#if there's one thing marty's going to do: he's going to strip in the box

[thefrankensteinplace]

Newsies UK Review (Dec. 3rd)

Brace yourselves because this will be long and rambling and will contain spoilers. I certainly haven’t covered everything or everyone, but I’ve covered a few of the things that particularly stood out to me and the people I felt particularly deserved a mention.

Just the whole set up. Shirtless Newsies getting ready for the day before carrying the banner started was a bonus, not least because it reminded me of carrying the banner starts in the film when they’re all in the lodging house getting ready. They were down on the stage rather than up in the scaffolding like on Broadway so I feel like you got a bit more of a scene setter and build up to it. And then one of them full on ziplines onto the stage, it was fabulous!! My friend who was with me described it as ‘a magic Mike entrance’ and whispered to me, ‘when are they gonna start stripping. Just the staging in generally was amazing. Having scaffolding all around so newsies could scale it at different points in the theatre as well as having the walkways between the seating was brilliant, because it meant all the chase scenes with Snyder could go through the audience and go up and down different levels, so like, Jack could run up a bit and escape then because they’d gone a different route, it was very clever. And during the World will know it meant that we had newsies marching on the spot right in front of us, sometimes turning to face us and I was grinning like a maniac, it was amazing!! There were 3 standing ovations. Three! I was expecting the one at the end, but the other two weren’t even at the end of the first act or something, they were both in sieze the day! One at the end and one at that moment when you think it’s about to end but they still have an extra bit to go. And it was one hundred percent deserved, the choreography was absolutely incredible. One of the guys did like a gazillion box jumps in a row, it was insane. Looking back at the cast list I think that was Ross Dorrington as Splasher but if anyone else who’s seen it could confirm or deny that would be great, as it is obviously hard to tell from a distance in the theatre. At first I thought this was gonna be instead of the ‘Ryan Steele spins’, but then we got those later on as well! There were even some break dancing style moves, it was ridiculously brilliant. I will say that I am a Javey shipper that has never truly understood Jatherine (which, disclaimer, may be partly because I’m a 92sies whore so I was a bit sore about the plot changes that introduced Katherine in the Broadway version, although I learnt to love her as I got used to the idea), but my god I changed my tune when I saw this performance. I don’t know what it was but there was just something different about Michael Ahomka-Lindsay and Bronté Barbé as Jack and Katherine. Part of me thinks it was just the way they kissed in something to believe in, y’know with his hands moving up her back and stuff, it was just *chefs kiss. But there was just something in their interactions as well, she was so snarky it was wonderful and you could just see it drawing him in. And like, when he strikes out at the beginning when he first sees her and she shuts him down I think you could see more of, her joy in doing that I suppose, and her amusement at him pursuing her that I feel was lacking slightly in the Broadway one. Like, you can tell more that her annoyance is kind of as much of an act as Jack’s postering is and I appreciate that because I feel you see the romance growing more rather than just being a sudden thing that happens. As much as I love Jeremy Jordan and Kara Lindsay I just felt it properly for the first time with these two. And he gives her a newsboy cap at the end which was super cute. Each of them individually were just astounding in their roles and really managed to bring a different flavour to both Jack and Katherine which was really lovely to see. Matthew Duckett as Crutchie is a fricking revelation. It was Marty Belafski who had my heart as Crutchie - he was the first iteration I saw and it was him that made me fall in love with the character. With Broadway, I already knew Andrew Keenan-Bolger, and loved him as Crutchie as well. Now it’s probably Matthew Duckett who just is Crutchie for me. I loved that he was taller than Jack for one thing, like in the original film, and that he was just generally like, a little grittier than Broadway Crutchie? He had a bit more of the Crutchie from the film who says, ‘I don’t want anybody carrying me. Never’, and who nicks food of Snyders plate to give to Jack. A little less relentless optimist and a little more world hardened, which I really enjoyed. And it doesn’t hurt that he had lovely shoulders which I had a great view of, as I was sitting in the second row from where they had a break in the seating that the cast used to run through the audience as such. Very annoyed that I just missed out on getting a pape from Crutchie himself. He waved one at us asking if anyone wanted a pape, and all of us just sat there in shocked, happy excitement, without realising that this was actually on offer to interact with the cast and not just like, part of the show. He threw it behind him into the audience members in front of us to our consternation and was then like, ‘yeah, now you want a pape’, and someone in front of me did then get one. It was amazing, and I can now say to everyone going, and if I go again, say yes to the pape! They actually mean to give them to you! I didn’t actually believe they would make Spot Conlon a girl but I stand corrected! Not only Spot but the whole of Brooklyn. In my humble opinion, not quite the same as Spot being a tiny but menacing little guy, but still very cool and great fun. And I loved that the girlsies were like, actually girlsies. Like, some of them had skirts and stuff, they were meant to be girls, not just, women filling in the men’s roles, which I absolutely loved! I think I would probably have preferred it if all the boroughs were just mixed to be honest, partly because it meant a lyric change to ‘we’re the girls from the beaches of Brighton’ rather than ‘we’re the boys from the beaches of Brighton, so we don’t get the alliteration which slightly irritated my brain although obviously it would have been weirder if they’d all sung that when they’re meant to be girls, but also because I just feel like it would have made for a more accurate representation, although if they’d done that I think I would have wanted them to keep Spot as a girl. Ultimately though, I did understand why they did it like they did, as it really packed a punch, and it made sense why Spot wasn’t in the cast list as they obviously wanted to keep this as a surprise twist. It honestly was a great moment. King of New York!! It was phenomenal!! They swung from ceiling lights!!! Honestly it felt like a little homage to 92s when Damien lucero spins on the ceiling fan, as there was a moment when some of them did spins from them, as well as them swinging about like Tarzan on them. Honestly, I did feel like the choreography from this as well as sieze the day was better than Broadway. There were just so many surprises. Although Katherine did tap a bit she didn’t seem to have as much of a ‘moment’ as Kara Lindsay got, when the newsies are encouraging her to dance, so that was a shame, but they did dress her up like the Statue of Liberty which was wild and amazing. The newsies bringing on all the props! It was so good. Hilariously Katherine thanked them when they put together her desk for watch what happens, but my favourite was when they did Pulitzers office because they were all just lounging around for a bit before Pulitzer and everyone came on. I’m pretty sure on of them was was sitting in his chair at one point before scurrying off. It was great. Cameron Blakely was wonderful as Pulitzer. A great voice, and I just loved his portrayal of the character. Some funny moments because it’s Cameron Blakely but still managing to be very sinister when it counted. The line that really stood out to me from him was when he grabs Katherine’s arm in the Bottom Line Reprise singing ‘too bad you’ve no family, but you can’t have mine’. Oof. Davey was glorious. He was just so soft somehow, which was very endearing, although I was slightly disappointed that he didn’t seem to loose any of his clothes on the way as is the Davey tradition in both the film and on Broadway. Having said that, he seemed less buttoned-up, in terms of his costume, to begin with than either of the previous David’s. His exasperation at Les, like when he’s staring at the Bowery beauties or when he announces that he has a girlfriend, was continuously on point. And his beginning of sieze the day was absolutely beautiful. I’m still annoyed that Davey has no solo song though. Medda was fabulous of course! I felt there could have been a bit more of ‘wink wink nudge nudging’ over the nature of her relationship with Teddy Roosevelt, but essentially she truly understood the assignment. And her Bowery Beauties costume she wore for That’s Rich was gorgeous. Being previews there were a few sound issues which was a shame, and they’d run out of programmes by the time I arrived (how a theatre runs out of programmes I’ll never know, but hopefully those issues will be sorted out by opening night. Overall, an insanely brilliant night out - glorious show, stellar dancing and singing, still so thrilled that Newsies came to the UK and that I had a chance to see it, 10 years on from the Broadway production I truly never thought it would happen and I’m so glad that it did.

#Newsies #newsies uk #newsies west end #west endsies #newsies broadway #92sies #crutchie newsies #crutchie #david jacobs #medda larkin #joseph pulitzer #katherine pulitzer #katherine plumber #Jack Kelly #jack x david #jack x davey #jack x katherine #jatherine #Les Jacobs #racetrack higgins #spot conlon #cameron blakely #bronte barbe #michael ahomka lindsay #matthew duckett #ross dorrington #ryan kopel #theatre review #musical theatre #troubadour theatre

[justnerdy15]

one step forward, three steps back (daily snippet 8.20.23)

wip: Come Back Home wc: 763 background: Edith's father pays a visit to the house. It doesn't end well. prompt: @flashfictionfridayofficial broken mirror warnings: off-screen violence

The house is ruined. Gaping holes in the drywall, overturned furniture, a rotten smell wafting from the kitchen.

As Edith gingerly steps through the wreckage, noting the torn magazines and ripped cushions scattered about, a list of everything that needs to be done is already starting to form in her head.

Call the school and see if they will keep the kids for a bit after the day ends. God knows, this is the last thing they need to see.

Call the caseworker and tell him Michael’s gone off the fucking deep-end again. Off to who knows where doing who knows what.

Check her lockbox. The medicine cabinet. Mom’s jewelry box. The kids’ rooms.

See if any of this can saved.

“Fuck,” Edith says under her breath, headache already pulsing in her temple. She looks into the kitchen and swears again.

It looks like he opened every single fucking thing in there and dumped it on the floor. Plates. Cups. Milk. Eggs. Cereal. Juice. He even punctured the goddamn cans from the pantry and threw them out as well.

Edith breathes out heavily, nails digging into her palms, and tries to tamper down the anger crawling up her throat, acidic and burning.

Anger isn’t going to help right now.

She forces her hands to relax, uncurling them slowly, and steps away from the kitchen doorway. She hasn’t even see the full extent of the damage yet.

The hallway hadn’t been spared either. The fresh paint, not all the way dried yet, pulled away in spidery strips from where the walls had been bashed in. Picture frames knocked down on to the floor. The glass smashed.

Edith presses her lips together into a thin line and bends down to gently pick up one of the frames, where Marty and Mason smile back at her with toothy six year old grins. She sniffs, tilting the frame to let the glass tumble to the floor, before plucking the photo out. Then, she goes to the next frame and then the next. Taking photos out as carefully as she can, not wanting to tear them, making her way down the hall. Can’t risk loosing these.

As the carpet crunches underneath her sneakers, she reaches the first of the bedrooms. Penny’s. The door’s beaten in a bit, wood splintering in the middle, but when she tries the doorknob it blessedly refuses to turn in her hand. Thank god. She peaks in through the split wood and breathes out a sigh of relief when the violet room is still in the same pristine condition.

Edith checks Peter’s next. Messy, but in a teenage boy kind of way and not in a raging alcoholic father way.

Fuck. Maybe it isn’t as bad as she thought.

But as she goes to check the next room, the bathroom, she is immediately proven wrong.

The walls are covered in vibrant markers, the same ones tossed on the floor, with written nonsense and curses from top to bottom. Large shards of the mirror blankets the sink and floor, leaving only the corners safely secured to the wall.

Edith can still see bits of writing on the shards. Colorful letters that once made the little messages she left for everyone. From I-love-you-s to dinner plans to the little scribbles the kids left. Even Mom had left a heart or note on occasion.

And it’s destroyed now. Broken and ruined and dangerous.

All because her father didn’t get what he wanted.

All because he decided to come back.

This isn’t fair; things were getting better. The house. Mom. Her relationship with her siblings. She thought they were finally getting past this. That it was going to be different this time around.

Her breath hitches in her chest and she bites down on her lip as she steps into the bathroom. The results of her efforts breaking underneath her.

All this work and it was for nothing. Nothing’s changed and she’s so stupid for believing otherwise. Why couldn’t he stay away? Why does Mom keep letting him come back? Doesn’t she understand — Doesn’t she care? This isn’t — This isn’t—

A sob breaks loose from her chest and hot humiliating tears start slipping down her cheeks. She scrubs at her face with one hand, trying to stop the tears, but it only makes her cries louder, breath stuttering, and she fumbles for somewhere to sit. Edith drops down onto the edge of the tub, spilled shampoo soaking into her jeans, and buries her face in her hand while the other holds on tightly to the photos.

#wip: come back home #flashfictionfridayofficial #my writing #original fiction

[ejzah]

Where It Hurts Most, Part 3

***

“Kensi, slow down,” Callen told her, jogging slightly to keep up with her. Fatima had tracked down a single image from a security camera of the abduction and pinned down the exact location. She was now working on locating video from surrounding areas and tracking the three men who were visible in the picture.

“Deeks is missing, I’m not stopping until we find him,” she replied between gritted teeth.

“I know. We’re all worried about him-”

“Callen, my husband was just abducted, we have no idea where he is, and, Kessler is having the time of his life taunting me. I do not need platitudes or words of caution right now.”

“That’s what we all want,” he assured her. Squeezing her shoulder, he headed for the other side of the path.

She knew he was right. Sam and Rountree were currently at their home looking for any evidence, though Kensi doubted Kessler would leave any behind unless it was intentional. It made her skin crawl to think of Kessler touching their things, violating them.

Just seeing the spot where Deeks was taken made her slightly nauseous, the memory of Kessler’s message, running through her mind. She pushed it down, drawing on her anger. Deeks needed her to be strong.

It was easy to see why Kessler had chosen this particular spot to stage his attack. One side was bracketed by a small strip of condemned stores, blocking the path from view and discouraging heavy foot traffic. The other side was mostly patchy grass and side, with a rusting medal bench set in the middle It wasn’t a long stretch, but it was enough if the attack was well-planned.

It was further proof that Kessler, or someone, had been watching them for some time. He knew their routines and habits well enough to figure out where Deeks would be on a given day.

She could see the signs of a struggle in grass around the path and imagined Deeks struggling, fighting back. There were divots in the ground where sand and dirt had been kicked up. As she followed the signs, Kensi noticed a small trail of blood on the concrete and then another smear a few feet further down.

Kensi had known Deeks would be injured; there was no way he wasn’t fighting off several men at the same time. He wouldn’t go surrender without giving it his all either.

As she approached the bench, she noticed the sun glinting off something and hurried towards it.

“Callen, I found Deeks’ cell phone,” Kensi called out, quickly slipping on a glove before she picked it up. It was warm from sitting in the sun, but was undamaged, which she found more worrying than if it was destroyed. Callen jogged over, eyes narrowing as he watched her punch in Deeks’ passcode.

“You think there’s another message?” he asked. Kensi made a sardonic noise.

“It’s Kessler. Of course he left something behind. He loves taunting people.”

There was a new message, from a blocked number, with an attachment. Unlike his previous email, there was just a video without any text. Kensi turned the phone so Callen could see and pressed play, barely breathing as the video started.

It opened on Deeks surrounded by five men. He jammed his elbow into one’s face and kicked another in the knee. He spun faster than seemed possible, blocking a third man with his forearm and knocking him to the ground. As strong and fast as Deeks was, it wasn’t enough; two of his attackers approached him from the front and back. Kensi gasped when the man behind him punched him in the temple, making Deeks stumble.

The video caught off abruptly, the screen turning black. Once again, Kensi’s hands were trembling as they clutched at Deeks’ phone.

“Kens, you alright?” Callen asked quietly. She licked her lips and breathed in and out twice before she answered.

“Yeah.” She swallowed her fear down and nodded sharply. “I’m going to send this to Fatima. It might help her track down on of these guys.”

Callen looked like he wanted to say something else, but seemed to reconsider.

“Alright, I’ll keep searching for any other clues.”

***

Deeks grimaced as he twisted his wrist, trying to loosen the strap binding him to the chair. He’d been at it since Kessler left him alone at least a couple hours ago. His skin was already rubbed raw from the constant straining, but he ignored the pain, focused on getting free.

The memories of being in a similar position were getting harder to ignore with every minute that passed. Kessler’s ominous promise was also in the back of his mind.

