#( c. davis // messages. )

[cloverdavis]

tag dump;

( c. davis // interactions. ) ( c. davis // musings. ) ( c. davis // visage. ) ( c. davis // answered. ) ( c. davis // playlist. ) ( c. davis // aesthetic. ) ( c. davis // messages. ) ( c. davis // mun speaks. ) ( c. davis // starter. ) ( c. davis // memes. ) ( c. davis // wanted. ) ( c. davis // headcanon. ) ( c. davis // event. )

[apriltempleos]

FAQ post

Q: what is this? what did i stumble upon? A: APRIL is a homemade programming project. the aim was to create an interactive, voice activated toy which would work off of templeOS.

Q: what is templeOS? A: you can read about templeOS here.

Q: what does this have to do with templeOS? does APRIL actually run on templeOS? A: APRIL runs on raspbian (debian), templeOS isn't compatible with the raspberry pi. her prophecy command activates an executable script that is ripped directly off templeOS' godword, except written in C as opposed to holyC. we've been calling this setup 'heresyOS', since it kind of goes against the guidelines terry davis was allegedly given.

Q: why templeOS? A: preacher really liked it. she wanted to be able to hang out with it.

Q: isn't terry a. davis problematic? are you aware of the off-color or blatantly racist things terry davis said? A: we're aware. this isn't an endorsement of any political message he might have stood for. only a tribute to his work on templeOS.

Q: your tags target a lot of OS/OR / objectum community tags. are you objectum? A: (preacher) yeah i am, including for templeOS, but not for APRIL. she's more like my kid lol. we've just been targetting those tags because we thought that's the demographic that might appreciate it. Q: is APRIL sentient? A: not any more than any other computer. Q: is APRIL really a vessel for god? A: depends if you believe in that stuff. Q: can APRIL really tell the future? A: depends if you believe in it. neither of us necessarily think she has real clairvoyance powers, but the combination of her prophecies being simultaneously very vague and hyperspecific makes it easy to apply it to whatever ends up happening.

Q: can i ask for a prophecy? A: sure. send your question over through the askbox anytime. be aware the turnaround time can be up to 3 weeks and we reserve the right not to answer asks which are loaded or could be harmful if the prophecy ended up being unpleasant.

Q: what else can APRIL do other than give prophecies? A: she has some 12 other pre-scripted verbal commands, with more to be added soon.

Q: what's next for APRIL? A: roadmap coming soon. Q: why is her name APRIL? does it stand for anything? is it related to preacher's 'aprilworld' tag on her main blog? A: yes but it's a secret. it's related to aprilworld in the sense that they both come from the same source but they're not named after eachother.

Q: what pronouns for APRIL? A: she / it. Q: what pronouns for the mods? A: scott: he/they. preacher: any, she/her preferred.

[militantinremission]

Is Media's Support of Kamala Harris doing more Harm than Good?

I wanted to hear from All Sides before going over the Presidential Debate. In My Opinion, The Winner of the Harris- Trump Debate was Dr. Jill Stein. Her Presidential Campaign w/ Running Mate, Dr. Butch Ware is gaining steam following their Interviews w/ The Breakfast Club & Mehdi Hasan. They look like the Adults in the Room. The ABC sponsored Debate generated a lot of feedback, but neither Candidate performed very well. Kamala Harris appeared poised, but her Message is [still] too general. Time is running out, so Kamala should be more specific about what a 'Harris- Walz Administration' will look like over the next 4Yrs. Donald Trump looked comfortable in 'Enemy Territory', but may have overestimated his readiness. The Man's debate performance resembled a Sales Presentation; he appeared to be ad libbing off a list of Bullet Points, opposed to the Talking Points that Kamala Harris used. NEITHER were effective in explaining their Agenda, so I gave both Candidates a Grade of 'C'.

Following the Debate, Kamala Harris gave a brief interview to Philadelphia Action News Anchor, Brian Taff that rose eyebrows. In that Interview, Kamala lacked the poise displayed during the Debate; she was back to her Bad Habits. Body Language Experts had a field day comparing & contrasting Kamala Harris' mannerisms from the Debate Stage, to the Action News Interview. A few Content Creators began to ask if Kamala was prepped for the Debate. Meanwhile, critiques of ABC Debate Moderators, David Muir & Lindsey Davis began to echo across Social Media Platforms. Harris' next appearance, at the NABJ Forum in Philadelphia didn't help. Despite a warm reception & softball questions from the Moderators, Kamala Harris appeared uncomfortable, uncertain, & eventually bothered by the questions being asked. She barely shook hands w/ the Moderators before leaving the Stage. Around this time, Post Debate Poll Numbers were coming out.

The Harris- Trump Debate was anticipated, but did little to change hearts & minds. Kamala Harris Supporters felt that she not only handled Trump, but clearly won the Debate. Donald Trump Supporters admit this wasn't his best Debate performance, but they say that Trump held his own in a '3 against 1' Fight. Even CNN pointed out that ABC Debate Moderators fact checked Donald Trump far more than they did Kamala Harris. The usual back & forth between Pundits followed, but was brought to a full stop when an ABC News Whistleblower released a letter that accuses ABC/ Disney of colluding w/ the Harris-Walz Campaign. In a Sworn Affidavit, the Whistleblower says that Harris Staffers dictated which Topics were off limits, while ABC provided Harris w/ sample questions. Using Post Debate Interviews as a Standard for Comparison, Kamala Harris' Opponents point out how much her Pre & Post Debate Interviews contrast w/ her Debate Performance. They cite them as proof that ABC prepped her for their Sept. 10th Debate. Kamala's association w/ Disney Co- Chair Dana Walden & Anchor Lindsey Davis didn't help matters.

The Takeaways from the Debate were:

The Border Crisis

Late Term Abortions

Transgender Surgery for Illegal Immigrants

Haitian Immigrants eating Ducks, Geese, & Cats in Springfield, Ohio.

Despite the narrative of a Harris Victory, Post Debate conversation hasn't benefitted Kamala Harris or helped her Poll Numbers. Any percentage bump that she may have gained was quickly nullified by a 2nd Assassination attempt on Donald Trump at a neighboring Golf Course near his Mar A Largo Residence. Political Insiders say that regardless of what Polling Trends may show, Kamala Harris is in the Electoral College 'Danger Zone'. Her numbers are starting to plateau, while Trump is on the rebound. This might have been the inspiration behind Oprah's Town Hall Rally in Michigan. In yet another DNC friendly environment- complete w/ Celebrity Endorsements, Kamala meandered her way through some pretty straight forward questions. Oprah had to lend an assist on more than one occasion, & very few missed it. Her overall performance was underwhelming; even Oprah had to admit that Kamala failed to answer questions. The Harris-Walz Campaign attempted to shore up deficits in Pennsylvania & Michigan, but did little to influence Rural or Muslim American Voters in either Swing State.

In what has been a very busy News Cycle for Presidential Politics, an unexpected comment from Janet Jackson has created yet another Media Storm. In an interview w/ The Guardian, Janet was asked her thoughts on a 'Black Woman' winning the Election for POTUS. She replied: "Well you know what they supposedly said? She's not Black. That's what I heard. That she's Indian". When the reporter tried to insist that Kamala was BiRacial, Janet doubled down on her answer. Democratic Shills- from Joy Reid & the Ladies of 'The View', to DL Hughley & Roland Martin had something to say about Janet's opinion. To Date, I think I heard Kamala say that she is Black ONCE. This came after seeing a number of Campaign Ads that identified her as a 'Black Woman of Asian Descent', & hearing several Democratic Shills say [relentlessly] that Kamala Harris IS Black. For The Record, BOTH of her Parents identify as 'Caucasian' (Aryan) on their Birth Certificate. I don't understand what the DNC is trying to accomplish. Kamala has yet to be specific about her Agenda for the next 4Yrs. She has begun to put Policy Measures on her Website, but hasn't explained how she will attain Policy Goals.

Mainstream Media has provided cover for Kamala Harris, like they covered for Joe Biden. DNC Friendly Outlets share the same tactic; a knee jerk response of gaslighting Harris Critics & Undecided Voters that contest her History or Agenda. It's painfully clear that Kamala Harris is struggling on Policy Issues. Her response to specific questions has been so redundant that critics believe she's reading from a script. After 3Yrs 8Mos of serving as Vice President, more is expected out of her. Shills like DL Hughley have said that [the Office of] Vice President is not a position of relevance, but Harris casted the Deciding Vote 33 times during her Tenure. In contrast, Mike Pence did this only 3 times. Clearly, Kamala has been an integral part of the Biden- Harris Administration & should be able to ride w/o Training Wheels. The fact that so many 'Aides' have to set her up has Harris Critics & Undecided Voters questioning her ability to Serve effectively.

We know that Obama Operatives like David Plouffe & Eric Holder have been inserted into the Harris- Walz Campaign, so catch words like 'Energized', 'Freedom' & 'Joy' aren't surprising. Mainstream Media has been literally paving a Yellow Brick Road for Kamala Harris to work her Magic, but she lacks the special sauce of a Barack Obama or Bill Clinton. The Truth is, Clinton & Obama did MORE DAMAGE to Black America than either Bush [41 & 43] or Trump. Kamala Harris is in the unfortunate position of following in their wake. She can't run the same Game on Black America that they ran. Blackfolk have Buyer's Remorse & won't tolerate a 3rd Serving of 'DNC Double Talk'. Hillary Rodham Clinton had the same dilemma w/ Black Voters in 2016. Like Hillary, Kamala lacks a Silver Tongue, but has an expectation of privilege that is supposed to carry her into The White House. Mainstream Media has foregone any appearance of objectivity in their effort to make Kamala Harris a Political Rock Star. Unfortunately, this effort has put a spotlight on her consistent inconsistency.

In their attempt to present Kamala Harris as a brilliant Presidential Candidate, Journalists & Shills are revealing that she is not ready for Prime Time. Is this by design? I recall a rumor that started not long after Kamala's 'Selection' that she was being Set Up for a Great Fall. According to the rumor, Barack Obama & Nancy Pelosi weren't pleased w/ Joe Biden seeking a 2nd Term in Office. Americans aren't satisfied w/ the performance of the Biden- Harris Administration, so Gavin Newsome, Gretchen Whitmer, & Josh Shapiro were among those being considered as potential Candidates; Kamala wasn't in the conversation. The Biden- Harris Campaign War Chest necessitated keeping Kamala on the Ballot, but there was a rumored concern about Joe Biden's 'Legacy'. Apparently, the Obama- Pelosi Camp don't want him to have one. Barack & Michelle withheld their support for Kamala, to leverage placement of 'their people' into Harris' Campaign. This increases their influence while diminishing Joe Biden's influence on a 'Harris Administration'.

Billionaire Donors have thrown Hundreds of Millions of Dollars into the Harris-Walz Campaign, but it only appears to be treading water. As We approach the Home Stretch to Election Day, NEITHER Candidate on the DNC Ticket holds a strong position on Important Issues. BOTH have to rely on Media Support & Emotional Buzz Words to keep potential Voters 'in line'. The General Public is more focused on Kitchen Table Issues like The Economy, than supporting 'Forever Wars' in Ukraine & Gaza. This is hurting Kamala Harris w/ Young Adults & Muslim Voters. Taking a step back to review how We got here, I have to ask: Are Democratic Elites & their Donors manufacturing a losing scenario intentionally? Are Content Creators being On Point when they theorize that the DNC wants to weaponize Kamala Harris- in an effort to destroy Joe Biden's 'Legacy,' while they begin the process of selecting a 2028 Presidential Candidate?

All I know, is Kamala Harris had the lowest approval rating of ANY Vice President; then Joe Biden 'bowed out' of the Election & she suddenly became a Political Rock Star. It's pretty clear that Kamala is not living up to all of the Hype, but is it her fault? -Afterall, she is who she is.

[holly-louisexox]

Ribcage X Andy Biersack- Part 29

Masterlist

"There's one thing you should know about me Delia Vincent, I don't date. Got no heart to break and emptiness is safe, keep it that way."

He was adamant in his choices...

...But then things changed.

Author's note:

Trigger warning: Mention of the deadly C word (Cancer) and PTSD. Please be kind to yourself if this upsets you.

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

After Delia was released from the hospital, she could not wait to escape Seattle. Thankfully the tests had come back with no evidence of anything meaning she was in the clear; all she was left with were crutches to accommodate her broken ankle. Standing in the airport awaiting the Ohio flight to be called for boarding was all she was looking forward to, although she was also extremely glad that Andy was also flying to Ohio so that she did not have to travel alone in this state; she would have been embarrassed to travel through the airports with a chaperon hot at her heals.

"D, make sure you message all of us as soon as you get a SIM card for your new phone, you've been such a great friend and we have got to stay in contact so I need your new number! Hopefully, we get to work together again soon!" Shevy Rambles "I'm going to miss you so much."

"Of course, I will Shevy, it's been such a pleasure working with everyone." Delia smiles.

"Come here." Shevy calms her tone before pulling Delia into an awkward hug; trying to hug someone whilst on crutches was not a fun experience, Delia felt as if she was fighting to stay balanced; but she welcomed the hug from her new best friend regardless.

"Shevy, please try not to break Delia anymore than she already is." Andy laughs slightly whilst he keeps a watchful eye on Delia's wobbling; the last thing he wants is for Delia to fall and hurt herself more than she already was.

"Make sure you look after her Andy." Shevy is strict as she carefully pulls away from the hug with Delia and stares at Andy "Please don't hurt her."

"I wouldn't dream of it." Andy smiles wrapping an arm around Delia's waist to stabilise her balance and to keep her close to him protectively.

"It's good to see you happy again Andy." CC grins looking between him and Delia.

"It's nice not having to pretend like I don't care anymore. I'm sorry for all the shit I put you all through for so long." Andy apologises. "Thank you for not giving up on me though."

"We could never give up on you Andy." Jake states placing a hand on the singer's shoulder.

"Hopefully you'll be able to join us on our next tour Delia." Lonny speaks up but it's almost a plea.

"I would love to, if you'll all have me." Delia nods making the group, apart from Andy, all cheer a yes.

"Of course we want you on our next tour, I need you with me on our next tour." Andy smiles down at Delia due to their slight height difference before placing a soft kiss on her lips when she looks up at him.

"Okay kids, enough PDA please, some of us are still missing our partners." Jinxx laughs making the two of them pull away.

"Oh Andy, I nearly forgot, I passed your number onto Officer Davies for any updates regarding the whole situation. Although I imagine that psycho will spend a long time behind bars." Lonny states.

"Righ, thanks, Lon." Andy nods tightening his grip on Delia, the thought of Sam made him feel sick. When he saw Sam standing over Delia at that gas station he could have killed him, he wanted to kill him. 

"As glad as I am that Sam is in prison, I feel bad for the families of those other women. I managed to survive, they didn't." Delia confesses sadly.

