#still repping gorgeous Nina

[rappaccini]

alright shadow and bone thoughts

in general solid high 8/10. i think they have great potential. they take the best of the books, and really integrate its weaker points and find ways to bridge the gap between intention and execution.

the actors were fabulous. i still have mixed feelings about young and callahan in terms of how netflix whittled down jesper's skin tone and nina's weight, but i do think they were great in the roles. the cast in general is absolutely fantastic and they elevate their roles considerably.

most of the vfx are fabulous

in terms of queer rep, i appreciate ivan and fedyor being a gay couple who aren't just The Gay Couple and have identities outside of their relationship. and that their relationship is solid but they're still assholes. tua could never.

the action was great. the comedy is great (milo!), the story takes the world so seriously and that's a must for genre work. and the characters are the very best part.

the filmmaking is tight as fuck. i love the transitions and some of the shots (mal and the rabbit? holy shit. malina's separation? holy shit.)

zoya was great. fabulous bitch.

the outfits were excellent, and the steampunk vibes were gorgeous. the aesthetic as a whole is very nice (my one gripe is that ketterdam is so green i have trouble seeing shit).

i like the way the crows were integrated into the plot with the exception of nina.

in terms of romance, i actually give a shit about nina and matthias now, kanej were excellent, and alina has great chemistry with both aleksander and mal. good for her!

(... i... still dislike the love triangle and wish we just didn't have it at all. the galaxy-brain take about how mal and darkling should've been the same person is too strong. but hey, that's more an issue with the story itself. it is what it is.)

mal and alina actually... being friends so we can see how much they care about each other instead of being told about it as mal totally ignores alina until she becomes pretty and powerful and suddenly more alluring? the og books could never.

mal not being afraid of alina's power and not bitter that she's stronger than him? complimenting her and paying attention to her and respecting her judgment? simply... not fucking every girl with a pulse while alina tells him how much she loves him? the og books could never.

racebending mal and alina was an excellent move. it was fantastically integrated into the story, and unfortunately very relevant.

i like that alina's slightly less passive now, though i feel like she was weirdly reluctant to take out the fold given that it killed her parents.

i do appreciate the reframing of her and mal fleeing into a tactical retreat rather than a 'fuck you, got mine' flight. it makes both of them a lot less selfish, a lot braver, a lot more clever. and it means that the ambition she accidentally had in the books is actually intentional in the show. good.

i like that we actually get to understand how trapped alina is because of the shift from her totally drinking the kool aid to being discomforted by being touched, prodded and constantly observed. i like her reluctance to be tailored in this version. a good update that brings us closer to what the author intended but couldn't deliver in the source text. now we actually see how trapped alina feels, instead of being told that as she delights in being pampered and adored.

i love that mal actually gives a shit about alina now. i actually buy that he loves her, unlike in the books, so it feels like we finally got to see what bardugo was going for and failed to deliver.

the darklina vibes were hot. finally they got to fucking kiss. good. for. her.

i like the helnik/darklina juxtaposition of the enemies-to-lovers shit. clever. actually well-done this time.

i like that we got to actually see where kirigan's coming from. he's much more compelling when his motivations are genuine and strong. i feel like the show finally struck the balance the books failed at where we totally understand aleksander's motivations without condoning his actions.

the collar protruding from alina's flesh was gross, creepy and excellent. i also love that alina actually overpowers the collar by being clever and active instead of realizing ~oh it totally doesn't matter at all suddenly~. ugh that was dumb when it happened in the books.

gripes

baghra is the one weak casting. that actress is WAY too young to be playing a crone. thanks hollywood, we see you and we hate it.

i hate the british accents. ffs you couldn't use that netflix budget to hire someone to teach the cast accents.

the big cgi weak point is that deer. he's so fake looking it's distracting.

about mal loving alina. i feel like he cares so much that he... doesn't have anything else driving him. unlike alina, who has her power, and her friends, which kind of unbalances the relationship in a way i don't like. that balance still isn't here yet. we just swung from all the way right to all the way left.

i wish they'd stop relying so heavily on constantly cutting back to flashbacks to show us malina's connection. i loved the meadow scene the first time we saw it, but the fifth? the sixth? i started rolling my eyes. it'd have been much more effective to see it once, and then cut back to it much later. when mal said 'don't you dare say meet me in the meadow' i yelled out SAME.

fridging a love interest to make the darkling's motivation... no. they needed to show him witnessing a massive loss of grisha, not just his girlfriend.

the worldbuilding is very solid, but i really wish they just showed us a fucking map to keep track of where shit is.

they didn't straightwash jesper and they didn't reduce him to the Token Queer, but they also danced around confirming him as bi. i'm just like... hm. don't forget it, show.

i feel like there's a big issue with the pacing. episodes 1-2 and 5 were spectacular, but 3-4, and 6-8 were Just Good in comparison.

it feels like the show took place over only a few days. we needed a clearer show of passage-of-time.

and more than anything it feels like the 40-45 minute time limit on them has made them have very little breathing room. it's all go-go-go when we need time to process and enjoy the world itself. netflix ffs just bring back the 50-55 minute episodes. fuck ~bingeability~ your shows need them.

and honestly... this might've been better as a week-to-week release. i watched it all, and now it's all gone. now i don't have any desire to rewatch it. this needed buildup.

about nina: her and matthias's plot felt like it was just... There. you coulda cut it out, added more flesh to the crows and alina and it'd have been much more important. i love the way she's tied in with the crows at the end, and i think that plot was important to see, but she's too tangential otherwise. give her something plot-relevant to do in the meantime.

so yeah..

