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chronic-claire-universe · 3 years

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Tokyo Revengers: Telling Them You’re Pregnant Pt.2

Fluff is served again, Tokyo Revengers Dads here for you 💜

Characthers: Chifuyu Matsuno, Manjiro Sano, Hajime Kokonoi

Warnings: Angst To Fluff, Mentions Of Sex, Minors DNI

Pt. 1 | Pt. 2 | Pt. 3

A.N: Not proofread, grammar mistakes, English isn’t my first language

Work at the shop was taking a lot of effort, there were weeks where Chifuyu got up before the dawn and came back at night when you were asleep. You noticed the changements on your body but the first days you didn’t think too much of it, it’s stress, you thought when you were feeding Peke J his food, but your stomach didn’t agree with you, turning upside down you directly throw up in the kitchen’s sink, Peke J staring at you with his night blue eyes, he just purred to your leg “Sorry sweet Peke, I’ll put the food in your bowl, at least one of us will eat today” you say smiling weakly to him, who just meow as a confirm to your statement. Then again the stomach couldn’t help but let you bend over the sink again, tears now streamed from your eyes, you just leaved the opened tin on the floor and Peke J near it but decided to cuddle you before eating.

It took days, for Chifuyu to notice that you weren’t feeling ok, he was devasted from all the work, plus a bit annoyed from your distance to him, suddenly a meow woke him up, “Peke what is it? It’s 4 in the morning, fuck let me sleep!” Chifuyu says with groggy and sleepy voice, but as soon as he noticed that you weren’t in bed he got up shivering for the cold in your shared bedroom. Putting a t shirt on his builted torso, he follows Peke J who brings him to the toilet, there you lay on the toilet cold with tears on your closed eyes, “Love!” Chifuyu carefully calls you but having no response he shakes your shoulder, no response, panicking he flush the toilet and holding you near his chest to warm you, he puts you under the sheets. As soon as you open your eyes confused, Chifuyu starts to cry “Love, what’s up? You throw up and loose senses in the bathroom” “Fuyu, I’m tired please cuddle me” you say while expecting him to spoon you but before doing it he sends a message.

In the morning, you wake up rushing again to the toilet, Peke J again confused from the sudden movements, gets up from his curled position waking Chifuyu, who sighing comes again in the bathroom and seeing you struggling he takes your hair soothing circles on your back helping you ease the pain. “Fuyu, what are you doing here? I thought you left for work!” you say after washing your face and mouth, “Not today, love you’re ill, I’m staying until you will not feel better” sighing in defeat, you sketch a smile and you say “You can’t leave work for 9 months you silly”, Chifuyu confused skratch the back of his neck and suddenly his blue eyes wide, “Love” there his surprised expression lays on your gentle and warm one, continuing and stuttering he asks “When? To think that I was afraid that you wanted to leave me” “Mmm 2 days, I was planning to say it when you were free from these works. Leave you silly? We said we wanted a family together!” Chifuyu gift you one of his fantastic smiles and shouts “Peke J you’re going to be a big brother!”

Being the leader of a criminal organization, Mikey has always been against the idea of having a domestic and calm life, but once he knew you something changed, you finished living with him, then again the boy wasn’t thinking about having any children, he is busy and maybe afraid of fatherhood, you on the other side, are busy too, working as one of the greatest lawyer in Tokyo. We arrive in here were after one week of rushing to the toilet of your shared bathroom, in the studio, in Mikey’s hideout, emptying your stomach from almost everything you eat. Every Bonten’s executive was starting to think that you weren’t taking their proposition seriously, causing to, during one of your trip to the toilet, one of the Haitani’s secretary or fuck girl nearing you and helps you sorting the mess out “Ms y/n don’t listen to their critics, I know it’s difficult to handle them and their instinct” she says, laughing to her statement you nod and say “Thank you, I will not forget your help” you say washing your face, but the girl still standing there she says “I’m going to the kombini, I guess you’ll need something right Ms y/n?” shruggin your shoulder you tell her to take whatever it could be useful to return back to the reunion. A quarter passed and the girl is back with a bag, with a toothpaste and some pregnancy test, leaving you speechless “Ms y/n I recognize when a woman is pregnant and I know how difficult it could be to go and buy it, my sister went through the same. Here take it and clear your doubt”. You stand there in the toilet alone, after a while you decide to do it despite trying to ignore your fear, suddenly when you put the stick on the plastic glass waiting for the result, Mikey barges in the bathroom and you scream “Mikey fuck! It’s girls’ bathroom”, the boy munching his dorayaki says “Last time I checked it was half an hour ago, and all this place is mine so I ent-” suddenly agape he let his bitten dorayaki fall on the floor and staring at you, he nears and says “Y/n, it’s a pregnancy test” rolling your eyes at his obvious statement, you grip his body into your hug and say “It is, Mikey” “Am I becoming a dad?” he says with flushed cheeks, tears start to stream your eyes seeing the word pregnant on the stick you sigh and say “Yes” but seeing your devastated face he takes you again caressing your hair “What’s wrong y/n-chan?” “It’s you the problem, you fuck me without condom, I like it and now I have to think how to become a good mother” “Is this what you’re afraid of? You work for yakuza, serial killers and corrupted politicians and you think that you can’t raise a kid properly?” nodding and crying on his shoulder it’s his time to hug you tightly, “Love when you’re in doubt of your capabilities remember you managed to convince me to be together with you and that I need anything despite our little family” a kiss on your lips seales and smiling you say “Thanks Manjro!”, taking your hand he smiles like his early days and jokingly says “Ok let’s get back and let know to the stupid there who got to fuck you properly and got you pregnant!”

It's a week full of event for Koko, stressed out from all the bills and you, by your family reunion who pushed you to leave work to stay with them. You're sick, your period is late and you can’t handle their antics about Koko’s life and how he isn’t a good husband cause he’s not at home and you still haven’t children. Normally you don’t care about these stories, but being in an hormonal rampage you start to doubt they’re attacks. So it’s here that you lies in the hospital’s ward where you work crying over the newborns and a paper that signes you’re hormones with too high levels, pregnant - I’m pregnant you think panicking at the thought. One week ago you thought that your husband loved you and would do anything for you, now is the total opposite; the overwhelming feelings takes the best of you and feeling your body surrendering you loose senses hurting yourself.

“She lost senses on the stairs, there isn’t anything serious Koko expect her split lip” Koko nodds to one of his previous classmate and your colleague “Thanks Tohru, I’m in debt with you! When you need help don’t hesitate to contact me, whenever you want to!” a smile is the reply to the Bonten’s executive, the doctor puts a hand on Koko shoulder and says “Take care of her, she’s been stressed that’s why this happened expect for her conditions”, conditions? Which conditions?, Koko thought. Your eyes weakly open and you find your husband at your bedside caressing your hair, “Lulamy, you’re awake” smiling at the nickname he gave you, you answer “Koko, did you get out from work? I thought you were busy with some affairs for Mikey” gentling smiling and kissing your forehead he says “Mikey isn’t my wife, you are and I promised to be with you in sickness and health. Now mind to tell me what’s this condition Tohru talks about?” tears start to stream your eyes, it can’t be that bad, it can’t Koko repeat inside his mind worried to hear what you have to say, “Koko it’s, it-” but the overwhelming feelings get again the best of you, Koko rapidly hugs you tightly to his chest and sing a jingle that always calm you down during your anxiety attacks, “Shhh, Lulamy I’m here. I’m going anywhere I love you”, it’s now that you feel guilty and stupid to think so irrationaly, Koko loves you, your family is the dumbest and your hormones makes you an irritating pregnant woman full of doubts, “Koko there’s a paper in my coat” you say indicating your white coat, Koko stands up, carefully leaving the stethoscope he gifted you when you got hired in the hospital, and find a paper in the pocket, opening it and reading it, he looks seriously at you “Y/n, is this what I think it is?” he asks, nodding you start to stutter again but a sudden hug and lot of kisses even at your cut lip makes you whimper and giggle at the same time, “Thanks y/n, thanks! God I’m so happy, so happy” he repeats over and over again, after a while he looks at your eyes and seeing a concerned frown he says “What is it love?” “I’m sorry, these days I thought I couldn’t count on you, that you wouldn’t want to be with me especially being pregnant” Koko scowls at your statement “An explanation please my dear wife. Has this anything to do with your family being here in Tokyo and saying mean things when you met them?” a nod let Koko exhale a sigh of relief “Love you know they’re just jealous of our success and probably afraid to know what I really do for work” an half smile appears on your lips “I rather prefer a criminal like you than those hypocrites, I don’t want our son to become like them” “Son? Did you hear your mother baby? I bet that you’re a cute girl ready to be spoiled from her daddy” “Koko!” you shout at his statement “You don’t have the right to reply since you thought mean things too, you’re punished. Today you’re forced to stay with your daughter’s daddy all day to decide how to decorate her new room”

@httptamaki @ravenina14

Taglist | Ko-Fi|

#tokyo revengers #chifuyu matsuno #manjiro sano #hajime kokonoi #chifuyu x reader #mikey x reader #kokonoi x reader #tokyo revengers x reader #tokyo revengers dad #tok rev chifuyu #tok rev koko #tok rev mikey #tok rev x reader #tokyo revengers fluff #tokyo revengers angst

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awhilesince · 4 years

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Wednesday, 17 February 1830

7 35/60

12 3/4

at my desk in an hour no motion but a little one on finishing breakfast before ten Reading Béclard – Breakfast at 9 1/4 – Fahrenheit 32° at 7 35/60 and at 9 3/4 a.m. Monsieur Julliart came at 10 1/4 and staid till 1 1/4 – no morceau this morning – read over some little passage which I did not thoroughly understand – did a little at my skeleton – conversation on diarrhoea constipation (costiveness) etc. etc. Got Cottard’s bill while Monsieur J– (Julliart) was here – immediately on his going got the card of “Mr Charles Stuart Grenadier Guards” who had called while Monsieur J– (Julliart) was here, and left me a note from Miss Hobart with a little print – rubbed – on cardcase – very nice note – at Wimpole by this time –

Dressed – out at 1 55/60 – drove to the Poores’ – sent up my card – admitted – sat 20 minutes with Nora – Mr Wright’s card brought in while I was there – I said he thought himself unfortunate in never being admitted – Lady P– (Poore) so unwell nobody had been admitted – I the only one admitted today – Lady P– (Poore) had not made her appearance – It appears Mr W– (Wright) had the bad taste to call Miss Poore Nora – had met her out walking and done so – saw her at the ball on Monday and then accosted her – she could not stop in such a crowd to speak to him – I see, he will go back to Croft and chime in with IN (Isabella Norcliffe) – as to the “price of asses” – promised to take Miss P– (Poore) to the oratoire some Sunday after – and to take her out some morning – then called at the Embassy admitted – Lady S– (Stuart) de R– (Rothesay) busy reading a heap of newspapers – Mrs Hamilton there – Messieurs Henry and Charles Stuart Scarlet, Ashburnham? Lord Pollington – Mr H– (Henry Stuart) writing invitations – nobody seeming as if visitors were to have been admitted but my name had probably been announced – went up to Mr Charles Stuart and shook hands with him reminding him of one meeting at Colonel Thackeray’s and claiming him as an old acquaintance – shook hands too with Mrs Hamilton – Lady S– (Stuart) and Miss Hobart gone to Wimpole for a fortnight – said I was too ill to go to the ball on Monday – Lady S (Stuart) shook hands with me as usual on entering but was sso busy reading papers had no time to take much notice of me in fact I was ssorry for myself then asked her for the globe read or looked it over and in ten minutes came away felt small and as if nobody wanted me perhaps I was wrong for on coming away she came with me to the door talked of our ball and was very civil it may be she feels to know me too well now to be ceremonious to break off total not to me but I when not evidently made much off always fancy something disagreeable have not confidence en ough in myself today knew not whether I had done right or not in shaking hands with Mr Charles Sstuart did it as usual with Mr Henrys then I thought of my foolish headdress at the dinner last Friday and thus I ma de myself uncomfortable Lady S– (Stuart de R– Rothsay) mentioned “our ball” for the benefit of the poor English – said we could not count upon any French except a few gents (gentlemen) coming – might have 500 English – She herself should give a ball mi-carême – Told her about Madame de Hagemann’s having desired me to write and send my letter to the care of Lord Stuart – she said they had very seldom opportunities of sending; and it seemed altogether that I had better, as they agreed, sent my letter per poste –

then drove to the De Noés – sat 10 minutes with Madame de N– (Noé) It seems Mr Lindley dined there on Sunday who asked if they knew me – said I was a charming person etc etc had sat 2 hours with me – knew me very well – Miss Head and Miss Daniel were there on my going in but went away immediately – took Miss de N– (Noé) to the bois de B– (Boulogne) drove my usual walk – got out and walked between Boulogne and Auteuil – Talked somehow or other of companionship – my wish to have some French friend with me – impossibility of being able to make French friends etc. at last she said I might marry this led onto my saying that was not what I wanted or what would suit me saying I had especial reasons against that without at all hinting at what but said the sort of friendship I wanted was a sort of marriage in a little way I could be contented with any who would manage my house and make it agreeable should never interfere with her in shes there could be no rivality or jealousy between that did not enter into my character she said if ever she knew anyone likely to suit me she would think of me agreed that she should introduce me to any French lady she thought I should like – for the first time in my life felt towards her as light consciousness of her being a woman thought I she cannot walk I must not amuse myself by flirting with her –

Set down Miss de N– (Noé) at her own door – then called at the Tailor’s – the cloth cut up – too late to choose it darker – Treütel and Wurtz all at direct – could do nothing about Miss Pickford’s book – got the buttons en passant at Maurisset’s – home at 6 10/60 – dinner at 7 – read the whole of the paper and supplement (duke of Wellington’s speech etc aloud to my aunt) and came to my room at 8 50/60 – wrote the whole of today but the first 6 lines – coffee at 9 35/60 – came to my room at 10 1/4 – from then to 11 40/60 read from page 254 to 376 volume 2 Captain Hall’s America – very fine day – Fahrenheit 32° at 7 35/60 and 35° at 11 3/4 p.m.

(SH:7/ML/E/12/0166)

#annelistercodebreaker #annelister #paris #1830 #paris february 1830

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thejokersenigma · 6 years

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Joker x Reader (Frost’s Daughter) - Frost’s Secret Part 4

Ok, I’ve probably just done something incredibly stupid, but with this chapter I’ve basically just guaranteed another, probably at least 3 chapters to this.... You’ll see when you read it...

I didn’t plan this... This is whole story is me purely winging this... haha... I’m just as unsure as you guys as to what is going to happen now!

Hope you like it - thank you for all the support on this series! :D

WARNINGS: Some swearing - like one word I think? haha

Let me know if you want to be tagged in anything!

REQUESTS ARE ALWAYS OPEN

MAIN MASTERLIST

FROSTS SECRET MASTERLIST

And so, you retuned to the warehouse every morning with your father.

Each night, Frost would ask you about what went on between you and the Joker, and each night you would tell him everything – only ever leaving things out where you honestly couldn’t remember.

Because nothing unusual ever happened.

The Joker, when he finally called for you, would simply sit you down in one room or another and talk to you for a few hours before he then returned to his work. It was almost as though you were his little break of peace between the stress of his usual scheming and trickery, J - as he had told you to call him - often coming into the room growling and grumbling about something having gone wrong, or the uselessness of those that worked under him, then sitting with you, chatting about anything other than his work, until his temper would cool again.

You were almost amazed how you were able pacify his moods and you didn’t mind him using you like that - even feeling slightly disappointed on the rare day that he either wasn’t in or didn’t call for you.

When you weren’t with the Joker, you spent your time with your dad, following him around and helping him like you had on the first day. You still felt far too vulnerable around the other men in the warehouse - except for the odd few you had befriended whilst with Frost, and whom your dad was happy to leave you with if he needed to disappear off to do something.

That’s where you were now. Your dad had to run an errand on the other side of town and had left with a small army – not particularly comforting you – leaving you in the capable hands of Luke, a guy only around five years older than you, who was currently sat at the same rickety table as you in the large ‘break’ room in the warehouse.

Luke was counting out a large pile of notes which you imagined was probably his cut of a large loot recently obtained in some illegal fashion. You hadn’t inquired about it though – not sure how touchy a subject it would be.

You watched him place dollar after dollar on top of each other, his lips moving silently as he counted.

You were bored. It was four o’clock and you hadn’t heard anything from the Joker yet. Maybe he was with your dad sorting out whatever was going on, or maybe he was busy elsewhere.

Maybe he was with another girl.

You felt a rush of jealousy run through you. You hadn’t known him that long, but you liked how you somehow seemed to fascinate the man that fascinated you. It was true, you had been scared of him for the first few days, but then slowly you had relaxed around him after actually having seen no reason to fear him. Sure, he occasionally lost his temper, but it was never at you, only those that interrupted the two of you – especially if it was with bad news.

Of course, you knew who he was and what he did. He was a thief. A psychopath. A murderer. The news channels continued to tell you that – reporting every other day on yet another crime the Joker had recklessly, yet so deviously, committed. But you felt no guilt for liking the man on the screen that caused these such atrocities. You felt distant from it all, as though the man on the screen wasn’t the man that sat with you each day, laughing and drinking milkshakes together.

Of course, you had to tread around what you said sometimes – one day something making him laugh, the next day making his jaw tense - but you were slowly learning to read his moods and catch the swings in them before they happened, though you were still rusty and several times you felt you had narrowly avoided a back hand to the face for your mistakes.

Yet this never put you off.

You must be going crazy yourself. Maybe he was rubbing off on you.

But you couldn’t help falling for the man.

And so, the thought of him now turning his attention on someone else, stung more painfully than you cared to admit to yourself.

You guessed it was inevitably really, how could you - a regular girl except for your father’s career choice - hope to hold the clown price of crime’s attention for long? His mind was fast, clever and practically insane, but it was also ever changing. You couldn’t be surprised that he was already looking for your replacement.

But it still hurt thanks to how fond you had grown of him over the last week.

You sighed heavily, staring down into the now-cold mug of coffee you were nursing in your hands.

“You alright, kid?” Luke asked, though his head remained down, focused on his task.

“Yeah, just – I dunno – feeling a bit iffy…” You muttered, the only way to describe the weird sinking butterflies in your stomach.