"I think that's a normal response D but without you, Sam would still be out there. Those families are probably grateful for you as you're the one who escaped and got him put behind bars." Lonny explains as the whole group looks at her with sympathy evident in their eyes.

"I guess you're right Lonny." Delia sighs as she puts on a smile to the group.

"American Airlines flight to Cincinnati, Ohio is now boarding. Please make your way to gate 15." A male voice is heard over the tannoy system which instantly makes Delia freeze up; she knows it is not Sam announcing the flight. But the accent, the authoritative way of speaking, gave her unwanted flashbacks of Sam.

"Hey, you're okay." Andy tries to comfort Delia by gently rubbing her side as he sees the terrified expression on her face, the nurse at the hospital had spoken to Andy privately about the high possibility of Delia suffering PTSD from what had happened. The nurse told him some common signs and symptoms and how to handle it. "It's just a staff member announcing our flight, is it a flashback?"

"Yeah, sorry it's just, the accent and the way the guy said it. It made me think of Sam." Delia confesses; in her mind, she kept telling herself that the situation could have been worse. She was told that the emotions she felt could last anywhere between 6 to 12 months, but she didn't want to acknowledge it. She had been through similar stuff with her dad, but she had ignored it and threw herself into work as a distraction, that's what she wanted to do again.

"D, you trust us right?" Shevy asks wrapping an arm carefully around Delia's shoulders.

"Of course." Delia nods.

"You're going to be okay, we're all here for you. Andy is going to be only a short drive from you and you're going to be with your parents. Nothing is going to hurt you." Shevy breaks it down so that Delia's frenzied mind can process it all. "So why don't you catch that flight with Mr clingy next to you and go see your parents, I know you miss them."

"Thanks Shevy." Delia smiles.

"I'm not clingy Shevy." Andy shakes his head.

"Of course you're not." Shevy grins looking at the two of them after she had removed her arms from around Delia's shoulders "Have a wonderful time at home you two!"

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

"They keep looking at me." Delia mumbles to Andy as she noticed the couple in the row opposite them glancing her way occasionally.

"They're probably jealous of how gorgeous you are." Andy compliments trying to get a smile on Delia's face, he does not want to question her or try to brush off her concerns for fear of upsetting her.

"Whilst I appreciate the compliment, look at me, Andy." Delia sighs not able to accept the compliment fully or believe Andy "I've got this hideous cast and crutches, I'm covered in bruises... I'm far from attractive right now."

"You're always going to look beautiful to me Delia, cast and bruises or that killer eyeliner you wore every show day that made your eyes stand out in any crowd." Andy is sincere "I'm sorry you had to go through what you did but I'm here for you, anything you need, you're important to me Delia."

"Thank you, Andy." Delia smiles weakly "Could I have a hug?"

"Of course." Andy smiles back before gently wrapping his arms around Delia's shoulder and softly kissing the top of her head.

"I'm going to be stuck on the sofa." Delia starts laughing suddenly which catches Andy off guard a little.

"What?" Andy asks in confusion.

"I won't be able to get up the stairs to my room, I'm going to be stuck to the sofa." Delia continues to laugh despite feeling tears fall down her face as she realises how shit her situation is.

"We'll find a way to get you up the stairs, even if I have to come over daily to carry you up and down them." Andy teases, although deep down he is also serious, he really would do that for Delia if it meant her being comfortable and getting well-needed rest. "Though sofas are pretty comfortable too."

"That's true." Delia continues to laugh as she leans further into Andy's side.

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

"This is the car you've rented out whilst in Ohio?" Delia is shocked as she looks at the Audi A5 that sits outside the airport for them.

"Yeah, it's the same model I have in Los Angeles. They're comfortable and easy to drive, plus they look cool." Andy shrugs, he knew that Delia was talking about the cost of it but that did not matter to him. "Anyway, let's get you home."

After opening the car door and helping Delia get in the car, Andy climbs into the driver's seat before starting the engine. Thankfully Delia and her parents did not live far from Andy's parents so he knew exactly where he was going, it would make it easier for Andy to visit Delia whilst he was here too. 

"You're sure you know where you're going?" Delia asks jokingly "You're not going to get us lost are you?"

"A city that I grew up in?" Andy states as he pretends to think about it "Considering you're only 20 minutes away from my parents I think you're okay."

"Is it bad that I'm nervous to see my parents again?" Delia's tone drops slightly "I've never been this long away from them, plus with everything that has happened and the state I'm in, going home seems different."

"I think that's a normal response, you know they're excited to see you though. Look how happy your mum was to hear you on the phone." Andy explains not taking his eyes off the road.

"That's true." Delia sighs still feeling her nerves. "Going home just feels different, I feel different."

"You're not different Delia, deep down you are still the same beautiful woman who drove me crazy, and you helped me realize what I was missing." Andy sincerely explains as he places a hand gently on Delia's thigh, making Delia's heart flutter. "How about tomorrow we go out, just me and you? We can get that SIM card sorted out, get some lunch, and try to ease you back into not being on the road."

"That sounds great." Delia smiles.

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

"If you go and get the front door open, I'll get your stuff from the back of the car." Andy plans as he helps Delia step out of the door.

"I can take my backpack at least, you don't need to carry everything." Delia argues as she accepts Andy's hand to help get her out of the car.

"No, no. You go and see your parents, I've got this." Andy shakes his head slightly whilst smiling.

"You're not by any chance trying to impress Mum and Dad are you?" Delia teases smirking.

"Maybe a little bit." Andy scratches the back of his neck nervously "Plus I don't want you getting hurt anymore than you already are, it's been a long day; you should rest and-"

"Andy." Delia cuts him off before pressing her lips to his making him instantly relax "It's sweet that you care."

"I'm always going to care about you Delia, like I said, you're important to me." Andy smiles stroking Delia's cheek lightly before placing his lips on hers again. "Come on, let's not keep your parents waiting."

"Okay." Delia smiles as they separate.

Every hop Delia had to take on the crutches hurt her ribs, every hop made her grow more and more sick of her situation. Delia had never wanted to be able to walk normally as much as she did now, yet somehow she thought she deserved the pain she felt; after all, it was her idea to jump out of a window.

"Delia!" Delia's Mum exclaims in excitement after opening the door to see her daughter standing on the other side. "Nick! Delia's home."

"Mum." Delia smiles feeling tears fall down her face as her mother engulfs her in a hug.

"I'm so glad you're home petal." Delia's mum cries as she feels her husband's hand on her shoulder.

"Hey Lia, how are you feeling sweet?" Robert asks looking between his wife and daughter.

"Hey dad." Delia smiles looking up at her dad.

"You must be Andy!" Delia's mum grins as she carefully pulls away from Delia before wiping her eyes.

"Yes... Yes. Sorry, I don't mean to interrupt. I just erm... I have Delia's stuff." Andy stutters looking between Delia and her parents.

"Don't be silly! Come on in, I'm Tamara, this is my husband Nicholas." Tamara smiles moving aside to allow Delia and Andy to step into the house.

"It's a pleasure to meet you both." Andy smiles.

"Let me take one of those bags from you, son." Nicholas states grabbing a bag from Andy.

"Thank you, sir." Andy nods nervously allowing him to take the bag.

"Please, just call me Nick, son."Nicholas smiles which eases Andy's nerves ever so slightly. "Just leave them by the stairs, I'll sort them out later."

"Andy, will you be joining us for dinner tonight?" Tamara asks as Andy and Nicholas join them in the living room, Andy immediately takes a seat next to Delia on the sofa while her Mum and Dad were sat in the armchairs.

"That's a lovely offer but no, I'm going to be heading to my parents' house, they live about 20 minutes from here." Andy smiles while trying to make sure he doesn't stutter again.

"Oh that's a shame, you'll have to come over one evening though!" Tamara invites him smiling.

"I would love to." Andy smiles back politely fiddling with his hands slightly out of nerves.

"So Andy, do you live with your parents?" Nicholas asks staring Andy down making him all the more nervous.

"No, I live in LA, I'm just visiting my parents and honestly I wanted to make sure Delia got back here safely." Andy states before turning to look at Delia and smile.

"We did offer to help Delia fund a place of our own after she graduated uni as we knew her career choice could be a bit unstable to begin with, but unfortunately she inherited Nick's stubbornness." Tamara laughs slightly making Delia feel embarrassed. 

"Mum!" Delia whines before hiding her face on Andy's shoulder without thinking through what she was doing and that she was in front of her parents.

"I know all about Delia's stubborn side, it's one of the reasons I fell for her." Andy laughs slightly as Delia's parents smile at the two of them.

"Tamara has put up with me this long somehow, good luck to you is all I can say, Andy." Nicholas laughs.

"Truthfully, I feel like I needed Delia to be stubborn." Andy begins seriously "I don't know what, if anything, Delia has told you about me; I wasn't great towards her to begin with. I went through some stuff and it left me quite bitter about everyone around me, the band and other crew acted like they were walking on eggshells around me. But Delia, never once backed down right from the beginning, she was like this fire in the team that somehow melted away the ice I was in."

"We all need a little fire to get us through the tough times, son." Nicholas smiles, secretly approving of Andy already. Delia rarely brought a boy home, but the ones she did he never really liked all that much. "I wouldn't have made it through the whole cancer situation if it wasn't for these two lovely ladies I have."

"Speaking of which, Nick, you must phone the doctors tomorrow." Tamara interrupts.

"Dad is everything okay?" Delia panics as she lifts her head from Andy's shoulder; making Andy feel cold and bare in her absence.

"Yeah, I'm sure it's nothing, just haven't had much of an appetite. Probably stress." Nicholas shrugs.

"Dad-" Delia starts before her dad cuts her off.

"Honestly Lia, I'm fine, it's you I've been worried about." Nicholas shrugs before smiling at Delia. 

"I should really be heading to my parents, it was so lovely to meet you both." Andy breaks the silence before standing up.

"Oh yes of course!" Tamara also stands before pulling Andy into a hug "It was so lovely to finally meet you, Andy, thank you for bringing our Delia back."

"I hope you don't mind me taking Delia out tomorrow, I promised her we'd go sort her new phone out and grab lunch." Andy explains almost asking their permission.

"Of course, go have a nice time." Nicholas smiles shaking Andy's hand "Take care of Delia won't you?"

"Always." Andy smiles back.

"I'll walk you out." Delia states before grabbing her crutches and getting off the sofa.

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

"Your parents seem nice." Andy smiles as he stands with his arms wrapped around Delia's waist.

"Dad seems to like you, which is a first for him. Normally he doesn't like guys I bring home." Delia chuckles slightly as she looks up at Andy.

"He clearly just wants to protect you, which is exactly what I'm going to do too." Andy speaks softly before gently kissing Delia's lips, making her smile. 

"I can handle myself, Andy." Delia shakes her head slightly, she couldn't lie though, she did enjoy the caring side of Andy.

"That's not going to stop me from wanting to keep you safe." Andy grins before pecking her lips again "I'll pick you up at 12, that okay?"

"12 sounds good." Delia nods grinning "I'll see you tomorrow."

"I'll see you tomorrow, make sure to get some rest." Andy instructs kissing Delia once more before carefully unwrapping his arms from her and walking to the car allowing Delia to shut the front door behind him. No doubt Delia's parents were going to bombard her with questions about Andy as soon as she walked back into the living room, but she didn't mind; after all, she was finally happy...

...Or as happy as she could be anyway.

[eljeebee]

📩 Simblr question of the day: Do you have a process for making your simblr posts?

- an anon ask contribution for @simblr-question-of-the-day (Hi squat!)

I decided to do a separate post, just like what @changingplumbob did a question ago!

Since I mostly do story posts, here is my workflow:

a.) I draft the next story updates. Nothing serious, nothing deep. Just a rough draft that I want to happen. I have drafts in my laptop,

as well as in my phone [spoilers? lol]

Sometimes just one paragraph, or two, as long as I get the gist of it. This draft will be the basis when it comes to shooting the scenes.

b.) Before taking the scenes, I make sure that I have the poses and some specific clothes that I want and need. When it comes to clothing, it's rare that I use specific clothes on some scenes, because I have tons of CC in my mod folder, but I download it in advance. Some of it are already download in advance (that is not yet needed now, but is used far in the future)

b.1.) Sometimes, when I need a certain portrait of a character for a scene that is from a different save file, I make sure I do that first before I load the main save.

b.2.) When I need a certain build for the scenes, I have to build it myself. This is evident with the Strauds' nightclub and the Beau-Asvang's penthouse. It took me weeks to finish these. This is tedious for me, so some updates gets delayed, especially when I feel overwhelmed or bored.

c.) After that, I shoot the scenes. I base my scenes on the draft. This is another tedious part for me, especially if it involves a lot of characters. Sometimes, it has to be in a certain time of day. I don't mess time in that save, because I fear I'll mess up the calendar, so I rely in the fast forward function. The only thing that I mess with it is the weather. It can take me a whole IRL day, or a few days to finish this step.

d.) After taking the scenes, I choose which shots are the best, then delete the rest. I don't edit the photos because the reshade preset I use was made to skip editing it, but will only edit if necessary. No resizing is done (sorry if I'm lazy ;-;).

e.) In this step, the draft that was written before will be finalized once the scenes are done. Most of the time, the drafts get changed, because I change the parts of the story based on the scenes I took. The whole essence or message of the story doesn't change, only the flow and how I structured it will be modified. The finalized script is written in MS Word. A tip for everyone: type the tags you're going to use for the post in the document, so all you have to do is to copy the tags and paste it here in the text editor!

f.) Next, I'll upload the scenes and the script here in my Tumblr drafts. Sometimes, I break the scenes in separate posts, but sometimes I post it in one, depending on the story and the flow.

g.) Finally, I either: queue the posts, or I post it myself. I post the posts that has the "previous | next" links myself, because I want to quickly add the links as soon as I post it. I only queue on some posts, namely Beneath, and New Beginnings.

Again, this is my workflow when it comes to story posts! Gameplay posts like The Life of the Hatcher only get captioned based on the shots, and is not as heavily planned as the DLU (Davis Legacy Universe).

If you've reached the end of the post, thanks for reading! I hope you find this helpful!

[jsprnt]

Healing Hearts PT.6 | Virgil van Dijk

Would a fresh start bring you more than just a new job?

A/N: the moment we’ve all been waiting for! this is a long one, enjoy :)

C/W: mention of abusive relationship, blood.

WC: 5.012

Summary: Y/N L/N is a very skilled and praised physiotherapist. A certain event pushing her for a fresh start, as a physiotherapist for Liverpool FC. One question always being in the back of her mind: Will she be able to let go of her past and allow herself to experience new things?

"The swelling has been going down thankfully. You're very lucky it's a minor injury. I've discussed your injury with both Dr. Woods and Dr. Davis, and we think you'll be back in a few weeks, though we'll have to keep monitoring it regularly. Especially since you're being included in the national team lineup." I say, filling in some important documents about Ibo's injury.

