#everyone is against Max in that sport yet he keeps on delivering

[forever-rogue]

Honey & Velvet - Part 10 (Finale)

A/N: Hello friends! The time has come for our little conclusion to this story. I’m so glad so many of you liked it so much, it really means the world! I hope you enjoy, and as always, feedback and comments are welcome! xx

Pairing: Maxwell Lord x Reader

Word Count: 3.9k

Warnings: fl*ff

PART 1 | PART 2 | PART 3 | PART 4 | PART 5 | PART 6 | PART 7  | PART 8 | PART 9

MASTERLIST

»»————-　♡　————-««

Black lace and velvet.

It was almost laughable as you studied your reflection in the long, golden gilded mirror. The lingerie was almost too much, even for you, who had acquired which a collection of various pretty little pieces by this point. But you'd picked these number specifically for this occasion, knowing that it would pique Max's interest. You were excited to show him later, having teased him all week about a special surprise.

Leaning against your desk, you drummed your fingers against the small stack of Polaroids. They were freshly developed and ready for delivery to the man himself. Grabbing the camera that you stored in your office for handy times such as these, you returned it to its spot in your wardrobe, locking it safely back up.

You slipped back into your chair and and pulled a manila envelope from the top drawer, reaching for the pictures. Before sliding them in and sealing it tightly, you grabbed your personal favorite and pressed a dark red lipstick print on it. You had always been a little on extra before, but now, having been with Maxwell this long, you were all about being extra. Why not? The two of matched each other and it worked well, you were happy, truly happy.

Putting everything inside, you securely sealed it, and scrawled his name in elegant, slanted writing on the front. This was going to be some surprise, one you hoped he wasn’t expecting, and one you hoped that he would enjoy. Grabbing your dress from the back of your chair, you quickly slipped it on, along with your heels before walking out of your office to find Adina.

She was reading over some reports, but stopped instantly when she saw you standing over her with a sheepish little grin on your face. She took her glasses off of her face and pinched the bridge of her nose before letting out a sigh. If you didn’t know her as well as you did, you would have easily believe she was annoyed, but luckily you knew better. Sticking the envelope directly in front of her, you leaned against her desk and as she met your eyes and rolled them dramatically.

“You know I love you, right?” you put on a sing-song voice as you leaned in front of her and offered her your sweetest, most honeyed smile, “and you’re the most amazing person ever-”

“Of course I know that,” she leaned back in her chair as she studied the envelope, “now, what do you need? As if I didn’t already know...”

“Can you please, pretty please with cherries on top, deliver this to Maxwell? ASAP?” you pouted your dark red lips at her, offering up your most innocent doe eyes, “it’s...very important.”

“I’m sure it is,” she almost snorted with laughter as she picked up the special delivery and gingerly felt it up, “is this what I think...”

“Probably so, but that is for me to know and you never to find out,” a light blush bloomed in your cheeks as you turned away for a moment, “I’ll owe you big time. I promise I will make it up to you!”

“You better,” she agreed, standing up and grabbing the envelope, tucking it securely into her purse, “making me run around and deliver this filth!”

“Thank you!” you quickly pulled her into a hug as she just laughed at you, “you’re the best. And it’s tasteful filth!

“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” she joked, a knowing little smile on her face because if you thought this was some surprise, you wouldn’t believe what was yet to come, “I’ll be back soon. Perhaps it would be a good idea for you to some actual work done?”

“If you insist,” you sighed dramatically before walking back to your office as she headed off to Max’s. You closed your door, letting out a small squeal of delight before sitting back down. You already glanced at the phone, before chastising your over-eagerness; it would have been impossible for him to already have the photos and be calling. But there was still an exciting, wicked rush tingling through your veins as you anticipated his call. 

»»————-　♡　————-««

“Mr. Lord?” a timid knock came at his door as he rolled his eyes, looking up from the papers he was skimming over, and telling them to come in. His assistant, still as timid as ever, came in with a nervous expression, clutching something tightly against her chest, “this just came for you...it was a special delivery.”

“What on earth could be considered a special enough delivery for you to interrupt me? I told you I was extremely pressed today - I have work that must be done before I leave for my vacation,” he realized how harsh he must have sounded as the young woman’s face dropped slightly and she hung her head. He cursed himself internally as dropped his pen and held his hand out, “I”m sorry, I’m just very busy. You did nothing wrong.”

She nodded in acknowledgement before giving him the envelope and heading back towards the door as he murmured a small thank you. He wasn’t perfect, far from it, just as most people were, but he was working on it, working to be more gentle and not as quick to anger. 

Grabbing his golden letter opener, he undid the seal, a grin crossing his features when he recognized your hand writing on the front. Reaching in, he pulled out the contents in a single, fluid motion, easily figuring out what it was. His breath hitched in his throat as he skimmed through the stack of photos. 

“Exquisite,” he whispered under his breath as he studied them in turn. He could quickly tell that this was a new piece that you were sporting. He bit the inside of his cheek as he tried not to completely lose it in the middle of work. But your little present was making it increasingly hard to focused and not focus on you, or barging into your office and having you every which way. He had aimed on finishing work early to come and get and surprise you with a trip. He’d personally planned out a two weekend holiday to Greece, ready to sweep you off your feet and surprise you. 

Noticing all the papers on his desk, he gave them a dismissal look before almost yanking his phone off the receiver and dialing your direct line.

You had been so focused on the reports you were pouring over that the loud ringing of the phone almost startled you out of your seat. Considering ignoring it for a moment, you gave it an annoyed glance, but when you realized that your wishes might have come true, you let out a long breath before picking it up. Trying to keep a normal, even tone, you politely answered with a soft, “hello?”

“Hello darling,” Max’s warm, rich voice immediately reached your ears and you relaxed at the sound. You wrapped the cord around your finger as you leaned back in your chair, and rested your feet on the desk. You could just picture him doing the exact same thing as you bit your lip, “I received your little...surprise. Is that little number new? It’s absolutely gorgeous.”

“Happy anniversary, my love,” you were practically grinning from ear to ear as you imagined him looking through the photos you had taken plenty of time to perfect, “I hoped you liked them. And yes, it is brand new...I saw it and thought it would be a nice treat. Wait until you see it in person, it’s all velvet and soft, but just I think you’ll like what’s underneath even better.”

“You’re going to be the death of me, you know that?” you could hear him flipping through the photos on his end as he let out an amused sigh, “they’re wonderful, I should really put them up in my office to display. Imagine how jealous everyone would be.”

“Maxwell! You wouldn’t dare!”

“Don’t worry,” he was laughing, and you just imagine the smug little look on his face, as you tried to picture someone walking in and seeing the very scandalous photos of you, “these are just for me. I’ll keep them safe and sound.”

“For your use,” you felt bold as you tapped your fingers along on the edge of your desk, “for when we can’t be together for whatever and you need to...find some release.”

“You little minx,” he sighed contently as you grinned to yourself, “happy anniversary to you, my darling. How’s work treating you today?”

“Boring,” you admitted, “terrible. It’d be so much better if you were here, and not just because I’ve been thinking about you fucking me in my office all morning. And I want to know what this little surprise is that you have planned!”

“If I told you, that would ruin the whole point of it being a surprise,” he had a point, but you didn’t want to admit it just yet, “you will see soon enough...I’ll be there to pick you up at five, just like I promised.”

“But that doesn’t tell me anything, Max,” you hoped he could sense your pout though the phone. His little surprise could literally have been anything; with Max, you never knew what to expect. While driving you slowly mad, the number of possibilities of what it could be left you feeling as excited as a child, “can I at least get a hint?”

“Hmm,” he mused thoughtfully for a moment as you were metaphorically leaning on the edge of your seat, “I don’t think I can do that...terribly sorry.”

“You don’t sound sorry at all,” you sighed dramatically, “are you really going to make me wait until this evening?”

“I’m afraid so,” there was no way he was going to budge and you knew there was no point in pushing him. He was as stubborn as a mule when he wanted to be, “I’ve got to go and finish some work, darling. But I just had to stop and thank you....you look lovely as ever. I’ll see you this evening.”

“Fine,” you reluctantly agreed, “I’ll see you this evening, Maxwell. I’ll miss you until then.”

“It’s only a few hours,” he promised, “you won’t even notice. Just be prepared.”

“Goodbye Max,” you slowly hung up the receiver, trying to figure out what his surprise could possibly be. It was going to bug and nag you until you could figure it out or knew exactly what it was. 

Little did you know that almost everyone knew what Maxwell’s plan was. Even Adina was in on it, having been roped in by Maxwell to pack your bags and have everything ready for you to leave on vacation that evening. She’d gone into your apartment when you’d been staying at Maxwell’s, utilizing her spare key and putting it to good use. You’d been so busy and wrapped up with everything that you hadn’t even noticed that anything out of place or missing from your closet. Your packed back was already with his, waiting to be used for your trip.

»»————-　♡　————-««

You took a look around your office and let out a triumphant little sound. Needless to say, you'd been busy all afternoon, keeping your hands and mind occupied for the last several hours. It just wasn't anything extremely productive...not really anyway. You hadn't finished your entire workload for the week, making the executive decision to pass some of it along to your subordinates; luckily it wasn't anything terribly complicated or time consuming, just busy work that you couldn't focus on.

Instead, you'd spent the afternoon cleaning and reorganizing your office. Everything was clean and pristine, put away and perfectly organized. You'd held out hope that Max might still somehow make an appearance to surprise you, but he never came. You tried not to let it bug you, but there was still the little bit of disappointment that lingered.

Luckily, the close of business had come around and now all you had to do was wait for Maxwell. Perching on the corner of your desk, you swung your legs back and forth as you stared at the slowly sinking sun.

A knock sounded at your door before it was slowly opened and Maxwell poked his head inside. You slipped off of the desk and almost ran over to him, pulling inside and throwing your arms around him, "Max!"

It took a moment for him to respond, so stunned he was almost bowled over. But he returned your hug, wrapping his arms tightly around you as he crashed his lips onto yours. He kissed with such urgency and passion that you refused to pull apart from him until you were breathless.

"Hi," he gave you his best megawatt smile as he touched your cheek, which you eagerly leaned into. You were like a keening cat and he was your sun, "now I can wish you a happy anniversary in person."

"You're here," you kissed the side of his hand, "that's what matters. I've missed you."

"You saw me last night, honey..."

"I know," you confessed, tugged on his lapels and pulling him along with you closer to your desk. You'd kept it cleared off for a specific reason after all, "but I still missed you."

"I'm afraid I'm going to disappoint you," he said as you tugged on his tie to bring him back to your lips. You stopped and shook your head at him before attempting to kiss him, but he artfully dodged your advances.

"What?" you huffed at him as sighed lightly, attempting to pull further back from you, "you suddenly don't want to kiss me? You definitely weren't saying that last night or a few moments ago...”

"I do want to kiss you," he was insistent as he put his hands on the sides of your face, cradling it delicately as a thumb brushing over your cheekbone, "trust me-"

"Well, you're not certainly providing evidence to support that," you gave him your best puppy dog eyes and he did his best to try resist. You knew it was one of his weaknesses, hell every part of you was his weakness.

"Sweetheart-"

"I thought you loved me, Maxwell," you were being melodramatic and over the top, but hell, you didn't care at this point. He'd been on your mind all day and there was nothing more you wanted then him. Throughout the day you'd grown needier and needier, all sorts of wild thoughts running through your mind as you did your best not to break down and touch yourself. No, that you were saving just for Maxwell. And knowing he wasn't in the mood, or something, for whatever reason was putting a little damper on your parade, and that was putting it lightly.

Max's dark eyes were locked on you with such intensity that you almost grew nervous as you tried to decipher his thoughts. Pushing all of his buttons was going to lead to something after all; you'd done it before, plenty of times in the past, just get a rouse out of him. It worked basically every time, and it gave you both what you wanted in the end.

When he was silent for a few long moments, you swallowed the lump in your throat, almost ready to apologize for being a brat. Almost.

But before you could even think about saying anything, Maxwell crashed his lips onto yours in a searing, passionate kiss that instantly knocked the breath from your lungs as your hands found purchase on his shoulders and his much larger ones went to your waist. He didn’t even give you a moment to react, trying to assert his dominance in a mess of tongue and teeth as he kissed as hard as he could. This was exactly what you had been waiting for all day. The way his lips felt against yours, how sweet he always tasted, and how perfect his body felt against yours, it all created a perfect harmony that left your body buzzing.

You reached for one of his hands and slowly started to push it under the hem of your dress, silently encouraging him to touch you.

Gods, if only you knew how much he desired to touch you. It was hard to keep his mind focused on anything all day, especially once he'd received your pictures. He had been almost desperate to touch himself, to let him self come undone to the wildest fantasies he had of you. But he had refrained, something the Maxwell of yesteryear would never have done. Instead he focused only on work, getting it done and out of the way so he could come to you. Then he'd have nothing but all the time in the world to spend with you, touch you - everything. It had been difficult, immensely so, an almost insurmountable task, but he managed to do so. Maxwell Lord was desperately in love with you, and he knew nothing would compare to waiting until you could finally be alone and be together.

Just...not right now.

Because almost as soon as it had started, it stopped, and Maxwell pulled back from you, his breathing ragged and eyes wild. You narrowed your eyes before lightly shoving at his chest, trying to figure out what the hell was going on.

"Maxwell!" you almost groaned with how frustrated you were, "you cannot just come into my office, with this hot and cold act, kiss me like that and then just stop!"

"Honey..."

"No! Don't honey me, mister! It's our anniversary, shouldn't we be spending it together?" you sighed as you sat back down on your desk, "are you breaking up with me? I gave you scandalous photos of myself...and tasteful nudes, you fool!"

"Honey-"

"You didn't even get me flowers or anything," okay, now you were just acting like a spoiled child and you knew it, "n-not that I need them or should expect them, I don't mean it like that, but it's our one year anniversary, and I thought it would be special..."

"I didn't get you flowers on purpose-"

"Oh?! So you purposefully didn't get me flowers?" might as well through yourself a pity party now and get it over with.

"Honey, will you just listen to me for a minute?" his tone was sharp and firm, a quality he almost never adopted with you, unless the time called for it. Crossing your arms over your chest, you looked at him with a raised eyebrow, waiting for him to continue on. He stood in front of you and grabbed your hands, bringing one to his lips and pressing a gentle kiss to your knuckles. His voice suddenly shifted to be soft and docile, "the reason I didn't get you flowers is because you wouldn't have been able to enjoy them. You would have had them one afternoon and then they would have stayed here and died."

"What...what do you mean?" you definitely weren't following his line of reasoning.

"I have a surprise for you, all planned out, and we need to leave," he glanced at his watch and noted the time, "very soon so we aren't late."

"A surprise? Late? I-I don't follow..."

"We're going to Greece for the next couple of weeks," he finally revealed as your jaw dropped open in surprise. You definitely hadn't expected this, not by any means, "I have it all planned out a surprise for our anniversary. You said you've always wanted to go, so I figured now is the perfect time."

"We're...going to Greece?" your eyes were wide with excitement as he nodded. Internally, you were squealing with delight, "but what about-"

"Everything's been arranged, darling," he promised as you stood up to throw your arms around him, "Adina helped and has your bags packed already. Everything's in the car and all we have to do is go to the airport and catch our flight. And we need to do that soon if we don't want to miss it."

"Maxwell," you wrapped your arms around him and held on as tightly as possibly. You had never expected anything like this, or even anyone to go out of their way to do something like this for you, "I don't even know what to say besides thank you."

"There's nothing to thank me for," he promised, giving the side of your head a delicate kiss, "I'm just happy that you're excited."

"I'm terribly excited," you admitted, "I can't even begin to tell you! I'm just...I'm sorry I acted like a..."

"A brat?" he teased as you gave him a sheepish nod, "I...understand your frustrations. Trust me, if we had the time right now, I would have taken you already. You look stunning, and knowing what's underneath, and that little stunt you pulled with the pictures today? It's proving to be quite challenging."

"So you did like them?" a blush bloomed in your cheeks as he nodded.

"I loved them," he stated, "but for now, we must go. Paradise awaits."

"Maxwell," he looked at you like he could easily read your mind and see right into your soul, understating exactly what you were saying without having to say anything.

"How would you like to join the mile high club?" he asked as you grabbed your bum and have it a firm squeeze. You made a small sound of surprise as he took your hand and started to lead out of the office. He had known exactly what you were thinking.

"I would love that," you grinned at him, already thinking of all the possibilities, "and you know what else? I love you, Maxwell."

"I love you too, sweetheart," he agreed, "I love you too."

»»————-　♡　————-««

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#maxwell lord #maxwell lord x reader #max lord #max lord x reader #pedro pascal #pedro pascal x reader #ww84 #ww84 fanfiction #reader insert

[sillyfudgemonkeys]

K now you got me curious about that. I kinda assumed P5MC would’ve been stronger then P4 MC (P3MC beats them both no doubt from me) so why do you say that P4MC is stronger?

