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thewritewolf · 6 years ago

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Rekindle Chapter 1: No Powers

Hello! In this story that I’ll be telling over the next month, Adrien and Marinette haven’t seen each other since graduation, which was several years ago. One chance meeting during an akuma battle has Adrien thinking about his old friend, but after everything that’s happened, he’s sure that she doesn’t want to see Adrien Agreste anytime soon... Chat Noir, however...

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Enjoy!

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Ducking an errant beam, Adrien swung his baton into Mega Drain. Behind him, he heard it hit a car, killing the engine inside. “You feline up for a fight, metal head?”

The name was fitting since today’s akuma looked like a poorly put together metal robot slightly bigger than Adrien was, moving on treads. With how slowly it moved and how short its arms were, Adrien was feeling confident even though Ladybug hadn’t arrived yet. And why shouldn’t he? Nearly a decade of being Chat Noir had honed his reflexes and combat power to a fine point.

“CHAT NOIR WILL SUBMIT HIS MIRACULOUS TO MEGA DRAIN.”

Adrien winced at the volume. His enhanced senses could be both a blessing and a curse sometimes. “Tell you what.” He paused for dramatic effect. “No.”

That didn’t seem to be the right choice since Mega Drain began rapid firing beams at him. So far, he’d only seen it hit electronics, but every time they’d immediately shut down. That alone was enough reason for him to avoid getting hit, even if he wasn’t sure that he would actually be affected by the beams. If nothing else, Mega Drain seemed to think something would happen.

It wasn’t actually that hard to avoid the rays, but it stopped him from getting close to the akuma. Ah well. At least that means he’d get to see Ladybug, itself an increasingly rare event. He suspected that she was going to university, but who knows? He was just glad she hadn’t left Paris and given her miraculous to someone else. Despite all the rejections, he couldn’t bring himself to stop loving her.

A flash of black hair caught his attention. A sly greeting died on his lips when he realized it wasn’t Ladybug he’d seen but someone he hadn’t laid on eyes on in a couple years - Marinette Dupain-Cheng. His elation at seeing a childhood friend was matched only by the pang of sorrow he felt at what had happened the last time they’d seen each other. They tried to keep in touch, but after their talk on graduation day, life had gotten in the way of their friendship. It really was a shame. He missed having her in his life.

He ducked under another beam, but his wandering mind had made him less aware of his surroundings. The beam reflected off a metallic object and right back at him. He felt his strength leave his muscles and his limbs become more sluggish. Just as his senses deadened, he realized what had happened - the power his miraculous granted him had been drained- Oh. OH. That’s why he called himself Mega Drain.

Feeling almost as upset with himself taking that long to realize the meaning of his name as he was mad at getting hit, he ducked into an alleyway. All he had to do was shake off the akuma and he could - theoretically - detransform and recharge. He was thankful that Plagg was able to hold on and keep the Chat Noir suit on. Recharging was easy, but losing his secret identity would be irrecoverable.

His plan to escape wasn’t going well. Mega Drain was right behind him and the alley reached a dead end. Drawing his baton, he turned to face the akuma, locking his eyes on the single red lensed camera on the akuma’s face.

“YOUR MIRACULOUS IS MINE.” The akuma charged up his beam and Adrien tensed, ready to jump out of the way. He may not have superhuman reflexes, but he still had his training. He just had to wait for…

...A trash can to be shoved roughly onto its head from behind, apparently. Blinking in surprise, he looked past the flailing akuma to see Marinette motioning at him wildly. He took the opportunity for what it was and rushed over to her side, only for her to grab his arm and start running. They’d gotten a fair distance away before they heard a metallic roar. Marinette quickly unlocked the door to an office building and locked the door behind them.

Hands on her knees, she took a few deep breaths. “That… was a close one.”

“I’ll say.” Adrien took his tail in one hand and began idly twirling it. “What were you doing out during an akuma attack? You don’t strike me as the reporter type.”

She stood up straight, her breathing now under control. Adrien let himself be impressed - blindsiding akumas and making mad dashes through the streets can be exhausting. She’d kept herself in shape over the years. Crossing her arms, she glared up at him, “You’re welcome, you ungrateful cat.”

That got a laugh out of him. He didn’t remember her being so spunky, but then again, he knows why she was never herself around him, doesn’t he? “Sorry, sorry.” Bowing deeply, one arm held out, he added, “My deepest gratitude. Saving the feline in distress was very noble of you.” She snorted and rolled her eyes, but he pressed on. “And while I do very much appreciate what you’ve done so far, I have one more favor to ask.”

That got her curiosity. “And what’s that?”

“Go away.” He grinned at her shocked expression. His voice softened a little as he added, “Find somewhere safe to hide. I need to recharge and I can’t have you peeking at my secret identity. Besides, I’d feel better knowing such a kind civilian were out of harm’s way.”

She nodded and pointed behind him. “There are bathrooms over there that lock from the inside. I’m going to uh, sneak out the back way.” She started jogging away, and yelled back at him over her shoulder, “Good luck!”

He watched her go until she darted down a hallway. He knew there were more pressing things to be thinking about, but he felt a pang of remorse. Maybe if their last meeting hadn’t gone the way it did, they’d have worked harder to keep in touch. A warning beep sounded from his miraculous, shaking him out of his thoughts. No use dwelling on what might have been. He ran towards the bathrooms Marinette had pointed out, eager to recharge and get back in the fight.

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

Adrien landed in his room with the sun setting behind him. It was a smaller space than his childhood home, but he had to make some concessions if he wanted to be living on his own. Father wouldn’t rent or let him rent his own mansion and Adrien wouldn’t want to even if he did. He’d had more than enough of large, empty spaces for one lifetime already. At least now the empty spaces were smaller.

“Claws in.”

Plagg emerged from the ring and crash landed on top of his private refrigerator. “Geez, kid. You’re overworking me here! And could you at least tryto not eyeball every pretty civilian you come across? Unless this is some weird way of moving on from Ladybug.”

Adrien pinched the bridge of his nose will Plagg opened up his fridge. “First off, I don’t oogle random people. That was Marinette. You know? We went to school together.”

“Yeah, yeah, I remember Pigtails alright. Even if the name doesn't match anymore. Real awkward parting words at your graduation.”

His heart was heavy for a moment as he remembered her confession… and how he had to gently reject her. It was the last time they’d seen each other face to face, and he hated the hurt he’d seen in her eyes. But what else could he do? Which brought him to...

“Second - you know I can’t just move on from Ladybug. I’ve tried, you know it as well as I do, but…”

“Blah blah heart blah blah the pain of unrequited love. Yeah, you’ve mentioned it a few hundred times before.” He shoved a wedge of cheese in his mouth and talked around it. “At least you have something in common with Pigtails.”

“I guess we do,” Adrien replied in a sad whisper.

While they were never the closest of friends, Adrien keenly felt Marinette’s absence in his life. The energy she always had, the confidence she had not only in herself, but in everyone around her. Just being near her was usually enough to get people motivated - something she often took advantage of as class president. The certainty she had in what she wanted to be was something he could really use some of right now. He felt like his life was in a holding pattern, just working for his father while being groomed to take up the management portion of the Agreste business.

But what could he do? While they made a slight effort to keep in touch, he had no idea how she would react to seeing him again, face to face. Has she moved on from him? Did she come to resent him? Who knows? Somehow he doubted that she’d appreciate him showing up on her doorstep.

While watching Plagg do his absolute best to scarf down an entire wheel of camembert, a smile dawned on his face. While Adrien might not be met eagerly, who wouldn’t love a visit from the local superhero?

“Finish up quick, Plagg. We’re going out tonight.”

While his kwami complained, Adrien pulled up the discord channel the four of them had made to keep in touch. Wading through the conversations - mainly between Alya and Marinette - he eventually found what he was looking for: An address.

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

Half an hour later, Adrien landed on a balcony that he hoped was Marinette’s. He’d made a detour to buy some sweets to bring over. After all, it was rude to show up unannounced and empty handed.

The lights were on. He breathed a sigh of relief - that was a good sign. It had become painfully obvious to him that he didn’t know much about how her life was going now when he didn’t even know where she was working, let alone her hours. He peeked into the window to check if she was actually home.

The room seemed to be some combination of a work space and living room. There was a TV turned down as it played some show that she only glanced at occasionally. A familiar, old chaise, a couch and a couple armchairs, but there was also mannequins, reams of fabrics, and a table littered with pins, sketchbooks, and a sewing machine. Working at the sewing machine was Marinette herself, only occasionally glancing up at the TV from a jacket she was working on.

Satisfied that she was at least present, he tapped at the glass. Softly at first, but becoming more insistent when it became clear that she was too focused on her work to hear him. Even then it took her a few moments to realize just where the tapping was coming from. It was all worth it though when he saw how her eyes went wide at seeing him at the window. He grinned as she rushed over to the window.

“What are you doing here?! Do you realize how late it is?” She hissed at him. His smile faltered. This wasn’t the reaction he had been expecting.

“Well, I was in a rush earlier, so I couldn’t thank you properly for your help today.” Seeing her dubious expression, he pulled out the big guns and moved his basket of snacks in front of him. “I brought chocolate croissants?”

She glanced between the basket and him, torn. Just before she was about to speak, her stomach growled. Blushing, she opened the window wide and said, “Quick, get in before I change my mind.”

Adrien didn’t need to be told twice. Slipping inside, he took another look at the room around him, now using all his senses. It was messy, with several projects in various levels of completion scattered around the room. There were a few pictures on the walls, mostly of her and Alya, plus a few older ones from lycee and one from graduation. But nothing recent. His heightened smell backed him up - the only scent he could pick up was Marinette’s. Did she not get visitors?

“Sorry I haven’t cleaned up recently. I wasn’t expecting guests.” She rubbed one arm, embarrassed at the state of her apartment.

His cheeks heated up. It hadn’t been his intention to show up just to gawk at her living space. “No, no! Its fine.”

A few more moments of awkward silence passed. Why did he think this was a good idea again?

“Uh, Chat?”

“Yes?” He replied quickly, eager for any conversation starter.

“The basket…?”

“Oh! Sorry, here you go.” The goodies changed hands and Marinette took a look at them, inhaling the scent of the baked goods with a blissful smile. While she was busy, he pressed on. “So… anyway. I wanted to say I really appreciated the help. It was very brave of you to get involved like that. That could very well have been the end of me as Chat Noir.”

She smirked as she looked back up at him. “Yeah, then Paris would have to get a new Chat Noir and a new Ladybug and it would just be a mess. I figured I might as well save us the trouble.”

“Well, a new Chat Noir definitely, but why would we need a new Ladybug? I’m sure she would have been fine handling Mega Drain on her own.” Which was true. A lot of the time he felt like he was more a bodyguard for Ladybug, or sometimes emotional support.

“Do you really think Ladybug would want to go on without you?” She raised an eyebrow and smiled at him, a smile that quickly vanished when he said:

“Yes, no question. It might be rough for her at first, but there’s no doubt in my mind she’d be able to move on.” He shrugged. “And who knows? Maybe the next one would be better at this than I am.”

She stared at him, shaking her head. “But they wouldn’t be you.”

Laughing, he replied, “Yeah, that’s the point.”

Silence stretched between them again as Adrien stared at nothing in particular and Marinette fidgeted with the basket in her hands. Just as he was about to say his goodbyes, she spoke up.

“You know, you really shouldn’t have gotten this many. I don’t think I should eat them all on my own.”

“Oh?” That sounded like an invitation, but he didn’t want to make assumptions.

“Do you want to stick around? I could put a new movie on. It always helps me be productive.”

It was at this point that Adrien realized he hadn’t actually known what to expect when he came over here. But right now, spending time with a friend sounded much better than sitting at home alone.

“Sure, I think I can do that. So long as you don’t mind me commenting during the movie.”

Shaking her head with a smile, she said, “I should’ve guessed the famous Chat Noir is a movie talker.”

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One movie had turned into two, then three. Granted, they weren’t particularly long movies, but it was well past midnight by the time Adrien began making his way for his window escape. Despite how tired he felt, even now he was leaving reluctantly. He’d had a great time laughing and eating and talking, and he from how often he’d coaxed laughter out of Marinette, he thought she was enjoying herself too.

It made leaving feel bittersweet. A taste of the friendship he’d never gotten to have. And now he had to go back into his strict, regimented life as if he hadn’t just had the most fun in ages.

“Hey, Chat?”

“Yes, purrincess?” He grinned at her eye roll. The nickname had stuck while they were watching the Princess Bride, much to her feigned displeasure.

“I was just going to say… tonight was nice. If you wanted to come over more often, I’d appreciate the company.”

“You sure I wasn’t too distracting?”

“Are you kidding? I made more progress on my pieces today than I have in the last two days combined. Something about an empty space drains motivation, you know?”

Smiling back at her, he replied, “Yeah, I think I get what you mean. I’ll come visit again soon. I promise… purrincess.”

He leaped out of the window and made his way home, smiling all the while.

#Miraculous Ladybug #Adrien Agreste #Marinette Dupain-Cheng #Chat Noir #Marichat #MarichatMay2019 #ml fanfiction #my writing #rekindle

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quicksilversquared · 7 years ago

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How to Fake a Marriage: ch 36

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(AO3) (FF.net)

Saying that Nino was a little put out when he arrived and found out that he had just missed Marinette would be an understatement. Apparently he had really been looking forward to talking to both of them.

"I could have rescheduled if you guys had remembered earlier," he grumbled as he and Adrien took the bus back to Adrien's apartment. "Geez. What are the odds of that happening?"

Adrien winced, feeling slightly guilty. Nino didn't get worked up easily at all, so there must have been some reason for the visit besides just seeing old friends. He hadn't mentioned any problems with his relationship with Alya at all before, so maybe there was some other reason entirely.

At least Adrien hoped that whatever was upsetting Nino wasn't something to do with Alya. He really wasn't good at relationship advice, even after dating Marinette for over a year.

Communication was key, he knew that much. Split the chores equally, and help each other. Show the other person that you love them, and surprise them with little gifts and favors. He thought that that was pretty straightforward, really. At least in theory.

"Marinette had forgotten that she had bought tickets to go back to Paris for this weekend," Adrien said, shrugging and making a can't-be-helped face. "She only remembered literally last-minute, and only because she got the email with the ticket reminder."

Nino laughed at that. "Classic Marinette. I thought she had gotten better at remembering things like that."