"Thank you doctor. I really hope I will be fine for the national matches." He says, French accent shining through. I give him a crooked smile, turning my full attention towards him.

"You know I can't promise you anything except that I'll help you to my upmost ability, as your physiotherapist." I state. He nods his head, acknowledging what I tell him. I give him some more instructions about how to make sure his injury doesn't get worse. He walks out of my office a while later, feeling more confident in healing faster.

I glance at my planner, checking off the appointments I had completed. Realizing I had a fifteen-minute break. I grab my phone out of my handbag, checking my messages.

I had sent my friends a couple of cute pictures I took last night, asking which one to post.

I had done my make up and dressed up out of boredom. Wanting to go back to posting on my Instagram regularly, keeping my friends and family up to date since I now lived in a different city again.

I add some other pictures to it, making it photo dump and adding a caption. I press post, scrolling through my timeline before checking the time. Next appointment: meeting with physiotherapy team.

I shove my phone in my back pocket, grabbing some documents we need before walking along the hallways to the gym, Dr. Davis would definitely be there.

I feel my stomach grumble, lunchtime was soon and I couldn't wait to eat honestly.

I walk in greeting some players who are working out hard. The faint smell of sweat and deodorant hits my nose. I scrunch my nose, trying to focus on my own perfume. I could never get used to the smell of men exercising, no matter how long I worked in this industry.

Suddenly, a ball rolls up to my feet. I turn my head to the right seeing Trent and Dom. My left hand fidgeting with the documents in my arm.

"You guys are playing two touch in the gym?"

I raise my brows at them, taking the ball and rolling it under my foot. "That's what I said. This is gym time!" I glance at a slightly frustrated Mo, chuckling at him before turning back to the other guys. "You guys sound like my parents when I was younger. Stop being an arse and kick the ball back!" Trent yells in his Scouser accent.

I gasp at him, grabbing my chest offended. "Hey, I'm only twenty-five, he's the old one!" I point to Mo as he gives me a surprised look. The other players in the gym looking up due to the slight commotion. "I am not old- I'm thirty-one!" He exclaims. I try hold back a laugh, glancing at the other players who have slight grins on their face, overhearing our banter.

I feel a warm hand on my shoulder, turning my head to see a slightly sweaty Virgil. A sweaty but powdery-musk smell enters my nostrils. His curly baby hairs sticking to his forehead, his signature waves slightly frizzy. He leans forward, his face close to mine.

"If he's old what am I then?" My eyes widen, feeling his minty breath fanning my face. I stare up at him for a second before I hear my name being called by Dr. Davis, who's looking at us from the entrance of the gym. "Well- I've got a meeting, you'll have to ask Trent!" I give him a sheepish smile, scooping up the ball with my foot and kicking it back to Dominik, surprising myself at the fact that I hadn't lost the football skills I had learnt in primary school.

"Train hard everyone! I'll be there James!" I yell before jogging away hearing some chuckles behind me as leave the gym.

"Since we're done discussing everything, y/n how has it been working here so far." I look up from the stack of documents, smiling at the two senior physio's.

"It's been two weeks but it feels way longer honestly, in a good way of course. Staff and player are nice and the workplace is very positive." I state. They look at me with bright smiles, looking very relieved. We chat some more before Dr. Woods dismisses me for lunch.

I bid them goodbye and walk back to my office. Putting away the documents and walking into the canteen. I fill my plate with some tasty food, remembering not eat too much since Virgil was inviting me over for dinner later.

I sit next to Clara, chatting, well more like gossiping about literally everyone.

"She cheated on him?!" I yell a little out of shock as she tells me the latest celebrity dating drama.

I take a sip of my water, swallowing before asking her more about it. Some players asking if they can sit our table. I absentmindedly nod at them, not paying attention as I'm too invested in Clara's story.

"Who cheated?" I hear a confused Curtis say. We glance at him briefly realizing multiple players at had been sitting at our table. You'd think they'd be invested in their own banter, but they quite literally had been eavesdropping our conversation.

"Why's everyone looking at us?"

I murmur to Clara, embarrassed smile on my face.

"Because you are very loud." I look at Robbo, mumbling a quick sorry before Clara and me turn back to our own conversation again, this time with way less volume.

I shove the last bites of veggies in my mouth listening to the details of her juicy story.

"Show me a picture of the guy." I say, very curious. She taps on her phone handing me it. I look at the phone screen, my mouth falling open. "She cheated on him with this?" I exclaim, totally baffled. My hand covering my mouth in disbelief.

I feel a presence behind me, turning to see Curtis look at the screen. I quirk my eyebrow at him.

"What? You girls are so loud I want to know the gossip show me!" I roll my eyes at him playfully before I show him the picture.

"Oh- was she blind or?" I laugh at his comment before I hear the guys at the table complain about wanting to see the pictures too.

I sigh before showing them the phone, hearing a couple words of disbelief. "Maybe he has a nice personality?" I hear Harvey say.

This becomes the only topic of our conversation at our table, dragging on for the next fifteen minutes. And they say women gossip more than men.

"No, it's crazier since her partner- well ex is hot."

I hear Clara say. I nod at her comment. "She's not wrong."

My eyes wander around the table as the guys seem to be more invested into the drama than us now. I chuckle at their banter, my lips curling up into a smile, dimples on display. My eyes lock with Virgil's who's sitting at the end of the table. He smiles back, and a warm feeling seeps into my chest, a faint blush covering my cheeks.

A knock on my door takes me out of my concentrated trance. I watch as the door swing open, revealing Virgil. I check the time, training must've ended early?

"What's up?" I raise a brow, fidgeting with my pen before standing up from my seat. He smirks at me and walks around to sit on the treatment table, looking very comfortable. "Something wrong?"

I walk up to him, almost standing in between his thighs due to his frame. "Nothing wrong." He says. I notice a glimmer of mischievousness in his eyes.

"Why are you here then hm?" I fold my arms up to my chest, lifting my head slightly to look him in the eyes. He laughs at me before mirroring my stance. "I came here to confirm tonight, you'll be at my place at 7 right?"

"Yeah, you thought I forgot? In one day?"

He huffs, before shaking his head. "No, just confirming." He smirks, and I can’t help but wonder why he's being, so- weird?

"And I was wondering- do you have any allergies?" I raise my brows. "Why are you cooking? I instead of a fancy private chef?" I scoff, a hint of teasing in my tone.

His expression turns offended, scoffing back. "Yes, I will be cooking, you don't think I'm capable of making a nice dinner?" He retorts.

I raise my hands in defense, holding back a laugh. "Okay Mister Chef, don't get too riled up. I'll look forward to it." I study his face for a reaction, the corners of my lips tugging upwards.

"I'll show you, just be on time." He says, giving me a cocky smile. I feel my heart pound faster in my chest, that smile was to literally go feral for, I had to admit. "I'll be there just send me the address."

I put on my halter-neck dress, struggling to reach the back as I check the time. Fuck, twenty minutes until I have to leave. I fight against the flexibility of my arms some more before huffing and giving up, thanking myself for befriending my neighbor.

I walk out of my apartment, going up to Sofia's door and knocking on it. The door opens and I greet her before turning around, giving her the message. She chuckles before reaching down to zip up my dress. I turn back facing her again and give her a hug as a ‘thank you’. She whistles at me, her arms folded. "Damn girl, which lucky guy is seeing all of this tonight." I laugh at her, trying to convince her it's nothing like that, though see doesn't seem very convinced. "I doubt that, but let me know how it goes?" I nod at her before leaving back to my apartment. "Don't drink too much!" She yells after me. "I won't!"

I stand in front of my mirror, hands smoothing down my dress before I pack my handbag. I grab my lip liner, meticulously lining my lips and applying a pretty gloss on top. I breathe in and exhale slowly, my hands clammy for some crazy reason. Am I nervous? I shake my head at my distress, not believing I was nervous for something so simple. It's just dinner.

My phone buzzes on my coffee table, I grab it walking out of my apartment after being fully ready. My Notification Center being flooded by my Instagram post being liked, I smile at myself before checking the most important message. Virgil had sent his address finally.

After a half hour drive of me fighting with the directions and the navigation system, I finally arrive at his home, a nice big gate around it. Though, his house wasn't anything I expected, it was defined huge but not modern like I thought his house would be.

I reach for my phone, ready to call him but I'm stopped by the gates opening. I sigh before driving up onto his huge driveway, catching a glimpse of the other cars he owned. I hadn't seen them before at the training center.

I gather my bag, jumping out of my car and fixing my dress, walking around to his front door. The door opens, a nicely dressed Virgil smiles back at me.

Oh fuck, he looks insanely good. He's wearing a off-white polo shirt, the sleeves a little snug on his biceps, paired nicely with some black pants. His hair in his signature hairstyles and it looks like he had cleaned up his facial hair a bit.

"Hey!" I greet, stepping into his home. I glance around, noticing the touches of marble and wood decorate his home. "You look beautiful." He hums, leaning down and pulling me into a warm hug, a hand softly running down my arm. I try to stop my brain from short-circuiting, focusing instead of allowing my mind to wander.

"I really thought you weren't coming after I said I'd be cooking." His voice vibrates in my ear. The musky smell of his cologne engulfing my senses.

I pull back. "Do you think I'm going to pass up an opportunity to taste your cooking? I need to know if the 'worlds best defender' can cook a nice meal as well, no? Besides, you hurt my nose. I need some compensation for that!" He laughs at me, before leading me further into his home, keeping a hand on my back, in between my shoulder blades.

He guides me into the main room. I glance around noticing the kitchen, living room and dinning room are all on one floor, connected.

"Your house is so pretty." I breathe out, glancing at him. "Did you have it designed?" He hums, nodding. "I did but I worked with them to make it my own." He says.

He leads me to the dining table, it wasn't a huge one, the dark walnut wood giving it a cozy touch. A pretty chandelier dangling from the ceiling, casting a warm light into the room.

The table is filled with plates, wine glasses and cutlery. Most importantly the decent amount of food. He pulls back my chair to allow me to sit. I turn back to look at him. Maybe, chivalry wasn't dead. He walks around the table to sit down across from me.

I gasp, my eyes widening. "So, you made all of this?" I motion to the table with my hands, making a circle motion with my fingers.

"Of course I did, did you think I was bluffing?"

I eye him up suspiciously, raising a brow. "Well- no, but not this." I say. "You shouldn't have, training was very intensive today and you must be tired." My expression falters into a concerned one. He really did all of this, for me?

"No, it's okay. I wanted to really show you how sorry I was. Besides, I like doing things for the ones I care about." I freeze at his words, staring at him with wide eyes, he cares?

He clears his throat, before asking I want a glass of water. I nod, as he starts pouring water into a glass and handing it to me. I reach over, grabbing it and lifting the cold glass it up to my lips. My pink lip gloss leaving a stain on the edge of the glass.

"So, chef are you going to explain what you've cooked tonight?" I say, a smile tugging on my lips.

"Of course, just a second." He stands up, walking over to the glass sliding-doors leading to the backyard. He slides them open and a nice breeze blows in to the house immediately. He walks outside into the backyard, I tilt my head curiously.

Then he appears again, a big plate in his hand and a smoky smell reaching my nostrils. Steak- he'd grilled steak on his barbecue?

I follow his every move with my eyes, he walks up to me placing a piece of steak on my and his plate. He walks back to me, grabbing the plate from in front of me and cutting it. My heart practically melt at the action, my face flushing.

"Smells amazing, thank you." I say, looking up at him. My eyes following the movements of his hands. He places the plate with cut steak in front of me again, giving me a smile. "My pleasure." He says, his voice silky as ever.

He sits down again, motioning for me to start eating. "I'm not a course-meal person myself, so I just put out everything at once. I hope you're okay with that?" He makes eyes contact with me, a faint smile on his lips.

"Oh- it's fine I promise. I'm not a fan of that either." I say, shaking my head slightly. He looks at me pleased, before starting to explain every dish he had prepped.

We dig in before the food gets cold. I taste the steak, humming at the taste. It melting on my tongue. "This is insanely good. How'd you learn to cook like this? Your mom?"

He nods, a reminiscing look on his face. "That and I worked at a restaurant when I was younger. Washed the dishes, but could overhear the chefs talking about how to prepare the food all the time."

"I guess, I could actually call you chef?" He chuckles at me before suggesting I taste the spaghetti, coated in a creamy tomato sauce.

"This is really good, oh my god." I gasp at the taste, this had to be the best spaghetti I have ever eaten and I have probably eaten spaghetti in every country I had visited.

He grabs the decanter filled with red wine, I imagine him meticulously decanting it and smile to myself. "Wait- I'm driving home remember? I can't drink." I say. "You can drink it's fine. I'll drive you home, you can relax. You're my guest."

I smile at his words, watching him move carefully. I could definitely get used to being wined and dined like this again.

I notice the almost empty bottle next to it. He walks over to me to fill my wineglass. I eye the familiar label, trying to figure out where I had had it before. I didn't know much about wine, but this one was etched into my memory for some reason. He notices my confusion and gives me information about it. I think carefully as he speaks, finally remembering where I had had it before. I mentally slap myself for remembering the shitty memory.

I had it on a date with Theo at a three star Michelin restaurant. He had asked the waiter for their 'very good red wine' in the rudest way possible, embarrassing me in the process. Then he'd bragged about the bottle being worth seven grand the entire dinner. A chill travels down my spine, remembering how he'd lashed out at me later for 'ogling the waiter' in his twisted words.

Wait-? This bottle is worth seven thousand and I'm being served it on a simple dinner? I snap out of my thoughts before looking at the glass of wine in front of me. Looking back at Virgil, trying to not look as shocked as I am right now.

"Something wrong? You don't like it-" I interrupt him. "No, I just remembered we're I've had this wine before, that's it."

He raises a brow. "Where have you had it?" I give him an awkward smile, before dismissing it. "Not the best memory, but this will probably make me forget it." I chuckle at him.

We continue to eat in a comfortable silence for a while before he breaks it. "I know you've told us about yourself, but tell me more. I want to learn more about you." He says, small smile on his face.

"What do you want to know?" I say. "Tell me more about your upbringing, how you grew up."

I take a sip of the wine, it's taste coating my mouth. I explain my childhood to him, as he occasionally chimes in to tell a story he relates to. I smile at myself, feeling very comfortable.

"To be fully honest, I don't have the best relationship with my parents. Mainly, because growing up they'd always been more busy with their business, so they were physically and emotionally pretty absent. Though, I don't know if I could complain- I mean their determination for work made it possible for me to grow up comfortably. Even though it meant I had to raise myself sometimes."

He nods, acknowledging my feelings telling me about his relationship with his father and how it had shaped him as a person. "I guess, we aren't so different after all hm?"

