#Air Canada Booking Number

[softtdaisy]

hellu lando with it's okay, just breathe.

I LOVE your writing, you deserve all the celebration love!

Pairing: Lando Norris x female!reader

Words: 1020

A/n: the fact i went over 1k words for a story i don’t feel confident about is crazy. I really hope you will like it, i’ve never write about Lando before so it’s a first try  

Dating Lando was like living in a new sitcom episode every single day. Even when he was away for the championship and you couldn’t travel with him, he found a way to make your day better. A call, a message, the stupidest joke ever or the cutest proof of love. 

There were some bad days, of course. But somehow, the sun always seemed to shine even in the darkest sky. 

You could write a whole book about your boyfriend. 

You really considered doing it these past days. Being away from him for too long was getting harder for you. It was really like missing a half of yourself when he was in another country or, worse, in another continent. No amount of calls was making for the lack of waking up with him by your side.

“You realize that one day you’re going to deal with me every day for the rest of your life? Shouldn’t you enjoy your free time while you can?” he told you on the phone after you admitted being sad about him leaving early for Canada. He hasn’t even been home since Spain and he was already leaving.

“Well right now, I miss you, idiot.”

“Well I miss you too, dummy.” 

It was probably one of the quickest decisions you’ve ever made. After waking up again feeling alone and sad without the man you loved, you booked a flight for Montréal during the afternoon to see him. You didn’t even tell anyone, except for Max, Lando’s best friend, to make sure at least one person would be aware of your trip. You wanted to surprise your boyfriend.

You had no idea that this would become one of the most stressful days for him.

When Lando woke up on the other side of the world, you were already up in the air. He didn’t question why you weren’t answering his texts. He knew that when you were working, you tended to be so focused that you forget about the world around you. He also knew that he could call you if he was worried because that was the only thing that would make you pick up your phone. 

Somehow, Lando felt like something was off. He could put his finger on what.

If he was a fan of media duties, he couldn’t focus on anything today. His laugh sounded fake, he wasn’t smiling as much. “If something is wrong, you can tell me.” Oscar reassured him after he had to handle every interview that morning.

But he didn’t say anything. Lando wasn’t the kind to cry on anyone’s shoulder for nothing. He didn’t want to bother his teammate for just a feeling. 

Then it became more than a feeling when he still couldn’t reach you. 

You were supposed to be home. Or heading home. Anyway, you would have answered Lando’s texts already. But you didn’t.

He tried to call you. But you didn’t answer.

He asked Carlos to call you too, knowing he was one of the few drivers to have your number. But you didn’t answer either.

“Something wrong?” Carlos asked him but he refused to say anything. If he kept it to himself, it wouldn’t be real, right?

So Lando did the worst thing he could have done, he knew that. He went to the practices with fear and stress. He couldn’t think about the race or the cars or his whole career. Fuck that. All he cared about was you. He did so many mistakes he couldn’t even imagine the number of comments on social media about him being done or whatever these stupid opinions were saying. The team was already giving him a hard time on the radio.

When Lando got out of the car, he felt like he saw a ghost. Expect it wasn’t one.

It was you. Standing in the middle of the garage.

It took him a few seconds to realize that he wasn’t dreaming, that it wasn’t his mind giving him what he wanted to see. You were here. For real. Not home. But here with him.

Lando then ran to you and took you in his arms. “Oh wow I didn’t expect that to be so welcoming.” you laughed in his ears. Knowing him, you were convinced he would make a joke about you being here at the same time as his mistress. Or that you should take a shower, when he was the one dirty after racing. 

Not that he would hug you that tight. You felt him bringing him to his room and you followed him, quite perplexed on why he was reacting like that. 

It wasn’t until you were alone that you noticed he was shivering against you. 

“Hey, what’s going on?” you asked him, moving your head to see his sad face. You barely ever saw him being that miserable around you.

“You’re here…” he replied, breathless. You took his face between your hands.

“it's okay, just breathe,” you put your forehead against his and felt him relaxed slowly. 

“You didn’t answer me and I thought something had happened. I couldn’t call you, I couldn’t reach you and I thought you were… I can’t imagine my life without you!” 

“I’m not planning on leaving you.” you replied with a sweet smile, giving him a soft kiss on his lips. Lando always said that your lips had some calming power. And he wasn’t wrong. You could feel relaxed after that, like it was the proof he needed to be sure you were really here.

You spent some long minutes together in the silence. Now that he was accepting that nothing had happened to you and that you were here, for real, he was enjoying your presence. You gave him small kisses in the hair, the one he loved when he had a terrible weekend. It felt quite the same for once.

“I’m taking notes that you don’t like surprises.” you whispered in his hair.

“Not the one where I think I’m losing the love of my life, dummy.”

“Love of my life and dummy in the same sentence? What a pretty love language, Norris.” 

[louisetaylor]

TUA SEASON 4 REWRITE

because if you want something done right... *rolls eyes*

In the original single timeline, we got a wonderful season 4 of The Umbrella Academy. I'm here to remind you of your latent memories of the original season 4. Together we can restore it to its former glory. Like a club. We need a name. Call ourselves the Keepers or something similar.

Here's what I know:

Luther is putting work into his (admittedly rundown and condemned) house. It's growing more welcoming with every antique sconce and threadbare thrifted rug. Klaus lives with him, advising him on the finer points of exotic dancing. We see the family visiting. Claire knows where the snacks are. Luther picks up and tosses Lila's kids in the air, trying and failing to learn words in Punjabi. He struggles to move in new furniture, longing for his old strength back, his familiar hairy body.

Viktor owns a bar in Canada. He's proud of it, but despite bantering with the regulars, he isn't close to anyone. He still wants to shout at Reginald (for everything) and at Allison (for everything else). Sometimes the patrons get too loud, and Viktor focuses on the sound of the radio playing in the background, wanting to shout at the loud talkers and knock them off their stools with the sound of his voice. He misses Harlan. He wonders about autism, and why he understood the boy so well.

Diego practices throwing knives in the back yard after the kids have gone to bed. Fed up with being a delivery driver, he briefly considers opening a party planning business, but Lila laughs her head off at the idea, saying he'd explode if she even bought a pinata from the wrong side of town or something. He runs alone at night, slows, stops, bangs his head against a telephone pole in frustration.

Lila spars with Diego in the basement, kendo one night, aikido the next...It vents their anger and relieves their boredom. She has an idea of opening a martial arts studio. When she pins Diego down, they're both visibly into it. She goes away to a book club that might not be a book club, wishing for a bigger world.

The kids aren't just pawns for the plot or for conflict. They're people who ask inconvenient questions. "Where did Mummy learn to fight?" They make up bedtime stories about their parents' pasts. Superhero stories which are eerily close to the truth.

Klaus lives with Luther, sober, germaphobic, plagued by nightmares, afraid of death and love and life because he's seen so very much of all of them. He cooks for Luther, which sometimes turns out well and sometimes not. "Well, it's not the same when you make it without hashish..." When the marigold crashes back into his life, he's angry, and yet he's elated to feel the power back in him, he knows he can't go back to being half dead and unfeeling, he needs to wear something silk and put on some eyeliner and be wild again, as he always really was.

Allison tries out for every commercial in town and spars with her daughter, who's turning out to be a stubborn opposing mirror of her mother. Claire spits uncomfortable truths at her mother like her too-strong influence on others, her lecturing them instead of listening to them, kicking at their weak points. She wonders who she is when she's not acting or rumoring people. Maybe one of these days she'll ask someone for help.

Number Five has been trying to remember his name. He's been working for the CIA because a man's gotta eat, but he clashes with his boss a little too much on account of his smart mouth. He can't help acting like a young man sometimes, because he never really got to be young, feel young, act young. He can't help trying to jump away sometimes. He feels trapped in one place, one time.

Ben just got out of prison. The season starts with him being taken back to Luther's place, being welcomed in by Klaus and offered some cookies that smell suspiciously of weed. He's annoyed by the running laughing visiting kids, but the house reminds him strangely of home. He'll curse Luther out, but Klaus gave him weed cookies, and the kids don't deserve to be scared or upset, do they? He's not a monster, after all.

[theshitpostcalligrapher]

Expedia Booking

god i haven't booked a flight in years, i got a question for yall:

when you book an expedia flight, can you check into your flight remotely?

cuz they give you a confirmation number and an itinerary number, but the check-in sites (lufthansa, air canada etc) ask for a ticket number or a booking reference and none of those are the same name (and you can only check in 23 hours before the flight but i like to overprepare)

cuz like I know you can print your tickets by scanning your passport day of but I wanna know if i can do all this remotely and print my shit at home first

[hylianengineer]

Inspired by that "classic books that are actually fun" post, I bring you a list of plays and musicals that are also really fun:

Head Over Heels - it's like a really queer parody of those classic fairytale fantasy worlds, to music by the GoGos. It's got crossdressing-and-realizing-you're-genderqueer, gay romance, and confusing prophecies that get disastrously, hilariously misunderstood.

Airness - delightful rock semi-musical about an air guitar championship, and friendships made along the way. The characters stole my heart and refused to give it back.

Something Rotten - a Shakespearean love letter to musicals. Hysterically funny, utterly ridiculous, with more of those prophetic misunderstanding shenanigans.

Come From Away - a musical about the 38 airplanes and 7,000 passengers who made an unexpected visit to the small town of Gander, Canada during 9/11 because American Airspace got shut down. A bittersweet, feel-good story about how the worst events can bring out the best in people.

A Midsummer Night's Dream - this is just crack. 400 year old crack hidden behind the confusion that is Shakespearean English. It's got fairies, magic, misunderstandings, romance, and a lot of goofy shenanigans. Read the modern english translation alongside the original if you're intimidated by trying to parse Shakespeare - that's what I do, it works great.

Labyrinth of Desire - another medieval fantasy world romance that goes very, very sideways. Also with crossdressing disguises, gay love, and pop music. Hey, why are there so many of these?

Sweeney Todd - it's a classic for a reason. Half horror, half comedy, with gratuitous violence and characters that are all delightfully fucked up. A barber returns to his former home seeking revenge against the corrupt judge responsible for his wife's death and daughter's kidnapping - then his murder spree gets interrupted by the local pie shop owner who has a crush on him and wants to turn a profit by selling murder-victim-pie. It only gets more unhinged from there.