“Getting antsy, Marty?” Deeks stilled immediately, pausing before he slowly lifted his head. When he did, he shook his his hair out of his eyes, and regarded Kessler expressionlessly.

“Well, I did have dinner plans today so…”. Deeks shrugged as much as he could.

“You’re good at bluffing and talking yourself out of situations,” Kessler said, moving closer. “I guess that’s how you lasted so long, but I think that’s about to come to an end.”

“Mm, that’s what my high school debate teacher thought too,” Deeks replied. “Guess which one of us resigned at the end of the year?”

Instead of replying, Kessler softly chuckled and came to stand behind Deeks again. The sound of something scraping on the floor made Deeks’ hair stand on end, but he forced himself not turn to look.

“I’ve been planning this day for months,” Kessler shared conversationally. “I wanted each detail to be perfect.”

“I’m honored.”

“You should be.” Dragging an innocuous box into Deeks’ line of sight, Kessler opened it. “It’s very difficult to find one of these,” he added, turning with a metal object in his hands.

Deeks’ stomach clenched, his mouth turning dry as sweat immediately beaded up on his forehead. If it was the same device Sidorov had used to hold his mouth open. Even thinking about it made his jaw ache with remembered pain.

“I thought this might shut you up,” Kessler commented. He turned it a few times and Deeks followed the movement unconsciously. “That was easier than I expected. Kensi will be disappointed.”

“I was just waiting to see if you had something more original,” Deeks said, his voice coming out slightly hoarse. He managed to conceal the trembling though. He wouldn’t give Kessler that.

“Don’t worry, I have a lot of plans for you, Detective.” He slid the torture device open, chuckling when Deeks couldn’t conceal a shudder. “But first, let’s do something about that pretty face of yours.”

***

A/N: So, how we feeling about Kessler? Too much, too little?

#ncis la fanfiction #marty deeks #kensi blye #Callen #Kessler #where it hurts most #deeks whump #ejzah fanfiction

[workingforitallthetime]

bonus scene

hi, here is a bonus svech pov scene from good times rollin’ on me. i had this interaction in mind when i wrote the fic, but i didn’t have a way to reference it from marty’s pov because he’s not present for it and nobody who is would tell him the interesting bits.

The list of words was on all the rainbow signs. They were taped to the narrow strip of glass next to most of the classroom doors at his new high school, announcing “Safe Space.” That was different from Barnaul.

Andrei didn’t add them to his own list of new words, the one he kept on his phone with entries like glorious and unbelievable, but he looked them up all the same. It was nice to learn them. To know which one was his.

He doesn’t end up using them that much. It doesn’t take particular vocabulary to find people, here and there in Michigan, and then more easily in Raleigh, in actual college, not community college where nobody wants to be.

And, unexpectedly, on his new hockey team. Andrei had expected a beer league team like he’d found in Michigan: older guys, with meat and potatoes jobs like mailman or property manager or grounds supervisor, who called him “kid” but made the game fun because they were so happy to be there, playing hockey, getting their one night a week away from wives and kids.

Instead, his new team has Dougie and Foegs. Andrei sees them before their first game. Notices Foegs tuck his chin over Dougie’s shoulder, brush his lips against Dougie’s shoulder pad, quick. Andrei lets Foegs notice him noticing. Then he scoots down the bench in the locker room and asks the two of them about bars in Raleigh. 

Foegs snorts at him. “Are you even twenty one?”

“Sure,” Andrei says, grinning. It’s a useful word, one of his favorites. It moves a conversation along even if Andrei doesn’t entirely understand. Or entirely agree. Or, sometimes, if he wants to pretend later that he didn’t understand. Foegs can think what he wants. It’s not really about the bars.

Foegs never ends up answering Andrei’s question. Instead, Andrei ends up playing Fortnite and watching hockey with them. They make space for him, in the locker room, on the bench, at the bar after games, whenever Marty hasn’t already dragged Andrei into the thick of things. Dougie calls him their little brother and Foegs calls him “our new twink friend” and Andrei rolls his eyes and pretends to hate both options. He doesn’t need any more older brothers. But he does think less about missing Evgeny when Dougie and Foegs are around. They understand things about him that Evgeny does not. It’s a small miracle to have friends who understand that, right from the start.

Andrei keeps an eye on Marty, too, wondering if there’s something to notice. Marty seems like a lot, generally, but sometimes Andrei gets the sense that some of the energy pouring off Marty is directed at him specifically. He’s always looking for Andrei, beckoning him into the group, including him in conversations. Asking Andrei questions, looking at him with intent blue eyes like the answers matter. So the second or third time Andrei’s over at Dougie’s apartment, watching hockey and eating Chinese, he decides to dredge up the vocabulary to ask. 

“Marty.” Andrei parks his chopsticks in the container of noodles he’s eating. “Is he…”

“Nope.” Foegs passes the broccoli beef to Dougie at the other end of the couch. “Marty’s not gay.” Andrei barely recognizes the flicker of disappointment he feels, brief and surprising. Foegs leans over and decisively spears a dumpling from the box on the coffee table. “He just likes dick.”

There’s probably a word for that. Andrei decides not to ask Foegs what it is. It sounds like his answer might be biased.

“Wow, harsh.” Dougie folds his legs under him, settling into the corner of the couch and balancing the takeout container on the arm.

“No, seriously.” Foegs swallows his dumpling. “He hooked up with so many of my friends in college. Marty was, like, the jock you hooked up with to get it out of your system.”

Andrei’s eyes try to go wide. He bites the inside of his lip.

“Then he got a girlfriend, and”—Foegs slashes a diagonal with his chopsticks—“that was that.”

Andrei waits a moment, hoping Dougie picks up on the obvious question. Dougie’s still kind of new too, trying to keep track of all the lines connecting Foegs and his friends just like Andrei is. Sometimes he saves Andrei the trouble of asking. Obligingly, Dougie stretches his foot down the couch and pokes Foegs. “So did you?” 

“No.” Foegs hauls his knee up and knocks Dougie’s foot back. The broccoli beef teeters on the arm of the couch and Dougie catches it just in time. “I played hockey. Hockey players were not, like, this exciting frontier I needed to explore.”

“Gee, thanks.” Dougie pokes Foegs again.

“That’s different, I didn’t know you were a hockey player.” 

“You noticed my Bruins sweater pretty quick.”

“That doesn’t count.” Foegs pushes back at Dougie’s foot with the hand that’s not holding onto his chopsticks. Dougie holds him at bay, looking like it doesn’t take any effort at all. “I was already in your bedroom. It was on your floor.” They’re at an impasse, counterpressure by Foegs holding Dougie’s foot in midair.

Andrei always likes to watch Foegs try to pick a fight with Dougie. It’s like watching a fly in a pasture buzzing around a big placid bull. It’s comfortable. It’s comfortable to spend time at Dougie’s apartment, across the city from campus, with people who know who they are and what they want to do.

“So what?” Dougie suddenly pulls his foot back so Foegs, still pushing, almost tips over on top of him.

Foegs straightens himself up. “You were already going to get it.” He jabs his chopsticks at Dougie triumphantly. “Before I knew you played.”

Andrei doesn’t understand why Foegs wouldn’t want to hook up with a hockey player. It’s kind of nice to think that’s possible. It’s nice to see Dougie’s glove resting on Foegs’ helmet after a goal, and know it means a little bit more. Andrei never would have thought of that in Russia, or in Michigan. The rainbow Safe Space signs didn’t make it as far as the locker room at the rink where his high school team played.

Dougie, unbothered, steals a dumpling. “Nice of you to stick around after you figured it out.”

Foegs smirks. “I kind of had to, the team needed another D-man.”

Dougie tips the broccoli beef onto the coffee table and pins Foegs in a headlock. Chopsticks go flying. While they struggle, Andrei reaches over to sit the takeout container upright before the contents ooze out.

Foegs, with his head smushed against Dougie’s chest, catches sight of him out of the corner of his eye. “Hey.” He digs a finger into Dougie’s ribs. “Hey, Dougie, I think we’re missing the point here.”

Andrei sinks back in his chair, out of the very limited angle of Foegs’ vision.

Dougie’s watching him now, though. “Oh yeah?” He lets Foegs go. After looking around in vain for his chopsticks, he fishes in the empty takeout bag for a fork instead. “What’s that?”

Foegs rakes a hand through his hair, tousling it back into place. He leers at Andrei. “Why’s our new twink friend asking about Marty?”

“Stop it.” Andrei tucks his smile down into his container of noodles. He pokes his chopsticks at a bite of chicken. “I just wonder.”

The expression on Foegs’s face sharpens. “If you’re wondering if he’s flirting with you, the answer’s probably yes.”

“Hmm.” Andrei hums neutrally, channeling Dougie’s imperviousness. Pasture. Cow. Tail flick.

Foegs looks like he’s ready to pounce. Andrei chews slowly, swallows, and snares another bite of noodles. He glances at Dougie. Dougie raises his eyebrows at him, no help.

When Andrei doesn’t add anything, Foegs sits back a bit. “Marty’s just here for a good time.”

“Oh, big surprise,” Andrei scoffs at him. Of course Marty’s fun. He’s fun to play hockey with. Probably, Andrei thinks, he would probably be fun to do other things with. If Foegs means it to be a warning, it’s not an effective one. Andrei wouldn’t mind a good time. He’s a thousand miles away from anyone who’d care, and he wants to have some fun.

#good times extras #lafiwrimo #i'm starting to recognize that i get kind of a hangover after writing a long fic #where my brain wants to linger in that world a little longer #and that often results in me writing a coda #and i recognize that my brain is doing this now #self-soothing by mapping out what the next few years of this relationship would look like #and i'm trying to figure out what would be the most effective way to get past that #allowing myself this bonus scene is one tactic i am trying #and i'm not sure whether it would be better to dump all my future thoughts into a google doc just to keep #or to discipline myself to just move on #if anybody else experiences this phenomenon i would love to hear your tactics #p.s. for svech's 21st birthday dougie and foegs absolutely take him and marty to whatever the gayest bar in town is

[glenncoco4]

That Guy

A/N: This idea is courtesy of @mashmaiden. Not sure if this is what you pictured but here it is. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~

She bobs her head to the music, taking sips of her mojito in between. It had been a long week at work and right now spending time with her girls for the first time in forever is just what she needs. As she relaxes back against the cushion of the booth, the agent peruses her surroundings before she’s drawn out by Mandy’s question. “Hey, KayKay, what do you think? Strip Club or private show?”

“Uh…” At a lost for words, she’s not really sure how to respond to the question. This is what she gets for zoning out. Luckily for her though, Kat swoops in before she can come up with something to say. 


“Oooh, I wonder if that guy is still available?”

The blonde’s brow furrows in question. “What guy?”

“You know the one we hired for KayKay’s bachelorette party back when she was with the asshat.”

Getting more confused by the minute, Kensi looks between the two, standing on the outside of their conversation. She never knew anything about a bachelorette party.

Realization crosses Mandy’s face when she suddenly remembers what Kat’s talking about. “Oh, the Jack impersonator.”

“Yeah, that one.”

Taking another sip of her cold drink, the agent shakes her head in disbelief at the new information. “I’m sorry, you guys were gonna hire a stripper that dressed up like Jack? As in, I wanna draw you naked Jack?”

“Yeah, I mean you did have a thing for those long blonde locks.” A smirk spreads to Mandy’s face. “Actually I bet Marty looked a lot like him when he was younger.”

At her friends words, the brunette can feel the heat rise to her cheeks. Yeah, when her husband first told her about his on stage persona she immediately acted as if she were calling the girls to let them know, but she was just messing with him. Once they reached the truck, she had pulled her phone away from her ear and just let out that maniacal laugh of hers. It didn’t even cross her mind to betray his trust.

Leaning down, her lips wrap around the small plastic straw, her eyes staying glued to the liquid in the glass. “Yeah, that is weird.”

Kensi did her best to steer the conversation away from the subject for the rest of the night but as she pulled up to Mandy’s house to drop her off, she just knew she had to ask. “Hey, Man, what was the name of the agency for the stripper?”

“Why, you and Marty getting kinky already?” The blonde smiles, wiggling her eyebrows.

“If you only knew.” She sends her friend a wink. “But no, it’s for my work friend, she had a thing for Jack, too.”

Mandy closes one eye as if she’s trying to go back deep into her memories when she has an ah-ha moment. “Oh, it was called Cock Her Doodle Doo.”

XXXX

The fresh smell of pizza hits her nose as soon as she walks through the front door, that and the image of her husband sprawled out on the couch as the distinct sound of This Old House fills the air brings a smile to her face. “Hey, baby.”

“Hey.”

“You’ll never guess what I found out tonight.”

He sits up, making room for her on the couch right next to him. “Um, Tiffany wants llamas at her wedding. No, no, unicorns.”

“Dear god, please don’t mention that to her. She’d probably make them stick horns on some poor horses and then paint them white.” She shudders at the mere thought. “Keep guessing.”

“I’m getting lucky tonight.” He wiggles his eyebrows as he pulls her legs across his lap.

“Yes, but also no.” She sends him a wink as a sultry smile spreads to her lips.

“Okay, I give up.”

“So...apparently the girls were planning my bachelorette party the first time around even though we never planned a wedding. They wanted to keep my mind off things and thought a stripper that dressed as Jack would be the perfect thing for that.”

“And? There were a lot of guys that dressed as him.”

“Well did they also happen to work for Cock Her Doodle Doo?”

His cerulean blues go wide in shock. “Oh, my god.”

She watches as his features turn from shock to recognition.

“You guys never showed that night.”

Her brow furrows, confusion written clear across her face. “We…wait, you mean they actually went through with it?”

“Well, technically.”

Chocolate orbs stay locked with his, expecting more of an explanation than those two words.

“I was all set up at the hotel but right when you were suppose to show up I got a text from Mandy, I guess, and she said you guys couldn’t make it.”

“Oh my god.”

“Yeah."

Her features turn from that of shock to playfulness. The plan sets in motion before she has time to even process the information. “It’s a real shame.”

He feels the warmth spread throughout his body as her finger delicately traces up and down his bare chest. “What?”

She looks up at him, batting her eyelashes. Knowing good and well that he can’t resist her. “Well, I missed out on an opportunity of a lifetime. To see my man, dancing in his prime. Too bad you don’t dance anymore. I would really make it worth your while.”

Her words set him in motion. His lips find hers for a deep passionate kiss, leaving both wanting more as he pulls back. The deeper shade of her eyes sending a thrill through his body. He pushes her legs off his and quickly gets up, running towards the spare bedroom with all the boxes that holds his old college stuff. “Give me 5 minutes.”

#Densi #Densi Fanfic #Kensi Blye Deeks #Marty Deeks #Kensi x Deeks #Magic Marty #Cupcake Girls #Mandy #Kat #Jack Dawson #NCIS: LA #NCIS: LA Fanfic

[emmy-writes-sometimes]

Running Wild

Your boyfriend, Jaeden, takes you on a graduation, anniversary, and birthday trip all at once as you confront the possibility of spending your lives together. 

-

           “Where are you taking me?” You asked Jaeden over the phone. He laughed and you could imagine how his nose always scrunched up when he laughed. God, his laugh was like sunshine.

           “I’m not telling you! Just pack for a while. Like, a while. Cute clothes and sweats for pictures and not pictures.” It was not only your eighteenth birthday, but your first year anniversary with Jae, too. So he’d told you to pack because he was coming up from his parents’ house the next day.

           “I’m incredibly suspicious of you right now,” you said. He laughed again.

           “It’ll be fun, I promise, babe.” You narrowed your eyes and finished your conversation, agreeing to meet him at eight the next morning in your driveway. You had a small idea that he was taking you somewhere, definitely, but you didn’t know where. Your dad wasn’t budging, either. And he walked into your room to hand you your laundry basket as you hung up.

           “Why won’t you tell me where he’s taking me?” You asked. He chuckled.