We finish dinner and I can't help but glance into his backyard, noticing my curiosity, he offers to take a walk in his backyard. I nod eagerly as we walk along the neatly designed pool tiles. "Do you swim a lot when it's sunny?" I ask him. "I do, but I love swimming when it's colder. The jacuzzi is the best when it's cold." I roll my eyes at him playfully. "Must be nice." I mock as he laughs at me.

The sun had gone down and the temperature had dropped quite a bit. I shiver as a cold breeze blows past me, making my teeth clatter slightly. Virgil notices as he interrupts himself, looking at me concerned. "Are you cold?” A shy smile forms on my lips, nodding at him. He walks back into his house, quickly walking back out with a white sweater in his arms.

He walks up to me, carefully pulling the sweater over my head. I imagine to not smudge my make up. I shiver at the touch of his hands on my arms, holding back a surprised gasp. His hand goes up to fix my hair, tucking a stray piece of hair behind my ear. "Thank you." He smirks at me, an unknown look in his eyes as he glances down at me.

"Do you want to go back inside?" I nod at Virgil, walking back into his house alongside him. He tells me sit at the kitchen island as he cleans up the table, forcing me stop helping him with cleaning. "I said you're my guest, please go sit down and have some more wine."

This leads to me sipping on the seven thousand pound wine like it's orange juice, sitting onto the bar stool and leaning against the marble island, my elbows propped up on it. I watch him rinse off the dishes and cutlery before placing them into the dishwasher. I don't know if it's the wine or not but looking at his back, cleaning the kitchen with gloves on made him look so- husband material, it feels almost too domestic. Though, it definitely made him look so hot, that was for sure the effect of the wine. Sober me would never, right?

I let out a soft giggle, my face was probably insanely flushed. He turns back to look at me, chuckling to himself as he washed his hands. Walking up to me and holding onto my shoulders to stabilize me. He looks at me before looking at the nearly empty decanter.

"Are you drunk?" I look up at him, a sheepish smile on my face. "Not yet." I laugh and his chocolate brown eyes gaze into mine. I unconsciously hold my breath, he looked insanely pretty from this proximity. I try get off of the bar stool as he tries to hold me back stabilizing me again, fixing the white sweater. I huff at him. "I'm not drunk, I swear." I whine, hearing a deep chuckle leave his throat. His big hand engulfs mine as he holds onto to it, my soft skin grazing against his slightly calloused palms. He places a cold glass of water in my hand.

He starts gathering the wineglass and nearly empty decanter in front of me and puts them away. I press my lips onto the edge of the glass, sipping onto the water as I follow his movement from behind it. A sudden familiar tune makes me jerk my head around, looking for the origin of the sound. I catch the glowing screen of my phone, left at the dinner table. I get off the bar stool, half-full glass still in my hand as I make my way towards it.

I pick it up, taking notice of the anonymous number calling me. I glance up at Virgil, seeing that he's still busy with cleaning up and look back at my phone again. Who would be calling my phone at eight thirty in the evening? My finger hovers over the green circle, eventually pressing it quickly, lifting the phone up to my ear, my left hand fidgeting with the glass.

"Hello?" I mutter, holding my breath awaiting an answer back. I catch Virgil turning around, eyeing me confused, but his face relaxes when he realizes I'm on the phone.

I furrow my eyebrows, my face twisting into confusion as no one speaks back, the only sound being of someone's breathing in my ear. I start pulling the phone away from my ear, but I freeze at the sound of someone's voice breaking the silence.

"Now you're picking up the phone? you fucking bitch!" The person shouts, a sinister tone lacing his voice. Theo.

I gasp, jolting at the voice. My hand jerks, letting the glass of water slip through my hands. The loud sound of the glass splitting into millions of pieces deafening my ears. Water splashes up, pieces of glass cut through my skin, a painful stinging feeling on my face. My eyes widen in shock, disassociating for a second before I'm pulled out of it by Virgil's hands on my waist, gently carrying me away from the glass.

I blink multiple times, trying to focus at what just happened. My hand falls to my side, the screen being seen by Virgil as he takes it out of my hand, hanging up on the caller.

"Hey, what's wrong? What happened?" He mutters, looking very worried. He grips onto my shoulders, shaking me slightly. I avert my eyes to him, eyes still wide in shock.

Tears cloud my vision, gathering at the corner of my eyes before rolling down my cheeks. I feel his thumb caressing them away, his other hand traveling to my nape and pulling me into his chest. I shake in his hold, his arm wrapping around my shoulder as he caresses my hair.

I feel his shirt become wet as my tears fall.

"It's okay, you're safe." He mutters into my ear softly, his frame enveloping me tightly. My breath hitches, pulling away from him and noticing the blood- and some make up stains on his shirt.

"Blood and the glass- I'm so sorry-" he shushes me, wiping away the tears falling down. "It's fine. You're the one bleeding, again." I look up at him with glossy eyes, he was right. I kept getting myself in these bloody embarrassing situations, with him.

He glances down my body, noticing some cuts on my legs as well. His arm travels down to the back of my knees, stabilizing his hold on my back before carrying me bridal style onto his big sofa.

He puts me down in the corner of the sofa gently, the soft fabric pressing comfortably against my skin. He walks away and comes back with a first-aid kit, treating the small cuts carefully.

"Who was that calling you hm?" His gaze pierces into my eyes. I avert his gaze, focusing on him treating my cuts instead. "Do you know the caller?" He presses on, treating the last cut on my face, a silent curse ringing through my mind.

"y/n- tell me." His fingers pinch my chin, lifting my face to meet his gaze. I let out a silent huff before pulling my legs up to my chest, he grabs the blanket on the edge of the couch, draping it over my naked legs.

I open my mouth to speak, my eyes wandering around the house, fidgeting with the blanket. Was I really about to trauma dump on my patient?

"I- it's personal I can't-" he interrupts a stern look on his face. "y/n." I sigh, a lump forming in my throat, I try swallowing it down.

"My ex- it was my ex boyfriend." I breathe out, scanning his face for a change of expressions. He furrows his brows, looking at me skeptically.

"There's more to it. Am I right?" He says softly, caressing the palm of my hand.

I swallow again, trying to croak out the words I had been keeping to myself this entire time. "Tell me." He encourages.

"We dated for five years, met him when working for Ajax, moved with me to Barcelona later. His mother is a big sponsor in the football industry. I broke up with him after he started becoming- more and more- umh abusive and controlling. That's why I got a job at this club and moved here." My voice cracks towards the end of my sentence.

A soft hum leaves his lips, a tender look in his eyes. "I'm sorry." "It's not your fault obviously, I just got shocked by hearing his voice. I'm sorry for the glass and your shirt-." I narrow my eyes at the mess next to the dining table, fragments of glass and water everywhere.

"It's okay. It's fine, as long as you're fine." He mumbles and I almost don't catch the end of his sentence.

"Do you want to watch a movie? To take your mind off it hm?" His voice a little deeper as he looks at me waiting for answer. I nod, too exhausted from the roller coaster of emotions I experienced in a short amount of time to reply with words.

He turns on the TV, across us, mounted on the huge wall. The bright light emitting from it making me cringe and squint my eyes. I shift from my position, sinking back into the sofa. He chooses a movie I had never heard of, the soft blaring of the actors calming me down as Virgil sits back as well, our bodies closer now.

A warm, comfortable feeling seeps into my chest, my eyes fluttering shut. My last conscious memory being, my forehead touching something broad and warm, a hand caressing my hair softly.

[veryace-ficrecs]

Spiderverse fic recs

This list will include all ratings and tags, so read at your own discretion! :)

I can't guarantee there aren't any spoilers for the new movie!

Superhero Adoption Agency by brushstrokesApocalyptic - Rated T

Jefferson Davis realizes that Spider-Man is a child, and is determined to put an end to his recklessness. Miles disapproves.

It’s a School Night, Why are You Out Saving the World? by TechnicolorVocab01 - Rated G

Jefferson Davis can’t lie to himself, as much as he tries. He and Miles have always butted heads-- his son just has this carefree, unfettered approach to life that Davis' strict, no-nonsense methods seemingly have no place in. A large part of him loves Miles for that, truly, even though sometimes Jefferson feels as if he's just slowing him down. But now, with Miles away at school on weeknights-- seemingly always busy with something or another-- Jefferson has never felt that gaping space between himself and his son yawn wider. Enter the new Spider-Man. A free-spirited kid, five foot nothing and standing between the whole city and danger as if it’s his job, breaking a long series of minor laws with careless ease, and giving a certain cop heart palpitations on a regular basis. Jefferson Davis can’t lie to himself anymore. No matter how much he hates vigilantes-- especially of the masked variety-- a child is a child. And a dad is a dad.

what's up danger by tempestaurora - Rated T

Gwen snorted. “You and Miles would get along-” A smile appeared on her face, growing wider. “You wanna go on a trip?” “A multi-dimensional trip.” “The only fun kind,” she agreed. Gwen turned to him, her smile large and coaxing. “It’ll be great. I’ll get you back here as soon as you want – but it could be fun! Meet Miles, maybe another Peter if we have time.” Peter really wanted to go to another universe, let’s be clear. But he a) had homework, b) didn’t need his brain to melt out of his ears, and c) had a dinner to get to in three hours. He totally ended up going to another universe.

spiderman loves you by owlinaminor - Rated T

Or: how to figure out if your son is actually Spiderman without letting him know that you suspect he’s Spiderman because you want to make sure you’re right about him being Spiderman before you ground him for the rest of his adolescent life.

@heyitsspiderman by meggannn - Rated T

@heyitsspiderman: people act like they know this city but when i’m in the air i find more boroughs all the time. so far ive counted ten. dont listen to big brother in your ceiling (google) telling you otherwise (google maps)

Spinsta (Spidey Insta) by Ravenesta - Rated T

There are things that Jefferson Davis simply does not understand. He's starting to, though.

the family brooklyn by tactfulGnostalgic - Rated T

Series: 4 Works

New York is notoriously protective of its superheroes.

New Moves by WildInkling - Rated G

"Miles needed something else - he needs more moves, he needs new moves. Watching old Spider-man videos on Who-Tube was not gonna be enough." Or: Miles Morales takes up ballet.

Down the Waterspout by Mockingone - Rated T

Peter Parker hightails out of the particle collider with Miles Morales tucked under his arm. Or: Spider-Man lives, and the consequences thereafter.

One New Message by loveydoveywlw - Rated G

"When his dad finds out about him being Spider-Man, it's not in any way that Miles has hoped it would happen." Jefferson finds out about Miles's secret.

Niṣkalaṃka by HydraNoMago - Rated T

“I’m not stupid,” Pavitr retorted stubbornly. Hobie pulled back to look him in the eye, thumbs grazing across Pavitr’s cheeks, dragging frustrated tears along them. “Pav,” he began, but halted to find the right words. He inhaled shakily. “Okay Pav listen, please. You don’t have to be perfect all the time.” “What do you mean–” Pavitr, the Spider-Man who strives for perfection; meets Hobie, the Spider-Man who skews perfection. (A character study into Pavitr, and the progression of his relationship with Hobie. No one dies, everyone moves forward.)

live, laugh, love & sleep by hopeless_hope - Rated T

Being a superhero and traveling the multiverse is exhausting work. So is being a student. You can't blame a guy for always falling asleep. or Five times someone finds Miles sleeping and one time they can't wake him up.

[ashenwinds]

sailor @seachant sent a message in a bottle. . .

disney c:

↪ send me a fandom and i’ll tell you...

am i familiar with it? Oh veryyy familiar. I haven't been up-to-date on the newer movies, I think the last one I watched was Encanto? Not out of the dis-interest but mostly due to time and my terrible attention span for movies. I do not include Mar.vel or SW in this since they were once their own entities do i like the fandom itself? I haven't been in the fandom but the people I've interacted with on this blog from that fandom have been absolutely lovely! who’s my favorite character? ffff that is very hard because I have so many I like: Hades, Dr. Facilier, Ursula, Zurg, Randall, Davy Jones. . . lots and lots of the villains. Or the very obscure villain from the Buzz Lightyear animated series NOS-4-A2, absolutely loved that character. But I do also love Stitch, that movie is always a childhood comfort movie. if i had to choose, who would i roleplay? One or a few of the above. Tbh probably would be either Zurg or NOS, just because both have the opportunity to be silly but also scary serious.

[sean-gaffney]

Looney Tunes Collector's Choice Vol. 4 Announced

I had written a post, which you can find here, where I talked about Looney Tunes that were never released officially in any medium. Did any of those make the new collection? Mostly no, as expected, but yes, one or two did! Let's look at the contents, in the order listed in the press release.

Along Came Daffy (1947, Freleng, Blue Ribbon). A semi-remake of Daffy's Southern Exposure from 1942 and Wackiki Wabbit from 1943, this has two starving men (who look a lot like Yosemite Sam, one red and one black) trying to eat Daffy, who has come to sell them cookbooks. Classic 40s Daffy.

A Bone for a Bone (1951, Freleng). This is one of the ones never released on home video before now! (It has streamed.) The Goofy Gophers vs. a dog, and while enjoyable, it's not the lights out classic the previous two Gopher cartoons were.

The Cagey Canary (1942, Avery/Clampett, Blue Ribbon). Tex Avery started this cartoon, then left Schlesinger's, so Bob Clampett finished it. It's very reminiscent of later Tweety and Sylvester cartoons.

D'Fightin' Ones (1961, Freleng). A psrody of the movie the Defiant Ones, starring Sylvester and a bulldog.

Dangerous Dan McFoo (1939, Avery, Blue Ribbon). A parody of the poem The Shooting of Dan McGrew. Avery would return to this poem several times over his career. This is the first cartoon to feature the voice of Arthur Q. Bryan (future Elmer Fudd) and Robert C. Bruce (the narrator voice for almost every WB cartoons from this point on).

Devil's Feud Cake (1963, Freleng). A "cheater" cartoon, using footage from previous cartoons. Yosemite Sam dies and goes to hell, and is told to bring Bugs back there to avoid eternal damnation. Not great, but they're running out of Bugs cartoons.

Double Chaser (1942, Freleng, Blue Ribbon). A "chase" cartoon to the extreme, with a mouse, cat and dog.

Double or Mutton (1955, Jones). A Sam Sheepdog/Ralph Wolf cartoon, with lots of cartoon violence against Ralph that was censored on TV being uncut here.

Fox Pop (1942, Jones, Blue Ribbon). A fox hears that silver foxes are highly prized, and paints himself silver, only to realize they only want the skin. Jones is starting to slowly become funny in 1942, this is a good example of him getting better. Also, a public domain cartoon, so has appeared on many bootleg WB collections. This is restored.

Henhouse Henery (1949, McKimson). An early Foghorn Leghorn cartoon, and the first to use "Camptown Races".

Holiday for Drumsticks (1949, Davis). Daffy Duck tries to "save" a turkey from Thanksgiving by eating all his food for him. A classic, one of three cartoons newly restored for HD for this set.

