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#present tense
elumish · 23 days
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I was thinking recently about the idea of a tragedy in present tense versus a tragedy in past tense, and how a tragedy in present tense is about how there is still a chance to have it end differently and we have no choice but to watch every chance be missed or squandered or fail, and a tragedy in past tense is about how there is no chance for a different ending because the ending has already happened. Orpheus has already looked back. Every time, he has already looked back.
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novlr · 8 months
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gregorovitch-adler · 6 months
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Chair
This is it. It is John's wedding day. After tonight, things would change for good. Not that they ever were the same as soon as I came back after my fake death, but society says a wedding makes everything official.
I would never see him wake up and come down from the bedroom upstairs as I play my violin by the window. Never hear his voice around me in this house, never get to laugh at his whimsical typing habit. Never get to find an excuse to invade his personal space.
How would I? He no longer lives here, and he would never visit as often as he was able to when I was planning his wedding.
The thought is unbearable. I exhale and shake my head as I try to think of something else - though Mrs Hudson being here, sitting on John's chair out of all places, and rambling about her married life when no one even asked doesn't help.
"My best friend, Margaret – she was my chief bridesmaid."
I roll my eyes and put my cup and saucer on the side table.
"We were going to be best friends forever, we always said that; but I hardly saw her after that."
For God's sake, stop rubbing it in! "Aren’t there usually biscuits?" I ask instead.
"I’ve run out."
"Have the shops?" I stand up and glance at the door pointedly. Anything to be away from human contact in any way, shape, or form for a few minutes.
But she continues her sob story anyway. "She cried the whole day, saying, 'Ooh, it’s the end of an era.'"
"I’m sure the shop on the corner is open," I say with a tight smile.
"She was probably right, really."
I close my eyes and wish I could be invisible.
"I remember she left early. I mean, who leaves a wedding early?" She shakes her head. "So sad."
Probably she was in love with you like I am with John. Ever considered that? I obviously don't say it out loud.
Though I've always thought marrying the head of an incredibly famous cartel in America was a rather stupid thing to do on Mrs Hudson's part.
Not that it matters now.
"Anyway, you’ve got things to do." So much filtering I have to do for every damn human interaction. Would rather be alone.
No, that's not quite true: would rather be alone with John, but he doesn't want the same thing. Certainly not. Gotta distract my mind again.
"No, not really. I’ve got plenty of time to -"
"Biscuits," I cut her off. She finally gets up from that chair and walks to the door of the flat.
"I really am going to have a word with your mother."
"You can if you like. She understands very little." Positively nothing about my sentiments.
I close the door on her - John would've given me an earful if he were here (not again!) - and turn around. I let out a sigh and turn to look at the chair Mrs Hudson just emptied.
John's armchair. My John - at least in my mind.
Once upon a time, I'd had a feeling that there was a slight probability that he felt the same way. Clearly, I was proven wrong when I saw him with Mary that night.
Even more so when he continued to be engaged to her, after having forgiven me for faking my death - at least on the surface.
Perhaps it was a miscalculation on my part. He never felt the same and never will. He's in love with Mary.
I can do nothing but be civil with her and respect John's choice.
However, as I stare at John's chair in this flat, I feel as if a piece of John himself is still here with me.
I have to be at the wedding hall in an hour, being the best man of the wedding, so I force myself to not become one with that chair.
I turn around to make my way to my bedroom to get dressed.
Into Battle.
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Prompt Chair by @onesmallfamily
Tags: @helloliriels @topsyturvy-turtely @keirgreeneyes @lisbeth-kk @gaylilsherlock @lookingforlifeoutthere @peanitbear @a-victorian-girl @calaisreno @curlyjohnlock @missdeliadili @kettykika78 .
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So um yesterday's tazercraft stream happened and I caught up mostly with other people's notes and now... have this I guess. I hesitate to call it a fic, but its definitely fictional prose imagining the night after Pac's return with the two of them in Chume Labs.