“Wanna call it a day?” Luke asked, finishing his stack of cash and glancing at his watch, then across at you in concern. “I doubt Boss’ll have time for you today, I can let Frost know.”

You paused to consider this for a moment, then nodded. “Yeah, I think I might.” You said, pushing your chair back and standing up. “Thanks.” You added with a weak smile.

“You alright, or do you need a lift?”

“Nah, I’ll be good, thanks.” You dismissed, just kind of wanting to be left alone right now, not in the mood to be stuck in car with Luke and forced to make conversation. The walk home might even do you some good.

You waved him goodbye and headed out of the room, wandering down the winding corridors you were slowly learning your way around, and pushing open a door you believed lead outside. You ended up in an alley behind the warehouse – not where you were aiming for, but at least you were out.

It was later than you had thought it was, the orb of a sun visible behind the sheet of grey clouds already setting behind the buildings that towered above you. You pulled your coat collar up and buried your hands into your pockets before following the alleyway around the side of the building and out onto the deserted street. You glanced both ways, then turned to start the lengthy trudge home.

“Frosty!” Came the call as soon as Frost walked into the warehouse a few hours later. He straightened up immediately to meet his boss as the Joker strode down the corridor towards him, looking completely unconcerned over the cut on Frost’s jaw, or the fat lip he was sporting.

“Boss?” Johnny questioned thickly, his lip stinging.

“[Y/N]. Where is she?” The Joker growled.

Frost frowned, certain that the message of [Y/N] having gone home should have already reached the Joker. “She returned to the flat.” He informed his boss.

“Don’t lie to me, Johnny-boy,” Warned the Joker with a snarl, advancing incredibly close to his henchman, a humourless grin plastered over his face. “I’ve already been to your little abode,” He told Frost, “and it was empty… Care to explain?”

Frost’s brow furrowed. That couldn’t be right. [Y/N] hadn’t mentioned any plans tonight - she had also left because she felt ill - he doubted she would have done much more than curl up on the sofa and watch a movie like she usually did when she was unwell.

“Excuse me, sir.” Frost muttered before taking a step back from where the Joker stood incredibly close and strode away towards the cargo bay.

Luke was helping to move boxes of ammo from one, of a series of unmarked vans, into one of the large cavernous store rooms. “Walker!” Frost called, and Luke peered around the large box he was carrying, before he then quickly made his way over to the store room, deposited his box, and then jogged back to meet Frost.

“Johnny?” He questioned with a confused frown, slightly out of breath from his exertions.

“Where did [Y/N] go?”

“I told you earlier, home.”

“You’re sure that’s what she said?”

“Yeah.” Luke furrowed his brow, “Why?”

Frost looked over at the other men still transporting the boxes from the van to storage. “Boss says she wasn’t at the flat.” He confessed gruffly. “He’s not happy, and neither am I.”

Luke followed Frost’s gaze, both of them now watching the work in front of them, Luke unsure what to say.

“When exactly did she leave?” Frost suddenly asked.

Luke looked surprised at the question, “Uh,” He thought back, “must be about five-ish.”

Frost considered this for a moment, his face blank. It wasn’t prime time for trouble to happen on the streets, but it was sun down and anything could happen in the shadows of the streets. He should know.

“You’re certain she didn’t make it home?” Luke asked, concerned.

“That’s what the Boss said, and I’m loathed to question him.” Frost muttered. “But I’ll still check there first.” With that, he turned to head off.

“Wait!” Luck called, jogging after him, “You’re going?”

Frost nodded but didn’t pause and Luke was forced to continue to jog after him. “She’s my daughter,” He growled, I’m not leaving this down to anyone else.”

“How do you know she didn’t just go out with some friends?” Luke offered, now keeping pace next to Frost.

“We’ve always agreed she tells me where she goes.” - Given Frost’s job it was necessary in case someone chose to target [Y/N] – that was why her sudden disappearance worried him so much.

Frost made long powerful strides into the garage, swiping a pair of keys off one of his men that had just arrived back at the warehouse, swinging himself up into the vehicle whose engine was still hot. “I’m hoping the boss was wrong” Frost admitted down to Luke, “and [Y/N] is just safely back at the flat, but - given his track record on being right - I don’t hold out much hope.”

“I’m coming too.” Luke insisted already heading for the other side of the car and, when Frost didn’t protest, pulling himself up into the passenger seat of the large, black 4x4.

A few minutes later the engine was roaring, and they were racing out of the warehouse garage.

At Frost’s pace they arrived at the apartment building in record time and were soon swinging the flat door open.

The Joker was right. The place was empty.

There was no sign of [Y/N].

Nonetheless, Frost searched every room for any sign that she could possibly have been here recently, praying that for some reason she hadn’t told him she was going out that evening.

It was as he paced the living room area of the apartment for the third time that he caught it. It hung the strongest by the back of the sofa. Perfume. A strong, familiar pungent smell that burnt at the back of his throat as he inhaled it in.

It wasn’t [Y/N]’s.

It was her mother’s.

“Boss.” Luke called. He had been following Frost closely around the flat, double checking everywhere his superior looked, but now he stood by the front door with a familiar set of keys in his hand.

Frost forgot the perfume for a moment, striding over to Luke and taking the keys from him, the [Y/N]’s personalise choice of keyrings clinking together.

“Did she forget them this morning?” Luke asked.

Frost shook his head, “No.” He glanced up and scanned the room again, looking for another sign of [Y/N]’s presence. “We were almost late looking for them,” He recalled quietly, “We eventually found them in her coat.” He had laughed at the time, now there was nothing funny about it.

[Y/N] had been here. These keys proved she had made it back to the flat. Frost’s mind flickered back to the perfume. He had never met another woman that wore that perfume - especially not at that strong a concentration.

These keys may have proved that [Y/N] had got back to the flat, but it also proved she hadn’t left again of her own volition.

“I don’t believe it.” Frost muttered to himself, wishing what he had pieced together couldn’t possibly be true.

“Boss?” Luke had been watching Frost’s face as he had thought all this through, “Johnny? What’s going on?”

Frost’s eyes flickered to the underling as though forgetting he was here. “That bitch is back.” He growled in answer, then turned and strode out of the door, heading back down to the street.

Luke quickly followed after him again. “Who?” He called in surprise – she must be bad to get his boss to swear - he was usually so controlled.

Frost either didn’t hear or didn’t bother to answer, his focus on flying down the staircase as fast as possible and getting back to the car.

He had nearly made it when a well-known voice made him pause as he reached for the handle of the car door. “Well, well, returning to the scene of the crime, not your smartest move, Frosty.” Frost reluctantly turned to face the Joker who had appeared on the pavement on his left, a gun trained at Frost’s chest. A glance behind him showed a purple sports car parked a short way behind the four by four. “I don’t appreciate betrayal Johnny boy…” Snarled the Joker, eyes flaring and his grin menacing.

Suddenly Luke burst after Frost through the door of the apartment building and the Joker flicked out another gun in a reflex, pointing it at the underling who froze immediately, halfway down the steps to the pavement.

“You’ve had an accomplice as well?” J beamed hauntingly. “I should have known…” He purred.

Luke glanced at Frost in confusion, seeking help in some way. Frost, however, kept his gaze on the Joker, unmoving.

“I didn’t want to think you were stupid enough to try this, Frosty…” J growled lowly, “but then the girl went missing, and you… vanished… in such a rush…”

“Sir, I-“

“Can it, Frosty.” Snapped J, shifting the gun in his hand warningly. “You think you can just steal her out from under my nose –“

“Boss,” Frost cut across, raising his hands in apology and surrender. “I don’t have time for this.” He said firmly, though still not daring to move with the Joker’s gun still trained on him. “My daughter is in trouble. [Y/N] is in trouble.”

The Joker glared at his head henchman, seeing the usual emotionless mask of Frost cracking, the honesty in his words and concern for his daughter clear on his face. Something flickered across the Joker’s face and he slowly lowered the guns. “Then so is my girl.” He growled quietly.

Frost faltered at the Joker’s comment, but didn’t say anything to this, returning his focus, instead, to the urgency of the situation. Luke had noticeably relaxed now a weapon wasn’t being pointed at him, and he cautiously finished his descent to the pavement, moving to Frost’s side again.

“Where is she?” The Joker demanded at the two of them. Luke glanced to Frost, just as lost.

“I don’t know, sir.” Frost admitted, hopelessly shaking his head. “I was going to head back to base to regroup and gather resources.”

The Joker nodded at this decision, though his face remained dark, his eyes impatient. “Is there time?” He growled.

“Even if there wasn’t, boss, we have nothing to go on right now to do anything else.” Frost explained, just as anxious as the Joker was to be doing something in that very instant to get [Y/N] back.

The Joker gritted his teeth. “Get back to the safe house.” He reluctantly ordered, turning on his heel and heading for his car. Frost gladly followed his orders, him and Luke climbing back into their car.

Tags: @white-chocolate-mocha-fan @jemjem-chan @mundane-cup-noodles @sheldonsherlocktony @sami1024

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whatdoesshedotothem · 3 years

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Saturday 30 April 1836: SH:7/ML/E/19/0034

8 55

2 am

- fine frosty morning - downstairs in ½ hour - Mawson had been waiting ½ hour - gave him check for £100 (Messrs. Illingworth and his partner Spencer) - mentioned having seen Mrs. Sutherland’s letter of June 1833 - thought Captain S- would therefore make no claim of acreage of A-‘s name being included (she not knowing enough about it) should advise not to claim anything for the coal already got but A- had written down and I myself thought £20 per acre a fair thing for what remained to be got of Charnock’s coal - I- said about 6 acres in the whole and about 2 or more got - he talked of expense - I said well! then I would ask if A- would take £15 - with respect to the 2nd pit I had advised A- only to claim for the 5 years = £250 since she and her sister came into possession - let the administra lux of the late Mr. Walker claim the rest if she liked - smiled and said Illingworth might tell her if he liked - a good deal of talk - J. and S- much pleased - said I might send for I- myself only hoped he would do his best for me if I did send for him - ‘yes! that I will promise you that’ said he - then had Husband and Barstow - the latter came to say Mr. Wainhouse objected to the Foundry - I thought he would object - said Mr. Husband had best ask him quietly - if W- would not consent there was only one way for it - (meaning a notice to quit) - but the engine might be put up - B- had heard of a 2nd hand one -he

SH:7/ML/E/19/0035

had best bestir himself and inquire and if it was worth anything take Mr. Husband and view it the 1st thing on Monday let me have an answer before I went away - had Charles Howarth and paid him (under Mr. Husband) for store-room and larder - then had Joseph Mann who brought his notes =£68.6.6 ½ - to get the money at the bank and pay him in the afternoon - then had Ingham about the upper Hagstocks walling - all these people kept me till 11 50 - breakfast at 12 and Marian came and sat with me the whole time - read me the prospectus of the Messrs. Briggs etc from the Halifax Guardian - fair straightforward prospectus - well done - appearing to great advantage after the humbug of the Messrs. Rawson - saw a carriage at the door (did not know till evening it was Mrs. Henry Priestleys’) - Marian said I was gone to H-x - off down the old bank at 1 ½ - long while at the office of Messrs. P- and A- they had heard I had turned them off and got a new attorney had heard of the letter from Messrs. Gray to Mr. Rawson - explained - did A-‘s business as well as my own - explained about Illingworth (they approved) but Adam said A- had a right to the whole £250; for the additional £50 a year for the 2nd pit went in part of payment of the sum total for the coal SW- had valued the coal after this price fixed upon it - A- had bought at this price and was therefore entitled to the £250 as a part and parcel of the whole - very true - said I would explain this to her - they seemed amused and pleased at the proposed letter reminding Capitan S- A- had taken a colliery for better and worse, and if he shared the bet, he ought to risk the worst - explained about Wainhouse’s objections to the Foundry - said I thought Mr. Parker had better see him on the subject - Gave A-‘s order on Messrs. Briggs for £400, and said I would on Monday morning give an order on the Yorkshire District Bank for the remainder of the £925 for the purchase from Patchett - for Bland and c° ready to pay the £90 deposit on the Bouldshaw coal, and this money if paid had best go towards A-‘s purchase - then explained my own business - appoint Mr. P- steward to receive and pay all indoors and out and call to see my aunt about once a month – Mr. Wainhouse’s £4000 ready anytine but at 4 ¼ p.c. on bond - 4p.c. landed security - asked P- and A-‘s advice - to go on to the end at the bank or take the money of W- P- advised the latter - very well, said I, then I will take the £4000 or £5,000 let it be - and I will come over for a few hours next week (probably Thursday or Friday thought to leave A- at Tadcaster or Leeds) and sign the bond and put the money into the bank - signed a notice to quit to George Robinson as usual - Desired Messrs. P- and A- to consult the magistrates and about the Northgate hotel - whether they would wait patiently till it was finished, or oblige me to open the [tavern] and sell ale in the meantime - said with respect to going abroad A- wished it I had told her the expense and said if we did go she must pay - had I not best advise her to order SW- to pay a certain sum to Messrs. P- and A- and then instruct them to pay the same to Hammersleys to be placed to my account - yes! this the most regular and best plan - from P- and A-‘s to the bank - got £200 of which fifty in Bank of England the rest in their notes - asked for letter of credit for £2000 to remain in force one year and be renewed if necessary - not a word against it - said I would send them a regular order to honour Mr. Parker’s checks on my account to the amount of £2000 - then to Whitley’s - paid my bill from 1 January up to today inclusive - then to Greenwood’s - mentioned about the garden and damage whatever was reasonable for Walker pit stead etc Mr. P- to pay G- for the licence and settle whether any ale to be sold or not at present - would be best to avoid it if possible - then to the Northgate hotel, looking about - gets on very well - then had Husband - he shew his plan for the new Dispensary - very fair indeed - Mr. Harper had told him he had just as good a chance of getting the job as Harper himself had - in which I agreed - returned up the new bank and by the Lodge - saw Booth - with fine weather he will nearly complete his job in a fortnight - Mark Hepworth in the stable - come to bid for Ruthin - offered £10 - no! could see the horse for £12 but would give him 10/. back and for the scare crow of a new gin horse he brought this morning price 6 guineas would give him 10/. for his trouble of buying - at last agreed but said if he did not take the horse home with him tonight I would be off the bargain in the morning - (our hay is all but done - shall have to buy in a few days) - then had Joseph Mann - paid him - kept his bills to enter tomorrow in his book and mine - it seems he has already received £3.17.0 for coal at 8d a load or corve - this to be regularly placed to my credit by Mr. Parker - then wrote 3 pp. and ends (hurried) to A- York in answer to her 2 ½ pp. I got at the post office this afternoon together with Briggs’s prospectus directed to A- sent my letter to A- and a note to ‘A. Jubb Esquire Lord Street’ saying I should be glad to see him before I went and should if he could come in the course of tomorrow - dinner at 8 and coffee and Marian sat with me the whole time and till 9 ¾ when went to my aunt for ½ hour -had John Booth in the drawing room - settled with him and gave him orders - and read the newspaper (my aunt went at 10 ¼) till 11 55 then came upstairs and till 11 55 wrote all the above of today - Had William Green yesterday just before dinner and Joseph Smith’s wife about 7 this evening - mentioned about the possibility of William G-‘s wanting the cottage she lived in, but said if he left his daughter, the daughter should not stay where she is - Smiths’ wife very quietly told the tale of her husband’s being still poorly and not well off - had sold something (a bobbin frame or something of no great use to them) to help to pay ½ year’s rent due she laid next Sunday week - so I gave it her and said she would hear from Mr. Parker when to pay it the next time - several showers morning and afternoon but I escaped them all - F35 ½° and dampish now at midnight - had Mrs. Hutchinson the schoolmistress between 6 and 7 this evening - she wants more flannel - told her always to advise with Mrs. Ann Lee about these matters, and said I would tell A- of her wanting 11 yards more - hoped all would go on well - they have 10 boys and 6 girls (2 of the latter ill) - particularly charged to bring forward Ann Booth and her brother John to go to them by and by.

SH:7/ML/E/19/0036

then wrote as follows to ‘Mrs. Walker Cliff Hill’ to go by little John Booth in the morning - ‘Shibden Hall - Saturday evening 30 April 1836 - my dear madam - I arrived very early on Thursday morning and promised myself the pleasure of seeing you before my return to York on Monday morning - I begin to fear this will not be in my power, I have been, and am likely to be so incessantly engaged - I do assure you, I regret seeing you - we hope to get off from York before the end of next week, and shall reach Paris as soon as we can, from which place Miss Walker will write immediately on our arrival - we shall make some little excursions from there but where is quite unfixed - our absence must depend entirely upon circumstances, but we shall be glad to be able to amuse ourselves during the summer months - my aunt is surprisingly well, and my having Mrs. James Briggs to keep house for her, will, I feel assured, make her very comfortable - we all unite in kind regards to yourself - Believe me, my dear madam, very truly yours A. Lister’ - wrote note to ‘Mr. S. Washington, Crownest’ with the plan of yew trees quarry to have the last measurement added to it, and be sent back by early on Monday morning and with the account of what I may be indebted to Mr. SW- and what he has paid Ingham in a/c of Hagstocks walling and if has thought it right to pay the last ½ years Water Lane rate for the poor - and send him copy of A-‘s directions about the stockings to be knitted - 12 ½ when I had written all the above.

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elatedmarvel · 7 years

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Shadow: Part 12

Bucky Barnes x Reader

Summary: Natasha and Bucky rescue someone from their past. Being hunted down, they bring you to the Avengers. Will it be enough to keep you safe?

Warnings: depression, suicidal thoughts

A/N: I felt like I had to do a part of the reader suffering and the toll it takes on her. Again, I do not believe that anyone is a burden because of their disabilities or illnesses. Thank you all so much for reading. ~J

Masterlist Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11

“How are you feeling now?” Bruce asks as he takes another blood sample. You plaster on your best smile, as you have been for 2 months now, and nod.

“I’m doing much better. More of an appetite now.” voice sounding a little too cheery, you make a note to calm down a bit.

“That’s good. I’m sorry it’s taking so long, but we’re getting close to a cure. I promise.” he says as he sticks another needle in your bruised arm.

“I know.” and you wince slightly. You couldn’t even sound convincing to yourself, but fortunately, Bruce was too preoccupied with your blood samples to notice. This vile would make 107.

“We should have another cure for you to try tomorrow.” and he walks away, putting the tubes on a rack.