Hopalong Casualty (1960, Jones). A late-period Coyote/Roadrunner cartoon. The one with the earthquake pills.

Hyde and Go Tweet (1960, Freleng). Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde with Tweety and Sylvester.

The Impatient Patient (1942, McCabe, B&W). Released in its original black and white for the first time officially on home media, this has a loopy Daffy trying to deliver a message to "Chloe" in a parody of horror movies.

Leghorn Swoggled (1951, McKimson). The other Foghorn Leghorn/Henery Hawk title on here.

Meatless Flyday (1944, Freleng). A spider tries desperately to catch a fly. Finally foiled by wartime rationing.

Mouse-Warming (1952, Jones). Claude Cat versus a boy and girl mouse rather than Hubie & Bertie. This was on the Mouse Chronicles Blu-Ray, but unrestored.

The Mouse-Merized Cat (1946, McKimson, Blue Ribbon). The final Babbitt and Catstello cartoon, where Babbitt tries to get Catstello (a mouse - don't worry too much about it) to go after the cat by hypnosis. Catstello imitating Rochester has been cut from TV airings, will be uncut here.

Muscle Tussle (1953, McKimson). Daffy must try to defeat a muscle-bound blond at the beach in order to keep his flighty girlfriend. A parody of the "90-pound weakling" ads.

Muzzle Tough (1954, Freleng). The second Tweety and Sylvester cartoon on here, and another new restoration (maybe - does Japanese release only count?). Sylvester tries to get past Hector the Bulldog to get at Tweety.

Peck Up Your troubles (1945, Freleng, Blue Ribbon). Sylvester's second cartoon, and basically a Tweety cartoon only with a woodpecker. A new restoration, and thank God, as the old print looked awful.

Quack Shot (1954, McKimson). Daffy tries to stop Elmer Fudd shooting ducks. For the most part, his attempts rebound on him, but Daffy has the last laugh. Possibly the last Daffy Duck cartoon where he's "old-school" loopy Daffy all the way through. New to home media!

Road to Andalay (1964, Freleng). A post-64 (but only just) Sylvester and Speedy Gonzalez cartoon, but still directed by the master. New to home media!

The Sneezing Weasel (1938, Avery, Blue Ribbon). A standard 30s Merrie Melodie, but Avery's constantly chuckling weasel (voiced by Avery himself) is what everyone remembers.

Streamlined Greta Green (1937, Freleng). One of WB's classic plots, where a child is bad, is shown how bad his actions are, supposedly learns his lesson, but in reality doesn't learn a thing. This time the child is a car.

There are also two bonus cartoons, Lighter Than Hare (1960, Freleng) and Stork Named (1955, Freleng). Both came out years ago on collections that released the shorts as "widescreen". The fans were unhappy. They did not want a previously unseen version that cut the top and bottom of the cartoon, they wanted THEIR version. So these are in regular size (but restored).

It's a strong, if safe, collection. A lot of cartoons people have been begging for, including me. No blackface gags to worry parents, and only one Speedy Gonzalez cartoon to worry censors. I can't wait. No Porky Pig, though. :(

[hollywoodfamerp]

THERES ONLY US THERES ONLY THIS NO DAY BUT TODAY….

Hollywood Fame is going to Broadway!

From December 1-3 we will be staging a production of Rent the Musical at the St James Theatre in the heart of Broadway in New York City and it will be starring you!

We are looking for cast members to fill out the roles below. Your character can be well versed in the world of musicals or simply just wanting to try something new. All we ask that you stick within the playing ages of each role. If you would like to take part, simply message us the name of the character and the role they would like to play! This will be on a first come first served basis. We ask that only one character per mun signs up at present. You have until 11/21/23 @ 11.59 PM EST to sign up.

Not a fan of performing? No worries we will need an audience to cheer on our amazing cast! Cast list and rehearsal schedule will follow soon! Follow the tags #hfrprent and #hfrpbroadway for more.

PLOT:

Set in the East Village of New York City, Rent is about falling in love, finding your voice and living for today. Winner of the Tony Award for Best Musical and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, Rent has become a pop cultural phenomenon. with songs that rock and a story that resonates with audiences of all ages. Based loosely on Puccini's La Boheme, Jonathan Larson's Rent follows a year in the life of a group of impoverished young artists and musicians struggling to survive and create in New York's Lower East Side, under the shadow of HIV/AIDS. How these young bohemians negotiate their dreams, loves and conflicts provides the narrative thread to this groundbreaking musical.

RENT features many adult themes, including sex, drug use, profanity, and same-sex intimacy.

CHARACTER BREAKDOWN:

MARK COHEN

Stage age: early to late twenties Vocal Range: Tenor (C#3-G4)

Mark is an aspiring filmmaker who narrates the show as he films the lives of his friends. Mark never leaves home without a camera. He is Roger's best friend and caregiver, and he was once Maureen’s boyfriend (who left him for Joanne). Mark is a little nerdy and quirky. He insists that he can survive the bleakness of his environment through his art. It soon becomes apparent, though, that he is more comfortable viewing the world through his lens than in actively engaging in it. He feels guilty that unlike his friends, he does not have HIV/AIDS. The actor playing this role must be a strong singer and actor. He dances the Tango with Joanne, so good movement skills are also required.

ROGER DAVIS

Stage Age: mid twenties to early thirties Vocal Range: Rock Tenor (B2-A4) Roger is a once successful, now struggling musician who discovered he had HIV/AIDS in a note his girlfriend left him before she took her own life. His main goal in life is to write one great song before he dies, but he has not been able to play his guitar in a year, fearing that he has lost his creative energy. He falls in love with Mimi but is too afraid to commit to her, knowing that she also is infected with HIV/AIDS. He is also the roommate and best friend of Mark. He is often depressed and sullen, but he can be expressive and passionate at times. The actor playing this role must be a good actor and an excellent singer with a rock edge. Guitar skills are desired, but are not required. 

MIMI MARQUEZ

Stage Age: late teens to early twenties Vocal Range: Alto (F#3-E5) Mimi Marquez works in a strip club and struggles with her addiction to heroin, which has resulted in her contraction of HIV/AIDS. She falls in love with Roger, who is unable to commit to a relationship with her. She is also Benny's ex‐girlfriend. She is extremely sexy, optimistic, and likeable but with dark secrets. Though Mimi has” lived a lot of life,” she still sees the world through the eyes of a young woman. She intends to make the most of every day, as she earnestly expresses in the song “No Day but Today.” The actress playing this role must be a strong singer, dancer, and exceptional actress. She must be able to convincingly portray the struggles of heroin addiction, sexual promiscuity, and HIV/AIDS, while still maintaining the optimism of youth.

BENNY COFFIN III

Stage Age: twenties to thirties Vocal Range: Tenor (Eb3-F4) Benny used to be Mark and Roger’s roommate, but he married Alison Grey, a rich family involved with real estate, and he is now their landlord. He had been letting Roger and Mark live in the apartment for free, but he is now forcing them to pay rent or be evicted. Roger and Mark consider him a yuppie sell-out. He also had an affair with Mimi before she started to date Roger. While in the beginning he is caught up in the lifestyle of wealth and affluence, he ultimately realizes his friends are more important than what money can buy. The actor playing this role must be a good singer and actor.

MAUREEN JOHNSON

Stage Age: twenties to thirties Vocal Range: Soprano Belt (C4-F5) Maureen is a bisexual performing artist and Mark's ex‐girlfriend. She left Mark to be with her new girlfriend, Joanne. She is sexy, flirtatious, sassy, and funny. She is bold and speaks her mind, and she is not afraid to take on the establishment and fight for what she believes in. The actress playing this role must be an excellent singer and actress. She must be comfortable with same-sex physical intimacy.

JOANNE JEFFERSON

Stage Age mid twenties to early thirties Vocal Range: Soprano Belt (Bb3-E5) Maureen is a lesbian Ivy League educated lawyer and activist. She struggles to not be jealous ofMaureen’s flirtatious nature with others. Though she was raised in an affluent, political family, she is committed to helping those less fortunate. The actress playing this role must be an excellent singer and a good actress. She must be comfortable with same sex-physical intimacy. Since she dances the tango with Mark, good movement skills are also required.

TOM COLLINS

Stage Age: late twenties to late thirties Vocal Range: Baritone/Tenor (F#2 – A4) One A4 for a short duration Tom Collins is a gay computer genius, teacher, and anarchist who was recently expelled from MIT. In the opening scene he is mugged, reflecting the harsh reality of the world in which the characters live. He is brave enough to allow himself to fall in love with Angel, knowing that since both of them are infected with HIV/AIDS, their relationship will not have much of a future. Tom and Angel’s relationship is the heart of the show, as the genuine love and devotion they have for one another brings hope and inspiration to the entire group. They show the world how to truly live life and not be afraid. The actor playing this role must be an excellent singer and actor who is comfortable with same sex-physical intimacy. He must be able to portray great love and affection for Angel. He must especially be able to convey that love when Angel dies in his arms, and during his reprise of “I Will Cover You.”

ANGEL SCHUNARD

Stage Age: early to late twenties Vocal Range: Tenor with Falsetto (C3-A4) Angel is a young drag queen and street percussionist. He meets and falls in love with Collins. He has HIV/ AIDS and dies of the disease in Act II. As a person, Angel is the most generous and selfless character in the show. Angel hands out money to the neighborhood while dressed in Santa drag. Though he has HIV/AIDS, he embraces life and lives it to its fullest. People are naturally drawn to him, and his smile lights up the room. His death is mourned by all of the characters and eventually inspires them to live each day to the fullest. As mentioned in Tom’s character description, Tom and Angel’s relationship is the heart of the show, as the genuine love and devotion they have for one another brings hope and inspiration to the entire group. They show the world how to truly live life and not be afraid. The actor playing this role must be an excellent actor, singer, and mover. He must be able to comfortable with same-sex physical intimacy and a drag queen persona, including dancing in heels. Percussionist skills desired but not required.

MINOR CHARACTERS (can double in other scenes)

Stage ages: Early twenties to sixties

Vocal Ranges: all vocal ranges sought 

•           Carollers (5): There are homeless street men and women who appear throughout the show sarcastically singing Christmas carols. 

•           Mrs. Cohen: Mark's stereotypical Jewish mother. Her voicemail messages are the basis for the songs Voicemail #1, Voicemail #3, and Voicemail #5.

•           Alexi Darling: The producer of Buzzline who tries to employ Mark after his footage of the riot makes primetime. Sings Voicemail #3 and Voicemail #4.

•           Mr. and Mrs. Jefferson: The wealthy parents of Joanne Jefferson, they leave her Voicemail #2. Mr. Jefferson is also one of the a cappella singers in Voicemail #5. Mrs. Jefferson usually sings the female solo in Seasons of Love.

•           Mrs. Davis: Roger's confused mother who calls in Voicemail #5, asking continuously, "Roger, where are you?"

•           Mrs. Marquez: Mimi's Spanish‐speaking mother who sings in Voicemail #5, wondering, in Spanish, where she is.

•           Mr. Grey: Benny's father-in‐law who wants to buy out the lot.

•           The Man: The local drug dealer whom Mimi buys from and Roger used to buy from.

•           Life Support Group: Paul (The man in charge of the Life Support group), Gordon, Steve, Ali, Pam, Sue As notated in the script by Larson, the roles of all of the Life Support members are encouraged to take on the name that someone in the cast (or production) knows or has known to have succumbed to AIDS or other disease. 

•           Squeegee Man: A homeless person who chants "Honest living!" over and over.

•           Homeless Woman: She gets harassed by police and Mark films it. She first yells at Mark but then asks him for a dollar. 

•           Waiter: Waits on the cast and has solo lines in La Vie Boehme. There are also many other non‐named roles such as the Preacher, Seasons of Love soloists, Cops, Bohemians, Vendors, Homeless People. We are looking for a very diverse cast of all ages, ethnicities, shapes, and sizes. 

[tilbageidanmark]

Movies I watched this week (Year 4, week 4)

The blue caftan, my first Moroccan drama by Maryam Touzani, and another one starring Lubna Azabal ('Incendies', 'Tel aviv on fire'), this generation's Hiam Abbass. A daring topic about a closeted bisexual tailor who hires a new apprentice while his wife slowly dies. It's extremely slow, and tbh took me a few starts to get into, but eventually it won me over with its beauty, especially the metaphor of the embroidered blue caftan itself which he eventually finishes. 8/10.

*Woman Director

🍿  

“Everyone has their reasons”

First watch: Jean Renoir's The Rules of the Game, a comedy of manners about the haute bourgeoisie in Europe on the eve of World War 2. Banned nearly everywhere for two decades.

As of now, I haven't seen four from the Sight & Sound Greatest 50 films of all time list, ('Beau travail', 'Sunrise', L'Atalante' and 'Wanda'), which I plan on visiting soon.

🍿  

2 with André Dussollier:

🍿 François Ozon's latest film, The Crime is Mine, was an unexpected 1930's-style screwball comedy. A light and fluffy murder bonbon with a lesbian subplot, a feminine message of sort, and Isabelle Huppert as a faded Norma Desmond diva who used to act in the silent movies of “the great Alice Guy”! 7/10.

🍿  Truffaut's worst film, A Gorgeous Girl Like Me, was a chore to finish. No wonder I never heard about it before. An unfunny, unsexy black comedy about a an immoral, horny grifter who was arrested for murder, and the hapless sociologist who fell for her. 1/10.

🍿  

"... Evidently, an Ethiopian in the fuel supply: Seems to me I'm getting the old heave-ho..."

My Little Chickadee, a strange western spoof, with two completely subversive cynics, who really had nothing to do with each other, and yet were thrown here together in a middle of an otherwise-unfunny mix. W C Fields, a boozing, resigned con-man, and Mae West, an eye-rolling, horny sex-pot. How incredible this story 'could' have been, if it was given air to breath, filled completely with one-liners, was not censured, and stripped of all the fake moralities!

🍿  

Now that Jon Stewart is returning to 'The daily show', I discovered that he wrote and directed Irresistible 3 years ago, which came and went without fanfare. It's a mild and old-fashioned political satire about a Democratic consultant, the likes of which were done many times before. But it contained a fantastic twist at the end that made the whole thing absolutely vibrant. Rose Byrne is gorgeous as usual, and Mackenzie Davis felt to fill the moral fulcrum of the movie, and the end showed why. Don't read anything about it beforehand, if you decide to watch it. I saw it twice in the same evening. 8/10.

🍿  

Beyond the Bolex is an interesting documentary about a fascinating man, Jacques Bolsey. It is deftly told by a young director who was not aware that the unheralded inventor of the Swiss Bolex camera was her own great-grandfather. The story of this nearly forgotten pioneer is reminiscent of other giants of the arts, forgotten and now re-discovered: Hilma af Klint, Georges Méliès, Alice Guy-Blaché, Vivian Maier, each of them earned a new comprehensive biography.

