#secret blotter
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So I returned to listening to Welcome To Night Vale today and I have to say that I really missed how different the episodes can be from each other
like for example I started from ep 167 (”Echo”) because that was the last episode that I remember listening to, and the transition from “There’s an ongoing invasion on Night Vale where citizens are either being brainwashed or straight up murdered” to hearing about some person who called the police because they needed some easy tortellini recipes in the very next episode is so amazing to me
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psychomanteum masterlist
[ AO3 ] [ Spotify Playlist ] [ Taglist ]
Pairing: Dieter Bravo x OFC Louella
Rating: Explicit (18+ only)
Status: Completed
Series Summary: You've recently taken on the customer-facing responsibilities of the small-scale cannabis bakery you and your late husband ran out of your apartment, which introduces you to occasional customer, Dieter Bravo. A friendship is sparked when you realize you have something in common: you've both died. What Dieter doesn't tell you about his near-death experience, though, is that it foretold his life with you.
Tags/Warnings: grief, alternating POV, widowed OFC, 2nd person POV, physical descriptions of OFC include tattoos & scars & being lifted by dieter but nothing else that I can think of, smoking pot, consuming edibles, acid trip, drinking alcohol, cocaine and morphine use, substance abuse & addiction, fame, paparazzi, non-canon compliant although I try it’s not perfect, post-canon, divorce, suicidal thoughts and planning, angst, near-death experiences, smut (that includes: alternating power dynamics, unprotected sex with consent and discussion, piv, oral, anal), bi4bi romance, paranormal elements but not over the top spooky-ooky, psychomanteums, ghosts, spirituality, drag queen, ldr, friends to lovers, trauma that involves family of origin and past relationship issues, infertility (OFC Louella is infertile), this list is not the end all be all so pls check out warnings at the top of each chapter 🖤✨
chapters
1: Honey, This Mirror Isn't Big Enough for the Two of Us
2: Blotter Acid Reflux Syndrome
3: Sedated
4: The Past Is A Grotesque Animal
5: Sex with a Ghost
6: Red Flags and Long Nights
7: Monster
8: Would You Rather
9: Dearly Departed
10: Snow Day
11: Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings
12: Ghost in the Machine
13: Lunacy Fringe
14: Wish You Were Here
15: The Widow
16: Famous Last Words
17: I’ll Be Your Mirror
snacks
Wake ‘n’ Bake
Summary: You have a virtual smoke session with your new friend and secret crush, Dieter Bravo. This takes place in the storyline between chapters 2 & 3.
Acting Lesson
Summary: Dieter convinces you to roleplay with him. This takes place in the storyline between chapters 12 & 13.
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The seashell prompt has me DESPERATE for Marion's pov of Harding's departure 😭
Kind anonymous friend, I'm going to level with you - I think I got home this afternoon and chose violence.
It was strange, in moments like this, just how small the world really got.
It was dark now in the Ops room - most of the crew had gone to bed, and the usually noisy machines were silent. There was a single light on at the switchboard, a single observer up in the tower - and Red and Marion, sitting in Red's office with the private line phone, waiting for news.
The only light in his office was the desk lamp, a small yellow circle focused in on the desk blotter, just barely illuminating Red's face as he stooped over the desk, waited with the handset pressed to his ear. Marion pressed her legs closer together, her hands clasped tightly in, arms pressed to legs, legs pressed to the seat of her chair, everything in close compression, like she was trying to hold herself bodily together.
Because, in fact, she was.
Across the desk from her Red nodded, listening to the slightly tinny voice on the other end of the phone, his face grave. "Right. Thank you. Please let us know when you have more. Yes, we'll - absolutely. Thank you, Lieutenant. Good bye." He sniffed and set the phone back down, standing up. "They're booking him in for surgery now. Expect he'll be in recovery for a bit, but they'll want him stateside for that. Bennett will take the lead, and they'll see about getting us an official replacement as soon as they can."
"Good," Marion said, though she wasn't sure if she really meant it or not. "That's - that's good, that they're getting him in quick."
Bowman nodded, and, after a brief consideration, opened a drawer and pulled out a bottle of bourbon and two glasses. He glanced at Marion for permission, and she shrugged. Can't hurt anything, I suppose. He nodded and opened the bottle, pouring them both a more-than-generous fingerful and passing her one of the glasses as he moved around to the other side of his desk and sat down opposite her. She took the glass and drank, the whiskey burning at her tongue.
It was strange, just how much they could communicate now by face alone. A year overseas, more or less, and they worked so close that now a raised eyebrow said as much as words ever could.
Red studied the whiskey in his tumbler, rolling the liquid around the edge of the glass. "Stover said you went to see him a few days ago - told him you were worried about Chick."
Marion felt herself opening up again, her hands braced against her lap. "We all were." I know I shouldn't have done it - betrayed his trust like that. But I couldn't let him keep going the way he was. And maybe I - maybe I saw things differently than others would - personal things, intimate things I shouldn't have known. So what did Wendell tell you, Red?
"You know, for the last year I think I've been a little in love with you," Red said quietly. Marion's eyes snapped up to his. "That kind of thing - makes a man notice things. Like how his CO's eyes keep following his Captain. About how torn up she is that he's gone, even when she's not saying anything about it." He sniffed and smiled, and took a sip of his whiskey. "Tell me I'm wrong."
