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sanjisprincesswifey · 5 months

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Happy Holidays!! ❤️💚 Can I get Law, Ace, or Kid for Secret Santa and a female reader? I LOVE your Law content btw 😌

happy holidays to you! thank you so much for enjoying my content :)

you’ve received law + christmas lover x grinch character

❆ : plotless, law is geeked over you<3 female reader, 800+ words.

the rounds of repetitious holiday songs echo off the wall, truly the cherry on top of what was the most obnoxious alliance ever. no matter how far law had tried to hide, the sound followed him so he settled for resting in the crow’s nest.

he thought luffy was a nuisance on the regular, but while he was pumped full of christmas cookies and eggnog? it was a migraine waiting to happen. the strong, overbearing scent of pine and cedar from the newly added christmas tree certainly did him no favors in alleviating his pain.

it’s not that law hated christmas, he just…could do without all the joy sometimes.

his two fingers rub his temples in a circular motion, eyes following the migraine in question bouncing around, carelessly throwing glass ornaments on the tree.

someone then catches his eye, your adorable smile drawing all the attention away from luffy.

he watches franky lift you up, placing the star on top of the tree though if he was being honest, your beauty is far more radiant than any star they could’ve picked.

law drops his smile as soon as he realizes what he was doing. this was the fourth time this week he caught himself staring at you, talking to you more than he probably talked to his own crew, or thinking about you so much he swore his head would explode.

he didn’t realize forming an alliance meant enduring the biggest distraction he had ever met. especially not one so pretty…or smart…or funny…

a ring from his miniature transponder snail breaks his train of thought, a visible red tint flushing his cheeks. the embarrassment that overwhelms his body is painful even in his own company.

“watcha doing up there?” your silky sweet voice calls from the other end. he curses himself for how quickly the smile reappears across his lips, too busy feeling his swooning heartbeat to be embarrassed any longer.

this playful banter had ensued the minute he joined the sunny, and though he hoped it to be a subtle requiting of his affection, law decided to opt for sanity.

she’s flirty with everyone, her and the cook act the same way, and related excuses brushed away the ridiculous idea of reciprocated feelings.

“loosing my mind,” he jokes, thanking himself for his occasional sense of humor when he sees the corner of your lips perk up.

law can hear your laugh in his head, the sweet sound traveling like the melody of his favorite song. his lip nearly bleeds biting back a smile that would hurt the apples of his cheeks.

“i miss you,” you admit.

if the droop of his jaw and widening of his eyes weren’t any indicator of his surprise, when he mutters a “really?” that had to have given him away.

“of course i do, now come down here.”

his eyes roll to the back of his head as response, masking the tug at his heartstrings knowing you longed for him to join you.

by the indicator in your tone, it was clear that you were not asking; it was a demand, and law never took demands. but as your arms drag across your chest, bottom lip puffing out as dramatically as you could, he finds his mind near empty as he pathetically stands from his seat and makes his descent.

a sparkling grin is plastered on your face the minute he steps onto the lawn of the sunny and it takes everything in him not to return the gesture, and act annoyed like he would had it been anyone else.

“here’s this.”

grabbing his arm, you place a bright red santa hat in his hand. he stares at the festive headpiece with knitted eyebrows, avoiding his original instinct to decline the offer.

“you wear it,” you clarify after a couple seconds of silence.

law examines the item with hesitance, though everyone was decorated with similarly, flashy attire, this seemed a bit unbecoming of him.

“it’s easy,” you pander, removing the white mushroom on his head and replacing it with your gift. “see! you look so—“

“hey, traffy! getting into the holiday spirit, huh?” luffy laughs, gaining everyone’s attention along with him.

as the rest of the crew joins in both complimenting and teasing their friend, law can’t help but fixate on the fact that your hand is still holding onto him. your fingers are snuggly gripping onto his left bicep, while you managed to link your arms together.

the lump in his throat feels so heavy, he can’t even reprimand all the playful banter he would normally hate recieving.

your free hand goes up to cup his goatee covered chin, giving him no option other than to face you.

when law turns to you, eyes so soft and half-lidded, he swore he could’ve kissed you. he didn’t care that all these people were here and would observe him adhere to such juvenile tendencies of romance.

“don’t mind them, you look really cute,” you affirm, eyes delicately flicking between his own and his lips.

now he knows there was no way he could’ve misread that.

all it took was simply joining you in your crew’s festivities and you were already all over him? if that’s all it took, law could easily fall in love with this holiday.

likes, reblogs, and comments are always appreciated! (✿◠‿◠)

#trafalgar law #trafalgar law x reader #law x reader #one piece #one piece x reader

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witch-and-her-witcher · 5 months

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neris | T | slice of life, angst, winter solstice | ao3

The path was a little bumpy and a little elf had to pick up your gifts along the way to deliver, @kix-j! I wasn't your original secret santa, but I'm so excited to share this fic with you for @acotargiftexchange! Also, please enjoy the mood board and playlist to accompany these baddies being a bit sad together.

It goes without saying, but thank you @wilde-knight for the read through and @iftheshoef1tz for the supportive discussion! <3

~*~

Mist creates a watery haze outside the open windows.

The window panes are dotted with rain and condensation from the warmth of the fire meeting the chill of the December air, creating a spectacle of colors reflectant — evergreen and brown from the pines along the cliff’s edge, the vast gray-blue of the churning ocean, as well as the warm ember yellows, oranges and reds from twinkling string fae lights along the mantle, the roaring fire.