“Great.” Not great. The first cure had made your hallucinations worse. The second one had temporarily blinded you, the third one left you numb and paralyzed, and the fourth one almost killed you, leaving you in a coma for a week.

These “cures” were messing with the serum already in your system and every time they thought they had found a way to destroy it, it came back with a vengeance.

With each new attempt you lost more of yourself. You stopped sleeping as much, eating was now a hassle and something that Bucky had to force you to do. You had for sure lost the light in your eyes and the lilt in your voice that Bucky had loved about you so much. You looked at yourself in the mirror and a shell stared back.

Leaving the lab, you spot Nat right away.

“You got stuck babysitting me?” you try to joke.

“I volunteered.” she says.

“I don’t need an escort from the lab to my room.” you roll your eyes as Nat starts to follow you down the hallway.

“I know you don’t. I wanted to see how you were.”

“You saw me 2 hours ago, not much has changed.”

“Well can’t I want to hang out with you?” and you want to snort at her thinly veiled attempts to watch over you.

Slightly limping to the elevator, you catch Nat eyeing you warily. You woke up this morning with a sore leg, but that was nothing new. It seemed that each day you would wake up with a new ailment. Yesterday you had a giant bruise from nowhere forming on your side. The day before that you had lost the ability to move your left hand. Everyday those would heal as new ones replaced them. It seemed you were never whole again.

The elevator dinged as you arrived on your floor. You smiled at Nat before throwing a “this is me” and almost running out of the elevator. Unlocking the door you shouted for Bucky, but hearing no response you realized you were alone. He must have gone training. Good.

You see the plate of food on the island counter, your favorite sandwich that you would have devoured, but now leaves a sour taste in your mouth. You read the note besides it;

Eat this and don’t forget to take your pills. Love, Bucky.

Sighing, you reached up to pull out the 7 prescription bottles you had to take with dinner. 3 pills with breakfast, 4 with lunch, and 7 with dinner. They ranged from controlling your fever and nausea, to making sure your major organs wouldn’t malfunction, to whatever else popped up that week.

You carefully looked at the brightly colored and oddly shaped pills in your hand. What would happen if you didn’t take them? The thought was pushed out of your mind as your hear Bucky’s keys jingle.

Tossing them in your mouth, you gulp copious amounts of water and take a bite of your sandwich.

“Кукла, how are you today?” Bucky says as he swoops to where you are and gathers you in his arms. He looks at the bite in the sandwich and nods.

“I’m good.” you murmur into his chest.

He pulls away and holds you at arm’s length, examining if you were telling the truth or not. His heavy and worrisome gaze makes you fidget as you look slightly behind him. Nodding when he sees nothing major has happened yet today, he releases you.

“I’m going to take a shower. Please finish the sandwich when I get back.” he says as he walks away.

“Ok.” you whisper back before taking 3 more small bites and stuffing the rest down the disposal. Once you’re sure Bucky’s in the shower, you turn it on and get rid of the evidence.

You pick up the maroon throw from the couch as you make your way to the patio. Wrapping yourself in it and sitting down in the lounger, your mind begins to wander. You think back to those sleepless nights you sat on the patio above this one when you first arrived at the tower, how the night Bucky had come outside to give you a blanket led to your relationship blooming again.

How you would give anything to be back there again. To be the young and in love, almost reckless person you were. To not have so many things wrong with you. To be able to be the person Bucky fell in love with instead of his constant burden.

Everything would be so much better if you could just go back in time, even for a moment. Or, if you could just stop trying to get better. Tears crept up on you as your vision blurred, but you pushed them aside, not knowing if Bucky would come out, you never let him see you cry about this.

You tried so hard not to be weak and scared when he was around. You pretended to get better, to be able to eat without wanting to throw up, and that you weren’t slowly, but surely dying.

Drying your tears, you sit up a bit more. You had to be done feeling sorry for yourself. The team had been giving everything they could to help you, and while you would be forever grateful, you were also ashamed to be such a nuisance. You weren’t worth the sleepless nights Bucky had, scared to death that if he fell asleep, you would die. The constant calculating and problem solving that Dr. Cho and Bruce went through.

At the beginning, the nonstop care and worry was sweet and enduring and made you want to fight. But, now it weighed down on you.

Shaking yourself from your depression, you slowly walk back inside. Bucky stood with his bare back to you and wet hair making himself dinner. You admired for a moment just how incredible he was. Turning around, he smiles when he catches you ogling.

“You know, I heard if you take a picture it’ll last longer.” he teases.

You just smile back at him as you walk toward him and pull him in for a hug. He embraces you tight and for a moment, everything feels right again.

“There’s a charity event that we have to go to in about an hour, but I can get someone to watch you or I can sneak back early.” you look up at him. The dark circles under his eyes are almost worse than yours and his cheekbones protrude out more. He looks worn out and tired.

“No. It’s ok. I can manage.” you smile lightly.

“I’m so sorry Y/N. But you know I wouldn’t go unless I really really had to. Something about showing goodwill towards the governments, we all have to go.”

“It’s ok. Go. Have fun, mingle with people. When was the last time you did that?” realizing that no one had really had fun since the gala.

“I’ll be back so soon you won’t even realize I’m gone.” he smiles.

“I always notice when you’re gone. I love you.” you breath out. You loved him with all of your weak heart.

“I love you too.” and kisses you with so much passion your knees start to wobble.

“Ok. You obviously have everyone’s number and F.R.I.D.A.Y will alert me if anything goes wrong.” Bucky says as he buttons his white shirt. You simply nod as you sit on your giant bed and watch him get ready. He was so handsome it stunned you sometimes.

“I really don’t have to go” he says as he turns towards you, pulling you into his arms.

“You really do. Can’t have the government thinking you’re sticking it to them now can we?” and as much as you would like to stay wrapped in his arms, it was for his own good to go.

He hums in agreement and holds you for a moment longer before kissing the top of you head and grabbing his suit jacket.

“I love you” he says as he walks out of the room.

“I love you too” you all but whisper.

You wait and hear the door open and close, and his footsteps disappear. The ding of the elevator signals that he’s gone and you spring into action.

Pulling the duffle bag from the closet you start to fling your stuff into it. Clothes, shoes, and toiletries all get haphazardly throw in. You take a second to look through your jewelry box, finding the necklace Bucky had bought you and tuck it safely in the pocket of one of your jackets. You pull your favorite picture of you and Bucky from the frame, one where you were too busy looking at each other, you didn’t notice the fireworks going off in the background.

You run your finger over Bucky’s face. He looked so happy and carefree, so different from now. You’re too busy convincing yourself this is best for everyone you don’t notice him until it’s too late.

“What’s going on?” Bucky’s voice booms.

You wince slightly and turn to look at him. His eyes flitting over the strewn about clothing and duffle bag, you see the moment of understanding and then the pain that fills his face.

“Your leaving?” he breaths out incredibly.

“It’s best for everyone.” you say in a voice so small you aren’t even sure he heard you.

“Best for everyone? For everyone to be worried sick that you’re dead somewhere in a ditch? Knowing that if we can’t find you in time you’re dead?”

“I can’t do this anymore Bucky.”

“Do what Y/N?” he yells.

“I can’t be this burden anymore! I can’t just sit here and watch all you guys dying with me! It’s not fair to you or them.” you scream back.

He opens his mouth to rebut, but you aren’t done yet.

“I know you’re going to say that I’m not a burden, but look at you! You haven’t slept in 2 months! You’re all so preoccupied babysitting me that no one else has a life. But no more. I refuse to be responsible for all of your worries and hardships anymore.”

“They are working” he starts but you cut him off, unable to stop your rampage.

“On a cure, I know. I was there when they almost killed me. We both know those aren’t going to work. Nothing will! I take so many fucking pills just to be slightly functional, but everything is going to shit anyways. At least if I leave I can die on my own terms and you don’t have to watch.” you spit out.

“You aren’t going to die.” he states.

“Yes I am! Wake the fuck up and see that I’m only getting worse!” and you pant for a moment after your outbreak.

You both stand there looking at each other stunned. You had never voiced your thoughts before, not wanting to concern Bucky even more, but now they were out in the open. Before you know it, you’re sobbing uncontrollably, the dam broke.

He immediately pulls you into his chest and cries with you. He can’t count how many times he’s barely kept it together for you. Everyday he wakes up scared it’ll be your last and hoping and praying that the cure will work this time. He was so sure you were gone when you were in the coma he lost it. Screaming and breaking everything in the kitchen, but of course you pulled through and he replaced everything before you noticed.

“I can’t live without you. I don’t want to.” he cries, “Everyday that you get worse, I die a little on the inside too. I know it looks like we’re all worse for wear, but I promise you that it’ll be worse if you disappear. I don’t think we’ll ever be ok again if you leave. You can do this. You can make it. Just… just hold on a little longer. Please, for the team. For me.” he begs.

All you can do is hug him harder and nod. You can do it. You can hang on. For him and for the rest of your Avengers family, you would do anything.

Part 13

Translation:

Кукла- doll

Taglist:

@bexboo616 @sebstanwassup @buckyb4rnacle @captainbuckyreid @demoncrypt1066 @elaacreditava @writing-soldiers @aroyaldarknessblr @cumberbabe92 @tearsandbloodofmyenemies @oceanshockey @astronomyturtle @owhatshername1 @shadowingthemoonlight @jimmyisfab @littlepartofheaven @sadanddeadsoul @rhaeneris @mcuimxgine @isnow-0r-never @sleepretreat @learisa @beefybuffybucky @death-by-teacup @misscherryberry @extraterrestrialsky

(if you name is bolded, I can’t tag you for some reason.)

#bucky barnes fanfiction #bucky x reader #bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes #bucky barnes fan fiction #bucky barnes fic #bucky barnes imagine #bucky barnes angst #tw:depression #tw: sucidal thoughts #winter soldier fan fiction #winter soldier fanfiction #winter soldier x reader #winter soldier #winter soldier fic #winter soldier angst #bucky barnes series #marvel x reader

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stephenmccull · 4 years

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Must-Reads of the Week From Lauren Olsen

Hiya! I’m Lauren Olsen, your new Newsletter Editor. That’s right — the totally official, no more fill-ins, always-here-for-you Newsletter Editor. As the replacement for editor extraordinaire Brianna Labuskes, I’m here to tackle all your health news needs.

Why yes, you’re right — a pandemic is a heck of a time to take over this job. I’d argue, however, that it’s the best time, because who doesn’t need a hand sorting out all this craziness? So far, 2020 has been like trying to paint the “Mona Lisa” while riding a unicycle in a rainstorm — in other words, a sloppy mess teetering on disaster — but, with any luck, when it’s done we might all manage to smile.

In the meantime, I won’t Louvre you in the lurch. (Sorry, I couldn’t resist.) Be sure to read each day’s top health news headlines in KHN’s Morning Briefing, compiled by yours truly. Please subscribe, if you haven’t already — and tell your colleagues and friends, too. Have a comment about the Briefing or the Breeze? Send me an email at [email protected]. I look forward to hearing from you.

A Gift for You, My New Friend

Because we’ve just met, I’d like to offer you a token of friendship: Today’s Breeze will do its best to have a positive spin. Things are dreary enough in the world right now — you don’t need me to blow more gray clouds your way. In the words of Helen Keller, “Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it.”

What’s Donald Up To?

Today, let’s play a game called “What’s Donald Up To?” You won’t win any points or money. What you will win is the knowledge that there are 180 days until Inauguration Day! (I suppose your real prize will be if “your guy” wins, whether it’s President Donald Trump, Joe Biden or Kanye West.)

So what is Donald up to? He began his busy week of tweeting, mask-wearing and name-calling with a feisty interview with Fox News’ Chris Wallace on Sunday. In it, he lamented increased COVID testing (“I’m glad we do it, but it really skews the numbers”), called Dr. Anthony Fauci, America’s infectious diseases superstar, an “alarmist,” boasted about the sagging U.S. economy (“I built the greatest economy in history, I’m now doing it again”), reasserted his opinion that the virus will “disappear” and downplayed the potentially devastating physical effects of COVID-19 by saying some people just have the “sniffles.” When asked about the nearly 1,000 deaths a day in the U.S., Trump said it “is what it is.” On the positive side? Well, the interview was only about an hour.

The critiques rolled in, and for most of the week we saw a kinder, gentler version of Trump. Maybe it was because he was happy he supposedly aced the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, a test that detects early signs of dementia. Or maybe it was because he’d passed “multiple” COVID tests a day, according to his press secretary, Kayleigh McEnany. (“I don’t know of any time I’ve taken two in one day,” he clarified a few hours later.) Or perhaps he was simply feeling generous, providing $5 billion for struggling nursing homes, resuming COVID task force briefings, renewing the national public health emergency and even (gasp!) tweeting a pic of himself wearing a mask. But I think the real reason may have been because two White House cafeterias closed this week after a staffer tested positive for the coronavirus — providing another excuse for him to keep eating McDonald’s. (Just a theory.)

Even so, Trump’s good mood subsided by the end of the week, probably because he had to cancel the GOP convention in Jacksonville, Florida, amid the state’s rising COVID cases. (Not to mention that the Duval County sheriff did warn him about not being able to provide security.)

Wondering what Biden, Trump’s probable Democratic rival in November, was up to? Well, this week he released his massive “caregiving plan” for Americans — $775 billion over 10 years. (That certainly would buy a lot of Care Bears.)

California and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

California, the most populous state, on Wednesday surpassed New York as the worst-hit state for cases (tallying 413,576 as of that day). The increase of 12,112 was the biggest single-day increase since the pandemic started. At the national level, there have been 4 million cases — it took only 15 days to jump from 3 million to 4 million — and the death toll stands at 144,000. Unfortunately, the rise in cases is outpacing the rise in testing, with The New York Times explaining: “About 21,000 cases were reported per day in early June, when the positive test rate was 4.8 percent. As testing expanded, the positive test rate should have fallen. … Instead, the positive test rate has nearly doubled.”

The number of COVID cases is likely 10 times higher than what we thought, experts now say. On Saturday, the FDA approved the use of pooled testing, essentially allowing the testing of many more people using fewer tests. But the White House, not to be outdone, announced it would push to phase out funding for testing from the COVID-relief bill in Congress. (More on that in a minute.)

In the “oops” category, 113 people in Rhode Island, about 90 in Connecticut, 26 in Kentucky and dozens in New York were told they had COVID-19 when in fact they had tested negative. (Does that qualify as positive news? I’m not sure, but I’m happy those folks are fine.) Conversely, in The Villages, Florida, one of America’s biggest retirement communities known for its golf and rockin’ house parties, is seeing a spike in positive cases, jumping from the single digits last month to at least 29 last week.

Scientists delved into the big question this week: Can you get reinfected with COVID? And the absolute, no-doubt-about-it answer was: Um, not sure. But it’s unlikely, they say. Scientists did determine that mosquitoes most likely don’t spread COVID, and they’re testing whether UV light, which can kill many nasty germs, can kill this virus, too. As a bonus, the CDC now says that if you do get sick, you should isolate for 10 days, not 14. (But severely ill patients should isolate for 20 days.)

So Much for Vacation

Congress returned from a two-week summer recess Monday to begin work on the fifth COVID-relief bill of the year, and it played out like a real-life version of Chevy Chase’s “National Lampoon’s Vacation,” starring Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell as Clark Griswold, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi as the Ferrari-driving Christie Brinkley and Trump as the security guard at Walley World who basically ends their fun. (My goodness, can’t you just envision it?)

Republicans had a $1 trillion agenda that included funds for schools and COVID testing, a payroll tax cut, direct checks for individuals and $600-a-week stipends for laid-off workers. Senate Republicans seemed near a deal with the White House on Wednesday as the Griswold family station wagon chugged along. But the car crashed Thursday when the two groups failed to reach an agreement on the unemployment issue. (Mind you, the Democrats haven’t even gotten involved yet.) Republicans vowed to have a new deal next week. As all this was going on, smooth-driving Pelosi left tire tracks all over Trump while speaking on CNN’s “The Situation Room” on Tuesday, calling the coronavirus the “Trump virus.”

Let’s Make a Deal: Which Vaccine Is Behind Door No. 1?

Am I the only person who can’t keep track of all the vaccines and treatments in play? Chinese group Sinopharm said it will have a vaccine ready for the public before the end of the year. (Woohoo!) British pharmaceutical firm Synairgen announced a breakthrough nebulizer treatment that reduces the severity of COVID-19, and Oxford-AstraZeneca’s vaccine AZD1222 showed promising results in human trials, too. Meanwhile, behind Door No. 2, the Russians are insisting they didn’t try to steal British coronavirus vaccine research.

Back in the good ol’ U.S. of A., five pharmaceutical giants testified to Congress on Tuesday that they wouldn’t cut corners when developing a vaccine. And Wednesday, as if on cue, Pfizer and German firm BioNTech made an unusual $1.95 billion deal to supply 100 million doses of a not-yet-finished vaccine to the federal government, which plans on giving it to Americans at no cost. (Not to nitpick, but there are 330 million people in America. I’m not great a math, but still …)

Meanwhile, behind Door No. 3, the Department of Justice indicted two Chinese nationals this week on charges that they hacked and stole research from companies working on COVID vaccines in the U.S., the U.K., Sweden, Spain, Australia and other nations.

The REALLY Important Questions

Sure, all of that stuff has big implications. But here in the real world, we’re worried about simpler stuff. For example, when can I watch NFL football? (Not for a while.) Has baseball started? (Yes!) Can I travel to the Bahamas (no), Niagara Falls (yes) or New York (maybe)? If I live in California and need a haircut, where can I get one? (Outdoors.) Should I buy my teen some condoms? (It’s up to you, but more adolescents are improvising with plastic wrap — shudder.) Does it hurt to get shot with a less-lethal projectile? (Um, HECK YES.) Should I wear a mask in Atlanta, at a Marriott hotel or when buying jeans at the Gap? (Yes.) How about at the bank? (Yes, as long as you promise not to rob the joint.)

That about wraps it up for me. Hope you enjoyed my inaugural Breeze. Keep smiling! Until next week,

— Lauren

Kaiser Health News (KHN) is a national health policy news service. It is an editorially independent program of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation which is not affiliated with Kaiser Permanente.

