#so i'll be using these to experiment w/limited color

[shalmonsdraws]

breezy

#appa #atla #avatar the last airbender #pixelart #pixel #pixel animation #rly wanna pixel doodle more often but hobby management is a Challenge lately #but anyway i have a big folder of aseprite canvases w/different palettes loaded in #so i'll be using these to experiment w/limited color

[twbutterfly-milk]

Tw: Taking care of your hair w/ an ED. This mentions nutrient deficiencies and eating disorders so if you think this will trigger you, please scroll to something else (or get off your phone/go to sleep, if you needed that reminder)

Look, a cute whale shark :)

Note: I still need to edit this with examples of foods that include these nutrients but if you're okay with just researching those foods yourself go ahead. I keep seeing people struggling with their hair cuz of it and i feel like i can't wait too much longer to post this so yeah i'll just edit it with examples since the nutrients you need are already here. Also, a disclaimer, i'm not a professional, just a nerd.

It's no secret that often people with ED's will begin to lose hair strength/experience hair loss as a result of several nutrient deficiencies. It is not ,however, scientifically supported that vitamin supplementation can, on it's own, reverse these effects(and,with the very important exception of vitamin C and iron, i can't find anything stating that vitamin supplementation actually does anything at all). Here's some hair tips that will hopefully help(i tried to find some that will work for kinky/curly hair too; these seem to be mostly general rules for all kinds of hair in general rather than any specific kind)

General hair care:

🩷 Oily hair can benefit from more frequent washing.

🩷 Washing every other day should be the most frequent your are washing your hair, washing every day is gonna make it weak and fall out, you can leave for longer depending on your hair too

🩷 Concentrate shampoo on the scalp.

🩷 Use conditioner after every shampoo. Leave it in for around at least 5 minutes before rinsing it out (it can depend on the conditioner, some say 10 minutes so you can just check the back of the bottle ig).

🩷 Use a swim cap when in the pool to protect your hair from chlorine.

🩷 Choose a shampoo and conditioner formulated specifically for your hair type.

🩷 Protect hair when swimming.

🩷 Reduce Stress. Your emotional and physical well-being may impact your hair.

🩷 Limit Bleaching or Coloring Your Hair.

🩷 Avoid Excessive Heat Styling.

🩷 Be gentle with your hair

Nutrients (scroll down to find examples of foods where you can find them):

🩵 Protein, especially lean proteins(aka, white meats and any plant based proteins, although greek yoghurt is also highly reccomended as it contains vitamin B5 or pantothenic acid, which may help combat hair thinning and loss)

🩵 Iron and Vitamin C (supplementation is reccomended, most other nutrient supplements don't seen to be proven as efficient enough for me to reccomend to take them, supplementing iron and vitamin C doesn't mean you shouldn't have it in your diet alongside supplementation aswell)

🩵 Biotin

🩵 Zinc

🩵 Vitamin A

🩵 L-cysteine

🩵 Keratin (a protein and one of the main structural constituents of hair)

Foods that are rich in these nutrients: (in need of completion)

Thank you for loving yourself enough to take time out of your day to read this. Remember it's okay to prioritize yourself and your health. You are important (even if you don't think so).

@bambi-black4ever bcuz u said u needed it

[viciousewe]

Hmmmm

I'm getting a spinning wheel sized tax return this year so obviously.....I want a spinning wheel. But I have a lot of options, I've never spun on a treadle wheel, and have some chronic pain in my knees and back so I need advice.

My top choices are:

Ashford e-spinner 3: (my top pick currently)

Pros: Ive developed the habit of spinning lying down and this is the best way to continue that. It's small and I will easily find space in my already yarn stuffed bedroom.

Cons: expensive.....there goes most of the return...I've always wanted a treadle wheel so I'll still probably get wheel envy....

Ashford kiwi:

Pros: cheap. At the price of one kiwi I could use the rest of my return to get......another kiwi? (Or save it I guess)

Cons: it’s not….that aesthetically pleasing. I know that doesn’t mean much and I would finish it myself in a pretty color but still. I don’t see a lot of people with one so that makes me nervous. I can’t spin in bed and I would be limited to 15-30min sessions between breaks which kind fucks w the flow of spinning. Also where am I putting this thing

???: if it comes unfinished I am finishing it myself but that means I’ll have to do the walk of shame into my old job at the Lowe’s AND go to the section where I used to work idk if I could handle that. The small hardware store down the street probably doesn’t have the pretty blue gray finish I would want thoooo

Kromski ministrel:

Pros: oh my god this has been my dream wheel for the whole 15 years I’ve been spinning. It’s pretty….and the walnut stain?

