#does the proper dad pose while watching tv

[teddybeartoji]

toji is so dad sometimes it's so hot

[inkrabbit]

could you write about how if copia/ any of the papas and ghouls find out that you love something super nerdy? (like lord of the rings, Star Wars, that kind of thing) love your writing btw :)

Just using Papas 1-4 for this and in the more "hc" style. GN!Reader

Papa Emeritus I:

Honestly? He thinks it’s so cute

Will buy you anything that reminds him of you

But please remember that he’s also going to be using any obsession for this to his advantage

“Ah, girasole! Come, come! Look what I picked up for you on my outing!”

Do you know why he’s doing this? Because he’s a cunning old man that doesn’t want you seeing his latest plant purchase

So while you’re distracted with your new gift, his ghouls are in the background carrying the sad-looking plants inside

He does, however, love hearing you talk about whatever comes to mind

He’ll sit there, pruning his plants and asking you questions to indulge you

He doesn’t always pay attention whenever watching the movies with you, but he does remember your favorite parts and characters

Papa Emeritus II:

He has no idea what you’re talking about in the beginning

You’ll have to explain the plot before the cogs start turning

“I see. I believe I’ve heard of that before. It was never my style.”

He’ll have you sit in his lap whenever he has downtime and just let you ramble away

He asks questions here and there but, for the most part, he’s just content on listening to you

Don’t be offended if he ends up falling asleep on you. It’s not that you’re boring him. He just finds your voice very soothing

Occasionally your favorite will “coincidentally” come on TV whenever he’s swamped with work

He does it so you won’t miss him as much

He’ll also occasionally take breaks and stand right beside the couch, watching some of the movie with his arms crossed like one of those cliché dad poses

Papa Emeritus III:

Oh, he knows what you’re talking about. He’s gone to see it

Is it his style? No. Will he bully you for it? No.

He’ll let you talk about it, but he’s zoning out the whole time.

“I’m sorry, amore. So many things on my mind… it’s hard to keep everything in one place, you know?”

He does, however, buy you little trinkets to show that he does care. He might not be able to verbally support you, but actions are louder than words, right?

Also will have his ghouls discreetly hover around you (and maybe go through your phone) to see if you’ve put anything on your watchlist so he can buy it for you

Expect him to send you memes, too

He might not 100% get them, but he knows you will and that’s good enough for him

He will dress up as your favorite character only on Halloween, and that’s providing you two aren’t busy

Papa Emeritus IV/Copia:

Oh honey, why do you think he fell for you?

This poor boy shares your same interests and he’s so excited he gets to gush about everything to someone else

Sister Imperator would let him watch everything, but she was never interested in it herself. The ghouls didn’t care, either, and well… Copia’s lacking proper social skills for a reason

You two always set aside time to either rewatch your favorite movies and/or shows and neither of you will watch without the other

So be prepared for whenever he goes away on tour

Will complain at least once whenever in a call with you about how you guys are missing your little date night

Please reassure him. He genuinely feels bad and feels like it’s his fault you won’t indulge

Like Terzo, he’ll also send you memes. But this time, you can send your own back and you can both laugh

The second he gets home and gets everything put back, you two are having a marathon surrounded by snacks and fluffy blankets. Sister Imperator is even nice enough to let you two have your moment

[iamvegorott]

Operation Love Bus Part 2

Picture provided by @theprinceofflies

First Day 

“Say cheese~” Jackie sang as he snapped a picture of Wilford and JJ. “Man, this thing is so cool.” He chuckled as he took out the picture from the old-fashioned camera and watched the image slowly develop. “Wait, Wilford, you’re not that tall,” Jackie commented when he saw the picture.

“Why were you on a box?” JJ asked, managing to see the box before it was suddenly gone.

“Whatever do you mean?” Wilford popped his lips and took off for the RV. 

“I still can’t believe he’s convinced everyone to do this,” Jackie said as he handed JJ back his camera. “I wonder what he actually has planned.” 

“Whatever do you mean?” JJ awkwardly signed.

“JJ-”

“Bye!” JJ took off just like Wilford did and went to the front of the RV, getting a nice picture of it. 

“Egos of all shapes and sizes!” Wilford called from the open door of the RV, standing on the first step into it. “Everything has been packed except for you! Come aboard and let this adventure begin!” Wilford went the rest of the way into the RV, Robbie, and Blank excitedly following him in while most of the others weren’t looking the most...thrilled about this trip. 

“There are only nine beds, there’s eighteen of us.” Mad commented after looking around. 

“Right you are.” Wilford bounced over and gestured towards the beds. “We needed room for a proper bathroom and a little kitchen area so the buddies will be sharing beds-” Wilford paused while protests were either said or shouted. “-each bed has been labeled by your one and only JJ and remember. We have our buddy-system for safety.” Wilford continued and made his way to the front of the RV. 

“It’s for the kids,” Dark said to himself.

“These are pretty comfy,” Robbie said, climbing into his and Blank’s bunk. 

“Really?” Blank crawled in as well, the two feeling like there were in a wooden tent. 

“Looks like we’ll be sleeping together,” Phantom said with a chuckle to Jackie. 

“Y-Yeah.” Jackie scratched his cheek to hide the slight blush on his face. 

“Alright, sports, pop a squat while I get us going.” Wilford sat himself down in the driver’s spot, putting on his seatbelt. “Won’t take long to get us to a highway and then you’ll be good to move as needed.” 

“How long is it going to take to get to the first place?” Mare asked as he and everyone else sat down, JJ going to the front seat next to Wilford. 

“Won’t be till tomorrow,” Wilford answered, turning the RV on. 

“Wait, it’s going to take a literal day?” Anti groaned. “That’s so boring.” 

“There isn’t much where we live.” Bing shrugged as the RV took off. “All the really fun stuff takes time to get to.” 

“Why are we using an RV then? Most of us can teleport and we can take the ones that can’t.” Anti continued his pout. 

“That’s not as fun.” Yandere said.

“And neither is being in an RV for a whole day.”

“Don’t worry, we’ll make it fun.” Wilford chuckled. 

“I don’t know if I like the sound of that,” Edward said. 

“Just give me a few minutes.” Wilford waved a hand. 

Everyone found themselves soon just chatting amongst each other, getting comfortable in their spots, and having plenty of laughs shared between them all. Eventually, they were flying down the highway and the RV was fairly steady. JJ got up with his camera and headed back to the others, showing that it was all good to move around. 

“Now, let’s get the party really started.” Wilford reached up and turned on one of the many different kinds of media players above him. 

“Oh!” Anti and Phantom perked up from the song that played. The two shared a look and a grin before they jumped to their feet and started dancing together. 

“There are children here.” Chase scolded while covering Robbie’s eyes. 

“I’m sixteen, dad!” Robbie protested while Blank was also trying to get Mare’s hands off his own eyes.

“Still underage,” Mare added. 

“I’m not!” Marvin laughed and got up, joining Anti and Phantom in their dancing. Chase went still when Marvin started moving his hips. 

“You’re drooling.” Mare teased. 

“Shut up,” Chase said way too quickly.

“And so are you,” Mad said to Jackie, using a hand to close Jackie’s open mouth.

“No-I-I-uh-” Jackie cleared his throat but didn’t try to say anything.

“Come on, Bim.” Yandere pulled Bim to his feet and they spun in circles together. 

JJ giggled at the plan working out a lot more than expected but stopped when he noticed what Dark was doing. He wasn’t watching the show at all and was typing on his phone, probably answering emails he’s supposed to be ignoring. JJ started to get up to tell Dark no but Anti spoke first.

“JJ, take a picture!” Anti posed with Phantom and Marvin. 

“This is a family-friendly scrapbook.” JJ stuck his tongue out. 

“It won’t be family-friendly when I get that camera.” Anti glitched over but JJ knew what was going to happen and easily avoided him, rushing over to the front of the RV and sitting in the passenger seat. “Re-” Anti stopped when he ran into an invisible wall that was at a yellow line on the ground. 

“Can’t bother the driver, Anti.” Wilford chuckled. 