Was gonna make a separate post when I had time but now is a time as any XU (btw I still dunno why people think P5MC is stronger, is it cause of the gym? His Phantom Thieving? The gun? Stanael’s gun? The Yaldy scene? I really wanna read people’s reasons but I have a feeling it’s those and.....if that’s it then no one is paying attention to poor P4MC then ;w;)

So that post was more lore driven than gameplay driven just a heads up (gameplay it’s a lot more complicated because we have to look at like.....a bunch of different entries and lay down ground rules for those, cause like P3P!MC/FeMC vs P4MC vs P5MC is.....a lot more fair considering the former can’t use fusions due to them being items....assuming we can’t use items). Just want to clarify before I explain what I mean is lore wise (I’ll compare the Personas down below but I’ll try to keep it from crossing to much into the gameplay meta line). And this is excluding Royal/Scramble (cause....not everyone knows that stuff yet, and I need to reevaluate things myself and I just haven’t been able to yet XU). But man, people really do underestimate P4MC ;w;

Now then, without Personas they are probably about even, like if they got into a fist fight they could probably end in a tie (but my money is still on P4MC if I had to choose cause he gets back up). P4MC seems to be taller (by a few in) and a more buff build, while P5MC is more of a slim build (but is probs more agile). And this is regardless if they are in the Metaverse, TV World, or the Real World (cause he should get an outfit in the Metaverse, plus Personas seem to give the user great physical strength regardless if it’s a Metaverse setting or not). That being said, P5MC does have akido(?), but it’s self trained and that’s if he goes to the gym. But, P4MC trains with Chie (which he probably did cause they all probs maxed their SLs/CoOps, but Ren might not have gone to the gym), and also stays in shape thanks to 1) fighting Shadows and 2) his sports club SL (this is assuming we are only looking at their school time selves, Adult!P4MC is unknown atm), so it’s not like he’s out of shape himself. P4MC also has crazier and bigger fish too (also needed to complete an SL), so that could be deemed as a work out compared to P5MC’s fishing. 

If we’re looking at initial Personas (which is what they are most likely gonna run with cause of how the spinoffs handle P4/5), P4MC has the upper hand thanks to resisting Dark (aka curse) (btw Minato/Hamu would probs go down first in an initial only Persona fight, cause they’d be weak to P5MC and then P4MC could/would probs beat P5MC thanks to resisting the other’s attack).

Ultimate Persona is a bit more....I wouldn’t say even, but there’s strengths and weaknesses to both sides. Satanael has the upper hand with a “survive one attack” ability, resists everything but almighty, heatriser, and can harm INO via physical (and maaaaybe psy/nuke...it’s unclear how Atlus wants to treat INO in this regard). INO has better stats (and can achieve better stats than Satanael), can deal BIG almighty damage (thanks to mine charge, Satanael doesn’t have a charge), and while he doesn’t resist Light/Dark/Alimighty he does have a big evasion ability. I’d say INO could also be hit by PSY and Nuke thanks to PQ2 (which still makes no sense???? why didn’t they add resist in those categories to all the other ult Personas ??? XP) but P5R shows INO resisting those now so we gonna go with that....because that makes more sense (it makes sense for them to resist Psy and Nuke because they resist all elemental damage but since those didn’t exist, you could assume they could resist it cause it falls under elemental damage...but PQ2 fudges it up for some reason XP), I mean P5R also made him more of a beast since it seems like INO resists Phys too but I won’t include that. I mean if you wanna say he can be hit by Nuke fine, one more thing INO can be hit with....BUT INO also has a ult attack and Satanael doesn’t. Which, while Satanael and INO could be going toe to toe for awhile, INO might be able to deliver the final blow that Satanael can’t. 

Which leads into why....P4MC should win. He’s just shown he’s stronger in his stories. He wins because of his own power that made him stronger. P5MC doesn’t win via his own power. He wins because he receives outside help more often than not (which isn’t bad, I’m not saying having help is bad, but in a hypothetical 1v1....it doesn’t bode well for him). Against Yaldy he got a freaking buff from the cognitive world....A TEMP BUFF MIND YOU! THANKS TO COGNITION! It’s such BS! Yes, P3/4MC they received their power because of their bonds, their connections, MC’s are their friends’ power as much as they are power for the MC’s. P3/4MC could only get that strong because of their friends. It’s because of their own effort and will to protect the ones they care about is the reason they win......P5MC it’s because of the public cheering for them for like 5 min for a temp buff cause of cognition (and it def doesn’t continue to last cause of how the meter goes down to 50% later irl). Even with cognition on P5MC’s side, it’s probably not a whole lot to actually do anything beneficial for him like with Yaldy. P3/4 is about power of friendship and relationships. P5 is about the power of convenience and plot devices. Buncha bullshit that he gets handed the World Arcana like that, not even his own power saved the world (he doesn’t even have a World Arcana Persona! No one ever talks about that what’s P5MC’s World Persona?! P4 has INO, P3 has a finger 8U What’s P5′s????)

There’s also the fact P4MC can use Myriads of Truth outside of Izanami, and it can hurt people outside of her too (we know this thanks to Arena). Satanael can’t use his Sinful Shell (at least at this point in time, watch Atlus jk my post when Arena 3 comes out, I’m already prepared for it >8V I bet Atlus’ reason won’t even make sense because->) because it’s only used in the 100% cognition scene! Satanael can only be that powerful and can only use that move thanks to cognition! But you see, P4MC is Mr. Bond Master, he’s strong cause of his bonds, every handshake with a new person=him getting more powerful (half jk). 8U But this drive also shows that even if he loses a fight, he gets right back up because he wants to protect his friends (as seen post-Liz fight in Liz’s route in Arena). Like this is a big thing P4MC has that I think people overlook, this bastard has A LOT of willpower. Whenever that word is brought up, only Tatsuya (you know defying time and reality to keep his memories) and P3MCs (staying alive for like two months to keep their promise) are ever mentioned (and don’t get me wrong, those are amazing feats too! All three/four, FeMC/P3MC are technically two people, of these people deserve the top 3 will power spot), but gd P4MC has it too. After getting his ass handed to him by Liz, he got right back up and was like “round two!” and power starts to flow through him that it takes Liz aback! Or his most amazing feat, coming back from the freaking underworld (aka basically death), just will his ass right back in front of Izanami and then Izanami is unable to freaking kill him (he hangs onto 1 HP like a boss, hell if he can do this against P3MC it’s possible for him to even come out on top of that fight). Izanami literally says “can the will of so few surpass that of all mankind?!” His (and IT’s) determination is one that surpasses all of mankind! Compare that to P5MC, who defeated Yaldy because of his bond with his CoOps-oh wait no it’s cause of a BS temp power buff the public gave him my mistake. P3/4: “We know what’s best for mankind! And it’s not freaking death! Our will power will surpass mankind!” P5: “Y-yeah same! But we’re gonna not succeed on our own and get bailed out by the public, only for them to half revert back to their same old ways despite....changing for us for a hot second...wait what?” 

P4MC (depending on where in the timeline we have him and P5MC facing off), he’s had more experience too. Not only has he beaten 7ish gods/god avatars (to P5MC’s.......looking at all the P5 entries and without spoilers....possibly 3ish/4ish gods/godly avatars/god level stuff), he’s also faced off with 2 robots and what is basically a super soldier (aka Sho), he’s also fought against a lot of SEES who are seasoned fighters and had ult personas vs his initial persona (and won in some cases, or held his own A LOT, depends on the timeline/route). Oh and has fought more VR people/the VR people more times (P4/G, PQ1, PQ2, and...maybe Arena/Ultimax depends on the route). While P5 is catching up (kinda, we aren’t comparing how a lot of those final battles were won with the final blow), P4MC still has the most experience. 

The only way P5MC can win if it’s 1V4+, P5MC has access to the VR and can use multiple Personas and P4MC can’t, P5MC has 100% cognition on (not possible, and would be a real ass pull), P4MC is crippled beyond belief (even then I’d still expect him to win cause he doesn’t give up). 

So yeah. P4MC has more willpower, his Personas seem to have an advantage (either elemental advantage with initial, or stat+final blow for Ult), and doesn’t get up/gets right back up after a beating (so even if P5MC gets P4MC down to 0 hp, its possible P4MC will get right back up without the need of a skill like P5MC). 

That being said I need to reevaluate some stuff with Royal. I still think P4MC is stronger tho (but I think P3MCs are the strongest, that being said P4/5MC haven’t been put in a situation where they need to die to protect everyone, aka get the universe arcana, so I wouldn’t 100% count them out because I think P4/5MC have the potential to go as far as the P3MCs if need be...well....def P4MC.....not sure about P5MC he still needs to prove himself imo). 

[capitanogiorgio]

1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16, 22, 28, 35, 39, 41, 43, 44, 55, 58, 67, 68, 70, 84, 85, 87, 88, 91, 93, 99 : GOOD LUCK 👍

1. Three teams you like 

Juventus, AS Cannes (and Valenciennes FC) and Liverpool

2. Three teams you do not like 

Inter, R Madrid and Nice

3. A team you can’t tolerate and you do not even know why

idk… I usually have a rugh idea why I don’t like a team of football especially if it’s at a “can’t tolerate” level. So no idea.

4. A team that surprised you in recent years (negative way or positive way) 

Actually the Spurs. I’ve never followed them apart from reading results or other relevent articles. They’ve progressed and have a strong team. There’s also Liverpool who has come back being a serious contender for titles, Klopp’s has done wonders.

6. The thing you dislike the most about your club or NT 

For both Italy and France it’s the lack of patience of the fans (and I know I can lack some at times). For France NT it’s especially that kind of French mentality that I’ve seen countless times : if we win, we’re the best, we’d known all along we would win but the minute they lose everyone’s like “Of course, french in sports are always so inconsistant, overpaid brats, smh, I knew we’d lose.” and stuff like that and it drives me mad.

For Juve, it’s that lately, there’s this big clash with the spirit of the club and a huge “marketing ideal” for lack of better term : the new logo, billion years away from the historical one, the huge rise in seats prices and a disdain for the ultras who pretty much are the only one who sings at the stadium and it just look like a big enterprise being run for maximum profit forgetting parts of what is essentials to the club in the process.

8. The one time football made you so happy you couldn’t stop smiling for days 

The first time was Italy NT’s win in 2006. I felt invicible at 10 years old. I had spent a whole month being teased at, Italy being insulted at recess, some kids not speaking to me because I was the only one supporting Italy and being shamelessly vocal about it. I spent all that journey on my own, even my parents thought it weird and I was devastated french TV wouldn’t show all the games of Italy NT or when my parents didn’t let me watch because I had school in the morrow. I was also very sad because I was being transferred in another school when I knew nobody and I’d lose all my friends because the school was in the neighbouring city. I learnt that the day before Italy - Germany and gosh, I cried and I cried again at the late goals of Grosso and Del Piero. It helped lessen my dramatic 10 year old self. And then the final, when Italy won I was so happy. I had to hid the remote control so my parents wouldn’t turn off the TV because they didn’t understand the point of watching since France had lost but I argued. I couldn’t tear my eyes of all my heroes lifting that golden cup and the next day when I faced everyone at school that had told me Italy was shit and would never win all month long. Biggest smile on my face. Three days later my mom took me to the sports shop and bought me the 4 stars jersey and I still have it today.

The second was when Cannes, while in 4th division, beat Saint-Etienne right for my birthday in the round of 32 of the Coupe de France. It was super cold and it went all the way to the penalties and we won and it was the first time I saw the stadium full, completely full with about 12000 people. It was magical. At the end there was a pitch invasion and players celebrated with fans it was amazing. We went to win against Plabennec and then against Montpellier, another Ligue 1 club ! We went up until the quarter finals but ultimately lost to Guingamp. But that feeling was… Amazing.

9. The one time football made you so sad you cried for days. 

First there was Cannes getting sent to 7th division. I thought it was so unfair since the owners had done fuck all while the team gave their max. There was Alex leaving Juve the way it happened. And more recently it was Italy not qualifying for the World Cup and Gigi leaving Juve. Gosh that one was a hard blow I spent the whole week crying from his press conference to the game and after.

11. Five players you really admire purely based on football

Giorgio Chiellini (what ??)

Paolo Maldini

Thierry Henry

Eden Hazard (saw him twice when he was in Lille and it was already a recital)

Iker Casillas

13. Five most underrated players in your opinion

So many qzesrdtfygu ! Any GKs and Defenders go there. For having many OM fans in my acquatainces and being up to date with their club as a result, I’d say Hiroki Sakai is really underrated. Unpopular opinion but Pippo Inzaghi was constantly underrated for saying his goals are easy and he’s lucky and he doesn’t know how to play. I said what I said. Danijel Subasic, my good peeps and that’s the truth. Hm Olivier Giroud and Hugo Lloris ???? ANYONE ???? (that counts as a two for one package). And as a very great and Scouse philosopher once said : “Gary Neville is the most underrated player”

14. Five most overrated players in your opinion

Ronald, Titbot, Rami (and even more since the world cup win), Ratmos, Müller (sorry Garance)

15. Name 3 most despicable figures in football in your opinion (coaches, players, owners, companies, anyone…)

UEFA and FIFA tbh.

16. What makes your favorite coach better than other coaches?

He screams like a metal rock star ! And he’s super intense :

Also because he’s done a tremendous work winning 4 Coppa Italia, 4 Scudetti, getting to two UCL finals and keep the team hungry for more !

22. Favorite Left Back today

Me of course aqzesrdtfqzesrdtfyghj ! Ugh today ? I’d go with De Sciglio (he’s polyvalent)

28. Your dream eleven

Buffon, Maldini, Chiellini, Scirea, Gattuso, Pirlo, Giggs, Beckham, Del Piero, Inzaghi, Vieri

35. Favorite tactical formation

4-3-3 or 3-5-2. Although my first love in managing games was the 4-1-2-1-2. Or as I like to call it : 4-4-2 losange !

39. A moment in football that changed you as a person. (e.g injuries, trophies, or transfers)

It’s honestly quite a rollercoaster when you’re ten years old to see your heroes win the world cup and then learn a week later that your favourite team is going to Serie B. I didn’t understand. That was the first time I really read all articles and papers I could find on the matter, even going to the public library to look at the ones I couldn’t buy and try and read everything to understand.

There was also Riccardo Montolivo’s injury just before the 2014 World Cup and Laurent Koscielny’s injury before the 2018 World Cup. I saw both happening in front of my very eyes and I felt awful, I almost wanted to cry. Injuries at such a time are, truly, the worst thing. And Montolivo wasn’t left alone by injuries afterwards and it breaks my heart.

Also, that 2005 ucl final like. The d r a m a (tm)

41. A player you are ashamed of loving

No shame, no regrets, just love !

43. Your achilles’ heel. The player who is your weakness.

Gigi Buffon (and Pippo Inzaghi)

44. Which team did you support the last time two teams you hated played against each other?

None, I wished for a draw aqzesrdtfygu

55. Three players from past generations you wish you had seen

Gaetano Scirea, Giampiero Boniperti and George Best (and Lev Yashin)

58. Most undeserving winners you can think of

Portugal at Euro 2016. They had the crappiest run and yet…..

67. A rival player you wish had joined your team

MON-TO-LI-VO, Icare about nothing ! Otherwise, although he’s a milanista through and through, would have love Gattuso at Juve, see how it would have been.

68. The time you really thought about leaving football

I never wanted to left but I had breaks. It especially coincided when I was playing football myself and the club’s environement was shit. I received insults just because I was 100% at training and dared tackle the ball away from the starlette diva of the team and the coaches didn’t bat an eye. Spent a whole year like this before I had enough and changed club.

70.The best transfer decision your club made

Just saying but buying Andrea Barzagli from Wolfsburg for 300k was like. Genius.

84. A player you wish you could’ve known in real life because you really think you guys could’ve been best friends.

I’d go with Andrea Pirlo, my good bitch I love dearly

85. A player who you want as your partner (lover, boyfriend, husband)

Pippo Inzaghi or Alessandro Del Piero.

87. Five players who others find attractive but you just don’t see it

Max Allegri for Beatrice Icardi, Luka Modric, Griezmann,

88. A player you think you totally would have had a crush on if you were born in another generation

Probably George Best and Paolo Rossi

91. A player who you think has the worst sense when it comes to fashion

Pretty much all players who lived the 90′s and early 2000s. But like… Gigi Buffon always delivered….. looks™ lmao

93. Top 5 bromances that you swear by.

Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci bitch !

Pippo Inzaghi and Bobo Vieri

Dejan Lovren and Mo Salah

Rino Gattuso and the Dickheads™

France 98 is a whole bromance by itself

99. The 5 most attractive players in your club and NT

Juve : De Sciglio, Matuidi, Bernardeschi, Dybala and Chiellini

France NT : Samuel Umtiti, Raphaël Varane, Blaise Matuidi, Benjamin Pavard and Nabil Fekir

Italy NT : Salvatore Sirigu, Ciro Immobile, Mattia De Sciglio, Federico Bernardeschi and Giorgio Chiellini

Thanks !

