I think he would become a doctor as a counterbalance to all the problems he had in his life. He might work at a local hospital and work part-time at the ranch with his dads.

Bobby John I headcanon following in Dr. Mia Vallens and become a grief counselor. Cyrus I believe would be like Charlie but I also think he would try and combine Magic and technology. I think he’d try

Cas and Kelly get to live in their lake house in North Cove, Washington. I think Jack would unintentionally heal Cas completely making him a full-powered seraph again. Jack and Tanya would be the best of siblings and I think Jack would benefit from a kid near his age.

Um…in this universe honestly, I could see Jack wanting to go into politics like his parents. Honestly Jack as the future president would be absolutely hilarious!!! As for Tanya…not sure. I think she could be a witch like her aunt Rowena, that could be nice. Maybe she’d want a quieter life like she probably has with her parents. OH — Cas has bees at the house, Tanya is a beekeeper like her father.

TL;DR

DeanBenny Kids: Ben, Bobby John, & Emma [and Kevin technically].

Sam/Eileen Kids: Rosie Holt, Jesse Turner, Jacob Pond, Krissy, Aidan, & Josephine

Charlie/Rowena: Cyrus Styne

Cas & Kelly: Tanya & Jack

Jody/Linda: Kevin, Alex, & Claire.

Ships:

DeanBenny

Sam/Eileen

Charlie/Rowena

Cas & Kelly (Queerplatonic)

Deamhunter

Magda Peterson/Jesse Turner

Emma/Dark Kaia

Ben Braeden/Alex Jones

Fun Fact! I have the majority of the Emma & Magda fics in that tag on Ao3. Who would have guessed? 😂

Idk how to tag people but I guess I’ll tag the emmanatural mutuals: @milfcodeddean @scarecrowmax

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365days365movies · 3 years

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April 12, 2021: Mrs. Doubtfire (1992) (Recap)

Hey, Robin Williams. Been a while.

I’m sorry that I haven’t watched your movies for a while, and that I always skip your comedy stand-up when my phone’s on shuffle. I just...let me explain. Since I was a kid, you were one of my favorite entertainers. That might as well have started the day I was born, because...well, we share a birthday, fun fact. But it definitely continued with the first movie I ever saw in theatres.

While I don’t quite remember the first time I saw it, Aladdin was one of my favorite childhood movies, and I knew that you were the voice of the Genie from an early age. You might have actually been the first actor I ever knew by name. Which makes sense, because your stardom during the ‘90s was nearly unparalleled.

The next film I remember seeing (and hearing) you in was Ferngully: The Last Rainforest. That also starred Tim Curry, who would also be a major figure of my childhood. It also wasn’t the best movie, in hindsight, but it is the only time I’ve heard you rap since.

But eventually, I watched your forays into live-action, too. Jumanji, Hook, even the objectively bad Flubber, are all movies that I vividly remember watching during childhood. I was really excited for Flubber, even, and I LOVED Jumanji growing up. I liked Hook, too, but I appreciated that more as I got older.

Of course, during this time period, you also made less family-friendly films. The Fisher King, Good Will Hunting, Dead Poets Society, Good Morning Vietnam, and What Dreams May Come were all very successful, and cemented your reputation as an actor. I also haven’t seen any of them. In fact...I don’t think I’ve seen any of your dramatic roles, and that’s something that I’ll fix this year. Hell, in a few days, I’ll watch The Birdcage, another of your big hits of the ‘90s.

But why haven’t I seen them up to now? Well...I was going to watch these films, about seven years ago. But...I haven’t been able to bring myself to do it. Because it hurts. A lot.

I know that this is a downer, but my relationship with Robin Williams today is tainted by his tragic death. I was fucking BROKEN when his death was announced, and I really haven’t been able to watch him since. I’ve seen Aladdin recently, but that’s about all I could stand to watch. I mean, the guy shares a birthday with me! I’ve always loved his comedy stylings, and his improvisational skills are something I’ve internalized to a certain degree.

So, yeah. This one’s tough. But, it’s about time I moved on, and celebrated the man’s career for what it was: stellar. And that also brings up an important question, that some of you have probably asked by now:

HOW HAVE I MISSED MRS. DOUBTFIRE, WHAT THE FUCK

I KNOW I KNOW OK?

Look, I’m not entirely sure how I haven’t seen this movie, because I’m MORE than aware of it! I remember it airing during the ‘90s, my Dad AND girlfriend love this movie, and I know FOR A FACT that my family owned both the DVD AND THE VHS of this movie! So, how? HOW HAVE I NOT SEEN IT BY NOW?

I honestly have no idea, but let’s fix it now, huh? Yet one more man-dresses-as-woman movie this month! And no, I am not watching White Chicks...because I’ve already seen White Chicks. Also, it’s...problematic.

SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

Recap

Daniel Hillard (Robin Williams) is a voice-actor, and a good one. Which, given that it’s Robin Williams, isn’t entirely inaccurate. He’s also a voice actor with a spine, as he morally objects to a scene in the cartoon that he’s performing for, in which the main character smokes. By the way, I’m 99% sure that this cartoon is animated by Chuck Jones, and it looks well-made.

Anyway, this leads to him quitting the cartoon altogether, and allows him to pick up his kids early from school. These kids are Lydia (Lisa Hykub), Chris (Matthew Lawrence), and Natalie (Mara Wilson), and it’s Chris’ 12th birthday. Daniel arranges a...surprisingly large party, given that it’s completely impromptu, and it comes with a petting zoo and complete trappings. However, it’s not a party of which his wife will approve.

This wife is Miranda (Sally Field), a successful architect and the breadwinner of the family. After getting a call from the neighbor about the party, she comes home and busts the outrageous party. And for the record, I’m entirely on Miranda’s side here. This party is INSANE, and very irresponsible, given the fact that Daniel currently has no job. And yeah, he’s a very loving father, and a good person, but...it’s too much.

Miranda feels the same, and after 14 years of frustration, she realizes that she no longer loves Daniel. In a genuinely sad scene, she tells him that she wants a divorce. And she goes through with it MUCH to Daniel’s detriment. He has no home, as he’s staying with his brother, Frank (Harvey Fierstein) and his partner Jack (Scott Capurro). He also still has no job, meaning that he has no way to provide for his children. This means that he has no ability to provide, and the judge awards Miranda full custody. Oof.

However, this is a conditional arrangement, as another hearing for joint custody will be held in 3 months, and if Daniel can get a home and job in that time, he has a chance. He performs a litany of voices and impressions with his court liason, Mrs. Sellner (Anne Haney), which amuses me, but not her, and he gets a job in order to be with his kids for more than one day a week.

Meanwhile, Miranda IMMEDIATELY starts dating fellow designer and old flame Stuart Dunmeyer (Pierce Brosnan), like, almost before Daniel leaves the house. He bids a heartfelt goodbye to his kids, with the promise that he’ll see them on Saturdays. And now begins the absolute hatred and petty bitchiness of Daniel and Miranda! Seriously, it’s...it’s fucking terrible, and it takes away from my sympathy from either side. I get that divorce is rough and ugly, but GODDAMN, neither of them perform the act with any form of tact or grace.

This is put on display during the kids’ visitation to Daniel’s semi-crappy new apartment, which doesn’t even seem that bad, to be honest. Miranda dropped them off late and picked them up early, as if to slowly starve Daniel of time with his kids, which is extraordinarily shitty of her, fuck me. Daniel’s not taking it well, understandably, but then does something...really dumb, when you think about it.

See, Miranda’s looking for a nanny, to help watch the kids and clean the house during the week. Daniel volunteers his services, which is actually a good idea, but Miranda says she’ll think about it, which we ALL know means no. I DO NOT like Miranda, even if I understand the initial reasons for the divorce. She’s being especially spiteful, and it’s not a good look.

Daniel’s stupid idea, though, is to change the phone number on the ad for the nanny, which Miranda shows him before she takes the kids. Instead, he calls her number, and pretends to be various terrible applicants, until finally supplying his own applicant: the completely fictional Euphegenia Doubtfire (Daniel Hillard).

Daniel plays Mrs. Doubtfire as an elderly British woman, and a seasoned nanny in her day. Which is why it’s weird to me that, when he does to Frank and Jack to help him make an elaborate disguise as Mrs. Doubtfire, that they go through various other impressions and get-ups. Which, yes, is goddamn hilarious, but also makes NO SENSE, given that they’ve already established her character to Miranda. Funny, but nonsensical.

But, regardless, Euphegenis Doubtfire comes into being, and introduces herself to Miranda and the kids. Mrs. Doubtfire is exactly what Miranda’s looking for, although the kids aren’t exactly overjoyed, ESPECIALLY the oldest, Lydia. Also, during this first meeting, Miranda openly bad-mouths Daniel in front of the kids, in just the WORST fuckin’ way. I genuinely dislike Miranda A LOT. Again, the divorce was certainly justified, but I REALLY don’t like her. Daniel loves his kids, and they’re HIS kids, TOO. Stop using them as weapons against him, OOOOOOOOOOOH I DON’T LIKE MIRANDA

Anyway, that evening, after she’s officially been hired by Miranda, Mrs. Doubtfire heads home, only to find court liason Mrs. Sellner waiting to speak with Daniel. After a litany of puns, and a humorous changing scene, Daniel accidentally throws the Mrs. Doubtfire mask out of the window, and is forced to improvise through equally humorous circumstances. Hence, the above meringue mask scene. Has anybody tried that, by the way? Could that work as a groundbreaking beauty technique? Or would the sugar just feed the skin bacteria and give you acne? Genuinely curious.

Now going between his job as Daniel and the nanny job as Doubtfire, Daniel’s not doing too badly for himself. The nanny job begins, and Mrs. Doubtfire IMMEDIATELY contrasts with Daniel, creating a disciplinarian atmosphere in place of Daniel’s formerly loosey-goosey attitude. Which is interesting, and it works! I mean, it’s not how I would parent, but it does work. Doubtfire makes the kids to their homework, rather than watch TV, and then attempts to make dinner. Instead, though, the dinner’s ruined, and Daniel orders takeout and makes it LOOK like homemade food. And it looks good, too! Daniel’s full of hidden talents.

After dinner, as Mrs. Doubtfire’s leaving, Lydia apologizes for backtalking her earlier, and thanks her for making her mom happy with everything she did that evening. he also says that she’s still a bit messed up about her dad being gone. And yeah, it’s sweet-but-sad.