“I’ll get that camera later.” Anti stuck his own tongue out while JJ did the same again. 

The rest of the first day on the road consisted mostly of some dancing with a good handful of the Egos and even some sing-alongs. Eventually, they grew bored of the music and Wilford explained how to use large TV and everyone settled down to enjoy the movies and shows.

JJ used his camera to get a picture of the bunk beds and one of Wilford driving. JJ found himself studying that photo a lot longer than planned when it fully developed, it was strangely...poetic how Wilford’s face was when he was focused. His face was fully relaxed, a slight tilt to his head, and his eyes stared off at what he was looking at, in the present but not really. 

The final picture of the day was one of Robbie and Blank. Robbie had fallen asleep against Blank and when JJ came over with the camera, Blank gave a smile. JJ noticed how the smile immediately went away when the picture was taken. Blank swallowed thickly and was trying his best to keep his leg still, most likely not wanting his bouncing to wake up Robbie. He was anxious or nervous about something and he knew it wasn’t from Robbie being on him, they’ve slept like this since they were little kids. JJ slipped over towards Mare, made sure his back was to Blank so he couldn’t see his hands, and told him that Blank was struggling and might need to be checked on. Mare thanked him with a nod and went over to the teens. 

x~x~x

The sun had been down for hours and the moon was just a sliver in the sky. Wilford finally reached the stop that would allow him to go to sleep as well, the others have been silent for a long time, leaving him alone with just the road and his thoughts. Not his best place to be. 

Wilford yawned as he turned the RV off and got out of the seat, groaning as he stretched from driving for way too long in one go. He should have taken Dark’s offer to drive for a bit, but he wanted Dark to not worry about it at first. His plans made sure he’d had breaks from driving and knew which Egos would offer or agree to take over the driving. 

“Mare?” Wilford said when he saw that Mare was also awake, standing next to the bed where Jackie and Phantom were sleeping with something in his hand. “What are you doing?” 

“I…” Mare sighed, there was no use in lying to Wilford, it never worked out. “Don’t tell anyone else, but Phantom’s prone to nightmares when he sleeps away from his usual place. He’s like Blank and the change in environment throws him off but it really only hurts him when he’s sleeping since he can’t control anything.” Mare held up what he was holding and Wilford saw what looked like a large Lego with a string. “I’ve tied one of these to his wrist ever since I found out about this. Chewing on the…‘lego’ helps relax him.” 

“Does Phantom know?” 

“He does...but we never talk about it.” 

“Why not?” 

“It’s embarrassing.” Mare gently tied the string, using his finger to make sure it wasn’t too tight. 

“Embarrassing? You’re making sure your brother’s okay.” 

“I’m babying him. We’re both fully grown and he doesn’t need me to always take care of him but I just...I can’t help myself. I want him to be okay.” 

“You love him, there’s nothing wrong with loving someone,” Wilford added with a little gesture of his head towards where Mad was asleep. 

“Make sure you take your own advice, Wilford.” Mare popped his lips, ignoring Wilford’s movement, and went back to his bed. Wilford just made a face, not understanding what Mare meant. 

He then shrugged it off before going for his own bed, crawling in and seeing that JJ was curled up toward the wall, mouth parted as he softly breathed. Wilford smiled when he saw that JJ was cuddling one of the extra pillows, hugging it to his chest. Wilford tried his best to lay down on his back as slowly as possible, going still when JJ flipped over and was now facing Wilford. Wilford’s heart did a little flutter when JJ’s hands reached out and ended up holding to his arm, his unconscious mind just wanting more to hold. Wilford adjusted himself so that he was still on his back comfortably and JJ was able to fully hold his arm, pressing his forehead against his upper arm. 

“Night, JJ,” Wilford whispered, and closed his eyes, drifting off to sleep. 

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

Original Drawing Post: Link

Part 3: TBD

Part 1: Link

Tag List (let me know if you want added or if your name has changed)

@rainymae523​ @thesinginggal​ @ashywasteland93​ @shadowkitten0321​ @m0th-goo​

[theexecutionerssong]

I want to ask you as spn expert hdbfbdj i heard that destiel made creators/actors uncomfortable and they banned mention of it at the cons? And made anlotbof writing decision to keep dean and cas characters from each other in the show? So how do you think what changed and why the decided to make deancas canon (bad as it is but canon) in almost last episode when they could just not do it jrbfkf

Hi! Oh damn I hope you’re ready for a long ass answer because I have 13 years worth of memories to answer this question dfghjklm

So, your first question, when you say creators, you have to keep in mind that the original showrunner stepped down years ago and since then, there’s been several showrunners who each had a different view on where they wanted to take the story, which explains the disparities in writing quality from one season to another, in my opinion. Of course the orginal showrunner is still around and would chime in from time to time but he went on on working on other shows (which flopped, besides The Boys, tbh), and we definitely didn’t see it that way in 2005.

Then comes the writers team, that has also seen many changes over the years. I truly believe some left because they wouldn’t make Destiel happen, among other things like the treatment/lack of representation of female and POC characters. Robbie Thompson definitely left because they killed Charlie in the most horrifying way, and Charlie was his baby, and he got better opportunities elsewhere. I remember over 7 years ago when Bo Berens (the writer of last night episode) joined the team, my whole dash was full of people screaming because holy shit the new SPN writer is gay!!! and wouldn’t that change things??? Well it did. He wrote, along with Robbie Thompson, some of the most explicit Destiel episodes that they could get away with. I don’t believe this was ever queerbaiting, not from them, and I think they took advatange of the other writers just not seeing it, or not wanting to see it.

For a very long time, the showrunners and writers were kind of oblivious to the shipping, they didn’t take it seriously because it wasn’t how they had thought it could be interpreted. As time went on and the shipping only grew and as the cast and crew actually started to see what we were seeing in their own damn writing and acting, they started to be more aware and careful around it. Some were downward enjoying putting down fans, like fucking Guy Norman Bee gloating on Twitter and engaging with fans over it. A mess. He left 5 years ago that one, good riddance. It was also the time when actual canon queer ships would appear on TV - keep in mind that in 2010-12, Destiel was as explicit as it could get. We had nothing else, so of course we would latch onto that. But we started getting more and more actual explicit representation with Shameless, Shadowhunters, Eyewitness, Skam, HTGAWM, Orphan Black, etc around 2013, and shipping Destiel got very frustrating. 

The actors have always been another story, and I saw a lot of comments being made today towards Jensen so I’m gonna copy paste my answer to an ask I got last year : “I think he was just extremely “protective” of Dean and would get actually mad and shut down every conversation about Destiel because that’s not how he sees his character. Like, proper pissed off. He would get uncomfortable about pride flags during photo ops. It came to the point where people would walk on eggshells at cons. 2012-13 was hard on the fandom on this point. He would never speak up about lgbtq related topics in politics either. Liking a tweet like Chris’s 10 or even 5 years ago? Never. He used to say that people in highschool would bully him for “looking too gay” because of his pouty lips and big eyes. I think he didn’t want to care about it but bullying leaves scars. Getting married to Danneel, meeting Misha, who are both very outspoken about lgbtq matters, opened him up, and he’s said himself that having his first daughter changed him deeply. He had a whole new perspective on unconditional love. Now, he’s enthusiastic about posing with pride flags, to sign fanart, he’s always so supportive of lgbtq fans at cons, hugs them, gives them words of encouragement, etc. Years ago he said “my father told me that there’s no manly way to drink out of a straw” and now he’s out there being crowned King at the Mardi Gras parade in New Orleans, posting rainbows on his social media, having makeup sessions wit his daughter, etc. He was very outspoken about his support for Beto in Texas last year, he goes to rallies, posts about it on social media, etc. And yeah maybe that’s the bare minimum but he wouldn’t have done it years ago but now he does and that’s worth something. He’s not a Destiel supporter but now the topic isn’t banned at cons anymore. He jokes about it, he understands better where people who see Dean as bi are coming from, even if it’s not his take on the character. He’s much more comfortable with himself and has come a long way. I’m happy for him.” That was my reply last year to somebody asking if Jensen was homophobic and while I obviously don’t know him, it’s what I gathered over the past 17 years or so. I was already a fan of him beofre Supernatural soooo, I’ve been around a while. Yes there was this moment, over 7 years ago at a con, where he let fans boo other fans for asking a question about Destiel, and he shut down the question, then the questions about Destiel were banned. That’s not the case anymore and it hasn’t been that way for years. Misha on the other hand as always been supportive of the ship, his “You’re not crazy” tweet from 2013 fueled us for years, and the fact that he went back to like it and bring attention to it today is the biggest I Told You So he could have given us.