"She has gotten better. She's just been so busy with both work and commissions that she forgot," Adrien said immediately, feeling slightly defensive on his girlfriend's behalf. Sure, Marinette could be slightly forgetful at times, but it wasn't as though she didn't have a perfectly good reason for that. In school, she had been a superhero on top of everything else (being a student, being class president, helping in her parents' bakery, doing assorted commissions for people, building her design portfolio and teaching herself new sewing skills...). Now, she had both her normal job and a fairly steady stream of commissions to deal with on the side. Even though she was doing an impressive job of balancing everything while still having time left over to spend with Adrien and to relax, it was still a lot.

Nino just shrugged. "If you say so."

The bus pulled to a halt and they hopped off and started walking towards Adrien's building. Dusk had fallen now, and the streetlight were on. A cold gust of wind blew up the street, making both men shiver.

"So how's your work going?" Adrien asked as they walked. Nino hadn't mentioned it much during their last few phone calls, clearly distracted about something. Adrien was willing to bet that that something was probably Alya. "You said there were a couple different movies you were working on?"

"Yeah," Nino confirmed. "One's another indie, and then- you'll never believe this- this big-shot director called me up, wanted to know if I could do the soundtrack for his next movie! So I'm starting on that while I polish up the stuff from the small film. I'm super-excited about it! It could be my breakthrough into getting, y'know, proper steady jobs all the time that actually pay a decent amount. I'm still DJ-ing some evenings, just so I still have that money, but hopefully I won't need to do that anymore soon. Or I'll at least be able to cut down on my hours."

"That's great!" Nino really deserved it. He'd been working so hard for years to try to get a job like that, and for someone to finally notice his hard work and talent was just great. "Next thing you know, you'll be a famous movie soundtrack composer."

Nino snorted and shoved him lightly. "Yeah, yeah. Whatever, dude. I just hope this leads to other jobs, that's all. I don't need to be famous."

Adrien laughed and knocked him right back. "Industry-famous, I mean. Well know enough that directors come knocking at your door. Not necessarily famous like people running after you in the streets."

"Yeah, that would suck." Nino sent a look at Adrien. "Have the tabloids been bugging you again? I know they had kind of been giving up on that gradually."

Adrien couldn't help but grin. "Yeah, they've been giving up on harassing Marinette and I. We're boring and they just keep getting the same answers to their questions. There's an occasional article, but..." He shrugged. "People are tired of seeing the same claims over and over. It's not selling anymore. Also, people have stopped caring about some random French model and his designer friend."

They reached the building and Adrien unlocked the door, ushering Nino in in front of him. They headed upstairs, passing Abbey on the stairs. Adrien waved in greeting and then hurried ahead so that he could unlock his apartment door and get Nino in before Abbey could come up and give the game away by going in to what used to be Marinette's apartment.

That was way too close. Hopefully they wouldn't have that problem again while Nino was there. Adrien felt a little bad about not slowing to chat with Abbey like he and Marinette normally did, but he wasn't entirely positive that she would remember to act like she lived in another apartment on the floor once they reached their respective doors. In fact, he wasn't even sure that Marinette had told Abbey that a friend from Paris was visiting them over the weekend.

He would apologize and explain later. Abbey would understand, he was sure.

"Your apartment has really come a long way since the first time I first saw it," Nino told Adrien as he stepped in and glanced around. He spotted Adrien's slightly puzzled look and rushed to explain. "I mean, the first time Alya and I visited, there wasn't that much here. There was just what you could carry in a couple suitcases and what you had ordered- and, like the furniture and all, but the place was just really, really bare. And now it actually looks lived in. You have all sorts of little knick-knacks here. It looks like a home, instead of a temporary living place."

Adrien laughed. "Yeah, I like it," he admitted. "But it's a curse as well. Marinette has a lot of stuff too, and we're both wondering how we're meant to get it all home once we're done in London. We're going to have to do a couple trips at the end of the year, I think, and maybe ship some stuff. It's been a pretty common conversation topic even though we have a couple months left."

"Are you leaving anything here?"

Adrien had to think about it for a moment. "Well, the furniture, obviously," he joked. "And the kitchen stuff and whatnot. I think the landlady might be a tad bit upset if we ran off with that stuff. But in all seriousness, yeah, there's some stuff that I really don't need to take back," he added before Nino could groan at him too much. "Like, my dad got sheets and towels and whatnot for me when I moved here, and I have plenty of that stuff back in Paris. Marinette did the same, I know. I think we're just going to wash that stuff and donate it. It would cost more to ship it back than it would to just replace things."

Nino nodded. "Yeah, that makes sense."

"I don't know what else we might get rid of," Adrien said. He led the way into the kitchen and pulled out the soup he and Marinette had made to heat it up. "Any food left over, obviously. Marinette bought a sewing table for herself, and that'll probably go to one of her coworkers. Stuff like that. But I like a lot of the things we've acquired and I don't want to get rid of much of it."

"What about your fake marriage certificate?" Nino asked. He grinned at Adrien. "I like that you still have that up, actually. Like, did you never find anything better to put in that frame?"

Adrien had to laugh. "What are you talking about? That's the best thing that could go in that frame. It's such a big part of my London experience. I'm gonna keep it forever."

"You're going to go to all the trouble of bringing it back to Paris? Really?" Nino gave Adrien an incredulous look. "Dude. It's just a piece of paper. You've got the photos and everything, if you wanted reminders of your prank."

Adrien just grinning, shaking his head. He knew Nino wouldn't understand it. The fake marriage certificate reminded him of the start of his time in London, and the start of a new period of his life. It was funny, and, well, what else was he going to put up on his wall? Pictures from his photoshoots?

Nino and Adrien joked and laughed as the soup reheated and they sat down around the table. Adrien checked his phone before he tucked in and saw that Marinette had gotten into Paris and had gotten home safely. Her parents were happy to see her, of course, but still were a little puzzled over her sudden decision to visit. Adrien typed out a quick reply and then put his phone away so he could focus on his dinner.

And so he could talk to Nino, but Nino didn't seem to be in a super-conversational mood now that their meal was in front of him. In fact, he seemed rather distracted.

"This wasn't just a normal visit, was it?" Adrien asked when Nino fell quiet again during dinner. "Was there something you wanted to talk about?"

Nino laughed, finally setting down his fork so he would stop fiddling with his food. "You know me too well. Yeah, there is, but I kind of wanted to talk to both you and Marinette at the same time..."

Adrien tried not to look too alarmed. If Nino came back to London for another weekend, they would have a really hard time trying to hide the fact that he and Marinette were living together. He would have to find some other solution. "We could maybe Skype Marinette so you can talk to her, too."

Nino grinned. "Yeah! That would be great. I didn't really want to make another trip over, since I'm trying to save my money at the moment."

Adrien blinked at the comment. "...for trips to see Alya?"

Nino shook his head. "Not... not exactly. But that's part of what I wanted to talk to you guys about, actually."

Completely lost, Adrien just nodded and reached for his phone. "All right. I'll text Marinette and ask when she can Skype us. Her parents will probably be off to bed soon, so I'm sure she'll be free before long."

Nino nodded.

It didn't take Marinette long at all to respond eagerly. Apparently her parents had already headed off to bed and she was more than willing to Skype with them. She wanted to know what news Nino had to share, and she didn't want to have to just hear it secondhand. Adrien had to hold back the affectionate greeting on the tip of his tongue when Marinette's face popped up on his computer screen. They had done so well so far with not making their Paris friends overly suspicious, and to trip up now would be a letdown. Instead, he contented himself with a "Hey, Marinette!"

"Hey yourself," Marinette shot back. Her eyes were twinkling. "Long time no see, stranger."

Adrien just snorted.

"Okay, less flirting from you two," Nino said, pushing Adrien over so he could sit in front of the screen as well. "Hi, Marinette! So I hear you forgot about your trip until last minute."

Marinette made a face and stuck her tongue out at him. "Yeah, yeah. I thought it was next weekend, not this one. Otherwise I would have let you know ahead of time so we wouldn't miss each other." She made another face (She's so cute, Adrien thought rather dreamily) and then refocused on them again. "So what's up? Adrien said that there was something you wanted to talk to both of us about?"

Abruptly, Nino was nervous again. "Yeah. I, uh, it's, well..."

"Dude."

"I'm thinking about asking Alya to marry me!" Nino suddenly blurted, words rushing out together in a blur. "This December, when I go to visit her in Tibet."

Both Adrien and Marinette gasped.

"Congrats, Nino!" Marinette exclaimed, grinning. "Adrien! Give Nino a hug for me!"

Adrien was already on it, practically knocking Nino over in a tackle of a hug as he grinned. "That's so great! So that's why you're trying to save money right now! Have you gotten a ring yet? Man, marriage fever really has hit our group of friends, hasn't it?"

"I've narrowed it down to two choices," Nino said, shoving at Adrien's side. "Dude, get off. You're squishing me."

Adrien just laughed and wriggled forward a bit more for maximum squishage. Nino groaned.

"So did you want our opinions on the rings or something?" Marinette asked, leaning forward in a failed effort to see them better. "Adrien, get off Nino."

"I like how he listens to you but not me," Nino muttered when Adrien pushed himself back up. "And yeah, I thought I would ask you, actually, since you'd probably have a better idea of what Alya would like. And then I just wanted input from you guys on, y'know, how to do the proposal itself. Because I have some ideas, of course, but..."

Both of his friends grinned, eager to help.

"Well, if you have pictures of the rings, then you can send them to me now," Marinette said, scooting closer to her screen. "And then you can tell us about your ideas! I haven't really heard about Alya's plans for the Tibet part of her trip yet, so you'll have to tell us about that, too."

"Sending," Nino said, tapping at his phone and shooting the pictures in a text to Marinette. Adrien craned his neck to look at the rings. Both were fairly straightforward bands, one with small sapphires on either side of the middle diamond and the other with smaller diamonds alongside the large one, and both would be perfect for Alya. On the computer, Marinette let out a coo of delight.

"These are perfect, Nino!" she exclaimed. "Alya would love either one, really."

"But would she love one more?" Nino asked anxiously. "They're pretty much the same cost, so that's not an issue."

Marinette hummed and looked back at her phone. "I personally like the top one more, but that's just me."

"I concur," Adrien chimed in.

Nino let out his breath. "Okay, that's great. I was honestly about to just flip a coin and decide that way, but if both of you like that one better, then that's fantastic."

"So what about your proposal plans?" Marinette asked immediately. "You said you want to do it in December? And then Alya has a month of travel left after that, right?"

Nino nodded. "Yeah. I originally wanted to wait until she got back home but then I thought, then what makes it special? She's been seeing cool stuff for months. How is a proposal going to be memorable after that? And I had always thought that I might propose while we were traveling at some point, but after this year I think she'll be traveled out for a bit and, well, we can't really do a trip just for no reason plus a honeymoon. And she'll be in such a cool place in December, so..."

"Makes sense," Adrien said, grinning. "So what's the plan?"

Nino let out a long breath. "Well, it's not set in stone yet, but I'll be going on a Wednesday evening, then I'll be accompanying Alya on a couple outings. Then we have Saturday and Sunday to do whatever, since she's scheduled those days off. I leave on Tuesday, and then she heads on to the next place on Thursday. So I figured I would propose on Saturday, so we have a couple days together to, uh, celebrate-"

Marinette and Adrien both snorted.

"-but outside of that? I really don't know. I was thinking about maybe a hike because it's gorgeous in the area she'll be in, but it'll be freezing and the weather might not cooperate, plus from what I understand, she'll be out hiking with her guides to various spots connected with the Miraculous during the week, so she'll probably be tired of that by the time the weekend gets there."

"She'll probably be ready for a massage and some hot tubs," Marinette said with a laugh. "Something indoors and warm. Pampering."

Nino grinned. "You're the best, Marinette. I like that idea. So maybe I can find some sort of spa to go to during the day or something?"

"Ooh! Or maybe hot springs," Marinette said, shifting in front of her computer again. "I know Alya mentioned those when she was looking at stuff for Tibet. She said it was too bad that she probably wouldn't have time to go to them. I mean, they're outside, but the one that she'll be closest to has an absolutely gorgeous view according to the brochures Alya was looking at. You're outside, but you're in the pool and surrounded by stream and warmth and then there's snow, like, half a meter away."

Nino perked up. "Hot springs? So, you sit and soak? That sounds relaxing."

"And probably a little less expensive than a spa," Marinette pointed out. "O a lot less expensive, probably. And it's a nicer setting. More unusual. You can find spas anywhere, but hot springs are less common."

"So I could maybe propose there," Nino said, nodding to himself. "We'd obviously have to have towels and coats, like, right there for when we get out, so I could keep the ring box in my coat pocket and then...maybe I could get out first, and then while Alya is still in the water, turn around and propose right there..." Nino was on a roll now. "And then a restaurant afterwards. I'll maybe drop a few openings for her to let me know what restaurants she's maybe interested in next time I call her- hopefully they won't be booked forever in advance- and we can do that after, and then, ah... back to the hotel, probably." He let out a long breath, grin spreading across his face for real now. "You are actually the best, Marinette, has anyone ever told you that? I never would have thought of that."

"And I'm chopped liver, apparently," Adrien said with a laugh. "But I think that sounds amazing, Nino. Alya's gonna be so thrilled. Are you gonna try to get someone to take pictures of the proposal or nah?"

Nino made a face. "I...don't know? Like, if the opportunity comes up for me to somehow get someone, then sure, I might try, but I mostly want pictures right afterwards. We'll send you selfies afterwards for sure."

"I'm so happy for you guys," Marinette said again, grinning. "I can't wait to see those pictures and to hear how it went."

"You have to wait a couple months yet," Nino reminded them. "And I don't think I need to remind you not to breathe a word of this to Alya, right? I want her to be completely surprised."

"No problem, dude," Adrien assured him. "We won't breathe a word."

The rest of the weekend was mostly filled with Adrien and Nino hanging out. Since the weather outside had taken a turn for the crummy- "Seriously, dude, all of this rain is just depressing. How do you live here?"- they mostly just hung out in the apartment and played video games. Nino kept adding new handicaps for Adrien so he could try to be able to win for once. Some were more successful than others.

"How are you still winning even when you have a blindfold on?" Nino had complained after Adrien narrowly beat him. "That's absolutely ridiculous, dude. Insane."

Adrien had just grinned. Plagg, who had decided to be helpful for once by hiding in Adrien's collar and whispering directions into his ear, sniggered quietly.

Nino headed back to Paris midday Sunday, and Adrien saw him to the train station before heading to a cafe nearby. Marinette would be coming in on the same train Nino would be leaving on shortly, and there was no point in heading back to the apartment early by himself. As he nibbled on the croissant he had ordered (nowhere near as good as the ones the Dupain-Chengs made, but still decent enough), Adrien thought about the bomb Nino had dropped on him over the weekend.