Collective Rage: A Play In Five Betties - this is a love letter to theatre, and to art in general. And if you ever wanted a musical number sung by a talking vagina, well, this is the play for you. Five women from very different walks of life, all named Betty, find themselves planning to perform a play together while processing their feelings about their lives, relationships, sexualities, bodies, and the world at large. Revelations are had. Things go off the rails. Personal growth occurs. And it's very, very queer.

[boywithlcv]

Champagne Problems | JSUH.

Summary: Johnny suh knew one thing. Y/N knew nothing.

tags: established relationship, Angst, gn!reader, barista!johnny, film major!reader, sad sad Johnny.

Wc:

A/n: part one! Also the first part of my BLONDIE series! Based off of Taylor songs sing she’s coming to Canada <3.

‘You booked the night train for a reason.

So you could sit there in this hurt’

✩

December 28th.

Four hours after the final goodbye.

the weather was anything but nice. the type of chill that nipped at peoples skin as it devilishly danced through the air.  The tall man didn't mind it though, he'd felt worse than some pinches from jack frost. The bustling sound of trains coming in and out of the station along with the crowd of passengers that left the vehicles carts. everyone going from one place to the next.

Though johnny, didn't quite know where he was going.

He knew he was going far, far away to hide away from whatever vendetta the world had against him. He felt as though he must of broken glass, the superstition his mother would warn him about when he was younger. though he's sure it was just because she didn't want to clean up any glass that johnny would've easily broken. though the superstition followed him to adulthood as he found himself a very superstitious person. come to think of it... he did break a glass bowl a couple months before, if that made any difference to his feelings about this situation.

Yes, the situation johnny suh found himself in.

the situation he thought he would never find himself in. because he was so sure, god why was he so sure?.

But it lead him to, standing alone. at an ungodly hour of the night, just so people wouldn't see the tears that fell down his cheeks. late night train full of people too tired or in too much of a rush to notice the tall man weeping away his sorrows over his lost lover. it also gave him time to sit and think, overthink or under think. it didn't matter. as long as he could sit in his hurt as dusk turned into dawn.

the hurt that was caused by his once muse, yn.

He wishes he could take everything back, maybe he wouldn't have been so stupid. A young barista falls in love with the film major. maybe it was a set up from the beginning, since the minute yn stumbled into his coffee shop looking as if they didn't know what sleep was. but yet johnny thought they looked beautiful.

He wishes he could take back when he made the first move. everyday yn would order the same thing, a basic black coffee. something johnny would always poke fun at. a drink he thought was reserved for older men and the occasional caffeine addicted mother. and every-time johnny would make it as a chuckle left his lips. until the seventh time they ordered, after a month of watching them for hours in his shop. he wrote his number on their napkin along with a J.

He wishes he could take back the way he smiled at his phone for the next week and a half like an idiot, every text he re-read a million times and could probably resite by memory.

He wishes he could take back the first date. which led to the second. the fourth. the eighth. the final.

he wishes he could take back letting them meet his family, letting them move in with him, letting them befriend his friends.

he wishes he could take back the last 47 hours.

johnny suh wishes he could take back loving yn.

[prairietrashdotcom]

eee i got tagged to do a tag game by @mrcrepsley thank you :)

im tagging: @stitchedgrave @laceandgore @r0ttdweller @cherubgore @cannibaldotcom @unfading-scrutiny but if you've already been tagged in this one or dont feel like it its cool. n if i didnt tag u please do it if you want to also.

Do you make your bed? if by make you mean pull down the duvet so it can air out, then yes. dont worry about why that is.

What's your favorite number? 3, 9, 13, 27

What is your job? i have been a sporadically employed hermit for the last four years :( i am starting college again next week though (media focused program) and theres a lot of production-like activity where i live so hopefully in the future that works out.

If you could go back to school, would you? See above, but i do sometimes wish i could go back to my uni in canada, but only if i was single so i could at least try n fuck my history prof at least once

Can you parallel park? no :(

A job you had that would surprise people? i have no idea how i am perceived on here so i dont know if it would surprise people that i've ghostwritten a book and worked as an actor in a haunted house. those were probably the least surprising answers but other than that its just bartending and baking.

Do you think aliens are real? duh.

Can you drive a manual car? i cannot drive any car but im working on it, although public transport here is just decent enough that it isnt, like, urgent.

What's your guilty pleasure? i honestly feel less ashamed of my various sexual proclivities than i do about living for TLC's Sister Wives. watching that chode get left in the dust not once, not twice, but thrice was especially delicious.

Tattoos? i have four. both of the ones on my right arm are bird themed but that was unintentional. theres a little bird on my forearm from The Garden of Earthly Delights' middle panel, and then a lawn flamingo on my right shoulder. the lawn flamingo is heavily associated in Winnipeg culture with the Transcona neighbourhood, where my mom's from and where i lived for a few years. everyone else in Winnipeg clowns on Transcona for being white trash, which is not technically incorrect but its my favourite place. On my left wrist ive got a hand with an eye in it, and then a crescent moon surrounded by clouds on my left shoulder.

Favorite color? pink, black, light blues, ive been really into brown this year.

Favorite type of music? i love music in general, any type can be good as long as the people making it care about it but 80s alternative/new wave/punk will always hit so so good for me. and vintage or alternative country. and 90s alt.

Do you like puzzles? i love doing the nyt puzzles stoned every night but i will die before i give them any money to play them.

Any phobias? someone with prior knowledge of my phobias using them to torture me

Favorite childhood sport? i did kickboxing in my teens for a lil bit n it was really fun :)

Do you talk to yourself? chronically, but only out loud if im home alone or out in public alone.

What movies do you adore? to the surprise of no one; horror, especially trashy b-horror/horror comedy. also whatever The Butcher Boy (1997) dir. Neil Jordan (i will never stop evangelizing this movie please watch it sinead o'connor plays the virgin mary) is.

Coffee or Tea? coffee 100%. i live in tea country however. sometimes its nice but objectively the 'tea' people are talking about here (Barrys vs Lyons) tastes like a hot wet paper bag unless you put 3 teaspoons of sugar in it.

First thing you wanted to be when you grew up? either a palaeontologist or a goth, its hard to tell which came first. ironically my mom was much more supportive of my desire to be goth. this is the cognitive dissonance that came with being an early 2000s evangelical christian who listens to Rob Zombie and Evanescence. she eventually relaxed about jesus.

[aeolianblues]

“The masterplan was, there was no masterplan. Except to write good songs. Oh yeah, and to be the biggest band in the world. A modest ambition, but it put Oasis on the road to greatness.”

OASIS - THE MASTERPLAN (1998)

Plus some more pics of Oasis albums we have at our stations, sent to us promotionally by Sony Canada on behalf of Creation Records.

Liner notes below the cut:

The masterplan was, there was no masterplan. Except to write good songs. Oh yeah, and to be the biggest band in the world. A modest ambition, but it put Oasis on the road to greatness. "Me mam always used to say, God loves a tryer," Noel Gallagher says. "And I went, 'Why? Has he got a car?' She went, 'No, a tryer-Not a tyre." So the Gallagher boys did try, and if you want proof of how hard they tried then hear these tracks - B-sides, all of them, made by a band who believe a B-side is no excuse not to care. Outside of Britain it hasn't always been easy to hear Oasis B-sides. But in Britain or anywhere else, they sound majestic played back-to-back.

We open heroically with ACQUIESCE which is one of those all-time "shoulda been an A-side" numbers. (Creation Records certainly thought so, and who could blame them?) The song is about friendship in the widest sense and not, as often speculated, about the Gallagher brothers themselves. Noel sings the chorus because, he claims, Liam couldn't reach the high notes. Or he was in the pub. Whatever, it was written on a slow train to Wales and made possible because Noel likes to travel with his guitar. It's no surprise that Acquiesce is present: via the Internet, Oasis fans were asked to vote on this album's choice of tracks.

But the inclusion of UNDERNEATH THE SKY might have been "influenced" by Noel, who cites this as a favourite song. Its happy-wanderer feel was inspired by a pocket-book of travellers' quotes he came across, and the jollity's enhanced by a four-handed piano part courtesy of him and Bonehead (who tackles the tinkly bits, apparently).

TALK TONIGHT is another self-selecting choice, from Noel's acoustic repertoire. Beautifully tender, its thoughtful air derives from a Texas studio session: Noel was back after his brief flounce from the band on a US tour: "Me and Liam had a disagreement, probably about what shoes he was wearing, so I'd fucked off to Las Vegas." It was an Oasis fan in San Francisco who talked him down off the ledge. The same reflective interlude gave us another song, in HALF THE WORLD AWAY (which is Paul Weller's favourite Oasis track). The pressure was already building, though, when Noel began writing (IT'S GOOD TO BE FREE, at the start of those troubled American dates. He finished it in Las Vegas: "Cocaine psychosis," reckoned producer Owen Morris, detecting a Fear And Loathing vibe in that sinister guitar feedback. Accordion expert Bonehead donates the breezy coda, which lends a misleadingly cheerful touch to what was a deeply fraught Oasis session: "Believe me, it was horribe. it wasn't funny at all." The Morse Code segment, by the way, is meaningless so far as anyone knows.

The oldest song here is GOING NOWHERE, written around 1990 before the band was signed ("It's about what we were going to do when we got a shitload of money off Creation"); it was not recorded until after the Be Here Now album, when there was a hankering for something less massive. Noel and drummer Alan White are the only Oasis members involved, with piano, brass and horn players to bring a vaguely Burt Bacharach atmosphere. Noel only wishes he knew another rhyme for "car" and

"Jaguar." Nearly as vintage in its origins, however, was HEADSHRINKER: recorded for Some Might Say in '95, it was written about three years earlier, during the band's punkier phase. It's also one of Liam's greatest vocals, partly because of the freedom from pressure that doing B-sides can offer. Although a load of drug references were binned from the lyric, a manic edge remains to this tale of an early girlfriend Liam could not shake off. It may start out like The Faces' Stay With Me, but Noel says he was thinking of The Rolling Stones at the time. And ROCKIN' CHAIR dates from Noel's days in Manchester, planning to leave his own girlfriend and dreaming of the good life down in London.