Usual disclaimer of I only speak English with any fluency and so characterisation is likely to be abysmal. I just... also love these two guys and I'm doing my best to make them happy. But it doesn't seem very realistic, so I'll make Mike cry instead.
Pac will not wake up screaming, he never does. Mike had when Pac was taken from him - when Walter Bob was taken too, and each and every time he remembers the cells they have been held in. Pac, though, Pac was the strong one, the one who could handle it, who could just manage whatever situation was thrown at them - who acted like everything was okay so he could look after Mike.
No more.
Now Mike is the one sat at Pac's bedside, holding his hand even as he sleeps. Pac seems frozen in time, perfectly still even with the tension running through him. His muscles are so tight that even his back shakes with the tension, clearly stuck in a nightmare despite how quiet he is.
And Mike... Mike does not know what to do.
He thought he was a protector, but he has failed to protect in every way that matters. It had always been the two of them - Mike would shield Pac as they fought the world, and Pac would be there to patch up his wounds. But then they were taken, and then their friend was taken, and then Pac was taken leaving Mike alone and now-
If there was something to destroy it would be easier, Mike thinks.
Destroying the Federation will not be easy, and whatever he has seen in his time, alone in their grasp, Pac does not even think it possible any more; something in Pac has been broken, or perhaps stolen, and Mike can only hope that it is something that, despite his clumsy attempts to soothe, will heal.
Impossible is not a word that should be found in Pac's vocabulary, and yet...
There it is.
Mike has never been good at picking up the pieces, not when building, and certainly not of a person. But, but if Pac has broken, has slipped beneath the water, then Mike will not give in until either he is dead, or until he has Pac in his arms, fully this time around. If Pac has learnt the word impossible then Mike will forget it, and bludgeon head first into a world trying to destroy them, tearing it piece by piece until they are all safe once again.
Pac is his friend, and Mike is Pac's friend, and they mean everything to one another.
So, when he catches Pac's eyes, half-lidded, barely open, Mike will reach slowly out, and brush the hair from his eyes. He will tell him he is safe, that Mike will protect him, that nothing will be allowed to touch him again. Perhaps Mike will fail, but he will get back up and scream and try again, and do everything Pac can't until his wounds have healed and they move together again.
He will be scared when Pac does not respond beyond a slow blink, hesitate only a little before squeezing his hands. He will help Pac sit up, fold his hands around a water glass, and keep those hands steady as his friend drinks.
He will ask Pac if he is okay, and receive only a slight bowing of his head in return.
Fear will grip him tighter - it has not left yet, it had never gone - but he will pull Pac against his chest, hold him close, clutch him closer as he tries to outsqueeze the fear.
Pac will turn his face into Mike's chest, and wrap his fingers in his shirt, and say nothing as Mike makes promises of them being together, of them being home, of having trapped the area around the beds to hell and high heaven and that, even if something can make it past, it will not be quiet enough to escape Mike's notice.
Mike will hold him and comfort him and, when the words run out with Pac still silent but now trembling against him, he will let himself sob, and he will cry for the both of them.
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pratchettquotes · 1 year
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Certainly, things were better now. But they were just...more difficult.
Terry Pratchett, Jingo
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mlpoutofcontext · 1 year
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thekingofgear · 2 months
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‘Read The Room’ Instrumental Notes
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Jonny dramatically muting the strings of his late-70s natural finish Les Paul Standard during a performance of Read The Room in Cleveland on July 11, 2023 (Ryan J).
Verse
Read The Room starts with just a guitar through a single-repeat delay. Well, technically two guitars: the same guitar part is recorded twice, with one recording panned hard left and the other panned hard right. Each one has its own delay. Jonny almost certainly used his Boss DD200, given the clarity of the delay sound (a Space Echo would be too warm in the highs). If we count quarters at ~61.5bpm, we can hear that the delay time is set for a single quarter note.