Nino and Alya would be getting engaged.

Really, it shouldn't have been a surprise. Nino had mentioned thinking about getting engaged before, and his only reservation had been Alya's trip and how being engaged or married while she was gone might affect them more than if they were simply dating. Now that Alya's trip was partway done and would be drawing to a close in January, it made sense that Nino would be thinking about engagement again. He could take advantage of the amazing places Alya was travelling to with her research to give Alya the magical proposal she had always wanted.

And all the planning and talk of engagement had gotten Adrien thinking. While he and Marinette had technically only been dating for just over a year now, he knew that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her, without a doubt. They wouldn't be able to be public with their relationship until they got back to Paris and an engagement wouldn't change that.

But if they got engaged right before they went back...

It was something to think about. Also, he couldn't help but think that it would be funny to go back home and announce that they were engaged out of the blue, which would mean that they would have to keep their secret, well, secret for another few months.

Adrien's phone chimed, and he immediately lunged for it. Marinette's familiar contact popped up on his screen, beaming up at him.

Marinette: Just got in! I think I saw Nino on the platform, but only for a second and the crowd was too thick to check. I wanted to go over and say hi :(

Adrien grinned and hopped up, clearing his table and heading back to the station, the remaining part of his croissant in one hand. He had missed seeing Marinette, even though she had only been gone for two days. How Nino managed to go weeks without Alya, he wasn't sure. It had to be hard.

He was only outside for a minute before he spotted Marinette coming through the crowd with her little bag. He trotted towards her, a grin on his lips. She just rolled her eyes when she saw him.

"Miss me?" Adrien teased as he joined her and they headed together towards the bus station. "It's been forever!"

"It's been two days," Marinette corrected. "But yes, I suppose I did miss you, even though we video-chatted during that time. Can you believe it?"

"It's great news," Adrien agreed, picking up the change in topic easily enough. He had known that Marinette must have just been bursting, wanting to talk to someone about Alya and Nino's soon-to-be engagement. "I actually should have been expecting it. Nino had talked about getting engaged before, but he was just worried about the timing with Alya's trip. So it makes sense that he would want to propose now."

"Alya is going to be thrilled," Marinette said. She was grinning. "It's going to be just her kind of proposal. Somewhere exotic and unique, but she'll be nice and comfortable in the hot springs."

"That was an amazing idea," Adrien told her. He had seen how much Nino had lit up at the suggestion, and he had spotted Nino reading up on hot springs in the region of Tibet that he and Alya were going to be visiting several times over the weekend. He seemed to be trying to figure out which would be closest and still have the best view and the best premises. "Nino was really thrilled to have more of the details in place. And I can't wait until he proposes. I want to hear how it goes, but there's still more than a month to go!"

Marinette laughed.

"Why now, though?" Adrien wondered. "Why are people getting engaged all at once now? First Ivan and Mylène, and now Nino and Alya. Well, within a couple months, at least. Soon. It's like there's an engagement bug going around."

"Well, I assume people were waiting until they graduated, for one," Marinette pointed out, giggling. "And then they probably wanted to earn some money before having a wedding. A couple years gives them that. They can get their careers properly started and get the time off they want for the wedding and honeymoon. And they've been together forever."

Adrien nodded. There was no denying that. He wasn't surprised that either couple would get engaged (or be considering it), just the fact that both couples would be making the same move within months of each other.

"So how was your weekend?" Adrien asked, deciding to change the topic for now. They reached the bus stop and sat down to wait. "Did you enjoy seeing your parents?"

"I did," Marinette agreed. "It was nice to work in the bakery for a bit again. I got to do some decorating, as usual." She giggled. "And I had to do a fast shower before I took the train back, because I was mixing up some bread last-minute to help my dad and I started the mixer up too fast and the flour went all over. I looked like a ghost."

Adrien laughed. That was so typically Marinette. "Oh, I wish I could have seen that. I bet you looked adorable."

"I looked a mess is what I looked, thank-you-very-much."

It didn't take long for the bus to come, or for them to get back to the apartment. Once they got back, it was time to return their apartment to normal.

"Oh, I'm astounded that Nino didn't notice anything," Marinette said as they hung up their coats. Up on the top shelf, Marinette's heavy sweaters and coats had been hastily covered by Adrien's sweaters, and the result was messy, to say the least. "We kind of just have things covered up everywhere."

"It helped that he was distracted," Adrien agreed. He pulled his shoes off and headed back to their bedroom, where they had stored most of Marinette's things that hadn't been simply covered to keep them out of sight. "I'm just glad he didn't come back into the bedroom at all. The stuff back here wasn't very well hidden- though at least we did remember to take out the trash this time around."

"Well, we didn't exactly have anywhere else to store things." They rounded the bed to pick up the sewing table, with Marinette's sewing machine perched on top of it. "How soon do you think they're going to get married? Do you think they'll have a long engagement, or a short one?"

Adrien had to think about it as they slowly moved table and machine around their bed. Truth be told, he really didn't know. Nino had wanted to propose over a year ago- or, well, he had considered it some at that point, at least- so maybe they would want a wedding sooner rather than later. But then again Alya was going to be busy with getting all of her research organized and ready to publish, so maybe it would take them longer to plan the wedding. He couldn't remember if either Nino or Alya had ever mentioned to him what kind of wedding they would want to have- large or small, fancy or straightforward, even if they would have a wedding or if they would rather elope.

Yeah, he was pretty sure that they had never mentioned any of that stuff.

"It probably depends on a lot of things," Adrien said as way of answer. "I mean, we could ask Nino since he and Alya have probably talked about getting married before. Or we could wait and ask both of them after Nino proposes."

"I know Alya has mentioned wanting a late spring or early summer wedding, when the weather won't be too hot," Marinette continued, like she hadn't heard Adrien's comment. "So it'll either be a short engagement, or just over a year. I'd guess that they would go for the just over a year just to have the time to plan, but maybe I'm wrong."

"What are Ivan and Mylène doing?" Adrien asked as they set the table down for a short break. "Have they told you? You saw them over the weekend, right?"

"Early fall next year," Marinette said immediately. "Around the same time when they first started dating, though I think that decision was part because of that and part because Mylène loves fall."

"Does Ivan love fall, too?"

Marinette laughed. "Ivan loves making Mylène happy. And I don't think he had a super-strong opinion on the season." She perked up suddenly, clapping her hands together. "Oh! And speaking of Ivan and Mylène, Mylène wants me to go dress-shopping with her when I'm home for Christmas. She's going to look into making an appointment right after the holidays so I don't have to take too many more days off, but she'll let me know what she finds."

Adrien grinned as they picked the table back up again and kept moving. "She doesn't think Alix can give her the best dress advice? I'm shocked."

"I think Alix is in charge of helping with refreshments." Marinette maneuvered the table into place against the wall and they carefully set it down. "Or music, or maybe just the bachelorette party. Mylène didn't exactly have a ton of details squared away yet, since they only just got engaged."

"And now Nino and Alya are going to be getting engaged."

"Yeah."

Adrien swallowed a so who do you think is going to be next? He knew a few of their other lycée and collège friends were dating people, but he wasn't entirely sure how serious those relationships were, partly because he didn't want to pry and partly because... well, he hadn't been in Paris for the last two-plus years and even before that, he only saw some of his former classmates on a rather infrequent basis.

Slowly but surely, the rest of their apartment got back to normal, clothes and baskets of cloth and magazines going back to their normal spots. Adrien refolded the last of his sweaters and put it back in its spot before turning back to an exhausted-looking Marinette, who was surveying their living room with a tired look. A thought hit him and Adrien snuck up behind his girlfriend with a mischievous twist to his lips.

"We forgot something," Adrien said, grinning when Marinette turned to him with a puzzled expression. "Something important."

Marinette frowned as she tried to figure it out, oblivious to his arm snaking around her waist to pull her closer. "Really? Wha- eep!"

"This," Adrien murmured, swallowing her yelp of surprise with a kiss. She melted into him with a hum. "Love you, Bug."

"I love you too, Chaton."

#Miraculous Ladybug #My writing #How to Fake a Marriage #Adrien Agreste #Marinette Dupain-Cheng #happy htfam-iversary!

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ksnapier · 5 years ago

Video

youtube

Naturally, Kim's Knitting - Episode 232

Welcome to Naturally, Kim's Knitting. I am Kim and this podcast is about knitting, spinning, and dyeing yarn from my home outside Lima, OH.

Today is November 18, 2020 and this episode is number 232

Find Me Online ~on YouTube, Blogger, Facebook and Wordpress as Naturally, Kim's Knitting ~on Ravelry as NapiersKnits and Naturally, Kim’s Knitting ~on Instagram as knittin_kim

~New Friends ~ Knit A long~FO KAL FOR November is now open - Drawing will be on December 1,2020 ~ Prizes to choose from a $10 gift card from Knit Picks/Amazon or a giftable pattern (value up to $10) ~or you may post on my blogs on WordPress or Blogger

Welcome to the Crafting in Red, Green or White for Christmas

Please post pictures of your finished objects along with pattern names. This is a 2 month Craft along, so I will close this thread on December 1. All projects need to be started no earlier than October 1 and finished by November 30. Have fun. I look forward to seeing all of the items Each submission needs to have a picture and pattern name, if available. Objects may be from whatever craft the person is using, such as knitting, spinning, dyeing, weaving, sewing etc.

Winners are chosen by Random number generator.

Feel free to poly-dip in other KALs as long as it fits in with other rules

Prizes: (if you’d like to donate a prize, please contact me) : Vary from month to month, check the podcast to see what prizes are being awarded this month.

For any and all giveaways, prizes, competitions, KALs, etc. that we host, the winner(s) have 2 weeks from the date of announcement (the date the podcast episode in which the winner was announced goes live) to contact me to claim their prize or it will be forfeited. If this occurs, the prize will be used for another giveaway at our discretion. Thanks for understanding

Making Things for Other Craft Along

Welcome to the Making Things for Others thread. Please post pictures of your finished objects along with pattern names. As we reach certain levels (determined by me) I will add prizes. This will run from November 1, 2020 to December 31, 2020. Have fun. I look forward to seeing all of the items

HUGS

This is a Make Along Thread. Items in this thread should not be started before November 1 and must be finished by December 31, 2020. Each item need to be something that is made for others (gifts, charity, etc.) Each submission needs to have a picture and pattern name, if available. Objects may be from whatever craft the person is using, such as knitting, spinning, dyeing, weaving, sewing etc. Winners are chosen by Random number generator. Feel free to poly-dip in other KALs as long as it fits in with other rules Prizes: (if you’d like to donate a prize, please contact me) : A giftable pattern (up to $15.00), A knit picks or amazon gift card for $15.00. Check the podcast to see what other prizes are being awarded for this Make Along. May either post on Ravelry or on Instagram using hashtag given on the podcast For any and all giveaways, prizes, competitions, KALs, etc. that we host, the winner(s) have 2 weeks from the date of announcement (the date the podcast episode in which the winner was announced goes live) to contact me to claim their prize or it will be forfeited. If this occurs, the prize will be used for another giveaway at our discretion. Thanks for understanding!

Into January and February ~ Taiga Hilliard Designs (cashmere junkie) - your choice of design

Craft Along Ideas - place on Ravelry thread, please or under video On The Needles ~socks for me on wheel (at home)~shawl (at home)~Butterfly Skirt (modified) by

Suzy Sparkles

~ soup kitchen socks ~ progress on the one

Finished objects ~Pattern test ~Brava ~ Taiga Hilliard (cashmere junkie)

NEW THINGSTea Advent Calendar from the English Tea Company Questions for Me Let's Chat

~Covid testing for Thanksgiving get together

~Many doctor visits

Daughter's blog https://mohradventuresinworldschoolin...

~read alongs and Egypt unit

~Nina's AtMyHouse ~

http://ninasatmyhouse.blogspot.com/

KnitPicks ~60% off over 1000 yarns~up to 50% off selected tools~50% off ebooks~freebies when you purchase over $50.00TODAY ONLY 20% off of Value packs with code BIGValue - check everyday for daily specials~Cables and select needles up to 30% off

Bare Yarn Discount when bought in bulk - up to 15% off

Sweater Weather ~10+ skeins 10% off with SWEATER10 code

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howblunt · 6 years ago

Note

1-98 weird asks!

First off: Thank you so much! I’m very excited to answer all of these :)

Second off: Let’s begin

1. coffee mugs, teacups, wine glasses, water bottles, or soda cans?

Coffee Mugs

2. chocolate bars or lollipops?

lollipops for sure

3. bubblegum or cotton candy?

bubblegum! (though i do love cotton candy)

4. how did your elementary school teachers describe you?

honestly I’m not sure. I’m sure it was something about me being quite and bad at participating

5. do you prefer to drink soda from soda cans, soda bottles, plastic cups or glass cups?

(reusable) Plastic cups

6. pastel, boho, tomboy, preppy, goth, grunge, formal or sportswear?

I love the look of pastel

but I think I dress more preppy ? with a hint of grunge(maybe goth)

7. earbuds or headphones?

I wear earbuds more often but I do prefer headphones

8. movies or tv shows?

MOVIES

9. favorite smell in the summer?

how the pool smells and sunscreen

10. game you were best at in p.e.?

none. P.E. was awful.

Stick to the back and hope the ball doesn’t come at me, that’s how I lived.

11. what you have for breakfast on an average day?

Cereal. I am a simple woman

12. name of your favorite playlist?

currently it is my “Jean + Scott angst (and love)” playlist off spotify

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3VAC9t28sIrgO7Y4os5a34

13. lanyard or key ring?

key ring

14. favorite non-chocolate candy?

anything gummy but more specifically gummy worms

15. favorite book you read as a school assignment?

Wide Sargasso Sea

If you like Gothic novels with some unrequited love and desire… hit this book up. Look up the plot of Jane Erye first.. it’s like a prequel. Btw I hated Jane Erye. But love Wide Sargasso Sea. Lots of symbolism and even witch craft

16. most comfortable position to sit in?

Legs stretched out, both on the ground

17. most frequently worn pair of shoes?

My black tennis shoes. Very comfortable

18. ideal weather?

Fall weather. Wind and sunshine

19. sleeping position?

Usually on my right side. But I wake up on my back

20. preferred place to write (i.e., in a note book, on your laptop, sketchpad, post-it notes, etc.)?

Laptop

21. obsession from childhood?