           “Because it’s a surprise. Just get ready for dinner.” That was the last he spoke about it. He didn’t even entertain the idea at the family dinner that night. All he said to you and your family was that you’d be gone for a month. It was right after your high school graduation, too, so you had the whole summer, and Jae was off from filming so your dad had agreed to let you go with him for that amount of time. You loved the relationship they had, but you kind of hated how often they conspired against you and kept secrets, knowing you didn’t like surprises.

           You went to bed that night after packing a few pairs of athletic shorts. You woke up the next morning and tried to call him, but he didn’t answer. Your dad was already making breakfast for the two of you, eyeing you with a smile. Eventually you heard a horn beeping, assuming it was Jaeden.

           “Go on,” your dad insisted with a smile on his face as he flipped a pancake. You eyed him and walked out of the front door to see that Jaeden was driving his mom’s Volvo, but that wasn’t the weirdest thing. It was towing a silver Airstream behind it. You grinned as you saw the SUV shut off and Jae got out of the car.

           “No fucking way!” You said loudly, walking over to your boyfriend and hugging him for the first time in a month. “You got us a trailer?”

           “You’re always saying you want a great American road trip, so here we are. It’s got an Apple TV, all the plugs for all of your chargers, and we can cook. You wanted to get off the grid for a while, and I want to drive through Utah.”

           “You’re kidding.”

           “Nope. Everything is worked out. As soon as I get some of those pancakes, we’ll go.” He followed you inside and greeted both your dad and the dog, then the three of you started getting your breakfast together.

           Most of the time on the trip, you kept your phones completely off – you had an old Polaroid camera you’d gotten when you were probably fifteen, and he had a video camera he was going to cut together footage on. You kept them in the glove box and called your parents every so often. But most days you would sleep in a state park or a camping ground, squeezed into the small bed together, listening to the sounds of the generator running the air conditioning.

           One morning you were in Arizona, almost all the way out to California where you would spend a few days just driving around the coastline. You woke up and wrestled Jae’s arms from around you, eyeing your mint green camera from the shelf beside a succulent you’d named Marty for whatever reason. The trailer was hot, even though you had an air conditioner at night, so you were only wearing a t-shirt and Jae was only wearing shorts. You turned around, grabbing the camera, and took a picture of Jae.

           “What are you doing?” He asked, a sleepy smile spreading across his face. You’d dyed his hair the other day with peroxide, and it looked almost like a halo against the dark sheets in the trailer. His hand snaked up your thigh as you straddled his torso, taking another picture.

           “Taking a picture,” you replied with a smile. You handed him the polaroid when it came out of the camera and he set it down by Marty. You set the camera down on top of it and collapsed back on top of him.

           “Grand Canyon trail today?” He asked you as you flopped back down onto the bed. You’d taken a three hour-long detour to see it, since neither of you had been before. You nodded. “Then we should probably get up and pack for the trail. We should take some extra granola bars because you get cranky when you’re hungry.”

           “I do not!” You heard a noise outside the trailer and sat up, pulling Jae’s shirt down in case it was a state trooper. You’d had a couple of those so far because, well, the trailer wasn’t very stationary and every time you moved, it moved. You sat up, grabbing at a pair of shorts you’d thrown off the bed last night because it was so hot.

           “Take my wallet if they need to see an ID,” Jae said, “it’s rented in my name.” You gave him a thumbs-up and walked outside, expecting there to be a state trooper asking to see some ID. But there wasn’t anyone out there. The other RV that had been there last night had gone, so you two were alone on the campground. You eyed the trooper station, where one was usually sitting, and no one was there. But you looked down when you heard a panting. Standing in front of you was an Australian Shepherd, one who was obviously under a year old. It was a freaking puppy. It wasn’t wearing a collar, and you couldn’t see any sign of a microchip. It was definitely a boy, though.

           “Hey,” Jae said as he came up behind you. “What’s the dog doing here?”

           “I don’t know. There’s no one else out here.” You sat down on the step that led up to the trailer and pet the dog. He was friendly. He was happy, and he wasn’t distressed at all. “We should take it down to the strip mall, the pet store. Maybe they can scan the microchip.”

           “Yeah, I’ll get him some water.” Jae returned in a minute with a silver bowl you usually used to make soup filled with cold water, sitting down next to you and placing it in front of the dog.

           You took him down to the pet store and they couldn’t find a microchip. They said since it didn’t have one and it didn’t have a collar, it had probably been abandoned, and so suddenly you were buying a leash and you named it Brady to get your dad to let you take him home and keep him. You took the dog on the trail, just in case he got lost with some hikers. He knew simple commands too, and you couldn’t see why anyone could get rid of him.

           You decided to stay that night, too, pushing your California trip down a day, but it was fine. You ended up sitting outside the trailer in the chairs, the dog between the two of you, drinking some of the alcohol your dad had let the two of you take as long as you were safe with it. There was a fire pit in front of you, burning brightly, and there was still no one else in the park, probably because it was a weekday. You kept catching Jae looking at you as you scrolled through Tik Tok, grateful that you had a connection at least for a while.

           “What?” You said, feeling the heat rise to your cheeks. He smiled.

           “Nothing. Just happy.”

           “I love this. I love being here with you. And I love that we have a dog now, even if it’s by accident. And I love spending time with you and sleeping with you and being out in the middle of nowhere.”

           “I could literally murder you and no one would notice.”

           “I mean, yeah,” you replied with a laugh. You put your phone face down and looked over at him, tightening your hand around your empty beer bottle. “I’m happy. I’m really happy.”

           “Yeah. Me too.” You held hands for a few minutes before you got a call from your dad, updating him on the dog situation, and finally the two of you went to bed.

           A month later and you were in an unknown on your second to last night in the trailer. The dog was kind of yours now, and your dad had finally decided to let you keep the dog as long as he got along with Dodger. You were at an overlook, the dog asleep inside, and it was actually kind of cold, so you were wrapped up in one of Jae’s sweaters as you watched the sun set over the Blue Ridge mountains. You heard the door open and Jae walked out in a sweatshirt too, but he was holding something he’d gone to get a minute ago.

           “What’s that?” You asked, eyes narrowing as you eyed the navy blue velvet box that looked a little familiar.

           “Your birthday present,” he said, blushing a little bit. He handed it to you and you opened it as he leaned against the trailer’s doorway, anxiously watching. You opened it to see a ring, a rose gold ring, with three diamonds in the middle. It looked old, and familiar, and you couldn’t place it.

           “The diamond in the middle is your mom’s wedding ring,” he said quietly. “I asked your dad if I could give you a promise ring, because he said we have to wait until we’re at least in our twenties.” You smiled. You knew it was your dad’s idea to give you your mother’s ring, it must have been. He walked over to you and put the ring on your finger and you hugged him tightly, trying not to tear up like a baby.

           Your heart absolutely melted as you looked up at your boyfriend of a year and best friend of three, ever since you met him at Knives Out and threw around tennis balls with the dogs on set for two hours. He’d gotten yelled at for messing up the white suit he was supposed to wear and you’d spent another hour bleaching it that night to get him out of trouble. He’d been your best friend for a full year after that, and then after a night when they weren’t ID’ing, he’d drunkenly called you and admitted his feelings for you. And you’d fallen, hard, harder than you had either of your boyfriends before him. You knew that your future involved him and now he was just proving it – with the road trip and the ring, it was more than you could’ve asked for. You wanted time, and he was giving you that.

           “I love you,” he said quietly. “I really really love you.”

           “I love you too.” You stood on your toes and kissed him for what felt like forever before you buried your face in his neck, hugging his waist. “I’m glad you want to dog parent with me.”

           “You weren’t letting it go, so I figured we might as well go halfsies.” You laughed. “Happy birthday. And anniversary. And graduation. And I really, really wanna spend my life with you if you’ll let me. And if you want, I’m planning on getting a house in L.A. and I’d really like it if I could have you move in with me when you’re up there.” You smiled.

           “I dyed your hair with peroxide, we’re on a massive road trip, and we have a dog now, and I put the ring on my finger. If either of us changes our mind now it’ll suck.”

           “Yeah. It will.” You stayed there until the sun had finished setting and then you went back inside the trailer, where it was Jae’s turn to either get food delivered or heat up some soup on the burner. You could get used to this, definitely, you thought as you saw the dog curl up at his feet while he heated up some chicken noodle soup. You took another polaroid picture and put it on top of the other, smiling to yourself.

A/N: Listen to Running Wild by WYO. I promise you won’t regret it. Thanks to whoever requested both and gave me the idea for this one, because I absolutely loved writing it! I hope you like it too. 

Taglist (if you’d like to be added, send me a message or an ask!): @an-adventureland, @firstangeldragonranch, @ssebstann, @winterreader-nowwriter

#jaeden martell x evans!reader #jaeden martell x reader #jaeden martell fluff

[thisyearingaming]

1997 - This Year in Gaming

Muggins here was born in ‘97, and can’t really remember much of it, natch. But there were some good things released this year - I’ve played every one of these, and have missed so many more.

Diablo - Windows, January 3rd

We start with dungeon-crawl-em-up and well-loved out of season April Fool’s Joke, Diablo. I’ll be totally honest - I don’t like Diablo that much. It’s absolutely fine, I just can’t get into it. The writing, setting and characters are all very good especially since this year only marks the beginning of games being seen as a bit more adult and intelligent. Check out this gameplay from Hour of Oblivion on YouTube, and marvel at the faux-Scottish accent on Griswold the blacksmith.

Mario Kart 64 - Nintendo 64, February 10th

Compared to its more recent versions, Mario Kart 64 is a veritable bloody relic of the past - solid controls and a quirky style mean it’s still a crowd pleaser to this day, but you’d be hard pressed to find anyone right now that would die on the hill of it being their favourite single-player racing experience. It’s also got some of the deepest, impenetrable lore in any medium known to the human race - why exactly is Marty the Thwomp locked up here?

Blast Corps - Nintendo 64, February 28th

February’s position as most boring month of the year is shaken up a bit by having a uniquely designed Rare game slammed into its 28-day long face. Blast Corps is the puzzle-action game where you take control of several vehicles to destroy homes and buildings in order to prevent a nuclear warhead exploding in the coolest incarnation of Cold War politicking ever seen in a video game. Calling Blast Corps a “hidden gem” these days is like calling Celeste a hidden gem - it impresses nobody and makes you look like a dick. 

Turok: Dinosaur Hunter - Nintendo 64, March 4th 

The N64 was home to a surprisingly large number of above-average shooters despite its muddy graphics and small cartridge space - Turok is one of these, a great FPS game where you shoot the SHIT out of dinosaurs. Brett Atwood of Billboard said it was like Doom and Tomb Raider mixed - Doom Raider, if you will. I say it isn’t - there’s no demons, and there’s no polygonal breasts to poke dinosaurs’ eyes out with! 

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night - Sony PlayStation, March 20th

What is a retrospective? A miserable little pile of opinions. I’ve only recently played through SotN for the very first time on a TOTALLY LEGITIMATE copy with a CRT filter. Bloody good (geddit?) game, that takes the repetition of its predecessors, improves on it in basically every conceivable way, and combines it with special effects and graphics that even 23 years later had me going “ooh, that looks quite good!” Symphony’s music and audio design are wonderfully paired with a deeply enjoyable experience that’ll have you saying “mm, maybe just one more room?”

Tekken 3 - Sony PlayStation, March 20th

Also releasing from the Land of the Rising Sun that day was Tekken 3, which many believe is still one of the best fighters ever made. Tekken 3′s combat is so fast and responsive that it’s better than some games made today. T3 is also the best and easiest way to knock seven shades of absolute shite out of your friends without risking a massive head injury or a trip to the headmaster’s office... where you could also challenge him, but only if he plays as my favourite Not-Guile-or-Ken character in gaming, Paul. 

Sonic Jam - Sega Saturn, June 20th

The moment Sega realised that re-packaging old Mega Drive games would net them serious cash - although unlike later collections, this is a strictly Sonic affair, and has a neat little 3D world to run around in as a sort of hub world. Sonic X-Treme proved that Sonic Team would have to work hard at getting the fastest thing alive into 3D space properly: Jam is the sort of test ground for it too. It features some genuinely good emulation work for 1997, although it’s basically the gaming equivalent of going round to your grandparents at Christmas only for them to give you the exact same gifts you got in 1991, 1992 and 1994 but wrapped in a bow to make you think it’s different. What are you lookin’ at, you little blue devil?

Star Fox 64 - Nintendo 64, June 30th

So there’s this German company, right, called StarVox. Nintendo look at Europe and say “shit, we don’t want another lawsuit... after all, we’ve done three this year!”. So they give us in the PAL region the exciting title of Lylat Wars which as far as I know means absolutely fucking nothing in the context of the game. They’re still called Star Fox in-game too so what was the point? Anyway, fun 3D shooter with graphics that’ll make you do a barrel roll off the sofa and onto the power button to make the brown and green blurs a little easier on the eyes. Hello 2007, I’ve come back to make old references with you!

Carmageddon - Windows, July 30th

The game so scary it was BANNED in the UK! More like the game so fucking shit it was banned. Carmageddon is so deeply boring to play on PC that I can only imagine that Stainless Games made it tasteless by 90s standards simply to ramp up demand - much like another game we’ll be covering soon. 

Herc’s Adventures - Sony PlayStation, July 31st

“And they said Kratos was the best hero? Shish... they got it wrong, sister! Hercules is clearly better... he even has a coconut weapon.” A surprisingly fun overhead action game that most people only know for... well, I’ll just embed it.

Mega Man X4 - Sony Playstation, August 1st

A few years ago I tried playing every Mega Man game there is - I gave up at X3 because I was getting bored. Even still, Mega Man bores me - but at least the level design is good. Stay away from the Windows port. Pictured: me in the background yawning.

GoldenEye 007 - Nintendo 64, August 25th 

The name’s Intro. Overused intro which I also managed to fuck up twice through the deeply editable medium of text. GoldenEye is like the Seinfeld of console shooters - playing it nowadays you’re unlikely to be amazed but holy shit there’s some absolute greatness in this game. Every sound and every piece of music in GoldenEye is permanently seared into my brain - sometimes I’ll just hear Facility or Frigate in my head alongside the door opening sound and the gentle PEW of the PP7. I mean come on, fucking listen to this and tell me Grant Kirkhope isn’t cool as all hell.

LEGO Island - Windows, September 26th

The first open world experience I ever had was LEGO Island. It’s still quite good today, utterly deranged animation from the likes of the Infomaniac and Brickster - a cautionary tale for children that giving pizza to high-profile criminals is disastrous for the human LEGO race. 

Fallout - Windows, October 10th

War never changes, but franchises do. Fallout’s legendary status in the industry is exemplified in how different it feels. Yes, we had the game Wasteland nine years prior, but until September 97 there was nothing quite like Fallout. From the chilling introduction sequence showing the ruins of the United States to the tragic ending, Fallout is an exercise in pure human misery with the brightest spots of hope it can possibly muster thrown in for good measure. What begins as a tedious isometric point-and-click RPG ends as a minigun-wielding power fantasy, before your entire worth is stripped from you at the finish line. You have 500 days to find a water chip before it’s too late, but you’re constantly being fought by terrifying Super Mutants, irradiated animals, and the biggest monster of all - humanity. See what I did there? If anything, humanity in Fallout’s setting would be the greatest unifying force possible against the horror of the outside world. But how is it? It’s dull, it’s sluggish, and it’s really hard to get into even if you’re already a fan - but push through that and it’s worthwhile to see exactly how far the series got before Todd Howard said “eh fuck it” and had the whole thing dipped into an FEV vat.