Going forward (and in a montage set to Aerosmith’s Dude Looks Like a Lady), Mrs. Doubtfire takes care of the family, and Daniel even betters himself to become a better Mrs. Doubtfire. Which...to be honest, Daniel REALLY should’ve done this before. I get that he needed the pressure of losing the kids to do this, but...look, Daniel really wasn’t that responsible of a parent, and the fact that THIS is how he learns to be so is...not great. Like, here’s an example, OK: take Donald Trump.

Yeah, I know, what’s this politics doing in my peanut butter? And WOW, that reference is older than me, but anyway. Let’s say that, in two years, a new politician comes on the scene, and her name is Karyn Walldottir. She has somewhat centrist views, and behaves in a way that’s inclusive to the majority, and backs up her claims and promises with evidence (at least true enough for us to suspend our disbelief). This is, of course, Donald Trump disguised as a woman in order to gain custody of the United States of America again. Naturally.

Karyn Walldottir gets elected in 2024, and all of her policies are markedly different from Trump’s and Biden’s, but leaning closer to Biden in progressive standpoints (assuming that that worked for him come 2024). While Trump is doing this specifically to be president again, he ends up revising his personal policies, and being a better person and president for the country. A literal impossibility, I know. But suspend your disbelief to ask this question:

WHY THE FUCK WOULDN’T HE DO THAT IN THE FIRST PLACE? IT MAKES NO FUCKING SENSE!

OK, now that that dumbass (and mildly horrifying) thought process is concluded, let’s get back to Mrs. Doubtfire. In the process of Mrs. Doubtfire’s ingratiation with the family, Miranda’s been dating Stu, whom Mrs. Doubtfire subtly insults when they meet. And yeah, Daniel’s being a little petty here, but it makes a bit of sense at least.

That night, after an accidental intrusion by Chris when Mrs. Doubtfire is going to the bathroom, Daniel’s basically forced to tell Chris and Lydia his little secret, which Lydia’s happy about, but Chris is understandably weirded out about. But, they agree to keep the secret from their mom and younger sister.

At his OTHER job, delivering film reels from a TV station, he witnesses the filming of an extremely boring kids educational TV show, and comments as such to another man watching. As he quickly learns, this is the owner of the station, Jonathan Lundy (Robert Prosky), on whom Daniel makes a good impression.

In the meantime, Mrs. Doubtfire has a talk with Miranda about their love lives, real and fictional. Daniel realizes how badly Miranda had been suffering in their marriage, which she never told him because...well, he never seemed to take anything seriously. Which is entirely fair...but this is why Miranda’s a tricky-ass character. She’s got two sides: there’s the justified caring mother and strong woman, and there’s the PETTY ASSHOLE who genuinely doesn’t care about Daniel or his feelings AT ALL. Jesus.

And Stu...look, Stu is LITERALLY a Gary Stu, who’s mostly perfect. Sure, he’s not always been that way, but he definitely is now! He’s responsible, wealthy, in love with Miranda AND her kids. And yeah, at a country club that he’s a member of (OF COURSE he is), he privately badmouth Daniel in front of Mrs. Doubtfire, calling him a loser, and...yeah, he’s not really unjustified in that statement. Fact of the matter is, Stu is barely even a plot device.

Meanwhile, in Daniel’s day job, he finds himself alone in the studio, where the toy dinosaurs from the TV show are still sitting on the table. He plays with them, gives them voices, sings some songs, and impresses Mr. Lundy, who’s there in the shadows after all that. He’s impressed, and invites Daniel to dinner to talk about a potential future show at the network.

But then, it’s also Miranda’s birthday coming up, and Stu’s holding a dinner for her, to which Mrs. Doubtfire is invited. Trouble is, it’s at the OH FUCK IT. YOU know what this is. It’s at the same time and place as the Mr. Lund meeting yaddayaddayadda LOOK. We ALL know how this is going to end. It’s the GODDAMN LIAR REVEALED TROPE AGAIN. And here’s the thing:

I FUGGIN’ HAAAAAATE THE LIAR REVEALED TROPE

You know, that thing in movies (especially family movies of the ‘90s) where somebody starts off a situation with a lie, they get deeper and deeper into that lie, grow close to people under false pretenses, and then OH NO! THE LIAR IS REVEALED! And everybody’s angry and/or sad, the liar slumps off, defeated and broken, but then realizes the error of his ways, while everybody else realizes the same thing, and he comes back to vindicate himself, and is welcomed back with open arms. And it introduces unneeded tension AND I HAVE ALWAYS FUCKING HATED IT.

Let’s list the examples, shall we? A Bug’s Life, Aladdin, Mulan, The Road to El Dorado, Chicken Run, How to Train Your Dragon, Klaus, Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted, Megamind (SUBVERSIVE MY ASS), Over the Hedge, Rango, Toy Story, Steven Universe (the whole Pearl/Sardonyx arc, which went on for WAY too long), the list goes on and fucking on. And I GODDAMN HATE IT. Not to say it can’t be done well. Disney actually usually does a pretty good job with it, and Dreamworks uses it A LOT, but almost always pretty well. But sometimes...GOD. Either way, it’s still used FAR too fucking much. And look. Here’s another one. Joy.

Look, at this point...I will freely admit that I'm biased against this trope, but it’s also obvious where this is headed. Basically, Daniel switches back and forth between the dinner with the family, and the dinner with Mr. Lundy. With Mr. Lundy, he gets absolutely SMASHED. Great. Great decision, Daniel.

So, yeah, Mrs. Doubtfire’s also smashed, which is pretty goddamn apparent to them all. At this point, I’m wondering why Daniel, as Mrs. Doubtfire, didn’t just say she was sick as hell, and had to go home. Or, considering the fact that Daniel proposes her as a show idea regardless, the switch wasn’t even necessary! And that means that none of what’s about to happen, happens. Or, here’s a crazy thought, maybe Daniel shouldn’t have POISONED STU’S FOOD WITH CAYENNE PEPPER THAT HE’S ALLERGIC TO!

YEAH! Because that causes Stu to go into anaphylactic shock for a hot sec, causing him to choke. Mrs. Doubtfire does the right thing and gives him the Heimlich maneuver, and in the process, SURPRISE! IT’S BEEN DANIEL ALL ALONG! BUH BUH BUHHHHH DA DA DA DAAAAA DA

Yeah, so Miranda is understandably ENRAGED by this revelation, and it’s all over. Daniel represents himself in court at the custody hearing, but the judge deems his “lifestyle” dangerous for children. Which...yikes, Judge, that statement didn’t age well AT FUCKING ALL. But, given Daniel’s admitted stupidity with this whole idea, he’s not wrong about the dangerous part. But, I have to say, Daniel’s speech in his own defense is nice...although he also says he’s addicted to his children, so let’s throw a second yikes on there for good measure.

The speech moves Miranda...but not enough to prevent Daniel has his custody stripped away from him! GOD THEY BOTH SUUUUUUUUCK. Daniel’s a broken man, and Miranda and the kids are similarly broken without him and Mrs. Doubtfire. However...Daniel’s career isn’t broken AT ALL, as Mrs. Doubtfire is now a kid’s show host! Yeah! And she’s a hit! And again, it brings me to wonder why Daniel DIDN’T APPLY HIS OBVIOUS TALENTS LIKE THIS IN THE FIRST GODDAMN PLACE

Realizing that she made a mistake, she goes to the set during the filming of a show. She congratulates him on the show, and he replies by stating how broken he is now! Thanks, Miranda! Well, after an argument, and after Miranda sees how badly she’s messed up someone she used to care for, they come to an agreement: joint custody. FINALLY GODDAMN IT

And good, because I don’t want them back together. I have to give this film props for that: they acknowledge that these two are NOT good for each other, and they deliver a message in the end: families are families, no matter how they’re shaped. One mom, one dad, uncle or aunt, grandparents, adoption, two separated or divorced parents...oh, also, two dads or two moms. Yeah, that isn’t said in Mrs. Doubtfire’s final monologue, which is odd considering Daniel’s brother and his life partner...but it’s also kid’s TV in the ‘90s, so I guess that sadly makes sense. And with that, and their new family arrangement, Daniel takes his kids on an afternoon out, as himself.

...Look. That’s Mrs. Doubtfire, yaddayaddayadda LOOK. I don’t dislike this movie. In fact, here: have this mini-Review:

Cast and Acting - 9/10: Good, although Brosnan was a little stiff.

Plot and Writing - 5/10: It’s an idiot plot, what can I say? It’s actually based off of a book, which was a surprise to me, but it was adapted by Randi Mayem Singer and Leslie Dixon, and...eh. Still an idiot plot.

Directing and Cinematography - 8/10: It’s Chris Columbus, you get what you get. Definitely has that Home Alone flair to it.

Production and Art Design - 8/10: I mean, yeah, the Doubtfire disguise was good most of the time, but...I dunno, I could still tell it was Robin. But, still, it was good. Took 4 hours of makeup, fun fact.

Music and Editing - 8/10: Music by Howard Shore (ooh, Howard Shore!) was pretty nice, especially the ending theme. Editing by Raja Gosnell was...RAJA GOSNELL???

OH GOD. Yeah, OK, I see what happened here. Also, I didn’t know he was an editor! I just know him as the director of the Scooby-Doo films, Beverly Hills Chihuahua, The Smurfs films, Big Momma’s...

...OK, no, I am not doing Big Momma’s House OR the Madea movies. THE TROPE-BUCK STOPS HERE! I am moving on to something else! But, of course, I have to sum this up in a Review. See you there!

#mrs. doubtfire #mrs doubtfire #chris columbus #robin williams #sally field #pierce brosnan #harvey fierstein #robert prosky #mara wilson #comedy april #user365 #365days365movies #365 movie challenge #365 movies 365 days #365 Days 365 Movies #365 movies a year #moviegifs

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farfarawaygirl · 3 years

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Hi 🥰 I’ve found your blog because someone I follow reblogged the Sylvie trauma post, and since then I’ve loved all your brettsey answers and I’ve been working my way through your stories! I was just wondering if we can know a little bit about you? And your inspirations for fics? Or maybe your favorite books and movies or music tastes?

This is very kind!

I’d love to share about the things I love!

I’ve always been obsessed with stories, and my earliest memories are being read to by my parents. My dad was really into Tolkien, and my mom is a die hard Anne of Green Gables fan, so I would say a lot of my ideas come from the books I’ve read, and the things I want to happen.