Barbie dolls! and my little pony+ littlest pet shop

22. role model?

This is a hard one because I don’t really have anyone. But I guess Dan Aykroyd (my senior quote is from him)

23. strange habits?

biting the inside of my mouth, fidgeting + folding up papers that are given to me (like in mass), and chewing my straws

24. favorite crystal?

Rose quartz and orange Calcite

25. first song you remember hearing?

Here Comes the Sun

My mom used to sing it in the morning to wake up my sister and me

26. favorite activity to do in warm weather?

Swim

Or walk/ride my bike to the library

27. favorite activity to do in cold weather?

curl up in a blanket and stay inside

28. five songs to describe you?

(In no order)

Not Today by Twenty One Pilots

Wow, I’m Not Crazy by AJR

xanny by Billie Eilish

I’m In Love With My Car by Queen

Why Do You Feel So Down by Declan McKenna

29. best way to bond with you?

Going shopping (clothes or other). This way we can chat and also have something to do

30. places that you find sacred?

The library and church

31. what outfit do you wear to kick ass and take names?

idk full outfit but my black pleated skirt makes me feel good

32. top five favorite vines?

In no order

*girl vapes* wow

I smell like beef

Lets’s tell each other secrets. I’ll go first, I hate you.

Chris is that a weed?!

This is how I enter my house. What’s up fuckers?!

33. most used phrase in your phone?

omg

34. advertisements you have stuck in your head?

that one for the shampoo made for curly hair. and it goes “That’s curl power”

35. average time you fall asleep?

11 or 12 during the week. 1 or 2 for weekends

36. what is the first meme you remember ever seeing?

Rage comics. idk which specifically. But i used to run a rage comic meme account. I was pretty popular ;)

37. suitcase or duffel bag?

suitcase

38. lemonade or tea?

lemonade (though i do LOVE tea)

39. lemon cake or lemon meringue pie?

Lemon cakes

40. weirdest thing to ever happen at your school?

omg so. There was this girl who told on this other girl for cheating on a test. Then like the whole grade just ganged up on this other girl and started calling her “the snitch” because the cheater’s friend group started saying “snitches get stitches” (lol even tho i went to an all girls, majority white + prissy + upper class, catholic school but go off) that went on for too long.

at some party they started to chant “snitches get stitches”

the girl who started the chant then got suspended

41. last person you texted?

my ex. (it was a good breakup)

42. jacket pockets or pants pockets?

jacket pockets

43. hoodie, leather jacket, cardigan, jean jacket or bomber jacket?

hoodie

44. favorite scent for soap?

strawberry

45. which genre: sci-fi, fantasy or superhero?

sci-fi (lmao x-men is under sci-fi at the library. so it counts)

46. most comfortable outfit to sleep in?

XL t-shirt from giving blood and some very loose pajama shorts

47. favorite type of cheese?

American

48. if you were a fruit, what kind would you be?

Mango (I eat enough to turn into one)

49. what saying or quote do you live by?

“Comparison will kill you”

50. what made you laugh the hardest you ever have?

OMG so there was this big spider web. And me and a friend thought it would be funny to call another friend over. And then be like “’lol u just walked passed a huge spider”–we didn’t think she would walk into it or near it because it was right by the edge of a lake we were by. So we call her over and this girl starts sprinting over toward us and RIGHT toward the spider web, and she had this big smile. And my friend and I yelled at her to stop. And when we were laughing saying she was about to run into a spider web and showed her the big spider, she began to freak out (maybe even cry).

She was okay after the shock and fear wore off.

I literally have tears in my eyes from typing this

51. current stresses?

My friend moving away really far

Starting school

making new friends

52. favorite font?

I honestly don’t have one

53. what is the current state of your hands?

kinda dry

54. what did you learn from your first job?

That I really love kids

55. favorite fairy tale?

Little Red Riding Hood and Rapunzel

56. favorite tradition?

Every one of my family’s Christmas traditions

57. the three biggest struggles you’ve overcome?

My self doubt

sharing my art + writing

My self confidence + learning my worth

58. four talents you’re proud of having?

I can play the piano

I can draw and paint

I can embroider and sew (not well but I have fun)

I can write pretty creative stories

59. if you were a video game character, what would your catchphrase be?

“Oh gosh, now what?”

60. if you were a character in an anime, what kind of anime would you want it to be?

Magical Girl Anime

61. favorite line you heard from a book/movie/tv show/etc.?

Darjeeling Limited directed by Wes Anderson: “What’s wrong with you?” / “Let me think about that. I’ll tell you the next time I see you.” / “Sure, tell me then.” / “Thanks for using me.” / “You’re Welcome.”

62. seven characters you relate to?

Will from Stranger Things (with the whole not wanting to give up “childish things” and other stuff his friends are growing out of)

David Wong from John Dies at the End (with how he handles the situation and thinks)

Molly from Booksmart (not the going to a great college or being super smart + looking down on people part. But wanting to go to a party and flirt with cute boys)

Erin from Derry Girls (Tbh, I relate to all the main girls in this show)

Eric from That 70s Show (sometimes)

A mix between Ben and Andy from Parks and Rec

63. five songs that would play in your club?

Good Old Fashion Lover Boy by Queen

Dance, Baby! by Boy Pablo

Hooked On A Feeling by Blue Swede

Fake Happy by Paramore

Sober Up by AJR

64. favorite website from your childhood?

Club Penguin and Webkinz

65. any permanent scars?

On my knees from falling as a child. A small scar under my eye from a dog bite

66. favorite flower(s)?

Roses and Daisies

67. good luck charms?

I wear this necklace a friend gave me when I am nervous

68. worst flavor of any food or drink you’ve ever tried?

Green Tea flavored Mochi is kinda nasty to me

69. a fun fact that you don’t know how you learned?

Dan Aykroyd lost his wallet that he always kept chained to his belt. He was freaking out and searching all over while John Belushi was laughing his butt off

70. left or right handed?

right

71. least favorite pattern?

anything with too many circles / holes

72. worst subject?

Anything Science related

73. favorite weird flavor combo?

idk but do NOT try lemonade with Doritos. it taste like throw up

I’ve made this mistake twice

74. at what pain level out of ten (1 through 10) do you have to be at before you take an advil or ibuprofen?

it has to be an 7 or so

75. when did you lose your first tooth?

gosh, i’m not sure

76. what’s your favorite potato food (i.e. tater tots, baked potatoes, fries, chips, etc.)?

tator tots

77. best plant to grow on a windowsill?

this is a question for my sister

78. coffee from a gas station or sushi from a grocery store?

I regularly buy sushi from a grocery store so that works

the grocery store I go to has a sushi bar and has fresh sushi every day

79. which looks better, your school id photo or your driver’s license photo?

tbh they both looks kinda good.. not to BRAG. but i guess driver’s license

80. earth tones or jewel tones?

Earth tones

81. fireflies or lightning bugs?

fireflies

82. pc or console?

83. writing or drawing?

BOTH BOTH BOTH BOTH BOTH

both

84. podcasts or talk radio?

podcast – no commercials

84. barbie or polly pocket?

Barbie all the WAY! Though I do love me a good polly pocket

85. fairy tales or mythology?

Fair Tales

86. cookies or cupcakes?

though i like making cupcakes more

87. your greatest fear?

Being kidnapped and never being found

88. your greatest wish?

To find my ideal man

89. who would you put before everyone else?

Anyone in my family

90. luckiest mistake?

Thinking a test is sooner so I study. But then ending up having another day to study as well.

91. boxes or bags?

Boxes

92. lamps, overhead lights, sunlight or fairy lights?

lamps

(maybe some fairy lights in the background)

93. nicknames?

My real name is Veronica but I go by Ronni

Ron Ron, Gonni, Ronica

94. favorite season?

Fall

95. favorite app on your phone?

music

96. desktop background?

I’m a Kaneki slut (Tokyo Ghoul)

97. how many phone numbers do you have memorized?

two

98. favorite historical era?

style wise: 1800 rococo -- Marie Antoinette period

media wise: 1970s

#ask #anon #thank you again!#howblunt #2019

0 notes

gishwheshistorian · 8 years ago

Text

Gishwhes 2012 Item List

Lucky Seven: Things to remember that can help find your way to ghost hunting in Scotland!

1. Safety. There's a way to scavenge all of these items safely AND legally.

2. Commandments. Read the Commandments. Yes, again. And maybe one more time. Also, we may add or remove items and change the rules on you mid-hunt. So it is your responsibility to check the "Updates" page daily.

3. Submission Quality. Submit the best quality photos and videos. This year, our judges have been authorized to assign up to 50% more points for superior submissions. That means if you execute a 50-point item with exceptional care and thought, you could walk away with 75 points. So think about focus, lighting, background props, etc. If the picture is riveting, the judges will likely be riveted, and, well, you do the math.

4. Interpretation. Submit exactly what is asked for, not your reinterpretation of it. If we ask for a camel in the picture we don't want a drawing of a camel, or an inflatable camel. We want a real, hairy, spitting humped beast.

5. Creative Scavenging. Be creative on how you get props and materials for your items. Last year's participants proved you don't have to buy stuff. They used friends, neighbors, donations and communities. They were also surprised how complete strangers thoroughly enjoyed helping them complete items. Throw "Item Parties" and have people bring what you need. You can win cheaply simply by being clever, borrowing or begging.

6. Courage. Be courageous. You don't need money or talent to win this. All of these items can be completed simply by having the courage to ask someone. Between the 15 of you, someone somewhere has what you need or can help you get it.

7. Do it. Have fun, make friends, push your boundaries and mud wrestle with your creative side.

There are a number of items below that have the word "Hurricane" in front of them. Although they can be completed by anyone, they are designed to be completed by people who might be home-bound with no electricity for the next few days because of Hurricane Sandy on the East Coast in the US. Please note, if the power outages are prolonged, we may extend the deadline for these items (and perhaps all others) past the end of the hunt. Remember, if you're on the East Coast and your authorities have told you to stay inside, FOLLOW THEIR DIRECTIONS! Do NOT go outside. Be safe and good luck!

ALL of the Items below should either be captured as "images" (which are photographs) or "videos". When you click "Submit", there will be instructions on how to submit the links to these images or videos. You should only use IMGUR, VIMEO and YOUTUBE. IMPORTANT - Unless otherwise specified, ALL VIDEOS must be 30 seconds or less!

1. Guinness Item Coming Soon! Stay tuned! (0 points)

We are going to attempt to shatter the Guinness World Record for the “Most Pledges to Commit a Random Act of Kindness.” The current record is 74,379 pledges held by Guinness Breweries. Let’s take the throne! Your team must collect “pledges” from individuals pledging to do a Random Act. Click this link and follow instructions; don’t click the submit button here. (You get 1 point for every 2 pledges - up to 350 points maximum. It’s only 47 per team member, but we expect you to exceed this because this isn’t all about points. Is it?) (0 points)

2. [IMAGE] A four-post, queen-sized bed with headboard and footboard. On the bed: a sleeping person. Over the person: A comforter. Under the person’s head: A pillow. Bed, person, comforter and pillow must all be situated in a Wal-Mart parking lot.(62 points)

3. [IMAGE] A storm trooper in full costume including leggings (not just the mask!) cleaning a pool. We must see someone lounging in a swimsuit holding a cocktail nearby. (78 points)

4. [IMAGE] Help someone who has been injured or whose home has been damaged by hurricane Sandy. (60 points)

5. [IMAGE] Let’s see what Twister would look like with 13 people. Each person must be wearing only one color of clothing, i.e. all yellow, or all red and no two people can be wearing the same color clothing. (56 points)

6. [IMAGE] Hurricane Item - If your child were a prodigy artist and had a marker and you were deep asleep and they were inspired to “beautify” your face, what would the result be? (8 points)

7. [IMAGE] 3 adults and a dog sitting on chairs around a table in a public library. The humans are reading Dr. Seuss books. The dog is wearing prescription eyeglasses and reading Kant. (23 points)

8. [IMAGE] Ever seen the movie “The Hangover”? Let’s see the aftermath of the most debaucherous party ever. Photo must be taken at the home of a team member’s parents. (38 points)

9. [IMAGE] Using a Zamboni and dyes, draw a giant frowny face on an ice-skating rink. (72 points)

10. [IMAGE] Find an object that was manufactured the day and year you were born in city or town of your birth. Prove it. (Note: the “object” in question cannot be you or your twin.) (34 points)

11. [IMAGE] Submit a “Freedom of Information Act” request for your personal files. (5 points)

12. [IMAGE] Creatively edit the Wikipedia entry for Jared Padelecki to seamlessly include your team name and some mention of his abiding admiration of Misha Collins. (6 points)

[WEBSITE] Create the Misha Collins fan site that Jared Padelecki would build if he only knew HTML. Submit the website URL. (6 points)

13. [IMAGE] An op-ed piece published in a local paper about how “petty, vindictive birds are stealing from the elderly!” (23 points)

14. [IMAGE] A person in a business suit with a leather briefcase jumping into leaf pile. (18 points)

15. [IMAGE] Five parking tickets made out to the same license plate on the same day in the same municipality. (66 points)

16. [IMAGE] Knit a scarf that is at least 12 feet long and is being worn by 3 people at one time. (32 points)

17. [IMAGE] Thread the stem of an actual, still-green, four-leafed clover through the hole of a nose piercing. (12 points)

18. [IMAGE] You and 8 of your friends standing outside the Copenhagen City Hall. One of you, smiling, is holding a large sign that says: “Denmark - ranked 2012 ‘World’s Happiest Country!’” Everyone else in the photo must be either pissed off or crying. Mascara must be running. (18 points)

19. [IMAGE] A uniformed Burger King employee enjoying a McDonald’s Happy Meal. (33 points)

20. [IMAGE] Get a tour of a sauerkraut factory. Photo must depict at least 50 gallons of uncanned sauerkraut and a team member wearing a single sequenced glove. (63 points)

21. [IMAGE] The inside of an ICBM missile silo decorated for Halloween. Remember, it must be a real ICBM silo to qualify. “Interpretation” will dock points from your team… unless it’s really good! (190 points)

22. [IMAGE] We’ve all heard of a “flea circus”. What do “flea strip clubs” look like? (28 points)

23. [IMAGE] A GISHWHES counter-rally at an Obama or Romney campaign stop. Must include at least 5 people with large picket signs.(54 points)

24. [IMAGE] The president, king, chancellor, premiere or prime minister of a nation modeling a brazier. (141 points)

25. [IMAGE] Calendar item: A photo of a scantily clad fireman (or firemen) whose skimpy attire is made entirely from kale. Model must be posing in front of a fire truck. Bonus points if, behind him, water is shooting up into the air from a hose or hydrant. (71 points)