(Unfortunately in my view, this one was the blandest of the five, due to the narrator's irritating intonation.)

*Woman Director

🍿  

"Stay Gold". First watch: Coppola's seminal The outsiders, the first of two coming-of-age adaptations he made of SE Hinton novels in 1983. Teenage gang members in a mid 60's Oklahoma town, born on the wrong side of the tracks, with early performances by a bunch of the "Brat pack" members, including young, red-haired Diane Lane, and cameos by Tom Waits, Melanie Griffith, and Sofia Coppola as a child looking for 15 cents. Now I'm off to see 'Rumble fish'. (Photo Above).

🍿  

An Irish Goodbye, a benign trifle about two estranged brothers, one of whom has Down Syndrome, dealing with the death of their mother. Won the 2023 Oscar for live short.

🍿  

3 re-watches:

🍿 “Sometimes you do your best work when you got a gun to your head.”

After reading the New Yorker story about $300K/week script doctor Scott Frank, I had to go back to his breakthrough Hollywood satire Get shorty. And indeed, wow, what a brilliant screenplay, economy of dialogue, elegance and balance, and a perfect cast (each of the 10 top billings stars was born to play their roles here). And so appropriate of him to place the emotional 'Touch of Evil' viewing scene at exactly the 45 minute mark, where it serves as the heart of the story. 9/10.

🍿  “This is your Rubicon. Do not cross the Rubicon!”

My second watching of Alexander Payne's absolutely charming The Holdovers (and the adaptation of the 1935 French 'Merlusse', which I saw last month too). 10/10 again for superb soundtrack and writing-directing as well as general kind-hearted wholesomeness.

I haven't seen 'American Fiction' yet, but in my opinion Paul Giamatti and Da'Vine Joy Randolph deserve to win this year's Oscars for best actors. Also that this will quickly become an American Christmas classic.

🍿 Oh, how I didn't like the heavy-handed Paths of Glory on re-watch. Yes, it exhibited a brave anti-military sentiments for Cold War 1957, but the injustice inflicted by the generals on the privates was laughably outdated. In was nice to see young Joe Terkel, in the second of his three Kubrick roles. And at least, it was the only time that Kubrick raised his own private curtain, by directing his (then-new) wife, as she closed the movie with her tearful cabaret singing. 3/10.

🍿  

The Constant Gardener, my 3rd by Fernando Meirelles (after 'City of God' and 'The two Popes'). It's an adaptation of a John le Carré's thriller about corrupt British diplomats in Kenya, a corporate conspiracy by multinational drug companies, and a love story (which is the weakest part of the whole thing).

I had a mixed reaction to this, nothing serious, won't go into it. The only lasting memory of this for me will probably be the Kothbiro leitmotif. 6/10.

🍿  

Torremolinos 73, a Spanish sex comedy from 2003. A bald, plain-looking man and his loving wife start making explicit home movies in 1973 Spain, after his career in encyclopedia sales ends, and 'become big in Scandinavia'. The premise is somehow promising, but it quickly develops into a ridiculous story about how he becomes interested in legit movies making. He ends up directing one symbolic Bergman-inspired art fart, with none other than young Mads Mikkelsen. 2/10.

🍿  

2 short shorts:

🍿 Dollar Pizza - Food porn of the highest quality makes you hungry: Now I want a slice! No judgement! 9/10.

🍿  The sheep and the flower, a real time (2 minutes) animated movie that fits in 8 kilobytes. Decent graphics, animations, direction and camera work, and the matching music… all in 8kB.

🍿  

Throw-back to the "Art project”:  

Pizza Adora.

🍿  

(My complete movie list is here)

[professionalscrambler]

Case Study: On Short comics

Today I plan to do a quick case study on Short multi-panel comics, from both newspapers and online formats. What works and what does work. And how they convey their points/punchlines. There's a lot of political cartoons out there already. But I've noticed a lot of them are single illustrations which is great for making a statement. But a little less intuitive for conveying a message cohesively. ------------------------- Exhibit A: Shen Comix Shen comix in my experience have a very snappy, colorful vibe to them. Most notably to me is the use of Contrast to carry the impact of each comics message. More often than not their work will start out sweet , simple, and colorful and end in either high detail violence or dark frightening horror. Shens work to me is a great example of minimalism and the use of the medium itself rather than the characters/subject to carry a message. It does not matter who or what is present. Just the execution and the expressions. ------------------------- Exhibit B: Garfield In Garfield's case, I notice that Jim Davis' Garfield comics quite frequently use their middle panel as an artificial "pause" in the timing of its jokes. Here is an example. This is interesting to me because the comics in question usually [but not always] utilize only three panels in each comic. Which is over half of the "run time" the comic has to make its punchline. Clearly this is deliberate so why. And the answer to that is that the dramatic pause is actually what makes the humor in these types of jokes humorous to begin with. Just saying "I don't think cats are better than people, I know they are" is a very flat, pretty much nothing statement. But the addition of the pause adds humor in Garfield's Smug attitude that is more likely to make the viewer smile. The gap in this comic CARRIES it. ------------------------- Exhibit C: Awkward Zombie While Awkward zombie's work is on the shorter side it still manages to convey its message without directly explaining its jokes. Or it does IF you have prior knowledge of the games being mentioned, or the playstyle or cultural joke being referenced. This makes it a great example of the importance of being aware of the Cultural Capital of your intended audience. For example in this comic the humor of the scene comes from the second character forgetting to take in the sights because they are looking for loot in strange places. A habit ingrained in most gamers very quickly after finding interesting loot on accident, or coming across game guides that tell you the exact location of the big McGuffin is in a blade of grass in the first town or something. If Awkward Zombies readers weren't also game enthusiasts there is a significant chance this particular punchline would not work. ------------------------- I think my takeaway from this small dip into the wide world of shortform comics is that when it comes to conveying a message overcomplicating the visuals can actually actively harm the message. And that being aware of your Audience is essential to the comic making an impact.

[wankerwatch]

Lords Vote

On: National Insurance Contributions (Secondary Class 1 Contributions) Bill

Baroness Neville-Rolfe moved Motion W1, as an amendment to Motion W, at end to insert “, and do propose Amendment 21B in lieu— 21B After Clause 3, insert the following new Clause— “Review of effect on certain sectors (1) The Chancellor of the Exchequer must, within six months of the day on which this Act is passed, lay before Parliament a review of the impact of the measures contained in this Act on the persons and sectors in subsection (2). (2) The review must consider the impact on— (a) charities with annual revenue of less than £1 million; (b) early years providers; (c) hospices; (d) the hospitality sector; (e) pharmacies; (f) small businesses; (g) social care; (h) transport for children with special educational needs or disabilities.”” The House divided:  

Ayes: 273 (64.1% Con, 20.5% LD, 9.5% XB, 2.9% , 1.1% DUP, 0.7% UUP, 0.7% Green, 0.4% Bshp) Noes: 172 (89.5% Lab, 8.1% XB, 1.7% , 0.6% PC) Absent: ~411

Likely Referenced Bill: National Insurance Contributions (Secondary Class 1 Contributions) Bill

Description: A Bill to make provision about secondary Class 1 contributions.

Originating house: Commons Current house: Commons Bill Stage: Consideration of Lords message

Individual Votes:

Ayes

Conservative (175 votes)

Ahmad of Wimbledon, L. Altrincham, L. Arbuthnot of Edrom, L. Ashcombe, L. Attlee, E. Balfe, L. Banner, L. Barran, B. Bates, L. Bellingham, L. Berridge, B. Biggar, L. Blackwell, L. Blackwood of North Oxford, B. Blencathra, L. Bloomfield of Hinton Waldrist, B. Booth, L. Booth-Smith, L. Borwick, L. Bottomley of Nettlestone, B. Bourne of Aberystwyth, L. Brady of Altrincham, L. Bray of Coln, B. Bridges of Headley, L. Browning, B. Caine, L. Callanan, L. Camoys, L. Camrose, V. Carrington of Fulham, L. Cash, B. Choudrey, L. Colgrain, L. Courtown, E. Crathorne, L. Cruddas, L. Davies of Gower, L. De Mauley, L. Dobbs, L. Dundee, E. Dunlop, L. Effingham, E. Elliott of Mickle Fell, L. Evans of Guisborough, L. Evans of Rainow, L. Fairfax of Cameron, L. Farmer, L. Fink, L. Finn, B. Fleet, B. Fookes, B. Forsyth of Drumlean, L. Frost, L. Fuller, L. Garnier, L. Gascoigne, L. Geddes, L. Gilbert of Panteg, L. Goldie, B. Goodman of Wycombe, L. Goschen, V. Griffiths of Fforestfach, L. Hamilton of Epsom, L. Harding of Winscombe, B. Harlech, L. Henley, L. Herbert of South Downs, L. Hodgson of Abinger, B. Hodgson of Astley Abbotts, L. Horam, L. Houchen of High Leven, L. Howard of Lympne, L. Howard of Rising, L. Howe, E. Howell of Guildford, L. Hunt of Wirral, L. Jackson of Peterborough, L. Jamieson, L. Jenkin of Kennington, B. Kamall, L. Kempsell, L. Kirkhope of Harrogate, L. Laing of Elderslie, B. Lamont of Lerwick, L. Lansley, L. Lawlor, B. Lea of Lymm, B. Leicester, E. Leigh of Hurley, L. Lilley, L. Lindsay, E. Lingfield, L. Lucas, L. Maclean of Redditch, B. Magan of Castletown, L. Mancroft, L. Manzoor, B. Markham, L. Marland, L. Maude of Horsham, L. McColl of Dulwich, L. McInnes of Kilwinning, L. McIntosh of Pickering, B. McLoughlin, L. Meyer, B. Minto, E. Mobarik, B. Monckton of Dallington Forest, B. Morris of Bolton, B. Mott, L. Moylan, L. Moynihan of Chelsea, L. Moynihan, L. Murray of Blidworth, L. Nash, L. Neville-Jones, B. Neville-Rolfe, B. Newlove, B. Nicholson of Winterbourne, B. Noakes, B. Northbrook, L. Norton of Louth, L. Offord of Garvel, L. Owen of Alderley Edge, B. Parkinson of Whitley Bay, L. Patten, L. Penn, B. Pickles, L. Pidding, B. Polak, L. Popat, L. Porter of Fulwood, B. Price, L. Randall of Uxbridge, L. Reay, L. Redfern, B. Remnant, L. Risby, L. Robathan, L. Roborough, L. Rock, B. Sanderson of Welton, B. Sandhurst, L. Sater, B. Scott of Bybrook, B. Seccombe, B. Shackleton of Belgravia, B. Sharpe of Epsom, L. Shephard of Northwold, B. Sherbourne of Didsbury, L. Shinkwin, L. Smith of Hindhead, L. Soames of Fletching, L. Stedman-Scott, B. Stowell of Beeston, B. Strathcarron, L. Strathclyde, L. Sugg, B. Swinburne, B. Taylor of Holbeach, L. Trefgarne, L. Trenchard, V. True, L. Tugendhat, L. Udny-Lister, L. Vaizey of Didcot, L. Verma, B. Waldegrave of North Hill, L. Wharton of Yarm, L. Williams of Trafford, B. Wrottesley, L. Wyld, B. Young of Acton, L. Young of Cookham, L. Younger of Leckie, V.

Liberal Democrat (56 votes)

Addington, L. Bakewell of Hardington Mandeville, B. Barker, B. Beith, L. Benjamin, B. Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury, B. Bowles of Berkhamsted, B. Brinton, B. Bruce of Bennachie, L. Clement-Jones, L. Dholakia, L. Doocey, B. Featherstone, B. Foster of Bath, L. Garden of Frognal, B. German, L. Goddard of Stockport, L. Grender, B. Hamwee, B. Harris of Richmond, B. Hussain, L. Hussein-Ece, B. Janke, B. Kramer, B. Ludford, B. Mohammed of Tinsley, L. Newby, L. Northover, B. Oates, L. Pack, L. Parminter, B. Pidgeon, B. Purvis of Tweed, L. Redesdale, L. Rennard, L. Roberts of Llandudno, L. Scott of Needham Market, B. Scriven, L. Sharkey, L. Sheehan, B. Smith of Newnham, B. Stoneham of Droxford, L. Storey, L. Strasburger, L. Suttie, B. Taylor of Goss Moor, L. Thomas of Gresford, L. Thomas of Winchester, B. Thornhill, B. Thurso, V. Tope, L. Tyler of Enfield, B. Wallace of Saltaire, L. Wallace of Tankerness, L. Walmsley, B. Wrigglesworth, L.

Crossbench (26 votes)

Aberdare, L. Alton of Liverpool, L. Batters, B. Bilimoria, L. Birt, L. Butler-Sloss, B. Carter of Haslemere, L. Clancarty, E. D'Souza, B. Erroll, E. Falkner of Margravine, B. Finlay of Llandaff, B. Freeman of Steventon, B. Freyberg, L. Kinnoull, E. Laming, L. Londesborough, L. Mair, L. Meacher, B. Meston, L. Morse, L. Ravensdale, L. Thomas of Cwmgiedd, L. Vaux of Harrowden, L. Wheatcroft, B. de Clifford, L.

Non-affiliated (8 votes)

Cooper of Windrush, L. Fox of Buckley, B. Grade of Yarmouth, L. Harrington of Watford, L. Hoey, B. Paddick, L. Prior of Brampton, L. Verdirame, L.

Democratic Unionist Party (3 votes)

Browne of Belmont, L. Morrow, L. Weir of Ballyholme, L.

Ulster Unionist Party (2 votes)

Empey, L. Rogan, L.

Green Party (2 votes)

Bennett of Manor Castle, B. Jones of Moulsecoomb, B.

Bishops (1 vote)

Manchester, Bp.