#shadow and bone #gregverse

[dregstrash]

Hi! I’m wondering if you could write something about the dregs being invited to Zoyalai’s wedding? Thank you!

I really really really really love this prompt a lot. So I went a tad bit overboard. Cause here’s what I’m thinking

Zoya and Nikolai actually got married privately (it was a small crowd, genya and david were the only people in attendance– it was a last minute thing)

But Genya still made them do the whole Grand Extra wedding cause they’re the king and queen of Ravka. and they’ve got a rep to protect

The guest list included everyone

Dignitaries, ambassadors, lords and ladies, and while no one really knew why the Dregs were invited but they were there

Nina’s dress was drop-dead red. Like it was made out of this material that when she moved the dress would shimmer in a golden kind of gold, and it was strapless so that her shoulders were on full display

Matthias was her perfect complement. He was in that navy blue, that reflected the blue of his eyes, and it was lined in this deep silver, that made him look like he stepped straight out of a fairytale

Jesper (for once in his life) dressed to match. He decided to represent his Grisha colors, and show up in purple. But it’s not like a regular purple– it’s this deep purple that compliments his darker skin and made the light in his eyes sparkle more than usual. He was drop dead gorgeous, but no one would tell that to his face because they didn’t want his ego to swell even more than it already had. This boy also carried a silver cane around. Simply for the aesthetic. Kaz wants to wack him on the face for it

Listen, if Jesper was the “in your face look at me” type of handsome. Wylan was the “soft light and breathtaking” kind of beautiful. He actually styled his hair for once, and he wore more of a lighter grey three-piece suit. The buttons were gold and subtle, and he even wore some rings to really accent the entire ensemble

Then we have Inej. Inej who has spent most of her days on a pirate ship and can’t stand large, cumbersome dresses, so her dress was made out of this breathable material that actually hugged her curves more than she was used to. And because it was a wedding she couldn’t wear her usual black. Instead the dress was this deep maroon. She did her hair in this twisted braided updo, and she even twisted golden ropes to make it look like there was golden light trapped in the midst of her dark hair.

Kaz didn’t actually care. But no one really pulled off black like he did. He wore a longer coat and a vest that was brocaded with an intricate design of velvet. His tie happened to match Inej’s dress, and he strutted around with his cane looking over the guests with a very predatory gaze

All of them sat together during the ceremony

But when the reception started, the safety was off

Jesper partied like there was no tomorrow

Wylan tried his best not to look like he wanted to strangle his boyfriend, while also trying to ply David with all the questions he had about explosives and the best compounds to mix

Nina mingled and dragged Matthias along. He didn’t really say much, but he didn’t need to. Nina was the star of the show, and he didn’t mind being in the background

Kaz and Inej were not seen the whole night

Zoya brought it up to Nikolai and he told her not to worry 

“Brekker promised that as a wedding gift to us he won’t steal or try to sabotage Ravka.”

“And you trust him to do that?”

“Strangely, I do. Now, shall we follow their lead? Disappearing in the shadows seems mighty tempting at the moment.” A mischievous gleam snaked its way into his eyes, and Zoya mirrored his expression.

“Should I be worried you’re taking your cues from a gang leader?”

“Absolutely not.” Nikolai drew closer and pressed his mouth against her ear, “I was planning to take you far away from this party the minute we stepped foot in it.”

#zoyalai #kanej #wesper #helnik #zoya nazyalensky #nikolai lantsov #Kaz Brekker #inej ghafa #wylan van eck #jesper fahey #nina zenik #matthias helvar #nikolai x zoya #kaz x inej #Wylan x Jesper #nina x matthias #king of scars #kos #six of crows #soc #crooked kingdom #ck

[anxiety-trademark]

The week in review:

Raw 10/19 NXT 10/21 NXT UK 10/22 Smackdown 10/23 Hell in a Cell 10/25

Raw:

I’m here to give Alexa credit once more for making me give a shit about the Fiend. I do like his entrance, especially without a live crowd.

What a visual... them standing together hand in hand.

I love that they kept the monitors set on the graphics for this segment. No offense to the audience, but seeing them would’ve ruined this.

Amazing transition from Fiend and Alexa to the next segment/match. Major points.

Still a vicious elimination to Lacey by Natalya.

I intend to take this title match as seriously as wwe has - not within a football field of giving a shit. I know how this entire angle ends anyway (preemptive welcome back, Queen) but let’s watch it through. See how this face turn worked out for Lana.

Asuka really is insanely fast, I’ll give her that.

Great rollup attempt by Lana (shades of Nattie/Alexa), great counter by Asuka into the Asuka Lock, and great job to Lana for grabbing the ropes. Points.

I’m sure this is all rehearsed, but Lana obviously puts in the work. Do I think she’ll ever be a singles champion? Absolutely not, but at least she isn’t complacent.

Is it the tables? Is that what led to Lana turning face?

This was good for Asuka. This was good booking. She didn’t look like a chump giving Lana offense, and she looked both strong and smart post-match. Solid.

By that logic, ShaNia owns NXT’s division as well. Just saying.

Really wish they’d nix the “Mandy” intro.