[sdgew]

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[f1chronicle]

Lewis Hamilton – The Man Who Reached The Summit Of Formula 1’s Mountain

Akin to that mountain, which soars high into the skies, Lewis Hamilton stands tall amid jaw-dropping reactions in the firmament of FORMULA 1.

Lewis Hamilton Proud Of Record Achievement

It’s a sport to which Hamilton has given a decade and a half of his life. It’s a sport which has become second nature to Lewis Hamilton – a man born to race, someone we today cannot imagine the highest level of Grand Prix racing without.

The Brit was proud of what he and his team have achieved, saying ‘I think ultimately I’m just very proud of the job that I felt I was able to do today and the things I was able to overcome, but also the job we have done collectively as a team and it’s just reminiscent of the beginning when I joined the team, the decision I took to join the team and what we have done since.

‘I knew that we would win championships. Did I think we would win as many as we have? No. Did I think we would win this many races? Of course not. But it is a phenomenal time for us and the great thing is that it’s not just me that is living with the history, it’s the whole team and I think everyone acknowledges and realises how much they are part of it, so I feel incredibly grateful to my teammates.

‘To Valtteri, for being the contender he is, the team-mate he is, for pushing the team forwards – we’re generally rowing in the same direction whilst we are competing, and it’s been a privilege to work with him. So what a time to be alive.’

Lewis Hamilton Has Excelled Since Day 1

To a sport that demands excellence- Lewis Hamilton had nothing else but excellence on offer, arriving at the 2007 World Championship curtain-raiser: the 2007 Australian Grand Prix (18 March) where he earned a P3.

In so doing, Lewis immediately proved his mettle for his McLaren team. But was that easy to do- with Kimi and Alonso being at their devastating best back then? It’s anybody’s guess.

Thirteen years hence, as Lewis Hamilton finds his name against arguably the most amazing record in Formula 1- nothing’s really changed.

Back then- he was hanging out on or around the podium, scoring nine back-to-back (podiums) in his maiden year in Formula 1 alone.

A few hours back, he stepped onto the podium for the 161st time in Formula 1, he’d made history; a mighty one at that.

Just how many wins can the new record holder tally? Well he won’t say the sky is the limit, but he is prepared to keep working to raise the bar higher and higher for those set to follow him.

‘I don’t believe in the saying the sky’s the limit. It’s just a saying. It depends how much we want it, how much we want to continue to raise the bar and going by our history together, just the way we work, we don’t sit back on our results, we keep working, we keep elevating.

‘Every race feels like the first one. I don’t know how that’s possible after all these races but for me it does, just as challenging as the first, and I think there is a lot more for us to do. Especially as we’re in this crazy time of the pandemic.

‘We’re in a crazy time with having to also utilise our position as a business, as a leader in the business for inclusivity, for diversity, there’s a lot of work to do. So, that keeps me inspired.

‘My team-mates, who are continuously growing, my fans who are continuously learning through this process with us all, and our sport that is slowly changing, it’s a real special time.

‘I definitely sometimes wonder, you know, jeez I’m 35 years old. I still feel physically strong but you still wonder when is it going to tip over and lose performance but showing by today it’s not yet,’ added Hamilton.

Consistency Has Been The Key

The all-time win record is a piece of history every driver whether contesting in the sport or desperate to break through to the top flight in F1- would absolutely love to script.

As Lewis Carl Hamilton crossed the line and received the checkered flag at the very tricky and truly testing Portimao-bound Portuguese Grand Prix- he scored the 92nd win of his career, the most by any F1 driver – dead or alive.

In this clip, you can see Hamilton talking about this record-setting moment with none other than Martin Brundle.

But every sport needs a hero- someone who can prove himself to be Mr. Consistency, and blaze a trail for the others to follow.

Lewis Hamilton – 161 podiums, 92 race wins, 97 pole positions, 52 fastest laps, 6 world titles – is a humble and mild-mannered one.

2020 Portuguese Grand Prix, Sunday – Lewis Hamilton (image courtesy Mercedes-AMG Petronas)

He ain’t some flickering myth that’ll burn out or fade away (He’s here to stay).

Not when at 35, making the body endure the grind for fourteen long years, and about to claim a seventh world title. And maybe go even more!

And certainly not when you’re finding much younger guys- a little over half your age- in your mirrors only for you to ply phenomenal race craft to emerge unscathed in the end – (race after race, weekend after weekend).

But Hamilton, who’s proven himself to be statistically superior than even the great Michael Schumacher, must not dwell on the lot that passes easy judgement holding little to appreciate one’s journey.

Fact is- Lewis Hamilton won from pole again and not only that, ended up delivering the grand slam of the race, including the mark for fastest lap.

Dominant Display In Portugal

At the Portuguese Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton briefly lost the lead a few laps since the start. It didn’t matter, however.

He was soon dictating terms from the very front of the grid with usual Hamilton-esque guts.

‘When I come to these races I never think of the numbers. I just never let it enter into my thought process. Today was really about… we’re at this track, it’s very, very smooth, you see the struggle we’re all having with the tyre temperatures, so towards the end of the race I was thinking about what I will and won’t say in terms of what is appropriate to say and not to say but ultimately it’s no secret, I think today was about tyre temperature.

‘I felt through the race that I was learning, lap on lap, more about the circuit. I was trying lots of different lines and discovering new lines that worked well. The wind direction was very, very tricky, I think, today, lots of crosswinds, headwinds and tailwinds and there were some positions that you could utilise to your favour and others that kind-of get in the way.

‘I think the key is the times when you have a tailwind, it’s minimising the loss through those stages. Set-up was something that I really focussed on. It was less about qualifying set-up, and more for the race set-up and I think today that enabled me to go one better, I guess, than before.

‘I just felt like I was generally getting faster and faster throughout the race – but I had to keep up the pace for these tyres. That was really the key,’ added the race winner.

But implicit in the journey of the most successful driver in F1’s history (race wins wise👏) is respect. That which he gives to his competitors on the grid. That which he himself earns as a result of feverish consistency.

It’s easy to lose ones head at the highest annals of Grand Prix racing. But very difficult to keep winning despite having at one’s disposal – the fastest or most complete car on the grid.

Hamilton Almost Faultless Throughout F1 Career

Why Hamilton must be respected is because despite having the best of both worlds- the most powerful machine and ample manpower- he hasn’t put a foot wrong in Formula 1.

This isn’t to say he didn’t err – there was the controversial pit lane entry despite the window not being open, and the ignorance of yellow flags in another event (earlier this season)- but Hamilton’s driver errors have been few and far between.

He did, as a matter of fact, collide twice with Albon (Red Bull) in the space of one year- starting with Brazil 2019 and then, the 2020 Austrian GP- but Hamilton won’t spin, won’t slide off the track and won’t self capitulate.

We’ve seen a magnificent champion in Sebastian Vettel make more errors than probably any other man on the grid in the past half a decade period; an onerous length of time during which Hamilton’s performances grew to the size of a shape-shifting beast: hard to ignore, even harder to beat.

Still, what would you put it all down to- these eight race wins in 12 starts in 2020? Isn’t it a precise combination of smooth race craft and next-to-faultless car control?

Hamilton The Ultimate Competitor

On top of it, Lewis Hamilton seems an athlete that just won’t budge; the more difficult the circumstances- the more he challenges himself.

Earlier this year, at the landmark British Grand Prix, Hamilton won with three tires, having suffered a front-left failure thanks to horrible delamination in the final lap of the race.

The bad news was, Max was closing in- just six seconds behind. The good news was- Lewis wasn’t going to give up.

In 2019, a year where perhaps Mercedes’ domination of the grid was arguably the most ruthless – the team winning eight back-to-back races- Lewis enjoyed the upper hand over Bottas until Verstappen’s race win at Austria halted the driver’s marauding charge.

It wasn’t Valtteri but Lewis who won four back-to-back races before Max’s mad run at Spielberg changed the narrative somewhat, the Briton picking up big wins at Spain, Monaco, Canada and France.

Yet, ever wondered why we credit Lewis Hamilton. Is it just the magnanimous success and that instinct for domination?

Perhaps suffice to say, there’s a Lewis Hamilton the benevolent observer who resides in the heart of the man who wants to and does drive like a champion all year around.

The Hamilton v Vettel Rivalry

At the 2019 Singapore GP- an event we’d have loved to see this year too- the warmest congratulatory message to the race winner arrived from the man who finished fourth.

As Sebastian Vettel, occupied in arguably his most important post-race interview was about to conclude, a warm tap on the shoulder arrived from behind.

As Vettel turned immediately to see who that was, he was greeted by the most affectionate smile from none other than his closest rival on the grid, one to whom the German had played too often the vanquished (than he’d have liked) in the previous seasons- Lewis Hamilton!

What a beautiful tiny moment that was featuring two guys who were daggers drawn at each other at Azerbaijan 2017, you thought.

But that’s precisely where we owe much credit to the fighting duo.

The sport, with every passing decade, has birthed new heroes and presented personalities.

But it’s very hard to deny that had Hamilton and Vettel not pushed one another to the absolute limit- evident closely in races like Hungary 2017, British GP 2018, 2018 German GP, 2018 Belgian GP, among a few more- we wouldn’t have seen two stars burning brightly in the F1 galaxy.

Stars who remember to respect one another despite occasional on-field scuffles.

That the two twinkle lends substance to a sport that can’t function minus its shining lights, one of whom has become a mighty planet.

He was once a kid, not even a boy who took to Karting pushed by his doting dad.

Today that same kid from Stevenage (who sat in a kart at the best of his father) has grown into a global icon despite all odds.

Little wonder then it’s Lewis Hamilton who says – Still We Rise!!

Take a bow champion. Take a bow.

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#Formula 1 news

[blade-revolutions]

A Touch of Warmth [TyHil]

I promised a TyHil one shot and here I am, finally delivering it. I hope you enjoy!

IT’S A RAINY DAY in Bakuten and Hilary has decided to spend the weekend at the company of the Bladebreakers.

Now what the majority would expect would be voices filling every corner of the household with so many people, especially Tyson’s, who loves to be the center of attention most of the time due to the fact he’s caring the 3 year in a row World Champion. Of course after surpassing everyone’s expectations by defeating the Bega League and bringing harmony to the sport he loves isn’t a goal anyone can accomplish. Yet the thought of acknowledging his superiority has him with his head in the clouds too often, and Hilary is usually there to ground him in reality so their group can relish some peace without any distractions.

So it’s amusing to see that an eerie silence hanging in the air, one that doesn’t carry tension. Hilary’s glad this isn’t the case. The last thing she wants is to be in a room with the atmosphere charged. She’s had plenty of that during the Bega challenge. Not only was it frustrating to see her friends striving to give their all under pressure, the fact that she couldn’t provide the tiniest bit of help as far as beyblading is concerned rendered her restless throughout that month. Although Ray, Max and Lyla comforted her by saying she’s the coach and that her help is truly valuable, there are days Hilary is feeling left out. She knows it’s not true and that she shouldn’t doubt her place in the team, but that small dark part of her mind reminds her of this occasionally.

Hilary dreads that part, that inner voice of a self who’s not her. It makes her question everything about her personality, her appearance, her relationship with her family and other people. It fills her with uncertainty for her actions and if she’s capable enough of doing something. It tears apart her walls of confidence, leaving her hollow with thoughts swirling in her brain. Hilary wishes for it to go away and let her enjoy life freely.

It’s not like she hasn’t been doing that so far, but whenever she’s having actual fun, the voice appears. Her mood falls drops significantly without anyone ever knowing because of her happy facade she pulls through. None of them know about this kind of insecurities she has locked deep within, with the exception of Lyla and Mariah who can see through her. And maybe Kai, she adds, but he respects her enough to keep his lips tight and not voice anything aloud, attracting unwanted and unnecessary attention.

So what if she has insecurities? Big deal, anyone on this planet has them. She’s not the first one to encounter problems and inner battles with herself, and she definitely won’t be the last. In fact, everyone feels self-conscious sometimes, including her beloved friends. For instance, Tyson is afraid of being in the dark for too long without anyone caring genuinely about him. Though the thought could be considered ridiculous since Tyson has gone far, it’s proven when he’s not in the spotlight when he’s surrounded by others.

Before Hilary can ponder on this theory and let her mind wonder if there are chances to capture Tyson’s attention as something more than friends, the door of his bedroom opens and Hilary’s reverie dissipates. She turns her head around, only to face a disgruntled Tyson.

Hilary chuckles inwardly at his expression. It’s a shame she can’t photograph this priceless bafflement in his eyes. For a moment she forgot the fact that apart from Ryu they are alone in the dojo since Ray and Max are helping Mr Tate at the shop this afternoon. Daichi has gone to his city to visit some relatives and Kenny is grounded by his parents because his mom caught him with the laptop positioned comfortably on his lap at 1 A.M, when the following day he had to attend school. Kai and Lyla wanted to treasure some time for themselves since being around their friends 24/7 limited the possibilities of a proper date. And even though Lyla doesn’t complain about the lack of those, after all just being with him is more than enough, Kai felt it’s something which should be done every once in a while.

A remnant Hilary hasn’t realized it’s nestled there pops up suddenly, and Hilary’s cheeks flush with embarrassment.

They are alone. In an almost empty house.

Hilary scolds her mind for giving her ideas which shouldn’t exist in the first place. It’s not like her brain is filled with impure fantasies of her and Tyson in compromising positions. No. That’s Julia’s speciality. And Tala’s, she grins slyly.

She can only pray for the heat on her cheeks to cool before Tyson notices, otherwise she’ll never be able to live it down since Tyson would make false assumptions.

“That’s it! I’m done for today.” Tyson declares as he places his palm on the door frame, staring at Hilary through narrowed eyes, as if daring her to object at his announcement.

Three seconds pass before Hilary realization dawns upon her. Tyson is failing in his science course and had asked for Hilary’s help.

When Hilary heard this, her ears perked up with sheer surprise and she had to strain them to confirm she didn’t misheard him. Tyson would come to her for any kind of aid, except for school subjects. A part of him still feels competitive when it comes to both of them and grades, despite the fact Tyson can’t reach Hilary’s level, not because he isn’t smart enough, but because he’s too lazy to put some effort. So he had come to the most ideal person, and Hilary agreed, offering her notes to him by one term. That Tyson would spend the entire afternoon of studying properly, without distractions.

Hilary shifts her gaze to the clock and nods satisfactorily. “It’s half past eight. I’m surprised you could last that long.” She tells him truthfully, approval lacing her voice.

“You’re not the only genius who can survive after three and half hours straight of studying Hilary.” Tyson rolls his eyes before joining her to the couch, his body slumping to the other end. Tyson throws his head back, leaving it to hang in mid-air briefly, his eyes concentrated on the ceiling as he tries to alleviate the pain in his brain. It’s as if his brain cells are carrying too much information, to the point an explosion can’t be excluded. However, he feels proud for not letting himself down and remaining true to his words. And Hilary’s had been more than helpful. They were written with such detail, delicacy and caution -it fascinated him. Moreover, her handwriting is really good and he faced no trouble in understanding the words in front of him. Her notes had made his job easier than he expected.

Hilary presses her lips together in a thin line to prevent the laughter from escaping her lips. It’ll do no good to her if her actions were added to Tyson’s exhaustion. Tyson studied hard enough to keep his promise and Hilary isn’t going to ruin the rest of his day by teasing him in the wrong way.

Her eyes search for the tv remote and spot it lying on the table but a firm, warm hand closes around her wrist, pausing the movement of leaning forward to take a hold of it.

Bewildered, Hilary casts a questioning stare at Tyson, the latter shaking his head with eyes closed.

“Not other noises. Please.”

His tired tone throws her off guard along with the second phrase, and she’s left gazing at him, thoroughly amused by the way his eyes flattered shut the second he leaned back to rest his head. The day she could see Tyson denying television has seemed a dream, a butterfly impossible to catch, except for today.

Boy he must be really exhausted.

Tyson removes his hand, allowing her wrist to breathe and Hilary misses his touch for the first time. It felt nice to have someone providing her comforting heat, even in the smallest of ways. It makes her feel more connected to him in  a strange way since a touch isn’t much. Yet it means everything to her.

Hilary follows his actions and lets her eyelids to fall shut, relishing the tranquility around them. Thankfully Ryu is in the training room, meditating, meaning no one is going to interrupt rudely this silence.

Droplets of rain clash against the windows along with the rustling of the leaves, lulling Hilary to sleep.

She hopes it can be a blissful one and it is, till the moment images she dreads appear in front of her. Images with her friends shooting harsh accusations on her face for things she wasn’t even involved into while smirking, telling her she’ll never be good enough. She feels terrified, but most importantly lost. What is going to do now? Give up and collapse on her feet? Or continue fighting their voices filled with hatred?

Is there any point in fighting these demons? Will they ever go away? Or are they going to reside in her head forever?