About your question, making decision to keep them away from each other, yes, that has been a pattern for years, something would go in the script, and then they would change their minds - “the only thing we have left, Dean and I, is each other” in 5x04, the “A part of me always believed you would come back” in 7x17, the “I love you” in 8x17, Castiel’s heaven being just pictures of Dean everywhere, etc. The decision would come from either the actors or the writers and they gave tons of reasons but I won’t get into that. And every time we would have a Destiel heavy episode, it would be no Cas for weeks. Their reason for that is that if Cas was always around, what with how powerful he is, then there would be no plot for monster-of-the-week episodes, because he’d be able to fix the situation with a snap of his fingers. So they gave him storylines that would weaken him and/or keep him away from the Winchesters. But I also think they would give us crumbs to keep us hooked and then backtrack because it wasn’t the end yet.

Destiel is the only ship I’ve really invested in that wasn’t canon. Yet. Because, to me, it’s been canon for years. And I am absolutely convinced that had Supernatural ended with season 10 as planned, it would have been canon then. There were tropes and parallels that nobody could ignore. The whole of season 10, with the Cain/Dean and Colette/Castiel thing was so obvious even my Dad picked up on it. But the series got renewed again and again and they pushed it back, because The Powers That Be at the CW didn’t want to lose their homophobic fanbase, I guess. Isn’t that great :)))) Now that it’s ending for real, who cares? They don’t have anything to lose anymore. It must be quite an unpopular opinion but I think making Deancas canon at the end of the series has been the plan for a while, but it got pushed back with every renewal. 

To me they have been canon since season 8 thanks to a few selected writers, and as infuriating and sometimes hurtful as it was to keep watching for all these years when it could have been so much better, I’m still ecstatic they finally did it. Maybe for the wrong reasons, definitely not in the right way, but 1. the show isn’t over, and 2. this was my first real big ship when I had nothing else, and to be able, after over a decade, to hear that I love you, with no room for doubt that it was meant romantically, is making me happy., 

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #401

“my love is just waiting to turn your tears to roses”

Do you typically do your makeup the same each time? Or do you like to change it up often? IF I wear makeup, it's essentially always the same. Who is the last person you were in a room with just the two of you? What were you doing? Yesterday with Mom. We were trying to find the best deal on Eco Earth, a substrate we're getting for Venus. What was the last really good book you read, and what was it about? If we're talking REALLY good book, then The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. In short summary, it's a dystopian future novel where women are now basically just objects used only for repopulation, even having their names stripped from them. They follow very strict rules as society has returned to horrible misogyny. As a woman, the "oh my god, this is possible" aspect of it is terrifying, and it causes such a sense of disgust and urge to ensure women rights always continue to be fought for. Do you feel safe in your country? For the most part, I'd say. I guess. There are places I'd feel safer, though. How many meals do you eat a day? Three. Have you ever performed a solo dance in front of a crowd? No, but I was supposed to my senior year in high school; the seniors at my dance studio were always welcome to do a solo in celebration. Mine was a modern dance to "Coma White" by Marilyn Manson, wanting to tell a story about depression and how being medicated could feel, but I eventually decided like halfway through learning the choreography that I was just too nervous to do a solo. Have you ever sung a solo? No. When you go to McDonalds, what drink do you usually get? Coke. Have you ever had to call and complain about a product you bought? No. Do you own a designer purse? Definitely not. I'm not wasting that much money on something like that. What’s the weirdest rumor you’ve ever heard about yourself? Apparently, Jason and I had a baby in high school even though I was obviously never pregnant. To my knowledge, it was started by his ex. Who is now a good friend of mine lmaooo. Life is funny. What was your favorite Saturday morning cartoon growing up? Pokemon, of course. Would you ever have an affair? Nope. Would you ever have a one night stand? Nope. Where you present at any major historical events (e.g. 9/11)? No. What are your opinions on marijuana legalization? Legalize it, but treat it similarly to alcohol in that driving under the influence is illegal and punishable, and I believe you should be of a certain age. How about abortion? I am pro-choice. I was pro-life most of my own life, but now I am very firm about a mother being able to choose if she wants to endure a pregnancy or not. Like, that is a MASSIVE life event that almost inevitably changes - and sometimes traumatizes - people. I do believe a fetus is its own body and not part of the mother's, but rather in the mother's, but the belief that a woman decides what she wants in her body is her choice, too. I'm not very fond of people treating abortion as a simple, regular form of birth control, like it's nothing but an "lol whoops," but I still believe it is ultimately her decision, and she should always be free of judgment for doing what is best for her. Do you wear skirts or dresses more often? Neither. I wouldn't dare wear a skirt more so, though. What do you think about tipping at restaurants? There should always be an expected minimum, imo, unless the person was truly, sincerely, genuinely fucking awful. Waiters do not have an easy job, fight me about it, and they're just trying to survive while putting on a happy, jovial face, all the while dealing with hungry people who can be such assholes. I believe the actual tip should relate to actual service, but again, give them something. Would you ever get back together with any of your exes? One, absolutely. The other would take a shitload of consideration and proper communication on his part. Do you have a preferred coffee brand? No, because I don't like coffee. Do you usually befriend your coworkers, or do you prefer to keep work separate from your personal life? IF I had a job, I'd like to build a friendship with those I have to engage with almost every day. What is something you frequently forget? Dates, ages, names, what I was about to do five seconds before I forgot... Pretty much everything. My memory is frightfully poor. Is there any drama currently going on with your family? No. When you take a nap, do you nap in bed or on the couch? In my bed. Were you raised by both of your parents? If not, then who raised you? Both; my parents split when I was somewhere around 17, though, but I'd say there wasn't much more "raising" to do at that age. Have you ever stolen anything? If so, why? No. Have you ever plagiarized someone else's work? Hell no. What's your most-used mode of transportation? My mom's car. Have you ever taught someone else a useful skill? Not to my recollection. Does seeing everyone else's 'perfect lives' posted on social media ever bring you down or affect how you feel about yourself? It actually does, honestly. Not ALWAYS, but if I'm being honest, it does most of the time. I've contemplated deleting Facebook for that reason, but with is also comes things that make me happy, and I think I'd feel even more isolated without it. What is your favorite Hostess/Little Debbie snack? This is SO impossible for me to answer. I loooove Hostess and Little Debbie treats. I want to say honeybuns, but I also love those chocolate cupcakes with the white swirls on top, as well as Twinkies. Very few exist that I don't like. Do you/your family buy loafs from the bakery or bagged on the shelf? We just buy bagged bread. What’s the best news you’ve gotten lately? My APAP mask is definitively WORKING!!!!! :') Mom got an app that connects to the machine via Bluetooth that monitors the effectiveness of the mask, evaluating many factors of your sleep, and it's detecting a definite decrease in disruptive behaviors or something like that. It is so, SO encouraging to know that. ^And, the worst? Hm. Oh, probably some news on something serious a good friend is going through, but I don't feel it's my right to disclose what. It's just a very worrying and potentially dangerous issue that I wish I could help her with. Would you rather receive (or give) flowers, chocolates or jewelry? I'd appreciate any, but my fat ass is drawn to the chocolate, ha ha. What *I* would give would vary depending on what the person liked. How do you feel about coconut? Smells lovely, but is otherwise gross. ^ Ever cracked one open? No, but omg I've always wanted to, haha. What’s the best thing about being your gender? I guess the fact it's more "normal" and "accepted" to show our emotions. Fuck that generalization, though. I don't give a shit what your gender is, you experiencing emotions is NORMAL and welcomed to be expressed. ^ And the worst thing? The ability to be raped and impregnated by it. Do you do your part to save the earth? I don't do nearly enough. :/ We recycle, but that's about it. Well, none of us DARE to litter either, but I still don't feel like it's as much as the earth deserves from its denizens. Who do you think should have their portrait on a bill? I don't know or care. Why did you last feel exhausted? Yesterday was my niece's birthday, and I spent essentially ALL day playing with her and her brother. I have a very limited battery when it comes to kids, and I was running on empty for hours. My anxiety was SO high and I really needed a break from them, but they're too young to really understand that Aunt Britt can only socially run for so long before I'm completely burnt out, and TRUST ME, I was there for sure. I didn't want them to think they did something wrong, you know? I just had to keep going. I slept like a baby last night though for sure, haha. Have you ever used emotional blackmail to get your own way? Wow, no. Has anybody ever used emotional blackmail on you? No. Who did you last worry about and why? Sara for health reasons. Are you currently looking for a new place to live? Not actively, but Mom and I definitely want to move. We feel very out-of-place here in the suburbs. Which would you prefer as a view; mountains or the sea? Mountains. Do you have a mouse for your laptop? (Assuming you have a laptop) Yes. I canNOT play games with a trackpad. Do you apologize a lot? Extremely excessively. When you get married what do you think you’ll put most of your focus and money into? Do you mean like, for the wedding? In that case, probably the venue. Being a photography buff, I want a place I think is really pretty to have pictures taken. What’s something you complain about frequently? My legs hurting, my weight, and being hot. Do you have anything planned for the summer? Nope, and that's fine with me. I'd rather stay inside away from the heat. Who usually makes dinner in your household? My ma. Do you have a blog? Just on Tumblr. Does anyone in your family snore loudly? My mother does because of gerd, and at least when my father still lived with us, he snored super loud, too. Do you want to fix anything with anyone? Yeah, a few people. What shows do you watch? Right now, only Meerkat Manor: Rise of the Dynasty. Whenever The Edge of Sleep comes out, I will 110% be watching that, too, because Mark is a key actor in it. :') Plus the concept seems super cool. Have you ever broken someone’s heart? I don't know. Who was the last person you had a conversation with on the phone? Me mum. Does the song you’re currently listening to remind you of anyone specific? No, given it has like... one lyric, haha. Do you own any TV show soundtracks? No. Last thing you did that made you feel like an adult? I mean I guess sign myself in at the doctor's. What’s your favorite picture of your mom? Dad? Oh my god, there's a candid one I got of Mom laughing when she was posing as my subject for a photography assignment, and I cherish it with ALL my heart. I want to share it with essentially the whole world, but yeah, I'm not gonna put my mom's picture here. As for my dad, I like this one I took of us at Red Lobster for his birthday a year or two back. Last TV show series you finished? Fullmetal Alchemist with Sara. Favorite flavor of cream cheese? Regular. What US state would you like to visit? Alaska. Last meal you made yourself? I put a chicken pesto thing in the microwave earlier for dinner.