"Red, please." But she knew now there were no more secrets.
He raised his eyebrows, suspicions proved correct. She couldn't tell whether the look in his eyes was rage or jealousy. "You deserve better, you know. Than being second choice."
"Maybe I do. But I was never second." I know that better than anything in the world. I knew what I was - we didn't joke about that. Never talked about after because there wasn't anything to talk about. I wasn't waiting on some promise he wouldn't keep. We had what we had for as long as we had it, and that was going to be enough. "We'll need to pack his things. They'll want to ship them home."
"Home to his wife?" He slide the word in like a knife, voice brittle with disdain.
Come on, Red, you're better than that. Even if you say you've loved me. "Yes, to his wife." To Doris. I know her name - know she exists. I don't have any illusions about it.
He looked down at his glass and drained it, sitting bitterly in his chair. "Where do we go from here?"
"Back to work," she said, rising stiffly from his chair. "Where we've always been." She took one last sip of the whiskey and set the glass down on the corner of his desk.
"Aren't you going to say anything? About me loving you?"
"Say it again when you're not angry with me, Red." Say it again when my heart is less heavy and maybe I'll be able to hear it how it's meant.
Her hands were shaking - she wanted nothing more than her bed, to be small and alone in the dark, cocooned and cozy against the world. At least that I can control - since it's wildly apparent I haven't got anything else.
If you'd like to read more of Marion, you can do so at her tag here on tumblr.
#asked and answered#Anonymous#i have written a thing#mercurygraypresents#tds cinematic universe#marion brennan#marion x neil#colonel harding x oc
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Summary:
Snapshots of moments between Link and Zelda post-TotK, as they come to terms with the traumatic events of the Upheaval and slowly rediscover each other and their love. How many times can two people be forced to start their lives over?
Each chapter will be under 1k, so easy to read. Enjoy! Many thanks to @floraunderground for looking about half of these prompts over! The other half are unbetaed, so apologies in advance 😅
Chapter One - Cozy (day one prompt for @zelinktines24)
Read below or on AO3 HERE
Late afternoon sunlight streams through the room’s one window, casting an elongated golden rectangle across the smooth wooden floor. Standing in the doorway of the study Link built for her, Zelda knows the irrational fear that consumes her is out of place in this otherwise cozy room. Why is it, months after she’s been transformed back to herself, can she not shake the fear that any minute she’s going to wake up a mindless dragon floating far above Hyrule? It gnaws at her sanity, threatening to break the tenuous hold she currently has on her daily life.
Zelda tries and fails not to think about the fact that Link built this room during a time when he knew she’d swallowed the secret stone, willingly giving up her soul and him in the hopes of saving Hyrule once and for all. He had no way of knowing if she would ever return, but all the same, his first thought was only of her and what would make her happiest.
Even though he’s yet to say the words since her return, Zelda feels the love that permeates the walls. It’s infused in every stone, wooden slab, and glass pane. Stepping into the room, she runs her fingers over the leather blotter pad in the center of the simple wooden desk before settling in the cushioned chair. An iron lantern hangs from the ceiling directly above, and that, along with the round hurricane lamp on the corner of the desk offers plenty of light when the room grows dark. Link has filled a bookshelf that spans one wall from floor to ceiling with all her books, scientific journals, and a few new ones he picked up during his quest to find her. Surrounded by all the things she loves most in the world, there is only one thing missing. Him.
Zelda gazes out the window at the setting sun, dipping beyond the peaks of Death Mountain Range. Link, ever patient and kind, has never questioned her need for solitude and gives her all the space she desires. Today is the first day since she’s returned that he’s ventured out past the property line. He’s in the valley between the mountains and Tarrey Town visiting Hudson, who’d sent word that morning of needing Link’s assistance. Link had checked in with her before leaving, and she’d assured him she would be alright and was ready to be on her own.
All the same, she’d nearly raced after him when the silence that fell over their home when he left became oppressive to the point of becoming unbearable. Zelda doesn’t want to keep Link from enjoying one of the things he loves best, helping others. So instead, she’s retreated to this small, intimate room, where she can feel his presence the strongest, and awaits his return.
Twisting in her chair, she plucks the journal chronicling Link’s quest to track down the dragon tears. She’s reviewed it countless times, rereading his growing despair with the revelation of each faded memory until the last where his entries cease. The page is blank after the recount of the final memory. That suddenly wordless void speaks volumes of Link’s desolate acceptance that once again the needs of the many have outweighed the needs of the two.
Her heart aches as she traces her fingers over the page, recalling his terror-filled eyes as she fell away from him. If it hadn’t been for Sonia and Rauru, Zelda is uncertain what she would have done, lost in the past with no hope of returning home. As it was, the choice she’d been forced to make had nearly cost them everything, if not for the saving grace of two spirits who had swiftly become second parents to Zelda.
But what if? The weight of the ultimate decision to sacrifice herself fills Zelda with guilt and dread. She had no way of knowing if it would work, if the Master Sword would be restored, better than ever. She would never have known and Link would have been left bereft in a broken, hopeless Hyrule, knowing she’d relinquished her soul for nothing, while she drifted aimlessly above, without a care in the world. Or worse, it did work, but the choice was truly irreversible, and he’d been left alone with a restored sword that had been the bane of both their existences since the very beginning. Clenching her fists, Zelda bites back a sob, glad Link isn’t there to hear her crying… again.