Must-Reads of the Week From Lauren Olsen published first on https://smartdrinkingweb.weebly.com/

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gordonwilliamsweb · 4 years

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Must-Reads of the Week From Lauren Olsen

A Gift for You, My New Friend

What’s Donald Up To?

California and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

So Much for Vacation

Let’s Make a Deal: Which Vaccine Is Behind Door No. 1?

The REALLY Important Questions

That about wraps it up for me. Hope you enjoyed my inaugural Breeze. Keep smiling! Until next week,

— Lauren

Kaiser Health News (KHN) is a national health policy news service. It is an editorially independent program of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation which is not affiliated with Kaiser Permanente.

Must-Reads of the Week From Lauren Olsen published first on https://nootropicspowdersupplier.tumblr.com/

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dinafbrownil · 4 years

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Must-Reads of the Week From Lauren Olsen

A Gift for You, My New Friend

What’s Donald Up To?

California and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

So Much for Vacation

Let’s Make a Deal: Which Vaccine Is Behind Door No. 1?

The REALLY Important Questions

That about wraps it up for me. Hope you enjoyed my inaugural Breeze. Keep smiling! Until next week,

— Lauren

Kaiser Health News (KHN) is a national health policy news service. It is an editorially independent program of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation which is not affiliated with Kaiser Permanente.

from Updates By Dina https://khn.org/news/friday-breeze-health-care-policy-must-reads-of-the-week-from-lauren-olsen-july-24-2020/

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jobsearchtips02 · 4 years

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How New york city’s coronavirus crisis ended up being so fatal in just 1 month

The coronavirus has wreaked havoc in New York, infecting more than 122,000 individuals– more than China’s reported overall– and eliminating over 4,100

Gov. Andrew Cuomo has actually shut down schools, put the city on time out, closed non-essential services, increase screening, and developed makeshift healthcare facilities.

In the month because New york city’s first coronavirus case was reported, however, medical facilities have actually been overrun. Morgues are filling to capacity, medical resources are failing, and frontline healthcare employees are dealing with “apocalyptic” scenes.

Check out Organisation Insider’s homepage for more stories

The meaning could not be more disturbing: Places known for bringing crowds of individuals together have actually ended up being triage websites as the city struggles with its rapidly escalating coronavirus case count and death toll

The United States is the brand-new center of the coronavirus pandemic, with at least 312,400 cases– that’s one in five of all COVID-19 cases worldwide– and over 8,500 deaths.

The state’s health centers are inundated, morgues are overflowing, and exhausted medical employees, required to wear trash bags due to an absence of protective equipment, are checking favorable for the coronavirus themselves.

Members of Samaritan’s Bag put the finishing touches on a field health center in New York City’s Central Park on March 30,2020

Spencer Platt/Getty Images.

All this in simply over a month.

The coronavirus is “really vicious,” New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said at a press briefing on Sunday. He explained the illness as an “effective killer.”

Here’s how COVID-19 ravaged New York so rapidly.

An outbreak in the residential areas

The earliest reports of coronavirus cases emerged in China in late December, though professionals think it had actually most likely currently been circulating there for about a month. The disease has actually given that spread across Asia, Europe, and the US: More than 1.2 million individuals have actually been infected, and the death toll has actually crossed 65,700

New York’s first verified case, reported on March 1, was a health care employee in her 30 s who ‘d returned from a trip to Iran. Its second was 50- year-old Westchester County man, Lawrence Garbuz, who operates at a law practice with workplaces near Grand Central.

Garbuz, who fell ill around February 27 and tested favorable on March 2, was New York’s first case of community spread: He had neither took a trip to any nations with severe break outs, nor had he been exposed to a coronavirus client.

” I have no doubt that the infection was here much earlier than we even know,” and prior to it reached any other state, he said.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo delivers remarks at a news conference concerning the very first confirmed case of coronavirus in New york city State in Manhattan borough of New York City, New York City, on March 2,2020

Andrew Kelly/Reuters.

When strengths ended up being weak points

Many think about New York City’s consistent motion and high density to be amongst its greatest strengths, along with its residents’ reliance on public transit.

At the same time, ” that spatial nearness makes us susceptible,” as Cuomo said.

The coronavirus spreads out easily from person to individual when individuals come within 6 feet of each other– something hard to prevent in New York City, considered that it houses 27,000 people per square mile. Contaminated people can transmit the virus for days before showing signs. Some providers remain asymptomatic the whole time.

What’s more, the infection can endure for 72 hours on metal railings and plastic seats like those in trains and buses.

After its very first 2 validated cases, New York City’s numbers shot up: There were 88 on March 12, then 464 by March16 The total passed 2,000 on March 18, and by March 20, there were more than 5,600 cases. The 10,000- case threshold came less than two days later.

Cuomo stated a state of emergency on March 7, then prohibited events of over 500 people five days later on.

A lady wearing a mask strolls on the otherwise empty Brooklyn Bridge in the midst of the coronavirus outbreak on March 20, 2020 in New York City.

Victor J. Blue/Getty Images.

Restaurants, Broadway shows, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and other Manhattan landmarks were shuttered to promote social distancing and slow the infection’ infect “ flatten the curve” so health care systems would not get overwhelmed

But it all seems to have come too late.

‘ 4 months, six months, 9 months’

More mass closures quickly followed.

New york city state schools shut down on March 15; Cuomo put the entire city on time out a week later on, closing down non-essential services and releasing a stay-at-home order.

“ This is not a short-term situation … It is going to be 4 months, six months, 9 months,” he told reporters.

Subway stations became deserted. Bodega shelves were emptied. Children and parents in New york city faced an unknown situation: remaining at home all the time, indefinitely.

The Army Corps of Engineers has actually developed a short-term field hospital at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City in reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic on March 30,2020

John Lamparski/Getty Images.

The lockdown is a “ double whammy,” Cuomo has stated, due to the fact that New york city state is on track to lose $10 to $15 billion in income due to the fact that of the expenses of battling the infection. But there’s no other choice: Cuomo has actually predicted that 40%to 80%of the state’s citizens will likely contract COVID-19

On March 23, the city reported more than 13,000 cases.

However those rapidly rising numbers are in part a reflection of New York’s aggressive testing

Even so, thousands of sick individuals have actually been not able to get evaluated.

On the whole, the US’s diagnostic capabilities have been filled by errors and hold-ups

‘ Apocalyptic’ scenes in New York’s health centers

Many of New York’s rich appear to have actually left the city.

A worker cleans up a Brooklyn train station as New York City challenges the coronavirus outbreak on March 11,2020

Spencer Platt/Getty Images.

Unable to handle the ceaseless circulation of clients, healthcare facilities are lacking area. A medical professional at Elmhurst Healthcare facility in Queens explained the scene as “apocalyptic” to The New York City Times, and said clients have died while waiting for treatment.

A nurse told Business Expert that individuals with coronavirus signs were revealing up at the NYU Medical Center every 3 to five minutes on March 25.

Elderly people and those with preexisting health conditions are more vulnerable to the worst impacts of the coronavirus.

” So many clients are not fitting the image that we’ve been informed from China or Italy.

However New York City nurses have actually been minimized to using garbage bags to ward off the infection, while one woman tweeted that she was offered a Yankees rain poncho in lieu of a medical gown

A pharmacist in the Elmhurst community of Queens, New York City, on April 1,2020

Stephanie Keith/Getty Images.

To support the collapsing health care system, the Javits Center was equipped with 2,500 beds, Central Park with 68, and Flushing Meadows-Corona Park with350 The USNS Comfort, a drifting marine hospital, will hold 1,000 extra beds for non-coronavirus patients As of Saturday night, the freshly christened Javits New York Medical Station was treating 40 individuals, according to The Washington Post, while the USNS Convenience was 2%complete, with 20 patients, as of Friday.

Countless healthcare employees have actually been asked to dust off their scrubs, medical students have finished early, and supports are en route to Manhattan from all over the US. On Friday, New york city officials sent out a mobile push alert asking ” licensed health care employees” to support overwhelmed healthcare facilities.

” It resembles we’re combating a ghost,” one doctor informed Organisation Expert. His identity, while verified by Business Expert, is being kept confidential since he hasn’t been licensed by his healthcare facility to speak to journalism. “I know it’s out there, but I have no idea where it’s originating from, who it’s affecting the hardest, and how to stop it.”

‘ I don’t know the number of more bodies I can take’

The coronavirus is killing an individual roughly every 4 minutes in New york city State, and about every 6 minutes in New york city City, based on the COVID Tracking Job and city information. The state experienced its deadliest day yet, Cuomo said on Saturday, with 630 more individuals succumbing to the disease over the past 24 hours.

Refrigerated semi-trailers and cooled tents are stationed outdoors healthcare facilities to act as makeshift morgues— nondescript portents of doom.

Patrick Marmo, a state-licensed funeral director and embalmer of 30 years, says his company, International Funeral Service of New york city, normally handles about 40 cases at any given minute. On March 30, he was trying to manage more than 140.

A makeshift morgue being developed behind Bellevue Medical facility amid the coronavirus outbreak in New york city City on March 26,2020

John Nacion/NurPhoto/Getty Images.

” I do not understand how lots of more bodies I can take,” Marmo told Organisation Insider, explaining that frontline “deathcare” workers are struggling with their own restricted capacity.

” We are working night and day,” he said.

‘ We are still headed up the mountain’

On March 31, Cuomo approximated that the “apex” of the break out was still 21 days away

” We’re all in search of the apex and the other side of the mountain.

” It feels like a whole life time,” he informed press reporters in Albany.

He changed this prediction on Sunday, stating that it stays uncertain whether the “apex” represents a point on the curve of infections or a plateau. This makes it difficult to tell if New york city is nearing the worst or has already reached that phase in its outbreak. The number of hospitalizations and deaths dropped in the last 24 hours, he said, but it’s just “too early to inform” if this has any significance.

Cuomo has taken some criticism for a proposed $400- million cut in Medicaid moneying to state hospitals– cuts recommended by a panel he assembled. “It’s a shot in the gut,” Dr. David Perlstein, the ceo of St. Barnabas Medical facility, informed The New York Times If the cuts are enacted nevertheless, they might not go through until after the pandemic is over, City and State New York City reported

Acknowledging that medical facilities are rushing to handle the day-to-day eruption in coronavirus cases, Cuomo said that they are anticipated to receive more than $150 billion in grants by way of the federal government’s $ 2 trillion COVID-19 stimulus bill

” The places that are getting the most moneying now because of what the federal government did are the health centers. They are doing much better than anyone else,” Cuomo said, per The Times.

An inside view of a makeshift healthcare facility’s ICU in Central Park’s East Meadow in New York City on March 31,2020

Misha Friedman/Getty Images.

New York is only the beginning

The guv has actually often been at loggerheads with President Donald Trump, with Cuomo bashing Trump’s proclivity to play politics as “ anti-American” and Trump pushing duty onto state authorities.

What’s evident, however, is that no community in New York can manage the virus by itself so authorities are rising and bending the capacity, staff, and resources of the entire health care system so as to “balance the patient load” among all readily available hospitals, Cuomo stated.

This wisdom needs to be applied nationwide, he said, since experts expect New York to be simply the first hotspot of many.

Medical officials are also nervously considering Louisiana, where 26%of tests are coming back favorable.

” Today it is New York,” Nirav Shah, a former New York state health commissioner, told Vox

Lydia Ramsey and Jeremy Berke contributed to this report.

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Do you have an individual experience with the coronavirus you ‘d like to share? Or a pointer on how your town or community is managing the pandemic? Please e-mail [email protected] and inform us your story.

And get the latest coronavirus analysis and research study from Company Insider Intelligence on how COVID-19 is impacting businesses.

coronavirus New York Andrew Cuomo Donald Trump

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from Job Search Tips https://jobsearchtips.net/how-new-york-citys-coronavirus-crisis-ended-up-being-so-fatal-in-just-1-month/

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salmon2245 · 4 years

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Something they don’t talk about 01

Notes: this fic is kind of RPF but not a treditional one. Characters in this fic are mostly dancers from the R&J French musical tour cast. Some of them actually never worked together. Because the dancer crew are different every tour.

I wrote it in Chinese first and then translated into English. And I’m not good at English. There will be many grammar mistakes and sentence that doesn’t make sense. I apologize.

For now there are only four people mentioned:

Andrea, danced in the 2012 Japan tour, 2015 Korean tour, 2018 Chinese tour and 2019 Russian tour, as Montague

Cristian, in 2018 Chinese tour，as Montague

McCarthy, in 2015 Korean tour, as Montague

Julie, in 2015 Korean tour, as Capulet

The relationship between characters are mostly based on their performance on stage, but also mixed with what they are off stage in daily life.

I guess no one have any clue who they are here on tumblr 😂, but we do have a fandom of it in some Chinese R&J fans. Well. If anyone are interested in this fandom, feel free to ask me anything. About their relationship in real life and characteristics they show on stage. And photos. Like, too much photos. Cause these people, these talented dancers as well as actors, they certainly ship themselves.

This story still happens in Verona, but focused on normal people not the original Romeo and Juliette. They will be mentioned in the future, also Benvolio and Mercutio and Tybalt and Paris and so on. But they are not the main Characters, is all. Kind of living in the background.

ABO setting/rape/incest/basically everyone fucks everyone

Omega!Andrea, Alpha!McCarthy, Alpha!Julie

Cristian still a teenager hasn’t transformed yet

There are too much settings in the background but I kind of jump into the middle part and start writing whatever this is. Wish I could make it clear in the further updates.

Something They don’t Talk about 01

"Cristian!" McCarthy shouted gleefully at the other side of the bar across the barren, "used to wet the bed when he was a kid! And it was me who have to save his ass every time!"

The little boy stared anxiously, the bartender who he had just flirted with, heard it, couldn't help but laugh, and with love, took Cristian's furry head into her chest, rubbing it like a puppy rub.

Damn, Cristian was forced to get closer to that white breasts because of this rub, and smelled the sweet fragrance from the lovely lady. He flushed, and can’t decide if he was shamed because of being shattered in the crowds, or because he was close to her breasts. This really is nothing at all. He has seen those girls who always wonder in the alleys of the shadow zone. Their lips are too red to be natural, and those faces unhealthily pale. Their eyes under the heavy makeup watching the potential customers passing by, wearing skirt with a low neckline can hardly cover the Soft chest. He should get used to this scene.

When he returned to reality, the bartender had already gone to serve other guests. McCarthy held a bottle of wine in his hand and smirked at him. Cristian tightened his teeth, and then, the glass of wine was taken away by another hand.

Seeing who that hand belongs, Christian turned his face into the shadow in a hurry. Who else can it be, only his brother. McCarthy didn't finish his surprising cry, and was pushed away by Andrea grabbing his elbow. The boy hid himself in the crowd, feeling a little frightened. Andrea didn't see him, did he? Montague boys who are younger than him these days can blow wine bottles to show off their great triumph against Capulet, and only Andrea has always written a ban on alcohol in their rules. With his brother beside him, Cristian can never get to taste even a drop of alcohol. Andrea rarely took him to the bar. Only occasionally, once or twice, Cristian was only allowed to drink sweet fruit juice bitterly when all of his friends try their best to get drunk.

The wine in his own hands somehow lost his interest. Cristian looked at the remaining half of the liquid and poured it into his stomach in one shot. It was not bad to drink, but also not as magical as others have preached. Andrea didn't look at him, and in a second he had pulled McCarthy into the corner of the bar, can’t tell when he would leave. Cristian believed that he hadn't noticed himself, but he can never be too careful. He quickly put on his coat and walked down the secret path he had found to his house. If he arrives home later and is asked by Andrea, he will have to make up an excuse, which he really wants to avoid.

The little area of skin where the arm was held was slightly warm, and McCarthy leaned against the wall along Andrea's strength. He watched as the wine returned to his hand and raised an eyebrow at the other.

Andrea sighed and wrapped his hands around his chest. "How old are you," he didn't look at McCarthy, and he slumped against the wall with his heels. “too old for this trick, I believe.”

"Hey, how dare you to stop me mention it,” The dark-skinned man swallowed his wine and shrugged. “after all, this is all done by your son. It can’t be more real, and I didn't lie about it."

"You're vengeance, and some tiny stuffs over ten years ago can make you think of it now." There are smile hides in Andrea’s voice. He grabbed McCarthy's wine and gave himself a sip, then shoved it back into his hands.

"That puppy pissed and vomited on my hand or chest more than a dozen times. I just avenged it, and it was bright and upright in the lobby," McCarthy said, pointing his chin to the bar. "Get the drink yourself, don’t try to steal mine. "

Andrea shook his head, raised one hand to rub his neck. “I just need a sip. Drinking too much will make trouble in the coming days."

The meaning behind this words was already too familiar to McCarthy. He recalled the overheating temperature on his arm and turned to look at Andrea's already sweaty forehead, and the smile on his face suddenly gone.

"So you still need me this time."

"I know, I know," Andre interrupted him, "I said, you have your life. I'm looking for you ... depend on what you want, you can refuse. I mean that.”

It wasn't willing or unwilling at all, McCarthy rolled his eyes in his mind. He knows that Andrea doesn't trust any strange Alphas. In fact, it’s already quite brave for him to not mind having Alpha being close to his personal distance during the daily life. Consider what he had been through. It is impossible for him to pick anyone from the bar to solve his heat. If McCarthy doesn't help, chances are he will choose to go through it for days alone, in a very unhealthy way.

At least they've tried alcohol, and it only makes the situation worse, so that’s not in the consideration.

"The mark is obviously a better solution," McCarthy replied. "It's you who don't want it, not me."

"Why, have you been so fucked up these years?" Andrea laughed at him, "has fallen to the point of binding me for life?"

As if he cared, McCarthy thought silently. He had gone to bed with Alpha almost as often as with Omega, and most his lovers had no natural conditions for the mark thing at all. However, they did not continue the discussion. This time, like many previous times, stopped halfway with no results.

Cristian never liked McCarthy, but the boy felt that the problem was not with himself. He couldn't figure out what was wrong with this man, always playing tricks on him, and making jokes that awkward him in the public. The elated looks on that man’s face just made his fists tighten. And his scent. It's not that Cristian hates McCarthy's scent, but there are times that the scent of him just raise his angry—especially when it is sticking on his brother.