Grand Theft Auto - Sony PlayStation, October 21st

To put it simply, the first in the GTA series is now nothing but a novelty. It has an irritating camera, wonky controls, poor graphics and deeply repetitive gameplay. But thank fuck it exists, because without it the Rockstar story may have been very different indeed. It’s quintessential cops and robbers gameplay, spanning across Liberty City, Vice City and San Andreas in one game, but with maps so far removed from their modern incarnations they may as well be named “Not New York, Possibly Bristol and Orange Town”. People really fucking hated Hare Krishnas in the 20th Century, didn’t they?

Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back - Sony PlayStation, October 31

A hard one to talk about, honestly - it’s more Crash and better than the first one. It looks great, and Crash controls so well compared to his first outing. It’ll also keep you playing for 100%, fiendishly addictive and unashamedly difficult. Had a weird cover that moved with your head. 

PaRappa the Rapper - Sony PlayStation, November 17th

Type type type the words into the box! (Type, type, type - uh oh - the box?)

PaRappa is a gorgeously stylised rhythm game about rapping to steal the heart of the girl of your dreams - which involves learning karate, getting your driver’s license, selling bottle caps and frogs, making a cake, desperately trying not to shit yourself, and finally performing live on stage. Every one of its segments is so well-produced that they’d genuinely sell like ghost cookies in this era of shite rap. Notable for producing the greatest Jay-Z backing track ever made.

Sonic R - Sega Saturn, November 18th

Sonic R is absolutely FINE with vibrant textures, interesting levels, neat gimmicks and decent controls. But I’m gonna talk about its fucking AWESOME soundtrack by Richard Jacques and T.J. Davis, an eclectic mix of Europop and New Jack Swing - even thinking about it is bringing tears of absolute joy to my eyes hearing Super Sonic Racing in my head. You’ve got the main theme, Living in the City, Can You Feel the Sunshine, Back in Time, Diamond in the Sky, Work It Out and Number One - all of these are absolute club bangers and genuinely wouldn’t be out of place in a 90s disco. 

Tomb Raider II - Sony PlayStation, November 18th

Lara Croft returns to single-handedly endanger every species on Earth. TR2 is really good, the exploration and puzzle-solving aspects of the first game expanded upon here and the gunplay remaining just as punchy. Lara’s got a fully-functioning ponytail which absolutely boggles the fucking mind - a lot of work went into Lara’s hair for the 2013 reboot, so I can’t imagine the amount of man hours it took to get fluid(ish, come on, it’s the PS1 we’re talking about) hair movements in 1997. 

And really, that’s all I played from 1997. I’ve left out big hitters like Quake II, Gran Turismo and Diddy Kong Racing, but I simply haven’t formed an opinion on them yet. Maybe in a future post. 

Thanks for reading.

#playstation #ps1 #n64 #nintendo #jontron #castlevania #carmageddon #mega man #hercules #star fox #mario kart #every copy of mario kart 64 is personalised #sonic #saturn #goldeneye #oddworld #retrospective #1997 #gaming #retrogaming #fallout #grand theft auto #gta #parappa #jay-z #lara croft #tomb raider #sonic r

[aka-willow]

Gone

gif

Words: 2012

Characters:  Willow Wren, Gooblin, Pip, Pingu, Burr, Spark, Danny, Manny, Dew, Fanisimo, France, Sabbath

Prompt/Tag:

“are you finishing that or…?”

“You’re going to get someone hurt.”

Summary: Willow speaks with the other Lab Rats about their past and future

Timeline: December 2015

Song: Gone - M83

A/N: the more you know

—————————————————————————–

The Lab Rats and I met at Gooblin’s fire tower on Christmas Eve. We set up sleeping bags in the tower and lit a bonfire down below. It should have felt like a party, being together for the first time since the summer, but it didn’t. It was somber instead.

On the heels of Marty’s death, the boys were sure that they were being trailed in Vegas, and Sabbath had botched a leak, accidentally forgetting to strip one of the files of metadata. It was a rough week and so we sat around the bonfire, staring down the end of our first year of freedom.

“Sometimes,” Pip said, slowly. “I think we should just turn ourselves in.” I shot a look at him.

“Why?” Burr asked. “Did you see something?”

“No,” said Pip, gazing into the fire. “I mean, not specifically. But when I do get those flashes of the future, I just see…” He looked at me and I frowned. “I just see… those planes that SHIELD used to have. It’s really dark. Surrounded. Loud. Maybe we should turn ourselves in before things get bad.”

“I’m not turning myself in,” said Pingu, poking the embers with a stick. “I hardly even use my powers. I’m not a threat.”

Except for D.C.

“Yeah, and neither is magic tricks,” said Manny, looking at Danny and France. “Pip, you know what we do. How can you say that’s dangerous?”

“I’m not saying it’s dangerous,” Pip said. “I’m saying that we’re perceived as threats.”

“Not me either,” said Sabbath, and Spark nodded her head in agreement. “Most of us are just trying to get our lives together. Even Dew is, which… I’m honestly kind of surprised.”

Dew laughed. “Well, superbrains aren’t exactly obvious. And the mirror thing isn’t either.”

“So, what?” I asked. “Who are you talking about?” I asked Pip. “Me? Fanisimo building things for us? Burr’s out there robbing banks in Europe.”

“I’m not violent,” Burr shot back. “It’s all behind the scenes.”

“So what, I build things?” said Fanisimo. “As long as I don’t open up a nether portal, I think we’re okay.”

That left me, and I felt their stares. “You want me to turn myself in,” I said. “That’s me you’re seeing in your vision.”

“I didn’t say that,” Pip mumbled.

“You implied it.”

“What’s going on in New York?” Danny asked. “I see the news, and maybe to outsiders it’s not suspicious, but to us? What are you doing? Every time I check in it’s like a new disaster or unsolved crime or—”

“I’m fine!” I said.

“You’re going to get someone hurt,” Sabbath said. “Or get yourself hurt.”

I ignored her and played with Marty’s flash drive in my hands. I had put it on a chain so I could wear it around my neck and the metal was cold between my fingers. Pip cleared his throat and asked Pingu about how school and home was, and the conversation shifted away from me. I grabbed my laptop from my backpack and plugged the flash drive in, trying key after key on WinRAR, nothing working. The file stayed zipped.

France and Pip got into a debate about whether France could use his powers to heal to resurrect someone who had died, as he had gotten some strange blood or healing abilities from the Blue Lab.

“You can’t resurrect someone,” France said. “It’s not possible. You can’t heal death.”

“But you haven’t tried,” Pip said. “Maybe you just need to try.”

“Wanna volunteer?”

The others laughed and it reminded me of something Marty had once told me. “Hey, Sabbath,” I said. She was sitting next to me. “You know the musical Cats?” I knew she was obsessed with musical theater, and if anyone appreciated the factoid, she would.

“What about it?”

“Well, if you trace the events from its production, it started with a German necromancer from the 1400s. So some guy tried to raise the dead in medieval times and we ended up with a musical about cats.”

“That can’t be real,” said Sabbath, pulling out her phone and opening the internet browser.

“It is,” I said, trying a few more book titles as keys on Marty’s file. On the other side of the fire, Spark and Gooblin stabbed sticks through marshmallows and began roasting them, as Spark joked about singing Christmas carols and Danny nudged Spark, pointing at a burnt marshmallow. “Are you finishing that or…”

“Wait…” Sabbath started. “John Faustus?”

“Yeah, I think,” I said. “Neat, right?”

“That was the name of the…” Sabbath started, and the rest of the circle got quiet as she typed something else into her phone.

“Name of…?”

“Doctor Faustus, deal with the devil… Faustus,” said Sabbath. “I remember now. That’s what they called it. At the Facility. With the words, that’s what they called it. Holy shit, that’s what it was. Do you guys remember? They used to use it when we started to… I don’t know… get out of line? They always said the same phrase, but I remember… there’s so much there…”

It was as if a ding went off in my head. Look up Doctor Faustus when you get a chance; it’s a wild read. I slowly typed doctorfaustus into the box, and suddenly the dialogue box cleared, and the folder opened up.

“Guys, guys, I got it,” I said in disbelief. “I got into the files Marty left me. The password was Doctor Faustus. Why is that…” The other Lab Rats on the other side of the circle got up and came around the fire to stand around me as I clicked to open the folder and extract the hidden files. “Marty was on to something,” I whispered. “Marty knew something…”

I opened the folder and the screen filled with a ton of subfolders. articles. hydra wikileaks. shield wikileaks. social media. scam stuff. willow. patterns.

I first clicked on scam stuff, my hands shaking, and when I opened up the folder, I wasn’t prepared for what I saw. There were archived emails, text files, screenshots of a conversation Marty had with someone at a data recovery center. The words blackmail crossed the screen. A data dump of archived HYDRA documents.

How the hell did Marty get his hands on this?

“What the fuck?” France asked. “What was he doing?”

I opened his hydra wikileaks folder and found pages and pages of documents from the 2014 leak, all organized and collected, exploring every bit of data that was released. And then patterns. There was a single video, and I recognized the file name from Marty’s blackmail at the data recovery center. He had stolen it, stolen it straight from HYDRA. Marty did that. Somehow, that anxious, goofy, weirdo kid did that. He did that for us. And paid the price.

“Click on it,” Dew said.

“I don’t know…” I started.

“Click on it,” Manny interrupted. “We have to watch. We have to know.”

It was a stream of a video conference, and at the center of it was Doctor Dawn Turner, sitting on a desk with a stack of papers next to her. The video was titled report_5232014_turner. She began talking and her voice sent chill straight through my heart, and some of the other Lab Rats instinctively stepped back from the screen or avoided looking altogether. The words seemed to bleed together as she discussed progress and assignments and Fausta. Monster. It was so cold, so clinical, but we started to recognize our subject numbers. Subject 10. That was me. October.

“This is about us,” Pip murmured, and we shushed him.

Resets. The Monster Book. Triggers. Compliance.

The video ended and I saw our reflections on the black screen. My heart pounding, I opened up articles. The folder contained screenshots of news stories, some pulled straight from old newspapers. I clicked through them using the right arrow key, but I hadn’t made the connection, not yet.

“These are all really old,” Burr said. “Look, that one’s from 2008.”

“It doesn’t make sense,” I said. “These are all… deaths? Obituaries? But not even of anyone important.” I continued to sort through, but I felt the pit in my stomach deepen. “This is a family in Russia. Middle of nowhere. Look at that place.”

“That’s the house from…” Fanisimo started and we turned to look at him. “I remember that house. Those woods. The cold.”

“No, this can’t…” I started. “This isn’t right. You can’t remember it. We never left the Facility.”

The faces continued to pop up on the screen and even though I knew I shouldn’t, I wasn’t supposed to, I remembered. Every single one. I clicked faster and more articles continued to come up, more unnatural deaths, more…

“Go back to the video,” Burr said. “Go back.”

We watched it again, listening closely, until Pingu interrupted with an “oh my God.”

The Monster Book. October, shh. It’s time to play Monster. Sumerkey. Nothingness. The chair. The electricity. October, are you ready to comply?

“This isn’t real,” I said. “It can’t be,” and my breaths were shallow and heavy like I had just run a marathon. “We didn’t do this. We couldn’t have. We’d…”

“Remember,” Fanisimo finished.

“They weren’t training us all those years at the Facility,” Dew whispered. “We were already working the whole time. We were… you know…”

“Killing,” I said. “That’s what Monster was. Sumerkey was the start of a series, but of course I wouldn’t remember beyond that. We’d… change somehow. Complete the assignment. Return back to the Facility. There would be a reset. And over, and over, and over.”

“How many times,” Sabbath asked, and I turned to look at her, seeing tears reflecting the bonfire’s light. “How many times were we reset? What did we do?”

“That’s why I wrote the word,” I said, thinking out loud, speaking slowly as I put it back together. “Sumerkey, on my arm. That was the last thing I remembered every time. And I realized that if I wrote it on my arm, I could pull myself out. Remember who I was before that. Or… at least… fight it. That’s why.”

The fire crackled and hissed as we played the video again, and again, as I tried to absorb Marty’s last gift to all of us. This is why they came for him, took his devices. He must have left digital fingerprints. Of course. He didn’t understand what he was dealing with. And that’s why he hid the drive.

Did he know? Did he know they were coming for him?

I looked at the dates on the drive. Marty knew. He knew all of this about you. And he still… I wanted to cry, but instead I swallowed the lump in my throat, looking into the fire as if it could evaporate the tears out of my eyes. Marty, why did you have to go looking? Why did you have to do this?

We were always the bad guys. We weren’t innocent in all this. That family…

“I can’t believe that…” Pip started, but he couldn’t finish the sentence, choking up over his own words.

“Why?” Pingu asked. “Why did they have to? 2008—we were seven. Seven years old.”

“I’m done with this shit,” Sabbath said, walking away from the fire. “I’m done. I didn’t want to know all this.”

“Fuck this,” said Danny. “I’m done, too. Why…”

The tears were contagious in our gathering and as we silently wept that Christmas Eve, we remembered. Remembered what we had done, everything we were supposed to forget. It came in flashes, in jolts of electricity, and the same series of words over and over and over. The fear when I saw Doctor Turner come in with the Monster Book. I remembered that now. Not being able to stop it. Even if the reset made us forget, that little girl still remembered every time the door opened, and the book was set down on the table.

And Marty knew. Marty knew.

They wanted us to be killers? I’ll show them a killer.

#ww writing #willow wren #gooblin #burr #pingu #sabbath #spark #france #danny #manny #pip #fanisimo #dew

[mfdnvd]