Stop I never wanna hear Peyton’s theme again, plz.

So they really never did explain why Peyton and Lacey became a thing? Mk. They seem like genuine friends, it’s just too bad they aren’t a compelling tag team in the ring. Would much rather watch Sexy Muscle Friends, ngl.

Hi I like Riott Squad and have no problems with them theoretically being in this match, but why the fuck are they still here lmao. Go to SD.

This better get longer than 10 mins, there are way too many women here for y’all to rob them of time.

It’s nice to see more women give a shit about tag team wrestling/becoming a cohesive unit.

Lacey just cuz you can do a moonsault off the apron, doesn’t mean you should. That was dicey. Fine, but dicey. There’s a reason Charlotte goes up to the top turnbuckle when she does it to the outside (not that I’m suggesting that incredibly high risk spot but I’m js)

Wish Lacey wasn’t so wooden. Wish she was more trusting and flexible like Charlotte.

I’d bet anything Mandy and Dana actually could suplex Nia. Let them try.

Good break up by Shayna. Protect Dana and Mandy’s finisher. Also that was a WICKED knee strike by Mandy.

Everyone’s gonna get a move in now huh. Le sigh.

NICE interrupt again by Shayna, girl with the good timing.

Fair ending. How long was that? 5 mins to the second lmao. Mk, wwe. Mk.

Welp Alexa is officially on Firefly funhouse. Good. Now we get to blur some lines and have a bit more fun with her character.

Highlight: Asuka looking like a dominant champ without squashing Lana

---

NXT:

Rhea Ripley #1 in nxt, these are the facts. She’s literally gone through them all. Throw her up to the MR, lesgo.

Watching her handle Charlotte and Piper is so impressive. Beast.

“Gone against Bianca Belair and Shayna Baszler,” so got squashed by Bianca and Shayna lmao. Hey, everyone’s got a role I guess. I remember when Alexa was enhancement talent that did a 450 splash and blew glitter all over the stage.

I don’t understand how Ember was wiped out after doing a mere roll off the ropes. It seems like a work since Jessi didn’t react and continued on as if she scored some offense (she didn’t) but that was a nasty landing on Ember’s lower back. Weird.

One count off an uppercut bahahaha

“You done messed up now,” Ember exclaims, after flipping off a fucking snapmare. I liked her better when she had no personality and just wrestled amazingly.

Is Ember a heel now? She’s acting like a heel. Why is she doing submissions? Why is she talking so much trash? Why is she so arrogant? Not a fan.

A springboard back elbow drop? Intriguing, Jessi. Intriguing. Points.

Jessi was too quick for Ember’s (now slow) setup into her codebreaker out of the corner. I’m gonna watch Charlotte vs Ember from 2019 after this, Ember was a lot quicker and cleaner - also cuz I miss Charlotte.

Yeahhh Ember used Jessi’s hair to pull her head back so she could do a crossface. She’s either a garbage babyface, or a heel.

Welp Dakota just turned babyface. Jeeze she be looking fine too. 10 points.

Dakota should be mad. She bumps like a motherfucker for every person she faces, and she made Ember’s botchy moves look amazing. Sucks she had such a stinker against Io, but there’s no way Ember should be rated higher than Dakota rn.

Interesting to note that Dakota came out on her own, as opposed to bringing - or even sending - Raquel.

Why does Xia have to win? Is there a kf contract that’s riding on her victory? Why is a random ass match against Kacy the biggest match of her career lol

Also this interviewer is gorgeous. Eyebrows on fleek, beautiful eyes and flawless hair.

*The Garganos prepare to Spin the Wheel* No.

Love Kacy’s speed. Always a joy to watch in the midcard.

Oh holy shit Kacy won, I did not see that coming. Where we going with this Xia stuff?

Xia gonna single handedly wreck both Kacy and Kayden?

WHY IS RAQUEL OUT HERE? What the fuck did Kacy and Kayden do to Raquel lmaooo

Commentator said Raquel sees Rhea Ripley in everyone she looks at. I say that’s the weakest explanation ever. Y’all just trying to find any reason to give her screen time, and this ain’t it.

“She’s sending a message to Ripley,” RHEA DON’T FUCKING CARE ABOUT THESE BITCHES. Also she’s like 3x the size of all of them lmao what?

“And next week? At Halloween? Havoc?” Girl stay backstage with your promos.

I don’t know wtf the wheel is, but I absolutely loved that segment with Io.

She’s such a special attraction to me. I miss her when she’s not on, and she’s so under saturated that I never get tired of seeing her. 

Highlight: Segment with Io

---

NXT UK:

Man I really like Nina’s theme song.

After seeing last week’s fucking wrist lock marathon, this aggression is such a breath of fresh air. Not really much of a match, as it a brawl... but that’s perfectly fine lol.

Ahh Nina’s a runner? Interesting, I wouldn’t have guessed that.

Not a fan of Amale’s boots with her gear. Pressing stuff, I know.

Lol thought Nina was about to do a dis-arm-her. Man, I miss Becky.

Nina is a bit awkward with her transitions, I’m noticing.

Beautiful landing of the back body drop by Nina. Practically a swan dive.

Amale did such a lackadaisical pin attempt, and then could barely muster the strength to kick out of one. Ma’am isn’t the worst, but with as green as she is, she should be limited to 3 min sprints.

Seems to be a popular complaint I have with UK, they get gassed insanely easy. wwe needs to build a pc over there or something.