When I write, I want the characters to be happy, but honest. I find inspiration from music. Lorde. Phoebe Bridgers. Taylor Swift. William Fitzsimmons. Wild Rivers. The Oh Hellos. Vance Joy. The XX.

My focus at school was Theology and English Lit, and I’ve done a lot of psychology research. So, if you want to talk about Jesus, Jane Austen or Trauma, I’m your girl.

My favourite book is North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell. She was Dickens protege, and the book is a look at class, the industrial revolution and love. It’s magic. I’m a Jane Austen fan, my name is Emma, but I think I’m feeling more an Elinor Dashwood vibes these days. I really enjoy Far From the Madding Crowd, Little Women, Anne of Green Gables, CS Lewis - both fiction and non-fiction, and Anna Karenina.

There’s a book called My Hands Came Away Red by Lisa McKay that is a beautifully, sad, introspection of faith and friendship that shaped my last years of high school. Sabaa Tahir’s Series is fun to read.

I just read Jesus Feminst by Sarah Bessey, and it’s amazing. When my anxiety gets really bad I read First, We Make the Beast Beautiful by Sarah Wilson to help refocus.

I loved the Jenny Slate book, Little Weirds, and I am a huge fan of Rupi Kaur, and Lang Leav. Poetry is kind of my focus these days, so lots of Mary Oliver, Jack Gilbert, Atticus, Richard Siken and Walt Whitman.

I also adore Jenny Han, her series To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before is my go to audio book series. It’s fun, and hopeful, and reminds me of the simplicity of first love.

Currently obsessed with The Rookie, re-watching Criminal Minds, Clueless and the movie adaptation of Far From the Madding Crowd. I am a book nerd, and a baker, I can make a mean curry, I’m obsessed with my dog, I have a rare neurological condition that makes my head feel like it’s going to explode most days, and I live by the ocean.

#ask emma #Emma.rants #about me #brettsey #chenford #here’s a bit about me #iih #elizabeth gaskell #Sarah bessey

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introvertguide · 4 years

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The Graduate (1967); AFI #17

The current film under review is the classic comedy, The Graduate (1967). This moving is one of most well known and referenced films that I know of in American film. It was the last film to win only Best Director while also being nominated for other categories. This makes sense because the acting was good with many newcomers and character actors of the time, but there was some stiff competition at the Oscars that year. Director Mike Nichols did an exceptional job telling a story within a story utilizing symbols and camera movement to let the viewing audience know what the characters were thinking. Show not tell, which is perfect for this sort of media. Let’s go through a summary of the story before looking at any more of the technical or behind-the-scenes notes. This, of course, is always kicked off with...

SPOILER WARNING!!! I AM ABOUT TO GIVE AWAY THE ENTIRE PLOT!!! THERE IS A LOT MORE TO THE STORY OF THIS MOVIE THAN JUST THE PLOT, BUT IT IS STILL GOOD TO WATCH THE WHOLE THING THROUGH BEFORE DISCUSSING IT!!! IF YOU DON’T WANT IT SPOILED, STOP NOW AND WATCH THE MOVIE THEN COME BACK AND CHECK OUT THE REST OF THE ARTICLE

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Benjamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman) is a 20-year-old man who just recently graduated from an East Coast college and has returned to Pasadena, California to stay with his parents and figure out what to do with his life. He is embarrassed by his doting parents at every turn when they invite all the family friends to come see him. The wife of his father’s business partner is Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft), a middle aged women who seems unhappy with her marriage and convinces Ben to drive her home where she tries to seduce him. He runs away but later calls her and meets her over at the Taft Hotel and starts up an affair.

Benjamin spends the summer relaxing by the pool and going off on trysts with Mrs. Robinson at the hotel. During one night at the Taft, Mrs. Robinson reveals that she only married her husband because she was pregnant. Ben knows her daughter, Elaine (Katherine Ross), and jokes that he should date her. Mrs. Robinson is not happy with this and forbids him from seeing her daughter. Unfortunately, Ben’s parents think it would be a great match and set up a date between the kids.

Ben tries to sabotage the date in the most cringe-worthy way. He ignores Elaine and drives like a crazy man. He takes her to a strip club and sits her right next to the stage. It is so bad that Elaine runs away crying and Ben feels remorse. He actually likes Elaine and they go and have burgers at a drive-thru. They want to have a late night drink and the only place close that is open is the Taft Hotel. They go in and everyone there recognizes Ben which makes Elaine believe he has been seeing an older women. Ben says it is true and the affair is over, so the two plan another date the following day.

Mrs. Robinson threatens to tell Elaine when Ben shows up at the house to pick her up, so Ben tells Elaine first to ruin any blackmail. This upsets Elaine and she returns to Berkeley to go back to school and avoid seeing Ben.

Ben decides to move to Berkeley in hopes of getting back with Elaine and takes up residence in an all male dorm house. Ben finally runs into Elaine and she says her mom told her that Ben had gotten her drunk and raped her. (Wow. Keep this in mind because I will bring this up again in the conversation section.) Ben explains to Elaine and she forgives him. They hang out and Ben asks her to marry him, but she apparently has promised to marry some other guy named Carl Smith. Unfortunately, Elaine’s father shows up at Ben’s apartment to tell him that he is getting a divorce from Mrs. Robinson and forcing his daughter to marry Carl Smith. He makes a major ruckus and Ben is thrown out by the dorm manager.

Ben goes back to Pasadena and breaks into the Robinson house in search of Elaine but only finds Mrs. Robinson. She calls the police claiming there is a burglar. As Ben escapes, she says that he can’t stop the marriage between Elaine and Carl. He drives back to Berkeley and finds out were the wedding will take place (Santa Barbara) and rushes to the church. He can’t get in the front door so he runs up to the organ room upstairs and bangs on a glass barrier that looks down on the ceremony. He shouts out for Elaine and she eventually yells back in front of all the guests. She runs out and meets Ben, who pins the door closed with a large cross.

Elaine and Benjamin elope by jumping aboard a bus and sit among startled passengers. Their ecstatic expressions change to looks of uncertainty as the bus drives away.

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I have a list of questions that people have asked me when I told them I was doing an analysis of The Graduate, so this will act kind of like a FAQ sheet for the film and hopefully answer some questions:

Dustin Hoffman doesn’t look like he just graduated from college in the movie. How old was he?

Lot of questions about the age of the actors. At the time the movie came out, Katherine Ross played Elaine the college student at 27 years old, Dustin Hoffman played the recent graduate Benjamin at age 30, and Anne Bancroft played the part of middle aged Mrs. Robinson at age 36. It kind of made sense about Dustin Hoffman because he is a very small man with great hair and can look the part of somebody much younger. Katherine Ross lied about her age for years so directors thought she was 3 or 4 years younger than she really was. Anne Bancroft is the one that stands out the most because they put in a couple of grey streaks in her hair and added some crows feet around her eyes and called her 10-15 years older. I think Director Mike Nichols knew this so Elaine and her mother have almost no screen time together.

Didn’t that movie win an Oscar for the music?

It did not. In fact, the song that the film is known for, “Mrs. Robinson,” was not played beyond instrumental snippets. The film was not even nominated for anything music related.

I think I have seen the movie before because it feels familiar.

The film is set in California and has some of the most well known scenes in American cinema. The initial seduction scene between Mrs. Robinson and Ben captured the hopes of college boys everywhere. The idea of finding a beautiful and experienced woman that aggressively makes all the first moves is the dream of many a man. The famous scene right after Mrs. Robinson reveals she married because she was pregnant and didn’t love her husband shows Ben about to leave and framed by the leg of Mrs. Robinson putting on a stocking. I have never seen wrongful lust depicted any better and it really sticks with you. The final scene in the movie in which Ben stops the wedding and runs away with the bride has been used in many movies and TV shows and really displays Hoffman’s acting because we slowly realize that the new couple has no idea what to do next. I only remember one other non-speaking acting performance were a realization is revealed purely through a slow facial close-up, and that was from Jack Nicholson in One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest.

I remember there was some kind of accusation of rape that is never resolved. Did that really happen?

Yup. It did. I never realized how awkward a brush over this was until I specifically looked for it. Mrs. Robinson told her daughter that Ben raped her and Elaine still talks to him instead of calling the police. A rape allegation is not a light thing and there would not be pleasantries at the zoo if this was the case. Why would a girl who believes she is talking to a man that raped her mother and was now stalking her college aged daughter do anything but get the police involved? Elaine actually entertains the thought of marrying the guy. She thought Ben raped her mother and Ben says that the mother seduced and slept with him. She is apparently OK with this. I wouldn’t be.

Do they actually show Mrs. Robinson naked?

This was asked more than the age question. The answer is “yes, sort of.” There is a very brief shot of Anne Bancroft’s bare chest for two or three frames. If you consider that movies are generally filmed at 24 frames per second, this is very brief. I can’t imagine how many desperate people were quick on the pause button when the movie came out on video.

Did they use this movie for a Simpson’s episode?

Not just one. The famous shot with a leg in the foreground was in the episode “Homer of Seville” and “Beware My Cheating Bart” while the famous “Mrs. Robinson, you are trying to seduce me” line from the same scene was used in the episode “Lisa’s Substitute.” An homage to the end of the movie was used twice for Grandpa Simpson in the episodes “The Last Temptation of Homer” and “Lady Bouvier’s Lover.”

So now to the questions I answer for every movie on the AFI top 100. Does this movie belong on the list? Of course. It is a well directed movie full of symbolism. It is the first major role for Dustin Hoffman (one of America’s most well known movie stars). It is engrained in American vernacular: I knew that “she went all Mrs. Robinson” referred to an older woman seducing a younger man years before I ever saw the movie. Mrs. Robinson is a classic villain and that character alone deserves a spot on the top 100. Would I recommend it? Sure would. It is a little cringy at times for me, but it is legitimately funny. There are a couple of topics that are sometimes weird and sometimes uncomfortable, but the direction is good enough to move quickly through these parts to suspend disbelief. Check out the movie and check out the soundtrack because both are great, widely available, and great pieces of classic Americana.

#the graduate #mrs. robinson #dustin hoffman #katherine ross #anne bancroft #simon and garfunkel #great movies #1960s #classic american films #introvert #introverts #california

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revisitingstoneybrook · 3 years

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#6 Kristy’s Big Day: Chapter 2

Ann Martin really knows nothing about planning weddings.