Cons: expensive……also the same as the kiwi in terms of needing breaks and taking up space.

???: I kinda do wanna finish it my self and I could get a pretty dark stain at the local hardware store….

Book Charkha:

Pros: the cheapest by far. Easy to store. I bet I could work out a way to spin lying down with this thing.

Cons: it’s strongly associated with Ghandi which as a non Hindu Indian makes me feel some kind of way.

???: honestly could save up for this easily so I’d rather spend my tax money on something I can’t normally save for

If anyone has experience w any of these (or with both e spinners and treadle wheels or thought of smth I didn’t) please chime in. Right now I’m leaning toward the espinner due to the agonies but I also hear that treadling is mostly in the hips and my knees aren’t that bad so it’s mostly my back that’s the problem.

#spinning #handspinning #spinning wheels #spinning wheel

[planets-and-prose]

Find The Word

I was tagged on this by @k-v-briarwood, thank you for the tag!

My words are: Leak, Beam, Favor, Neglect.

I'll tag @chayscribbles, @n1ghtcrwler, @bones-and-rainbows, if y'all want to, and anyone else who does want to :) Your words are: Blue, Rip, Shine, Blanket.

Since Continuing Education really isn't...written, I'm doing Signature Powers so we'll see if that half-done, swiss cheese manuscript pulls some decent quotes. These are...entirely unedited, but I'll provide limited context when appropriate.

Leak (AKA the two local aromantic enbys learn about queer-platonic relationships)

“We…slept together,” Vandita murmured. "Overnight." “It…looks that way,” Hikari replied, trying for a chuckle. It came out oddly forced. “And it doesn’t feel wrong,” Vandi added. They also looked shocked at this turn of events, and that brought Hikari at least a little bit of comfort. Thank the gods that they weren’t the only one out of their element. “No, it doesn’t.” Silence stretched for a moment as the morning sun leaked through the window, spilling shadows across the room. “So, we…should we talk about this?” Vandi asked, sitting up in bed. “Maybe? Yes. I think we likely should. Maybe you have more experience in this than I do?” Gods, they hoped one of them had experience.

Beam (Exposition, and allusions to me being unable to NOT have a shapeshifting character)

"Niko, if we don't find anything, it'll be fine. You've been helping so the pain isn't as bad, and I haven't shifted in quite some time. I could live like this easily. If we find anything, it'll be amazing, but we don't have to." "But you SHOULDN'T have to live this way! You shouldn't! Your damn contractor…" "…is just one of many contractors. I don't have it the worst, trust me. It's just how things are in a lot of places. I should have known better. I asked for power, and I signed a contract stating that that power had a price. Yes, I didn't know about the bone issues, but…I should probably have known. That's just the way it is. Contractors have and will do much worse." "But it just…! Ugh!" Niko huffed out a frustrated sigh. "Still. If I can help you, I will, so we're going to try. Besides, travel might be nice. You're so used to running around in the woods, hopefully it'll be good for you too." Rose beamed. "I have missed the woods."

Favor (In which Vandi and Hikari come back, and Vandi's pronouns are inconsistent because they're she/they and honestly I did this whole thing in a month for NaNo lol)

Hikari nodded and gave a sympathetic grimace. “Overprotective father?” “You could say that.” Thinking of their father, how angry he’d be…how he probably had half the army out searching for his two errant children…it was definitely something. But it was liberating to not be associated with her father for once, to not have to be royal or perfect or even have to worry about it. The only person who might know about their royal background was Gil, and he hadn’t said anything so far. It was probably alright. “Well, I’d better go check on Seri. She’s…having a rough time.” “She does have a lot on her shoulders, it seems. She’s not really letting any of us in.” Vandita shook her head. “She doesn’t really trust that easily, and I’m trying to get her to loosen up. But it’s definitely not working.” “Well, time’ll do it. Go take care of your sister,” Hikari told them with a reassuring smile. Vandita nodded and left Hikari’s chambers in favor of Serilee’s.