#legend of zelda#zelink#the legend of zelda#tears of the kingdom#self reflection#angst#dealing with depression#rediscovering lost love
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No, you know what? While I'm all fired up about modern art and outsider art, let me introduce you to the works of James Hampton.
Pictured above is his monumental Throne of the Third Heaven of the Nations' Millennium General Assembly.
With scant education and no formal art education, James Hampton made these pieces out of his intense religious fervor and his own desire to create:
In 1950, Hampton rented a garage on 7th street in northwest Washington [DC]. Over the next 14 years, Hampton built a complex work of religious art inside the garage with various scavenged materials such as aluminum and gold foil, old furniture, pieces of cardboard, light bulbs, jelly jars, shards of mirror and desk blotters held together with tacks, glue, pins and tape.
The complete work consists of 180 objects, many of them inscribed with quotes from the Book of Revelation. The centerpiece of the exhibit is a throne, seven feet tall, built on the foundation of an old maroon-cushioned armchair with the words "Fear Not" at its crest. The throne is flanked by dozens of altars, crowns, lecterns, tablets and winged pulpits. Wall plaques on the left bear the name of apostles and those on the right list various biblical patriarchs and prophets such as Abraham and Ezekiel.
The text The Throne of the Third Heaven of the Nations' Millennium General Assembly was written on the objects in Hampton's handwriting.
He constructed all his pieces from materials he found or scavenged himself, "such as aluminum and gold foil, old furniture, pieces of cardboard, light bulbs, jelly jars, shards of mirror and desk blotters held together with tacks, glue, pins and tape."
It's not clear if Hampton himself regarded himself as an artist, a visionary, a prophet, or none of the above. His work, however, is regarded as art in the same way that Michelangelo's Pieta is regarded as art: art of a religious subject or concept.
He also "kept a 108-page loose-leaf notebook titled St James: The Book of the 7 Dispensation. Most of the text was written in an unknown script that remains undeciphered. ... Some of the text was accompanied by notes in English in Hampton's handwriting. In the notebook, Hampton referred to himself as St. James with the title 'Director, Special Projects for the State of Eternity' and ended each page with the word 'Revelation'."
The art was not discovered until after Hampton's death in 1964, when the owner of the garage, Meyer Wertlieb, came to find out why the rent had not been paid. He knew that Hampton had been building something in the garage. When he opened the door, he found a room filled with the artwork.
Hampton had kept his project secret from most of his friends and family. His relatives first heard about it when his sister came to claim his body. When Hampton's sister refused to take the artwork, the landlord placed an advertisement in local newspapers. Ed Kelly, a sculptor, answered the advertisement and was so astounded by the exhibit, he contacted art collector Alice Denney. Denney brought art dealers Leo Castelli and Ivan Karp, and artist Robert Rauschenberg, to see the exhibit in the garage. Harry Lowe, the assistant director of the Smithsonian Art Museum, told the Washington Post that walking into the garage "was like opening Tut's tomb."
His work is now on display at the Smithsonian American Art Museum.
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This day in history
I'm touring my new, nationally bestselling novel The Bezzle! Catch me SATURDAY (Apr 27) in MARIN COUNTY, then Winnipeg (May 2), Calgary (May 3), Vancouver (May 4), and beyond!
#20yrsago Bill O’Reilly mistakes Globe and Mail for Socialist Worker https://web.archive.org/web/20040426005411/http://www.globeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20040421/DOYLE21/TPColumnists/
#20yrsago Silmarillion in 1,000 words https://web.archive.org/web/20060427200009/https://camwyn.livejournal.com/328358.html
#20yrsago London: The (Magnificent) Biography https://memex.craphound.com/2004/04/22/london-the-magnificent-biography/
#15yrsago UAE royal caught torturing man on video https://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=7402099
#15yrsago Joe Biden promises a blank check to the entertainment cartel https://web.archive.org/web/20110624055700/http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-10224689-38.html
#15yrsago Entertainment industry’s greedy lobbying is their undoing https://web.archive.org/web/20090425083430/http://www.internetevolution.com/document.asp?doc_id=175415&
#10yrsago Appeals court orders Obama administration to disclose the legal theory for assassination of Americans https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2014/04/obama-ordered-to-divulge-legal-basis-for-killing-americans-with-drones/
#10yrsago Shakespeare’s Beehive: analysis of newly discovered dictionary that Shakespeare owned and annotated https://endlessbookshelf.net/beehive.html
#10yrsago Reddit’s /r/technology demoted over scandal of secret censorship that blocked Internet freedom stories https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-27100773
#5yrsago Facebook has hired the Patriot Act’s co-author and “day-to-day manager” to be its new general counsel https://thehill.com/policy/technology/440085-facebook-taps-lawyer-who-helped-write-patriot-act/
#5yrsago Google walkout organizers say they’re being retaliated against for demanding ethical standards https://www.wired.com/story/google-walkout-organizers-say-theyre-facing-retaliation/
#5yrsago Elizabeth Warren’s latest proposal: cancel student debt, make college free https://medium.com/@teamwarren/im-calling-for-something-truly-transformational-universal-free-public-college-and-cancellation-of-a246cd0f910f
#5yrsago Heiress “Instagram influencer” whose parents are accused of paying a $500K bribe to get her into USC has trademark application rejected for punctuation errors https://www.huffpost.com/entry/olivia-jade-trademark-punctuation_n_5c9c8f16e4b07c8866313c5e?ncid=newsltushpmgnews__TheMorningEmail__032919
#5yrsago Zuck turned American classrooms into nonconsensual laboratories for his pet educational theories, and now they’re rebelling https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/21/technology/silicon-valley-kansas-schools.html
#5yrsago Platform cooperativism (or, how to turn gig-economy jobs into $22.25/hour jobs) https://www.wired.com/story/when-workers-control-gig-economy/
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Finished the latest story batch in Twisted Wonderland today, and realized how awesome it is that you have Eleanora going through these various dreams in the fic, all for the majority of chapter 7 so far to canonically take place within various dreams. Can’t wait to see how you handle that! Apollo really just keeps throwing dodgeball after dodgeball at you
I am convinced by this point that I am just a secret love child of Apollo, because YO THIS IS JUST INSANE AT THIS POINT. Yana needs to hire me to write for twst because DAMN, I keep calling things before they happen 🤣
The hand scratches from Grim, the pull the Blotter away from the Overblot, Malleus’ magical weather affecting mood swings, Lilia’s guilt, and now the dreams!!! I’m still reeling from the fact Mal’s mom is named Meleanor of all things. Meleanor? More like Eleanora, am I right?