There’s also medium overdrive and a flanging effect added to Jonny's guitar. The overdrive is probably Jonny's Boss SD1, which he's found a new affection for with The Smile (since 2007, he's used a Boss OD3 with Radiohead instead of his older SD1). The flanger is almost certainly from the EarthQuaker Devices Pyramids visible on Jonny’s board in studio photos.
At 0:09, Thom’s bass guitar enters. Based on live usage, he's probably playing his vintage, modified Gibson EB0. You can also see that bass in a photo from the the Wall of Eyes zine, which we included in our last post.
At 0:13, the drums enter, with Tom playing a stuttering pattern on the kick and snare, with occasional cymbals and open hihats for emphasis.
At 1:07, Jonny’s Sequential Prophet 5 REV4 adds a nice descending counter-melody (at least, it's probably the Prophet based on studio photos and similarity to the live tone). When the synth enters, Jonny switches to plucking muted strings on his guitar for a totally percussive sound, which leaves space for the synth to stand out. At live shows, he mutes the strings rather dramatically, sliding his hand up and down the fingerboard to vary the sound of the percussive plucks.
At 1:37-1:41 some slightly open hihats lead us to the next section...
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A photo from Jonny's home studio in Oxford, showing his Sequential Prophet 5 REV4 nestled between a 1980s Sequential Prophet 600 and an Elektron Digitone Keys. This photo by Sam Petts-Davies was originally posted on the Smile's twitter on October 31, 2023, but was definitely taken much earlier since the band were on tour at that time.
Chorus
At 1:41, the song switches to a softer “chorus” section, and a center-panned acoustic guitar becomes the main rhythm instrument. However, Jonny’s left and right panned electric guitars keep playing, adding subtle swelled notes. He’s probably using the “freeze swell” trick he first used for the Skirting On The Surface outro solo — more info in this post. However, it’s hard to say for sure, given the amount of woodwinds in this section. Robert Stillman's clarinets and Pete Wareham's flutes enter more clearly at 1:53. They add a rich, undulating texture through to the end of the chorus at 2:08.
For most of the chorus, we only hear a gentle hihat pattern from Tom. But at 2:00, we first hear cymbals, then the kick and stuttering snare from the verse enter to lead us back out of the chorus.
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A photo of Pete Wareham playing flute in Abbey Road Studio 2, from the Smile's Wall of Eyes zine. Wareham previously collaborated with Tom Skinner’s past band Sons Of Kemet.
Verse 2 and Chorus 2
At 2:08-2:11, the start of the next verse, we briefly hear the main riff on the single acoustic guitar from the chorus. Then Jonny's two hard-panned electric guitars return at ~2:11. This verse (2:11-2:40) mainly repeats the instrumentation from first verse, but with more cymbals and more intense vocal delay. However, we do get a left-panned clarinet playing the counter-melody at 2:25-2:36, replacing the synth from the first verse. We also hear some fun sliding noises — seemingly from a “delay time” knob being turned — at 2:26-2:30.
The second “chorus” (2:41-3:11) brings back the acoustic guitar, swelling electric guitars, woodwinds, and gentle hihats from the first chorus. The main difference is that the winds play a richer texture, and Jonny’s two electric guitars start to add spacier delayed notes at ~3:00 (possibly with his Boss RE-202 Space Echo pedal).
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A photo of Jonny in the live room at Abbey Road Studio 2 from March or April of 2023 (Sam Petts-Davies). We can see his EHX Freeze, Boss SD1, Boss DD-200, and Boss RE-202 in the bottom row. His EQD Pyramids is at the end of the top row. For more info on his pedalboards, check out Jonny's page.
Coda
The coda begins at 3:12 with a right-panned single electric guitar from Jonny and a cymbal crash from Tom. Jonny plays a riff that initially feels pretty simple, until you notice that he keeps skipping eighth notes. There's a few ways to divide it up, but the full pattern is 22 eighth-notes long (two measures of 11/8, though it's easier to count as two measure of 6/4 with the last eighth note or each measure skipped, which also feels closer to the way the band play it).