Here's where our typical BSC spin on things starts up. So on Saturday, they picked a date for the wedding, Kristy's going to be a bridesmaid, and the icing on the cake is Elizabeth told Kristy she could wear heels with her dress. Yay! But then, on Wednesday, things fall apart. Uh oh! Does Watson the Millionaire miss all the kinky shit and want to get back with Lisa?

Kristy comes home from school to find Elizabeth there. She glumly tells Kristy that her company (one of the many ad agencies that BSC parents work for) wants to send her on a business trip to Europe. Kristy immediately starts begging for Elizabeth to take her along and Elizabeth says she'd love to but can't, as it's during the school year. Patience, Kristy. Your time will come.

And no, Elizabeth isn't leaving right away. She's leaving come September, you know, when Kristy starts 8th grade for the first of 68 times. And she’s supposed to be in Vienna on the day she was planning on getting married. Well, Watson's a millionaire. Bring the whole family to Vienna and do a destination wedding! Only, since this is the BSC, they'd have to invite the entire club.

Kristy tells her to just push the wedding back a month and Elizabeth said she was planning on doing that, until she got a phone call at work. It was her realtor, who's already found a buyer for their house, two days after it was put on the market. Um, what? That seems really, really fast. Then again, the house is in a primo location. You're right in one of the hottest BSC neighborhoods! Childcare for next to nothing! Yes, the BSC affects the housing market in Stoneybrook.

Great news, right? Well, not really. The family (we later learn it’s the infamous Perfect Perkinses) is in a rush and willing to pay the asking price. But Mr. Perkins is in such a rush, he wants to move in by July 15th. That's in about one month. Ok, what the hell. Is it that realistic to close on a house that quickly? With contracts and the bank’s approval and all the inspections and re-inspections? Then again, this is the Perkins family buying it. The purchase will go off without a hitch. Myriah's probably their lawyer.

Kristy, needless to say, is shocked and must agree with me because she tells Elizabeth it'll be impossible to pull off. Well, with the Perkins family, you never know. Those girls are magical. Kristy wants her mom to sell the house to someone else and Elizabeth says no one else is going to offer them as much money as the Perkinses are. “Well, what do we need money for? You're marrying Watson,” is Kristy's response. Geez, first Watson the Millionaire is a jerk, now he's a Sugar Daddy? And no, not this Sugar Daddy.

Sorry, Claudia.

Elizabeth explains to Kristy that she doesn't want Watson the Millionaire to feel obligated to have to pay for things like her children's college tuition. So the money (or half of it, since half belongs to her deadbeat ex Patrick) is going towards college. What does this have to do with the wedding? Elizabeth and Watson the Millionaire are getting married at the end of June and the Thomases are moving into the MANSION two weeks after that.

Holy shit. Planning a wedding in TWO WEEKS?! I mean, if they were going for a little thing like Sharon and Richard later do, maybe. But they're obviously not. How will they get vendors and stuff on such short notice? Are they going to get the neighbors to bring flowers? Because only Ramona Quimby's aunt could get away with that.

And why must the wedding be now? Why can't they just move into the MANSION and have the wedding in October and not spend two weeks freaking out about everything? If they have issues about living together before the wedding, live in separate wings. Lord knows the MANSION's big enough, if Kristy's talking about her brothers getting suites of rooms if they ask nicely. Just stay away from the third floor so Karen doesn't go nuts. Or if they have to get married now, have a small ceremony at city hall and go for a big ceremony and reception after Elizabeth comes back from Europe. Why am I so perplexed over a BSC book?

David Michael comes home from school as Elizabeth gets a phone call from a friend of hers and tells her friend that the wedding will be in two and a half weeks. As soon as Elizabeth hangs up, she freaks the fuck out when she realizes what she's gotten herself into. David Michael, fascinated and at the same time terrified, holds Kristy's hand and watches their mom go nuts over what to do about flowers, dresses (she says they need to find a dressmaker...wouldn't buying off-the-rack and having it altered be easier?), food. I guess invitations are out the window because she says she'll have to tell relatives about it.

“Planning a wedding is like having a baby. You need time to prePARE things!” Uh, Elizabeth, you just realized this now? Oh and their guest list is around 300 people. Planning a wedding for 300 people in two and a half weeks. Is Elizabeth INSANE?!

Finding some grasp on reality, Elizabeth admits that they'll never be able to book a reception hall, so the mansion’s yard will be the venue. While she freaks out over decorations and what to do if it rains, Kristy suggests she call Watson the Millionaire, while Elizabeth tells herself she'll call Watson the Millionaire. She disappears into her bedroom (ooooooooooooooooh) and comes back later, looking somewhat saner. But it doesn't last long because she opens up a kitchen cabinet and starts sorting pots and pans out. Oh my...planning a wedding AND packing up a whole house to move at the same time.

David Michael launches into one of his talents, whining, and Kristy joins in too. I always liked Kristy's line about David Michael is a champion whiner because he can turn one-syllable words into multi-syllabic words. Well both kids don't want to...oh wait. Let me rephrase. They don't wanna move. They wanna stay he-ere.

Elizabeth shoots them a Look (now we see where Kristy gets it from) and David Michael gives her a quick apology before running out of the kitchen with Louie. Kristy, being as stubborn as she is, argues with her mom about how she promised they wouldn't move until the fall. Uh, Kristy, she never promised anything. She just said the wedding would be in September and wasn't expecting these two bombs to drop on them. Kristy says she doesn't want to spend this summer at Watson's and Elizabeth points out she'll be spending the next summer at Watson's. And the one after that and the one after that. And guess what...you'll be 13 throughout all of them, Kristy!

But Kristy wants one last summer on Bradford Court with the BSC and Mary Anne (that's the same thing!) and...Jamie Newton (um, ok) and the Pikes (except Mallory...and don't the Pikes live on Slate Street?). Elizabeth apologizes but tells her this is how things have to be now. Upset, Kristy storms upstairs to her room. Might I add, bonus points to Ann Martin for actually having Kristy act like a 13-year-old here and not some strange tween/adult hybrid.

Up in her room, Kristy stares out the window that looks into Mary Anne's bedroom. She isn't there, she's out babysitting Jenny Prezzioso (because no one else in the BSC will...bitches) and Kristy's glad for that so she can just think things over. You know if she told Mary Anne the news she just got, she'd cry so much her room would fill up with tears and overflow into Kristy's, like when Pearl cries on Spongebob.

Kristy waxes nostalgic on the good and bad that happened at those windows. Their infamous flashlight code they had to develop because Richard wouldn't let Mary Anne use the phone (now he lets her talk on the phone like a normal person, according to Kristy), giving each other the silent treatment by pulling the shade down, sailing paper airplane messages back and forth. While she thinks about picking out a similar room at the mansion and decorating it the same way as her current room, Elizabeth calls her down to help her with planning this extravagant wedding in two and a half weeks. She wants her to write down the names she calls out from their address book. Kristy also notices the pots and pans have been put away. Packing's waiting until later.

Well what do you know...most of the guests are from out of state and a lot of them have kids. Hello foreshadowing! And hey, you guys. Kristy says weddings are hard to plan! Thank you for stating the obvious, Kristy.

#babysitters club #kristy's big day #kristy thomas #bsc #snark

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ginnyzero · 3 years

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Completely Harmless Ch. 63

Completely Harmless An SSO SilverGlade Re-imagining Story (Or Fix it Fan Salt fic) By Ginny O.

When Lily and her friends wanted to buy horses and were directed to the Silverglade Manor and its myriad of problems, they didn’t expect to start a revolution. They were just a bunch a stable girls. Completely harmless. Right?

A/N: Things are only canon if I say they’re canon. Pre-Saving the Moorland Stables compliant for the most part. Posted in its entirety on my website. Posted in 2000 to 4000 word bits here. Rated T for Swearing Word Count 177,577

Chapter Sixty-Three Rescue Time (but First Needling Mr. Sands)

Lily took another slice of lasagna. “This is actually decent lasagna.”

Mr. Sands’ brow twitched.

“Did you get the recipe from Catherine?” Lily asked.

Alex and Justin left. Justin giving a tour guide type of spiel. Lily figured he wouldn’t s how Alex anyplace sensitive. Which was fine. They didn’t need to see anything sensitive.

Mr. Sands stared at Lily.

She continued to eat. “When are you going to tell that poor boy that you killed his mother’s friends?”

“He wouldn’t exist if I hadn’t.” Mr. Sands frowned. “His father hid his heritage from him.”

“Hmm, I’m not sure how telling anyone that your grandmother is the Baroness of your district but we can’t associate with her because your grandfather, her ex-husband is an immortal alien who wants to take over the world is going to go over well.” Lily licked the fork suggestively. “I mean, there are May December romances, and then there’s you.”

Sabine and Jessica snickered.

“You know quite a bit more than you should.”

“What can I say? I have a face that people trust.” Lily shrugged and continued to eat. “You smile. You nod. You let them talk. People love to talk about themselves. The Baroness though, she was a tougher nut to crack. She doesn’t do talk. She does actions. Deeds. So, was it something you did or didn’t do that tore you two apart?”

Mr. Sands snorted. “Don’t be foolish enough to think I had any feelings towards her. She was a means to an end, no more. She didn’t have what I needed.”

“Hmm, it’s interesting to me that you were able to contain Anne, but not Lisa.” Lily stuck the fork into the lasagna.

“Oh, they fought,” Jessica said.

Sabine smirked. “But not enough.”

“You don’t need a Dark Rider,” Lily mused. “So, why keep Anne imprisoned?”

“Elise is not my recruit.”

“Oh, contingency plans.” Lily nodded. The name Elise sounded familiar but she couldn’t place it off the top of her head. “Clever enough.” She finished her slice and set down her plate. “I’ll go catch up with Justin and Alex. They might need minding. And I’m the one they think is the flirt.” Lily pushed her hair back over her shoulder strutting from the room.

She found Alex and Justin pretty easily.

“Hanging out here all day sounds like a bore,” Alex said as they wandered around a large room.

“There are plans to be set in motion,” Justin said. “And it’s not that bad.”

“No place to ride. No elbow room. Everyone on top of each other.”

“Sounds kinky,” Lily spoke up.

Alex jumped. “Don’t do that, Lils.”

Lily checked her phone.

Alex strode away from Justin. “Wait, wait, wait. At least you know what you’re waiting for I suppose.” She jerked her head to one side.