Me, just casually writing a fanfic:
Apollo, about to hit me with that gift of prophecy:
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Welcome to Night Vale episode recs
Welcome to Night Vale episode recs—for new listeners and for fans that fell off! I’m thrilled to see interest spiking in my favorite podcast after certain site-wide events, so this is a list made to make Night Vale's large catalogue less intimidating. WTNV is a master of both impressively plotted arcs and phenomenal one-offs, and there's something for everyone, whether you've never heard it before or haven't listened in eight years <3
Requisite warnings: Welcome to Night Vale is an absurdist horror-comedy, and it goes heavy on themes of unreality, especially in regards to perception, derealization, time and memory, existential dread, and body horror. The premise is that the listener is a citizen of the town, and Cecil often addresses the audience directly, not to mention frequently implies they’re in danger. The series is also (United States-centric) political satire about government surveillance, gun laws, and general conspiracy. Year One specifically is heavy on themes of anti-indigenous racism, which I believe were resolved insensitively. Please be cautious, and honestly, if anyone has questions about specific warnings/episodes I'd probably be down to answer!
On to the episodes! I’ve sorted them here into recs for new listeners and for returning ones. The list is quite long (26 recs in all—longer than a season!), so I’ve put it under a cut, but TL;DR: Year One is the best for people looking to get into the feel of the series, and returning listeners should consider relistening to some old arcs and poking into the new ones to see what’s changed in Night Vale, both town and show! The official transcripts page lets you sort by arc and by year, and I personally love the now-archived cecilspeaks on Tumblr for transcripts up to 176!
For new listeners
Recs to pique your interest! These are mostly one-shots which represent the ethos and storytelling of Night Vale :)
1, “Pilot”: An absolute classic, and one of my favorites even after so long! The first episode is literally amazing at setting up the general tone of the show and the town, not to mention dropping about a dozen future plot threads at once!
2, “Glow Cloud”: ALL HAIL—ahem. There’s a glow cloud and a wonderful end monologue :)
3, “Station Management”: Sneaking this in because this is the ep that really dragged me into the show! I could go in depth, but I know my audience; simply go forth knowing it features Cecil being a poor little meow meow <3
13 and 45, “A Story About You” and “A Story About Them”: The first parts of one of the most intriguing arcs of the series, told in second-person with an engrossing break from usual format and eeriness aplenty!
71, “The Registry of Middle School Crushes”: A family heist!!!
94, “All Right”: One of Night Vale’s most technically impressive episodes—listen to this one with headphones!
101, “Guidelines for Disposal”: Another personal fave. Something about this one really, really strikes at my heart, and I think it perfectly showcases Night Vale’s ability to balance its silly surrealism with haunting, lovely narrative
131, “Brought to You by Kellog’s”: I can’t possibly explain this one. Just listen to it
132, “Bedtime Story”: Oh man. Ohhh my god. Do you want to feel feelings about a boy who wanted to know everything
133, “Are You Sure?”: Another technically stunning episode; you have to relisten to this one for it to achieve full impact. Consider reloading once you’re done with your first listen, and again after your second :)
142, “UFO Sightings Report”: A lovely episode that offers glimpses into the lives of various Night Vale citizens. It ends heavily, but comfortingly all the same
159, “Cat Show”: You know how Cecil has a floating nightmare cat?
168, “Secret Blotter”: Extremely fun episode which goes off the usual format by a tad to great effect
All in all: I think Year One is the absolute best for exploring the ambience of the town and familiarizing yourself with recurring names and arcs, and even in a town where time doesn’t work, it’s best to start at the beginning! But there are so many Night Vale episodes famed for their prose and panache, and for good reason—shop around for what interests you!
For returning listeners
Meant to be a list of refreshers plus things that make you go “hey WHAT happened while I was gone???”