He knew that his brother and McCarthy were at the close of life and death. After his mother's death, thanks to McCarthy's help, Andrea got to raise him to the light without illness or disaster. If anything, McCarthy could have saved his life. When he was young, Cristian thought he was his elder brother's Alpha. When he grow up and know better, he find out that there was no actual biological connection between them. In theory, this is not a responsible behavior, but as he sees more around him, the boy gradually get used to it. It is natural to say that this is the case in Verona.

That night, Cristian arrived home first, but until he got up the next day, Andrea was still not back at home. Cristian cooked oatmeal with more water than needed, and used it to wash down two pieces of dry toast. The Master Montague found him a job in the mill, and there’s only minutes before work. He left the bowl on the table, put on his shoes in a hurry, and locked the door. No matter where his brother was, Cristian believed that it’s nothing for him to worry about.

When Julie met McCarthy again, he was driving a carriage on his way out of the city, carrying the goods that Montague is going to sell. She waved, confident enough that he would stop the carriage for her.

McCarthy did park in front of her.

"Wow," Julie sniffed. "I smell the scent of Andrea."

The man in the driver's seat did not answer her, but just asked, "What are you doing here?"

"If I said I was waiting for you, you wouldn't believe it," Julie made a polite smirk. "I know you are going to Vicenza, count me in, got some personal business there to be done."

McCarthy didn't think to resist, he moved to the side of the seat, and Julie flipped up easily, with one foot up and stepping on the railing of the carriage.

"So, how do you know I'm going to Vicenza?" The man pretended to be casual.

"Oh," Julie said with a sincere smile this time, "Though I love you, Chris, there are some secrets that cannot be shared with Montague."

McCarthy didn't ask, but mumbled some swear of Capulets, and start the carriage again. He didn't mind a partners on the business trip, not to mention that this partner was Julie Galopin. There is no Montague or Capulet in Vicenza. They could do whatever they wanted, and be whoever they want to be.

#romeo et juliette #remeo et juliette rpf

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seanmalatesta · 6 years

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10 Rules to Read More Books This Year

One New Year’s resolution I frequently hear from people is that they want to read more books. Makes sense if you consider reading a key component of personal growth and development.

Ray Edwards recently wrote about his reading goals here at MH&Co. He planned to read fifty-two books in a year. Instead, he read seventy-six! Edwards said he invests in reading because it helps him learn new ideas, upgrade his thinking, and improve his leadership. But seventy-six books! Who’s got time for that?

My fifty-book challenge

I read a lot and have done so since my teens. But even fifty-two books in a year would have seemed like a stretch to me—until a decade ago. I was an editor at a publishing house and on the phone with one of my authors. I mentioned being on a fiction bender and offhandedly gave the number of novels I’d read during my spree. He was encouraging but unimpressed. Fifty books a year was the norm for him. At my then-current pace, the best I could hope for was a sum in the low thirties.

The next year I started keeping record of every book I finished. As a writer and editor, I’m in and out of far more books than I actually read cover to cover. I wanted to know how many I had actually completed. After twelve months, I finished thirty-five.

How on earth did my author friend hit fifty? It seemed impossible given my job, family, and social obligations, not to mention other claims on my time. But I kept at it, and the number rose the next year. And the next. And the next. Nowadays I typically read fifty books a year on top of the countless books I browse, scan, or quit.

And here’s how I do it.

10 rules to read more books

Whatever your reading goal, these ten rules might help you finish more books this year than last.

“ If you’re looking to read more books this year than last, one of the easiest methods is simply logging what you read.

—JOEL J. MILLER

1. Keep track. If you’re looking to read more, one of the easiest methods is simply logging what you read. When my list of completed titles is short, I want to read more. When it’s long, I get a surge of pride and excitement and want make it longer. I also get a charge when I survey what I’ve learned or felt in my reading over the past several months. More, please.

2. Switch formats. I love physical books. I also love audiobooks. I tolerate ebooks. But I’m happy to switch between all three formats to finish a book, especially paper and audio. I’ll listen while I drive and then find my place in my copy on my nightstand later that evening. For books I regularly reread, such as Montaigne’s Essays, I keep all three formats handy so I can read whenever, wherever the mood strikes.

3. Cut back on TV. There’s so much great TV being produced these days. But there are only 8,765.82 hours in a year. Deduct for sleep, work, family, dining, and driving and than ask: Do I really want to binge watch that new series? No judgment if the answer’s yes, but opportunity costs are real. I can’t read and view at the same time.

4. Kill your social media apps. I have a Kindle but never use it. My iPhone 7 Plus is my preferred digital reader. It’s also my audiobook player. I regularly use the Kindle, Audible, and Scribd apps. To safeguard my screen time for reading when opportunities arise, I have deleted social media apps from my phone. Social media (and news) apps present the same basic problem as TV. I backslide from time to time but quickly remember the opportunity cost.

5. Take books everywhere. I always have a book with me: sometimes one or more physical books and several dozen audio and digital a few taps away on my phone. If I’m waiting, I’m reading. If I’m walking, I’m reading. Every week there are minutes that come to hours of unclaimed time at the margins. I can use it to stare at my shoes, thumb through abandoned magazines, or read three more pages in my book.

6. Follow your whims. In his book The Pleasures of Reading in an Age of Distraction, Alan Jacobs expresses his “commitment to one dominate, overarching, nearly definitive principle for reading: Read at Whim.” This has served me well. I let my tastes, curiosity, and passions steer my eyes. That way I read more of what I love—with the bonus that I also love more of what I read.

7. Vary your genres. Part of following my whims is reading across several genres. Even during times I narrow my focus, I try to let random titles land on my list. If I’m digesting a lot of history, a zany novel might be called for. If I’ve spent months cornering one subject, I try to find something utterly different to break it up.

8. Read several books at once. I don’t mean simultaneously. That’s impossible (though I do hope they figure it out someday). I mean I have several books going at any given time: two or three history books at various stages, a bio, a business book or two, something spiritual, and usually a novel. With that much variety, I’m always in the mood to read at least one in the stack.

9. Seek suggestions. Where social media does come in handy for me is reading suggestions. I’m great at finding new books, but I love hearing what my friends, industry colleagues, mentors, and others are reading. There are hundreds of thousands of books published every year. There’s simply no way for an individual to know all the best books on any particular topic. One of the things I love most about our LeaderBox program is the surprise subscribers express when they see the new books each month—sometimes titles they’d never discover on their own.

10. Quit at any time. Over the years I’ve heard several people say they stopped reading for a while because they just couldn’t finish a particular book. It was boring, bad, whatever. That’s like saying you stopped eating because you don’t like meatloaf. Drop it in the trash and try tacos. Or salmon. Or curry. Or something! There are a million books available, at least some of which are better than whatever you can’t finish.

I’ll quit any book at any time. Life’s too short to soldier through a book I have no interest in reading. And I’m certainly not going to let one ill-fitting book stop me from reading a dozen more-likable volumes.

“ I’ll quit any book at any time. Life’s too short to soldier through a book I have no interest in reading.

—JOEL J. MILLER

You can read more than you think

So how many books are you planning on reading this year? My guess is you’re capable of more than you think. Consider that the average book is about 65,000 words long, and a typical reader can cover about 300 words a minute.

At that rate, you could finish in just over three and half hours. If you read thirty minutes each day, that’s one book every week, give or take. Fifty or so a year. Reclaim a few extra minutes here and there throughout the day, and it’s easy to see how Edwards found his way to completing seventy-six books in a year. Whatever the right number for you, there’s more than enough time this year to reach it.

from Michael Hyatt, Your Virtual Mentor http://ift.tt/2CrqVAV via IFTTT

#IFTTT #Michael Hyatt #Your Virtual Mentor

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tube-thoughts-blog · 6 years

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tube thoughts vol. 6

zero stars - terrible, 1/2 a star - dull, 1 star - folly, 1 1/2 stars - lacking, 2 stars - fair, 2 1/2 stars - decent, 3 stars - terrific

Joe Bob's SummerSchool edition of Monstervision with special guests a blonde Bride of Frankenstein and a Beverly Hills plastic surgeon plus the feature movie "The Surgeon" *The striking black and white intro flashback throws light on what this flick really is. It's a tribute to those 30s/40s/50s mad doctor horror shows, with quirky 1990s sensibilities laced throughout.* 2 1/2 stars

Everything is Terrible: Summer Fun --------------

*Psalty: Dramatic kids hang out with a blue, scripture talking song book.* 2 stars

*Bike Safety Rap: Don't skin your knees or risk your life.* 1 star

*Central Florida Hell: Dump elderly dad down where Chi Chi Rodriguez dwells.* 2 1/2 stars

*2 Minute Boat Trip: Goober Pudding Jr. is not a COCKSUCKER! Horatio Sanz... who knows?* 2 stars

*3 Minute Heavy Metal Summer: Shock rockers, with a heart of gold, versus yuppy prejudice and slimeball business types at a camp/resort.* 3 stars

*Acting with Tom Hanks: Swimsuit models wanna make their silly dreams come true.* 2 stars

*Conceal and Carry: Speed, women, fanny pack!* 3 stars

*Kidz Conquer Mexico: Another culture exploited by brats.* 2 1/2 stars

*Message in a Cell Phone: Crack the code and get Chad's dad out of prison.* 3 stars

*Birthdays Faith First: Father Tim loves his birthday and Uncle Sam.* 2 1/2 stars

*2 Minute Beach Fever: Kato Kaelin and Jacki Chan enjoy the fruits of rabor.* 2 1/2 stars

======================================================

I'm Alan Partridge: I Know What Alan Did Last Summer *Dodging the tax man.* between 2 1/2 and 3 stars

"The Day After" --1983-- *"World War 4 will be fought with sticks and stones."* 3 stars

The Twilight Zone: The Midnight Sun *Fever dream.* 3 stars

Heart She Holler: Klansgender Rights *We're all the same underneath a clean, white sheet.* 2 stars

Squidbillies: Granny Hot Foot *Happier than a pig, in shit, who just won the Daytona 500.* 2 1/2 stars

Adult Swim --infomercials-- In Search of the Miracle Man *Interviewing people on the street about their love for a yet to be seen super guru and asking them how often they masturbate, plus keeping a close watch on a sunbathing beauty, in case the guru shows up there. Add in a sing along, act unfunny along, self aware studio audience for even less laughs. A guy from Mighty Boosh and Snuff Box (Rich Fulcher) and a guy from Upright Citizens Brigade and Crossballs (Matt Besser), along with another recognizable face from the Sarah Silverman Show, can all do better and funnier in 12 minutes. Drunk History for example.* 1 star

Freddy's Nightmares: Rebel Without A Car -----

*A mullet-motor-head thinks a cursed muscle-car is his ticket out of Springwood, but maybe he should have taken his girl's advice and sought a smarter path.* 2 1/2 stars

*A girl, from the wrong side of the tracks, gets accepted to be a Cinderella slave for snobbish sorrority sisters, during hellish hazing, where they hope to put her on the road.Instead, she turns Carrie, on the cunts, and burns the house to the ground.* 2 1/2 stars

------------------------

Swamp Thing: Falco *"Nature is a maniac!" That's pretty existential for a falcon unwillingly turned half human by the arrogant Arcane. Overly dramatic and unintentionally funny.* 3 stars

Jonny Quest: Treasure of the Temple *Masterfully animated Mayan adventure.* 3 stars

Kolchak, the Night Stalker: The Night Strangler *Gritty Civil War era alchemy, and a Victorian Era style Jack the Ripper killer, in the dark alleys and underground of a Pacific Northwest seaport town.* 3 stars

12:01 Beyond --Halloween special-- -2014- =====================

*The Victim's Family - Have A Nice Day (music video): Skeletal puppets kick your face in and tell you to enjoy your shitty job and life.* close to 3 stars

*Fulfilled, A Halloween Story: A modern Lovecraftian tragic figure refuses to join in on the pop culture / commercial celebrations of Halloween and instead chooses to spend All Hallow's Eve, and possibly eternity, in the Twilight Zone.* close to 3 stars

*Trailer for Dario Argento's "Creepers": 3 stars

*Vintage WXXA cHANNEL 23 - Halloween movie marathon commercial for their movie lineup including 'An American Werewolf in London', 'House', 'Videodrome', 'Psycho 3': 3 stars

*"Horror of the Zombies" 1973: A millionaire, a money hungry mercenary type, and an agency of modeling get involved in a publicity stunt that would leave some models stranded in a boat on the sea. However, they all wind up in some interdimensional fog and end up boarding a ghost-ship where the blind monks of Mestophilles roam.* 2 stars

*Monster Rally Movie: Advertisement for an old horror host Channel 4 show.* 3 stars

*Pumpkin Madness 2: Ordinary pumpkins let loose destructive behavior.* 2 1/2 stars

*Animation in the style of Superjail or the video for Paranoid Android by Mariola Brillowska.* 3 stars

*Phantasm's 'The Tall Man' promotes Fangoria magazine.* 2 1/2 stars

*Fleishcher Studios- Superman - The Mummy Strikes.* 3 stars

*A Republic Pictures serial - The Crimson Ghost - Atomic Peril: A criminal mastermimd is so determined to get his hands on a device that will bring the world's electrical will to its knees, that he's willing to prevent its use in bringing the Cold War to a close.* 2 1/2 stars

*Fight the monster of pay and or cable tv in an awesome retro anti-cable tv advertisement shown to a paying movie theater audience.* 3 stars

======================================================

Star Wars Rebels: Rise of the Old Masters *A Sith inquisitor lures roam Jedi to their doom, using the bones of a Jedi Master.the Empire is putting out false distress signals saying that the master is alive and in need of a prison escape rescue.* 3 stars

TMNT: The Croaking *After watching Thundarr the Barbarian, Mikey spazzes out and destroys the farmhouse. When scolded, flees to the forest where he encounters Napoleon Bonafrog (voiced by Napoleon Dynamite) who happens to be the outcast of his own tree-frog human-hating society.* 3 stars

Everything is Terrible --Halloween Bonus-- --2012-- =========================

*Cosby Nightmarez: Bill takes a break from drugging women to have his own bad dream.* 3 stars

*Tim Curry Halloween Song: A crooning wizard makes the witches howl.* 3 stars

*Vincent Price: An elderly icon shills 3D film cameras.* 2 stars

*3 Minute Grandpa is a Vampire: Grandpa Munster hangs out with his radical 90s grandson and his grandson's friend while grandma tries to cheat on him and put a stake thru his old heart.* 2 1/2 stars

*Boogie Bonez: "Knick Knack Paddywhack"* 3 stars

*Death Spa: Don't let an exorcist hacker control your electronic gym, if you're a cheating ex and give memberships to jerk yuppies.* 3 stars

*Halloween Propaganda: "Every Halloween, children are dying."* 3 stars

*Lovely Little Monster: Anne Rice chick hip hop. Dance routine sign language. Rick James voodoo zombie. Bathsalt freakout Twilight romance.* 3 stars

*Pops Ghostly: A Casper family man vents on his family's hellcat home invasion frustration.* 2 1/2 stars

*Punkinman: The Bob Villa (this old house) / Bob Ross (happy clouds painter) of stickin' it in a pumpkin and getting the best out.* 2 1/2 stars

*Zombie Workout: Spunky Linnea Quigley criticizes the falling apart shape of the undead and has them working out their rotten flesh.* close to 3 stars

*3 Minute Ghosthouse: A Back to the Future Michael J. Fox wannabe look-a-like goes up against some zany frighteners.* 3 stars

======================================================================

Z Nation: Doctor of the Dead *Not much soap opera for a zombie series finale, mostly just zombie stuff. A shadowy scientist running around globally, pre zombie outbreak, conducting gruesome, and unknown for purposes, field experiments. Creepy CDC style medical lab, in Colorado, filled with zombie testing gone wrong. Tiny Asian chick is dying but comes back as a kung fu z with Alice from Resident Evil maneuvers (not a big fan of that). Cameo from the doomed lovers to show they'll be back next season (Oh, great... yawn). And a big finish cliffhanger with Murphy "shedding his skin" (could be creepy and great) and running off leaving everyone else, including Citizen Z at the North Pole, to stare dumbly at their impending demise which is nuclear missiles dropping in to say hi.* 3 stars

Scare Tactics -season 2 -episode 14 "My Guests Are Mannequins" ---------------

*Antonio, Tone Loc's cousin, volunteers to help park rangers clean the roadkill off of a bridge that a Chupacabra lives under.* between 2 1/2 and 3 stars

*A 'You Betcha' cocktail waitress serves cheeze and ritz crackers to a honky's stuffy mannequin party guests and is scared to refuse his offer to "Party Forever" with him.* 3 stars

*A crematorium trainee turns white as a ghost, and he was black to begin with, when he flips the flame switch and a woman's husband pops out still alive just crispy.* 3 stars

==============================================================

X Files: Conduit *Alien abductee or possible runaway of ill-refute and her baby brother who can read into the matrix.* 2 1/2 stars

Sam Raimi presents American Gothic: Pilot Episode *What if Sheriff Andy Taylor were a controlling psycho who'd go as far as framing his own deputy, Barney, for murder, and what if Opie had a William Faulkner and Ambrose Bierce childhood...?* between 2 1/2 and 3 stars

Monstervision with Joe Bob Briggs: "The Wraith" (Summer School Session - Driver's Education with the author of the NYC cab driver joke book) *It was inevitable that the spirit of the American Highway would be symbolized by a fiery car crash.* 3 stars

The Outer Limits: Caught in the Act *A college virgin, Alyssa Milano, gives the worst case of blue balls, until an alien parasite turns her into a raging nympho succubus.* 2 stars slipping towards 1 1/2 stars

Paranormal State -season 1 -episode 11 *A nice, retired, Queens NY lady needed the Penn State crew and a noted medium, in demons, to tell her to stop trying to contact the dead through the use of evp.* 2 stars

Bob and Margaret: The Burglary *The couple get a little too greedy, themselves, after their old stuff gets stolen and they have to replace it with all new stuff.* 3 stars

The Prisoner: A, B, and C *Number 6 continues to be defiant, even in his dreams. Dreams that The Village is now determined to surveillance.* 3 stars

Mike Tyson Mysteries: Is Magic Real? *Mike is the only non skeptic concerning Mexican leprechauns.* 3 stars

Town of the Living Dead: Dong of the Dead *Two words... butt auditions.* 3 stars

Ken Russell's "Crimes of Passion" *It's sleazy Charles Bukowski meets Russ Meyer. Kathleen Turner is a Gloria Steinem behind a glory hole. Anthony Perkins is like a Jerry Falwell who jerks off to crime scene photos of the Black Dahlia. And John Laughlin is Tim 'The Tool Man' Taylor who can't get his jackhammer plugged into a hot electrical outlet.* 3 stars