Final Act is a really weak finisher, but considering the speed, I will give points for the way Nina holds her opponent’s neck forward. We like to see performers protecting their partners from getting whiplash.

Love Nina’s voice. Love her whole shtick tbh.

She wants Piper? *sigh* okay. Should’ve just done a tournament to determine KLR’s next opponent, but whatever.

Highlight: Nina’s backstage interview

---

Smackdown:

lmfao Bianca’s reaction to being slapped. Ahhhh she’s funny.

Jeeze fucking tossed Zelina across the ring.

oof that speed by Bianca after flipping out of the hurricanrana. Whew.

Bianca straight threw Zelina into the air just to punch her in the throat lmao.

So this match was literally just “watch [Bianca] shine now” aye rep those lyrics, girl.

Confession: sometimes I fangirl over Bayley’s demeanor. She got BDE and you know what? Good for her, good for her.

Points for the chair, Bayley.

“[Sasha is] an ungrateful brat” you know... kind of accurate.

Tbf Bayley, Sasha’s name kind of is bigger than your title, cuz she’s kept herself as an A+ superstar for like 4 years without holding gold. That deserves respect and recognition. That’s a woman keeping solely her name relevant without even being champion. Now in all fairness, I think all 4 of the horsewomen are up to that standing now, but let’s give credit where it’s due.

Sasha deserves to be champion in a meta sense, this is a fact, but man her character is so unlikeable. Like Bayley is a coward and an absolute tool but she still comes off as more genuine. A face turn for Bayley will be so easy. Not asking y’all to rush it wwe, but I’m just saying.

“Just give me the title back and we’ll talk about it,” Bayley says, as if she won’t grab that shit and bolt out of the arena.

Oh that was such a good set up to the spot with Bayley caught upright in the chair. I saw that screenshot months ago, but watching it be set up makes it so much better.

Ma’am I feel like being physically forced and coerced into signing a contract automatically makes it null and void, but hey this is your universe, what do I know.

Vicious - Bayley falling over with a fucking chair wrapped around her neck. Whew what a bump.

“Go help her Cole” LMFAO legit the last person in the company that would come to Bayley’s aid. Good line, Corey. That was a great promo and segment. Mega points.

Highlight: Go home segment for Bayley & Sasha

---

Hell in a Cell:

Kind of a weak video package for this feud, ngl. They didn’t bother with the Raw women’s championship, didn’t bother with 2019, Raw 2016/2017, nxt... Closest we got were a couple 2 second clips/screenshots.

By definition, this feud has to be one of the biggest disappointments in recent memory. It had the potential to blow Becky/Charlotte out of the water, and didn’t even enter the same stratosphere. Shame. This is a perfectly fine feud in a vacuum... until you remember it’s fucking Sasha and Bayley. Okay I’ll stop beating a dead horse. 

If Sasha were a real babyface, she’d drop that awful Snoop remix.

Sasha looks amazing. Love the contrast of Sasha wearing white and Bayley wearing black. Gonna miss Bayley’s old gear though.

Love Bayley spray painting 1-0 on the chair, since we all obsessed over Sasha’s shitty record ahead of this match lmao.

This feud just never picked up that mountain of tension Becky and Charlotte had at Evolution I’M SORRY.

Why can’t everyone do a headscissors takedown as fast as Sasha can.

Such an innovative way of utilizing a table and the cell to deliver a meteora. POINTS FOR SASHA *applause*

So I like the concept of Sasha rolling under the table and pushing it up into Bayley, but the landing of the table near Sasha’s head made me uneasy. I like the concept of Sasha rotating her body on the apron before jumping straight into a meteora against the cell, but the way she landed against the LED was awkward. The ideas are there though.

Cool watching Sasha jump from the apron to scale the cell, then back to the apron, then jumping over Bayley onto the floor. She’s like a rabbit. I’m underselling this tbh, like 95% of the women in the company can’t do the things Sasha can do.

OOF at Bayley being dropkicked into the steps. What a landing.

At this point, I don’t even want to see a women’s hiac match unless Sasha’s in it, or at the very least has a hand in producing it. Ugh she’d be an amazing match producer, whew.

Ugly landing through the kendo stick onto the steps by Sasha. That’s a spot that would’ve received an audible gasp from a live crowd.

OOF a sunset flip powerbomb into the fucking cell. oof. rip Bayley.

OOF a sunset flip into the fucking chair. oof. rip Sasha.

Positive on Bayley’s botched kendo stick/tape spot: lends credence to how inexperienced Bayley is with handling weapons in kf, and Bayley did a great job vocally improvising - probably earned herself points backstage. A negative: what a disaster of a spot lmfao. Should’ve had it already created and ready to go beneath the ring, or used a broomstick/crutch for the spot instead. Having people handle tape mid match is stupid. Wasn’t Bayley’s fault, but the crowd would’ve shit all over that lesbireal.

If you’re a specified Sasha fan, you’ll probably deem this the greatest match of Sasha’s career, cuz my god did she look amazing in it (and she actually won) but if you’re not, I’ll tell you, they did not do a good job making Bayley shine at the end of her historic reign imo.

Sasha bout to have a breakdown. Good acting.

This match lacks cohesion. Very spotty, but most of the spots are fucking incredible, so it gets a pass.

I like the ladder on the chairs.