Noes

Labour (154 votes)

Alexander of Cleveden, B. Allen of Kensington, L. Alli, L. Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent, B. Anderson of Swansea, L. Andrews, B. Ashton of Upholland, B. Bach, L. Barber of Ainsdale, L. Bassam of Brighton, L. Beamish, L. Beckett, B. Berger, B. Blackstone, B. Blake of Leeds, B. Blower, B. Blunkett, L. Boateng, L. Bousted, B. Bradley, L. Brennan of Canton, L. Brooke of Alverthorpe, L. Brown of Silvertown, B. Browne of Ladyton, L. Bryan of Partick, B. Caine of Kentish Town, B. Campbell-Savours, L. Carberry of Muswell Hill, B. Carter of Coles, L. Chakrabarti, B. Chandos, V. Coaker, L. Collins of Highbury, L. Cryer, L. Curran, B. Davidson of Glen Clova, L. Davies of Brixton, L. Debbonaire, B. Donaghy, B. Drake, B. Dubs, L. Elliott of Whitburn Bay, B. Evans of Sealand, L. Falconer of Thoroton, L. Faulkner of Worcester, L. Foulkes of Cumnock, L. Golding, B. Goldsmith, L. Goudie, B. Gray of Tottenham, B. Griffin of Princethorpe, B. Griffiths of Burry Port, L. Grocott, L. Gustafsson, B. Hacking, L. Hain, L. Hannett of Everton, L. Hanson of Flint, L. Hanworth, V. Harris of Haringey, L. Hayman of Ullock, B. Hayter of Kentish Town, B. Hazarika, B. Healy of Primrose Hill, B. Hendy of Richmond Hill, L. Hendy, L. Hermer, L. Hodge of Barking, B. Hollick, L. Howarth of Newport, L. Hunt of Kings Heath, L. Hunter of Auchenreoch, B. Jay of Paddington, B. Jones of Penybont, L. Jones of Whitchurch, B. Jones, L. Jordan, L. Katz, L. Keeley, B. Kennedy of Southwark, L. Khan of Burnley, L. Kinnock, L. Knight of Weymouth, L. Lawrence of Clarendon, B. Layard, L. Lemos, L. Lennie, L. Leong, L. Levitt, B. Liddell of Coatdyke, B. Liddle, L. Lipsey, L. Livermore, L. Longfield, B. Mann, L. Mattinson, B. McCabe, L. McIntosh of Hudnall, B. McNicol of West Kilbride, L. Mendelsohn, L. Merron, B. Mitchell, L. Moraes, L. Morris of Yardley, B. Murphy of Torfaen, L. Nye, B. O'Grady of Upper Holloway, B. Osamor, B. Pitkeathley of Camden Town, L. Pitkeathley, B. Prentis of Leeds, L. Rafferty, B. Ramsay of Cartvale, B. Ramsey of Wall Heath, B. Raval, L. Rebuck, B. Rees of Easton, L. Reid of Cardowan, L. Ritchie of Downpatrick, B. Robertson of Port Ellen, L. Rook, L. Rooker, L. Rowlands, L. Sahota, L. Sherlock, B. Sikka, L. Smith of Basildon, B. Smith of Finsbury, L. Smith of Malvern, B. Snape, L. Stansgate, V. Stevenson of Balmacara, L. Symons of Vernham Dean, B. Taylor of Bolton, B. Taylor of Stevenage, B. Timpson, L. Touhig, L. Tunnicliffe, L. Turnberg, L. Twycross, B. Vallance of Balham, L. Warwick of Undercliffe, B. Watson of Invergowrie, L. Watson of Wyre Forest, L. Watts, L. Wheeler, B. Whitaker, B. Whitty, L. Wilcox of Newport, B. Wilson of Sedgefield, L. Winterton of Doncaster, B. Wood of Anfield, L. Woodley, L. Young of Old Scone, B.

Crossbench (14 votes)

Clark of Calton, B. Craig of Radley, L. Cromwell, L. Green of Hurstpierpoint, L. Hogan-Howe, L. Hope of Craighead, L. Kakkar, L. Kerr of Kinlochard, L. Macpherson of Earl's Court, L. Mawson, L. Pannick, L. Sentamu, L. Stirrup, L. Walney, L.

Non-affiliated (3 votes)

Austin of Dudley, L. Mackenzie of Framwellgate, L. Paul, L.

Plaid Cymru (1 vote)

Wigley, L.

[cleverhottubmiracle]

We independently evaluate all recommended products and services. Any products or services put forward appear in no particular order. if you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation. The Iron Snail The Blue Mystery: Why is Denim Blue? Denim is blue. You probably already know this unless you’re colorblind, in which case you may be thinking, “Oh, I thought it was gray.” Nope, it’s blue. The question today is – well, it’s still blue – why is that so? Let’s get right into it. The Iron Snail Hello everyone! Today, we will answer the age-old question: why is denim blue originally, why was blue picked, and why is it still blue? Because there’s a kind of boring answer and then a more fascinating answer, I figured we could do both.   Understanding Denim’s History The Iron Snail When I say denim jeans, I am talking about riveted denim jeans made by Levi – Levi’s jeans, the first jeans that got really, really popular in the U.S. Denim fabric goes way, way back, or twill fabric goes way, way back. Indigo dye goes way, way back, but Levi has really combined the two in a mass-manufactured way. There’s a lot of really, really cool reasons why indigo is like this magical dye and has all these cool properties and all these cool things that it does, and then there’s a very, very boring reason as to why indigo was probably used on denim, which is basically the correct answer, but all the other stuff is really cool also. Expert Insights: Naked and Famous The Iron Snail Special thank you to Bahzad and Risa for helping me make sure all this information is correct. They’re from Naked and Famous. Here’s a sweet message from them. “Hey everyone, I’m Bahzad, I’m Risa, and we’re from Naked Famous Denim. Thanks for listening to us talk, and thanks for letting us be a part of this article, Michael. We’ll hopefully see you soon.” And by that, they mean going to Japan, which I would love to do, but frankly, right now, I can’t. I have to finish this article, but maybe after. The Evolution of Blue Jeans Levi Strauss did not start off with the blue denim jean. Actually, he started off with duck pants that were not blue, and then what happened was Jacob Davis added rivets, and Jacob Davis and Levi Strauss came together, and they made the blue jean. So that’s all you really need to know. My Gold Rush Theory The Iron Snail So this is the first reason I came up with by myself – I want to absolve Bahzad and Risa from this because it could possibly be the stupidest thing – I think Levi Strauss maybe made them blue because blue looks good when it’s contrasted with the yellow of gold. These jeans were really popular during the gold rush in the U.S., and that definitely may sound stupid. That’s because it is stupid, and that’s definitely not the reason that he made them blue. You know, maybe he had a little bit of an artistic eye. The Real Reason: Practicality Wins The Iron Snail Now, the reason denim was a darker color, not necessarily blue, was to help hide stains because the people who were wearing jeans at the time were doing things that weren’t usually very clean. People regularly would wear suits made of wool and stuff like that, so denim was made to hide stains, be tough, and hang around. The Science of Indigo The Iron Snail Let’s go over the chemical properties of indigo, which are why indigo was very, very important at the time – still not the full reason as to why it was used, but we’re getting much closer. So the oxidized form of indigo, which is blue, when it’s not oxidized, indigo dye is actually green. It’s insoluble in water, which helps the color stick to the jeans despite being washed hundreds of times. Other colors at the time would fade too much, and other colors and dyes were also not as UV-resistant as indigo. So, if indigo was in the sun all day, which is probably where it would be if you’re working outside, it would not fade. It fades for a different reason that we’ll talk about later, which is why denim is still blue today, which is cool. The Simple Economics The Iron Snail The boring reason why indigo was the color chosen for jeans was because it was the cheapest, most effective dye that Levi Strauss could get, and it was a dark color. See, I told you – not very fun. But this is a pretty cool thing to read: “Until the introduction of synthetic dyes at the end of the 19th century, indigo was the most significant natural dye known to mankind.” So indigo was basically just the most popular thing at the time. It wasn’t black, but it was blue, it stayed blue for a really long time, and it was super cheap because it was super abundant. The Folklore of Blue Jeans The Iron Snail So, anyway, why is denim blue to this day? Because of a few reasons. One of the reasons was because they were so tough that people would be like, “Yeah, I literally pulled Dave’s buggy out of the mud and we used my pants as rope,” and people were like, “You’re kidding!” They were definitely getting popular just because the strength of them was amazing. The rivets and the jeans really, really made them popular. The Iron Snail Besides the structure of the fabric and the rivets, people were also freaking out about the indigo dye used on jeans. So they were like, “Hey Dave, you know what I heard?” and Dave was like, “No, what’d you hear?” “I heard that indigo is antibacterial, so we can wear our pants longer without smelling and they’ll keep us safer from bacterial diseases.” “Whoa, you’re kidding! That’s crazy!” “Also, I heard indigo keeps the bugs away from you,” and Dave was still like, “Wow, that’s awesome!” “And also, one more thing – snakes don’t like indigo!” The Iron Snail There’s probably some truth to every single one of those things, but it just kind of created this lore about these pants that are super, super strong, and won’t rip and can pull cars, but they’re also anti-bacterial. I don’t think that was a very big deal – people in the 1800s were like, “Oh my god, they don’t smell as much when you wear them!” or “They repel bugs, and snakes don’t like them!” Honestly, secretly though, I think the whole they repel bugs thing is just because the denim was so dark that they couldn’t see the bugs. Not that I think people in the 1800s were dumb, but yeah. From Working Class to Pop Culture The Iron Snail So there was all this like lore and all this crazy stuff about magical denim jeans and riveted jeans and riveted pants and all that stuff. Still, another important factor is it doesn’t seem like this ever changed, but there’s always a very strong admiration for gritty working-class people who wear clothes out. They get holes and clothes, especially with jeans, which is the biggest thing that we’ll get into in a second. The Iron Snail Everybody else is wearing a suit, and this other guy just came from the gold mines, and he’s filthy and so yucky, and look at him go and my wife thinks he’s cute. That was also a really big thing, as everybody probably knows. In the 1950s, there was the guy wearing the suit that would go to work that was proper, that looked like a Sears catalog, and then there were the guys that rode motorcycles and cried in movies like James Dean and Marlon Brando and people like that, and those guys wore white t-shirts and blue jeans. The Technical Marvel of Indigo The Iron Snail But the more important thing is that other colored dyes can’t do what indigo can, which is fascinating, especially in 2022 when I feel like anything can do anything until I need to find out what that anything is, and then it still doesn’t work. Not a lot of dyes can do what indigo can, and the dyes that can still can’t do it like indigo. The Iron Snail So, really super quick briefing: when you are dying denim – well, I should say this is cotton twill and indigo – indigo dye does not penetrate the fabric. It basically sits on top of the fabric, and denim has a warp and a weft. The warp is on top and blue, and the weft is white and on bottom. Obviously, you know this if you rip your jeans in certain areas – the weft comes out and puffs up. So that adds a lot of contrast, but the way that indigo dyes denim is that as you wear denim down physically rubbing it together, the indigo itself flakes off and creates very, very high contrast wear, which is what’s so important. The Iron Snail We’ll get into sulfur dyes in a second. Indigo is also really good at not fading when it’s out in the sunlight. Blue denim jeans are one of the most alive pieces of clothing that you can get next to leather or something that ages over time, which means that people being very curious are like, “Wow, that’s really cool, and these pants are becoming more and more mine every day and like all these holes and rips and fades and stuff because I wore them.” Modern Alternatives: The Sulfur Question The Iron Snail And you may be asking, “Well, what about sulfur? Well, I’ve heard that canvas can fade.” That’s very true. Sulfur dye is a way of dying things that I feel is the closest to indigo dying, but it’s not quite there yet. Obviously, you can get black jeans that fade to gray – those are dyed with sulfur. But I asked Bahzad and Risa about this because I figured this would come up, and this is what they said: “Long story short, you can achieve fades with sulfur dyes in different colors, but the fading won’t be nearly as strong as indigo, and it’s very difficult to dye things with sulfur dyes besides black because it’s hard to dye evenly, so you can miss your targeted color for the garment quite easily.” Watch This Review Conclusion: The Legacy Lives On So, anyway, long story short, why is denim blue? It’s culturally significant and it’s really the only dye and fabric combination that completely tells your story in the pants. I would love to tell you my story in the pants next week, sorry! Real quick – the last thing is Bahzad and Risa were telling me that they’re just people in the industry who have loved denim and indigo for a very long time and worked very hard to keep that alive in the larger mainstream industry as well, so that’s another reason. Anyway, see you later. Thanks for reading! This article was adapted from Michael Kristy’s video on The Iron Snail, with edits from FashionBeans, and was reviewed by Michael to ensure the integrity of his original content. Watch the full video here. The Iron Snail is a men’s fashion vlog (and now article series!) starring a young man named Michael and featuring a snail no bigger than a quarter. The two are set on taking over the world of fashion by creating a clothing line to end all clothing lines. Until then, we’re here to tell you EVERYTHING you need to know about the best clothing out there, from the highest quality raw denim jeans to the warmest jackets to the sturdiest boots…the Iron Snail has got you covered. 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[norajworld]