Neglect

Apparently I haven't used this word? Ever? I checked like four manuscripts...so either Scrivener hates me or I'm not utilizing that particular brand of angst enough. So I'm throwing in a random excerpt from SP that I Just Felt Like.

Codell turned his attention to his quilt, examining the bright patterns and the intricate detail. Now that he couldn’t hear or speak, he learned that his eye for detail improved markedly, giving him an ability to sew intricate patterns, distinguish between colors and fade one seamlessly into another in a way that seemed almost impossible to achieve with blocks of fabric. Living in silence gave plenty of time to recreate beautiful mountain views in quilted fabric, bringing an art that was once thought to be simply “homey” into an art form of its own. And if people managed to get past the stony exterior and the strangely all-knowing stare, they would have the opportunity to buy a truly resplendent piece of artwork. Yet few did, so often Codell simply sat, beneath an awning so as not to burn his fair skin, sewing in…well, it was always silence for him. But few tried to talk to him. Today wasn’t an exception, aside from the vision.

Thank you again for the tag!!

#tag game #my writing #wow this wip needs edits bad #but you know what it exists #reblog

[tilthedayidice]

Howdy Ho Y'all!

I've finally decided to offer commissions!

Right now I'm limiting myself so I don't get too overwhelmed, but I'm excited to get some more experience in!!

Starting off with Character Portraits:

Bust:

Sketch- $10

Line Art- $15

Flat Color- $20

Torso:

Sketch- $15

Line Art- $20

Flat Color- $25

Fully Body:

Sketch- $20

Line Art $25

Flat Color- $30

Now Headshots!

Style 1:

Sketch- $10

Line Art- $15

Style 2:

Sketch- $10

Line Art- $15

Flat Color (B&W)- $17

I currently have 4 slots for requests and will be taking them at [email protected] !! Please include whatever details you feel are important, and any references you think important or useful!

I'll link this post in my pinned post along with how many slots are available!!!

I might be a little messy at this because I've never done it before, but I'm eager to learn and to make!!!!!

#art #art commissions #art commission info #info post #digital Art #procreate #artist #dungeons and dragons #dnd

[candyskiez]

I continue to enable :3

Signature weapon? Embarrassing Moment(s)? Have they colored their hair?

For uh... Whichever ones you would like to talk about most right now?

woo hoo let's go!! strap in boys >:]

1. okay think of bards in the dnd and toh sense for a sec, jasper uses his lute and his staff (magic go whrrrrr). he's brilliant w his spells, but he limits himself. he could absolutely fuck someone up with say, dissonance or different keys etc. but he's unhealthily obsessed with perfection, doing magic the "correct" way, so he does like. hell do the aesthetically pleasing music. he never lets himself experiment or have "ugly" sounding music, only the pretty shit. this severely limits him. hes so obsessed with always keeping on his perfect image. the cold, calculated, unbeatable soldier. the charming right hand who youd love at parties. the brilliant taction. his magic improves so much when he lets it be messy and not cold and detached. jasper the perfect fighter could fuck you up. jasper can fuck you up without restraining himself to always keep up the image. am I making sense? I dont think I'm making sense. he basically avoided experimenting because he was terrified of messing up a new thing. even though that's how you learn. messing up is messing up in his eyes, so he limited himself. he's also good with hand to hand combat and resourceful. he just sticks himself so much into a box of not experimenting. because why start something new and be bad at it when you can stick with old things you're good at?

to be completely honest ivys more of my friends oc than mine, so I dont know them nearly as well as i know jasper. but they're an oracle! they have an axe! theyre really good with blades in general. their oracle magic is mainly not combative but they know offensive spells too. usually shit like. yk moving the ground/how metal works. they're good at what they do. although, like jasper due to the Character Foil™, they do have some self inflicted weakness. they divine in the dark because it allows for clearer visions, but it's horrible for their body. theyre fucking themselves up from unhealthy oracle habits like this and others (doing extremely intense visions on little sleep, back to back visions, etc) leaving them very sick after a difficult case (unable to see properly, loopy, unabke to differenitate visions from present), and also don't really pay too much mind to their own mental health when divining. has an extreme need to Know everything, know every single thing, or they'll lose it. I'll talk about their need to Know more soon I think.