Tyson is awoken when he hears sounds close to him. He watches Hilary’s sleeping form tossing around and he’s relieved when he sees that only her hands are taking part in this and not her legs, meaning he can keep his gut in place and not fall off the couch and flat on his ass.

He stays silent for a few moments, wishing she can calm down while wondering what could upset Hilary this much. This is so unlike her. Apart from her bossy and prideful attitude which has faded throughout the two years of being around him, it’s unusual to see Hilary vulnerable and fragile, with her defences crumbled, leaving her bare in front of him.

Soft whimpers escape her mouth and Tyson bites on his lip as he grows distressed. There must be something he can do to help her, comfort her and soothe her pain.

An idea flashes his mind but he’s too close to rejecting it. What if Hilary wakes up and shoves him out of her away, before exploding her tantrum at him for violating her private space? All of these thoughts frustrate him and for once, he wishes Hilary not to be complicated. If she was like the rest of the girls out of their team, preoccupied with her appearance and brainless, he wouldn’t be afraid to make a move on her. However, he knows he doesn’t want that. He wants someone different, someone who can be a challenge. Someone who doesn’t run with the crowd.

Although Lyla can’t be his, Tyson’s glad his long lasting feelings for her are fading away slowly, but surely.

With this in mind he shifts closer, slipping his arm around her shoulder, diminishing the gap between them. Her body is unexpectedly cold and his eyes survey the room, searching for a blanket nearby. Luckily, there’s one on the armchair a few feet away from him and he tries to stand up when delicate fingers wrap around his arm, pulling him back down with her.

“Don’t leave me! You’re too warm.” Hilary mumbles softly, nuzzling closer to him.

Tyson’s heart races wildly at the turn of the events before his expression softens as he rubs his palm up and down her arm, assuring her he doesn’t intend on leaving her.

Tyson places a chaste kiss on her forehead. “Go to sleep, Hilary.”

Hilary’s lips curl into a smile unconsciously. Maybe one day she’ll let him know. Know how deep in her heart he’s carved.

#beyblade #tyhil #tyson granger #hilary tachibana #one shot #long post #writing #fanfiction

[flauntpage]

Reprieve! Reprieve! Flyers Still Alive After Some Memorable Performances.

I don’t know about you, but I still can’t figure out the Flyers.

How do you get embarrassed in two home playoff games (and three of the first four) and then go on the road, into the home arena of the two-time defending champions, in an elimination game, and win?

And not only that, they did it with a lopsided special teams disparity against them, and came out on the plus side of that ledger. They did it with a new starting goalie, who gave up two bad goals, but also made several big saves – including one in the final minute – to protect the win. They did it with a much-maligned depth forward being thrust into a position where he was destined to fail – and he played the game of his career. They did it with their most important player in this series, somehow playing with an injury he shouldn’t be playing with, one that noticeably limits his skating and is definitely limiting his minutes, scoring the game-winning goal.

In other words, they did it against all odds.

The Flyers won Game 5 4-2, forcing a Game 6 back in Philadelphia Sunday afternoon. And although the Flyers will tell you they did it by playing their best game of the series, it wasn’t.

But, it was good enough. And enough things went right for them at the right times and in the right places to stay alive in this first round series.

And I’ve finally come to the realization, after 87 games, that this is what the Flyers do.

They thrive in the chaos that surrounds the line of demarcation between good and bad play.

There is very little wiggle room there – tread one step to far on the bad side of that line, and you either get blown out by a good team, or somehow lose to a team you should definitely beat.

Tread one step beyond in the other direction, and you pull off playoff miracles like Game 5, or win games you have no business in winning.

So, yes, I now understand why Flyers fans have a bit of a complex.

Game 5 gave you moments of both the good and bad side of that line, but there ended up being more good than bad, and now we have a Game 6. Welcome to the Flyers own version of chaos theory.

Let’s break it down:

1. Willis Reed

For those younger fans who have no idea who Willis Reed is, you can learn about his legend here, but for those of you that do, the Flyers version of Reed in Game 5 was Sean Couturier.

Couturier has an injury with which he should not be playing. Yet he did on Friday. Without getting into specifics – out of respect for Couturier – everyone knows it’s an injury somewhere below the hip, but the reality is, this kind of injury usually keeps players out of lineups in sports for weeks, not days.

And yet, there he was.

He played almost 17 minutes, which is pretty incredible, considering. He wasn’t on the top line, because he was going to be a step slow. He didn’t have his usual burst. He had a couple moments where you can see the sharp pain was affecting him.

And yet he kept on playing.

This is why hockey players are considered warriors by many. The guy has no business being on the ice, and yet, he’s still out there, doing anything he can to help his team win.

He was positionally sound, as he so often is, and he played on all five of the Flyers shorthanded situations (more on that in a bit). He didn’t get power play time, which I found curious – I understand he was on a bit of a minutes restriction, but I’d rather your best players play at the times you have the best opportunity to score and take a couple five-on-five shifts off to make up the difference – but, the Flyers only had one early power play chance the entire game, so that ultimately didn’t matter much.

But the biggest moment was the reason the Flyers are still in this series:

SEAN COUTURIER PUTS THE FLYERS IN FRONT WITH JUST OVER A MINUTE LEFT! pic.twitter.com/GUN2uoE8ej

— Sons of Penn (@SonsofPenn) April 21, 2018

Just before this, Ivan Provorov took a nasty spill into the boards and hurt something in the upper body (looked like a shoulder, but I won’t speculate on severity). And Couturier went max effort just to keep the puck in at the blue line.

He got a fortunate redirect off of Brian Doumelin’s shin pad, but when you’re playing balls to the wall like Couturier was all game, you get those breaks.

This was the latest go-ahead goal in Flyers playoff history since Eric Lindros stunned the crowd at Madison Square Garden in Game 4 of the 1997 Eastern Conference Finals with a go-ahead goal with seven seconds remaining.

It was indicative of the boost that Couturier’s mere presence in the lineup provided. He wasn’t 100 percent – but he gave more than that. He was the epitome of a team-first player in Game 5, and his team thrived off that.

If there was a player that provided a boost when it was necessary, it was Couturier. The Flyers aren’t coming home Sunday for another game if not for him.

2. Ollie McClellan

You all have seen the movie Hoosiers, right? Right? If not… stop reading, and go find it now. But assuming 99 percent of you have, we had our very own Ollie McClellan situation in Game 5.

Michal Neuvirth started this game. He’s been riding the pine (primarily because of injury) almost as long as Ollie did.

It had been two months since Neuvirth played a full game and I’d venture to say that’s about how long it was in between the game where Ollie had to come off the bench and play with three teammates after Coach Norman Dale wouldn’t put Rade Butcher back in the game because he was a gunner and wouldn’t pass the ball four times, choosing to finish the game with four players and the time Ollie had to sub in during the regional final.

And like Ollie, made two critical errors, before saving his team’s bacon.

If Neuvirth played his best game, the Penguins wouldn’t have scored. Both goals were pretty awful – especially under the microscope of a playoff game.

I mean you can’t let this:

Bryan Rust fights his way free of Read and beats Neuvirth on the wraparound. pic.twitter.com/nlh7I4EEbe

— Sons of Penn (@SonsofPenn) April 21, 2018

Or this:

Guentzel beats Neuvirth through his five-hole. pic.twitter.com/EJpn01Vk2C

— Sons of Penn (@SonsofPenn) April 21, 2018

… happen.

They’re both goals that should be stopped by the goalie. Nothing flukey. No screens. They weren’t bombs. They weren’t snipes. They were easy stops – and Neuvirth didn’t deliver.

After Jake Guentzel’s goal, like when Ollie dribbled the ball off his leg out of bounds, you kind of felt like the game was slipping away.

But, then Neuvirth had his Ollie moment.  Not sure if, during a timeout, somebody grabbed his gloved hand and said a prayer like Strap Purl did with Ollie before the foul shots (although Dave Hakstol and the Preacher Purl have some similar expressions:

      So… maybe….

But, anyway, after Couturier’s goal, Neuvirth saved the game by stoning Sidney Crosby – yes, the best player in this series by far – with an incredible glove save:

CROSBY IS ROBBED BY THE GLOVE OF NEUVIRTH! pic.twitter.com/MAkmmUHYHn

— Sons of Penn (@SonsofPenn) April 21, 2018

That’s the kind of save that no goalie – not Brian Elliott, not Petr Mrazek and not Neuvirth, has really provided in this series until that moment.

But oh, what a moment.

If Crosby scores there, we’re likely headed to overtime. And, with Pittsburgh smelling blood at that point, we’re probably starting the post mortem this morning.

But we’re not. Because Neuvirth made the stop when he needed to do so.

I still don’t have great confidence in Neuvirth. He’s so hot and cold. He’s also incredible fragile. But with Elliott just not healthy enough and Mrazek turning out to be a bad acquisition, this may be the goaltending prayer the Flyers need to cling onto.

If Neuvirth can get hot – he can steal Game 6 – and then all bets are off on Wednesday.

If he can’t, Sunday could be ugly – or at the least disappointing.

Either way, Neuvirth bought the Flyers season at least another 48 hours.

3. Gene Kranz

After two lackluster games at home in Game 3 and Game 4, the Flyers captain told the gathered media at practice that the team would be back home for Game 6.

It was a bold predicition, at a dire moment, much like this:

Ed Harris as NASA flight director Gene Kranz has a lot of Claude Giroux in him – from the ginger look, to the quiet confidence in the face of extreme adversity.

Because, there was Giroux, making a playoff guarantee, after he, himself, had not scored a goal in his previous 11 playoff games.

But, like the prescient flight director, Giroux’s confidence shined through in his performance. For he gave the Flyers an early lead with this:

CLAUDE GIROUX PLAYOFF SEX BOMB pic.twitter.com/0rkPI57M2J

— Sons of Penn (@SonsofPenn) April 20, 2018

Let the refs know that he didn’t like the disparity in penalty calls between his team and the favorite sons in Pittsburgh:

Giroux is giving it to the ref after the coincidental minors. pic.twitter.com/rPkCSu0kKu

— Sons of Penn (@SonsofPenn) April 21, 2018

Took this licking, and kept on ticking:

Jamie Oleksiak runs into Claude Giroux. pic.twitter.com/P3XM1a5DUC

— Sons of Penn (@SonsofPenn) April 21, 2018

And then reminded every one of his teammates as they came off the ice, just how big their effort was:

Giroux loves the clutch effort from Couturier pic.twitter.com/YMEFZbACOW

— Sons of Penn (@SonsofPenn) April 21, 2018

It was a great response from a great player in the face of criticism that he hasn’t yet shown up in the playoffs. If Giroux can get going, things could get really interesting really quickly.

4. Teen Wolf

I mean, who else can you compare Val Filppula too?

Before Game 5, Filppula was Scott Howard. A non-descript, regular guy on the team who did next to nothing to make his team better.

But then, out of nowhere, he arrived on the top line of the Flyers last night in his hairy glory, fangs out, and posted his best game as a Flyer.

One completely unexpected shorthanded goal, two more assists for a three-point effort.

It was a decision that no one – and I really mean no one – thought would work. Dave Hakstol had to be completely out of his mind to put Filppula on the top line between Giroux and Jake Voracek.

The entire hockey world was flabbergasted when they heard that decision… and yet….

Filppula ties it shorthanded! pic.twitter.com/yBmcQUXgtH

— Sons of Penn (@SonsofPenn) April 21, 2018

The cliche is always “Next man up” in sports, but this time, it was true. Filppula stepped into the spot the Flyers needed to fill with Couturier being managed because of his injury, and, holy smokes, he came through.

It was the first time the “veteran presence” response we always get from the coach rolled a seven on the craps table.

I’m not sure this can work over the course of three games (or however long this team survives) but for one game, it was the right button pushed by the coach.

5. Maximus

Provorov was a gladiator. He played 30:07 and the game didn’t go into overtime. He was on the ice for more than half the game – and he was sensational.

If the Flyers somehow do pull out this series, he could be the most unheralded MVP of a series in the history of the sport.

He is really the only reliable defensive defenseman the Flyers are putting on the ice. Andrew MacDonald has been OK this series, but other than that… that’s it. Provorov is being asked to do everything – and he does it well.

But… this happened:

That doesn’t look good.

The Flyers said they will update his injury today, but I guarantee that update is:

Upper body injury; day-to-day/game-time decision.

Some reporters said “he looked good” walking to the bus last night (he didn’t talk after the game because he was getting treatment) but really guys, how the hell can you tell how he looks by him walking to the bus in his suit when the injury is likely in the vicinity of his shoulder?

Knowing Provorov, he will take the same warrior mentality as Couturier and play, but if he is dinged up, that can’t bode well for the Flyers, since they count on him for so, so, so much.

In conclusion, this was a good game for the Flyers. It was a gutty win. It wasn’t great hockey, but it was good hockey. We finally had a game that felt like a playoff game. It was a little more physical (although I think the guy counting hits in Pittsburgh was having double vision – there weren’t THAT many).

But, Pittsburgh had bad games from Kris Letang and Phil Kessel. Evgeni Malkin was dominant, but didn’t score. If he keeps playing like that, he’s eventually going to get his, and Crosby is Crosby.

So, expect a better all-around effort from the Penguins too.

I’m not a believer. I don’t see them coming back in this series. And, I kind of felt this series would go six games from the jump (thus my prediction on the Snow the Goalie Podcast), but I’ve been wrong about the Flyers before, and they do seem to find a way, especially when everyone counts them out, so you never know….

Reprieve! Reprieve! Flyers Still Alive After Some Memorable Performances. published first on https://footballhighlightseurope.tumblr.com/

[cristinajourdanqp]

21 Books to Begin 2018

The book is an ancient technology whose importance has only increased in modern times. With a book, you gain access to another person’s mind or life experiences. That’s hard to beat. People who aren’t reading are really selling themselves short and missing out on an enjoyable pastime as well as a leg up on the competition.

Here are some fantastic books to dig into this coming year. Most of them are new and deal with health, fitness, and nutrition. Others are about history, productivity, or self-improvement. Some are just fun reads. They’re some of my recent (or long-time) favorites and all great options for people looking to read more this coming year.

Health and Nutrition Keto Reset by yours truly and Brad Kearns

What can I say? I’m shamelessly sticking this at the top because giving people the tools to unlock their inherent fat-burning abilities is extremely important. And not just for the way we look in a mirror and fit our clothes, but also for how our brain functions, how we age, and how we burn fuel during physical activity. Not everyone has to (or even should) go keto forever, but everyone should spend some time in a ketogenic state. This book reveals the best way to do so safely and sustainably.

For: Anyone who wants to burn fat more effectively.

Wired to Eat by Robb Wolf

Robb is one of the greatest at breaking down complex scientific topics into easily-digestible nuggets of actionable information that anyone can absorb and utilize. This latest book is a few hundreds pages of exactly that. If you want to understand why eating and moving right is so hard for so many on a biochemical and behavioral level—and then learn how to overcome it to achieve optimal health and wellness—read this book.

For: Anyone struggling with eating or exercising the way they know they should.

Genius Foods by Max Lugavere

More than how much we can lift, how fast we can run, or even how good we look naked, our primary concern—above all else—is making our brains work well into old age. Nobody wants to lose control of their mental faculties, because once that goes, everything else follows and nothing else matters. Lugavere’s upcoming book (due March 2018) explains how to prevent dementia, improve cognitive function, and preserve psychological health using nutritional and lifestyle interventions. Very important topic.

For: Big-brained hominids.

Unconventional Medicine by Chris Kresser

I always like to hear and read what Chris has to say on health and nutrition. He’s very careful with his recommendations and rarely makes mistakes. With that in mind, his latest book is a powerful and convincing plea for medical practitioners to help him fix a broken medical system that applies ineffective bandaids to complex chronic health issues rather than try to solve them. If you think we need to redesign healthcare (we do) and aren’t impressed with any of the current offerings on the table (me neither), this book will show us a way forward.

For: Fed-up, burned-out doctors.

Body Love by Kelly LeVeque

Do you love your body? Few do. Kelly LeVeque shows you how to stop the food obsession and start loving your body, but not because you’re deluded about your own health and fitness. You’ll learn to love it because you’ve made it fit and healthy.

For: People looking for a different perspective.

Paleo Principles by Sarah Ballantyne

A one-stop shop for going paleo that includes everything you’ll need, including the science behind the diet, step-by-step guides for incorporating the new way of eating and living, meal plans, recipes, and well, what else could you ever need?

For: Beginners or old-timers who need a refresher.

The Salt Fix by James NiColantonio

For decades the experts have inundated us with recommendations to reduce salt in our diets. They said it was responsible for hypertension and heart disease, bloating and kidney disease. The Salt Fix destroys these myths, explaining not only why salt isn’t the villain it’s made out to be but also why salt is an essential part of the human diet. A great read.

For: Anyone still a little nervous about sodium.