The air is just as crisp to inhale with the snap of humidity, the underlying brine of the ocean.

The eastern coast of Autumn.

Eris has promised to bring Nesta, and finally they’ve found the time to secret away to the cliffside retreat.

It’s more soothing than she ever could have recreated in her mind, even with Eris’s vivid depictions of times past. Now that Nesta is here, enveloped in the oceanside and forest, embraced by nature’s harmonized production of chaos and stillness, she can’t imagine spending time anywhere else.

You belong, the raindrops pattering on glass and cedar say.

You are safe, the warmth of the soundless fire caresses against her skin.

You are seen, the crashing waves call to her.

Home, Eris’s hands wrapped in hers promise.

Rubbing circles absently, Eris seems hardly aware of the contact as he stares out the open windows and takes in the same scenery. Music plays in the background, heavier in low brass instruments as he claims is more appropriate for Winter Solstice than her favorite piano pieces.

He isn’t wrong. The rich melody is warm and cozy like sitting cuddled up amongst the cushions and woven blankets on the couch with a partner and a warm drink. Free and easy like the temporary reprieve from everyday tasks and responsibilities.

Not that Nesta will admit it to him.

Directing her gaze to his face rather than the scenery, she wonders if her eyes reflect the ocean colors in compliment the same way the fire dances like it belongs in his amber stare.

“Still want me to close the window?”

Eris blinks down at her, as if he’s been startled awake. “No, it’s fine,” he says, voice gruff from the stretch of time they haven’t spoken a word. Entranced in a wholly fae way, a thrall Nesta never could have maintained as a mortal staring out of an open window — even to a view as picturesque as this one.

“Will you admit I was right, then?”

“Foundationally, it still makes no sense. It’s a waste of energy to keep the room warm with the windows letting in the chill.”

“Don’t want to take the excuse to use body heat to compensate?”

Eris’s lips curl into his devilish smile. “Was that your plan, Archeron? Not well thought through, there is fire coursing through my blood.”

“You’re so conceited,” Nesta says, studying her nail beds. It’s too difficult to maintain a petulant tone when she’s busy getting lost in his pleasing features. “I was only trying to make up for your own lack of imagination, provide you with the material to make a move.”

Eris sips from the ceramic mug with his mulled wine, the soft breath from his nose wafting the spicy, holiday scent towards Nesta. He squeezes her hand in his.

He doesn’t answer because they both know she’s full of shit. Eris’s thoughts are made of nothing but moves. Maneuver after maneuver to shape the world to his will. To predetermine the outcome to his benefit. It’s why she’s sitting here now, a grand proclamation and then minute movements to shape the possibility of this reality.

Which means, Nesta is to his benefit.

She thought at first just politically, maybe even to spite her brother-in-law, but now …

It’s all of that, but more. The benefit is the way he looks at her now, the tension eased from his features and the gears whirring only at half speed behind that calculating gaze.

Unable to resist any longer, she lifts her fingertips to his jawline. Traces the freckles that dot along the sharp shape of him.

“What thoughts were you so engrossed in?” she asks as he tilts his chin up, giving her better access to follow the constellations down his neck.

“Truthfully?” His voice vibrates under her touch and Nesta smiles, pleased with his display of trust. Lady Death has her grip on his throat, and her Autumn prince can care less. “I wasn’t thinking of much beyond the waves.”

“That’s rare.”

“It is. I can’t remember the last person I could sit with and have my mind drift so easily and not worry about where the proverbial knife in my back could come from.”

Nesta’s hand dips down along his thickly knitted, creme sweater, down to his waist where she knows he keeps a knife tucked away. “I could make this more exciting for you if you would like. Unfortunately, my attacks are much more straightforward. Nothing beyond a block or counter strike to plan against.”

He shivers unbidden as her fingertips caress the skin just above the dagger’s hilt.

“Don’t be humble, it doesn’t suit you,” Eris says. Nesta scrunches her nose in response.

“Where’s the air left in the room for me to blow smoke? You took it all.”

“Tch.”

Eris leans his head back on the sofa, pulling Nesta flush to his sculpted chest, easy to feel even under the thick material of his sweater. She settles back comfortably. Eris winds his arms around her middle and Nesta tucks her toes under his calves for warmth.

“Nap and then walk.”

Nesta hums in agreement, lashes already fluttering shut.

“Watch out —”

Nesta shrieks as she nearly loses her footing on the slick leaves coating the narrow trail darting between pines and mostly bare deciduous trees — the culprits for the slip hazard. Strong hands yank her back before she can teeter off the trail etched into the cliffside or stumble onto her hands and knees.

“You’re very bad at this,” Eris chides, not releasing her hand once Nesta is firmly on her feet again.

She doesn’t mind the anchor between them. Eris is always warm and it carries through their joint touch.

“Where I trained, there were more arrogant males kidnapping me and leaving me for dead … and less wet leaves. I’ll correct that error in the future.”

“You’ll do no such thing.”

“Oh?”

“No more training.”

“Oh. Right.”

Nesta stares out at the rocky beach coming closer with each tenuous footfall. She’s careful how and where she sets her brown leather boot, trying to use those instinctual fae senses in the way Eris has tried to teach her. To feel out the shape of the land beneath her, listen for the way it wants to be tread on.