Sasha jumping off the set up ladder to do a meteora in the corner was nice. Sasha using a fucking Bayley to Belly onto the ladder was beautiful.

Sasha looking like she wants to cry. Man she’s amazing.

BEAUTIFUL counter out of the Bayley to Belly by Sasha; dropped Bayley into the chair to set up her Bank Statement inside the chair.

Mega points for that single chair being the center of their entire feud, as the rivalry began and ended with that chair. Bravo there.

That’s it, Bayley’s reign is finally over. This match’s review was hella long, but deservedly so. Extremely happy for Sasha. Took her 4 years on the MR giving people banger after banger before wwe trusted her with a legitimate title reign, but we’ve finally made it.

Highlight(s): Both sunset flips by Bayley & Sasha against the chair & cell, respectively

---

*hiac blew everything else out of the water by default thanks to Bayley vs Sasha, but both Raw & SD were very enjoyable to me this week as well.

#wwe #issa review #feel free to ignore these #cuz who tf cares lesbihonest #today's props goes to: #sasha banks

[shadowtearling]

Mid-Year Book Freak Out Tag

As usual, I’m one million years late to doing tags. I have a thousand more of these tags I need to catch up on, and I’m only doing this one for now since we’re past the middle of the year. @scribbling-women-books THANKS FOR THE TAG, LOVELY 💕

I’ve had to look through my Goodreads to figure out some answers for these lol

1. Best book you’ve read so far in 2017:

Many months later, I’m still in love with We Are Okay by Nina LaCour. It is literally just the most wonderfully heartbreaking yet heartwarming story, and I can’t believe my life has been blessed this way.

2. Best sequel you’ve read so far in 2017:

I started more series than continued, so technically I have only two options. I would say Winter by Marissa Meyer is really good. It’s a well done conclusion that ties things together nicely. BUT that’s not to say this book is without problems, because BOYYYYY the ableism is real. Lmao this series wasn’t about proper diverse representation even from the beginning anyway

3. New release you haven’t read yet, but want to:

THE HATE U GIVE by ANGIE THOMAS ME @ME WOT THE FUCK M8 I’m really behind on my new releases so............

4. Most anticipated release for the second half of the year:

One Dark Throne by Kendare Blake!!!!! I really loved the first book, and I cannot wait to continue this series when this one comes out in September!

5. Biggest disappointment:

... The Winner’s Curse by Marie Rutkoski that book is all kinds of BAD

6. Biggest surprise

Girl in Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow is one of the best books I’ve read this year and it completely caught me off guard. I picked it up with a lot of hesitation and only did so because I wanted to see if it was good rep for mentally ill people as well as people who self harm. I was actually prepared to rip this book to pieces, BUT IT WAS SO GOOD!

7. Favorite new author:

Marie Brennan; but I feel like this is cheating since I’ve only read one book by her thus far. I’ll remedy that soon enough.

8. Newest fictional crush:

Surprisingly, I have no answer for this. I think I’m growing out of that fictional crush thing! Oh nO! I remembered Hiroto Suwa! MY LOVE. MY HORT. He’s great

9. Newest favorite character:

TEMRAIRE what a precious baby I love him and his relationship with Laurence. LOVE

10. Book that made you cry:

I can list five hundred books. We Are Okay, Girl in Pieces, ORANGE by Ichigo Takano!!!!! That manga series is everything to me and more. Plus it broke my heart.

11. Book that made you happy:

I’ve got two: Tall Story by Candy Gourlay and The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli; both of which make me happy because of how deeply I relate to the story & the characters. I just love them both so much.

12. Favorite book to film adaptation you saw this year:

I’ve seen zero lol (Unless you count Beauty and the Beast?????????? but I got beef with that movie, still good, but not perfect)

13. Favorite review you’ve written this year:

THIS ONE but I also really enjoyed my informal review

14. Most beautiful book you’ve bought so far this year (or received):

This is a tie between We Are Okay by Nina LaCour, I mean.... have you SEEN that book?! It’s absolutely gorgeous! AND Spellslinger by Sebastien de Castell because I’m a sucker for that playing card cover!

15. What books do you need to read by the end of the year?

I don’t really have a definite TBR for the year, but I do want to get a move on with my reread of Uprooted by Naomi Novik, so hopefully I get to that.

I have no idea who has done this, and anyway, it’s way past its due, so I wont tag anyone. IF you want to do it, consider this your signal to go ahead and do this tag (then tag me lol so I can read your answers).

#tagged

[myyearinhonduras-blog]

Part 1: The good - Vol 2

Boxing day was the start of our diving course and it didn’t consist of much but watching the TV screen and filling in sheets. The next day was more interesting because we actually got into the water. We had really great instructors: Sammy, Erin, Nina and Victoria. They were all very patient and calm with us and gave us space to learn, make our own mistakes and they were very kind about correcting them. We only got into the water that day to do our swimming proficiency test (I just passed it). To be honest, I wasn’t a huge fan of the feeling at first. I felt very claustrophobic and it’s strange just using your mouth to breath. The visibility was good but not being able to see like we can up here is slightly off putting. The next day was better and we went deeper  into the water to do more skills. While I still wasn’t totally comfortable with the feeling of the water yet, it was getting better and being deeper helps a lot. On the fourth day we did skills in the morning and then had a proper dive. The reefs down there are incredible. We did more deeper dives the next day too and I can’t remember on which days we saw what but we saw crabs, lobsters, eels, blue tang, sting rays, the fish that looks like “Gill” in Nemo and my personal favorite: a barracuda!! (The fish that kills Nemo’s mum). It was so intimidatingly still, like it was just waiting to strike us, it was about a meter and a quarter long and shiny silver. We got down to 18 feet and I’m now a certified open water diver! New years was also really fun but, again, it ended at about 10:30 for me in a hammock with both my wallet and my phone on me... unfortunately I didn't wake up that way but more on that later. New Years day I didn’t get up to too much except talking to family and walking around the island.