Fitness and Movement The Brave Athlete by Simon Marshall and Paterson Lesley

Between cutting edge nutrition and training techniques, gadgets that track recovery, mobility programs designed to minimize injuries and advanced surgical techniques designed to fix them, modern athletes have the physical side of competition pretty well taken care of. Unfortunately, those can’t really help the mental side of it all. In The Brave Athlete, sport psychologist Marshall and elite triathlete Lesley provide the tools for getting to and defeating the root cause of the mental dilemmas modern athletes face.

For: Athletes.

Deskbound by Kelly Starrett

We all know how excessive sitting is destroying our bodies and setting us up for shorter, worse lives. In this book, Kelly Starrett doesn’t just diagnose the problem. He gives you specific movements, skills, and other solutions to not only sit less, but make the sitting you do less damaging.

For: Desk jockeys.

Cookbooks Kitchen Intuition by Devyn Sisson

I may be biased. This is my daughter’s book, and I’m the publisher. I don’t care—I was there during the hundreds of hours of recipe trials. I tasted it all. I smelled it all. The food is good. Best of all, Devyn’s book fills a void for many of her generation who don’t know their way around the kitchen. cooking is an important skill that too many people are letting drift into obscurity; buy this book and fight back!

For: Anyone who wants to discover (or rekindle) a love for cooking.

The Primal Kitchen Cookbook by yours truly

I got together with some of the top names in paleo and Primal to cook some awesome food then tell you guys how to cook it, too. Many of the recipes use Primal Kitchen products, so be warned (thoughh you can always make substitutions; they just might not taste the same!).

For: Anyone who likes MDA.

Ready or Not! by Michelle Tam and Henry Fong

NomNomPaleo continues to be the best paleo recipe blog around, and now they’re out with a brand new book. It’s got their signature aesthetic style that everyone knows and loves. It’s got the requisite beautiful photography. But most important, the food is really, really good. Buy this one.

For: Fans of umami.

Healing Mushrooms by Tero Isokauppila

Mushrooms are a mystery. They’re often relegated to the vegetable category, but they’re much more than that. There are hundreds of edible mushrooms available, and they’re all different from each other. What’s coolest is that mushrooms don’t just taste great. They’re usually downright medicinal. If you’re curious about eating these incredibly healthy life forms but don’t know where to start, this book is just the ticket.

For: People who listened to Paul Stamets on Joe Rogan the other day.

Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat by Samin Nosrat

More than just write a recipe book, Nosrat lays out the basic blueprint for creating food that tastes good to the largest audience. Recipes are great and all, but by reading this book you’ll learn how to use basic elements of good cooking—salt, for enhancing flavor; fat, for delivering flavor and providing textural richness; acid, for balancing flavors; and heat, for controlling the texture of the food. Everything after that is just window dressing. 

For: Beginners and advanced cooks.

Against All Grain Celebrations by Danielle Walker

Despite (or perhaps because of) having an autoimmune disease, Danielle Walker cooks incredible food. She can’t eat grains or dairy, which many foodies consider a death knell for any real chef. Not so: Against All Grain Celebrations shows how cooking with only ancestral, paleo ingredients is more than you need to make food that outshines everything else at the party.

For: People food food intolerances, autoimmune diseases, or a desire to eat delicious food.

Pleasure Mosquito Coast by Paul Theroux

This is one of my favorite books of all time. It’s the story of a brilliant but unrecognized inventor who uproots his family to move to the Honduran jungle, where he tries to start a small slice of civilization free of rampant consumerism and crushing materialism. I use his descent into madness as a barometer for my outrage at society.

The movie’s pretty good, too, with the late and great River Phoenix along with one of Harrison Ford’s best and most under-appreciated performances.

For: Outsiders.

Orphan X by Gregg Hurwitz

This is just a well-done thriller about a former secret agent who left the fold after doing one too many unsavory jobs and now works pro-bono for good causes. Great for a rainy weekend or day at the beach (weather depending).

For: Fans of the Jason Bourne books/movies.

Philip K. Dick short story collection by Philip K. Dick

I’ve read a lot of Dick short stories, and I can never keep track of which collections are which. All I know is that he’s a master at building horrifying yet believable worlds in the span of a few pages. He’s got some great novels, like Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep and The Man in the High Castle, but some of them run a bit long and sprawl a bit too much. His short stories are more focused, easy to digest, and sit with you a long time. This particular collection includes Minority Report (inspired the movie) and We Can Remember It For You Wholesale (inspired Total Recall).

For: People wondering about what the future holds, fans of Black Mirror.

The Force by Don Winslow

The best novel I’ve read in many years. This is cop fiction at its very best, but it’s also not a book to be pigeonholed. Complex in its portrait of a city and a central character, there’s real meat to be appreciated here. Be warned, though: it’s dark, gritty, and unrelenting.

For: Anyone into crime novels.

Self-Improvement Tribe of Mentors by Tim Ferriss

Tim Ferriss is the king of productivity, and in this latest book, he draws on his considerable well of mentors for their advice about how to live and work well. He sent 11 questions (read them here) to all the experts, iconoclasts, and top performers he knows, then compiled their answers in this new book. It’s a great one to thumb through and digest in bits and bites.

For: Anyone who wants to know how the greats think.

Deep Work by Cal Newport

We have more productivity tools than ever before. We can access millions of books, articles, studies, and lectures in seconds, much of it free. This ease of access to information is a blessing and a curse, because there are distracting forces vying for our attention. It’s far easier to get sucked into your email,  social media spat, or a clickbait article than it is to stay focused for hours at a time on a task or learning something that will further your goals. But those who can stay focused and do what Cal Newport calls “deep work” will have a huge advantage in the coming years.

For: Anyone interested in overcoming distraction and increasing focus.

History and Culture Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari

Sapiens follows humans from our early proto-hominid days up through the present day. From encounters to Neanderthals to the cognitive revolution to the advent of agriculture to the creation of money as a concept to the establishment of the major religions to the scientific revoltuion to the industrial revolution to the information age to what Harari suspects will be the end of Homo sapiens as we know them (us), the book is an entertaining overview of human history and a clever guess at what may lie in store.

For: Anyone interested in grand narratives.

The Abolition of Man by C.S. Lewis

By no means a recent release, this is C.S. Lewis’ argument against moral relativity and for the existence of an objective, foundational moral code, which he calls the Tao. I’m not sure where I come down on the question, but it’s certainly something I’ve been thinking about harder than ever. It’s a quick but heavy read.

For: Anyone looking to get their bearings.

That’s it for me, folks. What about you? What are you reading? What are you planning to read? (I’m always on the lookout for new favorites.) Thanks for stopping by today. Take care, everybody.

[watsonrodriquezie]

21 Books to Begin 2018

The book is an ancient technology whose importance has only increased in modern times. With a book, you gain access to another person’s mind or life experiences. That’s hard to beat. People who aren’t reading are really selling themselves short and missing out on an enjoyable pastime as well as a leg up on the competition.

Here are some fantastic books to dig into this coming year. Most of them are new and deal with health, fitness, and nutrition. Others are about history, productivity, or self-improvement. Some are just fun reads. They’re some of my recent (or long-time) favorites and all great options for people looking to read more this coming year.

Health and Nutrition Keto Reset by yours truly and Brad Kearns

What can I say? I’m shamelessly sticking this at the top because giving people the tools to unlock their inherent fat-burning abilities is extremely important. And not just for the way we look in a mirror and fit our clothes, but also for how our brain functions, how we age, and how we burn fuel during physical activity. Not everyone has to (or even should) go keto forever, but everyone should spend some time in a ketogenic state. This book reveals the best way to do so safely and sustainably.

For: Anyone who wants to burn fat more effectively.

Wired to Eat by Robb Wolf

Robb is one of the greatest at breaking down complex scientific topics into easily-digestible nuggets of actionable information that anyone can absorb and utilize. This latest book is a few hundreds pages of exactly that. If you want to understand why eating and moving right is so hard for so many on a biochemical and behavioral level—and then learn how to overcome it to achieve optimal health and wellness—read this book.

For: Anyone struggling with eating or exercising the way they know they should.

Genius Foods by Max Lugavere

More than how much we can lift, how fast we can run, or even how good we look naked, our primary concern—above all else—is making our brains work well into old age. Nobody wants to lose control of their mental faculties, because once that goes, everything else follows and nothing else matters. Lugavere’s upcoming book (due March 2018) explains how to prevent dementia, improve cognitive function, and preserve psychological health using nutritional and lifestyle interventions. Very important topic.

For: Big-brained hominids.

Unconventional Medicine by Chris Kresser

I always like to hear and read what Chris has to say on health and nutrition. He’s very careful with his recommendations and rarely makes mistakes. With that in mind, his latest book is a powerful and convincing plea for medical practitioners to help him fix a broken medical system that applies ineffective bandaids to complex chronic health issues rather than try to solve them. If you think we need to redesign healthcare (we do) and aren’t impressed with any of the current offerings on the table (me neither), this book will show us a way forward.

For: Fed-up, burned-out doctors.

Body Love by Kelly LeVeque

Do you love your body? Few do. Kelly LeVeque shows you how to stop the food obsession and start loving your body, but not because you’re deluded about your own health and fitness. You’ll learn to love it because you’ve made it fit and healthy.

For: People looking for a different perspective.

Paleo Principles by Sarah Ballantyne

A one-stop shop for going paleo that includes everything you’ll need, including the science behind the diet, step-by-step guides for incorporating the new way of eating and living, meal plans, recipes, and well, what else could you ever need?

For: Beginners or old-timers who need a refresher.

The Salt Fix by James NiColantonio

For decades the experts have inundated us with recommendations to reduce salt in our diets. They said it was responsible for hypertension and heart disease, bloating and kidney disease. The Salt Fix destroys these myths, explaining not only why salt isn’t the villain it’s made out to be but also why salt is an essential part of the human diet. A great read.

For: Anyone still a little nervous about sodium.

Fitness and Movement The Brave Athlete by Simon Marshall and Paterson Lesley

Between cutting edge nutrition and training techniques, gadgets that track recovery, mobility programs designed to minimize injuries and advanced surgical techniques designed to fix them, modern athletes have the physical side of competition pretty well taken care of. Unfortunately, those can’t really help the mental side of it all. In The Brave Athlete, sport psychologist Marshall and elite triathlete Lesley provide the tools for getting to and defeating the root cause of the mental dilemmas modern athletes face.

For: Athletes.

Deskbound by Kelly Starrett

We all know how excessive sitting is destroying our bodies and setting us up for shorter, worse lives. In this book, Kelly Starrett doesn’t just diagnose the problem. He gives you specific movements, skills, and other solutions to not only sit less, but make the sitting you do less damaging.

For: Desk jockeys.

Cookbooks Kitchen Intuition by Devyn Sisson

I may be biased. This is my daughter’s book, and I’m the publisher. I don’t care—I was there during the hundreds of hours of recipe trials. I tasted it all. I smelled it all. The food is good. Best of all, Devyn’s book fills a void for many of her generation who don’t know their way around the kitchen. cooking is an important skill that too many people are letting drift into obscurity; buy this book and fight back!

For: Anyone who wants to discover (or rekindle) a love for cooking.

The Primal Kitchen Cookbook by yours truly

I got together with some of the top names in paleo and Primal to cook some awesome food then tell you guys how to cook it, too. Many of the recipes use Primal Kitchen products, so be warned (thoughh you can always make substitutions; they just might not taste the same!).

For: Anyone who likes MDA.

Ready or Not! by Michelle Tam and Henry Fong

NomNomPaleo continues to be the best paleo recipe blog around, and now they’re out with a brand new book. It’s got their signature aesthetic style that everyone knows and loves. It’s got the requisite beautiful photography. But most important, the food is really, really good. Buy this one.

For: Fans of umami.

Healing Mushrooms by Tero Isokauppila

Mushrooms are a mystery. They’re often relegated to the vegetable category, but they’re much more than that. There are hundreds of edible mushrooms available, and they’re all different from each other. What’s coolest is that mushrooms don’t just taste great. They’re usually downright medicinal. If you’re curious about eating these incredibly healthy life forms but don’t know where to start, this book is just the ticket.

For: People who listened to Paul Stamets on Joe Rogan the other day.

Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat by Samin Nosrat

More than just write a recipe book, Nosrat lays out the basic blueprint for creating food that tastes good to the largest audience. Recipes are great and all, but by reading this book you’ll learn how to use basic elements of good cooking—salt, for enhancing flavor; fat, for delivering flavor and providing textural richness; acid, for balancing flavors; and heat, for controlling the texture of the food. Everything after that is just window dressing. 

For: Beginners and advanced cooks.

Against All Grain Celebrations by Danielle Walker

Despite (or perhaps because of) having an autoimmune disease, Danielle Walker cooks incredible food. She can’t eat grains or dairy, which many foodies consider a death knell for any real chef. Not so: Against All Grain Celebrations shows how cooking with only ancestral, paleo ingredients is more than you need to make food that outshines everything else at the party.

For: People food food intolerances, autoimmune diseases, or a desire to eat delicious food.

Pleasure Mosquito Coast by Paul Theroux

This is one of my favorite books of all time. It’s the story of a brilliant but unrecognized inventor who uproots his family to move to the Honduran jungle, where he tries to start a small slice of civilization free of rampant consumerism and crushing materialism. I use his descent into madness as a barometer for my outrage at society.

The movie’s pretty good, too, with the late and great River Phoenix along with one of Harrison Ford’s best and most under-appreciated performances.

For: Outsiders.

Orphan X by Gregg Hurwitz

This is just a well-done thriller about a former secret agent who left the fold after doing one too many unsavory jobs and now works pro-bono for good causes. Great for a rainy weekend or day at the beach (weather depending).

For: Fans of the Jason Bourne books/movies.

Philip K. Dick short story collection by Philip K. Dick

I’ve read a lot of Dick short stories, and I can never keep track of which collections are which. All I know is that he’s a master at building horrifying yet believable worlds in the span of a few pages. He’s got some great novels, like Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep and The Man in the High Castle, but some of them run a bit long and sprawl a bit too much. His short stories are more focused, easy to digest, and sit with you a long time. This particular collection includes Minority Report (inspired the movie) and We Can Remember It For You Wholesale (inspired Total Recall).

For: People wondering about what the future holds, fans of Black Mirror.

The Force by Don Winslow

The best novel I’ve read in many years. This is cop fiction at its very best, but it’s also not a book to be pigeonholed. Complex in its portrait of a city and a central character, there’s real meat to be appreciated here. Be warned, though: it’s dark, gritty, and unrelenting.

For: Anyone into crime novels.

Self-Improvement Tribe of Mentors by Tim Ferriss

Tim Ferriss is the king of productivity, and in this latest book, he draws on his considerable well of mentors for their advice about how to live and work well. He sent 11 questions (read them here) to all the experts, iconoclasts, and top performers he knows, then compiled their answers in this new book. It’s a great one to thumb through and digest in bits and bites.

For: Anyone who wants to know how the greats think.

Deep Work by Cal Newport

We have more productivity tools than ever before. We can access millions of books, articles, studies, and lectures in seconds, much of it free. This ease of access to information is a blessing and a curse, because there are distracting forces vying for our attention. It’s far easier to get sucked into your email,  social media spat, or a clickbait article than it is to stay focused for hours at a time on a task or learning something that will further your goals. But those who can stay focused and do what Cal Newport calls “deep work” will have a huge advantage in the coming years.

For: Anyone interested in overcoming distraction and increasing focus.

History and Culture Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari

Sapiens follows humans from our early proto-hominid days up through the present day. From encounters to Neanderthals to the cognitive revolution to the advent of agriculture to the creation of money as a concept to the establishment of the major religions to the scientific revoltuion to the industrial revolution to the information age to what Harari suspects will be the end of Homo sapiens as we know them (us), the book is an entertaining overview of human history and a clever guess at what may lie in store.

For: Anyone interested in grand narratives.

The Abolition of Man by C.S. Lewis

By no means a recent release, this is C.S. Lewis’ argument against moral relativity and for the existence of an objective, foundational moral code, which he calls the Tao. I’m not sure where I come down on the question, but it’s certainly something I’ve been thinking about harder than ever. It’s a quick but heavy read.

For: Anyone looking to get their bearings.

That’s it for me, folks. What about you? What are you reading? What are you planning to read? (I’m always on the lookout for new favorites.) Thanks for stopping by today. Take care, everybody.

[fishermariawo]

21 Books to Begin 2018

The book is an ancient technology whose importance has only increased in modern times. With a book, you gain access to another person’s mind or life experiences. That’s hard to beat. People who aren’t reading are really selling themselves short and missing out on an enjoyable pastime as well as a leg up on the competition.

Here are some fantastic books to dig into this coming year. Most of them are new and deal with health, fitness, and nutrition. Others are about history, productivity, or self-improvement. Some are just fun reads. They’re some of my recent (or long-time) favorites and all great options for people looking to read more this coming year.