2. hmmm embarrassing moment. I mean for both of them, okay in the jasper alone timeline they grew up together yeah? jasper had a habit of sleeping at the foot of ivys bed. why? because he's a clingy little bitch let him live. and ysee. ivy moves a lot in their sleep. and at one point, they started kicking around. kid jasper got kicked straight off the fucking bed, sent flying into the fucking wall, and lost his last baby tooth. yelped very loudly and promptly started painting the entire room bright fucking red. kid ivy lost their shit, grabbed him and dragged him to their caretaker and was sobbing SIR. SIR I KILLED JASPER. I KILLED HIM. HELP. while jasper was very much Not Dead. he was talking to her and telling her he's okay and covered in his own blood. he looks like he stumbled out of a fucking crime scene from losing an incisor. ivy kept his tooth as a trophy because they're like that.

3. oh jaspers hair is actually interesting! naturally brunet, but dyes it blond. jasper for a long time was very intent on being conventionally attractive. he's very reliant on outside approval. made sure every part of him fit that picture perfect attractive golden boy. him allowing himself to have his natural hair color and to look more like Himself and not solely conventionally attractive is actually a big part of yk changing character design w character arc for him. goes from perfect straight blonde hair to fluffy, long brown hair. not covering up any birth marks, wearing more comfortable clothes and actually looking like himself.

ivy dyes their hair pink. or potentially was born w it since this world is Magic, either works. they also have some funky fun design changing to reflect character development. going from long hair to a side shave, wearing glasses openly instead of just pushing through and trying to hide it (I get u ivy I have So many insecurities around my eyesight. I am projecting lmao.), more piercings, need to show her design more tbh I've gotta make more picrews of The Gang.

sorry for incoherence, it is night rn and I am bad at articulating.

#candyskiez oc bs

[mjulmjul]

hey! i am consistently in awe of your work, i genuinely adore it (I’d love to get prints of some of your pieces if that’s available anywhere 👀) but im writing to ask abt your technique and brushes! Im new to digital art, and i wanna create the sort of effect you make and i cannot for the life of me figure out how to do it! you have these strokes that look sort of like charcoal but also paint? also refracted light???? idk what program u use or anything and im just a noob still learning how to get the most out of the brushes that come w procreate, but even if you’re using a different program and stuff, I’d love to see if there’s anyway i can translate that effect somehow to the tools I’m using. It��s really cool stuff!! im sorry if you’ve already answered this somewhere 😅

hey! ok first off take anything i say with a grain of salt because 1. i'm self taught 2. there are many many ways to do art, there's no One Right Way. experiment and settle on what works best for you!

atm I basically only use procreate on ipad with an apple pencil.

I've compiled the brushes I use most into this post click here, I'd say download some sets and try them out! this seems to be a bit of an unpopular opinion because I regularly see advice to stick to the basic brushes however if you were making traditional art you wouldn't unnecessarily limit yourself to the cheapest brushes/paints either (assuming you could afford everything), so. go ham.

the main technique I use is a pretty common one where I use a big textured brush and then use a base color layer + clipping masks (you can google how to use these) or selection tool to get sharp edges. so I'll make a selection of the shape I want to paint and then paint within that selection. i often do this with light strokes and/or the brush on lower opacity so i'll keep texture. if you look at concept artists on instagram you'll see this technique used a lot too :) 'edge control' is a term to google to find more about hard/soft edges and how they'll improve your art!

for the light, even for digital art I would very very much recommend james gurney's book 'color and light' because it teaches you almost all you need to know about, well, color and light, and you can apply these principles to digital art too. it's well worth the price but if you can't afford it then there are perhaps some copies to be found online ;) for the actual method in procreate, I like to use layers on the add and screen blending modes, sparingly, and NOT with white highlights but with the actual color of the light e.g. yellow, blue-ish, etc. for stuff like wings, it's usually multiple layers stacked on top of each other!

(i am not organized)

as a final note i will add that i painted traditionally for years before starting digital art, so i do think that'll have influenced my approach in a couple ways because i basically took all that knowledge and methods into digital rather than starting from scratch.