16, “The Phone Call”: Don’t we all wish we could recapture the experience of hearing Cecil squeak “Neat!” for the first time... (To new listeners: Have you heard Carlos the Scientist’s (season one) voice before? Have you heard Cecil being smitten and mortified? Would you like to?)
27, “First Date”: Listen, I’m trying to get y’all in the cecilos mood again, is it working
49A and B, “Old Oak Doors”: Possibly the best climax to any arc ever. This live recording goes so, so hard
67, “Best Of?”: Okay, I have a huge multidimensional timeline charted for Cecil, and this episode does heavy lifting for about 60% of it
110, “Matryoshka”: This episode will undo you. Talk about reckonings. Genuinely impactful writing, and a gorgeous resolution to one of my favorite arcs
111, “Summer 2017, Night Vale, USA”: THE episode for returning listeners. I’ll let the episode summary speak for itself: Everything is the same. Everything is different.
135, “The Mudstone Abyss Part 1”: Hey, remember that Kevin guy? Wonder what he's up to these days!
144, “The Dreamer” and the rest of the Blood Space War arc (144-149): This arc will fuck you up irrevocably and you will not regret it
171, “Go to the Mirror?”: Very possibly one of the scariest episodes in the podcast, thanks in no small part to Cecil Baldwin’s stellar voice acting and the sound design
182 and 192, “It Sticks with You” and “It Doesn’t Hold Up”: In line with 171, these episodes will make you fucked up about Cecil Palmer
195 and 196, “Silas the Thief”: Just trust me
212, “The Campus”: Wanna dive right into the current arc? Here you go!
My bias is especially clear in this set, and for that I apologize, but I really think it’s worth refamiliarizing yourself with some of the long-running plot threads to get the max enjoyment out of the current arcs, which so far have been high-octane and recalled a lot of early elements of the show, not to mention Cecil and Carlos backstory!
Closing notes
I know this is a long list! It was a struggle paring it down as much as I did—half my favorites aren’t even here :’) I hope my enthusiasm for so many episodes makes it clear how dearly I hold this show to my heart; Night Vale has been a second home to me for years now, and I hope you give it a chance to be yours too <3
#welcome to night vale#wtnv#cecilsweep#does anyone follow that?? whatever#anyway do nottt wanna talk about how long i spent writing this <3 i hope it reads well and helps someone out!#thanks to ciah for proofreading :)#my posts#kay talks#ALSO! i really will do my best to provide tws for anyone who asks#because every site i've found is either inactive or barely being maintained
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10 Songs, 10 People
Was tagged by the pleasant @mrbexwrites whom graced us with her songs
Rules: Put your music on shuffle and list the first 10 songs that come up. Then go about describing how they relate to your WIP and or worldbuilding.
In truth I do not have a designated Lexical playlist, but what I do have is one massive playlist of songs that I can easily relate to characters/worldbuilding. I will admit to cheating and skipping a few songs due to irreverence or for being clown core.
Soft tagging: @rewritingrosie @squarebracket-trick @artcoffeecats @vicstmichael @sam-glade and whomever else wishes to join in.
Hero - 11vx
Wonderfully upbeat and woefully short. I always have seen this song as the theme that would play around the protagonist's "turning point" in Lexical. When they make a connection with their Inscription that lets them overcome something, or finding a weakness or solution to a situation. The title really says it all.
The Stains of Time - Kit Walters
It's video game music, it's MGRR, it's fight music. Specifically I'd say it's villain centric fighting music. I've got this character in my head who connects the concepts of water and time whom I could easily see this song fully being about. Where Hero is about the protag winning, Stains of Time is about Villains hamming it up.
Little Lion Man - Mumford and Sons
Ken, Host of Fangs, Lord of Hearts. No Inscribed has had an easy life. This one's life is full of regret, broken relationships, and estranged family. Like several Lexical characters he began his existence as the protagonist of his own story and has gone through several iterations; he has landed as a semi-significant side story of the Stage City campaign I'm running. "I really fucked it up this time, didn't I my dear?" perfectly fits him.
Gunman/Blotter - sageiskami
Hey it's more fight music! Specifically fight music that samples a literal fighting game. It's violence turned into entertainment for the ones doing it; and that doesn't describe any character better than it does Model Tom. She's a Shape of Flesh, a shapeshifter, a sociopath, and absolutely having such a fun time being a villain. He's extremely fun to roleplay as in Staged City, which is a slightly worrying statement.
Children of the Omnisiah - Guillam Davis
A haunting church choir with a back drop of electronic noise. I've come to associate electronic elements in songs with the Wyrd side of Lexical; and with it, this song goes with the Angels of Heaven. Invasive creatures from the edge of human imagination come to reap the souls of humanity and remind them of the gods they used to worship.
Bright Shadow - Hydelic
A comparatively (mostly) calmer piece. Wind, gears, windmills, nature, and the connective rhythm that ties them together. I find this song ties closely to the magic practitioners of Lexical, especially to one specific one: Richard Dahlmann. He comes from a long family of magicians, will workers who tame the Wyrd without ever fully giving one's self to it. A proud Old Warden. Fully human but able to play a song and have the world listen.
Numb - Freya Cathine, Jack Victor
There is a certain amount of humor and irony to this song I can't ignore, but read straight this song could easily be sung by Joshua of Broken Whole. Most of his life is inescapably about his relationship with his father. At first all his actions as a way to escape from under his father's influence; then during the story itself facing the same life his father had and attempting to do different. "To be more like me, and less like you" Joshua says into a mirror.