You sound so old when you talk that way, she teased, and then added, Oh, wait —

He’d cut her off by scooping her off her bare feet, curling her legs around him while he pressed her back into the bark of an oak tree. Shown her that despite his centuries of knowledge gained, other parts didn’t shy away from a young male’s work. Like putting his back into it.

Those scrapes from the tree bark in her back had been the most delicious pain to tend to the following evening.

When she’d finally joined him in Autumn, he’d sworn off mandatory training, but it didn’t mean there weren’t lessons. They simply aimed to familiarize herself with her body, mind, grounding her as a fae rather than honing her as a weapon.

Nesta looks out at the blacks and grays of the stony beach and black, silty sand mixed amongst it all. Listens to the way the rocks roll back and forth over each other as the tide pulls them to and fro. Searches for a bridge to what was and what is.

No more training.

There’s still the occasional jolt of anxiety that she should be making herself useful, needing to seek her sense of belonging in the training arena — and then reminding herself that isn’t how she needs to go about it. Was never really about her, while it had helped, it had been someone else’s form of self worth projected onto her.

It’s been months and Eris still has to remind her she doesn’t have to fight to master herself, to prove anything.

Occasionally she misses the strength, the power, at the tips of her fingers and toes, her blade’s end. The lethal beauty of it all. The control of it all.

But mostly she feels relief.

She rubs her chest absently.

“Stop thinking about it.”

She huffs. “Right.”

“I’m serious.”

“I’m sure you are,” Nesta tuts, casting a look over her shoulder. Eris’s hair is tousled handsomely from the wind and his gaze cuts straight through her. “And should I stop thinking about it tonight, when we’re in my sister’s home to celebrate her birthday and Solstice?”

“Preferably,” Eris says. “Gives them less control over you. Worry about nothing but how good-looking the male on your arm is.”

“Gods. Are we really going to go together?”

“They’ll find out eventually.”

“It feels suicidal.”

They’ve completed their descent to the beach. Nesta follows Eris’s lead, picking along the ground to find a few good stones to begin chucking into the sea foam and waves. They face the ocean, comfortable in the sound of breaking waves against the jutting cliffside some leagues away and nothing more for a stretch of time.

“Maybe we don’t go.”

Nesta raises a brow. “Really? You’d give up the drama of such a grand reveal?”

“Under the right circumstances, I could be convinced. Although, it would be such a loss. To miss Rhysand’s face when he realizes where you’ve been hiding. A good reminder I can keep a secret from him if I want to.”

The male satisfaction of it all is clear on his face. Nesta herself wouldn’t mind sticking it to Rhys. But … She’s not sure she’s ready to face her sisters yet. The sting of betrayal is still raw.

And as for her mate.

Nesta worries at her bottom lip.

“Hey.” Eris turns, cups her chin and places his thumb on her lip to quit her worrying. “It will keep. I can still get my dramatic reveal without ruining our getaway. Your family will just have to learn you’ve been sleeping with the enemy another time.”

“You enjoy this too much.”

“I’m five hundred years old, dear. These moments don’t come about every century, especially with the likes of Rhysand. He keeps his cards close to his chest.” Amber blazes with the heat of too many centuries of history Nesta can’t begin to grasp. “I can enjoy your company deeply for the magnificent creature you are while dually indulging in a sense of victory. I’m allowed the occasional bout of pettiness.”

“Once a century.”

“If that. Realistically, every other.”

“Gods, you’re old.”

The insult bleeds through the sentiment she knows he’s trying to get across on reflex.

She stares up at him, searching for sincerity or that cunning flicker of a tell. Looking down at her along the blade of his nose, Eris keeps his expression open, confident, certain. Unperturbed even by her knee-jerk reactions. Youth, he’d told her another time when her mouth had run away from her.

It’s almost too much. Nesta wants to look away, to not have to face how sure he is in all of this. When she still searches for cracks in all that he’s laid out for her, in all that they’ve already laid bare for the other. She wants to hide away the vulnerabilities this male sees — sees and accepts. But the hand on her chin doesn’t allow her too.

She closes her eyes and exhales through parted lips. Tries to calm her frantically beating heart.

When did that start?

“What?”

“Nothing.”

It’s Eris’s turn to huff, but he doesn’t press. Instead, he tucks her close into the space against his chest where he can set his chin on her head, wrap his arms around her, and she doesn’t have to bare it all straight to his face. Nesta curls into him, relishing how easily they slot against one another, in the easy passing of understanding.

They’re both difficult people, but they’re difficult for a reason.

A strong wave crashes and sprays them, but it only joins the mist hanging in the air. The moisture is curling the ends of Eris’s hair and Nesta is sure her hair is frizzy from it, but she doesn’t particularly care.

“I like it here,” she says into his sweater.

“Me too.”

“It’ll still be here even if we go for an hour.”

“It won’t be an hour, you know that.”

After the initial shock, they’ll want to get them drunk to ply for answers. Rhys loves any excuse to tear through his wine cellar and Nesta’s reappearance with Eris Vanserra, in a romantic relationship no less, will free every cork he swears has cost him a small fortune a piece. The schmoozy interrogation, the looks of dismay her sisters will give her and the guilt Nesta will feel as soon as Feyre brings up the baby …

“Does it make me weak? To not want to face them yet?”

Eris hums, the sound rumbling in his chest against her. It inexplicably comforts Nesta to her core. Knowing that when Eris considers matters, it's not lightly or to sugarcoat her feelings, but with careful judgment, weighing facts. That’s why Nesta is prepared to ask questions she only wants to hear a real answer to.