26. [IMAGE] Proof that a team member’s family tree leads to Genghis Khan. (24 points)

27. [IMAGE] A photo of someone using one of those ancient 1800s cameras – you know the ones with the wooden tripod and the black cloth – taking a photo of a commodore 64 computer that’s resting on a wooden stool. (49 points)

28. [IMAGE] A live monkey or ape wearing a sock monkey hat while trying to extract burnt toast from a toaster. (82 points)

29. [IMAGE] Have a romantic dinner with a marionette puppet at a 2- or 3-star Michelin restaurant. A puppeteer clad in black must control the marionette. The puppeteer must not eat. (86 points)

30.[IMAGE] Show up at Second Beach in Stanley Park, Vancouver, Canada on November 4th at noon with 500 popsicle sticks, a spool of sewing thread and quick-drying glue. (90 points)

31. [IMAGE] Unionize GISHWHES. (38 points)

32. [IMAGE] Fifteen children in Halloween costumes each holding up a sign with a different letter that, combined, say “GISHWHES or Treat” (19 points)

33. [IMAGE] Get your team name and “GISHWHES” on a billboard. Must include commercial-looking graphics, and must be at least 100 square feet on an actual, commercial billboard. (131 points)

34. [IMAGE] Calendar item: Wear cheese and wear it well. You cannot be wearing anything but cheese. You may use any type of cheese you wish. Supermodel it posed next to or on a classic car (a classic car is any car that predates 1980.) (98 points)

35. [IMAGE] Draw or paint a portrait of Misha Collins and the Queen of England, both dressed in Steampunk, riding on a single stallion. (28 points)

36. [IMAGE] Hug a uniformed Veteran. (42 points)

37. [IMAGE] A screen cap of a chat thread on Misha Collins’ IMDB page. The thread must be started by a user with your team’s name and must pose an unusual question about Misha’s personal life, such as, “Is it true that Misha Collins eats nothing but the hearts of human babies?” Or “Why doesn’t Misha have any fingers?” (14 points)

38. [IMAGE] A Hell’s Angels (or at least a tough & leathered biker) with an authentic Teletubby tattoo. (69 points)

39. [IMAGE] You and 3 of your friends/family dressed like Egyptians in a chariot on the steps of the Wellington Monument in Dublin. (71 points)

40. [IMAGE] Create a portrait of Jensen Ackles entirely out of skittles doing his pouty “Blue Steel” look. Must be AT LEAST 2 feet by 2 feet. (38 points)

41. [IMAGE] A real full-sized commercial Blimp or hot-air balloon, in the air, that’s been completely covered in brightly colored autumn maple leaves. (299 points)

42. [IMAGE] There is a quote on a piece of paper stuck to the bottom of a bench overlooking the bay in Sausalito. Find it and follow directions. If the paper disappears the points will be deducted from the last team to submit a link. (32 points)

43. [IMAGE] Go to the Grimm Brother’s statue with 10 of your friends and dress up and pose as a “Fairy Tale gone bad!” (29 points)

44. [IMAGE] What happens when you roast Barbie and Ken (in an embrace) with an assortment of root vegetables? You will be penalized if you eat the roasted vegetables. You also will probably die as they will be toxic from the roasted plastic. (19 points)

45. [IMAGE] Let’s see your team displayed like the “Brady Bunch” opening credits except there are 3 rows of 5 pictures (versus the 3X3 we know from the “Brady Bunch” opening credits points). The submission must be 1 image with the 15 frames in it. Each of you must be wearing 70s attire and must look VERY emotionally unbalanced. (15 points)

46.[IMAGE] Your head in a sock monkey hat mounted like a hunting trophy on a wall next to a taxidermy moose head. (113 points)

47.[IMAGE] It’s time to get organized! Create a filing system for chickens in a chicken coup. (52 points)

48. [IMAGE] What do you look like sleeping? What does a close-up of your child smiling in your kitchen look like? What would a cake look like if your child made it with no help from you? And what would your child’s face look like if he or she could eat the cake while you’re still sleeping? MUST SUBMIT AS ONE PICTURE with the four images edited together in progression side-by-side. (31 points)

49. [IMAGE] Build a teahouse under a bridge from recycled materials. Have a cup of tea in it. (73 points)

50. [IMAGE] Belgium is known for its beer. Go to A La Becasse Brewery and hold up a GISHWHES labeled beer. (61 points)

51. [IMAGE] How long was Miss Jean Louis’s “kale binge”? One might find the answer on one of our social media platforms. (29 points)

52. [IMAGE] Hurricane Item - Build a real igloo-doghouse in the snow. Dog must be visible in the doorway. GISHWHES must be written in food coloring on the doghouse. (58 points)

53. [IMAGE] Carve a Jill O'Lantern! Carve a pumpkin to look like a feminized Misha Collins. Bonus points for realism. (61 points)

54. [IMAGE] Elmo Gone Wrong. What would a Tickle-Me-Elmo look like if it had a serious crystal meth problem? (31 points)

55. [IMAGE] A man in a chicken suit in the pilot seat of a commercial jet. (132 points)

56. [IMAGE] Drop a school bus (may be a toy bus) into red, molten lava from an active volcano. (145 points)

57. [IMAGE] Create a public chalk art piece diagramming Kant’s categorical imperative. (19 points)

58. [IMAGE] You and your friend at a children’s hospital giving a sock or real puppet show. (48 points)

59. [IMAGE] Hurricane Item - Knit a “GISHWHES” vest for a cat with matching booties. (43 points)

60. [IMAGE] Sign and have notarized (or equivalent of notarized in your country) an affidavit vowing never to build raised garden boxes within the city limits of South Pasadena. (34 points)

61. [IMAGE] What would you and your friend look like if you were a human-sized burrito and taco standing side by side? (57 points)

62. [IMAGE] Build a model of the death scene of Galois in miniature out of legumes. (43 points)

63. [IMAGE] 5 uniformed postal workers hula hooping in front of a post office. (108 points)

64. [IMAGE] Attend a professional soccer (a.k.a. “football” everywhere but North America) game dressed in a US football uniform. Pads, helmet, cleats, etc. (72 points)

65. [IMAGE] Create a 2 foot-high dinosaur out of sanitary napkins. (50 points)

66. [IMAGE] Skydive while holding up a sign that imbeds, “GISHWHES” in a phrase. For example, your sign could say, “Lose your dignity – join GISHWHES.” Or “GISHWHES made me do it.” (168 points)

67. [IMAGE] Hurricane Item - Find prime factorization for RSA-210. (120 points)

68. [IMAGE] There is a quote on a piece of paper stuck to the bottom of a bench in front of a massive LCD screen in Wuhan, China. Find it and follow directions. If the note disappears the points will be deducted from the last team to the last team to submit a link to an image. (52 points)

69. [IMAGE] You and a friend must take at least 50 of your stuffed animals/dolls on a field trip to a grocery store. All of the stuffed animals/dolls must EITHER be attached to your clothing or in a grocery cart or both. (63 points)

70. [IMAGE] Recreate the snake’s seduction of Eve at a bus stop. Fig leaf, apple, snake, etc. (41 points)

71. [IMAGE] Hurricane Item - Sculpt your hair with gel, wires, tape, ornaments, animals, and whatever else into what someone would undoubtedly have to classify as the Most Epic Hair Hat the World Has Ever Seen (MEHHWHES) (29 points)

72. [IMAGE] A Yoga class in a yoga studio with at least 10 participants doing the same pose. Unlike everyone else, however, you must be wearing full skiwear including ski boots, skis, hat and goggles. (56 points)

73. [IMAGE] Break your own world record. (20 points)

74. [IMAGE] A bookstore on the Left Bank declares “Be not inhospitable to strangers lest they be angels in disguise.” Stand in front of this Parisian landmark dressed as an angel holding up a sign saying, “Don’t touch me.” (64 points)

75. [IMAGE] You handing coats you’ve collected from your closet, friends and neighbors to a local shelter. (70 points)

76. [IMAGE] Make a gorgeous wig out of cheese puffs and/or popcorn. Go shopping for diamonds wearing it. The image must show you in the wig, at the jewelry display case, talking to the sales agent, as you browse the diamonds. (77 points)

77. [IMAGE] If your team could give the entire world one piece of advice, what would it be? Have one a team member hold a sign bearing the statement over their head in front of an internationally recognizable landmark. (38 points)

78. [IMAGE] Hurricane Item - A one-page GISHWHES comic strip involving a rhinoceros, a tangerine, and an appendectomy. (33 points)

79. [IMAGE] Rio is the location for the next summer Olympics. In front of the Christ the Redeemer statue, you and 6 of your friends must all be dressed in different Olympian athlete event costumes, and each of you must have at least one piece of equipment (bow and arrow, javelin, pole vault, discus, paddle, puck, etc.) and must be posing as if you were competing in the sport. You may NOT choose tennis, cycling, golf, basketball or football/soccer. If you choose equestrian as one of them, we must see the horse. (68 points)

80. [IMAGE] You posing with a “spaghetti gun” and wearing a woven “spaghetti-hunting jacket”. Spaghetti may be cooked or uncooked. (42 points)

81. [IMAGE] We want to see what the inside of Area 51’s most secret storage room looks like. (42 points)

82. [IMAGE] Let’s see you make a snow angel. But instead of making it from snow, make it from Jello on your kitchen floor (Inspired by Nin Pipariperho) (19 points)

83. [IMAGE] You holding a picture of you holding a picture of you holding a picture of you holding a picture of you holding a picture of an apple. You must have a gold frame suspended around your head. (Inspired by nakedontheimpalacoveredinbees) (33 points)

84. [IMAGE] Stand next to a REAL Olympic gold or silver medal winner. They must have their arms upraised in victory but you must be biting on the medal while it’s around their neck. Must include medal winner’s name in the photo (Inspired by Paige Barton) (98 points)

85. [IMAGE] Cultural exchange: Have dinner with a Sunni and a Shiite or a Hutu and a Tutsi. (64 points)

86. [IMAGE] A Bejeweled Bosom covered with nothing but jewels (Inspired by Erin Leigh Winchester) (36 points)

87. [IMAGE] Catch the Snipe and show us what it looks like in oil paint. (Inspired by Obadiah Kliest) (17 points)

88. [IMAGE] The Maryann Elizabeth Voisinet. Write a 10-line epically beautiful brilliant love poem addressed to “My Dearest Maryann Elizabeth Voisinet”. In addition to whatever else you put in the poem, include something about how much you like her cooking. The poem should be from your team name. Take a picture of the poem and submit the link here. YOU MUST ALSO mail the love poem to her with a small dried flower to PO BOX 99185, Raleigh, NC USA 27624. It must reach her by November 15th so we can confirm it was sent. (20 points)

89. [IMAGE] A priest, a rabbi and a minister all walk into a bar. (Inspired by Miss Alexandra Roberts) (27 points)

90. [IMAGE] High Tea - a formal tea party replete with parasols, silverware and a string quartet situated in a junkyard or garbage dump. (56 points)

91. [IMAGE] Table a motion (18 points)

92. [IMAGE] A schlemiel and a schlemazl sharing a schmear of schmaltz and getting shickered outside of a shul. (From Nicole Ansell) (19 points)

93. [IMAGE] Using only items found around you (either at work, home, or school), construct a vehicle capable of adventure and mayhem! Vehicle must be transporting a crew of three or more in full battle gear! (From Kat Green) (56 points)

94. [IMAGE] Paint a large unicorn on a military transport truck. You MUST have permission to do so. (114 points)

95. [IMAGE] Kilt made entirely of sliced cucumbers. Must be worn by a man. (From Xiomara Dilrosun) (104 points)

96. [IMAGE] In front of Hallgrimskirkja, you and a friend hold up two signs and two bags of ice. One sign says “Welcome to Iceland!” the other says “Keep your hands off our ice!” (41 points)

97. [IMAGE] Santa Clause in line at the post office with a SACK FULL OF TOYS. Must be at least 10 people in line with him. (From Sarah Charbonneau) (32 points)

98. [IMAGE] A dog taking a human for a walk. Human must be on all fours and have a collar around their neck and the dog must have the leash in his mouth. (From Michelle Rogatski) (34 points)

99. [VIDEO] Big wheel race time. 4 adults racing on plastic big wheels. They must all be wearing formal attire. (38 points)

100. [VIDEO] In mime, depict one of the following phrases: a) “The pen is mightier than the sword.” b) “You’re the bees knees!” c) “Holkyn kolkyn!” (Inspired by Ida Tamminen) (32 points)

101. [VIDEO] A couple who has been together for over 60 years sitting on a couch sharing their secrets to a happy and lasting partnership. They must say what city and country they’re living in at the beginning of the video. (Up to 60 SECONDS) (99 points)

102. [VIDEO] Jog in real “Pumpkin shoes” (you may substitute any squash or gourd), wearing jogging shorts and headphones down a busy sidewalk. (50 points)

103.[VIDEO] Two three-year-olds wearing suits and ties standing at a lectern explaining the Greek debt crisis to the camera. (28 points)

104. [VIDEO] The “Lydia Easter”: Recreate a scene from your favorite movie. Hold on, not so fast! You must film this scene in the EXACT SAME LOCATION that it was filmed in the movie (same bus stop, restaurant, park, castle, shark’s belly, etc.) The actors must be dressed the same, same props, etc. The more identical the scene the more points you will receive. Extra points for depicting a scene from one of Lydia’s favorite movies: “Mao’s Last Dancer” or any of the “Harry Potter” movies. (2 minutes) (100 points)

105. [VIDEO] The first meeting of an adopted child with their biological parent. We will know if this is staged with “actors”. Don’t lie – bad karma is not a good thing. (148 points)

106. [VIDEO] Film a Random Act of Kindness and set it to music. (May be up to 90 seconds.) Must include voice over. Note: Your video will be automatically entered into the non-profit Random Acts’ SAARA contest. If your video submission wins the contest, up to $3,000 will be donated to the charity of your choice! See this link for all details:http://www.therandomact.org/events/saara/ BE SURE TO SUBMIT THE VIDEO LINK ON THE GISHWHES WEBSITE, not the Random Acts website. We will allocate your GISHWHES points and forward your video to Random Acts. If your team wins the SAARA contest, your team will vote on which charity should receive the donation. If you can’t come to a consensus on which charity to support, we’ll do a blind drawing to select a winner. Good luck! (121 points)