[danganronpa-killing-justice]

The Teacher of a Society

————

When Mrs. Nomondai's message had reached the other students, almost all of them started to get out of their seats to begin their first assignment. To be honest, I'm not too sure if I can talk to the other students yet. They all look busy with themselves anyways..heh.

Ok, I'm just lying to myself. I'm not ready to talk to any of them yet. My nerves are to high. Maybe I can just start with the teacher? I do need to properly thank her after all.

With that revelation, I got out of my seat and headed to were my teacher was located behind her desk. She was still holding Sumami in her arms, kinda like a child with their favorite stuffed animal.

When she noticed that someone was by her desk, she quickly looked up and smiled in my direction. By the look on her face, I don't think she was expecting people to come talk to her so soon already.

"Oh! Hi there Nikonomu! Did you wanna talk about something or did you want to see Sumami?" She said while getting out of her chair.

"Oh, I actually wanted to talk to you if that's ok? And maybe after I can talk to Sumami too if that's ok as well." I really hope I'm not interrupting her time, but she did say it was ok to talk to her.

When she heard my remark, she smiled softly while she put down Sumami gently on the ground. "Of course Nikonomu! Ask away! I can't promise I'll answer all of them though. Any questions about my social security number and my life savings will be shut down immediately."

"What? No! I don't want to know about that stuff..." I don't even know my own social security number. Why would I want to know hers? "I kinda just wanted to ask some simple questions and stuff.."

My teacher started snickering at my discomfort, almost as if she knew that I would get uncomfortable. "That ok Nikonomu. I'm just messing with ya, mostly. What is it that you really wanted to know?"

Oh shoot. Now I don't remember what I was going to say. I need to think of something quick so this conversation can get somewhere. Oh wait! I know. "Um.. just a simple question but, how do you know my name? My teachers at my old school didn't even know it."

Mrs. Nomondai's face kinda looked angry for a second, but it was quickly hidden with a knowing smile. "It is kinda simple actually! I just looked you guys up in the school files. I wanted to get an idea about you all before I actually get to know you all, you know what I'm saying?"

My head nodded along to what she was saying. "Yeah, I think do." That's actually really thoughtful to actually want to get to know your students. Hopefully the other teachers had the same idea.

Hm. Now to ask another question. Now that I think about it, did she even reveal her Ultimate to us yet? Was she just really forgetful or was it something that she was ashamed of. Like how it was for me..

"D-Do you mind telling me what your Ultimate is? It's ok if you are uncomfortable telling me it though, since you didn't tell us at the beginning of class.

My teacher just stood there for a minute before violently smacking her hand to her forehead. It took me back for a second but it seemed as if nobody else noticed her abrupt action.

"I knew I was forgetting something damn it!" She grumbled at herself for cursing before she slipped into a more contained demeanor. "I mean uh- let me rephrase that."

Getting into a more confident pose, Mrs Nomondai struck out her hand in order for me to shake it.

"I know you already know my name, but let's start out this year with a more proper introduction! My name is Nototsū Nomondai! And I am the Ultimate Pain Resistor!"

Ultimate Pain Resistor? That kinda explains her more rough looking appearance. Her entire body looked like it was covered face to toe with scars and burns. Self inflicted maybe? I will wait to ask about that, too personal.

Moving on from her skin, she had pale teal hair that was in four different braids that connected to the buns in her hair. One of the braids, the biggest braid, held most of her hair in place while the other three were on the sides of her head and one was on top. Although she was a bit older, she certainly didn't look like it, just a bit weathered I guess-

"Uh kid, you gonna shake my hand or what?"

"Oh yeah! Sorry!" I quickly shook her hand in embarrassment. I should've probably done that in the first place before zoning out too much.

"So, um, you can't feel any pain at all?"

My teacher shook her head. "Nope! Nothing at all. You can stab me, burn me, slap me, and I still wouldn't feel nothing! I'm good at being a human shield essentially."

"Oh w-ow..." That's really disturbing, maybe I can find a more lighter topic to talk about.

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see a black wedding band glitter on her finger. Marriage sounds like a good topic to talk about. "Not to sound intrusive, but uh, who are you married too?" I had said.

The mood of my teacher had immediately skyrocketed in a pure untamable expression. In just one glance you could tell that she adored her significant other.

"You're not being intrusive at all Nikonomu! I love talking about my wife!" She started to reach for her pocket in a speed that I would've never thought was humanly possible. In her grasp was a purple wallet that you could tell she held dear. When she had opened it, the folds had undone themselves to reveal several photos of herself and her family.

Before talking any further, she sucked in a large breath as if she was preparing to talk for an hour or even more. She continued by pointing eagerly at the first photo. "This is Kura! She is the one I'm married too. We have been together for about fifteen years!"

She then pointed to a lower picture of two teenagers giving the finger at the camera. Actually, in further inspection, one of the kids put up their pointer finger instead. They looked like they even struggled to do that as well.

"That is Tokadora and that is Kiseki! They are my two daughters and they are both 14 year old." When she was done showing off her family, she carefully put back her wallet in her pocket. Her actions kinda reminded me of the dads I have seen on tv when they gloated about their kids to others.