Lily waited to make sure Justin had his eyes on Alex before looking where Alex had indicated. A book rested on a book stand.

“The day is important. All the generals agree that to do it early would only bring disaster. The Keepers are too fixated on their prophecy to be paying attention. And without the other Soul Riders, they can’t stop us even if they wanted to.”

Lily walked towards the book slowly.

“They’re down to one now,” Alex said and shifted her weight. She moved towards Justin. “We’re going to be together, no matter what, baby.”

“You and me against the world,” Justin said.

Alex rested her hands on his chest. “That’s right.”

Justin frowned and turned his head to look for Lily.

Alex put a hand on his cheek and turned his head back to look at her. “Justin, look at me. I’d burn the world for you. You used to feel the same. It’s still in her.” She rubbed a circle on his chest.

Lily snagged the book and stuck it in the back of her pants under her trench coat. “Do I need to tell you two to get a room?” She leaned against the stand.

Alex flushed. “Are any of these generals hot so we can get Lily her own May December romance?”

“Only one person can rule the world, Alex,” Lily said. “And it’s going to be me.”

“Yes, yes, all hail the Queen.”

“I keep moving up in the world,” Lily murmured.

“Empress even. We can be the Empress’ advisors.” Alex grinned. “Ruling sounds so tedious anyways. You need a champion. I take champion.”

Lily snorted.

Justin rolled his eyes. “Garnok is going to rule. Not us.”

“I guess I better figure out a way to kill Garnok,” Lily said dryly.

“Come on, you have to be here for one reason or another. Show me.” Alex took Justin’s hand and tugged him away.

“Fine, there’s a control room. I can show you that,” Justin said. “It’s just a bunch of screens and drones though. There probably isn’t anything very interesting going on.”

“But it will kill time,” Alex said.

“Ugh, don’t talk about killing time,” Lily groaned. “You want the entire world to fall out of whack.”

Alex winked at her and urged Justin forward.

Evergray polished the keystone with a rag. “Keystones truly are a thing of wonder. You wouldn’t think a thing of such humble origins would be able to part the veil of space and time.”

Linda double checked the tuning of the harp like Lily had shown her. It was mostly nerves. She turned her head.

Horse hooves clopped against the stone of the path echoing into the Dale.

But not one set of hooves, multiple.

Elizabeth Sunbeam, Rhiannon, Avalon and a host of druids in robes and hoods swept into the Dale on horses of all colors.

“What is going on here?” Elizabeth asked.

Avalon cleared his throat. “I told you to leave, brother.”

“Tsk, as if I listen very well,” Evergray said and coughed.

“Linda,” Elizabeth scolded. “I thought better of you. Evergray isn’t to be trusted. He’s a thief.”

Linda stood up holding the harp in her arms. “He’s been more honest than you have been.” She lifted her chin.

“What is that?” Rhiannon nodded at the stone in Evergray’s arms.

“You don’t know.” Evergray shook his head. “Twenty years and all the new recruits are base ignorant. This never would have happened while I was chief archivist.”

“Evergray, you have violated the terms of your exile,” Elizabeth said. “You were warned what would happen if you ever returned. We have come to take you into custody.”

“I see how you are, Elizabeth.” Evergray turned his head and coughed. He looked back at her. “You’ve come full circle then.”

Elizabeth flushed. “I don’t know what you mean.” She straightened on her horse.

“If you didn’t, you wouldn’t be so mad. Come, now, we haven’t actually answered your questions.”

More horse hooves echoed in the Dale, this time, they were alone.

A grey dapple horse with a white mane appeared at the end of the Dale.

The druids murmured and moved aside.

“Concorde,” they whispered and murmured to each other.

Concorde trotted between them. He lowered his head to Linda. “Soul Rider,” he murmured.

Linda pressed her forehead against his. “You’re safe and alive.”

“What do you need me to do?” Concorde asked.

“Make room, make room,” Evergray said. “I believe this is our cue.”

Linda quietly explained to Concorde the plan.

Alex had managed to wheedle Justin back to the horses.

“It’s time,” Lily said.

“Justin, baby, your lips look super chapped.” Alex grabbed his chin.

Justin tried to move his head. “They’re fine.”

“No. They’re definitely chapped. Can’t kiss you with chapped lips,” she said. She took out the chap stick and popped the lid off with one hand. “Hold still.”

Justin’s eyes widened and he leaned back. “Alex.”

She smeared it onto his lips before he could say anything else or get away.

Justin stilled and stared ahead barely blinking.

Lily reached into her saddlebag. “Catch,” she said and tossed potions at her.

Alex caught them and opened the first one over Saga’s rump. “There, there, boy, you’ll be yourself in no time.” She hurried over to the other horses.

Lily juggled the other three potions. She poured them over the backs.

“Last one,” Alex said.

Lily tossed it to her.

Alex poured it over the back of the horse.

Lily went for the halters. “Ten minutes, and counting,” she said.

Justin blinked and rubbed his eyes. “What happened? Where am I?” He looked around. “What’s wrong with Saga?”

“Saga’s going to be all right, give her a few minutes,” Alex darted over to him.

He stared at her. “Are you wearing lip stick?”

She flung her arms around his neck. “That’s my Justin,” she said tears in her eyes. “You aren’t going to do this to me ever again. No more mind control from evil grandfathers. You hear me Justin Moorland. I can’t go through this again.”

He wrapped his arms around her. “It’s all so fuzzy. Except there was lots of lasagna.”

Alex laughed and hiccupped. “Of course you remember the lasagna.”

“Tasted like mom’s,” Justin mumbled.

“Justin, I need you to help Lily get the horses to the gate.” Alex cupped his face. “Can you do that?”

“Sure,” Justin said. He rubbed his face. “I’m just, there’s this fog.”

Alex handed him the chap stick. “Apply if you think you need more.”

Justin looked at it. “For the record, my lips aren’t chapped.” His hand closed over it.

“Sure they aren’t.” Alex kissed his cheek. She went to Lily’s saddlebags and grabbed her tools and the keystone.

“Five minutes,” Lily said.

“On it.” Alex jogged off.

“Help me get them saddled. They probably won’t fight you.”

Justin nodded.

Together they saddled the horses who tried to move away, but the further time went, the less they fought.

Justin tightened the last girth as the first spell broke over the horses.

They tossed their heads and locked their legs.

“Easy, easy,” Lily said. “We’re going to get all of you out of here. Come on.” She grabbed the reins of Nimbus and two of the others.

Nimbus took charge.

Justin took the other horses including Saga.

Alex had the gate mechanism ripped open and was fitting the keystone inside fitting the wires to it.

Lily took the book out of her pants back and put it in her saddlebag.

Alex flipped switches.

Justin’s brow furrowed.

Alex pushed the lever up. The entire rig hummed. Purple energy swirled around.

“Stop!” Jessica shouted. “They’ve opened the gate!”

Lily got on her horse.

Alex selected a horse at random and mounted.

Justin got on Saga.

“Run!” Lily shouted and Nimbus vaulted forward jumping through the portal and running flat out, the two horses behind him.

Justin urged Saga forward. The other horse followed him.

Alex gave the running Dark Riders the finger and her horse, not willing to be left behind even if the way ahead was pink energy ran after the others.

They ran as fast as they could down the winding floating stone road, jumping the gaps and through the other portal.

Alex jumped through the portal into Pandoria. It fizzled and snapped shut behind her almost taking her horse’s tail.

Justin stared around. “Where are we?”

Lily moved into view, Nimbus’ wings pressed tight over her legs. His horn gleamed in the odd light. “Welcome to Pandoria.”

The Soul Horses moved into their positions at the bases of the statues. They looked upwards. Magic swirled around them and they became more than what they were. Starshine’s grey mane and tail turned electric blue, a crystal horn jutted from his head. The end of it gleamed with pink light.

At the base of his statue, magenta light filled the carvings making them grow brighter.

Meteor was no longer just red. He was the red of the Harvest Moon and scattered with crater markings with moving clouds. His mane and tail white gold and glowing. His beard curled under his chin.

The magenta light swelled in the carvings of the Moon Soul Horse Statue and lit up the Dale.

Tin Can stomped his hooves. They turned cloven, like a deer rather than a horse. Lightning swirled around his bronze body and crackled in his golden mane and tail jumping off in jagged sparks and spears.

The lightning jumped from him to his statue. It turned pink and crept up every leg and around the body lighting up the carvings.

Concorde spread his glowing white wings. His coat had turned silver with lighter white gold spots. A feather fell from his wings, drifted down and fell at the base of the statue. A rainbow flared around it and then it turned pink and disappeared. The carvings glowed pink.

Linda carefully shifted the keystone into place.

Magenta light swelled at the base of the broken statue and raced up the carvings of the stairs to the gate. Pink light swirled around like a galaxy, small at first but growing until it stabilized into a door.

Elizabeth’s voice sharpened. “Is that the Harp of Aideen?”

Linda cradled the harp in her arms. She moved to the base of the stairs and plucked the strings. And with the music, she sent her heart after it.

FOR THE ACCOMPANYING IMAGES PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE MY WATERMARK AND CONTACT INFORMATION. THANK YOU. I get it. Some of you might get excited and want to see this stuff in the game, especially the clothes, tack, and pets. However, the only way I want to see this in the game is if I get paid for it. If I see it in the game and I’m not paid for it, there will be hell to pay. You think I’m salty. I’d be angry. Personally, I’m not going to send this info to SSO. If you do, leave my contact information there! Don’t give them any excuses to steal.

Now, I’ll know you haven’t read this note if you leave me comments about how ‘salty’ I am about the game and if I hate it so much I should do something else. I am doing something else. It’s called Mystic Riders MMORPG Project. Mystic Riders however is a very baby phase game. You can check out our plans on the game dev blog. (Skills, Factions, Professions, Crafting, Mini-Games, 25+ horse breeds!) If you know anyone who would be interested and has money or contacts about game making, direct them to the blog.