Nellie was at hand

Power. Nellie was at hand, so she told Nellie. That’s good.” Daenerys looked at the nike air max 102 essential white faces of the men around her. He was. Trust him in this. I really hate when criminals use our own morality and sense of community responsibility to bluff us. As the iPod is phased out by Apple, more runners are using their smart phones to provide not only entertainment in the form of music or other audio, but also a lot of the features of a GPS watch. Mens JORDAN Hoodie But the trader was inexorable, and in the morning, an hour before the cars were to arrive, they were all put on board the brig union, ready to sail for New Orleans. He seized the flagon with both hands and raised it to his lips. Elias Whilden. But what is to be done if even torture from him is happiness to me now? Do you suppose I’m going to him to meet joy? Do you suppose I don’t know beforehand what’s in store for me, or what I shall have to bear from him? Why, he’s sworn to love me, made all sorts of promises; but I don’t trust one of his promises. The bill of exception leon papucs győr states: That the slave Sam, in the indictment mentioned, folie samsung j6 2018 pt tot telegonil was the slave and property of the prisoner. He took a bite and pursed his lips. Born on July 27, 1932, he was the son of the late Margaret Tucker and Charles Tucker, Sr. "I understand that the traffic and the noise may be an haibike e mtb 2020 inconvenience . Listening to Kagrra Satsuki again. Oh, well, I’ll show him up! I’m very glad I heard from you about that girl; it’s another clue for me. Probably the most essential traits of Air Jordan shoes is their perceived value. The ribs to move downward and backward causing the chest cavity to become smaller in volume and the pressure increases pushing air out of the lungs into the atmosphere. His knights pulled him out before he drowned, but not before his lips turned blue and his skin as pale as milk. I am a republican and enjoy my right to guns and the many uses they possess from hunting to sport shooting. If you've seen as many movies as I have, you sometimes start to think you've seen it all in these sorts of situations. Eligible for up to $300,000 in incentives over three years for retaining jobs at its Hanes Mall Boulevard reservation center. This is FUN! Somehow Steve, Marty, and Karin find me in the crowd. Shortly after I announced my intention to take this challenge on, I noticed my wife, The Amazing Max, looking up the Blue Book value of my car on line. Now the 4 5 situation looks pretty clear for MSU. But the pressure was a hard thing to shake off. Footprints Footwear chose to make this move because they repeatedly heard tales of how many people would squeeze their feet into ill fitting, too tight shoes which can ultimately lead to problems such as hammer toes and bunions.. They offer maximum comfort for the players throughout the game and their cushioning level is super fantastic. The shattered glass collection just outside my apartment front gate is enough to send any barefoot novice running back for her shock absorbers, gel insoles, and heel pads. But he did not say, Give a pledge that you will not exercise your rights. Television and music stars at zattini promoção de botas Paris Fashion Week last Sunday for the final installment of fall winter menswear shows as the City of Light prepares to notch up a gear for couture week. The original Hyper 612 came out back in 2011 and was well liked by those who invested into it. But if you wonder or reproach me for being rude to you now, and perhaps bokacsizma bakancs as unmannerly as a peasant, with having changed my tone to you in fact, in that case you are quite unjust. About a mile west of the town of Ventor is Steephill Cove. In the passed two months, biologists have combed nearly every inch of Prospect Park, tracking mated pairs of geese back to their nests, where the eggs have been coated with corn oil to suffocate the embryos before development. Slopestyle isn't our forte. Winterfell’s storerooms and cellar vaults were empty. Some threats and malicious wishes were uttered against me by the ruffian part of the assembly, being about twenty-five persons. Of the light sensitive rod and cone structures in the retina, it's the cones that detect color and the rods that give us night vision, peripheral vision and motion detection. Don’t rest on your laurels. I cook from scratch (no pre packaged, boxed, canned garbage in my house)clean my home top to bottom weekly, make all my daughters baby food, do laundry AND work 30 hrs a week I do it with a smile. If you are looking for a miracle angle, that victory did come over the Churchill Downs strip. The 'new normal' no longer expects to see a recovery of state support for higher education such as occurred repeatedly in the gioco cubo di rubik amazon last half of the 20th century. One hero. In Ireland the spelling craic is now more common than crack.[12]The earliest definite reference to cricket being played anywhere is in evidence given at a 1598 court case which confirms that it was played on a certain plot of land in Guildford, Surrey, around 1550.[2] The case concerned a dispute over a school's ownership of the plot of land in question. Let them gorge themselves on charred mutton.. He had been the first chained up. Only fifty seemed to have turned up, not the eighty Toregg promised Leathers, but Tormund was not called Tall-Talker for naught. (Projections of future warming vary, but the mean forecast is about 1.34 degrees C hotter by 2050 than now.) The researchers say the measures would also avert 700,000 to 4.7 million premature deaths from outdoor air pollution per year, and increase annual crop yields by 30 to 135 million metric tons, due to ozone reductions by 2030 and beyond. I lost four upon the Blackwater. No doubt I did not myself quite understand the feeling with which I recalled her, but when we saw each other again I realized that she was destined to be my fate. Together, they realized that a normal filter mustang női cipő árgép wouldn't solve the problem of hard water. Unfortunately, we weren't able to test the FX 8320E for this air jordan aj4 review.. I cannot let him see my fear. The Bastard of Bolton claims that Greyjoy murdered Ser Rodrik during a parley.. And the changes during that period were so catastrophic, they spawned massively powerful superstorms, causing violent ocean waves that simply lifted the boulders from below and deposited them atop this cliff.. And meanwhile she would over-persuade her Frenchwoman (an old lady who was some sort of companion), for the latter was very good-natured. But I must have her portrait to look at, anyway; sometimes I cry, looking at it, and it does me good. The only building still standing is the courthouse, where you can watch a re enactment of the 1867 murder trial of James Barry, who shot 30 year old Charles Morgan Blessing in the head for $60 cash and a gold pin while the two were walking to Barkerville from Quesnelmouth, then was caught when he gave Blessing's pin to a hurdy gurdy girl. He shook his head, laughed, signed. A person must live years at the South before he can become fully acquainted with the many workings of slavery.

[thegregorybruce]

April 23, 2020 AsktheBuilder Newsletter

What the heck? Did I leave the door unlocked again?! You’re no doubt a new subscriber and I’m glad you feel comfortable enough to let yourself in! Do you like music? I do and listen to a wide variety of it while creating each newsletter for you. Today you need to know that “I’ve read dozens of books about heroes and crooks and learned much from each one”! Who’s hanging out with me here in my cave?

You! You’ve been here so long that you know how I feel about winter in New Hampshire. Winter here is like that relative or friend you have who has no concept what time it is and blabbers on in your house long after he/she should have said goodbye and gone home.

FUN Quiz

I decided to try something different this week. See if you like it! How about a one-question fun quiz each week where you might discover something new? Look at this photo and ponder it for a moment:

CLICK or TAP HERE to see if you know why a certain Midwest State Park is important.

Be sure to answer the second Yes/No question so I know what you think about the quiz.

Copper Strips, Mold, Algae, and How to Clean

Ron went to the Ask Tim page on my website and here is his question:

“Tim, you mentioned using copper strips to take care of the mold up on roofs. Where do you get these and how do you apply them? Also, are you familiar with the product "Wet and Forget" to clean mold? Is it a good way to get rid of dirt and mold on my roof or house?”

Let’s go in reverse order with Ron’s questions.

Imagine you work in your yard all day. You’re hot, sweaty, and filthy. It’s date night and you need to get gussied up for your sweetheart. It's time to get up out of the wheelbarrow you were napping in. What? You've never done that?

Here’s what you DON’T do. You don’t stand in your garage and have someone spray your naked body with some solution and then wait until you air dry before getting dressed in your clean clothes.

I’m quite certain you probably get in the shower, soap up, RUB your skin with your hands or a soft brush, and then RINSE off all the body oils, the dirt, etc. that were DISLODGED from your skin by the RUBBING action.

When you wash clothes, here’s what you DON’T do. You don’t throw your clothes in a giant clean tub, pour in soapy water, and let the water and clothes sit for hours or a couple of days. After the soaking period, you don’t drain the tub and throw the clothes in the dryer.

What you do is put them in a washing machine that has some sort of AGITATION ACTION and allow the machine to go through the wash cycle.

Get the point? If you want something truly clean, you must agitate the surface and rinse off the dirt. You can do just that using my Stain Solver, the MOST AMAZING cleaning product you can purchase in the USA. Plus, it’s certified organic.

Copper is a natural biocide. This is why it was put on the hulls of famous clipper ships like the Cutty Sark and the Thermopylae. Copper plating is also on Old Ironsides. The copper prevented the growth of barnacles. Barnacles create lots of drag and slow the movement of a sailing ship.

Copper will keep mold and algae off your roof. It will ALSO slow the aging process and allow asphalt shingles to last 30 or 40 years. You can read about how I was the first person in the world to discover this in my Roofing Ripoff book. It’s a very easy and fast read.

I told Ron that he could purchase the copper strips from ME.

CLICK or TAP HERE to see how I’d install copper on your roof and to purchase it for your roof.

Soil Strength - Fred’s Shed

Fred sent me a very detailed email about a 10x20 prefab shed he wants to have at his home.

He was concerned about the strength of the soil and if the piers he had in mind would work. He doesn't want the shed to shift and sink.

Look at this photo and tell me if you understand its significance and how it helps solve Fred’s conundrum:

Are you stumped? I thought so! CLICK or TAP HERE and I GUARANTEE you’ll come away much more informed as was Fred after he WATCHED a very important VIDEO about soil maps at the above page.

Donna’s HOT Kitchen Sink Water

Donna emailed me a few days ago. She had a perplexing problem with the hot water at her kitchen sink. It would run HOT for a bit then go lukewarm.

It was such a good question, I decided to talk about it! CLICK or TAP HERE to see if you came to the same conclusion that I did.

The answer will most likely surprise you!

Cleaning and Sealing My Cedar Boat Dock

In the last issue, I said I'd share the details about my wood dock sealing project. If you own a wood deck or wood boat dock, then you MUST LOOK AT THIS PAGE.

I’ve got a 40-foot boat dock at my house. The flooring is made from solid cedar and the sun punishes it each summer day here in New Hampshire.

That’s the first cedar dock panel cleaned and sealed.

CLICK or TAP HERE to see how I’m cleaning and sealing the cedar this season.

Long Overdue Shoutout

I started Ask the Builder in October of 1993. I’ll never forget standing at the end of my driveway WAITING for my Cincinnati Enquirer carrier to deliver the paper so I could see my first column in print.

In March of 1994, I started my call-in radio show on WMOH. Long about October of 1995, I launched AsktheBuilder.com. The bottom line is it's been quite the journey and I’ve had all sorts of help from quite a few who are behind the curtain of Ask the Builder.

I want to call out three today, Ellen, Marty, and Roger. Ellen is the first employee of Ask the Builder. She started by opening envelopes that people sent in to get one of my old print Builder Bulletins. My buddy Chuck in Michigan sent for one long before we became friends in a secret Internet mastermind group.

She then started to help with the Stain Solver business and in a fit of frustration threw an empty bottle at me late one afternoon as I took an over-the-phone order for our Stain Solver deck cleaner. I told the customer we’d put their box on today’s UPS truck that was to arrive in just minutes. It had been a very busy day and everyone was very tired. The last thing Ellen wanted to do was process yet another shipment of Stain Solver - the MAGIC deck cleaner!

Marty is a superbly talented graphic designer who’s helped me over the years. Just after the AsktheBuilder.com website launched, Marty created the animated GIF that we used on pages “Under Construction”. It was very common back in the late 90s to do this.

You can see this cute animated GIF file on this page at the top just under the BLACK iTunes logo. I’m starting to put this animated GIF on all my new podcast pages in honor of Marty.

Marty also created the stunning 3D image of my linear french drain design over twenty years ago. CLICK or TAP HERE to see it.

It’s such a great illustration, MANY other websites have STOLEN the image and put it on their websites! I don’t have the time to police this piracy. Over the years, Marty has helped me look good, but his skills stop short when it comes to making my bald spot disappear in videos!

Roger is my go-to guy for all the daily heavy lifting that gets done on both the AsktheBuilder.com and StainSolver.com websites.

Roger has the patience of Job. Believe me, you need that when you’re around me for any length of time.

I want to thank Ellen, Marty, and Roger publicly for all they’ve done in the past and continue to do to make sure you have a positive experience with Ask the Builder and Stain Solver.

If you call in an order to Stain Solver, ask Ellen about the day she threw that bottle. I’m pretty certain she’ll laugh about it now. It was plastic and wouldn’t have hurt had it hit me. Remember, it’s all fun and games until someone gets hurt, right?

That’s quite enough for a Thursday.

Tim Carter Founder - www.AsktheBuilder.com BEST CLEANER on the Planet: www.StainSolver.com Hear Cool Waves - www.W3ATB.com

Do It Right, Not Over!

P.S. Max is remodeling his son’s home. He wanted to talk to me about the size of a return air duct in the house.

What do you know about return air? My guess is NOT ENOUGH. CLICK or TAP HERE now to be MUCH COOLER this summer and WARMER next winter.

The post April 23, 2020 AsktheBuilder Newsletter appeared first on Ask the Builder.

from Home https://www.askthebuilder.com/april-23-2020-askthebuilder-newsletter/ via http://www.rssmix.com/

[manuelclapid]

April 23, 2020 AsktheBuilder Newsletter

What the heck? Did I leave the door unlocked again?! You’re no doubt a new subscriber and I’m glad you feel comfortable enough to let yourself in! Do you like music? I do and listen to a wide variety of it while creating each newsletter for you. Today you need to know that “I’ve read dozens of books about heroes and crooks and learned much from each one”! Who’s hanging out with me here in my cave?

You! You’ve been here so long that you know how I feel about winter in New Hampshire. Winter here is like that relative or friend you have who has no concept what time it is and blabbers on in your house long after he/she should have said goodbye and gone home.

FUN Quiz

I decided to try something different this week. See if you like it! How about a one-question fun quiz each week where you might discover something new? Look at this photo and ponder it for a moment:

CLICK or TAP HERE to see if you know why a certain Midwest State Park is important.

Be sure to answer the second Yes/No question so I know what you think about the quiz.

Copper Strips, Mold, Algae, and How to Clean

Ron went to the Ask Tim page on my website and here is his question:

“Tim, you mentioned using copper strips to take care of the mold up on roofs. Where do you get these and how do you apply them? Also, are you familiar with the product "Wet and Forget" to clean mold? Is it a good way to get rid of dirt and mold on my roof or house?”

Let’s go in reverse order with Ron’s questions.

Imagine you work in your yard all day. You’re hot, sweaty, and filthy. It’s date night and you need to get gussied up for your sweetheart. It's time to get up out of the wheelbarrow you were napping in. What? You've never done that?

Here’s what you DON’T do. You don’t stand in your garage and have someone spray your naked body with some solution and then wait until you air dry before getting dressed in your clean clothes.

I’m quite certain you probably get in the shower, soap up, RUB your skin with your hands or a soft brush, and then RINSE off all the body oils, the dirt, etc. that were DISLODGED from your skin by the RUBBING action.

When you wash clothes, here’s what you DON’T do. You don’t throw your clothes in a giant clean tub, pour in soapy water, and let the water and clothes sit for hours or a couple of days. After the soaking period, you don’t drain the tub and throw the clothes in the dryer.

What you do is put them in a washing machine that has some sort of AGITATION ACTION and allow the machine to go through the wash cycle.

Get the point? If you want something truly clean, you must agitate the surface and rinse off the dirt. You can do just that using my Stain Solver, the MOST AMAZING cleaning product you can purchase in the USA. Plus, it’s certified organic.

Copper is a natural biocide. This is why it was put on the hulls of famous clipper ships like the Cutty Sark and the Thermopylae. Copper plating is also on Old Ironsides. The copper prevented the growth of barnacles. Barnacles create lots of drag and slow the movement of a sailing ship.

Copper will keep mold and algae off your roof. It will ALSO slow the aging process and allow asphalt shingles to last 30 or 40 years. You can read about how I was the first person in the world to discover this in my Roofing Ripoff book. It’s a very easy and fast read.

I told Ron that he could purchase the copper strips from ME.

CLICK or TAP HERE to see how I’d install copper on your roof and to purchase it for your roof.

Soil Strength - Fred’s Shed

Fred sent me a very detailed email about a 10x20 prefab shed he wants to have at his home.

He was concerned about the strength of the soil and if the piers he had in mind would work. He doesn't want the shed to shift and sink.

Look at this photo and tell me if you understand its significance and how it helps solve Fred’s conundrum:

Are you stumped? I thought so! CLICK or TAP HERE and I GUARANTEE you’ll come away much more informed as was Fred after he WATCHED a very important VIDEO about soil maps at the above page.

Donna’s HOT Kitchen Sink Water

Donna emailed me a few days ago. She had a perplexing problem with the hot water at her kitchen sink. It would run HOT for a bit then go lukewarm.

It was such a good question, I decided to talk about it! CLICK or TAP HERE to see if you came to the same conclusion that I did.

The answer will most likely surprise you!

Cleaning and Sealing My Cedar Boat Dock

In the last issue, I said I'd share the details about my wood dock sealing project. If you own a wood deck or wood boat dock, then you MUST LOOK AT THIS PAGE.

I’ve got a 40-foot boat dock at my house. The flooring is made from solid cedar and the sun punishes it each summer day here in New Hampshire.

That’s the first cedar dock panel cleaned and sealed.

CLICK or TAP HERE to see how I’m cleaning and sealing the cedar this season.

Long Overdue Shoutout

I started Ask the Builder in October of 1993. I’ll never forget standing at the end of my driveway WAITING for my Cincinnati Enquirer carrier to deliver the paper so I could see my first column in print.

In March of 1994, I started my call-in radio show on WMOH. Long about October of 1995, I launched AsktheBuilder.com. The bottom line is it's been quite the journey and I’ve had all sorts of help from quite a few who are behind the curtain of Ask the Builder.

I want to call out three today, Ellen, Marty, and Roger. Ellen is the first employee of Ask the Builder. She started by opening envelopes that people sent in to get one of my old print Builder Bulletins. My buddy Chuck in Michigan sent for one long before we became friends in a secret Internet mastermind group.