“Weakness would be bending to anyone other than yourself. They don’t control you, Rhysand isn’t your High Lord any longer. They’re just family and being uninterested in their particular brand of overbearing, backstabbing, and tongue-in-cheek pleasantries isn’t weak. It’s strategic.”

“Is this from personal experience?”

“You see where we are for Winter Solstice. If I had to breathe the same air as my brothers for another minute longer, I’d likely stab one of them.”

They could use a stabbing, any one of them. But Nesta can read between the lines that any boiling over emotions wouldn’t be useful now. Eris has bigger plans and he needs his brothers aligned and on his side, annoying and horrible as they are.

Nesta pulls away from him. “Ready to walk back?”

Eris nods. He gestures for her to go first. Nesta grins knowingly, turns with a swish of her hips. If she asks, he’ll say it’s to ensure she doesn’t fall off of the cliffside — but the simmering heat in his gaze as he watches her backside will say otherwise.

“I can think of better ways to stay entertained this evening besides sitting around a stuffy Night or Autumn Court party.”

A shower and dinner pass pleasantly.

Nesta feels warmed through as they sink back into the sofa with books perched on either side, feet kicked out on the plush ottomans. Between the food, the wine, and the fire, it’s nearly too much to add touching Eris as well. There’s a healthy flush to his high cheekbones, up to the tip of his ears, that she’s sure is reflected on her own features.

“Well?” Eris conjures the bundle of Solstice gifts Nesta had painstakingly shopped for and wrapped leading up to today. “Are we arriving late to exchange gifts?”

By now, it’s surely been thoroughly discussed over dinner how Nesta has returned to her flaky habits. Not bothering to arrive with the plus one marked on her note of untraceable origins.

Nesta’s full stomach curdles at the thought of all of those harsh, judgemental eyes on her once again. Exhaustion runs through her to consider the amount of energy needed to combat that level of criticism, spoken or not — shared in the open, or mind to mind.

Leaning forward, Nesta snatches the bottle of dessert wine the northwestern province of Autumn is known for. The grapes there reach the perfect frost several times a year due to proximity to Winter and the vignerons work like fiends to harvest and press the delicacy.

She pops off the cork.

“We’re staying, get rid of the other gifts however you want.”

She tosses back a swallow of the sweet alcohol straight from the bottle. Eris lifts his hand to flick the remaining bundles to another pocket realm, to some charity organization’s front stoop, she doesn’t know —

She launches forward to grab the simple, brown paper wrapped box with the loudest bow on the top before the parcel can disappear with the others.

“Except …” She considers the present, the recipient who will neither care nor know who the giver is. Sweet, innocent baby Nyx. “Send this one to the River House.”

It’s gone in a puff of ozone and charred oak. The scent of Eris’s magic lingers, but his attention span for the issue dissipates just as quickly as the gifts themselves.

“Feel better?” he asks, lacking any emotion outside of cool interest as he assesses her.

Nesta takes one more guzzle of the wine for effect and then sets it aside. “Yes.”

“Good,” Eris says, turning to face Nesta. “Because you mentioned something about better ways to spend the evening.” He places a hand on either side of her head while stretching his impossibly long body over hers, hovering just without touching aside from where his knees straddle her, pulling down the cushions beneath them. “Yet all you’ve done is tease.”

“Tease? Me?” Nesta says into the space they share breath, Eris’s lips painfully close. Her nerves tingle with the desire to touch, to press her mouth against his. To swipe her tongue inside of that now familiar warmth and forget all about troubles in her mind that preside in the far north of Prythian.

“You,” Eris confirms in a low growl. He doesn’t wait any longer, angling down to slot their lips together and stealing the breath from her.

Nesta’s toes curl in her thick socks.

Eris kisses her with scorching desire. Licking the lingering taste of the dessert wine from her mouth and luxuriating in the soft sighs he pulls from her. Nesta bunches her hands in his sweater at his sides and tugs him closer.

“I can’t let my reputation suffer then,” she says against his lips, lashes parted enough to see the lust heating Eris through if his hot skin weren’t enough to give away his flush. “Let me see to that.”

Eris smiles devilishly. “Show me your worst, Archeron.”

Her stomach coils low with arousal and Eris rumbles against her with satisfaction as the scent of just what he’s doing to her curls around them.

Wrapping her legs around his waist, Nesta pulls Eris down to meet the rest of her body craving to feel his comforting weight. As if by osmosis she may gain some of his unfaltering confidence. It’s a fool's errand, by all accounts. To try and master in a few months what it's taken him to gain over centuries.

But as Eris deepens the kiss and shifts his hips along hers, his own interest heady in the air, Nesta thinks the effort will have a benefit either way.

#neris #nesta x eris #nesta archeron #eris vanserra #acotar winter gift exchange 2023 #acotar #acotar fanfic #my writing

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pazthegreathornedone · 1 year

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Drew this as a Secret Santa Gift for a friend in our DnD group! Their Bard/Fighter Dhampir, Cane, is a wrestler in a standoff with my Barbarian Fairy Cedar. Thought it would be funny to reference a scene from one of Rhea Ripley's Wrestling matches.

Art by: Me

#dnd #dnd art #dnd character #dnd5e #dnd ocs #dungeons and drawings #dungeons and dragons #dnd fairy #dnd dhampir #dnd bard #dnd fighter #dnd barbarian #digital artist #digital art #digital drawing #digital painting #artists on tumblr #rhea ripley #wrestling

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janeblr · 2 years

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some more on my beloved lu:

-has one of those adorable stifled kitten sneezes 🥺🥺 the rest of the nordix mock him relentlessly for it

-except for skiing, a very indoorsy person. would much rather be on his sofa reading his book with a cup of coffee than outside.