FADE AWAY first surfaced on Cigarettes & Alcohol, and was probably elbowed off Definitely Maybe in favour of Slide Away. Since then the chorus alone has guaranteed its popularity with Oasis fans: "The dreams we have as children fade away...

It's about growing up but not growing old," says Noel, echoing a John Lennon belief that you won't get anything unless you've got the vision to imagine it. It's a classic Buzzcocks trick, this, placing a wistful lyric inside the most glorious rush of punk rock energy. That said, it was a relief for Noel to do a track like THE SWAMP SONG, which required no words at all. Alongside Roll With It, The Swamp Song was a warm-up exercise for the Morning Glory sessions; it was also used to set the sound levels at Glastonbury, which is where Alan White's thunderous drumming was taped. Later on, when Paul Weller turned up for Champagne Supernova, he added The Swamp Song's harmonica and duelling guitars: "Very rock'n'roll," chortles Noel, "but we didn't manage to stand back to back once, which I was very upset about!" Its working title "The Jam" was scrapped, tragically.

Contrary to previous credits, I AM THE WALRUS was not recorded at the Glasgow Cathouse, but at a conference of Sony executives, gathered to hear Creation's new signings. Oasis used to play it at gigs in Liverpool, as an act of bravado aimed at the local bands, even The Beatles never did this one live. Technical note: any "looseness" in Noel's guitar playing here is attributed to half a bottle of Sony-financed gin. Speaking of guitars, the soaring LISTEN UP used to boast a solo much longer than the one you hear in this version; Liam had wanted it shorter, so Noel had disagreed on principle ("If you don't argue with Liam he gets upset"). Four years later, Liam has got his way. The poppy STAY YOUNG, meanwhile, was first ear-marked to be "the Digsy's Dinner" of Be Here Now, until Noel wrote Magic Pie and dumped it. Stay Young wound up on D'You Know What I Mean?, and could have been another A-side if its composer had actually liked the song. But he doesn't. (Audiences, who have more sense than songwriters, all love it.)

But we end with a track that Noel Gallagher is definitely proud of. In fact he regards THE MASTERPLAN as his finest piece of work. Even Liam now wishes he'd sung it himself. The writing came easily, inspired in equal measure by a Japanese hotel corridor and a good, relaxing smoke. "I'm the best lyricist in Oasis, is how I like to say it," Noel shrugs. "But to me this sums up your journey through life. All we know is that we don't know." Is it, we might wonder, sung to Liam? ("Please brother let it be") Again the answer is No.

"We're all brothers and sisters," says Noel. And so we are, and so are Oasis whether named

Gallagher, McGuigan, White or indeed Bonehead. They're brothers and they're tryers, all five. They try for themselves and they try for the rest of us. No wonder God loves them.

[typingwithmyhandstied]

all of the asks. (ask game)

(you don’t actually have to i partially just thought it would be funny to say this i can pick specific ones if you want but also please do if you want to)

This is hilarious. I will do all of them because why not.

favorite chore: organizing things mostly but sometimes even that sucks, sweeping, or not really a chore--- peeling potatoes

least favorite chore: cleaning anything that's sticky/slimy/etc

aquarium, planetarium, museum, or zoo: it really depends on the kind. The aquarium in my town has a really big otter enclosure, so I love that. I really really like planetariums and museums but don't go enough.

favorite kind of museum: The ones that are pretty much people's houses turned into museums especially big old fancy houses with old artifacts. I do love a good art museum of course too.

cooking or baking (and your favorite thing to cook or bake): baking and apple crisp. It has peeling, cutting, etc.

favorite thing in your room: My bookshelf or all of the quotes stuck up on my wall.

favorite class you’ve ever taken: I haven't gotten much variety yet. I really like choir, Spanish, and English though.

what kinds of clothes do you typically wear?: tshirts, jeans, overalls, sweaters, really anything but if you see it it makes sense.

favorite way to be creative (can be anything: playlists, outfits, drawing, writing, decorating cookies, anything.): WRITING but I actually kind of have done a lot. I paint some. I make cool outfits. I actually painted a bunch of jean jackets last summer while listening to the FLF audiobook. I might do that again.

are you superstitious?: Yes and no. I am in the ways that I think are funny like sayings and jokes and having a "lucky necklace." I used to be more so.

favorite article of clothing you own: It's either this gray sweater I found thrifting, my Evermore sweatshirt, or my best jean jacket.

favorite way to carry things (pockets, purse, backpack, etc): I apologize in advance for the rant this will cause. I want to say pockets, but I can not because WOMEN'S PANTS POCKETS FIT NOTHING. I also have to carry an Epipen which can't even fit in men's pants pockets so a purse. I like satchel like purses that can fit a book.

what things do you usually have on you when you leave the house?: As stated before my Epipen, my phone which has my wallet stuff in it, a purse, a book, headphones, chapstick, some cash, etc.

favorite errand: grocery shopping or essential other things

dream job: a librarian who writes books in her spare time (with a dog and a cat <3)

favorite thing get when going out to eat: a burger or spaghetti usually

when did you lose your first tooth?: first tooth lost was pulled by the dentist, and I didn't know what was going on. It was HORRIBLE. I have gotten many pulled actually. First "naturally" lost was because my friend's friend hit my chin with her knee while we lifted her in the air at recess. I lost it in Spanish class a few days later.

any childhood memory you want to share:

do you like camping?: Yes, but mostly because I was taken a lot as a kid.

have you ever gone to summer camp and did you enjoy it?: I went to girl scout summer camp but family camp, so my mom was there. It was fine.

favorite place to write things: At a table anywhere without too much distractions

lucky number(s): 4, 7, 13, 14, 16

favorite place you’ve traveled to: Canada probably or just somewhere camping

place you want to travel to: Broadway or London or the Netherlands (to meet an old online friend)

favorite snack: gold fish

favorite smell: lemon verbena

something you’re proud of: all the progress I have made

do you have any pets?: I had a bunny as a little girl. I loved her. I had a dog, but she died two months (ish) ago. I miss her.

do you want any pets that you don’t have?: I want to have a dog again someday. I also will probably have a cat someday. (If I could get an orange cat, I would name it Kell.)

favorite place to go in your neighborhood: THE LIBRARY DUH

[grits-galraisedinthesouth]

Hallelujah South Park!

By Maureen Callahan 16 Feb 2023 - 17 Feb 2023

Will their delicious take-down of privacy-hungry Harry & Meghan FINALLY make them see what insufferable hypocrites - and global laughing stocks - they've become?

Well, she said she wanted to be a cartoon princess. Now, thanks to the brilliant minds at 'South Park,' Meghan Markle is one.

In 'Worldwide Privacy Tour,' which aired Wednesday night, Meghan and Prince Harry were savaged as hypocritical publicity hounds who nonetheless demand to be left alone. After promoting his memoir, here called 'Waaagh,' the 'prince and princess of Canada' move to South Park, whose children cannot abide their insufferability. At one point, the outraged prince flashes his frostbitten penis — to a child! — while defending his wife.

As the animated Harry and Meghan toddle around the globe, holding placards that read 'STOP LOOKING AT US!' and 'WE WANT OUR PRIVACY!,' their entitlement, stupidity and lack of self-awareness was sliced through by a cartoon talk-show host with, in my view, better questions than Tom Bradby or Anderson Cooper.

Appearing on 'Good Morning Canada,' Harry and Meghan — the latter speaking inanities with a Valley Girl accent — sit down to a chorus of boos. The impeccable line of questioning beings.

'Let me start with you, sir. You've lived a life with the royal family, you've had everything handed to you, but you say your life has been hard. And now you've written all about it in your new book, 'Waaagh.'

Harry: 'Yes, that's right friend. You see, my wife and I —'

Meghan: 'I was like, totallllllly, you should write a book 'cause your family, like stupid, and then [unintelligible] journalists.'

Host: 'So you hate journalists.'

Harry: 'That's right!'

Host: 'And now you wrote a book that reports on the lives of the royal family.'

Harry: 'Right!'

Host: 'So you're a journalist.'

Yes! Exactly right.

Meghan: 'We just wanna be normal people. This attention is so hard.'

Waaagh!' indeed. You have to wonder what the mood is in Montecito this morning, the online reaction from us 'normal people' nothing short of a rousing standing ovation. Do Harry and Meghan get it now? Do they understand that they are laughingstocks not just around the world, but in the province Meghan values above all others — Hollywood?

'South Park': Grade A+. Chef's kiss. This was a perfect episode. The only possible criticism: What took Trey Parker and Matt Stone so long?Granted, it seems every week does bring a brand new hypocrisy. One must work hard to keep up. 'Because I'm from the States, you don't grow up with the same understanding of the royal family. And so while I now understand very clearly there's a global interest there, I didn't know much about him.

'That was Meghan Markle in November 2017, seated next to Prince Harry as they gave their first interview to the BBC as a newly engaged couple.A fair number of people — myself included — found it near impossible, laughable really, to believe that Meghan, creature of Hollywood and student of fame, had little idea who Prince Harry or the British royal family was. Or that this self-professed smart, savvy, well-cultured woman had not so much as Googled her fair prince before their first date. No social climber she!It all sounded very Yoko Ono, who, upon meeting John Lennon, claimed to have never heard of him.Now — could it possibly be — that Meghan was insincere? A newly resurfaced post on her late blog The Tig (think Goop, but more basic and obvious) reveals that Meghan was very familiar with the British royal family and with William and Kate's nuptials. She even wrote about the type of princess she, Meghan, dreamt she might someday be.

Hey, Harry: Don't feel too bad. Even Lennon fell for it. As he told Rolling Stone in 1971, Yoko had 'only heard of Ringo, I think.'Ringo! Not the world-famous half of the most celebrated songwriting duo of post-World War II Western civilization. When you're that well known, it seems, nothing is as refreshing as someone who claims not to know who you are or what you do or why people care about you. The implication, of course, being that said ignoramus sees through the veneer of celebrity to you. They like and love you for you, not the attendant wealth or social status or privilege or refracted fame that comes with being your other half. Here's Meghan in her 2014 blog post, fantasizing about becoming a princess while also mocking the entire idea, because she's just that cool and just that above everything, even a storied institution dating back over eleven centuries.