"So.. does your wife also work here also well?" I said in response. She nodded her head before speaking directly.

"She works in the School's Detective Agency and is one of the Child Care Teacher's. She likes to care for people so it kinda fits." She said while answering my question.

More stuff I didn't know about..? "Wait, this school has its own detective agency?"

She nodded once again. "Yes it does! The school has other sections to it as well, but those will all be explained at the entrance ceremony we will be having soon." When she had said that, she checked her watch to see what time it was. "We still have time before that happens, so I wouldn't worry about rushing to talk to your other classmates."

Oh shoot. She figured me out. "H-How did you know I was stalling.." When I had said that, she looked at me with a face that almost told me that she didn't think I was serious.

She let out a sigh before continuing. "Kid, nobody talks to their teacher directly after they say that you can freely talk to others. Students don't normally like to talk to their teachers in a friendly conversation you know? It's most likely to only know what their homework is or what is happening next in the day."

Wow. She was blunt. "I'm sorry.. I'm just nervous about taking to the other students. I'm not used to this kinda environment.. It's too new to me I guess."

Seeing my mood damper, she put a supportive hand on my shoulder. "Hey hey, I'm just playing with ya a bit. It's ok that you're talking to me first. If you are using me to help make yourself less nervous, then I have done my job right! Which is unusual for me I guess but hey, I gotta start somewhere right!"

Even though she is a bit blunt, and probably foaled mouthed, she does do a good job at comforting people. "R-Right! I guess I'm just not to good at taking jokes as what they are."

After I had said that. She took her hand off of my head to cross her arms. "It's ok if you don't realize that some words are intended as jokes, but is important that you say something if they do affect you! I wouldn't want to hurt your feelings. You are my student after all!"

When had she finished talking, she put her hand onto of my head to ruffle my hair. To be honest, it felt nice considering nobody has done that to me before until today. "Yeah, I try to say something if that happens.." If I'm being even more honest with myself, I probably wouldn't say anything. I'm not the type to speak out for myself.

She probably realized what I said was a lie, but she didn't comment on it. "Good! Like I said, I wouldn't want to offend ya on accident."

Taking her eyes off me, she drew her attention to her phone sitting on her desk. "Well, it's probably time I'd cut this conversation short. After you mentioned my wife, I thought that I probably should go check on her. Right now she is babysitting all of the kids because the Child Care is under construction."

"And by all of the the kids, you mean just your own right..?" I asked.

Her face had lost all of her color when I had said that. "By all of the kids, I mean ALL of the staff kids."

"O-Oh...." Jesus, that sounds almost impossible. No, correction, it probably is. Poor Mrs. Kura. I hope that she still has her head after this.

This conversation kinda has been everywhere. It makes me think that I'm forgetting something..

Oh wait! I think I remember. "Mrs. Nomondai! Before you go talk, I forgot to tell you thank you for helping me out earlier. I was kinda getting suffocated by the others..."

"No problem Nikonomu. I'm going to try talk to Kura now, but if you need anything else, please don't hesitate to get me!" She paused to look at her phone for a second.

"I can tell that you're still hesitant to go to the other students, so why don't you go talk to Sumami like you originally said? I'm not too sure if I can get a hold of Makoto in time for the ceremony, so it's probably best for you to get to know what Helpami's are, and you can get to know each other so you're not too scared of them anymore." She said while finishing her thoughts.

That doesn't sound like a terrible idea. "Ok then! Thank you for your time again. I hope you can get a hold of your wife as well."

"Me too.." And with that, she had officially ended our conversation. I guess it is time to talk to Sumami. Hopefully after him I can finally talk to the others as well....

[stranger-who-writes-fiction]

Wasn’t gonna do a 5x11 post, but ya know what? It was a good one, and it’s fun to talk about stuff ya like.

SPOILERS.

Folks this one is LONG:

Admittedly, I don’t really understand what Brainy did with the rock and the stick, but it doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter, because we get Motorcycle Brainy.

I appreciate that nearly every character on this show has the impulse to go out and get a black Stealth Outfit and procure a motorcycle whenever they gotta do clandestine, under-cover stuff. (See also: Lucy, Kara, Alex, J’onn.)

ALSO appreciate the ongoing commitment to characters showing they care via food, as seen in the Breakup Feast scene. 

I’ve seen this episode four times and it’s only JUST occurring to me that Lex is grabbing some of Evil!Winn’s hair and not just creepily picking lint off his shirt, after their little chat.

Lena Laments to Lex! Lost Lots of Lobe Legwork.

And then NAT CITY TOY CON! 

Lex’s action figure is safe for children ages 5 and up, AND the articulation allows for lots of action and superhero poses!

(That thing has NO visible leg or arm joints, Lex will not be doing ANY action posing, whatsoever. XD)

But, for real: It’s a pretty great prop. The packaging is spot on. 

Love all the Supergirl action figures in the background too. (AND WITH THE NEW SUIT I am envious of Earth Prime.)

Get ‘im William, GET ‘IM.

The Lex and Kara scene was GREAT, loved the recorder smash.

Then dramatic slow walk with wiiiiiind, very nice.

CAPE SAVE

WINN

Absolutely love the moment between him, Alex, and Kara when he reveals he has a family. 

AND HIS WIFE AND DAUGHTER ARE LOVELY. THAT KIDDO IS SO CUTE.

Group huuuuuuug

‘I might have missed you just a little bit.’ ‘Me too, just a little.’ ‘Yeah, well, I missed you, like, A LOT.’

Side note: Really dig Winn’s superhero outfit. 

“I wanted to apologize to you, for how I treated you after you took my mother’s medallion.”

*Skeptical Thor face* Is it really hers though?

(Answer: No.)

Okay OKAY now we get to the REALLY GOOD PART but first, a bit of appreciation for Winn referencing Sam Spade.

Alright, are we ready? ARE WE READY????

J’onn’s office (which is ALREADY a cool set) gets a SECRET ELEVATOR that leads tooooo...

THE TOWwait, whoops, almost forgot:

Kara’s total nerd reaction to the secret elevator and Alex’s elder sibling-ly ‘don’t push’ while actually pushing Winn are just. *chef’s kiss*

Okay, we’re back: THE TOWER!!!!!

Complete with PAPA BEAR HUG for Best Son Winn!

I like J’onn’s Martian vest, though I do feel like he should get some finger-less gloves, or something, to complete the look.

“In the future they call it the Hall of Justice.” “I like that.”

“So like STAR Labs.” “Or the Arrow Bunker.” “A place where my Superfriends can work, whenever they should need it.” 

1.) I don’t know why the casual references to the other shows are throwing me, it’s not like they haven’t done it before...maybe it’s the fact that characters besides Kara have this kind of...lived-in familiarity with this stuff that’s otherwise been reserved for her, due to the nature of JUST the lead visiting the other shows. 2.) It occurs to me that Supergirl, the show, never had a central hub like the Arrow Bunker or Star Labs that’s just for the main characters. (Well, I guess the Office of Solitude counts? Kind of?) All of the sets (aside from Kara’s Loft and J’onn’s office which are like...living spaces) require at least a handful of extras milling around in the background. I don’t know where I was going with this....*Marge Simpson voice* I just think it’s neat. 3.) J’onn calling them his Superfriends!!!! :D

“What are you gonna call it?” “I was thinking...The Tower.” “COOL.”

Kara you lovable nerd, you.

The cut from the Martian Memory Meld to Winn’s puking is comedic gold.

“And James runs a small town newspaper and mentors children? That’s adorable!”

You can tell who’s only watching the show via gifs, because this line threw them.

Alex being like, ‘BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE.’ XD

Evil!Winn’s message has Jim Carrey Riddler energy. I think it’s that ‘Let’s play to win!’ bit that does it.

Aaaand some other stuff occurs. Lex and Brainy talk, The Kara and William stuff at CatCo, Evil!Winn’s warehouse lair.

But then BACK TO THE TOWER for more nerding out and some lovely heart-to-hearts!