She then started to help with the Stain Solver business and in a fit of frustration threw an empty bottle at me late one afternoon as I took an over-the-phone order for our Stain Solver deck cleaner. I told the customer we’d put their box on today’s UPS truck that was to arrive in just minutes. It had been a very busy day and everyone was very tired. The last thing Ellen wanted to do was process yet another shipment of Stain Solver - the MAGIC deck cleaner!

Marty is a superbly talented graphic designer who’s helped me over the years. Just after the AsktheBuilder.com website launched, Marty created the animated GIF that we used on pages “Under Construction”. It was very common back in the late 90s to do this.

You can see this cute animated GIF file on this page at the top just under the BLACK iTunes logo. I’m starting to put this animated GIF on all my new podcast pages in honor of Marty.

Marty also created the stunning 3D image of my linear french drain design over twenty years ago. CLICK or TAP HERE to see it.

It’s such a great illustration, MANY other websites have STOLEN the image and put it on their websites! I don’t have the time to police this piracy. Over the years, Marty has helped me look good, but his skills stop short when it comes to making my bald spot disappear in videos!

Roger is my go-to guy for all the daily heavy lifting that gets done on both the AsktheBuilder.com and StainSolver.com websites.

Roger has the patience of Job. Believe me, you need that when you’re around me for any length of time.

I want to thank Ellen, Marty, and Roger publicly for all they’ve done in the past and continue to do to make sure you have a positive experience with Ask the Builder and Stain Solver.

If you call in an order to Stain Solver, ask Ellen about the day she threw that bottle. I’m pretty certain she’ll laugh about it now. It was plastic and wouldn’t have hurt had it hit me. Remember, it’s all fun and games until someone gets hurt, right?

That’s quite enough for a Thursday.

Tim Carter Founder - www.AsktheBuilder.com BEST CLEANER on the Planet: www.StainSolver.com Hear Cool Waves - www.W3ATB.com

Do It Right, Not Over!

P.S. Max is remodeling his son’s home. He wanted to talk to me about the size of a return air duct in the house.

What do you know about return air? My guess is NOT ENOUGH. CLICK or TAP HERE now to be MUCH COOLER this summer and WARMER next winter.

The post April 23, 2020 AsktheBuilder Newsletter appeared first on Ask the Builder.

from Home https://www.askthebuilder.com/april-23-2020-askthebuilder-newsletter/ via http://www.rssmix.com/

[williamccreynolds]

April 23, 2020 AsktheBuilder Newsletter

What the heck? Did I leave the door unlocked again?! You’re no doubt a new subscriber and I’m glad you feel comfortable enough to let yourself in! Do you like music? I do and listen to a wide variety of it while creating each newsletter for you. Today you need to know that “I’ve read dozens of books about heroes and crooks and learned much from each one”! Who’s hanging out with me here in my cave?

You! You’ve been here so long that you know how I feel about winter in New Hampshire. Winter here is like that relative or friend you have who has no concept what time it is and blabbers on in your house long after he/she should have said goodbye and gone home.

FUN Quiz

I decided to try something different this week. See if you like it! How about a one-question fun quiz each week where you might discover something new? Look at this photo and ponder it for a moment:

CLICK or TAP HERE to see if you know why a certain Midwest State Park is important.

Be sure to answer the second Yes/No question so I know what you think about the quiz.

Copper Strips, Mold, Algae, and How to Clean

Ron went to the Ask Tim page on my website and here is his question:

“Tim, you mentioned using copper strips to take care of the mold up on roofs. Where do you get these and how do you apply them? Also, are you familiar with the product "Wet and Forget" to clean mold? Is it a good way to get rid of dirt and mold on my roof or house?”

Let’s go in reverse order with Ron’s questions.

Imagine you work in your yard all day. You’re hot, sweaty, and filthy. It’s date night and you need to get gussied up for your sweetheart. It's time to get up out of the wheelbarrow you were napping in. What? You've never done that?

Here’s what you DON’T do. You don’t stand in your garage and have someone spray your naked body with some solution and then wait until you air dry before getting dressed in your clean clothes.

I’m quite certain you probably get in the shower, soap up, RUB your skin with your hands or a soft brush, and then RINSE off all the body oils, the dirt, etc. that were DISLODGED from your skin by the RUBBING action.

When you wash clothes, here’s what you DON’T do. You don’t throw your clothes in a giant clean tub, pour in soapy water, and let the water and clothes sit for hours or a couple of days. After the soaking period, you don’t drain the tub and throw the clothes in the dryer.

What you do is put them in a washing machine that has some sort of AGITATION ACTION and allow the machine to go through the wash cycle.

Get the point? If you want something truly clean, you must agitate the surface and rinse off the dirt. You can do just that using my Stain Solver, the MOST AMAZING cleaning product you can purchase in the USA. Plus, it’s certified organic.

Copper is a natural biocide. This is why it was put on the hulls of famous clipper ships like the Cutty Sark and the Thermopylae. Copper plating is also on Old Ironsides. The copper prevented the growth of barnacles. Barnacles create lots of drag and slow the movement of a sailing ship.

Copper will keep mold and algae off your roof. It will ALSO slow the aging process and allow asphalt shingles to last 30 or 40 years. You can read about how I was the first person in the world to discover this in my Roofing Ripoff book. It’s a very easy and fast read.

I told Ron that he could purchase the copper strips from ME.

CLICK or TAP HERE to see how I’d install copper on your roof and to purchase it for your roof.

Soil Strength - Fred’s Shed

Fred sent me a very detailed email about a 10x20 prefab shed he wants to have at his home.

He was concerned about the strength of the soil and if the piers he had in mind would work. He doesn't want the shed to shift and sink.

Look at this photo and tell me if you understand its significance and how it helps solve Fred’s conundrum:

Are you stumped? I thought so! CLICK or TAP HERE and I GUARANTEE you’ll come away much more informed as was Fred after he WATCHED a very important VIDEO about soil maps at the above page.

Donna’s HOT Kitchen Sink Water

Donna emailed me a few days ago. She had a perplexing problem with the hot water at her kitchen sink. It would run HOT for a bit then go lukewarm.

It was such a good question, I decided to talk about it! CLICK or TAP HERE to see if you came to the same conclusion that I did.

The answer will most likely surprise you!

Cleaning and Sealing My Cedar Boat Dock

In the last issue, I said I'd share the details about my wood dock sealing project. If you own a wood deck or wood boat dock, then you MUST LOOK AT THIS PAGE.

I’ve got a 40-foot boat dock at my house. The flooring is made from solid cedar and the sun punishes it each summer day here in New Hampshire.

That’s the first cedar dock panel cleaned and sealed.

CLICK or TAP HERE to see how I’m cleaning and sealing the cedar this season.

Long Overdue Shoutout

I started Ask the Builder in October of 1993. I’ll never forget standing at the end of my driveway WAITING for my Cincinnati Enquirer carrier to deliver the paper so I could see my first column in print.

In March of 1994, I started my call-in radio show on WMOH. Long about October of 1995, I launched AsktheBuilder.com. The bottom line is it's been quite the journey and I’ve had all sorts of help from quite a few who are behind the curtain of Ask the Builder.

I want to call out three today, Ellen, Marty, and Roger. Ellen is the first employee of Ask the Builder. She started by opening envelopes that people sent in to get one of my old print Builder Bulletins. My buddy Chuck in Michigan sent for one long before we became friends in a secret Internet mastermind group.

She then started to help with the Stain Solver business and in a fit of frustration threw an empty bottle at me late one afternoon as I took an over-the-phone order for our Stain Solver deck cleaner. I told the customer we’d put their box on today’s UPS truck that was to arrive in just minutes. It had been a very busy day and everyone was very tired. The last thing Ellen wanted to do was process yet another shipment of Stain Solver - the MAGIC deck cleaner!

Marty is a superbly talented graphic designer who’s helped me over the years. Just after the AsktheBuilder.com website launched, Marty created the animated GIF that we used on pages “Under Construction”. It was very common back in the late 90s to do this.

You can see this cute animated GIF file on this page at the top just under the BLACK iTunes logo. I’m starting to put this animated GIF on all my new podcast pages in honor of Marty.

Marty also created the stunning 3D image of my linear french drain design over twenty years ago. CLICK or TAP HERE to see it.

It’s such a great illustration, MANY other websites have STOLEN the image and put it on their websites! I don’t have the time to police this piracy. Over the years, Marty has helped me look good, but his skills stop short when it comes to making my bald spot disappear in videos!

Roger is my go-to guy for all the daily heavy lifting that gets done on both the AsktheBuilder.com and StainSolver.com websites.

Roger has the patience of Job. Believe me, you need that when you’re around me for any length of time.

I want to thank Ellen, Marty, and Roger publicly for all they’ve done in the past and continue to do to make sure you have a positive experience with Ask the Builder and Stain Solver.

If you call in an order to Stain Solver, ask Ellen about the day she threw that bottle. I’m pretty certain she’ll laugh about it now. It was plastic and wouldn’t have hurt had it hit me. Remember, it’s all fun and games until someone gets hurt, right?

That’s quite enough for a Thursday.

Tim Carter Founder - www.AsktheBuilder.com BEST CLEANER on the Planet: www.StainSolver.com Hear Cool Waves - www.W3ATB.com

Do It Right, Not Over!

P.S. Max is remodeling his son’s home. He wanted to talk to me about the size of a return air duct in the house.

What do you know about return air? My guess is NOT ENOUGH. CLICK or TAP HERE now to be MUCH COOLER this summer and WARMER next winter.

The post April 23, 2020 AsktheBuilder Newsletter appeared first on Ask the Builder.

from Real Estate https://www.askthebuilder.com/april-23-2020-askthebuilder-newsletter/ via http://www.rssmix.com/

[andrewmawby]

April 23, 2020 AsktheBuilder Newsletter

What the heck? Did I leave the door unlocked again?! You’re no doubt a new subscriber and I’m glad you feel comfortable enough to let yourself in! Do you like music? I do and listen to a wide variety of it while creating each newsletter for you. Today you need to know that “I’ve read dozens of books about heroes and crooks and learned much from each one”! Who’s hanging out with me here in my cave?

You! You’ve been here so long that you know how I feel about winter in New Hampshire. Winter here is like that relative or friend you have who has no concept what time it is and blabbers on in your house long after he/she should have said goodbye and gone home.

FUN Quiz

I decided to try something different this week. See if you like it! How about a one-question fun quiz each week where you might discover something new? Look at this photo and ponder it for a moment:

CLICK or TAP HERE to see if you know why a certain Midwest State Park is important.

Be sure to answer the second Yes/No question so I know what you think about the quiz.

Copper Strips, Mold, Algae, and How to Clean

Ron went to the Ask Tim page on my website and here is his question:

“Tim, you mentioned using copper strips to take care of the mold up on roofs. Where do you get these and how do you apply them? Also, are you familiar with the product "Wet and Forget" to clean mold? Is it a good way to get rid of dirt and mold on my roof or house?”

Let’s go in reverse order with Ron’s questions.

Imagine you work in your yard all day. You’re hot, sweaty, and filthy. It’s date night and you need to get gussied up for your sweetheart. It's time to get up out of the wheelbarrow you were napping in. What? You've never done that?

Here’s what you DON’T do. You don’t stand in your garage and have someone spray your naked body with some solution and then wait until you air dry before getting dressed in your clean clothes.

I’m quite certain you probably get in the shower, soap up, RUB your skin with your hands or a soft brush, and then RINSE off all the body oils, the dirt, etc. that were DISLODGED from your skin by the RUBBING action.

When you wash clothes, here’s what you DON’T do. You don’t throw your clothes in a giant clean tub, pour in soapy water, and let the water and clothes sit for hours or a couple of days. After the soaking period, you don’t drain the tub and throw the clothes in the dryer.

What you do is put them in a washing machine that has some sort of AGITATION ACTION and allow the machine to go through the wash cycle.

Get the point? If you want something truly clean, you must agitate the surface and rinse off the dirt. You can do just that using my Stain Solver, the MOST AMAZING cleaning product you can purchase in the USA. Plus, it’s certified organic.

Copper is a natural biocide. This is why it was put on the hulls of famous clipper ships like the Cutty Sark and the Thermopylae. Copper plating is also on Old Ironsides. The copper prevented the growth of barnacles. Barnacles create lots of drag and slow the movement of a sailing ship.

Copper will keep mold and algae off your roof. It will ALSO slow the aging process and allow asphalt shingles to last 30 or 40 years. You can read about how I was the first person in the world to discover this in my Roofing Ripoff book. It’s a very easy and fast read.

I told Ron that he could purchase the copper strips from ME.

CLICK or TAP HERE to see how I’d install copper on your roof and to purchase it for your roof.

Soil Strength - Fred’s Shed

Fred sent me a very detailed email about a 10x20 prefab shed he wants to have at his home.

He was concerned about the strength of the soil and if the piers he had in mind would work. He doesn't want the shed to shift and sink.

Look at this photo and tell me if you understand its significance and how it helps solve Fred’s conundrum:

Are you stumped? I thought so! CLICK or TAP HERE and I GUARANTEE you’ll come away much more informed as was Fred after he WATCHED a very important VIDEO about soil maps at the above page.

Donna’s HOT Kitchen Sink Water

Donna emailed me a few days ago. She had a perplexing problem with the hot water at her kitchen sink. It would run HOT for a bit then go lukewarm.

It was such a good question, I decided to talk about it! CLICK or TAP HERE to see if you came to the same conclusion that I did.

The answer will most likely surprise you!

Cleaning and Sealing My Cedar Boat Dock

In the last issue, I said I'd share the details about my wood dock sealing project. If you own a wood deck or wood boat dock, then you MUST LOOK AT THIS PAGE.

I’ve got a 40-foot boat dock at my house. The flooring is made from solid cedar and the sun punishes it each summer day here in New Hampshire.

That’s the first cedar dock panel cleaned and sealed.

CLICK or TAP HERE to see how I’m cleaning and sealing the cedar this season.

Long Overdue Shoutout

I started Ask the Builder in October of 1993. I’ll never forget standing at the end of my driveway WAITING for my Cincinnati Enquirer carrier to deliver the paper so I could see my first column in print.

In March of 1994, I started my call-in radio show on WMOH. Long about October of 1995, I launched AsktheBuilder.com. The bottom line is it's been quite the journey and I’ve had all sorts of help from quite a few who are behind the curtain of Ask the Builder.

I want to call out three today, Ellen, Marty, and Roger. Ellen is the first employee of Ask the Builder. She started by opening envelopes that people sent in to get one of my old print Builder Bulletins. My buddy Chuck in Michigan sent for one long before we became friends in a secret Internet mastermind group.

She then started to help with the Stain Solver business and in a fit of frustration threw an empty bottle at me late one afternoon as I took an over-the-phone order for our Stain Solver deck cleaner. I told the customer we’d put their box on today’s UPS truck that was to arrive in just minutes. It had been a very busy day and everyone was very tired. The last thing Ellen wanted to do was process yet another shipment of Stain Solver - the MAGIC deck cleaner!

Marty is a superbly talented graphic designer who’s helped me over the years. Just after the AsktheBuilder.com website launched, Marty created the animated GIF that we used on pages “Under Construction”. It was very common back in the late 90s to do this.

You can see this cute animated GIF file on this page at the top just under the BLACK iTunes logo. I’m starting to put this animated GIF on all my new podcast pages in honor of Marty.

Marty also created the stunning 3D image of my linear french drain design over twenty years ago. CLICK or TAP HERE to see it.

It’s such a great illustration, MANY other websites have STOLEN the image and put it on their websites! I don’t have the time to police this piracy. Over the years, Marty has helped me look good, but his skills stop short when it comes to making my bald spot disappear in videos!

Roger is my go-to guy for all the daily heavy lifting that gets done on both the AsktheBuilder.com and StainSolver.com websites.

Roger has the patience of Job. Believe me, you need that when you’re around me for any length of time.