'Little girls dream of being princesses,' Meghan wrote. 'I, for one, was all about She-Ra, Princess of Power. For those of you unfamiliar with the '80s cartoon reference, She-Ra is . . . a sword-wielding royal rebel known for her strength. We're definitely not talking about Cinderella here. Grown women seem to retain this childhood fantasy. Just look at the pomp and circumstance surrounding the royal wedding and endless conversation about Princess Kate.

'Well, well, well. How will Meghan explain that away? Or as recounted by Harry, that upon meeting Prince Andrew she thought he was the Queen's handbag holder? Or, as she told Oprah in 2021, 'I went into [my marriage] naively because I didn't grow up knowing much about the royal family'?

By the way, Meghan's 'grow[ing] up' would have been at the height of the royal family's coverage in global tabloids: Princess Di's supernova fame, the first future king ordered to divorce, Diana's death and the subsequent wall-to-wall 24/7 media coverage of her funeral.

Meghan would have to have spent her formative years in the Yanomami Amazonian tribe, thoroughly cut off from the modern world, to have known so very little about the royals.

How will Meghan explain, as she claimed in last year's insipid Netflix doc, that she had no idea how to curtsy or why it was important to show respect to the Queen? As she sat beside her husband, who looked pained and humiliated, Meghan characterized her first meeting with the late Queen Elizabeth, one of the world's most admired women, thusly:

'I mean, Americans will understand this,' Meghan brayed, because 'we have Medieval Times, dinner and a tournament. It was like that.'

What must Harry, who wrote in his memoir that Meghan knew 'almost nothing' about the royals, be thinking now? Will he think to himself that his now-wife knew well and good who he was? As Andrew Morton wrote in his 2018 biography 'Meghan,' her friend Ninaki Priddy said that the future duchess 'was always fascinated by the royal family. She wants to be Princess Diana 2.0'

This seems to be the root of Meghan's self-obsessed rage, does it not? She married the spare. She'll never be the next Diana. If anything, Catherine, Princess of Wales, is carving out a similar beloved place for herself amongst the British people. Meghan is the also-ran, attempting to run a rival court out of a soulless Montecito manse while decrying the uselessness of all things royal.

But don't you dare not call her the Duchess of Sussex!

Lest we forget, Meghan's overarching message since joining this family has been the smug, insufferable, disingenuous utterance, 'Be kind.' It's what she said in that first interview with Harry, claiming that she made it very clear to their matchmaking friend she had one non-negotiable quality in a potential mate:

'And so the only thing that I had asked [our mutual friend] when she said she wanted to set us up was — I had one question — I said, 'Well is he nice?' 'Cause if he wasn't kind it didn't seem like it would make sense.'

We all know now that Harry isn't very nice. You don't take millions from your father and cling to your titles while disparaging and insulting him, then tell the world — for years — that they're a family of racists before taking it all back and blaming the press for your woes while revealing all manner of your father and brother's private pain and intimate information and get to call yourself a nice guy.

On top of all that, we're meant to feel sorry for Meghan and Harry.

You don't mock the physically disabled female teacher at your boarding school for kicks, as Harry did, and get to call yourself nice. You don't double-down and name this poor woman in your memoir, blame her for not being attractive enough to make you 'horny', then recount the serial humiliations you subjected her to without ever expressing an iota of remorse or guilt or shame and get to call yourself nice — let alone a humanitarian and a thought leader in mental health.

Mental health advocates — these two! It's just amazing. No matter how many discrepancies, these two evince nothing, not so much as a blushing cheek or a head hung in shame. They're like two dead-eyed sharks, moving ever forward through the chum in their wake. They don't seem to understand that credibility and authenticity is paramount when trying to launch themselves as personal brands.

They also don't seem to understand what laughingstocks they've become. After the priceless Jimmy Kimmel bit about Harry and his todger, after Stephen Colbert mocked the royal family to Harry's face during his appearance, 'South Park' — a show that gleefully flays hypocrites of all stripes — has focused their ire on these two professional victims. No one deserves it more.

As the young animated character Kyle exclaimed, 'It is seriously driving me crazy. I'm sick of hearing about them but I can't get away from them! They're everywhere. In my f***ing face.'

A cri de coeur for us all. Alas, Harry and Meghan seem to lack the one quality that might possibly redeem them: A sense of humor.

MAUREEN CALLAHAN: Do Harry & Meghan see they're now South Park jokes?

[ninja-muse]

September is birthday month, if anyone's wondering why my acquisition of books appears to have slipped again (picture #2). At least I'd read nearly all of them before they joined my library shelves, and Winter's Gifts, well, it's really easy to read an Aaronovitch novella within a day or two of acquiring it. Especially since…

September was also week-vacation month, which is part of how I made it to 13 books read but very little explanation for my read-from-TBR-shelves stack (picture #1), only two of which I read on holiday. The two short ones I read in the gap between "finished the latest Book Of Substance" and "started the official Vacation Stack", and Digger was one of my 2023 goals so I decided to check that off. Baking Yesteryear was a surprise/accident. I was telling a coworker how much I enjoyed reading the library's copy and they said, "hey, while you were off, we got a copy too damaged to sell…". And one has to treat oneself in birthday month.

(Vacation was good, in case you were wondering. Camping, so no wifi, so lots of outdoors and reading time and charming rodent shenanigans.)

My biggest regret of the month, by which we mean less regret and more mild bookish panic, is the number of reading copies I appear to have taken home. I have one for Menewood which I'm planning to get to once I finish with My Roommate is a Vampire, and the rest of them were, well, um. Look. When your store buyer and random publishers send you books you'd enjoy and your coworkers finish reading ARCs you've been interested in, things happen, okay? At least at this point a lot of the books are coming out next year, which probably doesn't bode well for my 2024 TBR but that is a future problem.

Also, not doing great at my goal of reading a Canadian author every month. This is the second (?) month in a row I've failed on that front which, yes, is why I'm reading a Canadian author right now. (Also it's one of those ARCs a coworker finished with.)

Beyond the bookish stuff, there's not much to report. I've written a good bit and am surprising myself by how much I can write on my phone during a commute. Had a good birthday. Ate good food. Got fun things. Dealt with slightly more chaos at work than usual. Finished the last season of Great British Bake-Off aired in Canada and am looking forward to starting the Canadian version tonight.

How was your September?

And now without further ado, in order of enjoyment…

Evidence of Things Seen - Sarah Weinman, ed.

A collection of true crime journalism tackling recent social justice issues and big-picture flaws in the justice system.

8/10

multiple #ownvoices essays by BIPOC authors

warning: the usual things one would expect to find in true crime journalism

Infinity Gate - M.R. Carey

A scientist, the multiverse, AI, and the nature of humanity.

8/10

Nigerian and Moroccan POV characters

warning: slavery, fire, xenophobia, war, torture, violence

Thornhedge - T. Kingfisher

Toadling confronts the knight bent on entering the sleeper’s tower.

8/10

Arab Muslim secondary character

Digger Unearthed - Ursula Vernon

A wombat’s tunnel takes her to a very foreign land. She would like to go home please—but there are gods.

8.5/10

Baking Yesteryear - B. Dylan Hollis

Tried and true recipes from the past century.

9/10

🏳️‍🌈 author

The Fragile Threads of Power - V.E. Schwab

Seven years after Red London was saved, some people have moved on and others are still picking up the pieces. And some are asking whether the king deserves to be in power.

7.5/10

POV characters of colour, 🏳️‍🌈 POV characters (gay), 🏳️‍🌈 author

Winter’s Gifts - Ben Aaronovitch

Agent Kimberley Reynolds investigates a case with “unusual characteristics” during a Michigan winter.

7/10

Ojibwe secondary characters

Lud-In-The-Mist - Hope Mirrlees

A bourgeois father tries to save his children from the plague of fairy fruit—which is hard, since it doesn’t officially exist.

6.5/10

warning: classist, misogynist, generally unkind to the disabled and mentally ill

A Long Day in Lychford - Paul Cornell

Something is wrong with the borders around Lychford and the local coven has to put things right before people get hurt.

7/10

Black British main character

warning: mild racism and xenophobia

The Vaster Wilds - Lauren Groff

A servant girl flees her colonial town for the dubious safety of the wilderness.

7/10

protagonist of colour, mentally disabled secondary character, incidental Powhatan and other indigenous characters

warning: racism, misogyny, rape, disease, starvation, murder, death of a child

Board to Death - CJ Connor

Ben turns down a suspiciously good deal on an old board game. Then the dealer turns up dead on his doorstep.

6/10

🏳️‍🌈 main character (gay), 🏳️‍🌈 secondary character (gay), 🏳️‍🌈 author, #ownvoices

Starter Villain - John Scalzi

Charlie inherits a supervillain empire, complete with a subscription mega-laser, spy cats, and enemies.

6.5/10

The Lazy Tour of Two Idle Apprentices - Charles Dickens and Wilkie Collins

Two friends go on a holiday to northern England.

7/10

Currently reading:

Like Every Form of Love - Padma Viswanathan

A writer digs into the strange, complicated story of a man she befriended in a marina.

🏳️‍🌈 secondary character (gay), Indo-Canadian author, 🇨🇦

warning: domestic and child abuse

My Roommate is a Vampire - Jenna Levine

There’s a room-to-rent in Cassie’s low, low budget. The (hot) guy renting it acts like he’s from the 1800s. Surely he’s just quirky.

🏳️‍🌈 secondary characters (gay)

Music from the Earliest Notations to the Sixteenth Century - Richard Taruskin

A history of early written European music, in its social and political contexts.

Stats

Monthly total: 13 Yearly total: 100/140 Queer books: 3 Authors of colour: 0 Books by women: 5 Authors outside the binary: 0 Canadian authors: 0 Off the TBR shelves: 5 Books hauled: 6 ARCs acquired: 12 ARCs unhauled: 4 DNFs: 0

January February March April May June July August

[crime-scene-psychic]

Sorry but thinking about how amazing the show Family Ties was for its time and how amazing the dynamic between Alex and his parents is.

Yes, it was a family sitcom, and those were a dime a dozen, but it also portrays a household where both parents are working (and I love how seamlessly they portray this, as it's never made out to be a big deal that Steven cooks dinners some nights or that Elyse does the family taxes [or at least tries to]. Both parents work and both take care of the house, and that wasn't really something you saw in shows portraying family dynamics until around the time this show came out).