Winn telling Nia about Nura: :D :D :D

And then OOOOOH BOY, my favorite scene: Kara and Winn.

It starts off great, with Kara being like, ‘I bet you’re a great dad.’ And then Winn gets to talk about being a dad! And naming his little girl after his mom! ‘It was either that or Winifred.’ Heart AND humor??? AND THEN: “KARA WAS AN OPTION.” AAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWW

BUT THEN WINN’S LIKE, ‘EVERYONE IN THE FUTURE NAMES THEIR KID KARA’ HECK YEAH THEY DO

 And then the scene continued to be great but I will admit that I was gripped with a sudden, terrible fear that when Kara mentioned not being too thrilled with her ‘legend’ she was gonna talk about how she betrayed Lena yet again but THANK GOODNESS IT WASN’T THAT.

Instead what we got was this nice little exchange about Kara feeling like she’s endangering William, and Winn being like: ‘you put ME in danger but I always trusted you to protect me’ which is a LOVELY bit of trust and reassurance and a nice deconstruction of the idea that heroes have to distance themselves from others in order to best protect them. Supergirl the TV show has always said and will always say NOPE.

STRONGER TOGETHER.

“Being in your orbit...it’s inspiring.” “You.”

I JUST LOVE KARA HAVING THEM THERE GOOD FRIENDSHIPS.

Then Wicked Winn’s Warehouse! Followed By Lex on a Legion Ship! Learning of Leviathan!

The Obsidian pitch sounds TOTALLY legit, can’t IMAGINE how that could be exploited for evil.

Then Toyman’s Terrible Tigers! Which Brainy Tries to Tame! 

And, look. You’re either the kind of person that watches these DCTV shows and rolls your eyes at on-the-nose music cues, ooooor you’re the kind of person that applauds that kind of go-for-broke attitude.

I am one of the latter.

(BUT it’s always just gonna be...really hard to top The Flash using “Flash Gordon” as Barry jumps into a black hole.)

ANYWAYS.

Always cool to see Kara speed folks away from danger. Very nice!

Whoops, little out of order here, I got excited: prior to the super speed, we have a Winn Stand-off.

(NGL the mental image of Winn singing “Nothing Left to Lose” with his evil counterpart has been amusing me all week long.)

But I digress! Toyman seems to perish in the explosion, but given that this is a two part episode...HMMMM. I think NOT.

(I mean, there’s also the end of episode cliffhanger, so. Yeah, obvious guess is obvious.)

But for the moment, Winn’s future is safe! Yaaaaay!

Then we get the cute moment between Kara and William and YEAH, THAT’S RIGHT, I SAID CUTE. BECAUSE IT WAS CUTE.

So please put me firmly in camp: Generally indifferent to ships but certainly not opposed to more cute reporter shenanigans.

(Also she wouldn’t let him have dinner alone with the world’s saddest sandwich.) 

Instead William gets to come to GAME NIGHT!

Everything about that scene is. So good.

The friendly trash-talking! The glasses bit! ‘Marty’! William saving the Jenga tower for Kara! Space Dad being there! 

(Oh, forgot another scene in my haste to rejoice over game night. Winn and Brainy. T’was good.)

(Oh, no, forgot another one: LENA HAS Q-WAVES. THE GOL-DANG MIND CONTROL PLOT CONTINUES.)

And then there’s the cliffhanger and the next episode preview WHICH I’m absolutely looking forward to because MORE WINN and also KARA AND WILLIAM GET TO SING “AFRICA”.

WHICH...thank you, show, for giving us “Africa” after revealing that was Kara’s other choice, but she went with “Intergalactic” back innnnn...season...three? Well the reveal was in season four. But karaoke night proper was in season three. And “Intergalactic” was great! But. 

COME ON.

IT’S GONNA TAKE A LOT TO DRAG ME AWAAAAAAY FROM YOOOOOOOOOU

Anyways. Wonderful episode! A true season highlight! David did such a good job! EVERYONE did such a good job! This fandom is the worst! And I hope that they actually DO stop watching the show, because it will be better for their emotional well-being and mental health, as well as our own!

[jeremystrele]

A Day In The Life Of Benjamin Law, Writer

A Day In The Life Of Benjamin Law, Writer

A Day In The Life

by Sally Tabart

One of the first thing’s Benjamin Law does every day is clear out his inbox before 9am. Photo – Alisha Gore for The Design Files.

Bits and bobs from Ben’s house. Photo – Alisha Gore for The Design Files.

‘You’re allowed to say “no” and you don’t have to give a reason. Simply say you’re unavailable and unable. This is a much better alternative to saying “yes” just to get someone off your back, and making your future self furious at you,’ says Ben. Photo – Alisha Gore for The Design Files.

Spending a lot of writing time alone, Ben tries to leave the house at lunchtime. Here he is at Boon Cafe in Haymarket. Photo – Alisha Gore for The Design Files.

Usually Ben eats his breakfast with green tea, or sometimes a Virgin Mary – hot and spicy V8 juice with squeezed lemon. Photo – Alisha Gore for The Design Files.

Photo – Alisha Gore for The Design Files.

Ben exercises after 5pm most days, either swimming or yoga. He loves swimming at The Prince Alfred Pool in Surry Hills. Ben at Photo – Alisha Gore for The Design Files.

The first person in Speedos on TDF! Photo – Alisha Gore for The Design Files.

Writing about a writer is one of the most daunting tasks for… a writer. I’m always worried about doing something sloppy, like repeating the same word three times in one sentence (see: previous sentence). It’s especially nerve-wracking when the subject is as prolific as Benjamin Law, one of the defining voices in Australian culture over the past 10 years.

Ben grew up on the Sunshine Coast, to Cantonese parents who migrated to Australia via Southern China (Ben’s Dad) and Malaysia (Ben’s Mum), via Hong Kong. Based in Sydney, Ben describes himself now as pretty much the same as when he was a kid: ‘obsessed with sex, annoyingly attention-hogging, insatiably curious but could be immediately reduced to silence if you put a good book, movie, TV show or magazine in front of me.’ Only these days, he’s the one writing the material.

In 2010 Ben published the hilarious, poignant memoir, The Family Law, and then in 2012 a travel book exploring the queer experience in Asia, Gaysia: Adventures in the Queer East. Both were nominated for Australian Book Industry Awards, and the former was later adapted into a groundbreaking TV series on SBS. He’s written more books, countless features and worked on film and television projects. He’s also working on a play – because clearly, he doesn’t have enough going on right now!

Next week, Ben’s latest endeavor – a documentary called Waltzing the Dragon – will premiere on ABC, where Ben travels with his parents from remote Northern Australia to Chinese megacities to explore the overlap in cultures. ‘On one level, it’s a history of the Chinese in Australia – a history that pre-dates the First Fleet and white arrival on this continent by centuries – but it’s also a massive road-trip with my um and Dad to find our own roots,’ Ben explains. ‘Some of the stuff we unearth will completely up-end your understanding not just of Chinese-Australian history, but Australian history in general.’

No two days are ever the same for Ben. ‘I don’t really have anything resembling structure nowadays’, he admits. In lieu of regular programming, he has a ‘some habits and ground rules’ to keep it all together – showering first thing, clearing out his inbox before 9am (‘it’s like a healthy little mind audit before the workday starts’), exercising and at the end of the day, truly switching off and decompressing with his boyfriend.

Ben is a wealth of wisdom when it comes to carving out space for himself in the midst of a sometimes chaotic, always random routine. From scheduling his iCal ‘down to the minute’ to stopping all things digital by 10pm, Ben shares how he gets it all done.

FIRST THING

I like the idea of getting up by 6.30am because I enjoy the feeling of having a headstart on everyone else, but it’s usually 7.30am. I like reading before bed and I usually do that until midnight, and I need exactly 7.5 hours sleep. It’s like my body’s finally said, ‘It’s non-negotiable.’ I’m also a super-deep sleeper. Waking up is like trying to exhume something dead from an oceanic trench. But for the last few years, I’ve used an amazing app called Sleep Cycle, which both monitors your sleep and ensures you wake up at a point in your sleep where it’s not jarring and horrible. I love it so much.