Fire Fire - Steam Power Giraffe
A song about a burning disaster and the affect it has on the survivor. The Wardens, Old and New, have attempted to keep Earth and humanity from itself for as long as recorded history. Whether it's the secret society of wyrdlings and wizards of the Old or the Inscribed costumed heroes of the New, history rhymes with itself. Disaster comes regardless of anyone's attempt to stop it, and those that manage to live through it can never fully walk away from the memories. Despite their good deeds and their heroism the history of the Wardens is full of failure and an inability to meaningfully save the world.
Hajnal - Venetian Snares
I love this, easily one of my favorite songs. In the context of Lexical it describes the First Wave, the several thousand first Inscribed. Those troubled individuals who woke up to a world carefully playing along to an old tune strung by those in power, and shattering it with drums and electronics. The First Wave marked the end of many things: mainly the Old Wardens, the Wyrd masquerade, and most world governments. It's hard to maintain a functional civilization when a politically charged maniac who can manifest explosions targets effectively any head of state. The First Wave turned Lexical into the Earth it now is, forever changing it's music.
No one is Flying the Plane - Panzerballett
Another favorite of mine. Organized discordant chaos held together by an underlying beat. This is the theme of the Staged City, the story of New Maine buckling underneath the unrelenting crises that plague it. Of course it's also specifically about one character, the BBEG of the campaign, one underlying beat of the song: (spoilers ahead for Staged City) The Baron. Nothing is actually happening naturally, everything is a stage being prepared for this one villain.
#writeblr#lexical earth#writers on tumblr#writeblr game#Broken Whole#Staged City#I did not have the restraint to write short descriptions for each song#but I hope y'all find the world building enjoyable
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Brickclub 5.9.3 “A Pen Is Heavy to Him Who Lifted Fauchelevent’s Cart”
It’s awful. Valjean is dying, all his strength is gone, and the description of his face has aged 30 years almost overnight. Even alone in the apartment he’s trying to self-efface--he’s had his bed moved to the front room because he doesn’t want to take up more space than that. And he’s weak enough here that it’s become clear there isn’t any coming back from this.
He lights the candlesticks, a thing I’m not sure we’ve ever seen him actually do before. Which feels part and parcel with his tendency to treat important objects as dead relics of the past rather than part of the future, just like Cosette’s childhood mourning clothes, which he also has out. The text says the candles he lights are like the candles in a room where someone is dead.
It’s holy. But I don’t think this was the only holy use they could have had.
Fun, terrible fact: You know how this chapter ends with “At that moment there was a knock at the door”? I once bought a misprinted copy of Les Mis (FMA, I think) where the book cut off after this chapter. That was the last line.
Valjean’s awful letter is meant to be a fakeout, I think--and I think that’s telling. He starts by sounding like he’s going to set the record straight (albeit very deferentially) about how Marius is mistaken about a couple of things.
He sounds like he’s about to tell Cosette the truth.
Cosette, I bless you. I am going to explain something to you. Your husband was quite right in giving me to understand that I ought to leave; while there is some mistake in what he believed, he was right. He is very good. Always love him dearly when I am dead. Monsieur Pontmercy, always love my darling child. Cosette, this paper will be found, this is what I want to tell you,
It sounds like the introduction to everything I want from him? He’s speaking to Cosette directly, at LAST. He’s finally coming clean to the person who most needs to know what the hell just happened to her life.
...And then, of course, he starts explaining, garbled, without context, how to make glass jet jewelry. He really just wants to prove Cosette’s money is hers so Marius will let her keep it.
It’s meant to be a disappointing fakeout, I’m very sure of that. I’m less sure, of course, that Hugo is anywhere near being with me on Cosette deserving to know about his past and her own--but I’m pretty sure this letter is meant to sound like it was about to tell her at least enough to clear up what happened between him and Marius.
And it matters that his last address is to Cosette, not to her husband. I don’t know what it means because Hugo is super weird about Cosette, but it feels important. The chapter even references how he’s by the same mirror where her blotter blabbed her secrets to him--and it feels almost like a hint of an idea that the two of them might be better at communicating through writing than they were out loud. It also feels like mirror associations we’ve had before, like the mirror for testing the breath of the dead which Simplice used to show him his hair had turned white. That mirror foreshadowed the death of Fantine, and this one foreshadows Valjean’s own.
That Valjean flinches and can’t go through with telling the story... it’s hard to call it a failure, he’s sick and his rambling is a symptom of illness, among other things, but it’s meant to be a sign of the sheer wrongness of the place where he is. He’s reduced to believing the only thing that matters justifying his monetary worth to people with more money and power than he he has, the same way Fantine did at the depth of her despair and illness, because that’s always how misérables are judged.
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also the TikTok commercial was Really Cool and Nice! :)
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AND SO NOVEMBER MONTH DRAWS TO A CLOSE -- LAST SET OF THE MONTH.