#star stable #star stable online #sso #fan fic #jorvik reimagined #star stable salt #completely harmless #silverglade reimagined #the tension is amping upwards #many nods to ruth westside #One chapter left #and epilogue #did I forget to mention an epilogue #I like epilogues

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tabloidtoc · 4 years

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Globe, October 5

You can buy a copy of this issue for your very own at my eBay store: https://www.ebay.com/str/bradentonbooks

Cover: Jeffrey Epstein’s assistant Sarah Kellen Vickers’ shocking deposition and why Ghislaine Maxwell is terrified of her testimony

Page 2: Up Front & Personal -- Anne Heche laughing, Serena Williams on the court at the U.S. Open, Justin Theroux cleans up after his dog in NYC

Page 3: Josh Duhamel in a sling, A.J. McLean bald and wearing a mask and sporting a nasty scalp scar, Julianne Hough drinking in Studio City

Page 4: Fox News’ popular pundit Andrew Napolitano who is a former New Jersey Superior Court judge is accused in a civil suit of forcing a male defendant to give him oral sex in exchange for a light sentence, David Bowie lured Tina Turner into a steamy tryst by dancing naked in front of her wearing one of her wigs and mimicking her singing Rolling on the River in 1985

Page 5: Furious mom of eight Kate Gosselin is determined to win back custody of son Collin after the teen sparked a child abuse furor by publicly claiming his raging dad Jon Gosselin kicked him for denting their car, Kelly Clarkson is keeping her lips zipped about her heart-shattering divorce from Brandon Blackstock so their young kids won’t be wounded by an ugly public fight

Page 6: TV’s queen of mean Ellen DeGeneres isn’t just despised by her staff and crew she’s also hated by her housekeepers who she treats like dirt

Page 7: Accused sex fiend Prince Andrew is a disgrace and the monarchy is erasing him from official family photos and banning him from all major events -- tarred by his dozen-year friendship with convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein and charges he bedded one of the billionaire’s teen sex slaves Andrew was just eliminated from his father Prince Philip’s 100th birthday celebration set for June 10

Page 8: Glee star Naya Rivera didn’t have to die -- the 33-year-old actress drowned on a boating trip with her son and her death was ruled an accidental drowning but a renowned forensic pathologist says the tragedy could have been prevented because she had vertigo and it may have triggered a panic attack as she struggled to get back in the boat -- if she had been wearing a life jacket she’d probably still be alive

Page 10: Former president Jimmy Carter has come clean about Willie Nelson getting high on the White House roof with his son Chip, Lisa Marie Presley reveals she divorced Michael Jackson after he pressured her to have a baby -- Michael already had his dermatologist’s assistant Debbie Rowe lined up to be his baby mama and he sucker-punched Lisa Marie with an ultimatum have my child or Debbie would do it

Page 11: Tiger Woods’ worst nightmare is coming true as ex-galpal Rachel Uchitel is finally dishing the dirt on their steamy affair that destroyed his marriage and put his golf career in a tailspin -- Rachel is in talks to join The Real Housewives of New York City and finally wants to set the record straight

Page 12: Celebrity Buzz -- Miles Teller wearing his mask wrong and wearing two caps (picture), Candace Cameron Bure barked back at fan backlash blasting the wholesome TV star for posting a cheeky snap of husband Valeri Bure cupping his famous wife’s breast, Jessica Alba sobbed like a baby after discovering her 12-year-old daughter Honor is taller than she is, Zac Efron apparently has a thing for brunette beauties named Vanessa -- having once famously romancing his High School Musical co-star Vanessa Hudgens he’s now head over heels for a 25-year-old Aussie waitress named Vanessa Valladares, Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady is done with cold weather forever -- after spending two decades with the New England Patriots Tom has really warmed up to Florida’s balmy year-round weather and his new team but his daughter Vivian doesn’t like it hot all the time

Page 13: Britt Ekland (picture), Jason Sudeikis at the beach (picture), Selma Blair’s hair has grown back after chemo treatment for MS (picture)

Page 14: Reese Witherspoon lives in a newly renovated multimillion-dollar Nashville mansion but it’s her closet that’s a priceless showstopper because she turned a massive walk-in closet into a museum with wardrobe treasures from her iconic gigs like Legally Blonde and Walk the Line as well as lavish gowns and accessories she’s donned on the red carpet, Selena Gomez’s gourmet kitchen got too hot for the culinary novice to handle so she got herself an HBO show she shoots at home called Selena + Chef where the star invites renowned chefs to give her cooking lessons via remote video, Fashion Verdict -- Joy Bauer 7/10, Katherine Waterston 4/10, Nathalie Emmanuel 3/10, Vanessa Kirby 10/10, Maya Hawke 2/10

Page 16: Jane Fonda’s great regret was skipping some Sexual Healing from singer Marvin Gaye who was gaga over her, Bar Refaeli barely escaped jail after being convicted of cheating her native Israel out of a fortune in taxes but she did get nine months of community service plus a $1.5 million fine and was ordered to pay back taxes on $7.5 million in earnings

Page 17: Chris Evans was red-faced after accidentally posting fully nude social media selfies showing the Captain American hunk standing stiffly at attention

Page 18: 10 Things You Don’t Know About Liam Neeson, Jay Leno has a new gig hosting the iconic game show You Bet Your Life, drama-plagued Denise Richards won’t be returning to The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills after a stormy two-season stint on the show

Page 20: True Crime

Page 24: Cover Story -- Murdered pedophile Jeffrey Epstein’s accused madam Ghislaine Maxwell is shaking in her prison cell terrified the billionaire pervert’s former personal assistant Sarah Kellen Vickers will rat her out to the federal prosecutors who’ve charged her with sex crimes -- the feds could get a slam-dunk case against Ghislaine by making a deal for Sarah to squawk but so far she’s not talking

Page 26: Health Report

Page 30: Hoda Kotb is moving fast to have baby No. 3 with fiance Joel Schiffman at age 56 -- the two are in seventh heaven raising her adopted daughters Haley and Hope and want to add a boy to their brood

Page 38: Real Life

Page 44: Straight Talk -- in a desperate bid to get attention and return to relevance forgotten celebrity Paris Hilton has joined the crusade to help Britney Spears gain control over her $59 million fortune

Page 45: Caitlyn Jenner is feeling smug about Keeping Up With the Kardashians ending its run after 14 years on TV but she’s upsetting her reality star relatives by reveling in their misery plus Caitlyn who appeared on the E! show for several seasons as Kris Jenner’s husband Bruce believes things would have been different had they not iced her out of the series

Page 47: Hollywood Flashback -- John Candy in 1989′s Uncle Buck, Bizarre But True

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ghostcatsso · 3 years

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We're going to have a memorial for Elizabeth. Alex asked me to meet up with her and ride with her to it.

I'll happily keep her company.

As we rode there, she told me about her relationship with Elizabeth.

We'd get into fights more times than I could count. She was always scolding me for being too reckless. And don't get me started on all her stupid rules! Before her I never had that, you know? I know my mom loved us, and tried to provide for five kids as a single mom as best she could, but...it wasn't enough. She wasn't there. I had to figure out how to keep food on the table, how to keep our clothes clean, where to hide the things you cared about so they wouldn't get stolen. I was always bailing James out of trouble but there was no one to catch me when I fell. Until Elizabeth. When I did something stupid, she was the one who picked me up at the station. When I failed, she would tell me to try again. All those rules weren't her trying to make me into someone else. She was helping me be my best self. It was love, and I was too stubborn to see it. Elizabeth was the first person to see me as not just some angry kid raging against the world, but as someone better. Someone who could be a hero.

Poor Alex, she was especially close to Elizabeth. This is so hard on her

We arrived at the funeral and Lisa gave Alex some advice about grieving. I guess she has experience loosing a mother, too.

Time to mingle, see what everyone has to say about Elizabeth.

Derek asked the soul riders to tell him about Elizabeth, since he didn't really know her.

Linda talked about her knowing better than anyone what it's like to be a soul rider, since she used to be one herself.

Anne said Elizabeth taught her to be herself, even under the pressure of her parents and her family's reputation.

Linda added that she admired that Elizabeth wasn't afraid to show that she didn't have all the answers, but encouraged her to seek them out and learn as much as she can. Even when she was keeping things from us, she was doing it to protect us.

Derek asked if we'll be okay without such a great leader, and we admitted it will be hard but we'll get through this together.

Herman told stories of Elizabeth first coming to Jorvik. She struggled to learn to ride on just some training horse before she found her Concorde. She was shy and nervous around horses at first, but she loved them as much as anyone filled with the light of Aideen. One day while they were out on a ride, her horse spooked and ran off into the forest with her. Later she returned, having not only stayed on the horse's back, but managed to calm the horse down. Something must've happened out in the forest that day, because ever since then she was an amazing rider.

Herman also talked about Starbreeds and how they often reflect their rider. Soul riders, too, will start to reflect their horses when their bond is strengthened. Every Concorde he's met, and that's three generations now, has beamed with pride. Before Elizabeth met him, she was determined but shy. She would let others take credit for her accomplishments. When she bonded with Concorde, his pride rubbed off on her and her confidence blossomed. She embraced her talents and no longer let anyone push her around.

Spymaster said that when he first heard what had happened to her, his first thought was that he had never returned her hairbrush. He didn't even notice he was crying until one of his little critters came to comfort him. Grieving is a funny thing, and everybody does it differently. It's those little silly moments, like swapping hair products, that he will miss the most.

Mrs Holdsworth expressed regret that she couldn't have known Elizabeth better. The druids don't look too kindly on witches, and Elizabeth had her own reasons to not trust witchcraft. Still, she always had the utmost respect for her.

Nic said he could've been a druid if he wanted, but he was too interested in exploring, and it would've required him to stay put. He sensed that Elizabeth was the same way, and that she missed that she couldn't go wandering. They would regularly have lunch together and she would bake him banana bread in exchange for stories of his adventures.

Captain Brus said he remembers Elizabeth as a firey-haired teenage stowaway who ran away to Jorvik to make a difference. Around thirty years ago he was asked by the keepers of Aideen to dock his boat in a certain place for an hour, and then take off. No cargo to load or unload, just dock for a while and then leave. He knew better than to ask too many questions of the druids, so he did as they asked. Soon he found why he'd been ask to dock there. He found Elizabeth hiding under a tarp in a lifeboat. She was shivering, wet, and half starved. He took her up to his cabin and got her tea and sandwiches and listened as she told him about the wicked home she was escaping, the strange dreams that had been haunting her, and the strange symbol that appeared on her leg. It was the symbol of the sun circle. He's worked with her many times since then, both when she was a soul rider and after horrible tragedy broke apart her sisterhood, and she has always shined bright with the light of that stowaway who fled to Jorvik long ago. She was a girl who gave up her name and became a "Sunbeam".