My boyfriend is usually up before me and he’s usually watching ABC News Breakfast while reading the news; I tend to prefer having ABC RN Breakfast on the radio with Fran Kelly or Hamish MacDonald.

I do a poo, have a shower then clear my inbox. Sorry: is that too graphic? Basically, it’s a lot of purging and cleansing from when I wake up until 9am.

MORNING

Breakfast often makes me gag, so it’s usually something light, like miso soup and fruit, or toast with butter and vegemite, and crunchy peanut butter with honey. And it’s usually with green tea, or sometimes a Virgin Mary – hot and spicy V8 juice with squeezed lemon.

Then I work: whether that’s doing interviews for Good Weekend, prepping Stop Everything – the ABC RN pop culture show I co-host with Beverley Wang– or just writing for a deadline or project.

If I’m about to launch into writing that requires proper focus, I forcibly disable the internet by activating Freedom on my laptop and Forest on my phone.

LUNCHTIME

On writing days, it’s common that I won’t even leave the house or have any human contact until 5pm – and perhaps a bit disgustingly, I don’t actually mind that at all. But sometimes I’ll pop down to Spice Alley – which is super close to where we live – for a cheap and cheery lunch.

AFTERNOON

It’s usually just writing, meetings and admin all arvo – a big happy horrible mess. My iCal is colour-coded within an inch of its life for this reason. Basically, my work is kind of like triage all day, and then I try to ensure the bleeding stops by 5pm.

EVENING

I try to finish by 5pm. It’s tempting for freelancers to keep working, but unless I’ve got a deadline in the next hour, I tell myself to stop. Because there’s always more work that could be done. It’s really important to me to sound boundaries nowadays.

After 5pm, I try to take a break – check the mail, do some housework, laundry, clean the kitchen, meal prep for dinner – then either swim laps, go to the gym or do some yoga with this great app called Pocket Yoga, which I prefer to classes.

I then make dinner, catch up with my boyfriend Scott, decompress, watch the news and Leigh Sales on 7.30, then it’s whatever we’re watching. Some of the stuff we’ve loved this year have included Pose, Stranger Things, Fleabag, Catastrophe and Game of Thrones. And RuPaul’s Drag Race, obviously.

LAST THING

Work-wise, I always give my inbox a little late-night purge again, if possible. Then I go into iCal and I plan the next day right down to the last minute, including breaks, exercise and social stuff with mates. If I have to be my own boss, I figure I can ride my own arse. And there’s no white space in the iCal, because if there is, I know my instinct is to fill it with work. So I trick myself by scheduling my breaks.

Over the last year or so, I’ve kept to a new habit: around 10pm, I set my phone’s alarm clock (via Sleep Cycle), switch on the Do Not Disturb mode and have it lying face down. Then I have a shower – as if to wash off the day and my digital reliance – and come into bed to read a book. Sometimes it’ll be The New Yorker, but it has to be on paper. I’ve gotten my boyfriend into the habit too, and I think it’s actually my favourite part of the day: feet tangled under the doona, each of us immersed in something.

Ben working from his standup desk at home. Photo – Alisha Gore for The Design Files.

Right now I’m listening to/watching/reading…

Music: Mark Ronson’s Late Night Feelings; Gabriel Kahane’s Book of Travelers; and new tracks Washington (Megan Washinton, who’s a mate of mine) has been working on.

Podcasts: Internationally: Fresh Air, Still Processing, Nancy, Touré Show, New Yorker Radio Hour. Australian: The Signal, Background Briefing, Conversations, Ladies, We Need to Talk.

Reading: A combo of Vicki Laveau-Harvie’s The Erratics, Deray McKesson’s On the Other Side of Freedom and Ocean Vuong’s On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous. The last few books I’ve really devoured have been Rebecca Makkai’s The Great Believers and Max Porter’s Lanny.

One important thing I do every day is… Move my body.  And decompress with my boyfriend.

I get my best work done when… I’m able to give it the time it warrants. It’s better to allocate the right amount of time something needs – and breathing room in case it goes wrong – rather than constantly being a deluded time-optimist.

A philosophy I live and work by is… When deciding on projects, Laurie Anderson says it needs to fulfill two of the following three criteria: it has to be fun, it has to be interesting and it has to make money. It can’t just tick one box: only two or more. Similarly, I need projects to be fun, challenging, make money and I need to have the time.

My productivity tip/tool is…

If you need time away from the internet, install Freedom onto your computer and Forest on your phone. Forest is an app that’s like a Tamagotchi: you plant a virtual cartoon seed for a set time. If you check another app in that time, your plant dies and you have a dead forest. It’s a surprisingly emotional experience!

Another big breakthrough I had is with transcribing interviews. Traditionally it took me about 120 minutes to transcribe a 30-minute conversation. It’s so painful. And all the voice transcription software I’d ever tried over the past decade has been shit. But my boyfriend and some mates put me onto Otter recently and it’s been life-changing. I almost get emotional about it.

Finally: all huge tasks are like bricklaying. You’ve got to break down big goals. Don’t just have ‘write book’ or ‘write play’ as your daily task, otherwise, you’ll intimidate and scare the shit out of yourself. Break it into monthly goals (eg. finish chapter), and break those into weekly goals (eg. complete key interviews) and break those into daily (eg. 750-1000 words) then hourly goals (125 words per hour doesn’t seem that intimidating, suddenly). It also means you have closure on the day and feel like you can reward yourself.

Something I learned the hard way is… You’re allowed to say ‘no’ and you don’t have to give a reason. Simply say you’re unavailable and unable. This is a much better alternative to saying ‘yes’ just to get someone off your back, and making your future self furious at you.

Tune into the first episode of  Waltzing The Dragon With Benjamin Law this Tuesday, July 30th at 8.30pm on ABC, or catch it later on ABC iView!

[windowshoppingworld-blog]

Window Shopping

Discover New Inspiration by Window Shopping

The definition of window shopping for me is when an individual is out and about, circulating and seeing what's out there, on show and available to be checked out. By its very definition, we're not necessarily wanting to buy any of the things that we see, both the store is closed or we're simply titillating our palates, but the enjoyable is in looking to see what's doubtlessly obtainable if we were available in the market to buy.

However is window procuring good or dangerous? Does it gas greed and lust or does it inspire us to realize more and improve ourselves and our lives?

- Possessions. By taking a look at items on show in varied stores, publications and tv programmes we replace our ideas, get a view of how developments and fashions are altering, see what is obtainable and happening within the market. Viewing these things is a crucial technique to freshen up our ideas, get an thought of how colors, developments and fashions are altering from a private, fashion and design perspective. If we use this as a constructive influence we will be motivated to improve our career, attempt for the following stage of accomplishment and be encouraged to earn the money to aspire to that way of life.

- Relationships. By being aware of different enticing and profitable people we avoid changing into complacent in our own relationships. We're reminded that window purchasing can work both methods. Our companions can also see different folks, however by working on a 'look however don't contact' policy it might probably encourage us to stay enticing and interesting, handle our figures, pay attention to the way in which we gown, proceed to take care of ourselves and never take our relationship without any consideration. It may possibly additionally add a little spice into our relationship as a result of by seeing other enticing individuals when we are out we reinforce our realizing that now we have chosen to be with our companion and they have in flip have chosen to be with us.

- Life-style. Studying magazines and watching programmes on life-style improvement could make folks dissatisfied with their lot. But they will also be used positively to provide motivation. The motivation to either obtain these ranges of success, or to enhance what we have already got as finest we can. And certainly, some people might merely take pleasure in seeing what others have and stay perfectly content with their quality of life. They do not feel the need or inclination to change one situation for an additional.

- Profession. We can look at others and be envious of their busy lifestyle, their perceived power, their fast-paced schedule and the rewards that go with it. It may be good to be motivated to enhance our situation, but it may also be necessary to do not forget that even individuals in essential positions are answerable to their shareholders, financial institution managers, accountants and their public. While some folks envy busy profitable people, the busy persons are often envious of the perceived low key, stress free lifetime of the particular person with the low upkeep way of life and even less tasks. Stress is often a large a part of the top manager's life.