Unlike the previous sections, this guitar has no delay or other effects. Instead of delay, Jonny’s riff makes use of open strings to give a fuller, multi-voice sound. On the studio recording, his B-string is detuned to an A for this section, allowing him to add an open “A” ringing over his riff. This is pretty notable, because the song’s main riff used an open B-string in standard tuning! At live shows, Jonny doesn’t bother with the high “A”, presumably because he has no time to detune the B-string or to switch guitars. So that's a little extra studio magic!
Jonny most likely played his late-70s natural finish Les Paul Standard for most or all of the studio recording. He's seen with other guitars in a few studio photos, but his tone on this track has a richness that's characteristic of his Les Paul through his Super Reverb — particularly his clean tone in the code.
The cymbal crash from the start of the coda slowly fades from 3:12-3:19. Then at 3:20, a couple of snare hits call in a new pattern of kick, snare, and closed hihat. The pattern is reminiscent of the "motorik" beat found in a lot of Krautrock, with a snare on 3. But the skipped eighths in the riff make the beat much more varied than in a traditional Krautrock track.
Thom adds a distorted bass guitar at 3:23, mirroring Jonny’s riff an octave below. He’s probably using his EarthQuaker Devices Plumes pedal for the added punch. In live footage, we can also see Thom and Jonny grab plectrums at the start of the coda. Thom may have been using the Plumes earlier in Read The Room, but the plectrum really emphasizes the punch.
When Thom’s vocal re-enters at 3:45, there’s a ton of vocal layers and reverb. The layers all seem to match the main vocal, so it might a dual delay setting from Thom’s Strymon DIG pedal, albeit with some heavier reverb added to the delays. At live shows played after the Abbey Road recording sessions, Thom had a drone from his Moog Matriach playing during this section, but it’s not present on the album.
At 4:05, Jonny adds a second electric guitar layer, panned hard-left and playing patterns with a new single-repeat delay. At live shows, he relied on Thom to keep the riff going. But on the studio recording, his right-panned riff guitar keeps playing too.
Tom brings back the cymbals in earnest from 4:13-4:48, bringing the song to its climax. Then, after a choirs of Thom say "everybody thinks so" at 4:48, the cymbals and vocals drop out (with a long vocal delay fade-out). The guitar, bass, and drums continue up until the track ends abruptly with another statement of "everybody thinks so".
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In this shot, from the The Smile's show in Cleveland on July 11, 2023 (Ryan J), Jonny's tech can be seen tapping in a dotted-eighth delay during the start of the coda section. Jonny only uses the delay during the second half of the coda, but his delay time is different from the rest of the song, so it needs to be adjusted while he plays the initial coda riff. Thom can be seen with his vintage Gibson EB0.
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chill-band-folder · 2 months
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Radiohead - Present Tense (2016)
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queer-talmid · 4 months
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I am once again losing my fucking mind
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elder-witch · 5 months
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egyptianrenaissance · 5 months
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Present tense in Coptic
ϯ- (I)
ⲕ- (you for masculine)
ⲧⲉ- (you for feminine)
ϥ- (he)
ⲥ- (she)
ⲧⲉⲛ- (we)
ⲧⲉⲧⲉⲛ- (you pl.)
ⲥⲉ- (they)
Examples :-
ϥⲟⲩⲱⲙ ⲙ̀ⲡⲓⲱⲓⲕ (He eats the bread)
ϯⲟⲩⲱⲙ ⲙ̀ⲡⲓⲱⲓⲕ (I eat the bread)
ⲥⲉⲟⲩⲱⲙ ⲙ̀ⲡⲓⲱⲓⲕ (They eat the bread)
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on-coming-dusk · 8 months
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Wayne sees it happen, that’s the most horrifying thing, he sees it happen and is helpless to stop it. He is pinned, fighting to keep the zombie at arm’s length and scrambling for his pistol when Eddie tackles the monster off of him. Wayne sees teeth tear into pale flesh a moment before his nephew plunges a knife through a rotten skull. It collapses, now fully dead, and Eddie is sat on the ground, staring at the fresh wound on his forearm.