-takes his coffee black! he used to put cream in it but one time he forgot to sniff the creamer and it came out in a chunk and traumatized him ;-;

-as I’ve said, killer sweet tooth, but his favorite sweet thing isn’t some traditional dessert or anything it’s just fuckin Oreos. Man can plow through a sleeve of Oreos like nothing

-worlds largest ugly sweater collection. Wears NOTHING but jeans and baggy sweaters, and ofc a suit and tie at meetings. if it’s hot out he just forgoes the sweater and wears an undershirt. favorite sweater is a matching “I’m he’s” one he has with Matthias’ “he’s i’s”

-his hair is naturally wavy/curly! he straightens it but can’t get the short pieces around his neckline so it’s still curly there. is cute.

-always smells kind of like cedar and moss. a very natural, fresh smell, like the forest in winter.

-known for his RBF in public but is VERY expressive at home. very smiley and lovey but still with a very wry sense of humor. Matthias’ favorite thing is this little wiggly thing lu does when he drapes a warm blanket over him uwu.

-I’ve posted about this before but his love language is touch!!!! loves to have just. Full body contact with whoever he’s with. Sleeps directly on top of Matthias, loves to cuddle up with Timo on movie nights(he is comfy after all), bothers the hell out of eirí by just picking him up and holding him at random.

-loves to be picked up himself, very fond of pretending to fall asleep in the living room/kitchen/car so Matt will pick him up and bring him to bed. Was worried when he gained weight that Matt wouldn’t be able to carry him any more but Matt was like “lulu. my love. my sun and stars. i’m the semi-immortal human manifestation of the kingdom of denmark. I can pick you up.”

-can’t sing at all but he can play the violin very well! he has very long, slender fingers so he’s perfect for it.

-the cross hair clip is only one of many little clips to keep his bangs back! a few other favorites include one with a seashell, one with silver leaves, and an absolutely garish bright pink heart hairclip he got from poland during the 2005 secret santa.

-trashy drunk. as soon as he has a few drinks in him, the pants come off and the karaoke machine turns on.

#mypost #japh

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brookstonalmanac · 7 months

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Events 10.26 (after 1940)

1942 – World War II: In the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands during the Guadalcanal Campaign, one U.S. aircraft carrier is sunk and another carrier is heavily damaged, while two Japanese carriers and one cruiser are heavily damaged. 1944 – World War II: The Battle of Leyte Gulf ends with an overwhelming American victory. 1947 – Partition of India: The Maharaja of Kashmir and Jammu signs the Instrument of Accession with India, beginning the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947–1948 and the Kashmir conflict. 1955 – After the last Allied troops have left the country, and following the provisions of the Austrian Independence Treaty, Austria declares that it will never join a military alliance. 1955 – Ngô Đình Diệm proclaims himself as President of the newly created Republic of Vietnam. 1956 – Hungarian Revolution: In the towns of Mosonmagyaróvár and Esztergom, Hungarian secret police forces massacre civilians. As rebel strongholds in Budapest hold, fighting spreads throughout the country. 1958 – Pan American Airways makes the first commercial flight of the Boeing 707 from New York City to Paris. 1967 – Mohammad Reza Pahlavi crowns himself Emperor of Iran. 1968 – Space Race: The Soyuz 3 mission achieves the first Soviet space rendezvous. 1977 – Ali Maow Maalin, the last natural case of smallpox, develops a rash in Somalia. The World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention consider this date to be the anniversary of the eradication of smallpox, the most spectacular success of vaccination. 1979 – Park Chung Hee, President of South Korea, is assassinated by Korean CIA head Kim Jae-gyu. 1985 – The Australian government returns ownership of Uluru to the local Pitjantjatjara Aboriginals. 1989 – China Airlines Flight 204 crashes after takeoff from Hualien Airport in Taiwan, killing all 54 people on board. 1991 – Three months after the end of the Ten-Day War, the last soldier of the Yugoslav People's Army leaves the territory of the Republic of Slovenia. 1994 – Jordan and Israel sign a peace treaty. 1995 – Mossad agents assassinate Palestinian Islamic Jihad leader Fathi Shaqaqi in his hotel in Malta. 1995 – An avalanche hits the Icelandic village of Flateyri, destroying 29 homes and burying 45 people, and killing 20. 1999 – The United Kingdom's House of Lords votes to end the right of most hereditary peers to vote in Britain's upper chamber of Parliament. 2000 – A wave of protests forces Robert Guéï to step down as president after the Ivorian presidential election. 2001 – The United States passes the USA PATRIOT Act into law. 2002 – Approximately 50 Chechen terrorists and 150 hostages die when Russian special forces troops storm a theater building in Moscow, which had been occupied by the terrorists during a musical performance three days before. 2003 – The Cedar Fire, the third-largest wildfire in California history, kills 15 people, consumes 250,000 acres (1,000 km2), and destroys 2,200 homes around San Diego. 2004 – Rockstar Games releases Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas for the PlayStation 2 in North America, which sold 12 million units for the PS2, becoming the console's best-selling video game. 2012 – Microsoft made a public release of Windows 8 and made available it on new PCs. 2015 – A 7.5 magnitude earthquake strikes in the Hindu Kush mountain range in South Asia, killing 399 people and leaving 2,536 people injured. 2017 – At a level crossing of the Hanko–Hyvinkää railway line, a passenger train collides with an off-road truck of the Nyland Brigade in Raseborg, Finland; four people die and 11 are injured.