We said goodbye to everyone on the 1st and then headed off ourselves at 6am on the first boat out of Utila and started our trip to Tulum, Mexico. We didn't make it as far as we had wanted to on the first day and actually, didn’t even get out of Honduras but on the second day, we covered A LOT of ground. The day of traveling started at 6am and didn’t end until about 5am the following day. We traveled from Honduras to Puerto Barrios in Guatemala to Punta Gorda in Belize, up to Belize city then got a night bus from Belize city to Tulum. Unfortunately for us, we hadn’t thought about Tulum being a very popular destination for Americans at this time of year. All of the hostels were completely full when we arrived and after trudging around for about an hour trying to find somewhere to stay, we went back, defeated, to the bus terminal to wait until 11 when everyone checked to see in we could squeak in somewhere. We managed to find one, finally but, it was $23 per night. We only stayed in Tulum for one night but managed to make it over to see the ruins. They were stunning. I couldn’t believe my eyes. They’re right on the coast and the water in this part of Mexico (the Yucatan Peninsula) is crystal, crystal clear turquoise. A combination of the water and the ruins just took our breath away. We took a bus that afternoon to Cancun where it was still high season but where the beds were back to $11 per night. Cancun is famous for it’s nightlife and we thought we should go out as much as we could while we were there so we went out the first night to the strip only to find out that the good bars were around $65 to enter. We were stunned and quickly removed ourselves from the scene. Eventually, we found a rep that let us into a club called Mandala for free, provided that we tipped him generously. The atmosphere wasn’t great inside the club but we still managed to have a good time. The next day I, personally was exhausted and couldn't leave my bed until 1:30 (The Crown is a must watch Netflix binge). We made friends with one of the guys in our dorm and he told us that he would be able to get us into one of the good clubs that night for $25 each with open bar. We took the deal and went off to see if we could get to the Chichen Itza Mayan ruins. We were completely unaware about how long it took to get from Cancun to Chichen Itza - about 5 hours so we opted for the beach instead that day. There was a storm brewing and the black clouds juxtaposed against the blue water was something I don't think I’ll ever be able to see again (pictures to follow soon). We made our way back and got ready for the night. It was a good night, I’ve had better but it was definitely an experience I won't forget. The next morning we boarded a 5 hour bus to get to Chichen Itza. The ruins are totally different to those in Tulum - they are grand and awe inspiring while the ones in Tulum were a lot smaller. The area they were in was completely different too, it was totally flat with no sign of sea in sight. Despite the ruins being incredible, it did remind me, somewhat of Disneyland. Long lines to get in, everyone milling around, taking family photos, souvenirs being pushed at you left, right and centre. Just a lot more touristy than we had grown accustomed to. We spent two more days in Mexico, one traveling to Chetumal and one venturing out to Bakalar to see the lake of seven colors. It was actually only turquoise but it was more turquoise than even the sea in Mexico. We spent the day swimming in the refreshing water and sunbathing on the dock, finishing the day with pasta from one of the shops.

Unfortunately, that was it for Mexico, we traveled down to Flores, Guatemala the next day where (shoutout to Lucy) we found the coolest hostel. It was called “Los Amigos” and had a loungey bit with a definite “bali” vibe, further back was a restaurant that served HUGE portions of food and then up the stairs, even further back was a sound proof bar. We were staying in Los Amigos 2 which was down the street and nice and quiet to sleep in and had beautiful elephant tapestries on the walls. We were very tired on the first day so only Sara and I went out to the bar, we got a beer, had some free tequila shots and called it a night. The next day we were all a bit tired so didn’t stir until later. Lucy and I decided to take the opportunity to take some pictures of the beautiful little town.

At about 3 we decided to get a water taxi over to a rope swing where we spent the rest of the day until the sun went down. The little business was very well run - out of a man, named Jose’s, house. They had a little restaurant and drinks, it was only 10 quetzales (about £1) to enter! So we spent the rest of the day throwing ourselves into the lake and lounging in the hammocks. We got picked up by the water taxi again at 6 and went back to our hostel. We all went down to the bar that night and enjoyed big Jenga drinking games. The next day we headed to Tikal which were our last mayan ruins of the trip and they did not disappoint. We had to do a bit of hiking to get to the temples (flip flops are maybe not the best choice for every activity) but when we got there we could climb all the way to the top and look out. It’s one of the less touristy sites so you can still really see where the city had once been. We went for the sunset tour (mainly because we didn't want to get up at 3am for the sunrise tour) and the light was beautiful over the temple faces. Definitely my favorite ruins of the whole trip. We chilled out for most of the day after Tikal (we were all a bit tired) and got a night bus all the way down the country, first to Guatemala City and then to Antigua. Getting off the bus in at 6am was freezing! We definitely weren’t prepared with our shorts and t-shirts. It warmed up during the day and we took a few little wanders through the town, it was gorgeous and so colorful. We decided that it was a “soft city” no high rise buildings and a lot more relaxed than most of the cities we’re used to but it still had that city “buzz” to it. We stayed with the same company of hostels that we had stayed in Leon, Bigfoot. This Bigfoot was a lot more low-key though and they had the comfiest beds we’ve had the whole time with cozy duvets and curtains around each individual bed for a bit of privacy. We stayed in Antigua for three nights, not getting up to too much but enjoying the fresh weather and the scenery. I left the group for three days to spend some time in Guatemala City before an exam that I had to take to get onto my university course at Queens. So, while the rest of the group traveled to Lake Atitlan, I spent three days in the City. Not much to report as I spent the majority of my time in my hotel room cramming Chemistry into my brain.