PIC(S) INFO: November ends, and now it's on to what December has to offer -- I now give you the last set of November Tumblr cover pics in my ongoing series -- Enjoy! (or not). Online finds this month include:
A panel of Venom, self-titled "Lethal Protectror," facing down Toby Stark (or is it Tony?), a live shot of DISCHARGE playing a London, UK gig, with either KILLING JOKE or U2 on the same bill, a movie poster for the 1960 sword-and-sandal epic "Spartacus," a biomechanoid/dark fantasy piece by the late, great H.R. Giger, "Hell Awaits" slaytanic sleeve art by Albert Cuellar, Mad Hatter/"Alice in Wonderland"-inspired acid blotter art by Mark McCloud, a brutal film still from the 1968 modern zombie classic "Night of the Living Dead," and sleeve art to the "Bullet" EP by American horror punk band THE MISFITS.
Sources: The Guardian, Facebook, Grave Mistake Records, Secret Earth's (blog), Offscreen, Flickr, Heritage Auctions, various, etc...
#Tumblr Cover Photos#Cover Photos 2023#Tumblr Cover Photos 2023#Cover Photos#We are Venom!#Tony Stark#Mad Hatter#Mad as a Hatter#LSD blotter#Blotter Art#Psychedelic Art#THE MISFITS Bullet#MISFITS#THE MISFITS band#UK punk#Horror punk#JFK#Spartacus 1960#Sword and Sandal Epics#60s Cinema#Cinema#DISCHARGE#Apocalypse punk#Nuke Wave#IRON MAN#Crash & Burn#Night of the Living Dead 1968#SLAYER#Hell Awaits#Lethal Protector
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time capsule: Fairbanks, AK weekly newspaper of Oct 4, 1961.
Last November, when I was visiting my folks on the Oregon coast, I dropped in at one of my favorite antique stores and came away with an issue of Jessen’s Weekly, a newspaper where the television section was larger than the news section since this was the closest thing to TV Guide available. A fun read about how JFK was pissing off Ike’s fanboys, all the news that’s fit to print and fresh haddock, the growing pains of a place that’s only been a state for three years, and a police blotter that basically says that drunk men and three teenage boys are responsible for all the major crimes in Fairbanks.
Would you like a peek?
First thing to note is that while there’s no classified ad saying this, the Weekly is desperately in need of a proofreader. I’m no newspaper man despite all the journalism, newswriting, and desktop publishing classes from junior high through college, but if you’re a weekly you do have some time to read over at last part of your copy before going to press. I’m omitting a few other egregious errors in body copy since those can slip by easily, but a headline?
Another several typos here, but I will give credit because it’s unclear whether it was The Music Shop that provided incorrect information to the paper or the paper’s layout person who boned this. First thing, I own all four of the albums mentioned above:
Now then: Error 1 is that Sheldon ‘Shelley’ Berman (1925-2017) spelled his name with an ‘e’ before the ‘y’. Error 2 is that the name of his record label was Verve, with a ‘v’ before both of the ‘e’s.
Time for another didn’t-read-the-ad-first ad! And this one MATTERS! I highly doubt that Northern Commercial Company was giving away free McColloch chainsaws, or until this thing hit the stands.
You can own a brand new 1962 Chevy Birdpoop-Catcher! See your dealer!
Sammy Safety himself is an OSHA violation.
...and then they go home and watch the game while the rest of the fam is at the service. Someone there will give them all a lift home, I’m sure.
Also something to do while the family is at church: drink a bunch of Oly beer. “Visitors are always welcome” though it’s been closed since 2003.
You read it here first, folks. Alaska was not racist.
The TV and radio listings were the second, larger section of the paper. And herein you discover they didn’t flip the switch on the two local television stations until 11:55am (CBS) or 5:30pm (NBC and ABC shared a station!). Guess you were supposed to listen to the radio, which did have plenty of programs scheduled, from their start at 6am until the boobtube warmed up.
Also take note of the number of 15 minute programs that were available in 1961, as well as how you could get all the CBS soap operas you could stand: Love of Life, Search For Tomorrow, Guiding Light, As The World Turns, The Secret Storm, The Edge Of Night, and The Brighter Day -- a series which was cancelled two weeks before this issue printed but it would be a little while before a current episode’s tapes reached the TV station and there’s nothing in the blurbs that fill the pages about the cessation of the show.
#vintage#newspaper#1961#alaska#technology#news#if you know the source of the fresh haddock comment#damn you old and I love you
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Getting properly acquainted with Caron this time:
Montaigne by Caron - it says a lot about yellow flowers in the pyramid and the top voted notes, but for me it's mostly benzoin - it overpowers everything and the flowery notes are very much in the background which is a little weird pairing with the benzoin - very unusual.
Rose Ebène by Caron - despite roses literally in the title there are pretty much none in the fragrance - it's mostly very spicy pretty rough leather - just how I like it, but I was hoping for at least a bit roses too.
Secret Oud by Caron - well, wow. I thought it would mostly be labdanum, but it seems it's not - it seems like here we have the medicinal aspect of oud - it smells like in an old fashioned pharmacy where they mix their own medicine - it's not necessarily unpleasant but it sure is specific. I'm now more curious about the weird hypostasises of oud.
Yuzu Man by Caron - very fresh pleasant slightly unusual citruses (since it's yuzu) at the top but unfortunately it develops into slightly fancier dish washing soap. Sadly.