#hope this is comprehensible and sorry for lack of more pics I just know it’d have taken even longer otherwise #feel free to dm me if you have more questions #if anyone is wondering about a specific painting let me know and i'll happily explain howeverrrr #am terrible with answering asks tho so pls be patient & just in case too many ppl ask i may not get around to all of it #not art #mjulmjul answertime #LONG post

[ibelieveinghost]

4/7/24

up-dates!!!

1st off!: got my visa!!! finally!!!!!! actually, i got it on Wednesday but never found the energy to write here haha. oh! i graduated on Friday too and somehow talked the school into refunding the rest of the tuition. so everything went great in the end.

but seriously. i haven't write in so long, and i'll try my best this morning(rainy Sunday vibes yay!) to cover as much as possible. ok moving on---

i've been drawing/sketching on and off, and it sorta feels like a habit. lighthearted efforts and ease, something i rarely experience w/ making art since...since high school.

i've been updating more consistently on my blogs/twitter now. i got some response. some. not as much as one'd wish haha. but honestly, i felt so grateful that people are liking my stuff.

on the other hand, the job hunting has been going... well it has been going! not a ton of jobs being posted out there since early March, and i'm starting to realize that i'm only pretending to be really wanting certain positions. i got so accustomed to idea of working as a researcher/scientist, but. man. wasn't that why i left school in the first place, that i fucking hate it despite pouring ~10 years of my life into it and seemed to be going somewhere. having bright prospects and all. now that i knew. well. i need a little more time to think and un-think, to not rush ahead, and be complete honest w/ myself. getting the visa means i got all the time i want. so again, all worked out in the best way possible.

oh yea! birthday coming up in couple weeks! woo hoo! been planning a little overnight trip somewhere! probably 軽井沢 or 伊豆高原. idk! haven't gone anywhere not Tokyo/Yokohama since early Jan, and traveling alone is totally my thing! actually, growing older is so much cooler than i'd thought when i was in my early 20s. but like. past me: imagining feeling more grounded, taking things less seriously, and being more in tune with urself.

ok! dumping some photos seem like a good way to continue:

(reverse chronological order)

(コメダ I literally come here everyday now lol)

(graduation cert came with a bear! + my lamys... i'm not collecting them! they're super easy to write to write with and i adore the bright neon colors that's it!)

( i went to the 4D special viewing of prisoner of Azkaban and man---it worked so well w/ the 4D format. i mean it is the rainy/icy snowy one of the 8, so a lot of spraying water on your face situations! i was wearing a wide grin the whole time i guess. it was so much fun. that being said, i def shed a few tears near the end when harry realized no one's coming to save the two of em, so he stepped out and did what he didn't even know he's capable of. a scene my younger self never managed to relate to. but it def resonates now.

i love this movie so much, probably my fav out of all of them. watched it at the theater w/ dad when i was probably in...middle school or younger?)

(awww)

(the day i got my visa)

(date w/ S!)

(dinner later that night, w/ the gang)

(us, acting a little stupidly ha + interesting cards i took from the bar)

(last Sunday)

(the komeda near ogikubo station, it went all orange that day + cute lil book i might come back and buy later)

(the night i last hang out w/ A)

damn we're reaching the 30 photo/post limit

so guess that's that! i'm coming back to wrap up this epic photo dump soon(later today)

it felt so nice to just recounting my life, sharing all the bits and pieces on one had ever asked for. to me, it's a cute and ultimately therapeutic thing to do. my future self must be thanking me for taking the time to record everything haha.

anyway! see ya soon!

#日记 #diary

[gsnap125]

Reading The Second Sex - Preface

I recently received a copy of the Second Sex, by Simone de Beauvoir. Since this is such an influential text in modern feminist thought, I've decided to give it a careful reading. A few days later, I'm several chapters in, and have a great many thoughts about the text, so I've decided to journal them here. This post is to provide personal context, so that my other posts can be focused on the chapter of the book in question.

The point of this is not really to make any major contributions to feminist thought. I don't have much background in academic feminism, so I don't have a fantastic sense of how exactly feminist thought has evolved in the 70+ years since this book was published. That said, I have been listening to feminist ideas for several years; I expect many of the thoughts I have on the text are retellings of previous writers whose ideas I have heard over the years. With that in mind, the idea is not that my reading of the text is especially groundbreaking.