“No…” Wayne pushed himself up, moves closer to his nephew and silently prayer that he misunderstands what he saw. He needs to be wrong; it can’t end like this. He is crouched next to him now, unsure of what to do with his hands. “Eddie-"
His boy grabs his arm, his grasp so tight it is painful, and looks up at him with tear filled eyes, the liquid already overflowing and streaming down his cheeks. “Kill me.” He doesn’t sound like himself, words foreign in Wayne’s ears as he forces them out. “Please, kill me and get the hell out of here, Wayne. You can’t die, you need to find Gareth and get to the safety zone. Please Wayne.”
Wayne stares at his kid, both of them now surrounded by the full dead zombies. He stares at he pushes himself to his feet, picks up his shot gun with minimal effort now that a fucking monster isn’t trying to consume his life energy. He understands Eddie’s words now even though he doesn’t like them, even though they feel like they should not be spoken. He knows the general direction Gareth ran but doesn’t know what he will find if he goes looking. He stares at the boy that he has failed to protect because he wasn’t paying attention, because he dropped his gun, because-
“Uncle Wayne, please.”
Wayne is a snake, strikes the butt of his shotgun against his temple and Eddie crumples. He allows himself a moment to breathe, to steady his shaking hands, to stare at his nephew. He has a small cut where the gun made contact a moment before, a small rail of blood trickling from it. The transition from Living to Dead isn’t immediate, of course his blood is still red. Even the blood that pools in the bitemark on his forearm is still running red.
They are close to the safety zone here. Detroit is only a couple of days away by foot. And Eddie is never going to make it there. It has been months since this began, their journey left them turned around and lost a dozen times, but they always got back on track. They were going to make it, until now. Now that dream is over.
Wayne retrieves his pack, picks up his flashlight, holsters his pistol, collects the last few items that litter their campsite. He is going to find Gareth and return him to his parents in Detroit. He is not going to fail him too. He turns back to Eddie, raises his gun to fulfill his boy’s final wishes. His finger presses lightly against the trigger, but he doesn’t pull…
He turns around and walks away without a single glance back. It’s selfish, he knows Eddie is gone, but he can’t bring himself to do it. He heads down the path that Gareth ran down, forces rhythm back into his breath and control into his limbs and understands the painful knowledge that when Eddie wakes up, he will no longer be his nephew, he’ll be a monster.
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I found a textpost of my own from April and edited and.... anyways here you go!!!
I dunno why I like hurting the characters I love most...but a zombie au is the perfect blank canvas for hurt and hope
Previous post can be found here.
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hebrewbyinbal · 6 months
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Let's dive into the wonderful world of Hebrew conjugation in the present tense.
Learning a new language, especially one as rich as Hebrew, can be quite a journey. Many of my students, like you, have embarked on this path.
Now, when it comes to Hebrew verb conjugation in the present tense, it might seem like a daunting task, but fear not, because I've got your back every step of the way.
Picture this: you and I, sitting down like old friends, unraveling the mysteries of Hebrew verbs together.
No need to worry about any complicated linguistic jargon; I'll explain it in a way that's clear and relatable.
Just like building a friendship, learning Hebrew conjugation takes time and practice. But here's the exciting part – with each lesson, you'll unlock the power to express yourself in Hebrew, and that's something truly special.
Together, we'll navigate the challenges and celebrate your victories, big and small.
So, whether you're saying "I love" or "you love" (אתה אוהב), I'm here to guide you through this language journey, helping you gain confidence and embrace the beauty of Hebrew conjugation.
We're in this together, my friend, and I'm here to make sure you not only learn but also love the process.