I came back to Antigua after the exam and we spent two more days there before coming over to where we are now in El Tunco, El Salvador. It’s a very quiet beach town and it’s A LOT warmer than Antigua. Its a good way to finish up the travels, lazing by the pool and the beach before we have to get back to work in Candelaria on the 2nd of February! We have a few more days to go and I’ll just do some individual blogs for anything of note that happens!  

[flyrtreynolds]

Noisey: Is Okay Kaya Living in Pop Music's Future?

Noisey published an abridged version, condensing down the lead so that it read more generic, in my opinion. Here’s my first draft, which I’m more attached to.

Pictures taken by the wonderful Lauren Geisswein 

The San Damiano Mission, like many houses of worship these days, is rolling with the punches. With the encouragement of the Diocese of Brooklyn, two friars have come up with a “novel approach” to cure the dwindling followership of the over-100-year-old Catholic church located between Williamsburg and Greenpoint, mainly consisting of hosting concerts and hucking booze during off-service hours. Thus what once had a congregant of god-fearing Slovak immigrants at the turn of the 20th century now has a Resident Advisor page. 

Maybe no act the church has booked thus far exemplifies that change more than Kaya Wilkins, also known as Okay Kaya. Beneath a mural of angels ascending to heaven — the venue’s Romanesque decor remains very much intact — and bathed in blue light, the stoic and willowy 27-year-old singer hums out a bawdy question to a room full of her faithful adorees:

Do you dance like you fuck? Or do you dance like you make love?

With it, some of the crowd noticeably withers with delight in the pews. I can’t help but view the declaration of such candid words in this setting as a metaphor for the 27-year-old’s best work. Within the timeless format of a pop song, she can place a blunt truth that turns the experience on its head, making it both refreshing and more relatable.

Would you come with me to get an IUD? She coos on the first line of “IUD,” the lead single off her upcoming debut, Both.

Maybe, if you come with me, I will let you come in me.

This candor doesn’t immediately shine through in her persona offstage, however. I learn this the afternoon before the San Damiano show, talking with the songwriter, model, and actress in her cozy (New York tongue for “tiny”) Greenpoint apartment, pleasantly aglow with some springtime sun. Kaya—whose real name is Kaya Wilkins—sits perched on top of her bed, cross legged, talking in small pours, allowing her thoughts to slowly fill the glass. Her demeanor is dulcet and reflective, traits you wouldn't necessarily associate with someone who’s often in front of a camera.

“I think I’ve always had trouble communicating,” she says amid a soft smile, admitting that she’s still getting the hang of interviews. “I found mediums to express what I was feeling.”

Those mediums have grown steadily since her move to New York from her birthplace Norway eight years ago. In addition to her music career, which started with an Arthur Russell-inspired Soundcloud mix of her redolent vocals and has blossomed into a rep as one of the city’s more honest singer-songwriters, she also has her long-time modeling gig that’s recently placed her on high-profile runways around the world. Then there’s her acting work, which started with a flash of brilliance in last year’s Thelma, a Norwegian film about a student who struggles with her feelings for another woman (played by Kaya) and the supernatural powers that get intertwined in them.

But these successes haven’t necessarily come naturally to Kaya; with each new artform, she says, comes a growth period when she must discover where her identity fits into things. Whether it’s flooding a church nave with placid truths, rocking “silk skunk” (a real thing, yes) in a Calvin Klein campaign, or auditioning for a role without much prior acting experience, the underlying strategy of it all is to let her personality be the catalyst for the creativity. “I don’t know how I could get away with it otherwise. I don’t have the skills necessarily, but I do have me,” she explains. “I’m sure of my own voice, my style. And that feels good cause I’m insecure about everything else.”

Like many of us, finding her voice has been a journey for Kaya, one that can be traced back to her childhood in a small peninsula community outside of Oslo. There, in a cottage-like house only 10 minutes from the beach, she grew up with her mother and three brothers (her American father, a former marine that was stationed in Oslo at one point, raised her other two brothers in Boston). She has warm memories of summers there, swimming and playing in her mom’s garden, where she would match her clothing to the purple and yellow flowers that adorned it. She found the frigid winters to be bleaker, however, and the area’s homogeneous community to be problematic in relation to her ambiguity, both in identity and appearance (her mom is white and father black).

So she turned to art, at least in part inspired by her mom who worked as a proofreader by day and a painter by night and was just as likely to play Prince around the house as she was a Swedish jazz singer or Cypress Hill. Kaya would twiddle around with a guitar and sometimes play with her older brother’s metal band, but her first obsession became movement after a dance instructor in high school showed her examples of famous performers who “moved funny,” a descriptor she would often get in ballet classes. She realized she could use her uniqueness as an advantage, turning her small gestures, deemed awkward before, into innovative moves.