Hill Street Blues: Can World War 3 Be An Attitude? *"You're okay. I'm okay. We're okay. Okay?"* 3 stars

Max Headroom: Security Systems *A way ahead of its time investigative look at security organizations (*cough* the N.S.A. *cough*) and how complete access to so much information, personal and otherwise, can only lead to that kind of knowledge being abusively used.* 3 stars

South Park: Cock Magic *Magic the Gathering greater than girls volleyball.* 3 stars

American Horror Story -Freakshow- "Bloodbath" *From the head to the legs. From the body to the mind.* 2 stars

Monstervision with Joe Bob Briggs: "The Time Machine" 1960 *Joe Bob and Rusty the mail girl demonstrate worm hole theory using a dirty bedsheet and a bowling ball. Meanwhile, Rod Taylor zips from turn of the 20th century England to thousands of years in the future where angelic, naive youth live in a garden of eden paradise as cattle for cavern dwelling commie cannibals.* 3 stars

Farscape: Til the Blood Runs Clear *Being the 'big dog' with a pair of Beavis & Butthead moron bloodhound bounty hunters, and getting ripped off at a spacecraft repair shop ran by a Roseanne type.* 3 stars

Thundarr, the Barbarian: Wizard Wars *The cybernetic oversized head of a warlock Fred Flinstone uses hypnotized sandpeople as slaves to lay siege on another magician's desert stronghold.* 3 stars

Tosh.0 -Who Shot Black Santa? -2014 *The greatest Christmas present is hot cocoa served with love.* 2 1/2 stars

SyFy presents "End of the World" 2014 *Generic doomsday movie junkies, who work at a videostore, must break a scientist (Brad Dourif) out of the nuthouse so that he can help them save the world from being destroyed by a heliosphere.* 1 1/2 stars for aesthetics and special fx 2 stars for plot and characters and 2 1/2 stars for oddly humorous moments like hicks with guns getting in the way of nerds that are mankind's only hope, and randomly timed deaths

Tru Tv presents: World's Smartest Inventions 11 *Using robots for end of life care. No shame in hanging from a tree, on a hiking trail, and pooping, or standing on a sidewalk and pissing out the bottom of pant legs using a tube. Or having a doctor recommend to "ice the balls" in order to conceive, so a guy runs out and invents chilled underwear.* 2 1/2 stars

Everything is Terrible --Christmas Bonus-- 2012 --------------------------

*Snowdogs vs. Chillydogs: They're basically the same movie, give or take a few minor differences.* 2 1/2 stars

*Hanukkah Homeboy: "Don't noodge me."* 2 1/2 stars

*Celebrity Guide to X-Mas: Ed Begley Jr. can't relax his environmental beliefs in order to not ruin Christmas.* 2 1/2 stars

*Dr. Christmas: Artificial tree tips for a superficial Christmas.* 2 1/2 stars

*Gerbert Christmas Wish: A muppet's melancholy holiday.* 2 1/2 stars

*Holiday Showtime: Branson, Missouri is holiday purgatory.* 3 stars

*Jingle Cats: Make a joyful noise unto the Lord.* 3 stars

*Lawrence Welk Holiday Song: From now on our troubles will be miles awayayayaya.* 2 stars

*Natural Professional Tree: Step back and check for a natural appearance.* 2 stars

*Visit with Santa: Santa Q & A with dumb kids.* 3 stars

*Brent the Christmas Bear: Marvin Gaye gaiety.* 3 stars

*Glitter n Gold: A plea for puppet peace and relationship harmony.* 3 stars

*Kathy Lee Hip Hop: Horrid.* 1 star

*2 Minute Parental Guidance: Deck the halls and shake dat ass.* 3 stars

*Reggae Deck the Halls: Farmyard follalollalah.* 2 1/2 stars

*Santa with Muscles: Scrooge Ed Begley Jr. wants to close down the orphanage and exploit the kids as elf miners, but not if amnesiac, department store Santa Hulk Hogan has anything to say about it.* 2 1/2 stars

*X-Mas Nightmare 2012: Santa can't be asked to do the impossible, like alleviating the cynicism that comes with adulthood.* 2 1/2 stars

*Fuck Christmas: A humble shoemaker has had it up to here with the holidays, in this heartwarming tale.* 3 stars

*Chipper's X-Mas Adventure: A chipmunk goes crazy when his treehome is chopped down by joyous honkys.* 3 stars

*E.T. Porno: Smell E.T.'s finger.* 2 1/2 stars

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Freddy's Nightmares: The Bride Wore Red *A groom's cold feet get raked over hot coals. Also, rappin' Freddy.* 2 stars *For the bride with daddy issues, divorce is a fate worse than death.* 3 stars

Tales from the Crypt: The Thing from the Grave *A lesson about not getting in between a no-nonsense, jealous boyfriend with a short-fuse (Miguel Ferrer) and his prized piece of cooze (Teri Garr). That is unless one has a charm necklace that can bring a vengeful corpse back from its shallow grave.* 3 stars

"Mirror Mirror" -1991- *A shy ugly duckling begins to flower when she embraces her dark reflection.* 3 stars

American Horror Story -Asylum- "I Am Anne Frank" *Auschwitz. Axe murder. Aversion therapy. Amputee monstrosity. Acceptance of guilt. Absentee motherhood. Alcoholic relapse. Alien abduction. Alma's alive!* 3 stars

Lars Von Trier's "Melancholia" *3 stars for gorgeously moody photography and score. 2 1/2 stars for symbolism (melancholia is here to stay). 2 stars for rogue planet collision apocalypse scenario. 1 1/2 stars for insufferable characters (mopey rich women). 1 star for pretentiousness 1/2 a star for snail pacing (2 hours felt like 5 hours). zero stars for jerky handheld camerwork

Gargoyles: Enter MacBeth *Another MacBeth who likes to do things on his own turf, and yet again all because of a lady.* 3 stars

Game of Thrones: -season 3 -episode 5 *"The birds have scales and the fish take wing."* 3 stars

Paranormal State: -season 1 -episode 12 *A psychic can't get her stories straight when it comes to a former schoolhouse's spirits. Credit to the Penn State crew for seeing through her b.s.* 2 stars

The Outer Limits: The Voyage Home *On the first manned mission to mars, a space bug is snagged, and one giant step for mankind turns into a suicidal leap.* 2 1/2 stars

Scare Tactics: The Chef Cooks a Human --------------

*Safe installation turns out to be a safe cracking burglary.* 2 1/2 stars

*Rear Window scenario where peeping at a neighbor who is an escort loses its thrill when she stabs an abusive client and informs her big heavy pimp that there are witnesses to the crime.* 2 1/2 stars

*Finding a ring in the hamburger meat and a bloody, armless dude in the freezer.* 3 stars

*Parents meet their teenage son's new girlfriend and find out she's already pregnant, but only it's from an alien, not the teenage son.* 2 1/2 stars

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Russell Mulcahy's "The Shadow" -1994- *Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? Alec Baldwin knows.* between 2 and 2 1/2 stars

Swamp Thing: From Beyond the Grave *"See the ship, hear it speak from deep down in the hold." Lyrics from a song sang by Jim's dead grandma. Words directing Jim, and his mom, to granny's last will and testament, hidden, in the swamp, so that Arcane can't take possession of her property and pollute and further exploit it.* 2 1/2 stars

Stephen King's Kingdom Hospital: -season 1 -episode 4 *Dream perchance debenture.* 2 1/2 stars

"Slipstream" *A loveable scoundrel (Bill Paxton) steals away a messiah-like android, from a hardline bountyhunter (Mark Hammil), on a journey across a windswept wasteland in a post-cataclysm story filled with hot air balloons, small airplanes, and eccentric nomads.* 2 1/2 stars

Christmas with Rifftrax: Santa's Village of Madness / K. Gordan Murray shorts *Never has the mythology of Saint Nick been more mucked with.* 2 1/2 stars with riffing 1 star without

Jonny Quest: Werewolf of the Timberland *Gold smuggling lumberjacks in the French Canadian forest.* 3 stars

Bob and Margaret: Shopping *"Cheese of the week." The convenient inconvenience of supermarkets.* 3 stars

I'm Alan Partridge: Alan Wide Shut *"Hot floppy bread." Needless to say, Alan had the last laugh. Now, fuck off!.* 3 stars

True Life: I Want Respect For My Sect *A Juggalo bride's parents opt out of their daughter's Juggalo themed wedding. Pretentious vampires, in the pretentious Texas city of Austin, have a coming out party in order to gain new members and understanding. A cute 18 year old "furry" seems genuinely happy to have her parents acceptance at being able to attend her first convention.* 2 stars

Ghost Adventures: Dungeons & Demons *"Something just grabbed my ass!" The three bros travel to some of the world's most tainted holes.* 2 stars

Adventure Time: Holly Jolly Secrets *Deciphering the Ice King's weirdo home movies becomes a holiday tradition.* 2 stars

Farscape: Rhapsody in Blue *Madness is the mind's co-pilot.* between 2 and 2 1/2 stars

X Files: The Jersey Devil *Naked Neanderthals on the outskirts of Atlantic City.* 3 stars

12:01 Beyond: Kneel Before the Future ----------------------

*D.O.A. - Behind the Smile: Things are looking bright for election 2016.* 3 stars

*Commander Lobo trips and falls heading out to the wasteland.* 2 stars

*Ninja Force, the Mission: Bacon jitsu vs. cheese.* between 2 and 2 1/2 stars

*Silverball Heroes versus Video Invaders in Arcade Attack* 3 stars

*Lobo in the wasteland sponsored by...* 2 1/2 stars

*A vintage trailer for Terminal City Ricochet.* 3 stars

*-984- Prisoner of the Future: Detained to desolation.* 3 stars

*Lobo thirsts and pines in the wasteland.* 3 stars

*Intimate Secrets - Secrets that have to be told - 1 900 - adults only - $2.00 per minute* 3 stars

*iBraineater - Modern Man (music video)* 3 stars

*JacMac & RadBoy GO!: Wow, did Mike Judge rip this off?* 3 stars

*Commander Lobo finds ThunderDome covered in feces.* 3 stars

*Robotistory: A video history of robots in pop culture entertainment.* 2 1/2 stars

*Lobo wants to go back home to his bunker.* 2 stars

*Max Fleischer's Superman - The Mechanical Monsters* 3 stars

*Vintage 1990 Live Psychic Readings commercial that's in the style of the X-Files intro. Eerie nostalgia.* 3 stars

*Republic Pictures serial The Crimson Ghost - Chapter 2 - Thunderbolt: Death ray escape debacle.* 2 1/2 stars

*Tex Avery's Jerky Turkey: Skipped. already viewed and reviewed

*Lobo has a biohazard demise.* 2 stars

-------------------------------------------------------------

Tales from the Crypt: The Sacrifice *"Money, pussy, and bullshit." Also a few cussing parrots and a sleazy & kinky Michael Ironside.* 3 stars

"Howling 4, the Original Nightmare" *A novelist, with a vivid imagination, would rather chase the ghost of a nun, hangout with a lesbian ex-nun and search for clues to a legend of a werewolf church burning, and listen to howls on the wind in the night than have sex with her feathered-hair-do, five o'clock shadow bearded bohunk cheating husband.* 2 stars

American Horror Story -Freakshow- "Tupperware Party Massacre" *Avon culling. Chubby Chaser. Liquored lobster. Lingering Ethel. Privileged killer. Suicide letter. Shamelessly long pecker. Playing doctor. Tearjerker. Siamese threeway offer rejection. Jimmy sober and smitten. Framejob bloody mitten.* 2 1/2 to 3 stars

Friday the 13th, the series: The Great Montarro *Sarcophagus artifice.* 3 stars

"Dragonslayer" 1981 *Not the sorcerer that we want right now, but the sorcerer that we need. The lottery where the winner gets spit-roasted by Smaug has to be the absolute worst. There may have never been more themes of gender inequality, social-political injustice, and the transition between Paganism and Christianity ever before in a Sword & Sorcery flick.* 3 stars

Paranormal State: -season 1 -episode 13 *Cursed and mice infested piano for free on Craigslist.* 2 to 1 1/2 stars

Bob and Margaret: Trick or Treat *"the misery of eternal non-existence"* 2 1/2 stars

"Loose Shoes" -1980- ---------------------------------------------------

*The Howard Huge Story: "His hobby was watching planes fuck."* 3 stars

*Skateboarders From Hell: "Lock up your sons and daughters."* 3 stars

*The Invasion of the Penis Snatchers: "Coming at you in 3-D!"* 3 stars

*Three Chairs For Lefty: Bill Murray on death row.* 3 stars

*The Sneaker: Woody Allen parody.* 2 1/2 stars

*The Magic and Mystery of the Gobi* 3 stars

*Buddy Hackett on behalf of this nation's bed-wetters* 3 stars

*Don't forget organic chocolate covered beanettes.* 2 1/2 stars

*Ditch your kids at the matinee.* 2 1/2 stars

*The Shaggy Studio Chief plus the Calf Who Thought She Was A Chicken* 2 stars

*The Bad News Bares in Getting Laid* 3 stars

*A Visit With Ma and Pa: Ma and Pa take a talking pig to New York City* 3 stars

*The Birth of a Nation, parody* 2 1/2 stars

*The Kid and the Yid. Charlie the bum was a hebrew commie jew* 3 stars

*The Ballerina Is Dead in "Scuffed Shoes"* 2 1/2 stars

*Just a Run in the Sun: Cynical and funny war tragedy story.* 3 stars

*Fistful of Something: Sid Haig in a Spaghetti Western spoof.* 3 stars

*Welcome to Bacon County: Hicksploitation hilarity.* 3 stars

*That's Sexploitation! Under 18 must sneak in.* 3 stars

*The Return of the Pom Pom Boys: Sex comedy with a twist. This time it's the guys who are getting exploited.* 3 stars

*Billy Jerk Goes To Oz: Sticking up for the little man.* 3 stars

*Darktown After Dark: The first all black musical.* 3 stars

*Star (of David) Wars* 2 1/2 stars

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Scare Tactics: season 2 -episode 20 "Weirdo in the Haunted House" ----------

*Taking high school chemistry doesn't make one a chemist, especially evident when green goop, accidentally poured down the sink, by said non-chemist, comes gushing through the ceiling, doors, cracks, vents, and walls.* 3 stars

*Almost torched alive, in a van, by a psycho hitchhiker.* 3 stars

*Stripper audition interrupted by a jealous, meathead boyfriend who likes to throw guys out of windows.* 2 1/2 stars

*A closed down haunted house attraction, and former crime scene, has an uninvited guest who doesn't want to be disturbed.* 2 stars

--------------------------------------------------------------------

"Phantasm 4, Oblivion" *On the other side of morning.* 3 stars

Max Headroom: War *Network 23's poodle and pony show has the advertising bulls and bears instead hitching up to the war hysteria for profit media wagon.* 3 stars

The Outer Limits: The New Breed *Nanobots don't know when to stop. They turn a terminally ill man into a Frankenstein's monster of evolution.* 3 stars

Freddy's Nightmares: Do Dreams Bleed? *The lingering trauma of having witnessed a brutal slaying.* 2 1/2 stars *Intimate personal closeness with a possible deranged killer can play foul with the mind.* 2 stars

"The Blair Witch Project" *"We're still alive because we got cigarettes, and we're smoking." Edie Brickell and the New Bohemians have a Deliverance weekend where they get choked in the shallow waters before they get too deep. The grunge era Autumn setting, lost in the woods paranoia, and low fi minimalist creative use of limited fx (stick figures and bundles of sticks with bloody body parts along with the noises and the spooky house) make up for the film students arguing in the middle of nowhere with a shaking camera nonsense that takes place for more than half of the film.* between 2 and 2 1/2 stars

X Files: Shadows *Mulder: *whispering* psycho-kinetic-manipulation / Scully: *amused* You mean like Carrie at the prom? --- Turns out it was a Ghost versus some terrorists and a jerk boss. Also, a missed opportunity to have Patrick Swayze as a guest star on the X Files.* 2 1/2 stars

"Alice Sweet Alice" -1977- *Impolite middle class Catholic society, cruel aunts, spoiled siblings, flamboyantly slobbish perverts, snap to judgement child psychologists, and pinch faced old church women with religious hangups are all worse than slightly odd and so called out of control tweens. Also, it's a shame that Brooke Shields' name is at the top of the movie's poster. She's barely in it, and the other little girl along with the rest of the cast are the soul of the movie.* 3 stars

Mystery Science Theater 3000: Girls Town *Scat and slang.* between 2 & 2 1/2 stars with riffing, between 1 1/2 & 2 stars without

Joe Bob's Hollywood Saturday Night: To The Limit *"Anna Nicole Smith gives retired, Texas strippers a bad name." Joe Bob Briggs* between 1 and 1 1/2 stars for this heavy edited softcore stinker

Weird Science: She's Alive *"a scathing indictment of a braindead, sexist MTV generation" 3 stars

Are You Afraid of the Dark: The Tale of the Phantom Cab *The Midnight Society start out by having a pair of lost Hansel & Hansel brothers putting a hole in a barrel out in the Canadian forest with a reject teacher from Hogwarts.* 3 stars

American Gothic: A Tree Grows In Trinity *Let Heaven and nature sting.* 3 stars

The Tom Green Show on Canadian television circa 1996(?) *"Who's the champ -NOW- champ?" Tom strangely bothers teachers on strike, concert goers, drugists, mall shoppers, poor fishermen, and former bowling league champions. He also plays footsie with a dating service lady.* 2 stars

Kung Fu, the series: Pilot Episode *Sometimes one must cut off a finger in order to save a hand, and sometimes one must hang himself in order to get off. Inner strength incapacitates ignorance.* 3 stars

"Country Hooker" *In the tune of a CB radio listenin' truck drivin' country western croon, "Doin' what they damn well please..." That is until their demented Tennessee Ernie Ford -esque pimpdaddy finds out. There are some freaks in this flick, and I don't mean the tricks, it's the johns and the honky tonk patrons.* 2 1/2 stars

"Christmas Evil" aka "You Better Watch Out" *If it's not a Jolly Dream, it's not worth having.* 3 stars