107. [VIDEO] A man and a woman in full wedding attire, standing perfectly still holding hands in a well-lit crowded public space for 20 minutes. Neither of you can move. This submission must be time-lapsed so the entire 20 minutes is condensed to 20 seconds – fast motion. (79 points)

108. [VIDEO] Wearing swim flippers and a mask, approach a complete stranger in a public space and then hand them a “seaweed bouquet” with one flower in the middle of it. (82 points)

109. [VIDEO] Ever seen this? http://www.upworthy.com/if-your-dad-did-this-you-are-probably-an-awesome-person?c=upw3 Let’s do the same thing but edit together multiple kids under the age of 5 singing “It Sucks to Be Me” from the Avenue Q musical. They must be lying down getting ready to nap, playing with toys, painting or drawing or doing other kids things while they’re singing. (79 points)

110. [VIDEO] Let’s see your family dress and pose and create the “Worst Family Holiday Card Ever”. Note: everyone must be holding a cucumber. If you use an image already on the Internet and try to “doctor” in the cucumbers your team will be docked 60 points.(60 points)

111. [VIDEO] Created a choreographed lip-synced dance performance to one of Jason Manns’ or Rob Bennedict’s (Louden Swain’s) songs. Must be dynamic, must really tell a story, must involve costumes (and costume changes points) and must have a cast of at least 15. (123 points)

112. [VIDEO] A mechanical catapult that sends a pumpkin more than 100 feet across an open field. MUST be mechanical. (284 points)

113. [VIDEO] Three adult men with facial hair (ideally beards) wearing ballerina costumes, successfully trick-or-treating (getting candy) from an unsuspecting homeowner. (Note: we will be able to tell if the homeowner is actually surprised or not because we have Licensed Homeowner Surprise Analysts on staff.) (49 points)

114. [VIDEO] Give a psychic reading to a psychic with a crystal ball. (40 points)

115. [VIDEO] Three of you dress up like frogs and play “leapfrog” in your local Starbucks or chain coffee shop. We must see patrons and must hear “Ribbit!” each time you leap. (31 points)

116. [VIDEO] Get a full church choir (in a church!) to sing a 30 second remixed version of Willow Smith’s “I whip my hair back and forth.” But there’s a catch: Unlike the original version, which is an assault on both the senses and humanity itself, this rendition actually has to be musical and moving. (91 points)

117. [VIDEO] Play “Duck Duck Goose” with real ducks and geese. (38 points)

118. [VIDEO] Create a video of a mock news show (realistic set) where you are at a desk and announce that GISHWHES has taken over the world and what that means for everyone. The more realistic the set/video the more points. (92 points)

119. [VIDEO] Recite “The Raven” to a crow. (21 points)

120. [VIDEO] Have a native speaker of Zigeuner say the following, “I was having trouble with my sex life until I joined GISHWHES. Now things are going great in bed.” (82 points)

[IMAGE] Sew a one-piece outfit that covers your entire body except for your hands, feet, and head. It should be made from 21 different pieces of fabric. Multiple colors is acceptable. You must be wearing it, and a Captain’s hat. Pose in front of your local Post Office and stand at “Attention” when your photo is taken. (51 points)

121. [VIDEO] A group of at least 8 people wearing newspaper hats, performing the Haka in a government building. (Inspired by Yeal Rosen) (33 points)

122. [VIDEO] Dress in a homemade GISHWHES cheerleader outfit and stand outside a metro station or office building and cheer people on going in to work. (From Deby G) (30 points)

123. [VIDEO] Build an abacus from human beings. Use it to calculate something for a passerby. (77 points)

124. [VIDEO] Shoot an erotically charged scene. (No nudity! This is just the erotically charged foreplay). The film must involve a pizza man and the actors can ONLY talk about grammar and fonts. Please use at least three of the following terms, “kerning,” “serif,” “gerund,” “participle,” and “imperfective.” (69 points)

125. [VIDEO] Have an octogenarian teach you how to do the Charleston. (53 points)

126. [VIDEO] Get an orchestra in a symphony hall with at least 25 instruments to play “Carry On My Wayward Son”. (225 points)

127. [VIDEO] You in a flight attendant uniform, on a public transit system (that is NOT an airplane). Once the passengers are seated, give a full safety demonstration. Use props and carefully choreographed gestures. (Inspired by Cherylyn Crill) (75 points)

128. [VIDEO] Get His Serene Highness Hans-Adam II, Prince of Liechtenstein to endorse your team. (132 points)

129. [VIDEO] One of you pulling up to a fast food restaurant drive-thru to order a meal, but instead of ordering a meal, you are only allowed to make sheep noises into the intercom. Must clearly hear the person on the other end of the intercom. (From Mel Clark-Schwartz) (19 points)

130. [VIDEO] Get your (1) team name or a team member’s full name and (2) GISHWHES mentioned on a broadcast television news program. (153 points)

131. [VIDEO] Recode a version of the original Pac Man so that the ghosts are now unicorns and Pac Man is the face of George Bush. Then play a game. (111 points)

132. [VIDEO] A rocking horse wearing a sock monkey hat skiing off a regulation-sized ski-jump. (No passengers allowed!) (123 points)

133. [VIDEO] A woman wearing traditional shaker attire playing “Dance Dance Revolution”. (52 points)

134. [VIDEO] Create a petition to declare P does NOT equal NP and get strangers on the street to sign it. Must include a convincing pitch about the dangers of P=NP. (23 points)

135. [VIDEO] A man wearing traditional mariachi attire playing “Guitar Hero”. (51 points)

136. [VIDEO] March to a different drummer. 10 people in a busy, indoor shopping mall must be marching in sync to the beat of a snare drum being played loudly by an 11th person. Another person must be marching nearby to a distinctly different beat played by a second drummer. (63 points)

137. [VIDEO] A rock band performing in front of an audience of at least 1000 people. They must say at the microphone, “This next one is a new song. We’ve never played it in front of a live audience before. It’s going to be the first song on our next album and we hope you love it…” And then they must sing the song “Three Blind Mice” in rounds. (280 points)

138. [VIDEO] A woman, in a clean empty room, sitting in lotus position in the middle of at least five live snakes. She must be rubbing oil onto her arms from a silver bowl and clearly be enjoying it. The more snakes the more points. They must be real snakes. If they’re not, points will be deducted from your team. Go for the best photo/video quality. (220 points)

139. [VIDEO] It’s Halloween! Carve GISHWHES into a pumpkin. Wait for nightfall. Have a child with a flashlight hide inside the pumpkin pop out and scream “GISHWHES.” Hint: must be an enormous pumpkin for a child to fit in it. (80 points)

140. [VIDEO] A stop-motion film depicting the two by two loading of Noah’s ark and the ensuing flood. (99 points)

141. [VIDEO] Watch the TV show Supernatural on a black and white TV set powered by an antique stream-fed wooden watermill. Your video must be a continuous, unedited shot that starts showing us the water going into the water-wheel then moves to show the belts powering a generator, which in turn powers the TV. (287 points)

142. [IMAGE] Hurricane Item - Pun item: It’s called “Hurricane Sandy” for a reason. Show us why. (18 points)

143. [IMAGE] Hurricane Item - Local news coverage of a very sweet and heroic act that your team perpetrated in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. Must mention GISHWHES or your team name or at the very least, the term “scavenger hunt.” (91 points)

144. [IMAGE] Hurricane Item - Someone with their thumb out to hitch hike in front of a subway or metro stop that has been closed due to weather on the eastern coast of the US. Note: this photo must, like all other “outdoor” items, be taken AFTER your local authorities have said it’s safe to go outside, but before the public transit system is back up and running. (33 points)

145. [IMAGE] Hurricane Item - Someone skateboarding on the floor of an otherwise empty New York Stock exchange taken mid-day. (148 points)

146. [IMAGE] Hurricane Item - Make a children’s doll from items found in your refrigerator or pantry. Go ahead and really creep us out with this one. (24 points)

147. [VIDEO] Hurricane Item - Make a comfortable fort in your living room using furniture, sheets, pillows, towels and curtains. From inside your fort, show a storm raging outside your window. This video must clearly show high winds and rain outside the window and the window must have an “X” of masking tape across it. (32 points)

148. [IMAGE] Hurricane Item - A picture of you and a loved one kissing. Here’s the catch though - you must have at least 11 food items between your lips and the lips of your loved one. (29 points)

149. [IMAGE] Hurricane Item - Draw or paint a picture of Miss Jean Louis riding a school bus like a horse as it flies off a cliff into a volcano. There can be no passengers and she must have a dialogue bubble above her head that says something she would definitely say at this moment. (32 points)

150. [IMAGE] Hurricane Item - It’s Medieval Battle Time! Huzzah! You and a friend or loved one, dress up in your best battle gear/armory comprised entirely of kitchen ware. You can be wearing nothing else. Strike dueling poses. (39 points)

151. [VIDEO] Hurricane Item - Recite these lines from Edna St. Vincent Milay’s poem, “First Fig”: “my candle burns at both ends—It will not last the night;—But ah, my foes, and oh, my friends—-It gives a lovely light,” with a candle burning at both ends in front of your face. No other sources of light may be visible. In the background, we must hear the droning howl of Hurricane Sandy. (19 points)

152. [VIDEO] “The Maryam Al-Thani” - Dress up in Amish clothes, and use a horse or horses to tow your car into the parking lot of a corporate office building complex with “Gangnam Style” playing out of the car’s stereo. (70 points)

The Gishwhes Historian is a project to archive Gishwhes-related information including emails, hunt updates, timelines, and more.

You can find all previous item lists here.

You can view all our information on the 2012 hunt here, or select another year here.

If you’d like to help, we have a list of missing content here, or you can fill out one of our surveys.

#gishwhes #gishwhes 2012 #item list #item list 2012 #website content #website content 2012 #midhunt #midhunt 2012

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sewtofit · 5 years ago

Video

youtube

This Sew & Chat Live sewing video, I will show how I sew this Burdastyle asymmetric double layer waterfall blouse. Fitting and sewing tips will be included. -The FULL Fitting and designing TUTORIAL is part of my VIP Group at https://ift.tt/36LWIHY Which shows all Pattern modifications detailed in an extended video tutorial. #sewinglivestream —-PATTERN-BurdaStyle 10/18 #112 Asymmetric double layer along the bodice of this blouse adds some dimension and a bit of extra interest to a beautiful waterfall neckline. The narrow cuffs seal a slight balloon billowing sleeve shape. —-FABRIC- Viscose Rayon Print Supplies Used: Juki Sewing Machine Needles https://amzn.to/2R0rcAx KAI Serrated 3 Piece Set- Scissors: https://amzn.to/2sBXXL2 Thread- Polyester: https://amzn.to/372dC5c French Tricot Fusible Interfacing (Light Weight) https://amzn.to/2sBYeh2 Ultimate Pin Caddy: https://amzn.to/2u5uxFu Sew-To-Fit Live Sew & Chats are an extension of my custom sewing projects, VIP Patron Sew-To-Fit Alongs, and personal wardrobe building projects. Beginners to Advanced will find these videos helpful. There is always something to see and learn. Please enjoy 😉 #howtosew #sewingproject #beginnersewing —————————————————— RELATED VIDEOS: Cropped Wrap Blouse: https://youtu.be/ccMSuX3dn2w Ponte Pants: https://studio.youtube.com/video/Uyw3sq7ywAo/edit HELP SUPPORT MY CHANNEL: Sew-To-Fit VIP Sewing Group Membership: https://ift.tt/2MFHr3z Sewing Tools: https://ift.tt/2Q0wrxB eCourses & Pattern Shop: http://bit.ly/ShopSewtofit CONTACT ME and follow- Instagram: https://ift.tt/32SYxQm I love ❤️ mail... Send snail mail to my P.O. BOX: Sew-To-Fit P.O. Box 691302 Houston, TX 77269-1302 ---------------------------------------------------------- *** Hello, I'm Andrea, I make videos about sewing, and teach pattern fitting, sew-alongs and anything related to the art of sewing. My Private Club Community is for those who want to support my YouTube channel or want to get more in-depth opportunities for pattern making, pattern fitting and #sewing. Patreon: https://ift.tt/2L6IeeE ---------------------------------------------- Important Links: ***NOTICE****In order to help fund my channel, some links are affiliates, which means I may receive a small commission. There is no extra cost to you for using my links. #patternreview #learntosew #sewistofyoutube #sewtofit by Sew-To-Fit By ADLynn

#Sew & Chat LIVE 1/31/20

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thewritewolf · 6 years ago

Text

Marinette March Day 14 - Restore

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

Chat Noir drops in unexpectedly to ask a strange favor of Marinette.

@marinettemarch

Enjoy!

Read on Ao3

The day had come and gone pretty normally, even if Adrien was absent for most of the classes. Something about cleaning up at home. It didn’t sound like anything that he needed to do during class hours, but who was she to question it? It honestly wasn’t anything new since his father was prone to scheduling Adrien for events at all times of the day, heedless of everything school related except tests and events like class photos. Regardless of the older Agreste’s reasoning, Marinette was used to Adrien being absent, so it wasn’t jarring to not have him illuminating her life from a row in front of her. So the day wasn’t anything out of the ordinary.

It was the night that was strange.

She heard an insistent, almost desperate tapping at her window. It usually wasn’t wise to open up to that since odds are the only person knocking at her window at this hour (or any hour really - she did live in the attic after all), would be an akuma victim. But Marinette felt the desperation in the knocking and she would never turn away someone in need, even if she was risking her own safety.

The window swung open, revealing for a split second bright green eyes before a leather-clad mass of feline grace was rolling into her room. Reflexes honed over dozens of battles allowed her to duck out of the way, but sadly did not give her the presence of mind not to let out a startled squeak in the process.

Her protest died in her lips when Chat Noir stood up and looked at her through teary eyes before thrusting a tattered stuffed animal at her. “Can you fix him?!”

She gently took the ragged looking lion from him and began turning it over in her hands. It had seen better days, that was for sure - it was missing an eye and the other one was only barely holding on, much like the barely holding on right leg and left arm. A lot of the stuffing was gone or doing it’s best to get gone through one of the many small tears threatening to become larger tears. It was dusty and didn’t smell bad so much as it smelt old. There were also a few wet patches, presumably from Chat Noir’s tears. Despite all of the wear and tear, the one thing still holding strong was it’s smile.

Looking back at the hero, her heart ached to see how visibly distraught he was, wringing his hands and doing his absolute best not to cry anymore. It was not a fight that he was winning. Even if she wasn’t sure she could help, she had to at least try.