Health and Nutrition Keto Reset by yours truly and Brad Kearns

What can I say? I’m shamelessly sticking this at the top because giving people the tools to unlock their inherent fat-burning abilities is extremely important. And not just for the way we look in a mirror and fit our clothes, but also for how our brain functions, how we age, and how we burn fuel during physical activity. Not everyone has to (or even should) go keto forever, but everyone should spend some time in a ketogenic state. This book reveals the best way to do so safely and sustainably.

For: Anyone who wants to burn fat more effectively.

Wired to Eat by Robb Wolf

Robb is one of the greatest at breaking down complex scientific topics into easily-digestible nuggets of actionable information that anyone can absorb and utilize. This latest book is a few hundreds pages of exactly that. If you want to understand why eating and moving right is so hard for so many on a biochemical and behavioral level—and then learn how to overcome it to achieve optimal health and wellness—read this book.

For: Anyone struggling with eating or exercising the way they know they should.

Genius Foods by Max Lugavere

More than how much we can lift, how fast we can run, or even how good we look naked, our primary concern—above all else—is making our brains work well into old age. Nobody wants to lose control of their mental faculties, because once that goes, everything else follows and nothing else matters. Lugavere’s upcoming book (due March 2018) explains how to prevent dementia, improve cognitive function, and preserve psychological health using nutritional and lifestyle interventions. Very important topic.

For: Big-brained hominids.

Unconventional Medicine by Chris Kresser

I always like to hear and read what Chris has to say on health and nutrition. He’s very careful with his recommendations and rarely makes mistakes. With that in mind, his latest book is a powerful and convincing plea for medical practitioners to help him fix a broken medical system that applies ineffective bandaids to complex chronic health issues rather than try to solve them. If you think we need to redesign healthcare (we do) and aren’t impressed with any of the current offerings on the table (me neither), this book will show us a way forward.

For: Fed-up, burned-out doctors.

Body Love by Kelly LeVeque

Do you love your body? Few do. Kelly LeVeque shows you how to stop the food obsession and start loving your body, but not because you’re deluded about your own health and fitness. You’ll learn to love it because you’ve made it fit and healthy.

For: People looking for a different perspective.

Paleo Principles by Sarah Ballantyne

A one-stop shop for going paleo that includes everything you’ll need, including the science behind the diet, step-by-step guides for incorporating the new way of eating and living, meal plans, recipes, and well, what else could you ever need?

For: Beginners or old-timers who need a refresher.

The Salt Fix by James NiColantonio

For decades the experts have inundated us with recommendations to reduce salt in our diets. They said it was responsible for hypertension and heart disease, bloating and kidney disease. The Salt Fix destroys these myths, explaining not only why salt isn’t the villain it’s made out to be but also why salt is an essential part of the human diet. A great read.

For: Anyone still a little nervous about sodium.

Fitness and Movement The Brave Athlete by Simon Marshall and Paterson Lesley

Between cutting edge nutrition and training techniques, gadgets that track recovery, mobility programs designed to minimize injuries and advanced surgical techniques designed to fix them, modern athletes have the physical side of competition pretty well taken care of. Unfortunately, those can’t really help the mental side of it all. In The Brave Athlete, sport psychologist Marshall and elite triathlete Lesley provide the tools for getting to and defeating the root cause of the mental dilemmas modern athletes face.

For: Athletes.

Deskbound by Kelly Starrett

We all know how excessive sitting is destroying our bodies and setting us up for shorter, worse lives. In this book, Kelly Starrett doesn’t just diagnose the problem. He gives you specific movements, skills, and other solutions to not only sit less, but make the sitting you do less damaging.

For: Desk jockeys.

Cookbooks Kitchen Intuition by Devyn Sisson

I may be biased. This is my daughter’s book, and I’m the publisher. I don’t care—I was there during the hundreds of hours of recipe trials. I tasted it all. I smelled it all. The food is good. Best of all, Devyn’s book fills a void for many of her generation who don’t know their way around the kitchen. cooking is an important skill that too many people are letting drift into obscurity; buy this book and fight back!

For: Anyone who wants to discover (or rekindle) a love for cooking.

The Primal Kitchen Cookbook by yours truly

I got together with some of the top names in paleo and Primal to cook some awesome food then tell you guys how to cook it, too. Many of the recipes use Primal Kitchen products, so be warned (thoughh you can always make substitutions; they just might not taste the same!).

For: Anyone who likes MDA.

Ready or Not! by Michelle Tam and Henry Fong

NomNomPaleo continues to be the best paleo recipe blog around, and now they’re out with a brand new book. It’s got their signature aesthetic style that everyone knows and loves. It’s got the requisite beautiful photography. But most important, the food is really, really good. Buy this one.

For: Fans of umami.

Healing Mushrooms by Tero Isokauppila

Mushrooms are a mystery. They’re often relegated to the vegetable category, but they’re much more than that. There are hundreds of edible mushrooms available, and they’re all different from each other. What’s coolest is that mushrooms don’t just taste great. They’re usually downright medicinal. If you’re curious about eating these incredibly healthy life forms but don’t know where to start, this book is just the ticket.

For: People who listened to Paul Stamets on Joe Rogan the other day.

Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat by Samin Nosrat

More than just write a recipe book, Nosrat lays out the basic blueprint for creating food that tastes good to the largest audience. Recipes are great and all, but by reading this book you’ll learn how to use basic elements of good cooking—salt, for enhancing flavor; fat, for delivering flavor and providing textural richness; acid, for balancing flavors; and heat, for controlling the texture of the food. Everything after that is just window dressing. 

For: Beginners and advanced cooks.

Against All Grain Celebrations by Danielle Walker

Despite (or perhaps because of) having an autoimmune disease, Danielle Walker cooks incredible food. She can’t eat grains or dairy, which many foodies consider a death knell for any real chef. Not so: Against All Grain Celebrations shows how cooking with only ancestral, paleo ingredients is more than you need to make food that outshines everything else at the party.

For: People food food intolerances, autoimmune diseases, or a desire to eat delicious food.

Pleasure Mosquito Coast by Paul Theroux

This is one of my favorite books of all time. It’s the story of a brilliant but unrecognized inventor who uproots his family to move to the Honduran jungle, where he tries to start a small slice of civilization free of rampant consumerism and crushing materialism. I use his descent into madness as a barometer for my outrage at society.

The movie’s pretty good, too, with the late and great River Phoenix along with one of Harrison Ford’s best and most under-appreciated performances.

For: Outsiders.

Orphan X by Gregg Hurwitz

This is just a well-done thriller about a former secret agent who left the fold after doing one too many unsavory jobs and now works pro-bono for good causes. Great for a rainy weekend or day at the beach (weather depending).

For: Fans of the Jason Bourne books/movies.

Philip K. Dick short story collection by Philip K. Dick

I’ve read a lot of Dick short stories, and I can never keep track of which collections are which. All I know is that he’s a master at building horrifying yet believable worlds in the span of a few pages. He’s got some great novels, like Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep and The Man in the High Castle, but some of them run a bit long and sprawl a bit too much. His short stories are more focused, easy to digest, and sit with you a long time. This particular collection includes Minority Report (inspired the movie) and We Can Remember It For You Wholesale (inspired Total Recall).

For: People wondering about what the future holds, fans of Black Mirror.

The Force by Don Winslow

The best novel I’ve read in many years. This is cop fiction at its very best, but it’s also not a book to be pigeonholed. Complex in its portrait of a city and a central character, there’s real meat to be appreciated here. Be warned, though: it’s dark, gritty, and unrelenting.

For: Anyone into crime novels.

Self-Improvement Tribe of Mentors by Tim Ferriss

Tim Ferriss is the king of productivity, and in this latest book, he draws on his considerable well of mentors for their advice about how to live and work well. He sent 11 questions (read them here) to all the experts, iconoclasts, and top performers he knows, then compiled their answers in this new book. It’s a great one to thumb through and digest in bits and bites.

For: Anyone who wants to know how the greats think.

Deep Work by Cal Newport

We have more productivity tools than ever before. We can access millions of books, articles, studies, and lectures in seconds, much of it free. This ease of access to information is a blessing and a curse, because there are distracting forces vying for our attention. It’s far easier to get sucked into your email,  social media spat, or a clickbait article than it is to stay focused for hours at a time on a task or learning something that will further your goals. But those who can stay focused and do what Cal Newport calls “deep work” will have a huge advantage in the coming years.

For: Anyone interested in overcoming distraction and increasing focus.

History and Culture Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari

Sapiens follows humans from our early proto-hominid days up through the present day. From encounters to Neanderthals to the cognitive revolution to the advent of agriculture to the creation of money as a concept to the establishment of the major religions to the scientific revoltuion to the industrial revolution to the information age to what Harari suspects will be the end of Homo sapiens as we know them (us), the book is an entertaining overview of human history and a clever guess at what may lie in store.

For: Anyone interested in grand narratives.

The Abolition of Man by C.S. Lewis

By no means a recent release, this is C.S. Lewis’ argument against moral relativity and for the existence of an objective, foundational moral code, which he calls the Tao. I’m not sure where I come down on the question, but it’s certainly something I’ve been thinking about harder than ever. It’s a quick but heavy read.

For: Anyone looking to get their bearings.

That’s it for me, folks. What about you? What are you reading? What are you planning to read? (I’m always on the lookout for new favorites.) Thanks for stopping by today. Take care, everybody.

[cynthiamwashington]

21 Books to Begin 2018

The book is an ancient technology whose importance has only increased in modern times. With a book, you gain access to another person’s mind or life experiences. That’s hard to beat. People who aren’t reading are really selling themselves short and missing out on an enjoyable pastime as well as a leg up on the competition.

Here are some fantastic books to dig into this coming year. Most of them are new and deal with health, fitness, and nutrition. Others are about history, productivity, or self-improvement. Some are just fun reads. They’re some of my recent (or long-time) favorites and all great options for people looking to read more this coming year.

Health and Nutrition

Keto Reset by yours truly and Brad Kearns

What can I say? I’m shamelessly sticking this at the top because giving people the tools to unlock their inherent fat-burning abilities is extremely important. And not just for the way we look in a mirror and fit our clothes, but also for how our brain functions, how we age, and how we burn fuel during physical activity. Not everyone has to (or even should) go keto forever, but everyone should spend some time in a ketogenic state. This book reveals the best way to do so safely and sustainably.

For: Anyone who wants to burn fat more effectively.

  Wired to Eat by Robb Wolf

Robb is one of the greatest at breaking down complex scientific topics into easily-digestible nuggets of actionable information that anyone can absorb and utilize. This latest book is a few hundreds pages of exactly that. If you want to understand why eating and moving right is so hard for so many on a biochemical and behavioral level—and then learn how to overcome it to achieve optimal health and wellness—read this book.

For: Anyone struggling with eating or exercising the way they know they should.

  Genius Foods by Max Lugavere

More than how much we can lift, how fast we can run, or even how good we look naked, our primary concern—above all else—is making our brains work well into old age. Nobody wants to lose control of their mental faculties, because once that goes, everything else follows and nothing else matters. Lugavere’s upcoming book (due March 2018) explains how to prevent dementia, improve cognitive function, and preserve psychological health using nutritional and lifestyle interventions. Very important topic.

For: Big-brained hominids.

  Unconventional Medicine by Chris Kresser

I always like to hear and read what Chris has to say on health and nutrition. He’s very careful with his recommendations and rarely makes mistakes. With that in mind, his latest book is a powerful and convincing plea for medical practitioners to help him fix a broken medical system that applies ineffective bandaids to complex chronic health issues rather than try to solve them. If you think we need to redesign healthcare (we do) and aren’t impressed with any of the current offerings on the table (me neither), this book will show us a way forward.

For: Fed-up, burned-out doctors.

  Body Love by Kelly LeVeque

Do you love your body? Few do. Kelly LeVeque shows you how to stop the food obsession and start loving your body, but not because you’re deluded about your own health and fitness. You’ll learn to love it because you’ve made it fit and healthy.

For: People looking for a different perspective.

  Paleo Principles by Sarah Ballantyne

A one-stop shop for going paleo that includes everything you’ll need, including the science behind the diet, step-by-step guides for incorporating the new way of eating and living, meal plans, recipes, and well, what else could you ever need?

For: Beginners or old-timers who need a refresher.

  The Salt Fix by James NiColantonio

For decades the experts have inundated us with recommendations to reduce salt in our diets. They said it was responsible for hypertension and heart disease, bloating and kidney disease. The Salt Fix destroys these myths, explaining not only why salt isn’t the villain it’s made out to be but also why salt is an essential part of the human diet. A great read.

For: Anyone still a little nervous about sodium.

  Fitness and Movement

The Brave Athlete by Simon Marshall and Paterson Lesley

Between cutting edge nutrition and training techniques, gadgets that track recovery, mobility programs designed to minimize injuries and advanced surgical techniques designed to fix them, modern athletes have the physical side of competition pretty well taken care of. Unfortunately, those can’t really help the mental side of it all. In The Brave Athlete, sport psychologist Marshall and elite triathlete Lesley provide the tools for getting to and defeating the root cause of the mental dilemmas modern athletes face.

For: Athletes.

  Deskbound by Kelly Starrett

We all know how excessive sitting is destroying our bodies and setting us up for shorter, worse lives. In this book, Kelly Starrett doesn’t just diagnose the problem. He gives you specific movements, skills, and other solutions to not only sit less, but make the sitting you do less damaging.

For: Desk jockeys.

  Cookbooks

Kitchen Intuition by Devyn Sisson

I may be biased. This is my daughter’s book, and I’m the publisher. I don’t care—I was there during the hundreds of hours of recipe trials. I tasted it all. I smelled it all. The food is good. Best of all, Devyn’s book fills a void for many of her generation who don’t know their way around the kitchen. cooking is an important skill that too many people are letting drift into obscurity; buy this book and fight back!

For: Anyone who wants to discover (or rekindle) a love for cooking.

  The Primal Kitchen Cookbook by yours truly

I got together with some of the top names in paleo and Primal to cook some awesome food then tell you guys how to cook it, too. Many of the recipes use Primal Kitchen products, so be warned (thoughh you can always make substitutions; they just might not taste the same!).

For: Anyone who likes MDA.

  Ready or Not! by Michelle Tam and Henry Fong

NomNomPaleo continues to be the best paleo recipe blog around, and now they’re out with a brand new book. It’s got their signature aesthetic style that everyone knows and loves. It’s got the requisite beautiful photography. But most important, the food is really, really good. Buy this one.

For: Fans of umami.

  Healing Mushrooms by Tero Isokauppila

Mushrooms are a mystery. They’re often relegated to the vegetable category, but they’re much more than that. There are hundreds of edible mushrooms available, and they’re all different from each other. What’s coolest is that mushrooms don’t just taste great. They’re usually downright medicinal. If you’re curious about eating these incredibly healthy life forms but don’t know where to start, this book is just the ticket.

For: People who listened to Paul Stamets on Joe Rogan the other day.

  Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat by Samin Nosrat

More than just write a recipe book, Nosrat lays out the basic blueprint for creating food that tastes good to the largest audience. Recipes are great and all, but by reading this book you’ll learn how to use basic elements of good cooking—salt, for enhancing flavor; fat, for delivering flavor and providing textural richness; acid, for balancing flavors; and heat, for controlling the texture of the food. Everything after that is just window dressing. 

For: Beginners and advanced cooks.

  Against All Grain Celebrations by Danielle Walker

Despite (or perhaps because of) having an autoimmune disease, Danielle Walker cooks incredible food. She can’t eat grains or dairy, which many foodies consider a death knell for any real chef. Not so: Against All Grain Celebrations shows how cooking with only ancestral, paleo ingredients is more than you need to make food that outshines everything else at the party.

For: People food food intolerances, autoimmune diseases, or a desire to eat delicious food.

  Pleasure

Mosquito Coast by Paul Theroux

This is one of my favorite books of all time. It’s the story of a brilliant but unrecognized inventor who uproots his family to move to the Honduran jungle, where he tries to start a small slice of civilization free of rampant consumerism and crushing materialism. I use his descent into madness as a barometer for my outrage at society.

The movie’s pretty good, too, with the late and great River Phoenix along with one of Harrison Ford’s best and most under-appreciated performances.

For: Outsiders.

  Orphan X by Gregg Hurwitz

This is just a well-done thriller about a former secret agent who left the fold after doing one too many unsavory jobs and now works pro-bono for good causes. Great for a rainy weekend or day at the beach (weather depending).

For: Fans of the Jason Bourne books/movies.

    Philip K. Dick short story collection by Philip K. Dick

I’ve read a lot of Dick short stories, and I can never keep track of which collections are which. All I know is that he’s a master at building horrifying yet believable worlds in the span of a few pages. He’s got some great novels, like Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep and The Man in the High Castle, but some of them run a bit long and sprawl a bit too much. His short stories are more focused, easy to digest, and sit with you a long time. This particular collection includes Minority Report (inspired the movie) and We Can Remember It For You Wholesale (inspired Total Recall).

For: People wondering about what the future holds, fans of Black Mirror.