Mystery Science Theater 3000: Village of the Giants *These days, kids are getting too big for their britches. Of course, I'm talking about a Mousketeer, Opie, the kid from The Rifleman, and Beau Bridges.* 3 stars with riffing or 2 stars without

Tales from the Crypt: For Cryin' Out Loud *A real high pitched squealer with a weasel, rock promoter whose clients like Iggy Pop and Donny Osmond get on his nerves, a seductress blackmailer Katey Sagal trying to reach in his pants to snatch half of a million smackers, and an angry voice of reason Sam Kinison screaming his tell tell heart out constantly.* between 2 and 2 1/2 stars

New World Pictures "Candy Stripe Nurses" 1974 *A socially conscious skin-flick with sophisticated modern women who are smarter than the bohunks they seduce, Gran Torino type bitter old men griping about the decline of their local neighborhoods, commentary on a flawed justice system for minorities, student athlete doping controversy, medical malpractice issuing of needless prescriptions scandal, sexually repressed and spoiled rockstar, seventees era streaking, existential conversations while flirting, and just enough hospital setting hanky panky.* 3 stars

American Horror Story --Coven-- "Bitchcraft" *The part where Darren walked in on Tabitha going down on Elvira while Melissa Joan Hart cut herself with a razor blade for attention and the cast of Designing Women boiled that poor black guy (Meshach Taylor) alive in a caldron... hocus whoa...cus* 2 1/2 stars

Doctor Who (fourth doctor) "Pyramid of Mars" *Imprisoned ancient gods are always showing up in the isolated British countryside and killing 3 or 4 old men in their plot to destroy the world. Thanks to the Doctor, nobody else in the world ever notices.* 2 1/2 stars

TMNT: Mazes & Mutants *A lonely live action roleplayer gasses the turtles so that he can play a game with them in the sewers.* 2 1/2 stars

He-Man & She-Ra, A Christmas Special *Horde Prime wishes to stop Orko and two adorable Earth children from bringing the gospel of Chris Cringle to Eternia. Special guests the Smurf Transformers, the Eternian Decepticons, the Little Mermaid, and Skeletor's heart grew 3 sizes that day.* 2 1/2 stars

Are You Afraid of the Dark: The Tale of the Pinball Wizard *Super-soaker, now that's playing with power. A compulsive free play gamer gets trapped in the mall, inside a pinball machine, with a princess in distress, and is Sixpence None the Richer for it.* between 2 and 2 1/2 stars

Swamp Thing: The Shipment *Arcane corrupts the local law enforcement into mutant trafficking and the crooked Sheriff helps kidnap Jim, fake Jim's death, and ship Jim off to South America. We finally get to see Swamp Thing show some physical muscle in a brawl with a stunt man and it's revealed what had to be painfully obvious all along, that the town had to have a corrupt police force in order for Arcane to be doing so many vile things without it coming to legal light.* 3 stars

"Neon City" 1991 *A disgruntled, former lawman (Michael Ironside) begrudgingly runs protection for a RV stagecoach of ragtag wayfarers across the cursed earth.* 2 1/2 stars

The Outer Limits: The Message *Binary E.T. S.O.S. for a deaf woman with a defective ear implant and new mother depression along with voices in her head making the domestic partner daddy think she's schizoid because she runs off with a looney janitor / UFO believer.* 3 stars

Monstervision with Joe Bob Briggs: Warlock the Armageddon *Runes and Druids. Smalltown fear and hatred of devil worship. Two young should destined to be lovers who are kept apart by ignorance and circumstance. Parents of the picturesque smalltown trying to protect a dark secret. Some horribly dated CGI (forgivable). Nice and twistedly gruesome gore fx to make up for the bad CGI. A charismatic villain (Julian Sands) who is just as good as Marvel's Loki (Tom Hiddleston).* 2 1/2 stars

Paranormal State: season 1 -episode 14 *In a house that was once a part of the underground railroad, there's a clash of values between a modern inter-racial family and a strict religious spirit of a lady who was an abolitionist.* 2 stars

"Home for the Holidays" 1972 *"There's nothing more chilling than a warm family gathering." An And Then There Were None style story at a stormy, secluded setting where the more stable sibling is the most sinister.* between 2 1/2 and 3 stars

--- Freddy's Nightmares: The End of the World

*Hazy earliest memories are repressed because they involve accidentally killing mommy and crippling a childhood friend, but a girl discovers she can dream things differently and it will fix the present. But unfortunately, there's a butterfly effect.* 2 1/2 stars

*The same girl, from before, is now having prophetic dreams of a nuclear warhead going off on U.S. soil. The C.I.A. is extra curious as to how she got launch codes, and once they figure out she's not fooling or getting tipped off from the inside, well they want to exploit her in their cold war pursuits, while she just wants to make sure that a disturbed sleepwalking missile defense employee doesn't make his Christmas nightmares of melting his son's favorite cartoon character Gumby's face off along with his own son's innocent face as well come true.* 3 stars

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"Class of 1984" *An irresponsible idiot subjects his pregnant wife to a brutal gang rape and torture all because he wants to be an inspirational music educator at one of those imaginary innercity hell highschools where he can't help but feud with the worst gang in a school that has its disciplinary hands tied with the usual red tape bullshit. This was way before zero tolerance. When teach has to turn vigilante just to earn 30k a year, a mild mannered biology professor (Roddy McDowall) has to hold a gun on his pupils just to get their focus on his lessons, and a timid tattle tell (Michael J. Fox) winds up shanked in the liver, just to name a few things, there might be good reason to move back to a smalltown or the suburbs and spare the rod.* 3 stars

Shaw Brothers: Fists of the White Lotus *White Lotus can't be touched because he fights hammer style. A lesson about a gentle approach and pinpointing the right pulse.* 3 stars

Scare Tactics: season 2 episode 22 "Mom's Crazy" -------------

*Little grey men nick around a ranch house near area 51.* between 1 1/2 and 2 stars

*Falling into a wanted by the government hacker's booby trap.* 2 1/2 stars

*Having a nice evening with a psycho park ranger.* 2 1/2 stars

*Mommie dearest keeps her abducted little girl in a cage.* 3 stars

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"Ultra Flesh" 1980 *Sugar (cocaine?) is making the world's men impotent and the President of the United States pays a visit to a third world dictator (Jamie Gillis) whose people seem to have no problem snorting and screwing. Secretly, however, the dictator is a Mr. Freeze type alien who uses his dwarf henchmen to plot against the earth women. An intergalactic group of horny aliens send down Ultra Flesh, a vixen from Venus, to shoot laser beams out of her poonanny and help earth propagate again.* 3 stars

The Prisoner: Free For All *Who are you voting for? Which puppet candidate will it be? "You wouldn't deny the rite of proper procedure?"* 3 stars

New World Pictures presents Larry Cohen's "God Told Me To" --1976-- *Urban upheaval caused by a lot of gristle in the melting pot. The doggedly determined forced by personal convictions that are of soul tearing origins. The easily swayed are proned to random acts of violence. The new age fortunate are full of fallacy with their fancy notions. And the pitiful and holy are just as much victims as they inadvertently victimize others in their own inability to face up to the burden of consequences that come with cruel circumstance.* 3 stars

X Files: Ghost in the Machine *Interfacing Promethean resistively. The machine is dead. Long live the machine.* 2 1/2 stars

"Silent Night, Bloody Night" --1972-- *A season of violence come to bare its withered, ugly fruit. The sepia soaked orgy of murder by the mental patients along with the undertones of incest, then father assuming the identity of his dead daughter, whom he fathered a child with, is all rather haunting/disturbing.* close to 3 stars

Paranormal State: season 1 -episode 15 *The spirit of a war veteran still haunts the barn where he committed suicide after a alzheimer's diagnosis. So, the team brings in an army honor guard to have a memorial service where a piece of his skull was buried, by his wife, on the property. Also, a little boy, from before the middle of the 20th century, who died of the croop, on the property, is sensed as just a mischevious spirit by medium Chip Coffey.* 2 1/2 stars

American Horror Story --Murder House-- "Open House" *Squint and bite down. There will be no sale. These spirits won't be built over, smothered out, skull fucked, love requited, or made to polish their own silver again.* 2 1/2 stars

Monstervision with Joe Bob Briggs: Twilight Zone the movie *John Landis does okay thanks to the tragically killed Vic Morrow . Spielberg can only do schmaltzy Spielberg. Joe Dante puts some thrilling touches on a classic. Lithgow trumps Shatner in the freakout department, but none of these outings are as good as Rod Serling and the original.* 2 1/2 stars

Everything is Terrible --Holiday Special-- -2012- *"He sees you eat your pizza. He sees you eat your pizza."* 3 stars

Tales from the Crypt: Four-Sided Triangle *The sour couple from the Grant Wood American Gothic painting think they can hold captive a farmgirl to do all their chores. And Patricia Arquette is sure purty enough to make the crops grow. But the farmer's horny ignorance coupled with his wife's jealous mean streak are no match for the cow milking maiden's cleverness.* 3 stars

The Tom Green Show on Canadian television circa the late 1990s *Somewhere between Andy Kaufman and the geek who bites the heads off chickens at the county fair.* close to 2 1/2 stars

William Peter Blatty's "The Ninth Configuration" --1980-- *"Consider the lillies of the field."* 3 stars

Hill Street Blues: Double Jeopardy *"You figure that you're owed something for all the love and compassion that you carry in you..." A liberal cop comes face to face with the harsh reflection of reality in an oily mudpuddle on the other side of the rainbow. One of many storyline elements including Dan Hedaya as a dirty cop who turns out surprisingly to be easily deeply sympathetic for.* 3 stars

Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Dead Talk Back *A model murdered by crossbow. Was it the amateur necromancer, the hip richboy, the confrontational preacher, the quiet abuser, the German pervert, or the nervous pornographer? If the dead girl can't tell us, we'll never know. Detective work depends on kooky science and no forensic nonsense.* 2 stars with riffing 1 star without

"The Conjuring" --2013-- *It's surprising to learn that famed demonologists The Warrens were actually selfless truthseekers and not the scam artists they were proven to be.* close to 3 stars

Jonny Quest: The Dreadful Doll *Witchdoctor Beavis working for a mercenary Fred Flintstone.* 2 1/2 stars

"Phase IV" --1974-- *The perceived terror of a terrrestrial advancement not our own.* 3 stars

The Outer Limits: I Robot *What is the value of conceived worth? Adam Link, the first sentient robot, has an amount of quality, as relating to empathy, greater than most humans.* 3 stars

South Park: #Rehash *Commentary and clit rubbing, both by obnoxious social media celebrities, is the entertainment content of the future.* 3 stars

South Park: #Happy Holograms *The most ignorant Christas special ever is now trending.* 3 stars

Swamp Thing: Birth Marks *Kari Wuhrer joins the cast as a test tube teen, and Jim's older brother -Will- becomes the central character as ST's link to the human world.* 2 1/2 stars

"Rewind This" --2013-- *"Don't let your mom tell you that you can't make a monster movie." *quoting* a door to door monster movie salesman and the self proclaimed Ed Wood of the 21st century. That pretty much sums up the 30 plus year culture, that became a cult, of video.* 3 stars

"Forced Entry" --1974-- *One of the first movies to deal with post traumatic stress disorder also happens to be a gritty 1970s NYC serial killer study mixed with a sleazy 42nd street rough porno. This is when skin flicks tried to be film art and this one is bold enough to juxtapose a home invasion sicko's forced oral money shot with scenes of burning Vietnamese villages and crying villagers.* either zero stars or 2 1/2 stars

David Cronenberg's "Dead Ringers" *One never has to feel alone what with shared life experiences, sexual opponents, the psychic connection between siblings, or the prescribed lifeline of addiction.* 3 stars

Weird Science: Universal Remote *Skipping through the boring parts of life just to hurry up and get to second base with girls.* between 2 and 2 1/2 stars

Tim & Eric -Awesome Show- Great Job! ---Chrimbus Special--- -2010- *"The Winter Man wants you to eat a pound of hair per year."* close to 2 1/2 stars

Bob & Margaret: The Holiday *Hijacked hip hip hooray.* 3 stars

Thundarr the Barbarian: Battle of the Barbarians *Big barbarians in little Beijing.* 3 stars

Game of Thrones: season 3 -episode 6 *There's more than one way to kindle a fire, skin a rabbit, marry into an inbred family, serve a deity, shoot arrows, inflict torture, or climb an icy face of a wall.* 3 stars

Twin Peaks: Beyond Life and Death *Wow, Bob, Wow!* 3 stars

The Tom Green Show -Rogers Community TV- The Comedy Network --1998(?)-- *Tom Green seemed funny when I was around sixteen, now, sixteen years later, he seems more like a shithead.* either zero stars or 2 stars

Are You Afraid of the Dark: The Tale of the Nightly Neighbors *The people who just moved in next door are nocturnal freaks with fridges full of blood in their basement. A Nickelodeon version of Fright Night.* 2 stars

Friday the 13th, the series: Doctor Jack *The key to a disgraced surgeon's miracle surgeries is a scalpel that hungers for shadowy street murders.* 3 stars

Farscape: The Flax *Scavenging, self preservation, strategic chessgames, sweet romance, and sacrifice all at the flypaper snare strip in the pirate portion of the universe.* 3 stars

Max Headroom: The Blanks *The Blanks (anonymous), for highly justified political reasons of freeing unjustly imprisoned Blanks, hack into and threatened to shut down a technology dependent society ran by corrupt corporations and politicians.* 3 stars

X Files: Ice *Who goes there? Another tense, paranoid version of the classic sci fi story involving a parasitic alien in an arctic setting.* 3 stars

Stephen King's Kingdom Hospital: season 1 -episode 5 *Memorial shrine to regretful medical malpractice.* 3 stars

American Horror Story: Asylum --Origins of Monstrosity-- *Skin to skin. A mother's touch.* 3 stars --Dark Cousin-- *Summon the angel of death.* 3 stars --Unholy Night-- *Satan frees Santa from solitary.* 3 stars

Paranormal State: season 1 -episode 16 *A strange, and humorously titled, ghost communication device called "Frank's Box" is used to speak to spirits trapped by a demon inside an insane asylum with a dark history and many unmarked graves on its grounds.* between 2 1/2 and 3 stars

"The Dark Secret of Harvest Home" *"What men may never know and what women may never tell." Townies from NYC accidentally take a wrong turn across a picturesque covered bridge into a frozen in colonial times New England village where the townfolk have strange customs involving corn and keeping to the old ways. The more the inquisitive sketch artist husband digs into the secrets surrounding a strange death, the more the mother and daughter get caught up in the cult nature of the many festivals. It turns out to be a fertility cult where the new blood wife is mounted and humped in front of the cuckold hubbie by a bohunk who is then beheaded. As tradition, the husband's eyes are then scratched out by the white robed pagan women for having witnessed the sacred act. See, this is why I fully throw my hat behind the patriarchy and not mother earth religions.* 3 stars

"Hot Summer in the City" ---sexploitation--- --1976-- *While a soundtrack of songs like AM radio gold classic "Everlasting Love" played as militant black power jive bruthas took turns on a scared Alice in Wonderland captive piece of "white pussy" and the group's cockeyed idiot gets brow beaten and bitch slapped for getting his "finger stuck in her asshole," I realized why this movie is self hating, w.a.s.p. hating, obvious subversive, ugly mongoloid looking Quentin Tarantino's favorite dirty movie.* either zero stars or close to 2 1/2 stars

American Horror Story --Coven-- "Boy Parts" *Extra piece of fried chicken. Frankenstein boyfriend. Ghetto hair extensions. 180 year old racist. Poisoned buckwheat. Alligator dung. Snake eggs. Stevie Nicks. Deep fried revenge. Poaching game. Minotaur Mandingo. Woman on top.* between 2 1/2 & 3 stars

King of the Nerds: Imaginary Realms *Cosplay challenge. The only cosplay that ever interested me was the scene from Revenge of the Nerds where there's spacesuit deception in order to get nookie from a cheerleader inside a moonwalk attraction at the fair.* 2 stars

Kung Fu, the series: King of the Mountain *Confrontation is not courageous, but it is indeed cool when it is combat, on the side of a cliff, between David Carradine and a cowboy bounty hunter John Saxon.* 3 stars

American Gothic: Eye of the Beholder *Faust Gump* 3 stars

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isaacscrawford · 7 years

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Should McCain fight or fold?

ANISH KOKA, MD

There are 80,000 new cases of primary brain tumors diagnosed every year in the United States. About 26,000 of these cases are of the malignant variety – and John McCain unfortunately joined their ranks last week. In cancer, fate is defined by cell type, and the adage is of particular relevance here.

Cancer is akin to a mutiny arising within the body, formed of regular every day cells that have forgotten the purpose they were born with. In the case of brain tumors, the mutinous cell frequently happens to not be the brain cell, but rather the lowly astrocyte that normally forms a matrix of support for brain cells. Tumors made up of astrocytes are called astrocytomas. Classification schemes for brain tumors in the era of molecular subtypes has grown enormously complex, but a helpful framework is provided by the appearance of these tumors under a microscope. Grade 1 tumors are indolent, with little invasive capacity, while Grade 4 tumors are highly invasive, marked under the microscope as dense, sheets of cells that can even be seen to grow their own blood supply. Senator McCain has a grade 4 astrocytoma, otherwise known a a glioblastoma (GBM) – the worst kind. Social media from all sides of the political spectrum lit up with well wishes – with most casting the disease as something to be defeated.

John McCain is an American hero & one of the bravest fighters I've ever known. Cancer doesn't know what it's up against. Give it hell, John.

— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) July 20, 2017

Others within the medical community took a different take.

GBM sucks & will defeat McCain. "Get Well Soon" is misguided to point of being insensitive.This is where 'thoughts and prayers' makes sense.

— Mehreen (@GrrlMD) July 20, 2017

Mehreen is right. GBM is a deadly disease, the 5-year survival rate for patients with GBMs is <3%. The majority of GBM patients live less than a year. Yet, the medical community of neurosurgeons and oncologists that treat these tumors go to battle with these tumors. Why?

I asked a very busy neurosurgeon this same question. I asked him what he told patients. He told me that he never mentions the word cure. There is no cure. The goal is to manage the disease and buy more time.

Median survival for GBM is measured in weeks, not years. Do nothing, and expect 14 weeks; combining surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy may give you 45 weeks.