What really amazes me about Family Ties was the politics of it and the dynamic between Steven and Elyse and their son, Alex (if you've never seen the show, the parents are pretty liberal and their eldest son is a conservative Republican who loves money).

At the time of airing (1982) Reagan was president. And I don't need to be the one to give you a crash course in all that came out of the Reagan presidency. TLDR: not great. Despite this, at the time of his presidency, for the most part, he was pretty popular.

So for a show to come out near the beginning of his presidency about a liberal family with a conservative (outspokenly pro Nixon and Reagan) son who is often (though lovingly) the joke? Wow.

But it's not even that the show runners made Alex "a joke" because when I say "joke" I don't even mean it cruelly. Yes, at times he was essentially a cartoonish caracture portraying young Republican Wall Street men (ffs he read his little brother a children's book about Republicans), but despite this Alex is still a very well developed character with flaws and strengths. Yes, he's a capitalist stock bro and often is much more concerned for himself than others. But he also shows time and time again that in the end, his family comes first (ex. the episode where he and Mallory go visit Princeton and when she finds out her boyfriend is cheating on her [or whatever their relationship was], Alex ditches his interview that's his one shot into Ivy League to care for her).

When Alex is the joke, it never feels spiteful, like he's being punished for being conservative or that the writers are trying to tell the audience that Republicans are bad and evil and that Democrats are nice and good. When Alex is the joke, he's learning lessons that make him a better person (and hopefully that's getting through to the kids watching who are all in love with this character cause he's played by MJF).

(yeah quick side note, this show was originally going to focus mainly on Steven and Elyse as ex-hippies trying to raise a family in suburbia, but the showrunners soon realized that audiences really only gave a shit about this show because of Alex, and they only gave a shit about Alex because he was played by this hot up and coming star out of Canada named Michael J. Fox. So the show kinda shifted focus towards Alex being the main character (ish) and most of the moral lesson plotlines were given to him because he was who younger audiences were relating to/liked more)

Despite jokes and typical sibling/family disagreements, Alex honestly isn't even that bad of a guy. Like when you watch the show and you see him talk about being smarter and better than everyone else, it's set up like a joke. You don't really believe that Alex thinks this highly about himself, nor do you for a second think he's actually saying these things to be malicious (a laugh track sure helps matters, too). This is all proven multiple times (especially the "Alex thinks he's the most amazing person in the whole wide world" bit).

There are plenty of instances (I'm sorry I don't have episode names/numbers to cite, I'm extremely high and it is 1 in the morning) where Alex is shown to doubt himself. He's shown to have a fear of not succeeding or ending up a failure. He's shown to worry constantly about his future and how he's doing (which can be seen in season 4 episode 10 "How Do You Sleep?" (haha gotcha with a citation, and you thought I was talking out of my ass) where Alex can't sleep for over a week as he can't shut his brain off and stop worrying about everything.

If anything, Alex might be on the spectrum a bit, as he's often forgetful (this is a reoccurring conflict that arises for him as often the problem in an episode stems from Alex overbooking himself or outright forgetting promises he made to his family members), he's constantly in motion (not just physically, as that really is mostly due in part to MJF's acting style [especially after his diagnosis, though Family Ties was finished before 1991, when he was diagnosed] but also with activities and extracurriculars as he's an overachiever and certified Gifted Kid), his entire personality is his obsession with finances and politics, and he often overworks himself (as seen in the episode where he tries to juggle two jobs and school at the same time).

Even when it comes down to social issues in "after school special" episodes, Alex is what nowadays we'd consider "left-leaning" (ex. his speech about how everyone is equal no matter their race and that everyone has a right to live where they want in the season 7 two-parter "All in the Neighborhood"). This is explainable since politics have changed a bit since the 80s (ie it's somewhat less about how the government is run and more about who deserves rights or not, but now's not the time nor place for that discussion) but still relevant as it portrays Alex as not actually being a dick, just kinda acting like one.

So yeah, Alex is a jerk sometimes. He's got a problem with being sexist (that I'm so surprised about considering the type of person Elyse is, but I honestly think that towards the end it was more of a bit than an actual issue [not to say he was never sexist cause that episode in the bank with his boss who is female says differently]). He's hyperactive. He's a raging conservative. He's an idiot sometimes when it comes to others' feelings. But Alex isn't a narcissist. He doesn't truly believe he's the hottest thing since sliced bread. He isn't cruel or uncaring, not when it matters. He makes jokes at his family's expense, they serve it right back to him. We as an audience are well aware that it's a joke. Hell, it's how my family jokes.

And it isn't even as if Steven and Elyse are portrayed to be perfect just because they're more "politically correct" or however you'd like to phrase it. They make mistakes too and sometimes put their activism before their family. Just as Alex puts his passion for finances before his family more often than not.

Steven and Elyse make mistakes. They end up in jail on Thanksgiving for protesting. They set double standards for their kids and when called out on it they realize their mistake. They occasionally fight, with their children being caught in the crossfire almost every time.

But they also raise their children to be strong-willed and independent. They treat their children like humans and adults. They give them choices and allow them to make their own mistakes. Hell, they let their kids form their own beliefs, even if they aren't their own (as seen with Alex).

In the end they come together (because it would be a shit sitcom if they didn't but that's besides the point) and realize their mistakes. Off the top of my head, I'd cite the series finale two-parter, "Alex Doesn't Live Here Anymore." Alex is offered a job in NYC and it's perfect. He's got an apartment set up, he's gonna make a ton of money, he's on top of the world, but he has to leave much sooner than his family expected. Yet, everyone is happy for him except Elyse. They end up fighting over this, with Elyse claiming Alex is ungrateful for wanting to leave Ohio so soon (cannot blame the guy) and for wanting to abandon his family and Alex is confused as to why Elyse is so mad at him. In the end, Elyse just isn't ready to see her son grow up and not depend on her anymore. Elyse realizes what she was doing to Alex and the two come together and apologize.

There are even more instances of this (especially with Elyse and Alex as they truly are two sides to the same coin), but I can't go into all of them unfortunately. Gotta save something for the thesis.

I've already rambled for far too long (like an hour. It's been an hour, now it's 2 am), I don't think I've actually made much of a point here, and no one will read this anyway, but yeah. Family Ties. I love this show. Come for MJF, stay for a complex structure in an 80s sitcom. If you haven't watched it, give it a try. Maybe don't start at the pilot. Give it time to find its footing. It may surprise you.

[dirtanddistance]

Grandma's Marathon 2024 Race Recap: Sometimes, you PR. Other times, you're just trying to stay out of the ER.

A wise woman once told me "a marathon in 20 miles of hope and 6.2 miles of truth." At the 2024 Grandma's Marathon in Duluth, Minnesota, I can confidently say I did not get a full 20 miles of hope, and certainly got more than 6.2 miles of truth.

The first question you might be asking yourself about this race report is, "What on Earth were you doing in Duluth, Minnesota? You live in Canada. Your brother who went with you lives in Florida. You are not trying to qualify for Boston. If you were trying to qualify for Boston you are a day trip away from any number of other net downhill qualifying races. Explain yourself." Dear reader, winding up spending a long weekend in Minnesota with my brother is the consequence of a pact that we made last year to run a destination race (a marathon - this detail will matter later) together every year now that we do not live near each other, and we both are very much into running far. We both compiled wish lists of sorts for marathons we thought would be great adventures to go on together, and after running the Vancouver Marathon together last year, it was my brother's turn to choose. I honestly do not know what exactly made him select Grandma's Marathon, but of course as it is a very well reviewed and beloved event in the marathon world, it made it onto his list. I did not check his math on this decision. We signed up when registration opened, virtual high fived at our brilliant decision, and carried on with our lives.

We were not fully aware of the logistics that would come for us in the ensuing months. As you might have noticed, there is no mention of 'booking flights' or 'reserving hotel rooms' in our initial description. And that would be because we did not do any of those things until about 2 months before the race. I can confidently tell you that everyone else on the internet is right when they tell you that you should be booking your hotel for Grandma's the day after the previous year's race. We were ready to book an RV 38 miles outside of town on AirBnb before I finally found a hotel room with a much more reasonable location and amenities. Holding my nose and paying for the hotel room aside, it was time to book flights. Duluth, Minnesota is conveniently located pretty much between Florida and British Columbia, which sounds like a good compromise for two people 3,000 miles apart seeking a destination to meet in. What this does not mention is the fact that flying into the Duluth airport is prohibitively expensive, and you will be flying into Minneapolis, renting a car, and driving two and a half hours to Duluth instead. Now, for two siblings who haven't caught up in a minute, this is not a massive imposition and allowed for a memorable side quest for tacky souvenirs at the Mall of America. However, it is a less charming feature when you have to get back to the airport for one sibling's 9am flight on Monday morning after the race. All of this to say, if you are considering Grandma's Marathon, do not overlook the logistical details.

Warnings out of the way, I rolled out of bed at 3am on a Thursday morning and dragged myself through YVR onto what was thankfully a direct flight to Minneapolis. After an unremarkable plane ride (as unremarkable as hurtling through the sky in a metal tube to a destination over a thousand miles away), I landed in the Land of 10,000 Lakes and lumbered off the jetway to the sight of my little brother, clad in a matching pickleball jacket and shorts set with his Pit Viper sunglasses and a coffee in hand. We found our way to the car rental counter, where we discovered our first hurdle of the trip: some kind of crisis which resulted in us standing in a line for about an hour to pick up the rental car. This left us plenty of time to commiserate about air travel and snap a selfie for our ever-concerned mother. Car keys in hand, we rolled out to find some lunch at the famed Mall of America. Now, the Mall of America is the largest mall in the United States, maybe all of North America, I don't know. I find this claim a bit spurious because while it is a very big mall which contains an entire theme park and aquarium, a number of the retail stores are DUPLICATES. Which, fine, maybe you do need multiple Caribou Coffee locations in case fatigue strikes while you're several floors and a couple of wings separated from the coffee shop, but I will draw the line at multiple Bath and Body Works location in a single mall. This is the American Excess they warn you about. Anyway, we wandered the Nickelodeon Universe and wax nostalgic about the icons of our childhood before finding our way to the food court, the ultimate lunch destination for diametrically different dietary needs travel parties. I snagged the largest acai bowl I've ever seen (it was called 'yacht' size and while I don't think it could fit an entire Leonardo DiCaprio and whichever model he is currently dating, it was still a formidable opponent even for as hungry as I was) and waited up while my brother fetched a fried chicken sandwich meal from Popeye's, which he would later admit to regretting. We then proceeded to put in our first 10,000 steps in the land of 10,000 lakes by wandering every wing of every floor of the Mall of America in search of the perfect tacky treats to bring back to our loved ones and also so that we could say we'd walked the entire Mall of America and seen everything it had to offer. As someone who grew up in a state known for its endless theme park offerings and moved somewhere known for its endless natural amenities while also having tons of large and vibrant indoor shopping malls, I can't say that the Mall of America was for me, but if you ever happen to find yourself in the Twin Cities it was an interesting stop (and there is a food for every appetite in that food court).