“Well, I have everything I need to do it, but I’m not sure if-” Chat hunched over, despair already setting in. “I’m going to do everything I can, alright? Just stick with me.”

He weakly nodded as Marinette gingerly set down the stuffed animal before getting to work. Thankfully, it didn’t look like it was too complicated or fancy a toy and she had the right supplies to do a fair enough job restoring it. But the lion wasn’t the only one that needed rescuing at the moment.

“So, Chat… what’s the rush? I can’t imagine your lion-”

“Mr. Scruffs,” came a timid but firm correction from Chat.

“...Odd choice of name for a lion.”

“I was four!”

“Right. Well, anyway - I can’t imagine Mr Scruffs got this damage all at once. What happened?”

Chat squirmed in place and rubbed the back of his neck guiltily. “Well, I had kinda… forgotten about him until today. Father and I were going through a bunch of old things from…” Marinette looked back at him to see him staring off at nothing, looking pained and took his gloved hand in hers. It seemed to snap him out of his fugue and he gave he a brief, appreciative smile before finishing, “...from before mom went away. I found Mr Scruffs in with a bunch of other stuff.”

“He must mean a lot to you.” It wasn’t the first time she’d spoken with Chat about his missing mother - either as Ladybug or as Marinette. It was old ground, but still clearly painful for him. She turned back to working on the doll, stitching together the smaller tears to keep the stuffing in. While Marinette wouldn’t claim that Chat didn’t get worked up over things from time to time, this was something else entirely. The best she could do for him was keep him in the present and get this thing fixed. Determination stirred within her - she would not let Chat down!

“He does,” Chat replied softly. “I have a lot of memories tied up with him. Purr-fect memories, of a better time in my life. All of them came rushing back when I saw him again.”

“...Is that why you were so flustered and eager to get him fixed?”

There was a long pause before he responded again. So long she nearly stopped teasing new stuffing into Mr Scruffs to look back at him. When he spoke again, there was a chill in his voice, somewhere between anger and sadness. “No. Father wanted to throw him out with the rest of it.”

That shook Marinette - it was easy to see how attached Chat was to the animal. Who would be so cruel? But the last part of the sentence is what caught Marinette’s attention. “Rest of what?”

“A lot of stuff from my childhood. A lot of mom’s stuff. He just… he saw it all and just…” He paused again, almost audibly composing himself. For his sake, Marinette pretended not to hear the sniffles. “Something came over him, he just wanted all of it gone. When I tried to save Mr Scruffs, he tried to take him from me and…”

Marinette paused in the middle of sewing the arm and leg back onto the torso, suddenly realizing where he could have gotten such an injury. Not for the first time, she was grateful for their still secret identities. Otherwise Paris might have woken up to news of Ladybug assaulting a man over a stuffed animal.

“It was kinda a blur after that. I ran to my room, locked the door, and left as Chat. And now, uh, now I’m here.” She could hear him rubbing the back of his neck. “Sorry, by the way. I know it’s late and I’m realizing this is all very silly, so…”

Setting down her needle, she turned around in her swivel chair and grabbed Chat’s face with both hands, lifting it up from his hunched over position. She stared him in the eye and told him, “Chat, do not apologize for coming here and venting. Was patching up an old lion doll what I expected to be doing today? No. Am I happy to help my good friend Chat Noir? Yes.” She stood up and began walking towards her trapdoor. “Now, you are going to stay right here while I get some cookies and milk. I’m only letting you leave until I know you’re feeling better.”

He gave a mock salute, grinning all the while. “Yes, ma’am.”

It was one in the morning by the time he’d left, belly full of sweets, heart full of love, and arms laden with a good-as-new stuffed lion named Mr Scruffs.

#Miraculous Ladybug #Marinette Dupain-Cheng #Chat Noir #Marichat #MarinetteMarch #ml fanfiction #my writing

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soysaucevictim · 5 years ago

Text

Same program, different challenges. (Week 6 + 1, respectively.)

Apr. 18

I woke up proper a bit after 1PM.

One of the first things I did was a bit of my exercise.

First, today’s DD. 40 raised circles with EC. This was just about very manageable.

(After some dishes, making and eating the next Hello Fresh Meal: crispy cheddar chicken, stuffed mashed potatoes, and asparagus. This landed far better than previous meals with the family - but I still personally enjoy them.)

Second, Day 31 of the 60DoC. Level 3, 30″ rest. I think I did about 1/3-1/2 of the exercise transitions stepping into/out-of plank. I spent the rest of them jumping. And oof, I was bushed after all of that (though, I think I’m regaining some of my built up stamina, after taking it relatively easy for a bit.).

Third, Day 1 of the Chest & Arms Challenge. I thought about starting things off on the knees, since it’s been awhile since I’ve focused on push-ups. But decided to go for standards. Today was 3x push-ups to failure, and my numbers were 20-15-10.

I’m going to try to prioritize quality over quantity, try not to get too sloppy. We’ll see if I can reach my PB with more consistently good form.

Last, Day 1 of the De-Stress Challenge. At first was unsure about stacking on punches on top of the other challenge, but this was very manageable to do in one go. I swapped stances at 50 punches. And I do think it will live up to it’s name, which is very much needed (given some family troubles).

I spent much of the rest of my day watching “I Shouldn’t Be Alive“, chatting with a friend, and playing some solitaire. Went to bed late, but oh well.

Apr. 19

I woke up pretty much around noon.

One of the first things I did today was exercise.

First, today’s DD. 20 downward/upward dogs with EC. A bit sloppy but, unsurprisingly still very tough to string together..

Second, Day 32 of the 60DoC. Level 3, 30″ rest. I might’ve gotten away with shorter-to-nonexistent rests today if not for clothing-related discomfort. But I had to work with what I had to. Would’ve been more fun/pleasant to’ve addressed that before starting, though. :P

Third, Day 2 of the C&AC. 3x20 shoulder taps. Thought about doing it one set - but my arms were still a bit tired from the DD.

Last, Day 2 of the DSC. 100 punches again. Same approach as yesterday. (But I might play around with how I stack the reps - like one side then other or bouncing more, as I go along.)

Spent rest of time chatting and a bit of art progress.

This time, I DID get to bed on time. Though it probably took me an hour to actually fall asleep. (I’m trying to use a Sleep Challenge from Habitica, to maybe fix this rut.)

Apr. 20

I woke up a bit after 11AM, a couple hits to snooze button on alarm clock. But It was before noon, so I feel I’m on track (and that it could help press me to sleep on time.)

One of the first things I did today was my exercise.

First, today’s DD. 2′ uneven plank with EC. Took some digging in to get through the last ~30″ of it. Probably got up a bit too fast after the strain and got my ears ringing a bit more than usual, while ear pressure equalized again. >_O

Second, Day 33 of the 60DoC. Level 3, 30″ rest. I did most of the transitions stepping into/out-of plank, mostly because I wanted to conserve some energy in my quads.

Third, Day 3 of the C&AC. 3x push-ups to failure. Same numbers as Day 1, which is okay. I might increment it up a bit more, next time. I’m still choosing to focus on quality.

Last, Day 3 of the DSC. This time I did 50 jabs per side, one side then the other, in one go. Felt a bit of fatigue in stacking things up that way.

I spent some time chatting with a friend and working on art. Was on track to sleep only a bit late... until I spilled some chocolate shake on my USB/ergonomic keyboard.

I then spent hours disassembling, cleaning, and reassembling it. Fingertips raw from driving a lot of screws, handling 99% iso alcohol, on top of sustained BFRB damage. It was really irritating, but at least I felt it was fairly successful. :P

Apr. 21

After a few hit of the snooze button, I got up only a little bit before 1PM

First, today’s DD. 40 Seal Jacks with EC. This was pretty breezy work for me.

Second, Day 34 of the 60DoC. Level 3, 1′ rest. I was looking at those split jacks in particular with trepidation. But I managed to get through it in one piece and worked up quite a sweat. :P

Third, Day 4 of the C&AC. 3x22 shoulder taps. Simple and reasonably challenging with rests, (Still contemplating on doing things in fewer sets.)

Last, Day 4 of the DSC. 100 punches - decided to do 50/50 cross punches today. A fun exercise to be sure!

Watched a bit of “I Shouldn’t Be Alive“, did a bit of art progress, and chatted. Managed to get to bed in the yellow zone.

Apr. 22

I barely got up before 1PM, today.

But one of the first things I got done today was some exercise.

First, today’s DD. 30 windshield wipers with EC. This definitely requires some mindfulness and control. And it’s also very easy to wind up shimmying across floor. Pffft!

Second, Day 35 of the 60DoC. Level 3, no rest. I liked that this was generally a bit on the easier side - mostly for the stuff in between the butt kicks servings as breathers. Butt kicks can make you feel your hamstrings, for sure!

Third, Day 5 of the C&AC. 3x push-ups to failure. This time, I went for 24-18-12. I think this was a good boost in numbers, while trying to keep form decent.

Last, Day 5 of the DSC.I just did the 100 with jab+crosses, swapping stances at 50. Very fun way to cap things off~

Spent a lot of time watching the usual, chatting, and doing light tech support for the family.

I didn’t get to bed on time, mostly since I decided to sew a cover for my USB hub’s LED.

Apr. 23

I woke up a bit after 1PM, I believe.

Did some more sewing and played some cards, before starting on some exercise.

First, today’s DD. 30 air circles with EC. This took some focus to maintain balance, especially upon switching sides.

(After spending a lot of time getting some paperwork together...)

Second, Day 36 of the 60DoC. Level 3, 30″ rest. Calve were burning, but I felt the usual bliss of doing jacks. Did contemplate on resting a bit longer, but got through it alright.

Third, Day 6 of the C&AC. 3x24 shoulder taps. Fatigued calves were a mild distraction while holding the plank, but still doable.

Last, Day 6 of the DSC. I did this the same way as yesterday.

Didn’t get to bed on time, for no great reason on my part. Played some Solitaire and yeah.

Apr. 24

I managed to be up some time after 11AM.

All the designated exercise I had planned for today was the DD & it was one of the first things I did. 40 reverse angels with EC. This was just manageable, despite going overboard on both ginger snaps & wasabi peas (spicy stuff right before being on the belly like that, pffft.)

I was pretty productive/busy, nevertheless. Did some dishes, and thanks to Habitica reminding me to do it, I cleaned my room, the hallway, cleared the vacuum’s brush bar, and cleaned the kitchen countertops.

Spent the rest of my time today chatting with a friend, first time I’ve voice-chatted w/ anyone in forever. Also it was fun sharing SaSi the past few days. :D

#adventures with fitness #adventures with hello fresh

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sophiadana · 7 years ago

Text

Amazing Recommendations for days out & things to do!

Are you enjoying the wonderful Autumn we are having with lots of gorgeous sunshine (and a little rain – at the time of writing!) With half term around the corner the Move Revolution team have been chatting about great things to do, and know you will love these recommendations!

The Reigate Antique & Flea Market

Louise Simpson (Area Sales Manager for Reigate & Redhill) recommends a Saturday stroll in Reigate Priory Park or the Castle grounds, and visiting the Reigate Antique and Flea Market (This will be on Saturday 20th October)

“The Reigate Antique and Flea Market is held every other Saturday at Somers Hall, Reigate (10 Slipshoe Street, RH2 9HU) It offers a great variety of antique furniture, collectables, crafts, china, glass, paintings, etc. There is also a vintage pop-up tea room on site to enjoy a cup of tea and homemade cake. Free entry”

Standen House & Gardens – National Trust

Paul Brice (Director for the East Grinstead and Lingfield Office) recommends a visit to Standen

“Bring the children for this fun half term children’s trail.

Autumn is the time of the year when leaves change colour and fall to the ground. Pumpkins, apples and pears are harvested ready to eat and animals prepare for the long cold winter ahead.

Become a Nature Detective by following the Standen Pumpkin Children’s Trail and discover how the garden changes during this magical season.

no need to book. Trail £2 per child with small prize. Norma ll admission charges apply. Standen is a hillside garden and there are steps which need to be climbed to complete the trail.”

October Half Term – Wakehurst Place

Mathew Gurr (Area Sales Manager for Haywards Heath, Lindfield and Burgess Hill) loves a day at Wakehurst place with his two boys…

Autumn exploration at Wakehurst this October half-term!

Autumn is a great time to be outdoors. Whether you want to take your time walking around the gardens and discovering more about the plants, or get involved in a special workshop for budding chefs, there’s plenty to keep the kids entertained this half-term.

Activities available: Well-being trail Join us to discover which plants improve your well-being on this self-guided trail through the gardens. Price £2 per trail.

Explorer rucksacks Pull on your Wakehurst Explorer rucksack and set off on an intrepid journey! Each rucksack is jam-packed with different activities to help you and your child discover the gardens. Three different rucksacks for different ages, Price £4 to hire, pick up from the Visitor Centre.

Cookery, carving and hairy toes! (24, 25, 26 October only) Join us for a three-hour outdoor cookery workshop and story-telling session. Make your own delicious soup for lunch, carve a tea light holder from a squash, and cosy up around the fire and listen to stories about Hairy Toes! Suitable for ages 5+.Price £15 per child, includes day ticket to Wakehurst for both one adult and one child attending the workshop. Available on 24, 25 & 26 October. Booking available online.

Tree Trunk Trek Located in Coates Wood, crawl and climb along the adventurous log trail, or enjoy the stage area to let imaginations run and encourage children to create their very own shows.

Children 16 and under are FREE to the gardens.

Find out more visit https://www.kew.org/wakehurst/whats-on/wakehurst-october-half-term

Horsham Museum – Lego Activity

Ross Margetts (Sales Manager for Crawley & Horsham Area) recommends the fantastic Horsham Museum – they always have amazing activities!

Lego workshop. Work at your own level to build creative solutions to a range of new Lego challenges. Session is suitable for children aged 5-14 (year 1+) and costs £7. Session Times: 11.15am-12.45pm Parents please feel free to leave your children with us. Workshops must be booked and prepaid in advance. To book call 01403 211 661 or email: [email protected] ***If booking by email – please provide a contact tel number, name of child, age of child and parent name. Pre payment will be required, however payments can be made over the telephone.

Ashdown Forest – Family Self Guided History Trail

Adam Gibbs (Sales Manager for Reigate, Redhill & Horley) recommends a visit to Ashdown Forest during the half term – which will be amazing with all the autumn leaves!

Collect a map and activity sheet from the visitor centre and follow the trail, complete the activities and return to collect a prize. £5 per family

The Tiger who came to Tea at Dorking Halls

Nicola Jordan, our Marketing Director recommends this fabulous production of The Tiger who came to Tea!