#Events

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sciencespies · 1 year

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Ancient Egyptians used exotic oils from distant lands to make mummies

https://sciencespies.com/humans/ancient-egyptians-used-exotic-oils-from-distant-lands-to-make-mummies/

Ancient Egyptians used exotic oils from distant lands to make mummies

A workshop used for mummification at Saqqara in Egypt contains remnants of the substances used to make mummies, revealing many came from southern Africa or South-East Asia

Humans 1 February 2023

By Michael Marshall

Illustration of the underground embalming workshop in Saqqara in ancient Egypt

Nikola Nevenov

An underground workshop found at an ancient Egyptian burial site contains ceramic vessels with traces of the substances used to make mummies. They include resins obtained from as far away as India and South-East Asia, indicating that ancient Egyptians engaged in long-distance trade.

“We could identify a large diversity of substances which were used by the embalmers,” says Maxime Rageot at the University of Tübingen in Germany. “Few of them were locally available.”

The workshop, dating from around 600 BC, was discovered in 2016 at Saqqara, which was the burial ground of Egyptian royalty and elites for centuries. “It was used as an elite cemetery from the very earliest moment of the Egyptian state,” says Elaine Sullivan at the University of California, Santa Cruz, who wasn’t involved in the study.

Close to the pyramid of Unas, archaeologists led by Ramadan Hussein, also at the University of Tübingen, found two vertical shafts dug into the ground. One was 13 metres deep and led to the embalming workshop, while the other was 30 metres deep and led to burial chambers. Hussein died in 2022.

It is the first Egyptian embalming workshop to be found underground, says team member Susanne Beck at the University of Tübingen. This may have been to keep the process secret, but it also had the advantage of keeping decaying bodies cool.

In the workshop, the team found 121 beakers and bowls. Many were labelled: sometimes with instructions like “to put on his head”, sometimes with names of embalming substances and sometimes with administrator titles.

Vessels from the embalming workshop

The researchers chose the nine beakers and 22 bowls with the most legible labels for analysis. They studied the chemical residues left in the bowls to find out what substances had been used during embalming and mummification.

A host of substances, including plant oils, tars, resins and animal fats, were discovered. Two examples were cedar oil and heated beeswax. Many of the substances were known to be used in mummification, but some were new.

One new substance was dammar, a gum-like resin obtained from trees in India and South-East Asia. The name “dammar” is a Malay word.

The team also found elemi: a pale yellow resin resembling honey that comes from trees in the rainforests of South Asia and southern Africa.

The dammar and elemi show that Egyptian embalming drove early globalisation, says Philipp Stockhammer at Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich, Germany, another member of the team. “You really needed to transport these resins over large distances.” It fits with other evidence of long-distance trade at the time.

The ancient Egyptian elite liked exotic goods as much as modern capitalists, says Sullivan. At times when the state was powerful and organised, “we see a great interest in the outside world and in connections to the outside world and bringing those things from the outside world together”.

Stockhammer and Sullivan both say that the substances were transported by chains of traders. “The Egyptians don’t have to be going to the eastern side of India themselves,” says Sullivan.

The researchers were also able to translate two new words. Many texts on mummification refer to antiu and sefet. The former had been tentatively translated as “myrrh” or “incense”, and the latter as “a sacred oil”. However, because they were written on pieces of pottery with residue inside, it was possible to identify them. It turns out antiu is a mixture of oils or tars from conifers. Meanwhile, sefet is an unguent – an ointment or lubricant – containing plant additives.

Many of the substances had antibacterial and antifungal properties, and were combined into elaborate mixtures. For Stockhammer, the complexity of the substances displays “enormous personal knowledge that was accumulated through these centuries of experience of embalming human individuals”.

That fits with textual evidence that priests tasked with embalming were important people with considerable skill, says Sullivan. “They would have needed to have a lot of ritual knowledge and a lot of material knowledge,” she says. The body had to be preserved physically and rites had to be performed correctly according to the Egyptian religion. It was “both a spiritual and physical practice”.

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stephsyearinreview · 1 year

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Steph’s Year in Review – 2022 Edition

2022 was a year of celebration and it was a hoot! It felt like our first “real” year of retirement as in 2021 Craig was so involved with closing his parents’ estate. The freedom this gave us, combined with celebrating my 60th birthday all year long, had me/us seeing many friends and family around the country/world

I started the year in the Tucson area for pickleball with Joan Hanson, Dave Brown, Johnny Stutsman, and Heidi Thorsen (SEA pickleball peeps) and a visit with Marilyn Byrne (MSFT friend). In February, Craig and I took a quick ski trip to Sun River/Mt Bachelor as a trial run for our road trip “ski safari”. The three-week safari took us through Idaho, where we visited with Bob and Ann Arnold (MSFT friends) and down to Salt Lake City (SLC). In UT, we had great fun skiing Snowbird, Alta, Deer Valley, and Solitude. We also had dinner with Colleen Daly (MSFT friend). After SLC, we went over to Steamboat Springs where we visited with Brandon and Scott Jones (cousins). Guy Michaelsen (SEA neighbor) joined us in Steamboat and we had fun hanging with him. Driving home from CO, we stopped in Jackson Hole for some snow mobiling, and Montana for one last ski mountain, Big Sky. I was wondering if I’d get tired of all that skiing and I never did!