Several hours, a stop at the oldest Target location, and numerous gossip topics later, we found ourselves at the hotel in Superior, Wisconsin. When the race materials suggested that the entire surrounding area was really invested in this event, I was not prepared for the random Holiday Inn we were staying at to be completely decked out for marathon weekend. Balloon banners, buckets of bananas and water bottles, little party favor bags in the rooms with more snacks and sunscreen and race-day instruction printouts. I have never been to an event where the city so thoroughly embraces the race weekend energy. We settled in before exhaustedly conceding that we did in fact have to eat dinner, and dragged ourselves to the Perkins across the street where we reminisced about our family's long abandoned ritual of weekly dinner at Perkin's after church on Sunday while I picked at a rather sad collection of side dishes (eating vegan in the Midwest isn't that hard. Eating vegan at Perkins on the other hand...).

Friday dawned and it was time to hit the race expo and check out a bit of downtown Duluth. The race expo had everything you'd expect... many booths hawking Gu and related products, headbands and shirts with cheesy slogans, booths touting methods to 'reset your nervous system' and 'refresh your blood'. After doing a maple syrup shot and drinking a few different flavors of Celcius, we grabbed our packets and were struck with immediate concern at the lack of t-shirts. As it turns out, Grandma's Marathon gatekeeps its finisher shirts and you will not be collecting one unless you cross that finish line yourself.

Friday evening brought the highly touted Michelena's All You Can Eat Spaghetti Dinner. I'm not certain I've ever seen so many people eating in one location, not even in a university dining hall. The quantities of pasta served were gargantuan. You are by default presented with two dinner rolls as your starting portion, with entire loaves of bread out on the table to follow up. Choccy milk and ice cream also abounded. For the low price of just under $20, there was truly no excuse for not being properly fueled for race day.

Speaking of no excuses, we arrive at race day (yes, I know, we're far into a race report for only just getting to the actual race now. Sorry not sorry). After being rudely awakened by two iPhone alarms perfectly in sync, we dragged ourselves through a semblance of a morning routine. Being so early, and being the more morning-oriented sibling of the two of us, I did succeed in convincing my brother to adorn himself with stick on face gems, as is my custom for races these days. He quite appropriately selected two teardrop shaped gems, "one for every marathon I've killed". Boys will be boys (wholesome) I suppose. We rolled up to the parking lot at the University of Wisconsin - Superior, and beheld the bus line to get to the starting line. This is another quirk of Grandma's Marathon - it is a point to point race, and you get to contemplate the full gravity of your decision to sign up for it on a half hour or so bus ride to the start line. I cannot imagine the logistics gymnastics required to get 9,000 people to the start lines via school buses, but after waiting in line for a bit in the misting rain as busload after busload ahead of us were ferried off, we got onto a bus and the journey truly began.

The starting line was a gauntlet of finish line drop bag collection trucks and porta potties, and a nervous huddled mass praying that the rain would continue to hold off on such a gray and dismal morning. We did our rounds of bathroom and stand-around-observing until it was time to surrender our jackets to the drop back trash cans to be reclaimed at the end of our Ordeal.

We shuffled into our packed corrals, and as the countdown proceeded and the gun went off, we trotted over the start line and down the highway. Now, I will say that the marathon course is quite pretty. You run along a two lane highway for miles and miles, sometimes getting a glimpse of the (angry and gray, on our race day) lake. It is a bit repetitive. You run along Superior for... well, basically the whole race. We were running along at a brisk clip, beating our pacing recommendations without much effort, chasing PRs (for us, sub 3:56:30). We made it to the half marathon point and continued along, but I quickly started to feel the pace catching up with me. By mile 15, I was starting to feel a bit dizzy and nauseous. My brother was doing ok, and he started to pull ahead. By Mile 17, we were officially separated out and my new goal was to stay out of the med tent and avoid an expensive trip to the emergency room. I was thirsty the entire time despite everything feeling sloshy and adhering religiously to my nutrition plan. My brain was simply not prepared for the reality of grinding out 26.2 miles as fast as I could manage on the road. I was quickly discovering that sandwiching a 'fast' road marathon between two trail ultras, without doing any speed workouts and avoiding road running to the greatest extent possible, was simply not something I had cracked this time around. I patted myself on the back metaphorically for coming to terms with my failure rather quickly and for deciding to grit my teeth and get to that finish line no matter how undignified I felt about it. This is where thing became surprising. Despite the pain, and the rain, and the fact that it was kinda cold (too cold to walk for the entire rest of the race for me), the entire race flew by. Even the miles I had to walk some of. I never was out there thinking, 'how much longer?! HOW WILL I ENDURE?!" It just... went by. It didn't matter that the course was kinda boring. It didn't matter that everything hurt and I didn't feel so good. I recalibrated my expectations, trucked along, enjoyed the silly signs and cheers of the spectators (they are just as enthusiastic after hours in the rain. Duluth has an A+ cheering section for sure). I paid attention to all of the makeshift aid stations with juice or beer or fruit. The sign that said "all toenails go to heaven". The fact that from what I could tell, the same spectators were moving from point to point, which is a feat of dedication in and of itself.

As I closed in on downtown Duluth in the final mile, the desire to just walk it in mounted. It was cold. It was rainy. I was over it. However, the spectators mercilessly encouraged anyone who dropped pace and I simply could not handle being yelled at to keep running, so I trudged along. Meters from the finish, the fellow next to me goes, "we're here! We did it!" in awe, and damn if I didn't kinda start crying because yeah, we are here, and we have done it. I have no idea what kind of journey it was for him (but from his tone I might guess it was his first marathon finish), and he had no idea that I too was feeling fairly awed by my ability to drag myself all the way to the finish line in spite of the many things that fell apart for me that morning. We both made it across the finish line, me with a new personal worst marathon time, and my new compatriot very dramatically dropped to his knees with his hands to the sky. I very quickly hobbled away at this point as that was not a narrative that I wished to be included in, and finally the pain and discontent had their chance to hit me full on. As I gimped along with my medal, a photographer flagged me to "Pose with your medal!". Which I totally did because no is not in my midwestern pedigreed vocabulary, but I quickly started crying seconds after that photo was taken. I was handed a mylar blanket (or 'heat sheet' as they called it) and continued my sad, damp, sniffly shuffle to find my brother. At this point I was aware of a new dire issue, which is that the empty Gu wrapper I had shoved in my side pocket under my phone felt as though it had chafed a hole through the side of my leg, and my only remaining consolation was that seeing as I had not passed my brother on the course, it was possible that he was having a slightly better day than me.

This hope was dashed as my eyes alighted on a sad red-headed boy sitting wrapped in a heat sheet under a tree. I hobbled over and also took a seat, at which point he says "I was going to go get my drop back but I can't get up". As the rain continued to fall, we looked forlornly at the lineups of people waiting to collect their drop bags. The competing desires of 'sit forever because wow my legs hurt' and 'I am going to freeze to death if I keep sitting here soaking wet with only a mylar blanket to my name' roiled in our heads until finally, the need to get dry and warmed up won out. While we did have to stand in line for a bit to finally reunite with our jackets and some dry clothes, I will say (full offense intended) that it was more organized than the Sun Run drop back pick up.

I will not go into graphic detail about peeling off clothes that are both sweat and rain soaked in a tent full of other sticky sweaty damp people, the floor blanketed in abandoned heat sheets. I was impressed to discover that while the wayward Gu packet that I was too polite to toss on the road did not bore a literal bleeding hole in my leg, I did have a chafe so bad that in subsequent hours and days it would scab over and make it difficult to sleep. Just when you think you've mastered your chafing prevention routine, nature finds a way.

The trial did not end with getting changed, however. Now that we were warm, dry, and in pain, it was time to hobble the quarter mile or so to the finish line bus stop. Finally checking our phones, we saw our mom's request for additional photos and snapped a very grumpy selfie on the way. Every foot step was a new nightmare as every few seconds one of us thought aloud, "are we there yet?" Finally we reached the buses; I will be the first to tell you that there is nothing more enjoyable than riding an un-air conditioned school bus packed full of sticky, sweaty, damp adults.

We finally made it back to the hotel in a torrent of vague discomfort and grumbling, cleaned up, and landed in the Nirvana that was the clean hotel beds with our respective Nintendo Switch/Steam Decks and snacks. When dinner time rolled around, we ventured back out (full of complaints) to a well reviewed Mexican restaurant. When I tell you this place was sketchy as hell to find, I am not exaggerating. We got lost on a 5 minute drive to the place. The windowless venue on the side of a larger warehouse type building was menacing and did not look like a promising place to find a post-marathon meal. However, upon opening the door, we were greeted by a delightful interior and more tortilla chips than either of us could safely house in our GI tracts. Sometimes, there are secrets to be found in the unlikeliest of places.

The remainder of the trip involves BOGO sourdough loaves, 'vacation coffee', and limping around Duluth the following day which was miraculously sunny. More important than any one thing we did on this trip, though, was the chance to just hang out together. We hadn't gotten to go on a sibling side quest that wasn't a funeral or funeral-adjacent in... well, a very long time. And while those tough experiences brought us together and shaped who we are, it's only in quiet moments of mundane togetherness that you truly get to enjoy who another person is.

In conclusion, our pilgrimage to Duluth taught me a few things.