Maya said she wishes she got to know Elizabeth better. She was always a little afraid of her. She seemed to look at her like she expected her to mess up at any moment. Alex said that's because Maya snuck into the Stone Circle once, Fripp was so angry.

Aw, poor Maya just wants to be a hero like Alex. Also, it sounds like Alex spends all her time after missions crashing on Maya's couch and eating all her food. That's so cute

Agnetha explained that all the red wild roses are because they were Elizabeth's favorite flower. She said she wants to plant a whole bunch of them around Jorvik to remember her.

Elizabeth's horse, Calanthe, will need someone to look after her now. Rhiannon first suggests Avalon, but he protests that he doesn't have enough time to care for a horse right now. Evergray, on the other hand, really needs to stop hitching rides with me. Plus Calanthe seems to like him. I think they'll get along great.

Concorde is too young to really understand what has happened, but she can feel the loss of someone so strong in the sun circle. The other guardians reassured her that Elizabeth's soul will live on in her memory.

Finally, the memorial is over. The soul riders got together for a meeting.

Without Elizabeth, we're kind of on our own now. We need to figure out what's next for us. We decide to focus on two things we need before we can fight Dark Core and Garnok.

We need to heal Fripp. We need his guidance.

And we need to figure out what to do about Concorde. Anne can't very well ride into battle on a foal, after all.

#sso #chance and charlie #quests #story quests #sso spoilers

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televinita · 3 years

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Books Read In 2020: The Why

In a tradition I accidentally started for myself in 2016 and now quite enjoy, at the end of the year I look back at my reading list and answer the question, why did you read this particular book?

Below, my 100 reads of 2020 are split into groups by target readership age, plus nonfiction at the end, now with a bonus note about how I heard of it. Which I probably won’t continue to do next year, but it was fun to try.

ADULT FICTION

I read each of these books because...

A Glitter of Gold - Liz Johnson. 2019. It had me at "her pirate tour business," but between the shipwreck & the museum-director love interest it was like BLOOD & TREASURE ROMANCE AU LET'S GOOO.

How I heard of it: a book blog

The Last Woman in the Forest - Diane Les Becquets. 2019. Recommended by a dog lover; I'm down for a thriller about a woman who has a dream dog-inclusive job like this.

How I heard of it: a book blog

Good Omens - Terry Pratchett & Neil Gaiman. 1990. I really enjoyed the miniseries and wanted to see if the book everyone loved so much was as good (for the record: it was not. at least not if you’ve seen the miniseries first; otherwise they are probably equal).

This Is Home - Lisa Duffy. 2019. Attractive cover + I flipped it open to a random page and just liked the writing style.

How I heard of it: library

Dear Mr. Knightley - Katherine Reay. 2013. I'd had this on the back burner for a while because the MC sounded like me, and one day I got sick of not being able to find any fluffy contemporary romances with beta male heroes and decided Matthew Gray Gubler was gonna star in this one. (spoiler alert: it is a good book but that did not work)

How I heard of it: a book blog

Rubbernecker - Belinda Bauer. 2013. Criminal Minds sent me into a tailspin so I went hunting for books to cast Spencer Reid in again; the Asperger's/case-solving/difficult relationship with mother combo sounded promising. (spoiler alert: the med-student element + his social cluelessness proved too strong and I was only able to picture the kid from The Good Doctor)

How I heard of it: Googling keywords

The Swiss Affair - Emylia Hall. 2013. I got a random hankering for a student/teacher novel, and after scrutinizing the library catalog this was the only one that fit my parameters for gender, lack of adultery, and focus on romance over sex.

How I heard of it: library

Love At First Bark - Debbie Burns. 2019. I was trying to cast Wes/Jules [Dollface] in a romance novel, so I browsed through a Goodreads friend's "dog-romance" shelf and accidentally landed in a Jeid AU [Criminal Minds]. Which may or may not have been a large part of what turned me into a Jeid shipper (outside canon only).

The Mermaids Singing - Val McDermid. 1995. One final attempt to cast Reid in a novel -- a user in a Reddit post asking for this very thing suggested this, and "profiler with idiosyncracies" certainly fit.

The Wire in the Blood [and 9 subsequent novels] - Val McDermid, spanning 1997-2019. Turns out aside from being British, Reid paints onto Tony Hill EXCEPTIONALLY well, and I accidentally found myself with a little Jeid AU in the process, so obviously I read the entire series. Good crime-solving fun and all that.

Horse - Talley English. 2018. Random library pull because I connected with the writing style and it appeared to actually focus on horses.

How I heard of it: library

A Sparkle of Silver - Liz Johnson. 2018. I liked the author's other book and this was pretty much a remix of the same story, but now with a cool mansion/estate setting.

How I heard of it: looking up other books by this author

Everyone Is Beautiful - Katherine Center. 2009. Went looking for stories about strong marriages, found this on a Goodreads list of "second chance marriage" books, tripped into something like a season 9 Jim/Pam scenario. How I heard of it: Googling keywords

The Lost Husband - Katherine Center. 2013. Loved the previous book of hers I read, and the "starting life over on a goat farm" angle sounded like an ideal life to try on.

How I heard of it: looking up more from this author

The Shadow Year - Hannah Richell. 2013. Fixing up an old house?? I am THERE. Doing this in two timelines, one of which involves off-the-grid homesteading, is even better.

How I heard of it: used book sale

Mandrake Root - Janet Diebold. 1946. I needed a non-library book to bring on vacation, and after spinning in circles over what I thought would appeal to my mood in that setting, my brain randomly said "reread this one."

How I heard of it: estate sale

Path of the Jaguar - Vickie Britton & Loretta Jackson. 1989. Bought cheap for cheap thrills: a Yucatan adventure/mystery. Read now so I could get rid of it. How I heard of it: library sale

Burying Water - K.A. Tucker. 2014. The library didn't have The Simple Wild, but they DID have a book w/ an equally pretty cover that talked about a badly beaten young amnesiac (!) recovering on a horse farm (!!). What is: my top romance trope (hurt/comfort, bonus points for animals and rural setting).

How I heard of it: library

Happiness for Beginners - Katherine Center. Established quality author + summertime hiking inspiration.

How I heard of it: looking up more from this author

The Visitors - Simon Sylvester. Cool cover + setting, and a teenage protagonist usually makes adult fiction more accessible. How I heard of it: Goodreads

Becoming Rain - K.A. Tucker. 2014. I was in this companion novel solely for mentions of Alex and any people by the last name of Wells, but figured I might as well read all of it to ensure I didn't miss any. How I heard of it: looking up more from this author

The Guest List - Lucy Foley. 2020. Honestly, it just sounded like a cool thriller (and cool setting). How I heard of it: a book blog

You Deserve Nothing - Alexander Maksik. 2011. Fell down a Will/Rachel [Glee] rabbit hole and ravaged the student/teacher keyword in my library catalog again to scratch the itch.

The Haunting of Hill House - Shirley Jackson. 1959. Mom's been trying to get me to read this for years, and this time when it came up in conversation it was the right time of year, so I randomly decided to give it a shot. How I heard of it: Mom

The Walker in Shadows - Barbara Michaels. 1979. Gothic ghost story + beautiful architectural details in a historic house = yeah!

How I heard of it: Goodwill

YOUNG ADULT

People Like Us - Dane Mele. 2018. Needed an audiobook; a girls' boarding school murder mystery seemed most likely to hold my attention of the limited options. How I heard of it: Library

The Possibility of Now - Kim Culbertson. 2016. I will read anything by this author, and girl having a meltdown over a test = me. How I heard of it: looking up other books by this author

Rob&Sara.com - P.J. Petersen & Ivy Ruckman. 2004. Mostly I wanted to go back to my high school days and enjoy the format of a novel written in emails, but also, I like Ruckman. How I heard of it: used book sale

For Real - Alison Cherry. 2014. Fictional Amazing Race!! + awesome summery cover + sisters How I heard of it: library sale

The Summer After You + Me - Jennifer Salvato Doktorski. 2015. The awesome summery cover, mostly. How I heard of it: a book blog

You'd Be Mine - Erin Hahn. 2019. Gorgeous cover + the chance to vicariously follow a budding young country music star on tour for the summer.

How I heard of it: a book blog

Juniors - Kaui Hart Hemmings. 2015. The neat setting(s): a live-in guest on a wealthy estate in Hawaii. How I heard of it: Dollar store

Lion Boy's White Brother - Alden G. Stevens. 1951. Bought cheap because vintage juvenile book in a unique setting. Read now to see if I could get rid of it (NOPE).

How I heard of it: used bookstore

The O.C.: Spring Break - Aury Wallington. 2005. I keep meaning to finish this short series, and it was an easy title to count for my Mount TBR challenge.

How I heard of it: used book sale

Echo Island - Edward Karlow. 2017. Bought cheap because of the beautiful summery cover; easy read for Mount TBR so I could get rid of it. How I heard of it: library sale

Confessions of a High School Disaster - Emma Chastain. 2017. Read because of THE SUPER CUTE SUMMERY COVER (and diary format).

How I heard of it: Dollar store

Kentucky Daughter - Carol J. Scott. 1985. Working my way down the “Inappropriate Student/Teacher Relationships in YA" list because I'm in that kind of mood this year; chose this because 80s books tend to deliver the subject best*, the character reminded me of the girl in Send No Blessings, and Open Library had it. *this one was just blatant sexual harassment, though, and belonged very literally on that list

How I heard of it: Goodreads

What They Always Tell Us - Martin Wilson. 2008. I sorted the library catalog to see the oldest contemporary YA novels they still have before they get weeded, and "loner being taken under the wing of his older brother's (male) friend and falling in love with him" hit a couple of good tropes. How I heard of it: library

Bobby's Watching - Ted Pickford. 1993. Browsing around on OpenLibrary and saw they FINALLY had a copy of this book that scared me too much to finish as a kid, and which I've wanted to revisit ever since I remembered what it's called (Interlibrary Loan doesn't have it and it's Not Cheap to buy).

How I heard of it: library

Powwow Summer - Nahanni Shingoose. 2019. Always interested in modern-day Indigenous girls connecting w/ their heritage, especially if they're from my home state's tribe.

How I heard of it: a book blog

The Princesses of Iowa - M. Molly Backes. 2012. Appealing cover + heft suggesting a solid Midwestern contemporary, plus I liked the student teacher element (without a slash this time, as in "college student who is almost a teacher")

How I heard of it: library

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants - Ann Brashares. 2001. The Second Summer of the Sisterhood - Ann Brashares. 2003.