April 11th marked my 60th birthday and my pickleball peeps helped me celebrate, at the local SEA bowling alley, which was a blast. Craig surprised me with a 10-day trip to Palm Springs to mark the official milestone. While there, I was doubly surprised when Jan and Gray Crary (Univ of CO friends) showed up from LA to help celebrate. In addition, Heather Pollock (childhood friend), came over from Santa Monica for a visit.

In early May, my girlfriend Susan Landahl (MSFT friend) and I went to Phoenix for a long weekend. And in mid-May, Peggy O’Connor (Univ of CO friend) and Suzanne Coupe (Pat Kirkland Leadership friend) met me in Tulsa for a weekend of reading and girl-time. Unfortunately, when I got home, I came down with Covid. While Craig got it from me, miraculously neither Peggy nor Suzanne did!

At the end of June, Craig and I headed to the Midwest. The ultimate impetus was a joint birthday party in Bloomington, IN. My sister, Jan, turned 80 in September and I turned 60 in April so we had a joint birthday party over the 4th of July weekend. It was fun to see the whole fam damnly (as well as Bea Travis, Ellen Campbell, and Gary Hafner & Jane Clay - all old friends from Bloomington). Leading up to the visit to my hometown, Craig and I spent some time in Cleveland checking out the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and going to the water park at Cedar Point. While in Cleveland we saw my Portland friend, Cathy Wilcox. On this Midwest junket, we also went to Detroit where we toured the Ford museum and did some fun bike riding. We also had a lovely dinner with my Booking.com friend, Amy Accetura.

It was great spending the majority of the summer in the Seattle area. Craig talked about a perfect week including hiking, biking, and stand up paddleboarding and we had several of those trifecta weeks!

In September, Craig and I headed to the desert and did some great site seeing & hiking in Antelope Canyon, Horseshoe Bend, and Zion before ending up in Vegas. In sin city, we met up with my niece, Melanie Schwandt, and “the Scots” Jules and Dougal. The five of us headed for Lees Ferry and took an amazing two-week rafting trip the Colorado.

In late September, Craig and I took what Craig called Secret Squirrel “The Fall Tour” (the second part of my surprise birthday trip/celebration). We went down to the WA/OR border and slept in a tree house (!) for three nights before heading to the beach and spending three more at Cannon Beach.

In October, we headed to North Carolina for my niece, Clare Cady’s wedding to Austin Tepsic. After our time in Raleigh, we did some exploring of the Outer Banks and the Southern Banks. When we got home, I was so excited to be home for two whole months. Who would think I’d get a bit burnt out on traveling.

On November 16th, I had a small accident with my 2017 Fusion Hybrid. “Füshy B” as I call her has less than 30k miles on her and will be paid off Feb 9! Fortunately, no one was hurt. While technically I hit the other person, it was her fault as she pulled out in front of me. Amazing how much damage can be done to cars even going at a relatively slow speed. As of January 14th, Progressive hadn’t decided yet whether to fix it or consider it a complete loss.

In mid-December, we caught the travel bug again and were very excited to fly to Iceland and Sweden for our arctic adventure. While the crazy weather in Iceland curtailed some of our activities, the time in Sweden was perfect. I spent time with my step mother, Eva, as well as my Swedish family Margareta & Bengt, and Chatarina, Lief, and Elisabet. Christmas day, Craig and I flew up to The Ice Hotel - 200k above the Arctic Circle. We spent one night in an ice room and two nights in a warm room. Activities there included dog sledding (where we were mushers), snow mobiling, Nordic skiing, and eating lots of yummy food.

In between all these great trips, when home, I play pickleball three times a week and continue to be honored to volunteer for End of Life Washington.

As I wrap up this missive, I love the fact that this year I did so many fun things and saw so many of my friends and family in person. I love this quote from Carol Zizzo (Henley Leadership Group) in response to one of our blog posts: I imagine you on your deathbed saying "Yep, been there, did that, as I said I would, and it was fantastic!”

On that note, I’ll sign off and continue planning our 2023 adventures.

Love & Kisses - Steph

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goddessgardener · 1 year

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Night Lights

By Cynthia Brian

“The best Christmas trees come very close to exceeding nature.” ~Andy Rooney

Everyone who knows me understands that I am a nature girl. I spend as much time outdoors as possible in all weather conditions. As I meander around my property, I am always investigating the trees, pondering the possibilities for Christmas décor. When December rolls around, there is nothing that gives me more joy than admiring the twinkling lights that illuminate landscapes, glow on houses, and glimmer on Christmas trees.

My family tradition has always been to decorate every inch of the inside and outside with holiday fervor. Growing up, my dad used to joke that for extra excitement, we could watch the electric meter spinning wildly. Our ranch house and surrounding gardens were adorned with thousands of lights, Nativity scenes, sleighs, Santa, elves, reindeer, snowmen, candles, and whatever else was over-the-top festive. Because we lived on a farm in the boondocks, as kids we believed we had to light the night so that Santa would be able to find our house in the deep darkness.

Because my children have flown the coop and have their own homes, I’m not as crazy as earlier in my life with my holiday embellishments, although my extended family still goes all out. My brother’s and nephew’s houses could win awards with for creativity and innovative illumination.