Always check the full logistics before signing up for a race.

I have to do speed workouts if I want to run PR times. Lame.

We would've crushed a half marathon. Too bad we were signed up for a full marathon.

You should consider cherishing and curating your personal worst performances with as much love and care as your personal best performances.

Just because you hit a physical wall does not mean you need to build a mental wall to match, and your ability to scale your mental walls directly correlates to how you will navigate your physical walls.

The refried beans you eat after a marathon are the best refried beans you will ever experience in your life.

Consider travel insurance if you want to embody the PR-or-ER ethos.

Having a buddy, whether or not you run together, can very easily help you find a 'why' on a tough run. And that 'why' can be 'I need to not keep my brother waiting so long that he loses any remaining respect for me so no more walking'.

Road or trail, rain or shine, PR or ER, there's always more to learn about yourself and others out there.

[icarusthelunarguard]

This Week’s Horrible-Scopes

It’s time for this week’s Horrible-Scopes! So for those of you that know your Astrological Signs, cool! If not, just pick one, roll a D12, or just make it up as you go along. It really doesn’t matter. Better yet! Check out “Heart of the Game, Fredonia” and see if they can sell you those D12’s with the symbols on them. Tell them “Shujin Tribble” sentcha. And “Hail, Hail, Fredonia!” Home of the Blue Devil!

Summer is right around the corner, so it’s time to start making your vacation plans. And we’re JUST the place to help you decide what to do and where to go. So get out your debit cards and get ready to plan your hotel stays. Remember, there’s a 30% Restocking Fee for any cancelled bookings. The Horrible-Scopes will not be responsible for any accidents, either mid-air or on the ground, to anyone using Ryan Air.

Aries 

We’re suggesting you plan your vacation to Costa Rica. It’s relatively easy to get to from the USA and Canada, has reasonable prices, ridiculously clean beaches, and the locals are friendly. What’s not to love about this choice? So This Week… Make sure you book a visit to the Cloud Forest in Monteverde. It’s totally a magical experience! 

Taurus 

Where Aries went with a reasonable price tag, we’re sending you off an expensive one. Even booking through Costco you’ll be paying about $8,000 for 5 nights - but that puts you in an overwater bungalow, all meals, all flights and taxi to/from the airport - and the destination? Bora Bora! So This Week…  Your high school-level French won’t be needed for this trip, but we suggest a hard hat. You’ve heard of Australian Drop Bears? How about Bora Boran Drop Coconuts? That can be a thing.

Gemini  

Speaking of the Australian area of the globe, we’re sending you Fiji. No, they do not make Fiji-Brand Water there. But speaking of, bring a good camera with you because you’ll want to remember the water there to swim in. Just amazingly blue and warm water and you’ll enjoy every minute of it. So This Week… When you plan your vacation, just avoid Denarau Island. That’s where you’ll find the largest concentration of Australian Bogans visiting. If you don’t know what that term means, just ask an Ozzie - they’ll explain. 

Cancer Moon-Child 

We’ll make this one super straight-forward: Iceland! Try to imagine visiting a country that’s incredibly safe, welcoming, chilly, but built like it’s just one giant national park. It’ll be a great visit with a better-than-average chance to see the Northern Lights at night. So This Week… There is an incredible and authentic Ethiopian restaurant in Fludir, run by an Icelandic man and his Ethiopian wife. Some of the best food and coffee. You HAVE to get there and check it out!

Leo 

Fancy taking a trip to the European mainland? Don’t care - we’re sending you to Spain. It doesn't get much hype but it promises sun, sand, cheap beer, cheap food, and it delivers 100% of the time… on the experience, not delivering food to you. If you want to stay away from the British and German tourists, plan on visiting the Basque region. It's a little more akin to the Pacific Northwest in the US, with a nice cool climate, still with stellar food. So This Week… You likely didn’t learn Castilian Spanish, so you might be treated with kid gloves if you try to speak Spanish to the natives. At least they’ll respect the effort.

Virgo 

Some have suggested this location and it’s stirred up a nasty hornet’s nest of opinions. We’re suggesting you go to… OHIO! Now, yes. Ohio’s birthed a number of people who have gone on to intentionally leave the planet for space, but that’s not exactly a bad point. It could be said that they were simply looking for somewhere more exciting than Ohio, and not finding it on the planet, looked elsewhere. So This Week… Order a bottle of Loganberry Syrup to get your taste buds ready for a week at Cedar Point. You’re Welcome. 

Libra

Plan on getting SCUBA Certified because you’ll need it as you head off to Belize! We’re going to remind you to research “the Blue Hole” so you can stay away from it, but this will be an awesome underwater experience! Imagine what it’ll be like to swim with stingray, small sharks, lots and lots of fish, and even eels that you can touch! Nothing will come close to that first dive with your instructor. So This Week… Always fall backwards out of the boat when you’re going SCUBA Diving. Because if you go the other way your facemask will hit the floor of the boat.

Scorpio 

Here’s a sleeper hit for you - and you best not go bragging about it to anyone: Northern Michigan. Giant sand dunes, beautiful bays, the Great Lakes, Mackinac Island… It’s like a different country compared to the rest of Michigan. The woodsy lake vibes with all the waterfalls are truly amazing. So This Week… Just remember that you are right next door to Ontario, Canada up there. Do NOT annoy the local bird life.

Sagittarius 

You’ll likely need a translator to help you out at times, but you’re slated to head out to Edinburgh, Scotland. Do your research and look up all the touristy places and stay way the hell away from them. You may love bagpipe music, but by the third day of hearing it incessantly, you WILL want to lance someone through the chest with a Claymore. So This Week… buy new socks and cushioned insoles for your shoes. Since EVERYTHING is uphill from there you WILL need them.

Capricorn 

We’re sending you WAY up north to Juneau, Alaska. The wilderness is amazing to walk or trudge through, depending on what time of year it is and the weather. But even beyond the daylight hours, you’ll have an amazing view of the night skies - and again, a better-than-average chance of seeing the Northern Lights. So This Week… Make sure your passport is valid because if you want to head to Anchorage, that’s a 925Km (574Mile) straight-line distance, but that’s a 19 HOUR DRIVE! Do NOT run out of fuel on the drive!

Aquarius 

We’ll suggest you consider Maui. Both the location and the animated character as voiced by Dwayne Johnson. We’re pretty sure most of you would LOVE to visit either one for various reasons. So This Week… Don’t even THINK about getting Maori tattoos on your body. They are painful and you WILL regret even trying.

Pisces  

You will be getting the best vacation location. No, seriously.. This is the vacation everyone else on this list is going to be asking to trade with you for. (*Grand Pause*) Grandma's house. Just Picture It - Cartoons & Silver dollar pancakes any time you want them, homemade spaghetti & meatballs, and fresh baked cookies before bed. So This Week… We’re not crying! You’re Crying! Shut up!

And THOSE are your Horrible-Scopes for this week! Remember if you liked what you got, we’re obviously not working hard enough at these. BUT! If you want a better or nastier one for your own sign or someone else’s, all you need to do to bribe me is just Let Me Know - or check out the Ko-Fi page ( https://ko-fi.com/icarusthelunarguard )! These will be posted online at the end of each week via Tumblr, Twitter, Facebook, Discord, and BLUESKY.

[dansnaturepictures]

7th February 2023: Lakeside and home

The sight of a Buzzard soaring against a perfect blue sky is one of my favourite in nature, and I was treated to epic views of this raptor which has been a long time favourite bird of mine circling around in the eastern meadows on my lunch time walk at Lakeside today with it harassed by some Carrion Crows at one point. It was amazing to watch this bird in the air, and just stand and watch in wonder and take this sight in as a great bit of escapism on my lunch break. Cracking views, some of the best I’ve ever got of a Buzzard at Lakeside. In a strong start to the week for flying bird shots for me helped by the brilliant light I enjoyed trying for photos getting the sixth in this photoset of this bird. I saw loads of Magpies at Lakeside today and Carrion Crows well, with a brilliant sighting of a Jackdaw as they do running across the roof visible from my room I took the second picture in this photoset of this bird it’s been a great start to the week for crows for me too. It was a pleasure to see and hear the gushing sound of House Sparrows on my walk and a bird that is sparrow in alternative name only the Dunnock aka Hedge Sparrow lived up to it’s name as I saw the one in the bushes of the front garden well again at lunch time as I went for my walk before it flew off. And it was a fabulous walk of finches too with an exciting view of a stunning male Bullfinch a cracking crimson flash flying into a tree. My first at Lakeside for a while and after last Tuesday’s first Chaffinch seen here for a while a male I saw both a male and a female Chaffinch in the bushes that border Lakeside to the north I’d not seen a female Chaffinch here for ages. The eighth picture in this photoset represents something unique for me, a Goldfinch photo at Lakeside or indeed anywhere as opposed to at or from home where I most frequently see them up close. I got a lovely view of this exciting and colourful bird tucked into vegetation with this bird heard well too on the walk.

In the way of water birds, seeing Greylag Geese in numbers again as I have the past few days in terms of getting towards spring is one thing, but the five Canada Geese I saw on beach lake through a clear view of from the northern path which won’t be doable as the leaves arrive was another. Canada Geese are a species that only come to Lakeside to breed really and they define that late winter/going into spring period for me here as their arrival back makes you anticipate the hopeful spring days of golden goslings from both Greylag Goose and Canada Goose. I was anticipating the Canada Geese’s first showing this year and in these days of fine sunny weather it feels apt. Also a bird of this time of year and beyond at Lakeside and home is the slate grey blacked Lesser Black-backed Gull and I caught sight of one out the window at home today.

Along the northern path I quickly spotted a mammal low to the ground disappearing quickly into a bush. I walked up to roughly where it had gone in as the walk progressed and thought I may have heard something shuffling deep in the vegetation. I am thinking it might have been a Fox which would be exciting, but the view of it was so brief I cannot hand on heart say it wasn’t a cat which you do see in Lakeside a fair bit and would be plausible so close to the houses or even - and this would be a turn up for the books for me here - a Muntjac. It’s one to keep an eye on in case I see it again though. Plant wise beautiful bright daisy on the green out the front, the enticing yarrow seed heads shadows of a wonderful flower I enjoy seeing so much at the flower bed area out the front, prominent teasel seed heads at Lakeside, the daffodil shoots in the front garden mixing nicely with a green bush, possible plantain on the green out the front and red deadnettle near the Lakeside allotments were nice to see. I was also really pleased to see not so ripe but still rich in colour ruby rose hips on a bush at Lakeside looking smashing up against the blue sky with a mossy rose gall looking beautiful in the sun I took the fourth picture in this photoset of some. It was nice to focus on the two together both things I’ve enjoyed a lot this autumn and winter. 