I want to thank Ellen, Marty, and Roger publicly for all they’ve done in the past and continue to do to make sure you have a positive experience with Ask the Builder and Stain Solver.

If you call in an order to Stain Solver, ask Ellen about the day she threw that bottle. I’m pretty certain she’ll laugh about it now. It was plastic and wouldn’t have hurt had it hit me. Remember, it’s all fun and games until someone gets hurt, right?

That’s quite enough for a Thursday.

Tim Carter Founder - www.AsktheBuilder.com BEST CLEANER on the Planet: www.StainSolver.com Hear Cool Waves - www.W3ATB.com

Do It Right, Not Over!

P.S. Max is remodeling his son’s home. He wanted to talk to me about the size of a return air duct in the house.

What do you know about return air? My guess is NOT ENOUGH. CLICK or TAP HERE now to be MUCH COOLER this summer and WARMER next winter.

The post April 23, 2020 AsktheBuilder Newsletter appeared first on Ask the Builder.

from builders feed https://www.askthebuilder.com/april-23-2020-askthebuilder-newsletter/ via http://www.rssmix.com/

[ejzah]

Can u a story about an alternate version of Densi’s wedding where Kirkin’s actual goal all along was to kidnap the groom aka DEEKS. XD

A/N: I know I have others stories waiting, but this one spoke to me. The events of the episode are a little altered to fit the prompt and I’ve excluded the guys that came after Kirkin.

***

“I cannot believe Kirkin actually tried to kidnap me on my wedding day,” Deeks said, shaking his head. He rubbed his eyes with his forefinger and thumb. As if he needed the additional stress.

Callen patted him on the shoulder, consolingly and with surprising sincerity.

���Well, hopefully he got the message,” he said. On the other side of him, Sam shook his head, looking equally amused and annoyed.

“Only you would have a Russian criminal who’s obsessed with you and won’t take no for an answer.” Deeks glared at him.

“I’m glad you find this funny, Sam.”

“Hey, you woke me up in the middle of the night after you broke into my boat. You’re lucky I’m in such a good mood,” Sam said, looking pointedly at Deeks.

“Point taken.” Deeks sighed and scratched at his head, already feeling exhausted. This day was already 20 times more stressful than he’d been expecting. “Well, I’m gonna go to the mission and see if I can find my box.”

“Good luck,” Callen offered, clapping him on the shoulder again. “We’ll meet you at the venue.” As they headed to their cars, Deeks prayed that the excitement was over for the day. He didn’t think his nerves could take anymore.

***

Deeks stared at the ring and letter Kensi had given him, completely overwhelmed. Kensi was somewhere in the building, presumably getting ready with her bridesmaids, and it was taking all his effort not to find her and say to hell with tradition.

He glanced down at his watch and swore under his breath. The guests would be arriving soon and he hadn’t even started to get changed. He grabbed the garment bag with his suit and stripped off his jacket and shirt. There was a slight noise behind him, followed by a horribly familiar voice.

“I see I’ve come at the perfect time.” Deeks yelped and spun around, automatically reaching for his gun, which he belatedly remembered he’d left at work, and covering half his chest with the other.

“Kirkin, jesus, how the hell did you get in here?” he hissed. “And-and more importantly, what are you doing here? Again.” Kirkin just stared for a moment, glancing at his bare chest with a small smirk.

“Maaarty, you must know I will always come for you,” he answered with disturbing sincerity. He sighed deeply, eyes straying back to Deeks chest. “It has been too long since we’ve been together like this.” Deeks took a step back.

“Ok, first of all, that is probably one of the most creepy things you have ever said, which is saying something,” Deeks said, ticking off points on his finger. Callen and Sam would never let him live this down. “Secondly, I specifically told you that I did not need, or want, you to rescue me or whatever the hell you think you’re doing right now. And let me reiterate, this is super creepy.”

Kirkin’s expression turned to one of sympathy, which was even more disconcerting. If that was possible.

“I know, Martin. But it occurred to me that the two of us have never been given a fair chance. Ever since that day we met, there has been something undeniable between us, but we’ve never been given the opportunity to fully explore it.”

“If you’re referring to your complete insanity, then yes, that it definitely between us.” Kirkin tilted his head, reaching out to touch Deeks’ arm with the top of his finger.

“You have always had such a wonderful sense of humor,” he gushed. Deeks rolled his eyes and reached into the pocket of his jeans.

“M’kay, I’m texting my team. You better hope Kensi doesn’t get in on this, because she will pulverize you. And then there’s her five bridesmaids and mom, who have been looking forward to this day for years,” Deeks said, typing as he spoke. Kirkin cleared his throat, slipping his hand beneath his suit jacket to pull out a gun.

“I wouldn’t do that Martin. You are coming with me. Now.”

***

“Hey, have you seen Deeks?” Callen asked, as Nell passed him in the hall, likely on the way to start directing guests.

“Um, no, why?” She turned around, clearly sensing that something else was going on.

“We were supposed to run through his vows with him 20 minutes ago, but he never showed. And now we can’t find him.” Nell’s brows furrowed and she grabbed her phone.

“We’ve already tried calling him,” Sam said. “He didn’t pick up.”

“That’s not a good sign,” she murmured. “But I was actually going to check the security cameras. I can tap into a few and see where he’s been.” She tapped at her phone a bit more, staring at the screen and then after a few minutes, frowned again. “What is Kirkin doing here?”

Sam and Callen immediately crowded on either side of her, watching over her shoulder.

“Oh, that is not good,” Callen muttered, glancing at Sam.

“Ok, you guys need to tell me what’s going on. Like right now,” Nell said, lowering the phone for a moment.

“Kirkin showed up earlier today and tried to “rescue” Deeks,” Sam explained.

“You’re joking.”

“I wish was.” Nell sighed and resumed watching the surveillance feed.

“Well, let’s see where he went. He better not mess this up for Kensi and Deeks or I will kill him. I do not have the patience to wait around while they plan a second wedding,” she said and Callen smirked at Sam over her head.

“Hm, it looks like he went into Deeks’ dressing room. That’s a little creepy.”

“Uh guys,” Eric interrupted, appearing in the hallway with a harried expression. “What’s going on? Guests are starting to arrive, the bridal party is almost ready and they’re wondering where everyone else is at.”

“We think Anatoli Kirkin might have kidnapped Deeks,” Sam explained shortly.

“Are you serious? Why aren’t we doing anything about it?”

“Because you’re still talking.” Sam gestured to Nell’s phone. “Did they come out?”

“Yes...and Kirkin took him, by gun point, to what looks like a lounge at the other end of the building,” Nell said. “So far they’re still in there unless they left through one of the windows.

“Ok, we’ll go retrieve Deeks. And you guys are in charge of making sure that Kensi doesn’t find out anything about this. Got it?” Callen instructed. They both nodded and scurried off.

“C’mon partner, let’s save Deeks from his crazy Russian boyfriend.”

***

“So what exactly is your plan, Kirkin?” Deeks asked, the skepticism clear in his voice. After Kirkin had pulled the gun on him, he’d lead him to a small room, ensuring Deeks’ compliance with the threat of violence if necessary. Part of Deeks thought he was probably bluffing, but he also didn’t want to underestimate him.

“I have my men waiting outside. When the time is right, we will make our escape,” Kirkin replied, clearly pleased with himself.

“Yeah, that’s not going to work. You know that, right? Even if you make it out the door, my team will take you down. There’s no way they haven’t missed me by now.” Kirkin patted him on the shoulder consolingly.

He hadn’t let Deeks put his shirt back on and he was feeling distinctly exposed and...nipply. He retreated to other side of the room and sat down in a small love seat. He’d known something would go wrong and boy had he been right. He felt a grim sense of satisfaction that his intuition had been so on point.

“Don’t worry, Marty, my men will protect us. And then we will be free to be together.”

The door to the room burst open, smacking off the wall as Callen and Sam appeared in the doorway. They were both armed and dressed in their tuxes.

“I wouldn’t count on it,” Sam said darkly. Kirkin reached for Deeks again and Sam moved in on him, pointing his gun directly at his head. “Don’t even think about it.”

Kirkin wisely took a few steps back and dropped his weapon on the ground. Sam kicked it away.

“You ok, Deeks?” Callen asked, frowning as he took in Deeks’ bare chest.

“Well, I was almost kidnapped on my wedding day, we have about 300 guests waiting for me and Kensi to get married and I think I’m on the verge of a panic attack,” he summed up and then blew out a long breath. “No, I’m not doing great.”

“Put your hands behind your back, Kirkin,” Sam ordered.

“Gentleman, I’m sure we can all overlook this small understanding and just go about our business,” Kirkin said in what was apparently supposed to be a charming tone. Sam just shook his head and gestured for Callen to cuff him.

“Why aren’t you wearing a shirt?” Sam asked Deeks eventually.

“Don’t ask,” Deeks told him firmly. Kirkin shot him an appealing look and then sighed.

“I will never forget the first time we met, frolicking naked together,” he said reminiscently. Deeks frowned, wondering what fantasy world the man was living in.

“Ok, that’s not what happened. I was undercover at a Russian bathhouse and I’m sorry to break your heart there, Kirkin, but I was not frolicking because I don’t frolick. I have never frolicked,” he clarified firmly.

“You are a frolicker and you know it,” Kirkin said in what Deeks assumed was supposed to be a seductive tone, leaning towards him.

“This is the worst wedding ever,” Deeks retorted, sitting down again and crossing his arms.

“Guys, what the hell is going on? The ceremony is supposed to start in five minutes,” Kensi said, running through the door, closely followed by a harried looking Eric and Nell. It took her approximately 10 seconds to notice Kirkin. “What the are you doing here?”

“You had one job,” Sam said to Nell and Eric. Nell shrugged, gesturing to Kensi.

“What can I say, she threatened to hurt us if we didn’t tell her where you were,” she explained. Somehow Deeks didn’t think Nell had put up that much of a fight.

Kensi glanced at Deeks and then back at Kirkin, who raised his hands defensively as she descended on him. Dressed in her wedding dress, and with a look of pure fury on her face, she had never looked more beautiful to Deeks. Even though she was unarmed, she was frightening.

“Kensi, you look lovely,” Kirkin tried.

“Kirkin, did you try to kidnap my fiancé?” she asked in a dangerous voice. He took another step backwards.

“Please, you must understand, Kensi. You know how irresistible Martin is. His hair, his muscles. I could not help myself.” Kensi made an incredulous sound and shook her head and shoved Kirkin into a chair.

“Unbelievable,” she muttered. That seemed to be the general consensus.

Callen had moved over to the side and was on his phone. From the sound of it, he was calling in reinforcements. Apparently he and Sam had taken out a Kirkin’s cronies before making their grand entrance.

Kensi sat down next to Deeks and ran her fingers through his hair, looking concerned.

“Are you ok, baby?” she asked, checking him over. He laid a hand over hers, holding it in place and nodded.

“Yeah. I may be about to have a nervous break down, or possibly a stroke, but otherwise, I’m fine.”

“I love you,” she whispered, leaning her head against his. He sighed, leaning into her touch. “Let’s get married.” He grinned at that, feeling content for the first time in hours.

“Let’s get married,” he agreed.

“You should probably put some more clothes on,” Callen suggested with just a hint of a smirk.

“I’ll go help him change,” Eric offered. Kensi linked their fingers as she tugged him up. As they left the room, Kirkin reached towards Kensi with a desperate expression.

“Kensi, don’t hurt him,” he begged. “You know, we could always work something out between the three of us!” Sam jerked him back, not being particularly gentle.

“I’m gonna need a lot of champagne,” Deeks sighed as they left the room, Kirkin being led by Nell and Callen, while Sam brought up the rear.

“Or vodka.” Kensi added.

***

A/N: As creepy as he is, I have so much fun writing Kirkin. Sadly, Hetty didn’t quite fit into this one with the changes to the plot. Some dialogue is pulled directly from “Till Death Do Us Part”.

Thanks for the prompt!

#ncis la fanfiction #densi #marty deeks #kensi blye #sam hanna #g callen #eric beale #nell jones #anatoli kirkin #till death do us part #anonymous prompt #ejzah fanfiction

[andrewuttaro]

New Look Sabres: GM 47 - VGK - Razzle Dazzle

4-2 Win

Razzle dazzle, as the performers call it, is something the Buffalo Sabres have lacked as of late. By as of late I mean the last decade or so. Vegas Golden Knights fans have had more fun in the last three years than any Buffalo Sabres fan has had since American Idol was still relevant. When the Knights play there is a certain performance to it that has entertained their fans from day one in this league. They really don’t know our heartbreak, eh? I don’t need to regurgitate the same tired narrative about the Knights. However I do think there is a connection here worth noting. The most charitable expansion rules in NHL history allowed Vegas to come on in an instant, as if the whole Casino-laden Strip came alive all at once. The Buffalo Sabres however shut all the lights down starting in 2013. When we tried to fire them back up in 2015, 2016 and 2017 it didn’t work at all. We hired a new electrician. That new electrician has not gotten the whole thing to light up again yet so we Casino denizens are not happy. Unlike his predecessor however he’s gotten the whole thing to spark on for a brief time before going off again in 2018 and 2019. It looks like he’s finding the right connections in that circuit box. I’d even venture to say he’s already demonstrated he knows what he’s doing more than the last electrician. Okay, I’ve squeezed all the usefulness out of that metaphor. I think Jason Botterill is turning this team on in flashes now but will soon light it up permanently. That’s the meaning of the metaphor if you’re not one for allusions. Back to the Sabres reality in January 2020. The game in Detroit on Sunday was damn near a must-win. Even out-of-market observers speculated a loss to the league worse Red Wings would be a death certificate, but this club opened the casket like the undertaker! Okay, so they were so bad in the second period in that game it was just about shameful; but they won, and they did it by a margin of 5-1 on the backs of not one, not two, but three guys who have made clear they want off this team. Does winning solve everything? No. But it can go a long way to sating the fans for a time.

The first period was one of the better 20-minute blocks of hockey you’ll see from Buffalo this season. While scoring chances were relatively even, every other metric really wasn’t. Since I’ve already dropped one meandering metaphor today I’ll just give you the simplest part here: The Sabres dominated the shots 13-4. Rasmus Dahlin’s revival after the November concussion was fully realized in this game. At one point he dangled around two defenders and almost got the early lead all his own. Marty Biron gushed over it in the intermission and I think he spoke for a lot of us. The problem with the fantastic first was the home team couldn’t convert a goal or two. The pendulum swung back even again in the middle frame. The Golden Knights took over the shooting early and a somewhat haphazardous rush yielded a Chandler Stephenson shot on Linus Ullmark that did not go in. The puck did however bounce around and at some point hit Tomas Nosek who got credited for it trickling over the goal line. Ralph Krueger almost challenged it but it ended up standing. The first blood being drawn by the visitors would’ve stung more had an interference call not given the Sabres a powerplay shortly thereafter. The weirdest thing about this game was that they scored with the man advantage! Kyle Okposo got a slot pass from Sam Reinhart and lasered it in past Marc-Andre Flurey. The Sabres get a powerplay goal… IN THIS ECONOMY? Tighten your belt because before the period was out there was another powerplay goal. It was the last minute of play in the second and Vegas got called for too many men on the ice. The embarrassing penalty is the glee of Rob Ray who really savored counting the extra Knights on the ice. Gotta love simple math. This time it was Sam Reinhart getting a pass in the slot from Rasmus Ristolainen. A quick shot from Reinhart beat M.A.C. top shelf. It was one of those last-minute stingers that feels nice to be on the dealing side every once and a while. Jack Eichel cashed in with an assist on that 2-1 goal extending his new point streak to eight games. We’ll just have to stop keeping track of those streaks I suppose. But there was more to come from Jack Eichel in this game.