Direct from a smash hit West End season, The Tiger Who Came to Tea returns on tour, celebrating 50 years of Britain’s best-loved picture bookThe doorbell rings just as Sophie and her mummy are sitting down to tea. Who could it possibly be? What they certainly don’t expect to see at the door is a big, stripy tiger! Join the tea-guzzling tiger in this delightful family show; packed with oodles of magic, sing-a-long songs and clumsy chaos! A stunning stage adaptation of the classic tale of teatime mayhem…expect to be surprised! David Wood OBE is undisputedly the country’s leading writer and director of plays and musicals for children.

Nicola also recommends – Wind in the Willows at The Harlequin, Redhill (and why not pop into West Central opposite the Harlequin for a pre-theatre coffee!)

Join us on an exciting adventure along the riverbank with a brand new staging of Kenneth Grahame’s family classic ‘The Wind In The Willows.’ !

Meet all your favourite characters including loyal Mole, faithful Ratty and wise old Badger as they do their best to keep the mischievous Mr Toad out of trouble. Will they be able to stop the Wicked Weasel from taking over Toad Hall? ! This exciting and playful take on the tale features a professional cast of energetic performers, catchy new songs and lots of humour that will entertain and delight the whole family! TICKETS FROM: £11.00 – £11.00 – SHOWING TIMES: 15.00 & 18.00

Spooktacular Family Fun Day at Pinewood Scout Centre

Paul Mulligan, Area Sales Manager for our Purley Office recommends a great day at Pinewood Scout Centre 26thOctober

We’re excited to announce that we’ll be holding a wild and spooky autumn themed Family Fun day! Suitable for all children (and their parents) aged 2 – 16. Activities we plan to offer are….

*Spooky challenges – to earn a prize, negotiate the ‘Spiderweb’, brave our ‘Whats in the Box’, practice your aim and ‘Bash the Beastie’, ‘Splat the Tree’ and other fiendish challenges we’ve not dreamt up yet! *Dress up our Wild scarecrows *Make a Genuine Magical Broomstick *Carve / make a magic wand *Make a Clay Critter to take home or leave in the woods to scare passers by! *Bring a jar and make a lantern to keep you safe in the dark! *Get your face painted *Help us cook up a delicious witches brew on the camp fire *Mud play, potion making, exploring and tree climbing *Follow our secret trail through the woods *Find mysterious clues hidden in the woods for a prize *Spooky tales around the camp fire for different ages *Practice your whittling and fire lighting skills in the Bushcraft zone. If you already have and can safely use a small carving knife, bring it (in your parent’s pocket not yours!) or if you’d like to learn you can use ours under our guidance at various times throughout the day. (Ages 6+ as a guideline for this area)

Bring a picnic and if you want to, something simple to cook over the fire (sausages on sticks or a tin of hot dogs to nestle in the embers) There will be tea (herbal and builders), coffee and a selection of home made cakes to buy. Feel free to come dressed up spookily (Grown ups too!) Price per child for the day is £15 (unwaged) £20 (waged) £25 (generosity) Sibling discount of 50% per child Accompanying parents (up to 2 per child) and under 2’s go free. Extra adults £5 each.Booking is in advance. Contact us at [email protected] where we will let you have payment information to secure your booking.

Harry Hill, Theatre Royal, Brighton

Joey Hansen, Sales Manger for Brighton & Hove recommends a day out in Brighton (what a surprise… !!) He has two fantastic ideas…. Harry Hill at the Theatre Royal, Brighton – 26thOctober

Award winning comedian Harry Hill has announced a brand new, family fun filled live tour, Harry Hill Kidz Show: How To Be Funny – For Kids!, to mark the release of his brand new kids book in October 2018. The 11 date tour, jam packed with laughs for all ages, will come to Theatre Royal

Joey also recommends…25th-29thOctober Mexican Day of The Dead Sugar Skull making workshop. Mexican Day of The Dead Sugar Skull making workshop

Come and join us this half term holiday for a fantastic family friendly sewing workshop. We’ll be teaching you how to make your very own Mexican Day of The Dead sugar skulls. This workshop is suitable for all ages and abilities. Hand sewing only. All materials provided. . Free Tea, coffee

October half term fun with Priory Farm

Sue Peyton and Sarah Cohen our amazing Move Revolution Sales Progressors, based at our head office in Nutfield recommend our neighbour…. Priory Farm

Tractor rides to pumpkin field

Take a tractor trailer ride to our pumpkin field and choose the perfect specimen. Depart from The Discovery Walk entrance – Saturday 6, Sunday 7, Saturday 13 and Sunday 14 October, 10:30am -4:30pm (farmer’s lunch break 1:00pm-1:30pm). Last ride leaves the Discovery Walk at 4:00pm. £2.50 per person plus cost of optional pumpkin. (Subject to availability and weather)

Spooooooky Trail

Frights, fun and fresh air as you seek out spooks and spiders in the deep dark wood on The Discovery Walk and claim your horrid prize! Friday 19 October – Wednesday 31 October 9:30am – 4:30pm (last entry 3:45pm) £3 per person plus optional £1 Spooky Trail Quiz Sheet.

The Witching Hour (one night only!)

Bring your lanterns along for an even spookier trail after dusk – you never know what may be lurking in the shadows! Last entry to the Discovery Walk 7:30pm on Saturday 27 October. £3 per person plus optional trail sheet £1. Gates locked at 8.30pm. A great night out for younger families.

Witches’ Cave

Brave the cobwebs to see our eerie Jack-o-lantern display and choose from hundreds of home-grown pumpkins. Pick the perfect pumpkin and carving kit to create your own, unique lantern. In the Farm Shop, Friday 19 October – Wednesday 31 October. Free entry – just pay for pumpkins and kits.

Are you thinking of moving or letting your home. We would love to have a chat with you and arrange a free valuation. With offices throughout Surrey, Sussex and Kent we are confident we will have your next dream home ready and waiting for you!

Incredible Reviews!

We take great pride in our excellent customer service – don’t just take our word for it, have a read of one or two of our 682 reviews (at time of publishing)

Just give us a call on 0330 223 1000

Fill in this form

from sophiadana https://www.moverevolution.com/blog/move-revolution-recommends/

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moverevolutionestateagents · 7 years ago

Text

Amazing Recommendations for days out & things to do!

The Reigate Antique & Flea Market

Standen House & Gardens – National Trust

Paul Brice (Director for the East Grinstead and Lingfield Office) recommends a visit to Standen

“Bring the children for this fun half term children’s trail.

Autumn is the time of the year when leaves change colour and fall to the ground. Pumpkins, apples and pears are harvested ready to eat and animals prepare for the long cold winter ahead.

Become a Nature Detective by following the Standen Pumpkin Children’s Trail and discover how the garden changes during this magical season.

no need to book. Trail £2 per child with small prize. Norma ll admission charges apply. Standen is a hillside garden and there are steps which need to be climbed to complete the trail.”

October Half Term – Wakehurst Place

Mathew Gurr (Area Sales Manager for Haywards Heath, Lindfield and Burgess Hill) loves a day at Wakehurst place with his two boys…

Autumn exploration at Wakehurst this October half-term!

Activities available:

Well-being trail Join us to discover which plants improve your well-being on this self-guided trail through the gardens. Price £2 per trail.

Tree Trunk Trek Located in Coates Wood, crawl and climb along the adventurous log trail, or enjoy the stage area to let imaginations run and encourage children to create their very own shows.

Children 16 and under are FREE to the gardens.

Find out more visit https://www.kew.org/wakehurst/whats-on/wakehurst-october-half-term

Horsham Museum – Lego Activity

Ross Margetts (Sales Manager for Crawley & Horsham Area) recommends the fantastic Horsham Museum – they always have amazing activities!

Ashdown Forest – Family Self Guided History Trail

Adam Gibbs (Sales Manager for Reigate, Redhill & Horley) recommends a visit to Ashdown Forest during the half term – which will be amazing with all the autumn leaves!

Collect a map and activity sheet from the visitor centre and follow the trail, complete the activities and return to collect a prize. £5 per family

The Tiger who came to Tea at Dorking Halls

Nicola Jordan, our Marketing Director recommends this fabulous production of The Tiger who came to Tea!

Nicola also recommends – Wind in the Willows at The Harlequin, Redhill (and why not pop into West Central opposite the Harlequin for a pre-theatre coffee!)

Join us on an exciting adventure along the riverbank with a brand new staging of Kenneth Grahame’s family classic ‘The Wind In The Willows.’ !

Spooktacular Family Fun Day at Pinewood Scout Centre

Paul Mulligan, Area Sales Manager for our Purley Office recommends a great day at Pinewood Scout Centre 26thOctober

We’re excited to announce that we’ll be holding a wild and spooky autumn themed Family Fun day! Suitable for all children (and their parents) aged 2 – 16. Activities we plan to offer are….

Harry Hill, Theatre Royal, Brighton

Joey Hansen, Sales Manger for Brighton & Hove recommends a day out in Brighton (what a surprise… !!) He has two fantastic ideas…. Harry Hill at the Theatre Royal, Brighton – 26thOctober

Joey also recommends…25th-29thOctober Mexican Day of The Dead Sugar Skull making workshop. Mexican Day of The Dead Sugar Skull making workshop

October half term fun with Priory Farm

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currentbdnews · 7 years ago

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https://ift.tt/2nmxbC6 firms thrive as customers seek more unique clothinghttps://ift.tt/eA8V8J Small firms thrive as customers seek more unique clothing For update news visit All Bd Newspaper

LONDON — Claudio Belotti knows he cut the denim that became the jeans Meghan Markle wore on one of her first outings as the fiancee of Britain’s Prince Harry.

That’s because he cuts all of the fabric for Hiut Denim Co., a 7-year-old company that makes jeans in Cardigan, Wales. Belotti is a craftsman with 50 years of experience that gives his work a personal touch — something that’s not quite couture but not exactly mass-produced either.

“There’s a story behind each one,” Belotti said. “You’re paying for the skill.”

Customer demand for something unique is helping small companies like Hiut buck the globalization trend and set up shop in developed countries that had long seen such work disappear. While international brands like H&M and Zara still dominate the clothing market, small manufacturers are finding a niche by using technology and skill to bring down costs and targeting well-heeled customers who are willing to pay a little more for clothes that aren’t churned out by the thousands half a world away.

Profits at smaller national clothing firms grew 2 per cent over the last five years, compared with a 25 per cent decline at the top 700 traditional multinationals, according to research by Kantar Consulting.

Their success comes from promoting their small size and individuality, said Jaideep Prabhu, a professor of enterprise at Cambridge University’s Judge Business School.

“It’s a different kind of manufacturing,” he said. “They are not the Satanic mills. These are very cool little boutiques.”

Hiut, which makes nothing but jeans, employs 16 people in Cardigan and makes 160 pairs a week. Women’s styles range from 145 pounds ($192) to 185 pounds ($244), men’s go for 150 pounds to 235 pounds. Each is signed by the person who sewed it, known in the company as a “Grand Master.” By contrast, Primark says it sources products from 1,071 factories in 31 countries and keeps costs down by “buying in vast quantities.” The most expensive pair of jeans on the company’s website sells for 20 pounds.

Many of these small manufacturers also try to stand out by embracing social issues, from reducing waste to paying a living wage.

Hiut, for example, highlights its efforts to put people back to work in a small town that was devastated when a factory that employed 400 people and made 35,000 pairs of jeans a week shut down. Underscoring the years of craftsmanship that go into each pair of jeans, the company offers “free repairs for life.”

This kind of customer service helps form a “personal relationship” between a brand and the shopper that is valuable, says Anusha Couttigane of Kantar Consulting.

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Customers notice. Laura Lewis-Davies, a museum worker who from Wales, says she wants to support independent businesses when she can and bought a pair of Hiut jeans after seeing a story about Markle wearing the brand.

“Well-crafted things bring more joy,” she said. “I’d rather buy fewer things but know they’re good quality (and) made by people who are working in good conditions for a fair salary.”

The rise of small clothing makers reflects a broader shift in consumer preferences away from big brands — as evident, say, in the boom in craft beers. In fashion, technology is fueling the trend.

The internet provides a cheap way to reach customers, while off-the-shelf artificial intelligence programs allow companies to accurately forecast demand and order materials so they can make small batches and avoid unwanted stock. That makes it possible to produce clothes that are more customized.

“Data is the backbone for this and the trigger,” said Achim Berg, a senior partner at McKinsey & Co. in Frankfurt who advises fashion and luxury goods companies. “It’s not custom-made, but it gives the consumer the opportunity to be more individual.”

A survey of 500 companies by McKinsey and The Business of Fashion, an influential industry news website, identified personalization as this year’s No. 1 trend. Consumers are willing to hand over personal information to get more customized products and services, according to a 2016 survey by Salesforce.com, which provides online sales and marketing tools for businesses.

Established brands have recognized the trend and offering to customize products, too. Adidas, for example, offers the chance to mix and match colours and materials on things like the sole and laces on some of its shoes.

But making clothes on a smaller scale has also gained a moral tinge after scandals about sweatshops, child labour and unsafe working practices hit global brands in recent years. The 2013 collapse of the Rana Plaza building in Bangladesh, which killed 1,100 and injured 2,500 others, highlighted the grim conditions in factories that export to the United States and Europe.

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Jenny Holloway, who employs 100 people at Fashion Enter in London, said she’s not interested in making as many garments as possible and selling them as fast as she can.

“I’d like to say we’ve done a massive business plan and we refer to it. We don’t,” Holloway said. “We sit down and have a cup of tea and we have a chat and we evaluate how things sit with us. How does that client fit our ethics? … It isn’t about money and making that big buck. It’s about sustainability.”

Prabhu sees this as part of a bigger shift away from the model of outsourcing production to low-cost countries like China. “You’re trying to constantly keep up with your customers. Your competitive advantage is to give them something closer to their needs.”

Hiut Denim is an example of this backlash.

The company is based in a town of some 4,000 people where 10 per cent of the population once made jeans. Then, a decade ago, the factory shut down as the owners moved production to Morocco and later to China.

When David and Clare Hieatt decided to start making jeans again, they were determined to take advantage of the years of professional experience going to waste. They hoped that would give their products a “story” to market.

Markle’s decision to wear Hiut jeans in Wales boosted that effort. The company now has a waiting list of three months.

“For the town it’s been incredible because it gives people a confidence to go, ’Wow. This town makes a world-class product,”’ David Hieatt said. “We lost our mojo when we lost 400 jobs, but now we’re getting it back. That’s a very cool story.”

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