Seeing high dominant bramble in the meadows at Lakeside was a key landscape feature today. It was brilliant to be out in the bright and enriching sunshine again today, what a beautiful day with my lunch break at a beautiful oasis of calm in an urban area. I took the fifth and ninth pictures in this photoset of a view with the bramble mixing with the laurel hedge and a high bit of bramble and the seventh picture in this photoset of a view at Lakeside today. It was a pleasure to see the snow moon lowering in the sky as it got light this morning and see it still looking enormous as it rose over roofs just now. In one of the moon sequences I’ve enjoyed photographing and observing most it was spectacular to see. I wasn’t going to take a photo tonight but couldn’t resist, and going upstairs to grab my camera was almost meant to be as a plane flew across the moon at the right moment to get it in shot, a perhaps needed unique angle for this set of full moon shots I’ve taken making me in aw of the scale of it. Earlier on the constant sun of the day set nicely again today the tenth and final picture I took today in this photoset shows some red sky.

Wildlife Sightings Summary: Buzzard, Greylag Goose, Canada Goose, Mallard, Moorhen, Black-headed Gull seen well on the walk again, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Woodpigeon, Feral Pigeon, Collared Dove, Carrion Crow, Magpie, Jackdaw, Long-tailed Tit seen well again, Blue Tit and Great Tit seen and heard beautifully, Bullfinch, Goldfinch, Chaffinch, Starling seen well at Lakeside and home, Blackbird, Robin, Dunnock, House Sparrow and another bee which was great.

[book4flight]

Cheap Airlines to the USA in 2024: Finding the Best Deals

Are you planning a trip to the USA in 2024 at an exceptionally sensible budget? A few aircraft are competitively estimated, with worldwide trips to the joined states. Be it business, leisure, or simply visiting your loved ones, a cheap flight makes much difference in one's budget. Herein, we take you through the guide on this year's leading airline with pocket-friendly prices to the USA.

Norwegian Air

Norwegian Air is usually known for offering the best deals in town on USA-bound flights by offering fares on their low-cost transatlantic flights. Sometimes this airline does promotions for the latest offers. It is a great option for tourists who would like to save money by avoiding long hauls.

Icelandair

Icelandair also offers relatively cheap flights to various cities in the United States. Another energizing viewpoint of flying with Icelandair is their stopover choice: travelers may stopover in Reykjavik for free. This will be a unique chance to see Iceland and save on your last destination.

Turkish Airlines

Turkish carriers offer extraordinary benefits to travelers and provide cheap admissions to numerous cities in the United States, which is ordinarily cheaper for longer-flying airlines. The airlines benefit travelers with exceptionally great value for budget-conscious travelers.

Discuss Canada

These aircraft work as a part of the budget flights over the USA that Discuss Canada gives, which is huge in number for numerous travelers in Europe and other parts of the world. In addition, its fares tend to drop much more than others can, mainly during low-traffic seasons. The vastness of the network makes it quite convenient to get good deals when flying through Canada.

Budget Airlines

Apart from the major carriers, Spirit Airlines and Frontier Airlines fly into the USA with ultra-low-cost journeys. The base fares are low, but if you carry luggage or want to opt for seats, you have to pay for them. These great airlines that fly on a budget have a properly worked-out plan in place.

Tips for Finding Cheap Flights in 2024

Book in Advance: The better the booking time of your ticket, the higher the likelihood of getting a lower passage.

Be Flexible: One can alter their travel dates then they should make use of, online search engines to carry out price comparisons across different days and months.

Set Fare Alerts: Set fare alerts across various travel platforms. Know the cost fluctuation, keep looking for bargains to save money on a USA trip in 2024 by selecting the right aircraft, and keep your eyes open for deals.

Source Url: https://www.dial4travel.co.uk/flights-to-usa

[casspurrjoybell-24]

The Alpha's Beta - Chapter 17 - Part 2

BOOK ONE: The Alpha's Trilogy

*Warning Adult Content*

The Pack Holding Cells - Part 2

Beta Darren Phoenix

After my chat with Simon Claymore, I got up and went to the clearing, to warm up and trained with everybody.

We did a run, hand to hand combat, mind over body exercises, Ellis had shown the group a new fighting technique they would use in there human form, for if they didn't have time to change and then we went for our last run around Lake Marshall.   

"Good job man... but I gotta ask... where's Alpha Silas?" Ellis asked, coming up behind me and patting me on the back.

He left his hand on my neck for few seconds, before moving it back to his side.  

I just shrugged, not really knowing or caring where the Alpha was.

He could be out 'releasing his stress' by fucking someone else for all I cared.

Though I knew he wasn't because I would feel the bond being torn.   

It was almost funny, when he had sex with Lucca, I would feel the strain but it didn't feel like it was damaged.

It made sense now that I know he didn't know I was his mate.

So I could only imagine the pain I would feel, if he willingly slept with someone else.  

**********

I made my way to the I.T. room I had that gut feeling again, that one the churned my stomach, like a child's nerves at a Christmas concert.

I took a deep breath to try and rid the feelings and after a few minutes, it finally subsided and I made my way inside the room.

Everything was as it was left yesterday.

My desk chair was pulled out, Silas' chair was beside mine.

My computer was turned off and Quinton and Darcy looked as if they haven't moved an inch, as well.   

"Anything on Silas' cell-phone Quinton?" I asked, as I sat down in my chair and turned my computer on.   

"Nothing really. I tracked the number to a disposable phone that was activated in New York but it was activated two months ago. The text went through eighteen different systems but I can't seem to find what one the text first stemmed from. The closest signal from here was about three towns over. I told Simon about it this morning. He talked to Ellis and they're sending someone up there, now."   

"Why wasn't I told about this?" I asked, getting a little frustrated, at the fact no one bothered to say anything to me.   

"Silas came in at about three. I told him everything and then he talked to Ellis and then with Simon. I though Alpha would pass it on to you as well."   

I roll my eyes and started typing into my computer.

I was able to get most of the pack files onto it, so I wouldn't have to worry about losing papers.

I also have everything backed up on my computer in my office.

Plus on three USB's that I have in three different spots.

That was a tip from Simon.   

After half an hour of going through email's, the office door swung open and none-other then Silas, came in.

He doesn't even spare me a glance.

He just walks straight over to Darcy.   

"Anything on Lucca Miethke's family ties yet?" he asks crossing his arms over his chest.

The air around him in thick and would make any normal person run the other way from him.

Darcy nods her head and opens something on her computer.  

"So," she starts off.

"Lucca Miethke is a fourth generation American from Ohio state. His family is originally from Canada and Russia. His Mother, Polina was an immigrant from Russia but she had no living relatives. Her and his father Thomas had Lucca and Alistair. Lucca was the only survivor of a raid, besides an Omega named Snow. He was taken in by a pack up North."

"Thomas Miethke has step-sister, Emily. Who lives in Alberta with her mate and two kids but she's been low on the raider. She even lives in Calgary, which is weird since most werewolves prefer Jasper or Banff," Darcy went on to say Lucca had no known contact with his Aunt, they had hacked into his computer and saw no messages between the two.

"The only thing Lucca really did on his laptop was play Face-book games."   

I looked over to Silas.

He looked tired, his skin was pale and his hair was flat on his head, like it had no life to it.

His eyes skimmed over the words on Darcy's laptop, he just nodded his head along with what was being said.

His normally relaxed shoulders were tense and ridged.

He looked worse then he did yesterday.  

I rolled my eyes and looked back at the computer.

If he thought coming in here and making me feel guilty was going to work, he was wrong.

I wasn't some school-girl that couldn't handle the silent treatment.   

I looked around my desk and let out a groan.

"I left a file in my office. I'll be right back," and with that I left and went up to the office.

************

Opening my office door, I was greeted to my polished oak desk but it was what was behind the desk that made my fingers curl into a fist.   

Behind my desk sat a young boy, with medium length brown hair pulled back into a pony tail and olive skin, no more then twelve, he was digging through my desk drawer like he owned it.

He hadn't noticed me standing in the doorway and what got me was I couldn't get a scent off him.   

I cleared my throat and watched as he nearly touched the roof with his head.

His blue eyes stared widely at me.

I could see his nerves, shaking in his hands.

'Like a deer caught in the headlights.'

"Now, I'm going to ask you nicely. What are you doing?"   

The boy shook his head.

Then looked around franticly, looking for what I could only assume was a way out.

I took a step towards him as I took my cell-phone out of my pocket.

I texted Silas a quick '911' before putting it back in my pocket and looked at the boy.   

"Alright, lets try this again."

I stepped closer and he pressed himself to the wall behind him.

"How many people, are in this building, that shouldn't be right now?"   

The boy held up one shaky finger then pointed towards himself and that was the last thing he did before his eyes rolled back into his head and he slumped forwards, into my arms.

'Great.'   

I lifted up the boy so he was laying over both my arms.

Like a bride who had to many shots at her wedding and turned around, just in time to see Silas and Quinton run into the door way.

They both had wide eyes, Silas looked like he was ready to rip someone's limbs apart.  

"Who the hell is that?"   

"Oh you know just some kid I took in... fed... let break into my office and steal my stuff. You know, the regular stuff," I said with a shrug.

Apparently Silas doesn't know how to take sarcasm as he glares at me.

"I just found him going through my desk drawers. The kid just passed out on me. He can't be very old. I don't know who's crazy enough to send him in here alone, when we're all here..."

"I'll call Ellis have him set up a team to check the building and surrounding. Quinton go back and check the security cameras. I'll do a sweep of all the offices. Take him to the infirmary."

I huffed and pushed past the two in the door, bumping my should with the Alpha's on my way out.   

I let it slide that he didn't have someone else take the kid.

Like my senses we're as good as his.

'His panties were in a knot and I was being mature and letting him have his moment.'