  The Force by Don Winslow

The best novel I’ve read in many years. This is cop fiction at its very best, but it’s also not a book to be pigeonholed. Complex in its portrait of a city and a central character, there’s real meat to be appreciated here. Be warned, though: it’s dark, gritty, and unrelenting.

For: Anyone into crime novels.

  Self-Improvement

Tribe of Mentors by Tim Ferriss

Tim Ferriss is the king of productivity, and in this latest book, he draws on his considerable well of mentors for their advice about how to live and work well. He sent 11 questions (read them here) to all the experts, iconoclasts, and top performers he knows, then compiled their answers in this new book. It’s a great one to thumb through and digest in bits and bites.

For: Anyone who wants to know how the greats think.

  Deep Work by Cal Newport

We have more productivity tools than ever before. We can access millions of books, articles, studies, and lectures in seconds, much of it free. This ease of access to information is a blessing and a curse, because there are distracting forces vying for our attention. It’s far easier to get sucked into your email,  social media spat, or a clickbait article than it is to stay focused for hours at a time on a task or learning something that will further your goals. But those who can stay focused and do what Cal Newport calls “deep work” will have a huge advantage in the coming years.

For: Anyone interested in overcoming distraction and increasing focus.

  History and Culture

Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari

Sapiens follows humans from our early proto-hominid days up through the present day. From encounters to Neanderthals to the cognitive revolution to the advent of agriculture to the creation of money as a concept to the establishment of the major religions to the scientific revoltuion to the industrial revolution to the information age to what Harari suspects will be the end of Homo sapiens as we know them (us), the book is an entertaining overview of human history and a clever guess at what may lie in store.

For: Anyone interested in grand narratives.

  The Abolition of Man by C.S. Lewis

By no means a recent release, this is C.S. Lewis’ argument against moral relativity and for the existence of an objective, foundational moral code, which he calls the Tao. I’m not sure where I come down on the question, but it’s certainly something I’ve been thinking about harder than ever. It’s a quick but heavy read.

For: Anyone looking to get their bearings.

  That’s it for me, folks. What about you? What are you reading? What are you planning to read? (I’m always on the lookout for new favorites.) Thanks for stopping by today. Take care, everybody.

The post 21 Books to Begin 2018 appeared first on Mark's Daily Apple.

Article source here:Marks’s Daily Apple

[milenasanchezmk]

21 Books to Begin 2018

The book is an ancient technology whose importance has only increased in modern times. With a book, you gain access to another person’s mind or life experiences. That’s hard to beat. People who aren’t reading are really selling themselves short and missing out on an enjoyable pastime as well as a leg up on the competition.

Here are some fantastic books to dig into this coming year. Most of them are new and deal with health, fitness, and nutrition. Others are about history, productivity, or self-improvement. Some are just fun reads. They’re some of my recent (or long-time) favorites and all great options for people looking to read more this coming year.

Health and Nutrition Keto Reset by yours truly and Brad Kearns

What can I say? I’m shamelessly sticking this at the top because giving people the tools to unlock their inherent fat-burning abilities is extremely important. And not just for the way we look in a mirror and fit our clothes, but also for how our brain functions, how we age, and how we burn fuel during physical activity. Not everyone has to (or even should) go keto forever, but everyone should spend some time in a ketogenic state. This book reveals the best way to do so safely and sustainably.

For: Anyone who wants to burn fat more effectively.

Wired to Eat by Robb Wolf

Robb is one of the greatest at breaking down complex scientific topics into easily-digestible nuggets of actionable information that anyone can absorb and utilize. This latest book is a few hundreds pages of exactly that. If you want to understand why eating and moving right is so hard for so many on a biochemical and behavioral level—and then learn how to overcome it to achieve optimal health and wellness—read this book.

For: Anyone struggling with eating or exercising the way they know they should.

Genius Foods by Max Lugavere

More than how much we can lift, how fast we can run, or even how good we look naked, our primary concern—above all else—is making our brains work well into old age. Nobody wants to lose control of their mental faculties, because once that goes, everything else follows and nothing else matters. Lugavere’s upcoming book (due March 2018) explains how to prevent dementia, improve cognitive function, and preserve psychological health using nutritional and lifestyle interventions. Very important topic.

For: Big-brained hominids.

Unconventional Medicine by Chris Kresser

I always like to hear and read what Chris has to say on health and nutrition. He’s very careful with his recommendations and rarely makes mistakes. With that in mind, his latest book is a powerful and convincing plea for medical practitioners to help him fix a broken medical system that applies ineffective bandaids to complex chronic health issues rather than try to solve them. If you think we need to redesign healthcare (we do) and aren’t impressed with any of the current offerings on the table (me neither), this book will show us a way forward.

For: Fed-up, burned-out doctors.

Body Love by Kelly LeVeque

Do you love your body? Few do. Kelly LeVeque shows you how to stop the food obsession and start loving your body, but not because you’re deluded about your own health and fitness. You’ll learn to love it because you’ve made it fit and healthy.

For: People looking for a different perspective.

Paleo Principles by Sarah Ballantyne

A one-stop shop for going paleo that includes everything you’ll need, including the science behind the diet, step-by-step guides for incorporating the new way of eating and living, meal plans, recipes, and well, what else could you ever need?

For: Beginners or old-timers who need a refresher.

The Salt Fix by James NiColantonio

For decades the experts have inundated us with recommendations to reduce salt in our diets. They said it was responsible for hypertension and heart disease, bloating and kidney disease. The Salt Fix destroys these myths, explaining not only why salt isn’t the villain it’s made out to be but also why salt is an essential part of the human diet. A great read.

For: Anyone still a little nervous about sodium.

Fitness and Movement The Brave Athlete by Simon Marshall and Paterson Lesley

Between cutting edge nutrition and training techniques, gadgets that track recovery, mobility programs designed to minimize injuries and advanced surgical techniques designed to fix them, modern athletes have the physical side of competition pretty well taken care of. Unfortunately, those can’t really help the mental side of it all. In The Brave Athlete, sport psychologist Marshall and elite triathlete Lesley provide the tools for getting to and defeating the root cause of the mental dilemmas modern athletes face.

For: Athletes.

Deskbound by Kelly Starrett

We all know how excessive sitting is destroying our bodies and setting us up for shorter, worse lives. In this book, Kelly Starrett doesn’t just diagnose the problem. He gives you specific movements, skills, and other solutions to not only sit less, but make the sitting you do less damaging.

For: Desk jockeys.

Cookbooks Kitchen Intuition by Devyn Sisson

I may be biased. This is my daughter’s book, and I’m the publisher. I don’t care—I was there during the hundreds of hours of recipe trials. I tasted it all. I smelled it all. The food is good. Best of all, Devyn’s book fills a void for many of her generation who don’t know their way around the kitchen. cooking is an important skill that too many people are letting drift into obscurity; buy this book and fight back!

For: Anyone who wants to discover (or rekindle) a love for cooking.

The Primal Kitchen Cookbook by yours truly

I got together with some of the top names in paleo and Primal to cook some awesome food then tell you guys how to cook it, too. Many of the recipes use Primal Kitchen products, so be warned (thoughh you can always make substitutions; they just might not taste the same!).

For: Anyone who likes MDA.

Ready or Not! by Michelle Tam and Henry Fong

NomNomPaleo continues to be the best paleo recipe blog around, and now they’re out with a brand new book. It’s got their signature aesthetic style that everyone knows and loves. It’s got the requisite beautiful photography. But most important, the food is really, really good. Buy this one.

For: Fans of umami.

Healing Mushrooms by Tero Isokauppila

Mushrooms are a mystery. They’re often relegated to the vegetable category, but they’re much more than that. There are hundreds of edible mushrooms available, and they’re all different from each other. What’s coolest is that mushrooms don’t just taste great. They’re usually downright medicinal. If you’re curious about eating these incredibly healthy life forms but don’t know where to start, this book is just the ticket.

For: People who listened to Paul Stamets on Joe Rogan the other day.

Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat by Samin Nosrat

More than just write a recipe book, Nosrat lays out the basic blueprint for creating food that tastes good to the largest audience. Recipes are great and all, but by reading this book you’ll learn how to use basic elements of good cooking—salt, for enhancing flavor; fat, for delivering flavor and providing textural richness; acid, for balancing flavors; and heat, for controlling the texture of the food. Everything after that is just window dressing. 

For: Beginners and advanced cooks.

Against All Grain Celebrations by Danielle Walker

Despite (or perhaps because of) having an autoimmune disease, Danielle Walker cooks incredible food. She can’t eat grains or dairy, which many foodies consider a death knell for any real chef. Not so: Against All Grain Celebrations shows how cooking with only ancestral, paleo ingredients is more than you need to make food that outshines everything else at the party.

For: People food food intolerances, autoimmune diseases, or a desire to eat delicious food.

Pleasure Mosquito Coast by Paul Theroux

This is one of my favorite books of all time. It’s the story of a brilliant but unrecognized inventor who uproots his family to move to the Honduran jungle, where he tries to start a small slice of civilization free of rampant consumerism and crushing materialism. I use his descent into madness as a barometer for my outrage at society.

The movie’s pretty good, too, with the late and great River Phoenix along with one of Harrison Ford’s best and most under-appreciated performances.

For: Outsiders.

Orphan X by Gregg Hurwitz

This is just a well-done thriller about a former secret agent who left the fold after doing one too many unsavory jobs and now works pro-bono for good causes. Great for a rainy weekend or day at the beach (weather depending).

For: Fans of the Jason Bourne books/movies.

Philip K. Dick short story collection by Philip K. Dick

I’ve read a lot of Dick short stories, and I can never keep track of which collections are which. All I know is that he’s a master at building horrifying yet believable worlds in the span of a few pages. He’s got some great novels, like Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep and The Man in the High Castle, but some of them run a bit long and sprawl a bit too much. His short stories are more focused, easy to digest, and sit with you a long time. This particular collection includes Minority Report (inspired the movie) and We Can Remember It For You Wholesale (inspired Total Recall).

For: People wondering about what the future holds, fans of Black Mirror.

The Force by Don Winslow

The best novel I’ve read in many years. This is cop fiction at its very best, but it’s also not a book to be pigeonholed. Complex in its portrait of a city and a central character, there’s real meat to be appreciated here. Be warned, though: it’s dark, gritty, and unrelenting.

For: Anyone into crime novels.

Self-Improvement Tribe of Mentors by Tim Ferriss

Tim Ferriss is the king of productivity, and in this latest book, he draws on his considerable well of mentors for their advice about how to live and work well. He sent 11 questions (read them here) to all the experts, iconoclasts, and top performers he knows, then compiled their answers in this new book. It’s a great one to thumb through and digest in bits and bites.

For: Anyone who wants to know how the greats think.

Deep Work by Cal Newport

We have more productivity tools than ever before. We can access millions of books, articles, studies, and lectures in seconds, much of it free. This ease of access to information is a blessing and a curse, because there are distracting forces vying for our attention. It’s far easier to get sucked into your email,  social media spat, or a clickbait article than it is to stay focused for hours at a time on a task or learning something that will further your goals. But those who can stay focused and do what Cal Newport calls “deep work” will have a huge advantage in the coming years.

For: Anyone interested in overcoming distraction and increasing focus.

History and Culture Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari

Sapiens follows humans from our early proto-hominid days up through the present day. From encounters to Neanderthals to the cognitive revolution to the advent of agriculture to the creation of money as a concept to the establishment of the major religions to the scientific revoltuion to the industrial revolution to the information age to what Harari suspects will be the end of Homo sapiens as we know them (us), the book is an entertaining overview of human history and a clever guess at what may lie in store.

For: Anyone interested in grand narratives.

The Abolition of Man by C.S. Lewis

By no means a recent release, this is C.S. Lewis’ argument against moral relativity and for the existence of an objective, foundational moral code, which he calls the Tao. I’m not sure where I come down on the question, but it’s certainly something I’ve been thinking about harder than ever. It’s a quick but heavy read.

For: Anyone looking to get their bearings.

That’s it for me, folks. What about you? What are you reading? What are you planning to read? (I’m always on the lookout for new favorites.) Thanks for stopping by today. Take care, everybody.

[thesinglesjukebox]

TAYLOR SWIFT - ...READY FOR IT? [5.79] After the last one, sure!

Katherine St Asaph: The old Taylor's not quite dead -- that pre-chorus is pure Nashville melody, from melody to bowdlerization ("you should see the things we do" is about as explicit as someone marveling over a particularly large pumpkin harvest.) Like her former/current/who knows anymore rival, "Ready For It" pumps up Swift's numbers by sounding like interstitial music for Big Sports -- premiered for the NFL, currently being stripped for instrumental parts by NBA promos -- but also like blood sports. The track's a bombed-out, post-apocalyptic version of 1989, the Yeezus to "LWYMTD"'s 808s. Or possibly approaching NIN: the pretty date machine of "Blank Space" gone rogue, locking onto someone arbitrary (the gossip algorithms still cross-referencing it against increasingly nonentity dudes) because "I see nothing better." It's romance only in the literal sense -- the jailer/thief scenario is even pulpier than "Bad Romance" managed -- and otherwise love reduced to plan and execution. The verses are alternatively tryhard, artificial and vaguely offensive, as if it isn't Taylor on the mic but Microsoft Tay. But the all-consuming, heat-seeking mania of a certain inadvisable sort of crush is palpable as adrenaline, and stokes the all-consuming, heat-seeking maximalism of Max Martin and team throwing every resource and songwriting trick into ensuring this is a hit. Petty points for Swift saying the word "island" this many times in a track with no trop-house whatsoever, and given that she's enough of an in-joker to come up with "Nils Sjoberg," I bet it's on purpose. [9]

Ramzi Awn: The most commendable thing about "...Ready For It?" is that it completely erases any memory of the single that preceded it. A confusing, feverish dash for relevance, the song makes Katy Perry's "Swish Swish" sound even more fun, an accomplishment not to be taken lightly. [3]

Alex Clifton: The rapping is an atrocity. The production is a slicker version of Sleigh Bells with half the heart. Taylor's enunciation is bizarre: "no one has to know" is such an awkward line delivery, second only to the nasally "he can be my jailor" and "let the games begin." Her vocals are a piss-poor imitation of Rihanna; at first listen, it's hard to find a shred of the Taylor I've known and loved. It's a travesty. And yet. It's 100% a Taylor production, overdramatic, narcissistic, full of easter egg references to old songs like "Haunted" and "Wildest Dreams". It's obsessive dark love writ large: "I keep him forever / like a vendetta" marries romance and vengeance perfectly. And the sheer force of that chorus makes me want to scream "IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIIIIIGHT" in public. I love the idea of sexy, dirty Taylor, less concerned with perfection and more with ghosts and robbers and gritty feeling, but the haphazard execution of the verses is so frustrating. Par for the course with all Max Martin creations, though, that chorus is a melodic masterpiece. I've got this on repeat and I'm upset about it. [6]

Eleanor Graham: Who would have guessed that the legacy of Taylor Swift's fifth album "reputation" would be to have production so DIABOLICAL that it makes "Welcome To New York" sound like "Heroes"? No one on pop's A, B or C list should come within 100 feet of something that sounds like this. I've seen comparisons to Yeezus, which is fair because they are comparable in terms of sheer nerve, but on tracks like "New Slaves" or "I'm In It", Kanye's sleaze is a feasible sparring partner for electro-roar. Taylor's Pennsylvania-goth-Bratz-doll-masochism-adjacent-revenge-core is not. You'd think that would be obvious! To, you know, anyone! I don't even know what's happening anymore. The 2 points are mainly for the way she says "go", which does something to me; no, I don't want to talk about it. [2]

Stephen Eisermann: Taylor's thrown caution to the wind and no longer gives any fucks. The provocative chorus and the weird, rapid-fire, off-putting rap/sing hybrid verses are the most prominent examples of her willingness to toss out all consistencies previously found in her music. None of this feels like Taylor and that's fun, but I'm not sure everything works. The verses especially, though lyrically fun, are delivered so oddly that the parts that should be "cool," instead make me cringe - the "Burton" line, specifically. I mean, I'm not sure what I was expecting based on the first single, but it certainly wasn't this, for better or worse. [6]

Ryo Miyauchi: Taylor writes her tried-and-true narrative of love as tragedy into self-parody. The bare-bones beat and the anti-chorus structure of "...Ready For It?" laughs at the many hits of 1989. Her self-satisfaction is maddening, truly: the snicker to "the Burton to my Taylor" is designed to drive everyone nuts. But I should remind: the real target is not exactly you but, as always, her exes, who she destroys without lifting her voice: "every love I've known in comparison is a failure" doesn't so much rip apart the journal pages where they're enshrined than it sets her entire bookshelf into flames like some great purge. [6]