We independently evaluate all recommended products and services. Any products or services put forward appear in no particular order. if you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation. The Iron Snail The Blue Mystery: Why is Denim Blue? Denim is blue. You probably already know this unless you’re colorblind, in which case you may be thinking, “Oh, I thought it was gray.” Nope, it’s blue. The question today is – well, it’s still blue – why is that so? Let’s get right into it. The Iron Snail Hello everyone! Today, we will answer the age-old question: why is denim blue originally, why was blue picked, and why is it still blue? Because there’s a kind of boring answer and then a more fascinating answer, I figured we could do both.   Understanding Denim’s History The Iron Snail When I say denim jeans, I am talking about riveted denim jeans made by Levi – Levi’s jeans, the first jeans that got really, really popular in the U.S. Denim fabric goes way, way back, or twill fabric goes way, way back. Indigo dye goes way, way back, but Levi has really combined the two in a mass-manufactured way. There’s a lot of really, really cool reasons why indigo is like this magical dye and has all these cool properties and all these cool things that it does, and then there’s a very, very boring reason as to why indigo was probably used on denim, which is basically the correct answer, but all the other stuff is really cool also. Expert Insights: Naked and Famous The Iron Snail Special thank you to Bahzad and Risa for helping me make sure all this information is correct. They’re from Naked and Famous. Here’s a sweet message from them. “Hey everyone, I’m Bahzad, I’m Risa, and we’re from Naked Famous Denim. Thanks for listening to us talk, and thanks for letting us be a part of this article, Michael. We’ll hopefully see you soon.” And by that, they mean going to Japan, which I would love to do, but frankly, right now, I can’t. I have to finish this article, but maybe after. The Evolution of Blue Jeans Levi Strauss did not start off with the blue denim jean. Actually, he started off with duck pants that were not blue, and then what happened was Jacob Davis added rivets, and Jacob Davis and Levi Strauss came together, and they made the blue jean. So that’s all you really need to know. My Gold Rush Theory The Iron Snail So this is the first reason I came up with by myself – I want to absolve Bahzad and Risa from this because it could possibly be the stupidest thing – I think Levi Strauss maybe made them blue because blue looks good when it’s contrasted with the yellow of gold. These jeans were really popular during the gold rush in the U.S., and that definitely may sound stupid. That’s because it is stupid, and that’s definitely not the reason that he made them blue. You know, maybe he had a little bit of an artistic eye. The Real Reason: Practicality Wins The Iron Snail Now, the reason denim was a darker color, not necessarily blue, was to help hide stains because the people who were wearing jeans at the time were doing things that weren’t usually very clean. People regularly would wear suits made of wool and stuff like that, so denim was made to hide stains, be tough, and hang around. The Science of Indigo The Iron Snail Let’s go over the chemical properties of indigo, which are why indigo was very, very important at the time – still not the full reason as to why it was used, but we’re getting much closer. So the oxidized form of indigo, which is blue, when it’s not oxidized, indigo dye is actually green. It’s insoluble in water, which helps the color stick to the jeans despite being washed hundreds of times. Other colors at the time would fade too much, and other colors and dyes were also not as UV-resistant as indigo. So, if indigo was in the sun all day, which is probably where it would be if you’re working outside, it would not fade. It fades for a different reason that we’ll talk about later, which is why denim is still blue today, which is cool. The Simple Economics The Iron Snail The boring reason why indigo was the color chosen for jeans was because it was the cheapest, most effective dye that Levi Strauss could get, and it was a dark color. See, I told you – not very fun. But this is a pretty cool thing to read: “Until the introduction of synthetic dyes at the end of the 19th century, indigo was the most significant natural dye known to mankind.” So indigo was basically just the most popular thing at the time. It wasn’t black, but it was blue, it stayed blue for a really long time, and it was super cheap because it was super abundant. The Folklore of Blue Jeans The Iron Snail So, anyway, why is denim blue to this day? Because of a few reasons. One of the reasons was because they were so tough that people would be like, “Yeah, I literally pulled Dave’s buggy out of the mud and we used my pants as rope,” and people were like, “You’re kidding!” They were definitely getting popular just because the strength of them was amazing. The rivets and the jeans really, really made them popular. The Iron Snail Besides the structure of the fabric and the rivets, people were also freaking out about the indigo dye used on jeans. So they were like, “Hey Dave, you know what I heard?” and Dave was like, “No, what’d you hear?” “I heard that indigo is antibacterial, so we can wear our pants longer without smelling and they’ll keep us safer from bacterial diseases.” “Whoa, you’re kidding! That’s crazy!” “Also, I heard indigo keeps the bugs away from you,” and Dave was still like, “Wow, that’s awesome!” “And also, one more thing – snakes don’t like indigo!” The Iron Snail There’s probably some truth to every single one of those things, but it just kind of created this lore about these pants that are super, super strong, and won’t rip and can pull cars, but they’re also anti-bacterial. I don’t think that was a very big deal – people in the 1800s were like, “Oh my god, they don’t smell as much when you wear them!” or “They repel bugs, and snakes don’t like them!” Honestly, secretly though, I think the whole they repel bugs thing is just because the denim was so dark that they couldn’t see the bugs. Not that I think people in the 1800s were dumb, but yeah. From Working Class to Pop Culture The Iron Snail So there was all this like lore and all this crazy stuff about magical denim jeans and riveted jeans and riveted pants and all that stuff. Still, another important factor is it doesn’t seem like this ever changed, but there’s always a very strong admiration for gritty working-class people who wear clothes out. They get holes and clothes, especially with jeans, which is the biggest thing that we’ll get into in a second. The Iron Snail Everybody else is wearing a suit, and this other guy just came from the gold mines, and he’s filthy and so yucky, and look at him go and my wife thinks he’s cute. That was also a really big thing, as everybody probably knows. In the 1950s, there was the guy wearing the suit that would go to work that was proper, that looked like a Sears catalog, and then there were the guys that rode motorcycles and cried in movies like James Dean and Marlon Brando and people like that, and those guys wore white t-shirts and blue jeans. The Technical Marvel of Indigo The Iron Snail But the more important thing is that other colored dyes can’t do what indigo can, which is fascinating, especially in 2022 when I feel like anything can do anything until I need to find out what that anything is, and then it still doesn’t work. Not a lot of dyes can do what indigo can, and the dyes that can still can’t do it like indigo. The Iron Snail So, really super quick briefing: when you are dying denim – well, I should say this is cotton twill and indigo – indigo dye does not penetrate the fabric. It basically sits on top of the fabric, and denim has a warp and a weft. The warp is on top and blue, and the weft is white and on bottom. Obviously, you know this if you rip your jeans in certain areas – the weft comes out and puffs up. So that adds a lot of contrast, but the way that indigo dyes denim is that as you wear denim down physically rubbing it together, the indigo itself flakes off and creates very, very high contrast wear, which is what’s so important. The Iron Snail We’ll get into sulfur dyes in a second. Indigo is also really good at not fading when it’s out in the sunlight. Blue denim jeans are one of the most alive pieces of clothing that you can get next to leather or something that ages over time, which means that people being very curious are like, “Wow, that’s really cool, and these pants are becoming more and more mine every day and like all these holes and rips and fades and stuff because I wore them.” Modern Alternatives: The Sulfur Question The Iron Snail And you may be asking, “Well, what about sulfur? Well, I’ve heard that canvas can fade.” That’s very true. Sulfur dye is a way of dying things that I feel is the closest to indigo dying, but it’s not quite there yet. Obviously, you can get black jeans that fade to gray – those are dyed with sulfur. But I asked Bahzad and Risa about this because I figured this would come up, and this is what they said: “Long story short, you can achieve fades with sulfur dyes in different colors, but the fading won’t be nearly as strong as indigo, and it’s very difficult to dye things with sulfur dyes besides black because it’s hard to dye evenly, so you can miss your targeted color for the garment quite easily.” Watch This Review Conclusion: The Legacy Lives On So, anyway, long story short, why is denim blue? It’s culturally significant and it’s really the only dye and fabric combination that completely tells your story in the pants. I would love to tell you my story in the pants next week, sorry! Real quick – the last thing is Bahzad and Risa were telling me that they’re just people in the industry who have loved denim and indigo for a very long time and worked very hard to keep that alive in the larger mainstream industry as well, so that’s another reason. Anyway, see you later. Thanks for reading! This article was adapted from Michael Kristy’s video on The Iron Snail, with edits from FashionBeans, and was reviewed by Michael to ensure the integrity of his original content. Watch the full video here. The Iron Snail is a men’s fashion vlog (and now article series!) starring a young man named Michael and featuring a snail no bigger than a quarter. The two are set on taking over the world of fashion by creating a clothing line to end all clothing lines. Until then, we’re here to tell you EVERYTHING you need to know about the best clothing out there, from the highest quality raw denim jeans to the warmest jackets to the sturdiest boots…the Iron Snail has got you covered. 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We independently evaluate all recommended products and services. Any products or services put forward appear in no particular order. if you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation. The Iron Snail The Blue Mystery: Why is Denim Blue? Denim is blue. You probably already know this unless you’re colorblind, in which case you may be thinking, “Oh, I thought it was gray.” Nope, it’s blue. The question today is – well, it’s still blue – why is that so? Let’s get right into it. The Iron Snail Hello everyone! Today, we will answer the age-old question: why is denim blue originally, why was blue picked, and why is it still blue? Because there’s a kind of boring answer and then a more fascinating answer, I figured we could do both.   Understanding Denim’s History The Iron Snail When I say denim jeans, I am talking about riveted denim jeans made by Levi – Levi’s jeans, the first jeans that got really, really popular in the U.S. Denim fabric goes way, way back, or twill fabric goes way, way back. Indigo dye goes way, way back, but Levi has really combined the two in a mass-manufactured way. There’s a lot of really, really cool reasons why indigo is like this magical dye and has all these cool properties and all these cool things that it does, and then there’s a very, very boring reason as to why indigo was probably used on denim, which is basically the correct answer, but all the other stuff is really cool also. Expert Insights: Naked and Famous The Iron Snail Special thank you to Bahzad and Risa for helping me make sure all this information is correct. They’re from Naked and Famous. Here’s a sweet message from them. “Hey everyone, I’m Bahzad, I’m Risa, and we’re from Naked Famous Denim. Thanks for listening to us talk, and thanks for letting us be a part of this article, Michael. We’ll hopefully see you soon.” And by that, they mean going to Japan, which I would love to do, but frankly, right now, I can’t. I have to finish this article, but maybe after. The Evolution of Blue Jeans Levi Strauss did not start off with the blue denim jean. Actually, he started off with duck pants that were not blue, and then what happened was Jacob Davis added rivets, and Jacob Davis and Levi Strauss came together, and they made the blue jean. So that’s all you really need to know. My Gold Rush Theory The Iron Snail So this is the first reason I came up with by myself – I want to absolve Bahzad and Risa from this because it could possibly be the stupidest thing – I think Levi Strauss maybe made them blue because blue looks good when it’s contrasted with the yellow of gold. These jeans were really popular during the gold rush in the U.S., and that definitely may sound stupid. That’s because it is stupid, and that’s definitely not the reason that he made them blue. You know, maybe he had a little bit of an artistic eye. The Real Reason: Practicality Wins The Iron Snail Now, the reason denim was a darker color, not necessarily blue, was to help hide stains because the people who were wearing jeans at the time were doing things that weren’t usually very clean. People regularly would wear suits made of wool and stuff like that, so denim was made to hide stains, be tough, and hang around. The Science of Indigo The Iron Snail Let’s go over the chemical properties of indigo, which are why indigo was very, very important at the time – still not the full reason as to why it was used, but we’re getting much closer. So the oxidized form of indigo, which is blue, when it’s not oxidized, indigo dye is actually green. It’s insoluble in water, which helps the color stick to the jeans despite being washed hundreds of times. Other colors at the time would fade too much, and other colors and dyes were also not as UV-resistant as indigo. So, if indigo was in the sun all day, which is probably where it would be if you’re working outside, it would not fade. It fades for a different reason that we’ll talk about later, which is why denim is still blue today, which is cool. The Simple Economics The Iron Snail The boring reason why indigo was the color chosen for jeans was because it was the cheapest, most effective dye that Levi Strauss could get, and it was a dark color. See, I told you – not very fun. But this is a pretty cool thing to read: “Until the introduction of synthetic dyes at the end of the 19th century, indigo was the most significant natural dye known to mankind.” So indigo was basically just the most popular thing at the time. It wasn’t black, but it was blue, it stayed blue for a really long time, and it was super cheap because it was super abundant. The Folklore of Blue Jeans The Iron Snail So, anyway, why is denim blue to this day? Because of a few reasons. One of the reasons was because they were so tough that people would be like, “Yeah, I literally pulled Dave’s buggy out of the mud and we used my pants as rope,” and people were like, “You’re kidding!” They were definitely getting popular just because the strength of them was amazing. The rivets and the jeans really, really made them popular. The Iron Snail Besides the structure of the fabric and the rivets, people were also freaking out about the indigo dye used on jeans. So they were like, “Hey Dave, you know what I heard?” and Dave was like, “No, what’d you hear?” “I heard that indigo is antibacterial, so we can wear our pants longer without smelling and they’ll keep us safer from bacterial diseases.” “Whoa, you’re kidding! That’s crazy!” “Also, I heard indigo keeps the bugs away from you,” and Dave was still like, “Wow, that’s awesome!” “And also, one more thing – snakes don’t like indigo!” The Iron Snail There’s probably some truth to every single one of those things, but it just kind of created this lore about these pants that are super, super strong, and won’t rip and can pull cars, but they’re also anti-bacterial. I don’t think that was a very big deal – people in the 1800s were like, “Oh my god, they don’t smell as much when you wear them!” or “They repel bugs, and snakes don’t like them!” Honestly, secretly though, I think the whole they repel bugs thing is just because the denim was so dark that they couldn’t see the bugs. Not that I think people in the 1800s were dumb, but yeah. From Working Class to Pop Culture The Iron Snail So there was all this like lore and all this crazy stuff about magical denim jeans and riveted jeans and riveted pants and all that stuff. Still, another important factor is it doesn’t seem like this ever changed, but there’s always a very strong admiration for gritty working-class people who wear clothes out. They get holes and clothes, especially with jeans, which is the biggest thing that we’ll get into in a second. The Iron Snail Everybody else is wearing a suit, and this other guy just came from the gold mines, and he’s filthy and so yucky, and look at him go and my wife thinks he’s cute. That was also a really big thing, as everybody probably knows. In the 1950s, there was the guy wearing the suit that would go to work that was proper, that looked like a Sears catalog, and then there were the guys that rode motorcycles and cried in movies like James Dean and Marlon Brando and people like that, and those guys wore white t-shirts and blue jeans. The Technical Marvel of Indigo The Iron Snail But the more important thing is that other colored dyes can’t do what indigo can, which is fascinating, especially in 2022 when I feel like anything can do anything until I need to find out what that anything is, and then it still doesn’t work. Not a lot of dyes can do what indigo can, and the dyes that can still can’t do it like indigo. The Iron Snail So, really super quick briefing: when you are dying denim – well, I should say this is cotton twill and indigo – indigo dye does not penetrate the fabric. It basically sits on top of the fabric, and denim has a warp and a weft. The warp is on top and blue, and the weft is white and on bottom. Obviously, you know this if you rip your jeans in certain areas – the weft comes out and puffs up. So that adds a lot of contrast, but the way that indigo dyes denim is that as you wear denim down physically rubbing it together, the indigo itself flakes off and creates very, very high contrast wear, which is what’s so important. The Iron Snail We’ll get into sulfur dyes in a second. Indigo is also really good at not fading when it’s out in the sunlight. Blue denim jeans are one of the most alive pieces of clothing that you can get next to leather or something that ages over time, which means that people being very curious are like, “Wow, that’s really cool, and these pants are becoming more and more mine every day and like all these holes and rips and fades and stuff because I wore them.” Modern Alternatives: The Sulfur Question The Iron Snail And you may be asking, “Well, what about sulfur? Well, I’ve heard that canvas can fade.” That’s very true. Sulfur dye is a way of dying things that I feel is the closest to indigo dying, but it’s not quite there yet. Obviously, you can get black jeans that fade to gray – those are dyed with sulfur. But I asked Bahzad and Risa about this because I figured this would come up, and this is what they said: “Long story short, you can achieve fades with sulfur dyes in different colors, but the fading won’t be nearly as strong as indigo, and it’s very difficult to dye things with sulfur dyes besides black because it’s hard to dye evenly, so you can miss your targeted color for the garment quite easily.” Watch This Review Conclusion: The Legacy Lives On So, anyway, long story short, why is denim blue? It’s culturally significant and it’s really the only dye and fabric combination that completely tells your story in the pants. I would love to tell you my story in the pants next week, sorry! Real quick – the last thing is Bahzad and Risa were telling me that they’re just people in the industry who have loved denim and indigo for a very long time and worked very hard to keep that alive in the larger mainstream industry as well, so that’s another reason. Anyway, see you later. Thanks for reading! This article was adapted from Michael Kristy’s video on The Iron Snail, with edits from FashionBeans, and was reviewed by Michael to ensure the integrity of his original content. Watch the full video here. The Iron Snail is a men’s fashion vlog (and now article series!) starring a young man named Michael and featuring a snail no bigger than a quarter. The two are set on taking over the world of fashion by creating a clothing line to end all clothing lines. Until then, we’re here to tell you EVERYTHING you need to know about the best clothing out there, from the highest quality raw denim jeans to the warmest jackets to the sturdiest boots…the Iron Snail has got you covered. 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