Trimming a Christmas tree is an active sport. Whether we cut a tree, buy a living tree, erect a fake tree, or bedeck a houseplant, festooning our holiday bushes is as varied as our personalities. It doesn’t matter if a tree is perfect or off-kilter. What matters is the meaning of the moment and the joy it delivers during the season. Every year I adorn my aging fiddleleaf fig tree at the base of my stairwell with lights and ornaments as it has grown too large to move. In another room, the Christmas cheer is enhanced with a glistening, garlanded tree as well as freshly cut greenery with flowers from my yard. What makes all trees sparkle and shine are the twinkling lights, clear or colored.

Fresh greenery indoors creates the feeling of Christmas, especially with aromatic boughs of fir, pine, redwood, spruce, and cedar. If you have any conifers in your yard, this is a great time to trim the limbs to use to decorate your porch and patio. Holly is a traditional plant to use in garlands, wreaths, and centerpieces, however, any berry-bearing bush adds color and whimsy to arrangements. All evergreens are welcome to create long-lived wreaths and centerpieces including clippings from boxwood, bay, magnolia, and pepper trees.

In The Art of Living, Wilfred Peterson wrote that “Christmas is not in tinsel, lights, and outward show. The secret lies in an inner glow.” My feeling about the tinsel, lights, ornaments, and outward show is that these accruements provide the inner glow of joy to my world.

Delight in my photos of these beloved, bejeweled Christmas trees and bright night lights. Whatever you celebrate, I wish you seasonal sparkle, and happy health. Glow forth to savor being home for the holidays.

Cynthia Brian’s December Garden Guide

ü DECK the halls with boughs of holly, pyracantha, cotoneaster, magnolia cones, rose hips, or any other merry berry!

ü FEED the soil, not the plants. Continue adding organic materials including hay, leaves, and compost to enrich your soil over winter.

ü SAVE birds by going organic. Provide seeds, berries, and safe nesting areas. Add a few native plants to your landscape that native birds already enjoy or stop pruning roses to allow the rosehips to form and feed our flying friends.

ü TRIM low-hanging branches of redwoods, pines, firs, and other evergreens to use in wreaths, garlands, and holiday ornamentation.

ü CREATE a stunning DIY holiday table arrangement using a combination of evergreen branches, narcissi, pinecones, or other greenery from your garden.

ü PICK carrots to leave for Rudolph and bake a different kind of fruitcake with organic fruits from your garden. Apples and persimmons are fresh now, and you may have frozen or canned peaches, apricots, cherries, figs, or pears.

ü REST in winter. The holidays are a time to celebrate with family and friends. No more hoe, hoe, hoe. Take a break from garden chores. You deserve it.

ü IGNITE the night with your glimmering lights.

Happy Gardening. Happy Growing. Happy Hanukah. Merry Christmas!

Photos at https://www.lamorindaweekly.com/archive/issue1622/Digging-Deep-with-Goddess-Gardener-Cynthia-Brian-Night-lights.html

Press Pass: https://blog.voiceamerica.com/2022/12/29/lights-at-night/

Substack: https://cynthiabrian.substack.com/p/bright-lights

Raised in the vineyards of Napa County, Cynthia Brian is a New York Times best-selling author, actor, radio personality, speaker, media and writing coach as well as the Founder and Executive Director of Be the Star You Are!® 501 c3. Tune into Cynthia’s StarStyle® Radio Broadcast at www.StarStyleRadio.com. Her newest children’s picture book, No Barnyard Bullies, from the series, Stella Bella’s Barnyard Adventures is available now at www.cynthiabrian.com/online-store For an invitation to hang out with Cynthia for fun virtual events, activities, conversations, and exclusive experiences, buy StarStyle® NFTs at https://StarStyleCommunity.com Hire Cynthia for writing projects, garden consults, and inspirational lectures. [email protected]

https://www.GoddessGardener.com

#nightlightschristmastrees santaholidayscynthiabriangardengoddessgardenerstarstyle

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bethestaryouareradio · 1 year

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Night Lights

https://www.lamorindaweekly.com/archive/issue1622/Digging-Deep-with-Goddess-Gardener-Cynthia-Brian-Night-lights.html

Digging Deep with Goddess Gardener, Cynthia Brian

Night Lights

By Cynthia Brian

“The best Christmas trees come very close to exceeding nature.” ~Andy Rooney

Cynthia Brian’s December Garden Guide

ü DECK the halls with boughs of holly, pyracantha, cotoneaster, magnolia cones, rose hips, or any other merry berry!

ü FEED the soil, not the plants. Continue adding organic materials including hay, leaves, and compost to enrich your soil over winter.

ü TRIM low-hanging branches of redwoods, pines, firs, and other evergreens to use in wreaths, garlands, and holiday ornamentation.

ü CREATE a stunning DIY holiday table arrangement using a combination of evergreen branches, narcissi, pinecones, or other greenery from your garden.

ü REST in winter. The holidays are a time to celebrate with family and friends. No more hoe, hoe, hoe. Take a break from garden chores. You deserve it.

ü IGNITE the night with your glimmering lights.

Happy Gardening. Happy Growing. Happy Hanukah. Merry Christmas!

Photos at https://www.lamorindaweekly.com/archive/issue1622/Digging-Deep-with-Goddess-Gardener-Cynthia-Brian-Night-lights.html

https://www.GoddessGardener.com

#nightlightschristmastrees santaholidayscynthiabriangardengoddessgardenerstarstyle

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