Rather, this is a way for me to organize my thoughts as I read. I have a specific perspective on the text that is informed by my experience, and I think it will be helpful for myself to synthesize some ideas as I read. If this is of any interest to others, then all the better. With that in mind, I thought I would ground my commentary by referring to specific parts of the text. I am reading the unabridged version translated by Constance Borde and Sheila Malovany-Chevallier, published in 2011 (as best I can tell). I will cite page numbers as I have them, and the analysis we be categorized by chapter so it should hopefully be intelligible for other versions of the text. I am not fluent in French, so I will be limited to this English translation.

The translators have fortunately used the terminology of the time of the original text intact. Notably, this excludes concepts such as the delineation of sex and gender, and includes use of terms like "sexuality" that may seem discordant to a modern reader (who is more likely to hear that term in discussions of LGBTQ+ people). While I am immensely thankful the translators retained the original wording, I see no reason to hold myself to the same restriction. I plan to replace the terms in the text with modern terms that I think most accurately reflect my interpretation of the text. I'll use brackets to denote this, and the page reference will hopefully be sufficient for the interested reader to critically evaluate my substitutions.

As far as personal context, I have read far enough that it has become clear that I have a few identities that are important to how I read this text. The first, and least important, is that I am a practicing scientist. I am a physicist, so I don't expect my technical expertise to be too relevant here, but working in science colors how I interpret the sections on science, and makes me aware of my limits when speaking to topics where I am not an expert; perhaps in ways someone who has less claim to expertise may not, for better and for worse. I am also a white woman, born and raised in the United States. This colors my understanding of racism, imperialism, and the international effects of colonialism - they are often academic and impersonal issues, vitally important ethically and historically, but ultimately not immediately and directly oppressive to me.

I am also a transgender woman. I am not interested in debating whether this part of my identity makes me unable to speak from the perspective of a woman. I suffer under patriarchy because of my womanhood, experience misogyny, and my daily life has far, far more in common with a cis woman than a cis man. But there are some relevant differences between the trans and cis experiences of womanhood. There are some obvious differences of anatomy, in my case I benefited from male privilege for two decades before I came out, and I "opted into" womanhood in a way cis women typically don't. Of course, I didn't actually choose to be a woman any more than cis women; no one chooses their gender identity. But I did decide to transition, to present to others as a woman, despite patriarchy, despite misogyny, and despite transphobia. This is an often underappreciated part of the trans experience. Throughout my commentary, I will refer to the parts of it that I understand differently as a trans woman. I think this will be interesting in many ways; for me it will help understand the ways in which my intersectional identity affects my reading; for cis folks I'm sure it will reveal some interesting parts of the trans experience that are not obvious.

I think that is just about everything I wanted to preface my reading with, and now I can write while conscious of my starting point. ^^

#the second sex #simone de beauvoir #constance borde #sheila malovany-chevallier #feminism #transfeminism #book reading

[joisbishmyoga]

More art! (Both color and b&w versions.) Based off an rp a friend and I did a few years ago:

Quick background points:

Turns out that if you set Persona 5 in 2022 -- which, you can, the calendar matches up with 2016 -- Gorou is five during Persona 3. (And makes it entirely possible that Gorou's mother actually died of Apathy Syndrome. Cruel irony is cruel.)

W and I have an OTP/3/4.

Minato is the canon manga name for P3's male protagonist. We like it better than the movies' "Makoto", and now with P5 the movie name would get confusing anyway.

(sorry for length, where the heck did the read-more cut go on this app...?)

J: Meanwhile Mitsuru is being all "it's 2 in the morning and Elizabeth's done WHAT"

W: 'Brought us a 'future guest of the Velvet Room.' At Minato's behest.

J: 'He's HOW old? Elizabeth kidnapped a small child from his bed and Minato didn't tell her to put him back...?'

W: 'Perhaps six. And Minato told her to bring him to us. My experience with children not Ken-san is limited, but I already hypothesize that his previous environment was actively detrimental.'

J: 'Should I be waking my lawyers?'

J: She has already inadvertently woken Aki by getting up, bc I say so. Shinji... idk, he's either not been found yet or is still in hospital probably.