Claire Biddles: Speculating who the 'real' Taylor Swift is is reductive and boring, but my favourite Taylor Swift is the wide-eyed, extra, romantic, saying-too-much-too-soon Taylor Swift that we get a glimpse of in the bridge, swallowed up before she even gets started by that sub-Kanye womp-womp in place of a chorus. There's a mutated version of her in the verses ("We'll move to an island/and he can be my jailer" -- I'm imagining she's just met the guy for full effect) but the self-conscious, sub-Lana Del Rey delivery dampens it. Perhaps I'm just being selfish, wanting for the Taylor who most relates to (and thus excuses) my embarrassing romantic tendencies, but Cool Girl Taylor's attempts at aloofness are unconvincing. [5]

Alfred Soto: A bad single, an uninteresting bad single. Mouthing "are you ready for it?" over synth bass farts comes off like preparing listeners for the punch line: Taylor Swift rapping with as little regard for cadence as Lou Reed in 1986. At least "The Original Wrapper" had the performer's rage as its subject, affected or not; Swift is writing bad bumper music. [3]

Will Adams: It's standard practice now for Taylor Swift to drop an incendiary lead single that gets the discourse a-churnin', only to reel in the masses for the more palatable, less batshit follow-up (and she's not the only one to do this). But for "I Knew You Were Trouble" and "Blank Space," there was still a distortion of who we thought Taylor Swift was (dubstep; dissection of public image). The distortion in "...Ready For It?" is... distortion. But it's hard to care about whether Swift is stoking more controversy when the song is so bracing. There's nowhere to run as blocks of drums stack atop the opening pounds and warped roars, all culminating in, finally, an actual chorus. Where "Look What You Made Me Do" was a firebomb kindled by thinkpieces, the fire in "...Ready For It?" comes from the song itself. [8]

Iain Mew: Like "Wildest Dreams" with the wild dreams added in. [8]

Joshua Copperman: A couple of years ago, I actually co-wrote a song where we used that phantom/ransom rhyme. Until that song actually comes out, here's Taylor being the ransom phantom instead of someone else haunting her. I wish that the opening line was "Loki was a killer/first time that I saw him," because that would be hilarious for her to bypass the "tilted stage" subtweets altogether and talk about how Hiddleston's now pining over her. These lyrics are also as good as anything she's even written, so a "Loki" joke would work better than whatever she was on about last time. What bugs me, though, is the empty space in the chorus. Taylor's best melodies are stream-of-consciousness, but "in the middle of the night/in my dreams.................... you should see the things we do" feels like something got cut out last-minute. I do love the idea though, the way it flips the narrative of Wildest Dreams in a really interesting way - now, she's seeing him in her wildest dreams. That's the kind of self-referencing and subversion I'd rather see Taylor do. [6]

Edward Okulicz: So many of the ingredients of Good Taylor Pop Songs are in this one -- dreamy and melodic chorus, don't care attitude, groan-inducing but quotable lyrics -- but the production feels really dated (to around the time of Red, in fact), stalling the track when it tries to accelerate. [6]

Sonia Yang: On one hand, this is generic pop I would have brushed off had it been any other artist. On the other, it's refreshing to see Swift step out of the zone of what I've come to expect from her in particular. I love the ominous synths and how the entire track has a spy thriller vibe. The best part is that breathy prechorus, you can really feel the "island breeze" as Swift delivers that line. The chorus, unfortunately, is a wisp of a thing that doesn't have any impact. The melody neither compels nor is purposefully anticlimactic. The lyrics, while not quite Love Story levels of awkward, are not great; the Taylor-Burton reference is campy at best and cringe at worst. [5]

Jonathan Bradley: Taylor Swift has rolled out singles from Reputation like trailers for the next release from a blockbuster film franchise: not only songs, "Look What You Made Me Do" and now "...Ready For It" (next: "Gorgeous"?) have acted as teasers for a new product launch. Unveiled during a college football broadcast, "...Ready For It" sounds like sports, like a pre-game huddle, like a highlights reel from last season building excitement to see how the new line-up will perform. "Welcome to New York" did the same for 1989 and was fine, but "...Ready For It" is better because it crams more into its pop overload: a rap that traces the "Empire State of Mind" flow, K-pop synth blasts, a gleefully audacious pun on Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, and a chorus about "dreams" and doing things in the night that throws it all in for the romanticism Swift has always been so resolved to earnestly commit herself. If Reputation should turn out to be her New Jersey album, and if all the stage-setting should ultimately overshadow the show itself, I hope we'll one day rediscover how good the songs themselves were. [8]

#Taylor Swift #...Ready for It?

[profoundlydifferentwonderla-blog]

20 Excellent Factors You Can possibly do Along with Raspberry Private detective.

Google's most up-to-date application settles your traveling itinerary, bookings and charts together to make your getaway a wind. In relations to replay value, players will definitely have the ability to journey via locations that they have currently checked out and replay aged goals which could perhaps net all of them added information and/or brand-new partners that can help them out with future objectives as well as areas. You have, of course, always required an Android phone with Android Automotive operating on it. http://eliberatedefrumusete.info would certainly connect this in to your vehicle through USB then your infotainment system would present the interface, but utilize your phone's data hookup and also info to participate in music, send out contents, browse through maps, place call, etc. This delivers that exact same mathematical miracle to hotels and resorts, automobile rentals, or even pre-packaged packages.

Our team should all be actually motivated through all the reasons to journey alone: This's hard work sometimes, want from adventures, wish to have global best friends, see keep your breathing spell vistas, uncover removaling masterpieces (in galleries or even pathway graffiti). Traveling the realm you'll must produce some special mythical good friends to aide in your pursuit while attempting to outwit hunters, canines as well as the bad secret agency S. C.K.S. (Looking for Large Crypto Kritter Squad). Google created Android Car so that this abides by acknowledged car security requirements, consisting of the National Road Website traffic Safety and security Management's (NHTSA). My principal top priority is to get any kind of job that is going to permit me to support on my own (generally) to make sure that I may use several of my discounts to acquire an automobile - that feels like the most effective means to see the whole island. He manages to layout, build and also make alive hardwar The ground: utilizing a potato-powered unit that you should create on your own for this to perform, virtually anyone can easily journey coming from 'Datum The planet' to other, geographically comparable Earths along with alternative, human-free past histories. He attached his Android phone to the vehicle using a cord, activating a brand new photo in the car's core display revealing navigating and popular music information from the phone. Certainly not everyone can easily spring for a brand-new automobile or even radio with Android Auto connection, however AutoMate brings the tidy car-friendly interface to any sort of Android phone or even tablet. The isle has actually not gotten away the Greek economic crisis and around 40% from its citizens are jobless. Android Vehicle is actually pertaining to phones this year, so you can easily use that even when you automobile's in-dash body does not assist that. 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Free DWG Customer coming from Info Visuals lets you watch AutoCAD DWG, DXF, and DWF reports and also CSF (IGC Information Sealed Layout) data in Windows without AutoCAD or suitable CAD bundles. Android Automotive is actually generally an app that links to your car's existing infotainment device. By utilizing an application called HUDWAY, you may put your iPhone on the control panel from your vehicle and navigating relevant information (off your iPhone) are going to be actually mirrored and presented on your windshield. Rely on the banking company as well as funding, obviously, and your debt will must suffice to cover the total bundled quantity. A recent survey from cars and truck manufacturing managers by KPMG in a similar way disclosed that 59% from industry supervisors believe that majority of all cars and truck managers today will certainly no more would like to have a vehicle through 2025. Google.com claims that is going to quickly take hotwording to Android Auto in order that you may provide demands along with a simple ALRIGHT Google.com" punctual rather than touching on an image to obtain begun. Mobile phones are also acquiring included in to our stereos and also vehicles, as well as may also start your cars and truck. Because lots of PCP offers demand for excess gas mileage and also require that the automobile is preserved in accordance along with the supplier's service schedule, this is. The book essentially delivers a notion workout from just what would take place if pretty limitless inter-planetary (or more appropriately, inter-dimensional) traveling were readily available to the masses in the world. I really enjoyed readi While being disregarded by his moms and dads, 14 years of age Terry Anders needs to deal with factors through himself without any assistance. TVR Tuscan Rate 6 Produced through TVR in 1999, the Tuscan Rate 6 sports car is equipt along with an inline 6 engine and also fibreglass body over tubular steel framework. Nevertheless, the most excellent cars and truck debuted at NAIAS, to me, is the 2017 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid. While the legality from various parts from the travel ban is still being adjudicated in courtroom, folks throughout the video game field are actually very likely to still be actually coming to grips with its own effects in the weeks ahead. Organizing each one of this insanity is actually very well performed by apps like Tripit, as well as in some regard, through Google Now But Google.com has actually revealed this would like to relocate beyond just saving your reservations into a cool package deal, as practical as that is actually. With brand-new devices like a specialized traveling app, improvements to Inbox, and also more companies for resorts as well as tours, you can easily right now make your whole itinerary and acquire some tips about exactly what to carry out when you get there all through Google's hosting servers. This wonderful collection from quotes and excerpts dips into motifs like railway journeys, vacationers which never went alone, traveling as an experience, and even fictional trips, as well as that is experienced along with travel knowledges through people like Freya Stark and also Robert Louis Stevenson. A wood splits up the street coming from the loch, however here and there a rugged pathway leads down to a stony seaside gleaming along with damp seaweed. Nissan's principle is based upon a production automobile along with off-road targeted adjustments. Nevertheless, don't count on to find your dream auto along with PrazoCars, unless you are actually imagining a Ford C-Max Energi At launch, the provider will use customers a single-spec car on call on a two-year lease. When I tried every one of these solutions out, I could not feel however assist like they were actually all great remedies, yet the actual repair is along with Android Auto Despite basic motions or even text message announcements on your phone, you're still vulnerable of messing up for it as well as gazing out of the roadway. You'll place your greatest deck of cards against your opponent's, attempting to become the initial to wreck the competing towers.

[junker-town]

The year the Celtics became real

Even in defeat to a superior foe, Boston found a solid winning formula and built a foundation for its future.

For the past four years, the Boston Celtics have existed more in theory than reality. Whatever they accomplished was merely a prelude to a time when draft picks and free agents became tangible roster elements instead of dreamy fantasies. Hiding behind the space reserved in the rafters for Banner 18 is an existential quandary that has followed this team around all season: Does any of this really mean anything?

Here’s a test. If you were to ask a Celtics fan back in October if they would be happy with a 53-win season that ended in the conference finals they would say, “Yes. Obviously.” They would want details, of course, and most of the details have been positive.

Isaiah Thomas became an All-NBA player and top-10 finisher in the Most Valuable Player voting. Prized free agent big man Al Horford showed his worth in the postseason after a solid, if occasionally uneven, first season in Boston. Avery Bradley continued to improve as an offensive player and was a defensive monster in the playoffs. Jae Crowder posted career best marks in 3-point shooting, rebounding, and assists.

The young players also made contributions. Marcus Smart did so many Smartian things that he became became an impactful player in the league even without a reliable jump shot. Second-year man Terry Rozier showed remarkable flashes of speed and power, becoming one of the best rebounding guards in the league, albeit in a limited role. Rookie Jaylen Brown offered glimpses of a ceiling many thought was beyond him when he was drafted, and pushed through the rookie wall to earn significant playoff minutes.

There were things the Celtics did well, and things that needed improvement, such as their wandering defensive intensity during stretches of the season. There were also fatal flaws, namely an inability to control the defensive boards and generate consistent offense without Thomas.

Still, there was much to appreciate about the Celtics’ season and that’s before we get to the first overall pick they won in the lottery via the legendary Brooklyn trade.

Taking all those factors together, there is no logical way to argue that this has been anything but a smashing success.

And yet, the C’s were overwhelmed in the conference finals by LeBron James and the Cavaliers in five games that included three losses on their home floor by an astonishing total of 90 points. They tested the limits of their abilities and it turned out to be exactly where everyone thought it was.

“We had a great year,” Brad Stevens said. “In some ways, we made a run at it. We made progress, but not good enough. And you know, I've said this before, if you coach in Boston, good enough is what matters.”

If LeBron and the Cavs are the measuring stick, then the Celtics failed their final test, just as Atlanta, Toronto, and so many others have before them. There is surely a case to be made that the only thing that matters is winning championships and everything else (even the super-fun stuff) is just for show. But that’s only half right.

“I don't have any objectives other than winning the whole thing,” Stevens said. “To me, that's the only goal you shoot for because then if you don't, if you put your goals lower, then you create a ceiling for your team, and I don't think that's fair to your team.”

Fair, but there is space between the good and bad when judging a season in full. This is the territory that Stevens works as a coach and this is where we really should examine their season.

After they beat the Wizards in seven games, I tried to get Stevens to bite on a big-picture question. He wasn’t having it. With Stevens, there are no mystical forces at work and the Basketball Gods find no favor here.

When I joked with him later that my goal in the playoffs is to get him to be introspective, Stevens casually replied that he has certain principles and he lives his life by those credos. The critical validation that comes with winning a couple of playoff series isn’t important to him.

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Stevens’ principles involve simple things like honesty and clarity. They also work on deeper levels, such as his belief in the ability to evolve and improve every day through practice and experience. That’s where the interesting stuff takes place. Get at that and you can understand what makes Stevens a good coach and what truly characterizes this team.

That Stevens is good at what he does is no great revelation. It’s obvious to even casual fans that he draws up super-neato plays out of timeouts that lend themselves to Zapruder-like breakdowns the next day. (The weakside screen is back and to the left.)

Yet, the X’s and O’s are merely the textures on the canvas that make the painting come alive. The broader outlines of the portrait take a bit longer to come into focus but are no less illuminating. This is the light they need to be viewed in at the moment.

In full view, the Celtics displayed an admirable feistiness that played well in Boston (as it would everywhere), and that quality defined them across the league. Coaches worried about getting run out of the Garden and opponents respected them because they’re a pain to play against. Whether they feared them is another matter.

Even the Celtics’ most ardent detractors gave them nods of grudging respect, while hoping they get put back in their place by better teams. Including the postseason, they were 2-7 against the Cavs and 19-16 against the rest of the East playoff field, which was hardly the stuff of dominance.

They did, however, beat every team in the league at least once except San Antonio, Oklahoma City, and (oddly) Denver. So, while they sometimes overmatched, they were usually competitive. You can’t win 53 games by accident.

That secured the top seed in the East and it was a weird achievement. They had their chance to take control of the race late in the season and were blown out by the very Cavaliers who gifted them the top spot with their lethargic disinterest down the stretch. That left the Celtics in the awkward position of defending their regular season status while needing to prove themselves worthy in the postseason.

What happened during the playoffs was validation, to a point. The Chicago series was harder than it should have been, and the C’s were fortunate that Rajon Rondo was injured during Game 2. When the Bulls took the fight to them, however, they responded. Bradley and Smart stood toe-to-toe with Jimmy Butler and Dwyane Wade and they ripped off four straight wins.

The Celtics then went seven frantic games with the Wizards, which seemed right. The C’s rallied to win games at home, while the Wiz won convincingly on their floor. There was a draining closeout attempt in Game 6 that ended in a crushing defeat, but they persevered in a memorable Game 7 performance.

It was a great series, arguably the best of the entire postseason, and either team could have won. The Wizards have been proclaiming themselves superior ever since, but that’s a hollow boast. Expectations may be graded on a curve, but wins and losses are not.

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Again there were positive individual signs. Horford came through like the max free agent he is with brilliant all-around performances. Even Kelly Olynyk -- long the most beleaguered member of the team by the home fans -- had his turn as a cult favorite and Game 7 hero.

Equally important was the play of Isaiah Thomas. Many people went into that series believing that John Wall was the best player on the court and while he often was, Thomas matched his best moments and even surpassed them.

The debate over whether Thomas is a great player or just a small guy doing amazing things will rage forever and it may ultimately define their future course. During the 2016-17 season, however, Thomas was a marvel to watch and one of the single best things about the NBA experience.

His postseason run has to be viewed as the culmination of that incredible star trip. That he persevered through personal tragedy and injury to deliver heroic performances when many wondered how effective he’d be during the postseason is now the stuff of legend.

Getting past the Bulls and Wizards were notable achievements and that’s where things stood heading into the conference finals. Even with homecourt advantage, no one seriously gave them a chance to beat Cleveland and they didn’t come close.

They were blown out and embarrassed at home in the first two games, losing Thomas to a hip injury in the process. Coming back to win Game 3 in Cleveland was astonishing and an immense credit to their character. They had a shot in Game 4, but had no answer for the individual brilliance of LeBron and Kyrie Irving.

Back home at the Garden for Game 5, their closeout game had all the intensity of a regular season blowout in December. That left a bitter taste to an otherwise fine season and all of that brings us right back to the beginning.

They will try to get a star in the draft and maybe even one during the summer. There will be roster decisions that will bring clarity to their ultimate direction. The Celtics will keep evolving because they have to if they want to truly be among the elite. This season needs to be viewed in that context, as a bridge to another destination.

This was the season when the Celtics went from a hypothetical entity to team of significance and it must also be said that the journey was a helluva lot of fun. They reached their potential and even if it left them wanting more, it’s hard to ask for much more than that from an NBA season.