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yvonne-silver · 1 year
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Impaled
Whumptober 2022 #3. Hair’s breadth from death: impaled
The fight has been going on too long. Geralt can feel it, with years and years of training, that he’s cutting it too close this time. This creature, huge, with snapping pincers and too many sharp stabbing legs, has been keeping him at bay for more time than his potion allows. But Geralt can’t be the only one getting tired. All he needs is an opening.
When he finally finds the opening in its defence, Geralt doesn’t hesitate. Even as he feels his potion starting to wear off, he forces one last burst of strength from himself, plunging forward and thrusting his sword forward into the centre of the soft round body. The creature screeches, quivers, and finally lies still, leaving Geralt alone with with his ragged breathing.
Geralt leans forward on his sword, slowly catching his breath. It had almost been too close, this time. He can feel the potion leaving his system, his heightened senses dimming, the dulled pain starting to make itself known. He needs to get back to Roach before that happens. Geralt goes to sheathe his sword but finds himself hindered. He looks down.
Ah.
There’s a black cylinder, almost as thick as his underarm, sticking from just below and to the left of his midriff. His eyes follow it forward to where the appendage attaches to the thorax of the creature he’s just killed. With a grunt he manages to twist a little and look over his shoulder, to see the rest of the leg extend out behind him.
In his last, desperate charge, he hadn’t even realised he’d been impaled. He must have charged up the full length of the creatures limb, reaching its heart, but trapping himself in the progress.
Along with the realisation comes fresh awareness of the pain. Geralt stabs his sword back into the dirt and leans heavily on it, its support the only thing keeping him from falling to his knees. His shaking fingers trace the edge of the wound, feeling the smooth platelets of the appendage where they’ve torn through him. As the potion and the adrenaline wears off, the pain will only get worse. He needs to act now.
Still using his sword for support, he looks behind him. There’s at least a spears-length of leg behind him. Going backwards would be slow and painful, not to mention he’s not precisely sure what the plating situation is of this creature’s limbs. If they’re plated instead of perfectly fitted, they might function as barbs when going backwards. That means he’ll have to make a way forwards.
He looks at the length of leg protruding from him. There’s a joint a little ahead. If he can hit that just right, he should be able to cut the limb free, and slide off the end of it. He positions his feet a little firmer, wincing at the strain each movement is putting on the wound. With a grunt, he lifts the sword over his head, aims and swings down.
The impact sends a screaming pain through his torso. The sword glances off the hard shell, nicking against the joint before skittering away from his weakened grip. His vision darkens for a moment and his knees buckle. The only reason he doesn’t fall forwards into the mud is that he’s still impaled. As it is, he sinks slowly to his knees, his hands wrapped around the appendage sticking out just below his ribs.
When he’s kneeling on the wet marsh, Geralt takes a moment to steady himself against the limb. The pain is clouding his thoughts, and so is the exhaustion. Yet he can’t afford to pass out, not in this precarious a situation.
Geralt takes as deep a breath as he can manage. Then another. He takes stock of his situation. He still needs to cut himself free before he can think of doing anything else. Can’t move until he’s free. Can’t bandage the wound until it’s clean. Can’t even reach his supplies unless he gets off of this limb. And to do that he needs his weapon.
He looks up to see his sword lying in the mud to the right of him. His brow furrows. That’s too far. He can’t reach that far. But what other option does he have? He grits his teeth, wraps his left hand around the appendage for balance, and reaches out with his right hand.
The fresh pressure sends pain lancing all up his left side. He screams, reaching with all his length, fingertips stretching as far as he can go.
He doesn’t reach the sword.
He sits back, his energy spent for the moment. Swords a no go. He wraps his hands around the protrusion, bows his head as if in prayer. He needs a moment. Just a moment. Then he’ll figure something out.
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cuckoo-on-a-string · 1 year
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What's your favorite tense?
Getting ready to put (metaphorical) pen to paper, and I wondered: what tense do you most enjoy reading? What tense are your favorite books, fanfictions, or short stories written in? Help a bird out.
(The examples are not from the book, just random.)
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theanishimori · 7 months
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