W: 'Yes. Custody arrangements must be made immediately--ah. Minato suggested that you require an heir.'

W: Still in hospital, he was in a LONG coma.

J: '.... Aigis, I'm eighteen, barely a month out of high school, have just taken on the responsibilities of a Fortune 500 company without the business degree or any experience, and have a dozen patronizing patriarchal sharks circling just within my own company. It would be completely insane to adopt a child right now. I'll do it.'

W: 'Minato knows us all so well. And SEES is behind you in this as in all things.'

J: Aki woke up fully at 'Minato' and alarmed half out of bed at 'custody', and now he's sitting there in the sheets all wide-eyed.

J: Aki: She's right. We gotcher back, Mitsuru.

J: Aki: But man. A kid, huh?

W: Mitsuru: You and Shinjirou needed someone to look after anyway.

J: Aki: Coulda done with a few more months to get Shinji back on his feet, but heh. Yeah. I guess. Want me to come with?

W: Mitsuru: Yes, please. You know far more about children than I do.

J: Aki: *gets up, gets dressed super-casual bc time* This late, it'll be a tossup between worst behavior and too insecure to risk showing it.

W: Mitsuru: He seems charmed by Aigis being a robot, and seems very impressed by Minato being a hero. 

J: Aki: ... That's really worrying. We're gonna be in for it, Mitsuru. Let's go.

#fanart #persona series #AU fanart #in this house we appreciate Akechi Gorou and in this essay I will #Kirijo Mitsuru #Mitsuru x Akihiko

[thenoirblogger]

Trouble Is My Business" Pictures

Front cover

Back cover

Spine

Two Blu-ray disc collection

"Trouble Is My Business" Copy

"Trouble Is My Business" Review (Posted on 06-30-2018)

Jennifer Montemar (Brittney Powell) and Roland Drake (Thomas Konkle)

What a lot of people don't realize is how much energy, creative effort, time and money are required to produce a movie/film. Being a video creator myself, it's a ton of work....but the final results are incredibly rewarding. Producing movies is a natural passion; It's an art; It's a visual form of storytelling, be it true or fictional. Ever wonder why these made-for-web projects are getting all the viewership and praise? Peek through the over-hyped movies marketed every 6 yoctoseconds, and you'll find that there are a chock full of independent, low-budget and under-recognized movies that the film industry *wishes* they made. Ladies and gentlemen of all ages, I present to you this: Trouble Is My Business.

The story is about a detective named Roland Drake, played by Thomas Konkle, whose sexy client Katherine Montemar asks for help in snatching a diamond—the Orlov Diamond—that belonged to her family. Along with detering the corrupt, mob-laden black market, Drake contacts those who may have connections as to where this may lead to while keeping innocent and anonymous. During his journey are a bunch of people intercepting his path trying to get him killed, like corrupt police officer Detective Tate, played by Vernon Wells. The movie overall gives off that classic film noir—the early days when the story and the dark life of gangsterism were the goings-on (still goes on today).

There's a bunch of things that go on in this movie that mentioning some parts are enough to ruin the entire thing. While, yes, movie/TV/video game reviews generally contain spoilers, it is a rare instance that a movie this good challenges us not to spill the beans too much. A mention of one or two things can ruin the next plot, but however, if you've watched enough gangster films, murder mysteries and/or the James Bond series, you'll find that this isn't just another movie in contrast to those titles. It's a story with sudden twists and hairpin turns, it'll drop your jaw. I was in awe at the transition from scene to scene.Roland Drake played by Thomas Konkle

"Well, I can't say no to a lady."

— Roland Drake

This is likely one of the classic lines in this movie—a modest detective reluctantly accepting the meeting with a beautiful woman needing his help. This happened twice to Mr. Drake with two women who happen to be sisters. I won't say anymore beyond that.

"I don't like a man with a sense of humor. I find it almost as unattractive as a woman with one."

— Evelyn Montemar

This made me smirk, but should inform you the kind of people—family—who are incredibly serious protecting prized possessions in the underworld. Gangsters do not have a sense of humor, since their operations involve not saying anything to where CIA or FBI could spot suspicious activity going on.

However, in my world above, women love men with a sense of humor and vice versa. Laughter is the best medicine, and is part of the universal language around the world.