Long-intended reread of a college fave because I wanted see Mike Vogel in the movie, and it was summer so the stars aligned. Continued because the first book was as good as I remembered. (I would have kept going but Life distracted me for a bit and by the time I was back on track, it was no longer summer) How I heard of it: I...can't remember. Am the worst!

The Distance From Me To You - Marina Gessner a.k.a. Nina de Gramont. 2015. Hiking inspiration + an appealing-sounding romance. How I heard of it: Goodreads

Where Have All the Tigers Gone? - Lynn Hall. 1989. Will read any of her books, but specifically read this one because it seemed fairly autobiographical, and I read it NOW because it seemed durable enough to take on vacation. How I heard of it: looking up books by this author

And Both Were Young - Madeline L'Engle. 1949 (text of 1983 edition w/ material from original manuscript added back). Something reminded me of its existence and I requested it because it was the only non-animal-focused vintage teen novel I could physically get my hands on before Interlibrary Loan opened back up, and I had a craving for just that.

How I heard of it: library

The Other Side of Lost - Jessi Kirby. 2018. Established quality author + throw me ALL the thru-hike novels!

How I heard of it: Goodreads

The Vow - Jessica Martinez. 2013. Perfect scenario to run an Abed/Annie [Community] AU!

How I heard of it: I want to say...an article on a book website (not personal blog this time) back in 2013.

Moon and Me - Hadley Irwin. 1981. Was just in the mood to read an 80s teen novel and this one helped me knock off a title for the Mount TBR challenge. From an author I like, w/ bonus horse content.

How I heard of it: used book sale.

Suicide Notes From Beautiful Girls - Lynn Weingarten. 2015. I bought a blind bag at the library sale and this was one of the only contemporary YA novels in it; figured I might as well read it since I'd liked a previous book of hers.

How I heard of it: Library

History Is All You Left Me - Adam Silvera. 2016.

With the Glee rabbit hole came a Klaine spiral; this was my season 4 Tragic AU dream for them and I've been saving it for a Klainey day ever since it was published. (No I am not sorry for that horrid pun.)

How I heard of it: googling keywords

The Museum of Heartbreak - Meg Leder. 2016. The cool cover/concept of a "museum" of items reeled me in; I bought a copy a while ago 'cause the library didn't have it. Read now to see if I could get rid of it (NOPE).

How I heard of it: Goodreads

Me & Mr. J - Rachel McIntyre. 2015. Student/teacher novel that looked especially appealingly tame so I'd been saving it, but then Open Library notified me it was now only available in 1-hour increments, and I got paranoid it would disappear altogether (it's not cheap to buy or available via ILL), so I wanted it in my brain.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

Dear Evan Hansen - Val Emmich w/ Steven Levenson, Benj Pasek & Justin Paul. 2018. Fell in love with the DEH soundtrack. Play's summary sounded good -- getting to experience it in YA novel form?? Amazing.

How I heard of it: Wikipedia

Saddle a Thunderbolt - Jo Sykes. 1967

Bought a while ago because vintage horse story. Read now specifically to alleviate my pre-homesickness about moving by imagining living in an even more beautiful place than home.

How I heard of it: either a used book sale or a used bookstore...

Learning to Breathe - Janice Lynn Mather. 2018. This was mentioned on a lost-book forum and "girl with unplanned pregnancy supports herself by getting a job cleaning" piqued my interest; the setting (Bahamas) and cover made it better.

How I heard of it: Reddit

Everglades Adventure - James Ralph Johnson. 1970. Standard vintage boys' adventure-in-nature story; I like those.

How I heard of it: Goodwill

CHILDREN’S/MIDDLE GRADE

Little Women - Louisa May Alcott. 1868. Seeing the new movie and falling head over heels was what it took to FINALLY convince me to reread this childhood fave.

How I heard of it: can't remember; I was a kid

A Little Princess - Frances Hodgson Burnett. 1905. I was perusing a lot of books about classic children's books and it started to bug me that I had skipped this appealing-sounding one as a kid.

How I heard of it: can't remember; I was a kid

Little Men - Louisa May Alcott. 1871. LW sparked a fandom revival and I wanted more detail about the Marches' adult lives (esp. Jo & Bhaer), even on the fringes.

How I heard of it: library

Lady and the Tramp - Ward Greene. I saw a quote from the new movie under a gifset on Tumblr that sounded like it came from a book, and upon Googling out that one existed, I obviously could not allow the book version of a beloved childhood animal-movie fave to go unread. Especially after finding out it was super rare so reading it would be a privilege.

The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett. 1910. Read for the same reason as A Little Princess. Can’t have one without the other, you know.

How I heard of it: was a kid; can't remember

The Mother-Daughter Book Club - Heather Vogel Fredericks. 2007. Much Ado About Anne - Heather Vogel Fredericks. 2008.

Always thought the series looked cute/reminded me of The Teashop Girls, but the fact that the first book they read is Little Women gave me the impetus to finally read this one. First book was darling so I continued to the next (but failed to continue beyond because COVID shut the library down until I was out of the mood).

How I heard of it: library

Nature Girl - Jane Kelley. 2010. I wanted walking inspiration.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

From You to Me - K.A. Holt. 2018. Mistook it for a similar-looking book I'd seen at the same time (See You On A Starry Night), but figured I'd give the 8th grade bucket list idea a shot once I had it. How I heard of it: Goodreads

Semiprecious - D. Anne Love. 2006. Cute cover + I'm starting to be a big fan of what I call "contemporary historical," for stories set mid-20th century.

How I heard of it: library

Dandy's Mountain - Thomas Fall. 1967. Vintage horse-inclusive children's book in a rural setting, I'm sold. Not to mention, love reading a summer setting in summer.

How I heard of it: used book sale

Littler Women: A Modern Retelling - Laura Schaefer. 2017. The only way to make the Little Women MORE magical is to make them younger, modern, and written by a proven quality author.

How I heard of it: a book blog

Behind The Attic Wall - Sylvia Cassedy. 315 pg/1983.

A Goodreads friend strongly recommended it as similar to but better than Mandy, and reading about it in 100 Best Books For Children sealed the deal. Read now for the Mount TBR challenge.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

The Jigsaw Jungle - Kristin Levine. 2018. I am a COMPLETE sucker for books told in non-traditional/scrapbook-esque format.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

Runt - Marion Dane Bauer. 2002. Wolf story by a quality author. Read now after owning it for a decade to see if I could get rid of it.

How I heard of it: used book sale

The King of the Cats - Rene Guillot. 1959. Bought cheap for a quick read because vintage animal story. Read now so I could get rid of it.

How I heard of it: used book sale

Just The Beginning - Betty Miles. 1976. Found cheap; always down to read a vintage book about an average girl (and I wanted to know how she'd cope with her mom being "a cleaning lady in a town full of classmates who HAVE cleaning ladies").

How I heard of it: used book sale

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone - J.K. Rowling. 1997. Been meaning to reread the series for a while now; finally got motivation to check out the illustrated edition 'cause Christmastime.

How I heard of it: originally Mom; a book blog for this edition

Echo Mountain - Lauren Wolk. 2020. Almost entirely because of the incredible clipart cover, promising me nature and a dog (and because I could get it as an e-audiobook from the library).

How I heard of it: a book blog

Knock Three Times - Cressida Cowell. 2019. I needed another audiobook for bedtime/walks and I know that David Tennant will provide.

How I heard of it: more by this author (more accurately, narrator)

NONFICTION

The Red Leather Diary: Reclaiming A Life Through The Pages Of A Lost Journal - Lily Koppel. 2008. I'm kind of obsessed with the concept of historical 5-year diaries -- and finding one like this is The Dream.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

I'd Rather Be Reading: The Delights and Dilemmas of the Reading Life - Anne Bogel. 2018. Attractive and compact book about the pleasures of being a reader? A headspace I want to be in.

How I heard of it: library

100 Best Books for Children - Anita Silvey. 2004. I'm big on looking at lists of books for children this year. These are the kind of books I know, love, and want to hear people talk about, now that I know books about these books exist.

How I heard of it: library

The Coming of Saska - Doreen Tovey Originally bought because it was cheap and featured animals, I needed a non-library book to bring on vacation, and this one is a durable ex-library copy in plastic wrap that featured a similar setting to where I was going, so: thematic.

Cats in the Belfry - Doreen Tovey. 1957. Wanted more of her books, and lo and behold the library had the first one.

How I heard of it: more by this author

Sorry Not Sorry - Naya Rivera. 2016. I'll read anything the Glee kids write, and this doubled as an easy number for the Mount TBR challenge.

How I heard of it: entertainment news websites

Living Large in Our Little House - Kerri Fivecoat-Campbell. 2016. I love tiny houses. And this one specifically mentioned living with dogs. And had color photographs.

How I heard of it: used bookstore

I'm Your Biggest Fan: Awkward Encounters and Assorted Misadventures in Celebrity Journalism. - Kate Coyne. 2016. Found cheap at a library sale -- loved the chapter headings and the fact that they were all about celebrities I knew.

Adrift - Tami Oldham Ashcraft w/ Suesea McGearheart. 1998/2018 edition. The movie was so awesome that I couldn't wait for more details about the real story in her own words.

I'll Be Gone In The Dark [NF] - Michelle McNamara. 2018. Been reading a lot of true crime write-ups on Reddit lately; decided it was time to pick up this well-received one.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

Dear Evan Hansen: Waving Through A Window - Steven Levenson. 2017. Much like The Grimmerie for Wicked, once I fell in love with the DEH soundtrack and looked up the plot summary, I wanted to read the musical's detailed background/behind the scenes story + libretto before I watched it.

How I heard of it: Wikipedia

Empty Mansions: The Mysterious Life of Huguette Clark and the Spending of a Great American Fortune - Bill Dedman & Paul Clark Newell. 2013. Love me a story about a mansion (or three). Or the reclusive and insanely wealth heiress who owns them, that works too.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

JUVENILE NONFICTION Mascots: Military Mascots from Ancient Egypt to Modern Korea - Fairfax Downey. 1954. Animal book from an author I like; read now to see if I could get rid of it (yes).

How I heard of it: secondhand bookstore

Come on, Seabiscuit - Ralph Moody. 1963. Bought because vintage kids' horse book; read now to see if I could get rid of it (and to count it towards my Mount TBR challenge 'cause it was short).

How I heard of it: secondhand bookstore

#why i read

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