What we describe is median survival, of course, and as Stephen J Gould eloquently put in his diatribe against statistics in cancer – the median is hardly the message. The oncologist you want is the one who doesn’t tell you about median survival when breaking the news to you of your cancer – she implicitly understands each GBM has a different path. Here are three such paths.

Case 1.

Margie is 35 year old redhead who hails from Wildwood, New Jersey, where she helps her parents run a boardwalk diner. I first met her 7 years ago after she had presented with a seizure. In this case the seizure was precipitated by a GBM. A resection of the tumor followed – the postoperative course was complicated by more seizures, and an arrhythmia that brought me into her orbit. I’m a cardiologist so I didn’t see her again until she returned 7 years later with a surgical wound infection – but with no evidence of cancer recurrence.

Case 2.

Mr. Walker was a 74 year old man with a very sick heart when he presented with difficulty speaking. A retired executive who was used to being loquacious, he had survived a heart attack with the help of a stent a decade prior, but had been left with disease in little vessels that gave him occasional angina. Otherwise it allowed him to shuttle between his house and his daughter’s house to enjoy his grandchildren. A granddaughter had a wedding in a few months he was hoping to attend. The question to me related to his cardiac risk of surgery. Was there anything that could be done? He was on anti-platelet blood thinners that would have to be stopped to cut into the brain. Would that be ok? I discussed the case with everyone – his eldest son was an orthopedic surgeon, and his daughter was a medical malpractice attorney. I said nothing that they didn’t already know. He was high risk. I quoted a 10% risk of a heart attack or death with the procedure. Mr. Walker wanted to proceed with the proviso that no heroic measures should be undertaken in the case of a complication- in the event of a cardiac arrest, he did not want to be resuscitated.

Five days later, I received a call from the neurointensive care unit. Mr. Walker had been out of surgery for an hour, and his heart rate was low. I was driving to another hospital, but I asked to be sent an electrocardiogram. What I saw made me turn the car around. He was having a heart attack. The stent he had placed some years ago had occluded. He was having mild chest pain and looked uncomfortable. Taking him for an urgent cardiac intervention was out of the question. This would require not one but four potent blood thinners – almost certain disaster in a man hours removed from major brain surgery. Of even more immediate concern was his heart rate. It was dipping dangerously low – he had developed heart block – a condition where the upper chambers of the heart don’t communicate with the lower chambers. This disconnect is at times reversible, but other times not. As his block worsened, there were seconds that would pass with no heart beat at all. With his daughter at his bedside, I tried to explain what was happening, as I tried to figure out what to do. After a particularly long pause in his heart rate when he passed out, he made it easy – he told me – “I’m not ready to die today”. We placed him on a breathing machine. It took me twenty minutes to thread a wire hooked up to an external pacing box into his heart. As the wire passed through the upper chambers of his heart, it precipitated a rapid arrhythmia. Diseased conduction tissue conducts even slower when asked to work harder, and the fast impulses from the upper chambers caused a heart rate too slow to effectively perfuse his brain. He coded. The wire in his heart wasn’t going where it needed to, and I asked the team to start chest compressions. A long minute later, wire situated, rhythm restored, I walked out to talk to his daughter who had been observing the events outside. She wasn’t happy. She demanded to know what I was doing. I explained the best I could – he was completely dependent on his pacemaker, intubated and sedated. I didn’t think he had suffered any significant brain damage from the recent events, but I wasn’t sure how his heart would do as his heart attack completed. We decided to see how he did overnight and make a decision in the morning.

The next morning I walked into a cheerful Mr. Walker eating scrambled eggs, wire still in place, still pacing him. What else was there to do? I explained to Mr. Walker that without his pacemaker he would die – the next day the electrophysiology team placed a permanent pacemaker, and weeks later, a still cheerful Mr. Walker walked into my office with his daughter.

He made his granddaughter’s wedding, but six months later his brain tumor recurred. He died quietly at home a week later.

Case 3

Frank was a large burly 64 year old, accompanied by his wife, wearing a faded Harley Davidson jean jacket adorned with a a bald eagle and an American flag. He was another man with a cardiac stent heading into surgery for a GBM. As happens frequently, he asked me as I started to finish up with him if I knew the surgeon and anything about the surgery. As I shook his hand, I assured him he was in good hands with the surgical team. He held my hand a little longer and told me that he wanted the best treatment, but he didn’t “want to be hooked up to no machines if there was no hope”. His resection was uneventful, but a week later he returned to the hospital. His wife kept a constant vigil as his clinical state worsened. He had not responded to any commands in days, and a ventilator was breathing for him. The surgeons and the intensivists told me that his wife would not let him go and wanted everything possible done. But there was nothing to do. I couldn’t understand it. His wife had witnessed our conversation. I don’t ordinarily discuss goals of care in patients with non cardiac diagnoses. But I felt compelled to advocate for Frank. I gently reminded his wife of our conversation in the office. She remembered. An awkward silence followed, and I slipped up. I asked her how she could do this. I regretted the words the moment they left my mouth. Her eyes took up the flat look of someone being attacked. I clumsily made my exit, and heard later of her displeasure with my conversation. I never saw Frank again. He died a week later, 4 weeks after I shook his hand in my office.

The population health brigade would have us ignore the messages each patient has to give us. But there is so much here that each patient taught me. Margie reminded me that median survival isn’t destiny. Mr. Walker made me appreciate the fog of decision- making in the terminally ill patient. It is hard to let go of life. Mr. Walker wanted to live on that day. Much of the dollars spent on health care in America are decried as wasteful and I imagine that on paper the dollars spent in the last months of Mr. Walker’s life exemplify waste to some. Yet, you’ll understand how some may see not defeat, but victory in the image of a proud grandfather at his granddaughter’s wedding. Frank’s story is a tough reminder of what I see all too frequently in a world where patient and family autonomy is sacrosanct – moribund patients kept alive by families that can’t let go. There is a fundamental tension between paternalism and autonomy – go to far in either direction and you end up lost.

There is something insidious about those who take issue with terms like battling, fighting and hope in these patients. There is a deeply nihilistic message that lies at the core. You are going to lose – so why fight? Why endure brain surgery, or the radiation or chemotherapy to come? The barbarians at the city gates in healthcare are those who believe the primary role for doctors in this unlucky group of patients is to ferry patients gently into that good night. Baloney. Some patients will choose to fight because they want the opportunity to make that next wedding, others will choose to go home. These are hard decisions best left to the patients and their physicians. You’ll excuse me if I don’t begrudge those wishing the Senator well in what ever path he chooses. Give ’em hell, Senator.

Anish Koka is a cardiologist in Philadelphia. Follow him on twitter @anish_koka

Article source:The Health Care Blog

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creativelitlover · 7 years

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Hi readers, hope your having a super awesome day! I have enjoyed OBSESSING over The Ending Series so much, and who’d of thought just a little tag in a fan art piece, by yours truly, started the on going blog posts and art work. Not forgetting how amazing team Lindsey has been…. hopefully I didn’t get on their nerves to much with the constant tags 😊 I have loved every second of it, and The Ending Series will always have a place in my heart and on my TOP shelf!

I was invited to join a VIP reader group, and I was over the moon! Lindsey Pogue has been great, we have spoken over social media which I then asked if I could do a feature Author Interview for my blog and they said yes!!

I seriously can’t get enough of this series!!! ❤️❤️❤️❤️ Anyway that’s enough about me let’s meet the Authors to this AMAZING series……

The Ending Series- Question time 😉

1. I’m an emotional wreck when reading and quite often find my eyes blurring with stray tears….the ending series got me good! Real good!! What was the first book that made you cry?

LP: I honestly can’t remember the first book that made me cry, but I can tell you that I cry a lot. I even cry while I’m writing gut-wrenching parts of a story or while I’m watching sappy commercials. When I read Me Before You, I got teary-eyed, but when I watched the movie, knowing what would happen, I bawled my eyes out.

LF: It’s so amazing when we hear that our books create a strong emotional reaction in readers, especially because we had strong emotional connections to the characters as we were writing their stories. I usually have a moment or two during each project where I tear up during the first draft phase, and it’s no different for me when I’m reading other people’s books. The last one to make me cry was the beta version of Sarah Lyons Fleming’s Peripeteia, but the first book to make me cry…hmmmm. I’m certain that plenty of books made me cry when I was younger, but the first book I can vividly remember crying while reading was Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. I was in tenth grade, I think, and I was outright ugly crying during that scene in the Department of Mysteries when Sirius, well, you know…

2. I can feel rather overwhelmed when my creativity is flowing and sometimes writing really does exhaust me, so I’d love to know… Does writing energise you or exhaust you?

LP: I think it depends on where I’m at in the writing process. If I have a deadline, it’s exhausting because I can’t let my mind rest. If I’m chilling and flowing with a glass of bubbles, lovin’ life, it’s energizing and I don’t want to stop.

LF: Both! I definitely reach a done point during days when I’m writing for the full day, and if I’ve been pushing out books back-to-back, I generally need to take a loooong break (think, vacation) after the second or third book. That being said, during each project, I seem to reach a point where the story is snowballing, and I can’t seem to get it out quickly enough. It’s all I can think about. It’s in my dreams. I don’t want to watch or read anything. I don’t want to see people. I become obsessed with the story, and that feeling is intoxicating.

3. I personally love series! Particularly The Ending Series hehe, and love delving deep into the characters lives…. Do you prefer to read series or stand-alone? And why? LP: Generally, I like a good series. I feel like you can get to know characters so much more and it’s satisfying to be able to hold on to them a bit longer than a standalone allows (Pride and Prejudice, for example). BUT, I read standalones just as much and bear them no ill-will. Haha.

LF: I have a strong preference for series, especially long series. I love it when the characters start to feel like real people to me, and that usually doesn’t happen after just a single book—at least, not for me.

4. We all know mine! 😉 Do you have a favourite book/series? LP: I wish I read more for pleasure these days, but I haven’t been reading as much as I used to. I’m lucky if I get in my book club book in a month (sad, I know). I do a lot of beta reading, as well, so I stumble across some amazing series that way. I can tell you that I used to be obsessed with J.R. Ward’s Blackdagger Brotherhood and I nearly peed my pants with glee when Blay and Quinn got their own book. Sigh.

LF: My all-time favorite series is Kim Harrison’s Hollows series, starting off with Dead Witch Walking, but I have many other near-favorites ranging from Urban to Epic Fantasy to Paranormal or Time Travel Romance to Dystopian and beyond.

5. I’d love to know…. Do you prefer to read or write romance?

LP: I enjoy writing it, but I LOVE reading it more, I think. It’s less stressful and I can sit back and enjoy the ride. J

LF: Um…both? I love the surprise of reading stories with a strong romantic plot or subplot, but I have to admit that writing the romantic subplot is one of my favorite parts of each project. And there’s nothing better than a slow-burn, long build-up romance, which is what I’ve got going on in my Urban Fantasy series, the Kat Dubois Chronicles. I’m several books in, and things are finally starting to happen with the main character and her intended love interest. This next book’s going to be pretty fun to write… 😉

6. I’m writing my first novel and I’m not looking forward to editing it…. Did you edit a lot from The Ending series? If so, was it hard to take parts out of your beloved story? LP: We edited After The Ending SO much it’s crazy. We changed the tense, we took out chapters and scenes and emails—added text messages…the list goes on. Revising has good and bad connotations for me. It’s daunting in that you need to be able to admit that your first draft was crap. That’s just the way it works. But when you revise it, you get to focus on making it better instead of just getting it down on paper. You get to add in the fun details and focus on the characters more than the story, if that makes sense. It does free you mind a bit to know you will be coming back to each word (many times), so writing, “his eyes looked like (something)” helps you keep going when you’re flowing and you can fill in the particulars later J

LF: I love editing and revising! I think that embracing that phase has really helped to free up my imagination during the outlining and first draft writing phases of each project, to the degree that those first drafts end up being better and requiring less revising. It’s a win-win! But yes, for the first couple books, it was hard to cut parts, but we did. We cut entire scenes, even resequencing one of the books altogether. But in the end, that book is so much better than it was originally, and when I read it, I can’t even remember what we wrote originally. For me, the cutting of lines, scenes, and even entire characters has gotten much easier with each consecutive project, but it wasn’t easy, at first.

7. I’ve yet to come up with an actual way to choose characters names…. But how did you select names for your characters from The Ending series? LP: Because we started off writing a blog, we didn’t think about names the way he should have (Camille, Clara, Cece, Cam). We got a lot of flack for not switching them up enough and making it confusing for readers. Now, names are SO important to me. In my Saratoga Falls Love Story, Nothing But Trouble, I had THE perfect name in my head for Colton Hayes’ character—that was his identity. But when beta readers got ahold of the manuscript, there was concern because of an actor named Colton Haynes and that was distracting them while reading. I had to change my Colton’s last name and it was SO hard to do.

LF: Funny you should ask that! I think our method (or lack there of) for choosing character names early on in the creation of The Ending Series is one of the things we would do differently, if given the chance (Jason, Jake, Jack…). Now, I make sure that few, if any, names start with the same first letter, and pay attention to (and try to avoid) names that rhyme, as well.

8. What was the hardest scene to write? LP: Hmmm…shootout scenes are always difficult for me—Into The Fire, in the center of town, outside the Colony, and in Before The Dawn with the final showdown, if you know what I mean. It’s often hard for me to wrap my head around “strategic” ways to kill people, fight each other, etc.

LF: Those final few scenes in the last book of The Ending Series were pretty tough. We wanted to make sure we delivered on everything we’d promised throughout the series, and we ended up heavily revising the ending—cutting one scene entirely and bulking up another quite a bit. I’m super happy with how it all wrapped up, but it wasn’t easy getting there. In another series, I had a scene where I literally wrote my character into a bathroom, trapping her in there with no way out. It took me a week or two to figure my way out of that one, and now I think it’s one of the most memorable scenes in that book.

9. Did you have to set yourself writing goals? Is that the best way to get things finished…. as I struggle to juggle writing and family life. LP: Yes. My entire day is planned around writing. I write for two(+) hours in the morning, then go to my day job. On my full writing days, I try to write for at least half the day and use the second half for the marketing and the business side of it (there’s A LOT to do all the time). If I’m on a deadline, I’ll set word counts per day or week.

LF: I write first thing in the morning, Monday through Friday. No social media, no checking stats and sales. And absolutely no emails. I walk the dogs, make my tea, then cuddle up with the cats and my laptop and settle in to write. I stop at lunch and spend the afternoon doing more business-y things. That schedule works for me, but each person is different. The only absolute is that you have to get butt-in-seat time. Figure out what motivates you, what you need to do to hold yourself accountable, and get your butt in that seat. 🙂

10. If you could spend time with a character from your book…. who would it be and what would you do?? LP: Normally, I would say Harper. But, today, I’m feeling like it would be Jake. It’s hilarious to think about. I have NO clue what I would say or do, especially since he’s the strong silent type. **Cue the crickets and awkward silence** I could pick is brain about spin-off series stuff, though J

LF: From The Ending Series? I’d have to say Jason… *blushes*

11. What genre do you prefer to write? And would you consider writing in another genre? LP: I always say that writing, for me, is like Skittles—I want to taste (write) the rainbow. I write multiple genres, including post-apocalyptic, contemporary new adult, historical fiction, alternative history… all with a splash of romance. I love myself a good love story, so you’ll always find that in my books.

LF: I’m pretty happy with anything in the Science Fiction or Fantasy realm. I’m writing Urban Fantasy right now, but I’ve also finished up a Paranormal Romance/Time Travel series and a Post-apocalyptic/Dystopian series (obviously). One genre I’ve yet to tackle but would like to one day is Space Opera, and I’d also like to try my hand and Epic Fantasy.

12. What is your method when creating first thoughts of your writing and ideas? LP: Honestly, I need to bounce ideas off of people, so I generally come up with a basic story outline and ideas, then I go have drinks with my friend(s) and they give me feedback. It also helps get me exciting about starting something new, which can be daunting at times. I’m a verbal processer, for sure.

LF: I go for walks. Lots and lots of walks. I listen to audiobooks I’ve already read/listened to, usually books in the genre I’m currently writing, and just sort of zone out, letting my thoughts wander through the potential story. I usually do that for a few days, jotting down ideas in a notebook, before actually attempting an outline.

13. Do you have a favourite place and time to write?

LP: Once I get my office fixed up, I will hopefully never want to leave, though right now, I would take the couch to my office (in disarray, though that’s where I sit now). As far as a time to write, I’m currently trying to train my brain to write in the morning. I like to write in the evening when things are quiet and chill, but after work is always crazy and cuts into my writing time. Mornings are more conducive to my crazy life, at least while I have a day job.

LF: Morning, sitting on the couch in my office with a cup of tea and a cat or two.

14. Do you write everyday?

LP: If I have a draft to write, then yes, at least Monday – Friday. Weekends, sometimes. If I’m revising/editing/plotting, I’ll use my writing time in the mornings to do that (or answer interview questions J)

LF: Sort of. I either outline, write, revise, or on the very rare occasion, beta read during my morning block. And I take weekends off. I didn’t use to, and I found I was draining my creative energy faster that I could replenish it. Now, I’ve found a good, healthy balance.

15. What else do we have to look forward to from you both?

LP: Now that Dust and Shadow is finished (or in the final round of editing), I will dive into the 3rd book in my Saratoga Falls Love Stories, Told You So. I’m excited to change things up a bit. Creating a new world for Dust and Shadow was exhausting. Revisiting the Saratoga Falls crew will be like hanging out with old friends. (LF can speak to the Ending Series goodies coming up.)

LF: Well, we’ve got one more project planned for The Ending Series proper—World After: A Collection of Stories. It’s companion book, World Before, comes out on July 31. We have a spinoff project planned, as well, but that’s farther off. Otherwise, I’m currently writing Soul Eater, the fourth book in my Urban Fantasy series, the Kat Dubois Chronicles, and I plan on writing at least two more books in that series before starting something else new.

How amazing are these guys!!!

Hope you have enjoyed getting to know these two fab Authors because I have!!

Have a slideshow of my fan inspired work ☺️✌️

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Happy reading guys 😊

Author Interview ❤️ Hi readers, hope your having a super awesome day! I have enjoyed OBSESSING over The Ending Series so much, and who'd of thought just a little tag in a fan art piece, by yours truly, started the on going blog posts and art work.

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