"Just because you read accusations in the newspaper doesn't make them true."

— Jennifer Montemar

I feel this should tie to the skepticism people ought to adopt in the real world. Ever wonder why some news reports are served as "distractions?" Think about that.

Jennifer (Brittney Powell) and her mother Evelyn Montemar (Jordana Capra).

Roland Drake (Thomas Konkle) and Jennifer Montemar (Brittney Powell) in bed.

Bert The Cabble (Paul Hungerford) and police officer Ostrowski (Steve Olson).

Lew MacDonald (David Beeler).

As for the movie, you can tell the budget put into making this. It uses a lot of green screen, but remember, that this isn't focused on special effects compared to, say, space movies or scenes featuring explosions and flying (hello, Transformers, Star Wars and Superman fans). This movie is heavily focused on the story giving homage to the old, black & white movies when technology was so limited, movie producers worried more about the story and the acting. It's not like that today—promoting A-list actors to give low-rated movies some financial leverage. Give me a break....

The story overall is like a roller coaster ride: Once you're in it, buckle up because there'll be some surprising twists and turns. Just don't fall off the ride.

Blu-ray Disc Features review:

There's only two options on the Blu-ray menu: Play Movie and Play Trailer. There's no option for Scene Selections which may bother some Blu-ray fans. Whether you want that option or not, it gives the viewer a requirement to completely watch the film from start to finish, and there should be nothing wrong with that.

Trouble Is My Business Blu-ray menu - Black and White and Color

You may wonder why there are two discs: One for color and one for B&W. Why not put the same on one disc? I figured that they wanted to preserve the video quality putting them in separate discs. Putting two of them in one disc sacrifices the quality of the film which, as you know, will turn off a lot of movie/Blu-ray fans (let's not forget that a Blu-ray holds 25GB of data and a DVD only holds 4GB). The Black & White version of the movie gives that authentic mid-1900s feel, catering to those who dig the classic film library. As for the audio, there is no option on the Blu-ray as it is strictly 5.1 Surround. Majority of movie fans, depending on your audio system, prefer 5.1 audio anyway, but if you have a simple stereo system, it works just as well.

A movie specializing in detecting lives of crime finding truth in-between the lines while extracting secrets from a bunch of sketchy people and a family is what makes this a unique story-telling experience. I really want to talk about the film but, again, it'll spoil too much. It was so good we screened the film twice (perhaps again, after this review).

I want you, the viewer/fan, to enjoy the roller coaster ride this film brings especially when you arrive at the ending. The best way to describe it—I can't believe I'm doing this—I'll quote the bridge and chorus from the hit song "I Knew You Were Trouble" by Taylor Swift:

And he's long gone

When he's next to me

And I realize the blame is on me

'Cause I knew you were trouble when you walked in

So shame on me now

Flew me to places I'd never been

So you put me down

— Lyrics from "I Knew You Were Trouble" by Taylor Swift

Enjoy that scene as it will raise eyebrows.

While this movie just released on Blu-ray as recent as this month of June (2018), some of you may have obtained this packaging:

Scanavo Blu-ray case packaging

I've personally never seen this packaging. From all the Blu-rays we own in our SHOWSOTROS! video library collection, this is a huge first. I thought it was an imitation but after doing research, this Blu-ray case is by a company brand Scanavo. I feel these cases are uncommon, but unveiling it on this review, expect studios and networks to invest and do business with them showing up more frequently at your local video and electronics stores. (Yeah, I was scared for a second fearing I got a pirated copy. You'd have to be a serious low life to still produce pirated copies in this modern age.)

It's been a long while, for me at least, to finally watch and enjoy something that grips you from start to finish. Now that we've brought this amazing piece into the spotlight, we'll likely see more of this story-telling style. Because of how much the story stacks up, it's good enough to turn into a TV series (you heard it from us first, Netflix, Hulu, YouTube, Amazon and many of you TV writers/producers reading this). Actually, you know, turn this movie into a TV series because we'll definitely tune in.

This Blu-ray release is still hot, fresh and new. Grab your copy as we strongly recommend this movie!

Shop for more Blu-rays and DVDs like this at WBShop.com:

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© 2008-2019 written and reviewed personally by Kris Caballero.

"Trouble Is My Business" Ratings

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