Reilly Smith gave Vegas their equalizer early in the third period. The period quickly got interesting, Johan Larsson got dirty and before you know it this game really felt like a race. Remember when I said the Sabres lack razzle dazzle lately? Well approximately 150% of the razzle dazzle that does emanate from this team originates with Jack Eichel. It happened again. He got the puck way back in the defensive zone and skates in on the Knights zone 2-on-1 with Zemgus Girgensons. Even Girgensons was shocked with how the play ended. Eichel went all the way in on Flurey and shot it high short side. It was another thing of beauty and Captain Jack razzle dazzle put Buffalo up 3-2. Fun but simple stat from @MikeKellyNHL: Jack Eichel ranks number one in the league with end-to-end rushes this season with 114. If he gets away from you it will probably end in something pretty. This game had its moments as the Knights pushed back but when Curtis Lazar tapped the insurance goal all the way down ice there was a tangible feeling of relief. The Knights aren’t exactly a force to be reckoned with this season, but a win would’ve put them in the top spot in the Pacific Division. After getting a must-win against Detroit, having this kinda game against a truly competitive team was something it’s clear we needed. This one ended 4-2 Buffalo. But more than that we got a good old fashion radio presser with the guy we all seem to want to burn at the stake right now: Jason Botterill.

Yes the old pregame interview at 716 yielded some interesting responses from the GM. There we’re two quotes I want to bring your attention to for different reasons. Firstly: “We’re not an elite team by any means. Should we be in the conversation for playoffs? Yes.” Secondly: “We want to make trades. We want to add to our group. People ask if we’re waiting for the deadline. We’re not waiting for the deadline. We’re trying to proceed with some things that haven’t materialized.” I’d be ok if you wrote off quote 1 as entirely fan service to stave off the Punt Theory that the Front Office was planning on punting this season for this summer’s cap relief. If you do take it at face value however its worth noting that just like last season they think they have a roster that can make the playoffs. That could be both an explanation for why there were so few subtractions and an explanation for why Ralph Krueger is stubbornly pushing through the roster rotation strategy that is frustrating the likes of Colin Miller and Zach Bogosian. If you prefer not to believe punt theory that’s a compelling reason to cheer for this squad as it exists now whether or not a trade or a few come before the deadline. That brings us to quote 2: Trades. The FO is probably looking at this roster as close to enough, but they are looking at multiple trades. Do note his phrasing points to multiple irons in the oven for Botterill. He’s not waiting for the deadline. He’s also revealing that there have been multiple trades that haven’t materialized yet. What could they be: Ristolainen, a second line center, a top six winger, McCabe, Hutton? He’s trying everyone and I get the sense he’s been trying since he hit a wall with Risto way back in July. One way you can interpret that is that he now looks desperate among the community of GMs and will be forced to wait until the deadline as they will. I can’t really rebut that argument but let’s not run the guy out of town like he hasn’t been doing his job as a General Manager.

One guy on that interview, Jeremy White of WGR550, put the postgame analysis of last night’s battle in good perspective. If Buffalo can get back into the playoff race it will be because of performances like this. Lots of saves mixed in with a powerplay that gets the goals they can’t 5 on 5. Jeremy is right but unfortunately I think simple math makes getting back into that race this month pretty much impossible. There are four games left this month and two and a half weeks left of said month. The Sabres have a bye-week next week. Even with the other teams going on their bye-weeks I wouldn’t expect our boys in the blue and gold to be sitting in a playoff spot by February 1st. After that however its truly off to the races. For now we have to come in off the ledge with this team and take it one game at a time. Dallas and Nashville tomorrow and Saturday respectively will be tests similar to the Knights. Win. Win like you did against Vegas and go into that bye week with the good taste of a four-game winning streak. It’s a somewhat tall order but for all this team’s flaws I think they could do it. Like, comment and share this blog to help a blogger out. I have some new work going up on Southtownstickets.com soon so keep an eye out for that. I’m excited about the Sabres after this win. Let’s Go Buffalo!

Thanks for Reading.

P.S. As excited as this win may make me I have been enjoying third division offseason domestic soccer more the last couple weeks so… yeah… that little winning streak would help an awful lot for me.

#buffalo sabres #hockey #blog #nhl

[letsdiscoverkitty]

Have you seen To the Bone yet? If so, any thoughts?

I was unsure of whether to post about this movie or not, especially seeing as there has been a lot of covered both on social media and in the news. There have been many differing opinions on the latest Netflix movie, and everyone is going to find different things good/bad, so this might be a long one I am afraid...and I will definitely put a TRIGGER WARNING on this, because, well, you know why.

I must admit that when I first saw the two minute trailer for ‘To the Bone’, I was very worried about how the rest of the movie would follow. In that trailer were some quite disturbing images and one scene that stuck in my mind was when Ellen (played by Lily Collins) is counting out the calories on a plate of food that has just been placed in front of her, next to her sister, Kelly (played by Liana Liberato), and her exclaiming ‘it’s like you have calorie Aspergers or something’,  to which Ellen raises her fist in the air to and shakes it....I was hoping against hope that the trailer might have just been a bit over-the-top and that hopefully they would be putting across a HELPFUL and EDUCATIONAL message rather than glorifying/romanticising the illness. My hope mainly stemmed from both Lily Collins and director Marti Noxon, having bravely spoken about their past struggles with Anorexia. Sadly that was not meant to be.

They had what could have been an amazing chance to educate people on the reality of suffer from an eating disorder and messed it up by overly romanticising and adding an extremity of ‘Hollywood’-esque spins to make it more ‘likeable’/attractable to audiences. In doing so they have only played into the stereotypes of eating disorders and likely made sufferer’s themselves feel worse. Of course there is always going to be a fine line to tread when making a film about such a raw and touching subject, and there are going to be things that are deemed ‘inappropriate’ to show/talk about but I feel that they neglected this and yes they stayed away from some subjects, they did not in any way steer away from overly judging someone’s suffering based on their APPEARANCE. There were times whilst watching this movie that I simply couldn’t stop myself from shouting ‘NO’ and ‘why would you do that?’ at the screen because I was so mad.

Upon finishing the movie, which I will admit I paused at times because it was getting so dull and I went off to do other things, I felt, well, I don’t think there is really a word to sum it up. It was not TERRIBLE but it was so far from ‘okay’ or ‘good’. It kind of just ‘was’? Personally I would not reccommend someone watch this movie if there are in a rocky/vulnerable place recovery wise and definitely not to someone who is in the depths of their illness (however, as the producers of this film probably well knew, there isn’t much you can stop someone with an eating disorder watching something that could be potentially triggering)

Okay so let’s start with the ‘good’ or ‘okay’ bits...

I liked the scenes that involved Ellen’s sister Kelly. I found that these scenes were some of the best in the whole movie as it really showed the emotionally pain and hurt that close family members go through when a loved one is suffering from an eating disorder. There is one moment in the film which I particularly liked, when Ellen and Kelly have gone to the top of a hill to look over the city at night and they are sitting there and Ellen says to Kelly “I’ve got it under control. Nothing bad is gonna happen.” to which Kelly replies, as she looks out over the city, “I bet a bunch of them who are about to due just said the exact same thing” - in which she is implying other ED sufferers. I felt these scenes between Ellen and Kelly were very raw and real and brought to surface a lot of things that are not often discussed in the awareness of eating disorders. Thumbs up from me.

Obviously the very release of this movie has brought up a lot of discussion about eating disorders, which is great, awareness is essential. People have been talking about it, it’s been in the news and on the radio, however it is sad that the movie itself was unable to continue to educate on the reality of suffering from an eating disorder and trying to find help.

I will give it to them, they did touch on a few of the horrible side effects of suffering from an eating disorder; most notably one girl who miscarried whilst in treatment, that was a tough/hard hitting scene. As well as bringing up a few other eating disorders.

Family therapy and relationships was touched on quite well, however I do not feel that they developed this very well at all. Great that they are showing that it is about the whole family unit and people needing to work together, however the majority of ‘therapy’ scenes were left to Ellen sitting in an office with this ‘radical doctor’ and simply replying with sarcy one-liners. 

I feel that they did think about Ellen as a character though. They mentioned that she had had to drop out of college because of Anorexia and now didn’t really have much to her ‘life’. Sadly again I think this could have been built upon, and I feel like the storyline of her posting a picture of something she drew on tumblr and a girl killing herself was just a bit unnecessary/where was the development/therapy/support behind this?!

The candy bar was kind of touching, although not done in the best of ways in my personal opinion, but there was a bit of hope installed. 

Now, to the troubles I had with the film, of which there might be quite a few to say the least...

Okay so I need to get this bit over with....the very fact that they asked a person who has struggled with anorexia in the past to LOSE WEIGHT just for a film is utterly RIDICULOUS. I don’t care if it was done with a ‘nutritionist’ or with doctors alongside, this is just not okay to ask of anyone let alone someone who has suffered from Anorexia. Dieting and a history of Anorexia is a no no even when that person might have been in remission for years, it is a very fine line and dangerous thing to do. Not only that but it also adds even more to the misconception/stereotype that you have to be ‘skeletal and about to die’ to suffer from an eating disorder, which is so far from the truth. The image near the very end of the film of Ellen curled up in the foetal position naked was in my opinion, extremely unnecessary (along with all the computer touch-ups and photoshopping...just no) and already it has been noted that many of the images from the film have found their ways to ‘pro-ANA’ websites.I could rant on for a LONG time over this portrayal of a cis-white young middle classed female suffering from Anorexia Nervosa, but I shall stop here.

The lighting, make up and unnecessary touch ups used in the very close up scenes were too much in my opinion (leading on from above comment that they focused far too much on WEIGHT and APPEARANCE). They had too many scenes where Ellen was stripped down and made to either stand on a set of scales or be examined. I’m sorry but the camera lingered there for so long and was just so damaging for anyone who might suffer from an eating disorder, and for spreading awareness to the general public BECAUSE EATING DISORDERS ARE NOT WEIGHT DISORDERS.

Now, let’s also talk treatment...that was no Doctor, I am sorry and I know this was a fictional piece but what Doctor in their right mind would put people who suffered from an eating disorder in a house and tell them that they have the choice to eat or not and that that’s okay...when you are so sucked into and lost in the illness, it is hard to see anything beyond it and you literally cannot think straight. There were no nurses, no supervision, no constant checks or vitals being taken etc. And as someone who has been through that early stage of recovery I can say that the only way that you can begin to start to even think more clearer/start to believe that food is not the enemy and that recovery is an option is THROUGH EATING. The mind literally shuts down and it is hard to focus on anything other than the illness; this only begins to clear with adequate nutrition for a period of time, only then does some logically cognitive processing begin to return. It doesn’t just happen in one snap moment, which the movie does imply at some points, and that everything is ‘fine and dandy’ from there on out. It also isn’t about how someone ‘looks’ and I feel like the scene where Collins was naked on the floor as she ‘looked down on herself’ and she asked if that was really her, feeds into that misconception that it is about how someone ‘looks in the mirror’ or sees themselves. There was no talk of body dysmorphia, nor suffering from an eating disorder AT ANY WEIGHT...

Talking of the treatment ‘house’, I thought it was great that there were people there with all different eating disorders, however I was thoroughly disappointed that that was literally all we learnt about them. There were no other character developments, no elaboration on the reality of suffering from binge eating or bulimia, or even what their ‘stories’ were. All we got were a few labels ‘thrown around’ almost like a little tick box for the director to be like ‘yes we put that in, done, let’s move on’ and some incredibly unhelpful behaviour talk. Yeah, well done. 

Talking of characters, let’s talk about Lucas. I LOVED that there was a guy in treatment, there needs to be a lot more awareness made for boys/men who suffer from eating disorders. However I was thoroughly disappointed when the only character development we had was that he eventually wanted to have a relationship with Ellen after following her on tumblr for years, and then meeting her in the house...he tried to make a move on her that literally comes out of nowhere and was just, unnecessary? 

On that subject, when someone is suffering from an eating disorder and is malnourished, there IS NO SEX DRIVE; the only thing they tend to think about is food food food food. There is no desire or time for anything else, it is just the disorder and I feel this was not put across at all.

Even the doctor (whose name I can’t even remember) says that he thinks that Ellen and Lucas would make a good couple...now where in a patent treatment plan does ‘match making’ lie? I tell you; nowhere. Relationships between patients is never recommended because the reason you are in treatment is for your health and wellbeing and to be with someone who also suffers from similar struggles is just, I’m sorry this doctor’s tactics were low. 

Another of his wonderful ‘life changing’ therapy techniques was to get Ellen to change her name to Eli...like what? I’m sorry but how is this meant to help the patient work on healing their relationship with themselves and food and life? It came out of nowhere and lead to nowhere. No discussion about WHY it might be helpful or how it could provide her with a way to move forwards...just nothing.

Mr magic therapy doctor also decided to take the patients on a trip to an art gallery and make them play around and dance in water...great, but this is not some huge recovery turning point and, Idk they just never really explained any of the therapy things he was trying to do with her, it was all very vague and wishy washy and yes there was a message in going to that art gallery but it wasn’t some ‘magic answer’

Ellen’s turning point came when she went to go back to her mother’s (who now has another partner) and she stays on their ranch (?) and runs up into the mountains and then comes back and allows her mother to bottle feed her? I’m sorry, I know everyone has different struggles but I found this scene extremely difficult to watch and, idk, degrading? Because it is sending out the message that those who suffer from an eating disorder are ‘weak’ and ‘fragile’ and need to be ‘cuddled and cared for’ and okay their relationship may have a lot of healing to do and maybe she wasn’t held much as a child and I feel very sorry for her, but at 20 years old they need to be given the tools in order for them to build on their relationship and work together. And yes she might need her mum to hold her hand at times and give her a hug and cuddle etc, we all need that but to be bottle feeding her from a babies bottle whilst she is cradled in her lab was just a step too far in my opinion and made me feel very uncomfortable.

Behaviours....lord were they everywhere. The way she was pushing food around the plate, cutting it into very small pieces. The purging advice that was being given in the treatment house kitchen?, the vomit found under the bed, the different foods they were ‘allowed’ to eat (because yes the patients could chose exactly what they wanted to eat (a whole tub of peanut butter for one girl or two boiled eggs for another), and that restaurant scene...I am sorry but that scene was hideous and horrible to watch. And the fact that they pretended to be cancer patients...no.

I feel like they romanticised quite a lot of the realities of living with an eating disorder - many of which I am sure were to add that ‘Hollywood’ touch to make it more marketable, however I think it has done a lot more hurt than good.

As for the ending...I hated it. Okay great, Ellen was ready to head back to treatment and push forwards and have a life beyond Anorexia, however there was some TERRIBLE acting, followed by her walking up to the door of treatment and that was it. No talk or recovery or how to reach out for recovery or how to ask for help. No sign of her actually going THROUGH recovery and having those ‘little wins’ that make you see how worth it it is. No. They made sure to focus a straight on face shot with heavy make up to make her look even thinner and that was it. 

What would I have done differently?Pretty much 99% of it. And the biggest bit that I WISH they had put in would have been HOW to get help and what the process of recovery entails. Because despite being in the house for the majority of the film, Ellen spends the whole time refusing ‘treatment’. It would have been nice to have seen her move forwards and begin to learn what having a life can feel/be like again. I would have liked a bit more HOPE. I really hoped that this film would be more informative and less focused on the weight/appearance side of things, but this is Hollywood I suppose. Could it have been done in a slightly different way to help this? yes. I do not believe that films are the right route to go down to raise awareness, a series, perhaps, and documentaries too, but this was just a shambles. I know I said at the beginning it was not terrible, I think I take that back now, on reflection it was terrible and I know everyone will have different reviews but I was left highly disappointed and saddened by this piece of work.

#to the bone #this ended up being a lot longer than I initially thought it would be sorry! #it was just not worth it and was a waste of time and has done a lot more hurt than good #but that is just my opinion #I think it could have been done so much better #Anonymous #asks