Yatagan by Caron - now that's interesting! The top voted note here is castoreum and I've never tried anything that has a bright animalistic note and I was honestly a little scared here, but apparently for nought - it's not like pretty much anything I've tried (maybe a little bit like that sharp bit at the beginning of Shalimar) but I'm certainly liking it. I'm definitely going to try it on to see how the little beaver going to open up on me. What's a little concerning is that it has pretty poor longevity on the blotter, but maybe I just sprayed too little.
Tabac Noir by Caron - well, this is just plain good tobacco with some nice soothing sweetness at the top, but not much of it - it's mostly tobacco for my nose. Not too special, but nice.
Delire de Roses by Caron - alright here I'm starting to suspect olfactory hallucinations because at the top of this perfume I feel some backed goods and there's nothing to give that in the pyramid - I would have guessed jam since there are litchis but not pastry. After a while it goes away and it becomes a lovely slightly sweet fresh rose with some other flowers as a chorus in the background.
Figfever by Hermetica - returned to this one to wear it in the heat and it was very good juicy figs and black currant for some time but then it became cologne-ish and I don't enjoy when that happens unexpectedly - so it's okay, but definitely not the best figs.
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ꖛ ─ 𝐃𝐀𝐑𝐂𝐘’𝐬 𝐑𝐄𝐂 ❜ post 1
*- personal favorite
…- unfinished
─ 𝐓𝐎𝐏 𝐆𝐔𝐍
ʙʀᴀᴅʟᴇʏ ‘ʀᴏᴏsᴛᴇʀ’ ʙʀᴀᴅsʜᴀᴡ
do you regret it?
ᴊᴀᴋᴇ ‘ʜᴀɴɢᴍᴀɴ’ sᴇʀᴇsɪɴ
save a jet, ride a pilot
ice, ice, baby*
all this time
they all know, he’s in love with you
secret girlfriend
hangman being caught leaving your room
we used to be in love …
gravedigger’s daughter* (chapters)
ʀᴏʙᴇʀᴛ ‘ʙᴏʙ’ ғʟᴏʏᴅ
the captain’s daughter
of gym buddies and overlapping schedules, part 2*
with certainty
baby on board
─ 𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐑𝐘 𝐏𝐎𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐑
ᴊᴀᴍᴇs ᴘᴏᴛᴛᴇʀ
how you get the guy
summer revelations*
invading my senses
what great men say
that’s what friends do
cake, part 2
sɪʀɪᴜs ʙʟᴀᴄᴋ
your dog
i always was
cause i don’t want you like a best friend
a moment
ʀᴇᴍᴜs ʟᴜᴘɪɴ
spilling beer and secrets, dear!
an inappropriate incident*
that cursed, darned b-word
ʜᴀʀʀʏ ᴘᴏᴛᴛᴇʀ
two losses that earned
chasing pavements
just like them
howlers*
ʀᴏɴ ᴡᴇᴀsʟᴇʏ
your lover
ɢᴇᴏʀɢᴇ ᴡᴇᴀsʟᴇʏ
little miss perfect*
ᴅʀᴀᴄᴏ ᴍᴀʟғᴏʏ
i kissed you dumbass
you think so?
skin*
boggart*
promised
resistance, part 2
a love like in the tales, part 2
in love*
you have a beautiful smile
sʟʏᴛʜᴇʀɪɴ ʙᴏʏs
the only heaven i’ll be sent to
never have i ever
guilty pleasures*
cursed feelings
most beautiful time of the year
crystal talk*
bleeding hearts, part 2, part 3*
strings, part 2
invisible string*
august, part 2*
new year’s day
ᴏʟɪᴠᴇʀ ᴡᴏᴏᴅ
paranoia
from eden
ᴘᴇʀᴄʏ ᴡᴇᴀsʟᴇʏ
will you paint my nails?
another howler
tolerate it
ᴠɪᴋᴛᴏʀ ᴋʀᴜᴍ
not named (1)
not named (2)
─ 𝐁𝐑𝐈𝐃𝐆𝐄𝐑𝐓𝐎𝐍
ᴀɴᴛʜᴏɴʏ ʙʀɪᴅɢᴇʀᴛᴏɴ
right in front of me*
illicit affairs
not so bad
ɢʀᴇɢᴏʀʏ ʙʀɪᴅɢᴇʀᴛᴏɴ
blotter
ᴘʀɪɴᴄᴇ ғʀɪᴇᴅʀɪᴄʜ
the queens plan
amore e psiche, part 2, part 3
woven in the stars
─ 𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒
ᴇᴅᴅɪᴇ ᴍᴜɴsᴏɴ
opposites attract
dealers choice, part 2, part 3
you made me hate this city
the metal head and the material girl, part 2
hellfire baby*
kiss me
─ 𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐕𝐄𝐋
sᴛᴇᴠᴇ ʀᴏɢᴇʀs
no questions asked
coward
─ 𝐏𝐄𝐀𝐊𝐘 𝐁𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑𝐒
ᴛᴏᴍᴍʏ sʜᴇʟʙʏ
‘til summer comes around
─ 𝐂𝐄𝐋𝐄𝐁𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐄𝐒
ᴛᴏᴍ ʜᴏʟʟᴀɴᴅ
meet me halfway
i swear to god i never fall in love
ceo!tom
broken hearts and empty cups
torn leaves, broken hearts*
the fame game*
ʜᴀʀʀʏ sᴛʏʟᴇs
reasons to hate you
#hendallreunited
famous harry x influencer reader, part 2
sorry to bother you*
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