- Youth. Many people dread ageing and really feel below strain to undertake rigorous food plan, train, magnificence and cosmetic procedures to keep up a youthful look. The vital factor to recollect is that life brings many presents, which embody good and unhealthy experiences, a face that has over time turn into full of character, a body that has been through many various experiences. Window shopping and seeing the glamorous figures, seems to be and lifestyles of celebrities and stars can impress unrealistic pictures onto the readers of those magazines. Many of these photographs are posed, touched-up or are when the celebrities are dressed for responsibility at events and promotional occasions. The daytime look of most people, including celebrities, is much extra regular and relaxed.

The 'Fortunately Ever After' Cinderella Slipper Candle in Window Shop Reward Box is a really distinctive wedding ceremony favor. It's going to undoubtedly impress any guest taking a look at it due to its wonderful details and even the gift box only provides to the look of the slipper formed candle.

It makes an amazing addition to any wedding ceremony that is traditional or primarily based on themes like fairy tales. The fairy story theme comes by because of it being designed after Cinderella's misplaced shoe and the final look of those reminds of a lady's fairy story dream.

Visitors that see the 'Fortunately Ever After' Cinderella Slipper Candle in Window Shop Present Field for the first time will instantly be impressed by it and take a closer look. When in its reward field it may be seen from each side and it's sitting on a raised velvet black flooring which makes it look even more lifelike.

The item itself is formed like a lady's shoe and it's designed like an actual slipper and is so well performed that it appears to really be Cinderella's shoe.

The slipper candle has a excessive heel and elaborate, yet elegant beading. They are sold as a set of four and it's worth to have sufficient of them to embellish each desk with them, because it's not only good as a decoration, but it surely also provides a sure environment to the wedding and there can be many visitors impatient of taking certainly one of these candles home with them.

Window purchasing is an exercise that many have interaction in by taking a look at shows of stores via windows. With the internet obtainable to most individuals, this has change into a digital reality as effectively. With the ability to do on the internet what a person would in entrance of an everyday store is how online buying has turn into the brand new window procuring.

When you find yourself taking a look at a window show, you have got an idea of what the store has to supply. Each season the displays are modified so swimsuit whatever is the pattern at the time and also the time of year. This helps to create concepts if there are items to buy for family and friends.

If you find yourself participating in this experience, you will need to have time to do it. Too many individuals are in a rush on a regular basis to really have interaction in it. That's why many would take part on this exercise when they are ready for somebody. They many also have a while from work throughout their break or lunch hour to shop. On this case they've plenty of time on their arms. It does not involve any cash, however it's an effective method to know what your personality. This means realizing what you like and don't like and what instantly grabs your consideration.

The web gives one with the opportunity to buy on-line without being in a regular retailer. There are shows offered online which you could view and there's no need to spend cash. You are able to view all the pieces without cost. This includes transportation price. You shouldn't have to go to the shop to shop. You'll be able to keep where you're as long as you've got a pc or laptop computer close by.

That is the new window procuring because persons are literally on the web on a regular basis. Purchasing is especially performed in this manner and it replaces regular searching for many individuals. For them that is the reality and the way to stay. The same way you generate ideas by looking at a display in a store window, the same could be achieved on-line.

Every part is virtual as of late. Digital merely means the same in observe but not in identify. So on-line purchasing is similar what you would do at a retailer window in apply, but not in title. You are not in entrance of a window however in entrance of a pc display. There are different objects and shows to see, however you are not truly seeing them as you'd in actual life.

But it's real in a way. There are alternatives to see an merchandise in a 3 dimensional format, however it's still on a pc. It could be the identical as seeing the merchandise in a regular retailer. In a regular retailer, nevertheless, you might have the option of truly going inside.

On-line purchasing has become the new window buying, and it seems to be here to remain. Extra persons are comfortable and conversant in computers and technology on an entire. There are those that would never shop for something unless they're doing it on-line.

After I was in junior high and high school, there was nothing extra that I yearned for than to have the ability to pilot a aircraft. While other youngsters were looking at skateboards and shoes, I had my eye on a Piper Meridian single engine prop airplane. I knew that flying wasn't precisely an inexpensive, albeit normal pastime for a child, but I knew I was destined to fly.

Despite the fact that I could not afford it proper off, I ready myself in each method attainable for when I would be capable to by subscribing to Flying magazine, going to airshows, talking to pilots at the airport, asking to go to the flight deck throughout flights on household vacations, getting flight simulator software program, and going to ground faculty. By the time I used to be executed with all this, it didn't cost my dad and mom much however I knew all the things about most aircraft and their controls and instruments.

I eventually knew precisely what I wanted and what it would take to get it-a non-public pilot's license. It took some time, and my dad and mom could not afford a complete lot so I had ask for assist from neighbors and family and get sponsorship, however I lastly acquired to take lessons and experience being in command of a aircraft. This is the facility of window purchasing.

It's superb what can occur if you understand precisely what you want and you retain taking actions towards it, even when issues are against you. As an entrepreneur, your sole determinant of success is your means to create worth for different people, not whether or not you may have money to invest, or how great your product or advertising is. Many entrepreneurs fail because they miss this simple, but paramount basis. They do not know what they want. And how do you get what you need, when you do not know what you need?

As a substitute of specializing in the details such because the product, advertising, and getting funds, day by day should start with a visualization of the worth that you simply're creating for others and what your business goes to look like because of it. This "visualization" I'm speaking of is just not in contrast to window purchasing. Once you visualize, or window-shop, you type a picture or an expectation of what your corporation and life should appear like sooner or later and you attract that end result. Why? Because you instill constructive thoughts, which lead to positive emotions, which in flip trigger you to take actions that finally lead to constructive outcomes.

Suppose that is just some "new-age" crap? Scientific analysis proves that you get extra of what you focus on, whether or not it's good or bad. Psycho-cybernetics, the science of how the human brain and nervous system work together to provide thinking, attitude, and behavior has confirmed by countless experiments the power for one to focus on a desired consequence and actually attain it, regardless of initially lacking the ability or assets required to make it happen.

According to the science, your subconscious thoughts can't inform the distinction between actual and imagined experiences when made vivid sufficient, and the thoughts acts like an outcome-looking for mechanism to help you realize these experiences by directing your thoughts, emotions, and actions.

How long has it been since you've got really had a blast? Is Las Vegas in your record of enjoyable locations to go? Consider all the locations on your Bucket Record. Will the high price of living prevent you from ever going to most of these locations? Be taught what the locals learn about having an excellent time on a funds. Their Staycation just may be your dream!

Why not do one thing different! Increasingly People are playing much less and taking part in more while in Las Vegas. In response, Las Vegas casinos are giving away less and charging more for meals and sights than prior to now in an effort to survive the current financial instances. Listed here are just a few methods to tip the steadiness in your favor!

Since my notes on 'very inexpensive' Las Vegas are ninety eight pages long, we'll deal with 'free' and 'grime low cost' as a substitute. There is a strategy to have a blast for subsequent to nothing if you happen to plan a bit prematurely. And you may nonetheless find free stuff if you already know where to look.

Window Shopping (The real thing takes cash) - With a Free Present

Las Vegas has develop into one of the premier procuring destinations in the world. The entire buying facilities listed here are among the most superb malls and boutique collections in Las Vegas, are open 7 days every week, ρούχα have free parking near by, and have utterly completely different themes for a novel feel. If buying is your thought of having a good time, you may make a whole trip out of all the variety in buying at these centers.

As an additional, there may be some type of free leisure at all of them too. I've solely listed 7 of Las Vegas' many shopping facilities, one for each day of the week, and all of them are on Las Vegas Boulevard (The Strip.) Listed in order of location, the primary is on the south end of The Strip, and the final is Downtown. There are a number of other main malls in Las Vegas, and every casino on the town seems to have some form of mini-mall at least. However most of them solely feature what you'd anticipate in a mall in any city. The department stores and shopping facilities listed here supply just a little something completely different to make the shopping experience a bit extra particular.