While we talk, I can see some of these gestures in her hands, which she nimbly tilts and curls through the air while describing things, like she’s peeling back an invisible curtain to examine them. “I just love to feel connected...like, ‘Oh someone is doing something that doesn’t have as many rules,’” she says of finding her creative niche.

She planned to pursue movement into the future, even pondering going to a “modern mime school” in Paris (“I was going to be like a clown basically”). But fate intervened, and she was discovered by modeling scouts, who encouraged her to take up the profession. After a year of trying to make it in London, she moved to NYC to make more money as an e-commerce model, posing as a “shell of a human” on retail websites like Ann Taylor’s LOFT.

It was during this period, feeling under stimulated, isolated and alone, that she decided to revisit music. She picked up a guitar and started recording short tunes to send to her friends and family back home. To get their attention, she would create rough covers of records by artists that differed wildly in tone than her, like Nate Dogg or the Curtis Mayfield-led Impressions. The songs came out soulful and slow moving, gorgeous recreations of upbeat jams. Eventually, combined with her original recordings, she had enough material to consolidate and post online.

“It’s something I just wanted to work on for a while. That’s all I know really,” she recalls of her first musical sketches. “It felt very necessary.”

What happens next Kaya finds strange to talk about, a familiar situation for seemingly any woman trying to break into the music industry. An A&R found her mix and approached her about management, promising to put out her work and introduce her to notable producers. She agreed, and together they released the songs that would announce her Okay Kaya project to the world, including the heart-tugging “Damn, Gravity,” a slowburner centered around love slipping through the fingertips produced by King Krule and Sampha collaborator Rodiadh McDonald. But the A&R also made strange requests, like pressuring her not to tell producers that she was in a relationship (Kaya has been dating songwriter Aaron Maine, also known as the singer Porches, for the past year). The process began to feel “grimy,” she says, and “really uncomfortable.” So she walked away, leaving behind both a deal with a prominent East Coast imprint and distribution through indie powerhouse XL Recordings. Suddenly the idea of an album seemed distant.

“It didn’t make me happy or even wanting to try for a minute. I think it took like three years for me to feel like I had my voice and...just going back to what I wanted to do.”

With “do,” she gestures her arms in upward circles, indicating the significance of the room surrounding us, where she recorded over half of Both, now set to be self-released on June 1 through her own label, Heavy Body Records. The apartment has become the epicenter of her work and a symbol of her newfound self-reliance in music. A small recording setup of a mic and mixer sits against the wall, next to a scribbled setlist for tomorrow’s show; a pile of clear garbage bags, full of merch Kaya designed with a friend, crams a corner. The soundtrack buzzing softly out of the speakers is made up entirely of women singers—Caroline Polachek, Nina Simone, Sibylle Baier—Kaya found inspiration in during the record’s writing process.

Both is a work of cogitation, poking at concepts and feelings Kaya has encountered in her journeys from Scandinavia to New York, the runway to the silver screen. “Emulate,” for example, examines the idea of projecting love and whether it leads to genuineness or manipulation, a question that lies at the heart of the two young women’s dynamic in Thelma. More directly, “Calendar Girl” was inspired by a time when Kaya felt it difficult to leave her apartment so she’d write simple tasks on a calendar—“walk around the block”—as motivation to break her self-confinement. Most of the arrangements that propel these thoughts, aside from a few co-produced by Maine, are her own.

Which brings us back to “IUD,” a single that many women have accepted as a righteous ode to self care amid the current tumultuous political environment. Kaya has a unique perspective on the situation, as she comes from a country that provides basic healthcare services, no questions asked. Thus, while talking about it, she’s able to underlie its significance and how foolish the alternative would be. “I just wanted to be transparent about it and be like, ‘This is happening. People need this.’”

It’s here that we possibly get a glimpse of the future. Kaya’s music, deeply personal in nature, is slowly becoming tangible outside of her own consciousness. In other words, her songs are no longer just her’s; she now shares them with others. We ponder this truth together in the kitchen, where we’ve moved so she could lean out the window and smoke a cigarette. The sound of hammering wafts up from a renovation on the first floor, placing our words to a grating rhythm. A table cloth of husky red roses, maybe a small ode to her mother’s garden back home, ties the room together.

In the self-financed and -choreographed videos for “IUD” and “Dance Like U,” the second single off Both, Kaya presents her feelings as physical embodiments identical in appearance to herself. One twin is irritating and cumbersome, representing trauma and sadness; the other is gentle and understanding, symbolizing acceptance. The “weird sisters,” as Kaya has dubbed them, were born out of a simple concept—a dualism that could serve as an album’s core theme (hence the title Both) and an interesting visual driver. But first and foremost they’re pieces of her, now barer than ever.

So much on the horizon—the show tomorrow, the album drop, the press that will follow—will put those pieces on display. She admits she’s nervous.

“I have no idea what it’s going to be like,” she says with an exhale of smoke. Her tender smile returns as she remembers the most important lesson she’s learned thus far.

“But wait, who am I trying to be? I’m just trying to be me.”

https://noisey.vice.com/en_us/article/qvxxmd/okay-kaya-interview-future-of-pop-both-2018

#okay kaya #noisey